By Craig Korczynski, Contributing Writer
Happy New Year! The holiday season comes to an end, hope all you anglers received new fishing tackle and gear. New year, new tackle; now it’s time for rod bending action. This time of year, the cool fronts bring brisk north east winds producing cooler water temperatures and at time rough conditions, but that should not stop you from getting on the water and bending a rod.
The Lake Worth Lagoon will be very active as snook, tarpon, jacks, trout, and even redfish are just a few species anglers can expect to tango with. Live mullet, pinfish, and greenies work great for all of these species along with artificial baits like D.O.A. C.A.L 3” Shad Tail in glow / gold belly rush and D.O.A. shrimp. Remember work your baits slowly and work the area you are fishing thoroughly. Look for any signs of bait fish and always look for moving water.
This month snook can be found sunbathing in the shallows and near dock pilings during mid-day. Use a stealthy approach while in search of the snook and present your baits slowly. Live baits will entice the snook to strike. Artificial baits like a D.O.A. shrimp in holographic or glow and gold rush belly is a great choice as well. The bigger snook can be found around bridges or deep holes ranging from 5 to 20 feet. When fishing for these snook, be sure to use your depth finder. Look around any structure or ledge where snook might be holding. A D.O.A. Terror Eyez and D.O.A. C.A.L. 3” Shad Tail in stark naked and pearl colors work great along with live baits dropped to the bottom.
The grass flats are full of life this month. Fishing the flats is fun for the whole family, due to wide variety of species that can be caught. Buck tail jigs tipped with shrimp is an excellent bait of choice for most anglers in this area, but nothing beats a popping cork with a D.O.A. shrimp; it catches everything. When fishing the grass flats look for any bait in the area and work the water column from depths of 2 to 7 feet. The pompano, jacks, ladyfish, trout, and sheepshead are just a few of the species anglers will encounter while jigging. Once you find the fish try and mark that spot and work it hard, doing this will keep your rods bent all day long.
Captain Craig Korczynski
561-644-4371 • phlatsinshorefishing.com