KEATON B EA CH
Best Bet April 2019

#1 Charles Dodd and his son Allen with their catch February 23rd. 

Dang! Trout fishing is just “off the chain” as the kids say, with such an incredible “Bite” when it is on. That bite has been on the last hour of the incoming, and the first hour of the flop almost every afternoon this past week. (today is 3/12) We started, last week, with a cold front that pushed the water temps down to 57 degrees; so, we limited out in an hour and a bit throwing Paul Brown’s evils in the #11 pattern. By the next day, the trout had warmed up a bit, seeing 60 degrees by the afternoon. Each successive day we added 3 to 4 degrees to the Gulf water temperature, and by Saturday, some folks were taking trout on topwater stickbaits in 73-degree water.

Mostly, the lipped hard jerkbaits were the ticket with the Bite-A-Bait fighters leading the pack. Mark Casteel of Sylvester, GA. was down for his bachelor party for five days at Keaton, and he and his groomsmen caught their limits each day for 5 straight days. Mark also caught great trout and reds on the NEW Skins MiirOdine this week.

April will be OUTSTADING! It usually is; as water temps holding in the 70’s bring all the species we expect to see on the flats, out for the party. We already had a shark take half a trout from Bob Hafner, of Perry Fl.  fishing with me Sunday. We also saw blues and one Spanish. Trout will attack all the topwater stick baits, and floating baits you wish to throw. Almost everything will draw strikes, and larger sow trout will begin to show up more often, as they move up into the shallows, to feed for the spring spawn. Concentrate on depths between 3 to 4 feet, once the schools of pelagic baitfish show up from the south. Live pinfish will become the mainstay of bait choice on board One More Cast in April, and we will fish them under Back Bay Thunders with 30 lb. TrikFish leaders. I spool up with TrikFish 10 lb. Game Green line for my live bait rods which are Star Rods model SG817FT76 and use TrikFish X-Rated co-polymer (dark green) 12 lb. line for my artificial bait rods, with a Star Rods model SG614FT70.

Trout will not be the only quarry in April, as I mentioned earlier, blues, mackerel, and cobia will be in the mix, and will bite almost any offering you toss out there. Target Spanish Mackerel with Clark Spoons in the size 0 and 00, either trolling the outside 12 to 15-foot edges of the grass, or casting them to schools of baitfish being blasted by the macks. Work the edges of the bait, and reel as fast as you can ‘cause the mackerel are faster! If you are after pure action, rig a short 8 to 10 inch section of Malin # 5, 43 lb. single strand wire in front of your favorite cup-faced chugger lure, prop lure, or simply a stickbait. (here, I would choose a Poppa Mullet, MirrO Pop, and a SheDog; all MirrOlures ) Watch your fingers and use a 5 gallon bucket to take them off the lure (less clean-up later) also easier to find those lost fingers…..
Cobia may show up late in the month, but May is more often their best month at Keaton. Keep a small blue crab ready with a 40 lb. outfit handy when ling decide to pop up under your boat.

Red fish will begin to show up in greater numbers and please anglers, tossing HEX Intruder weedless spoons in both gold and copper. These reds will also eat jig spinners like Precision Tackle’s Thunder-Spins, Red Daddies and Redfish Magics. I prefer Assassins Sea Shads in Texas Roach, Space Guppy, Copperhead, and Chicken-on-a-Chain for my tail choice on my Thunder-Spins.

Meanwhile, Let’s Go Fishing!
Pat McGriff dba One More Cast guide service for 29 years!
www.onemorecast.net
onemorecast@gtcom.net
850.838.7541