St. Joe Bay / Indian Pass – December 2019

Scott Burgess from Tallahassee with a beautiful upper slot redfish caught on a Slayer INC stick bait in pearl white color.
Scott Burgess from Tallahassee with a beautiful upper slot redfish caught on a Slayer INC stick bait in pearl white color.

December is, or can be, tough fishing, but it can also yield some fantastic days on the water. The trick is fishing around the cold fronts that tend to hit every 8-10 days.

As everyone knows winter weather in Florida changes day to day. Cold fronts bring rain first, then, a shift in wind out of the north, temperature drops, followed by the wonderful bluebird skies with lite winds and sunshine. These are the days you want to target for fishing because the sun warms the water slightly and fish become active as their metabolisms increase. Fish know they need to feed as much as possible in preparation for the next cold front.

Focus your efforts on or near fresh water inflows like river deltas, intracoastal waterways or warm water discharges from industrial plants because this is where bait will congregate attracting the predators you seek. Live shrimp on a bottom rig will work great for trout and redfish. Bouncing the bottom with a 3/8- to 1/2-oz jig head tipped with a soft plastic shrimp will also work well in these discharge areas.

CAPT. JORDAN TODD
Saltwater Obsessions
850-227-6550