Capt. Neil Eisner
The month of October is my favorite time to fish. It’s also known for Halloween. Ghosts, goblins, and redfish all come out. This time of year is what us locals call Red October. It’s the time of year when the fish will start to move into the back bays and creeks. There’s no date on the calendar, as there is for Halloween, so how do you know when it starts? Well, as the story goes, after the third cold front moves down from the north and crosses over the Florida peninsula, that’s the start of Red October. The outside temperatures starts to fall. The nights are cooler and the highs for the day are not so high. The water will also start to cool off. When redfish start to feel the changes, they know winter is on its way and it’s time to feed and fatten up for the winter months to come. But how long will it last? Well I’ve seen years where it lasted for 4 weeks, but with an Indian summer it might last through Thanksgiving. As you move around the bay, notice all the schools of bait fish. Pilchards are an excellent choice if you are proficient in throwing the cast net. If you want to use live shrimp, it’s worth an extra buck or two for the hand-picked shrimp at the bait shop. I pinch off the tales of the shrimp and push the hook of a 1/4 oz jig head through the tail and have the hook come out the underside of the shrimp. Pitch the rig up under the mangrove overhangs. When the sun comes out you might find the reds on the sun shadow, line as they are warming up. Want to learn more, email or call me. I’m your captain. Neil Eisner
