October has finally made it here. The weather is cooling down and the mullet are on the move with the big juicy shrimp right behind them. So are the fish. October is a transition month for a lot of species but it’s not complicated. It can be some of the best fishing of the year.
I focus a lot on Speckled Trout in October and they can be found all over the coast in October. The shortening daylight hours is what triggers the specs to move to their winter haunts along with temperature. A good year we will have a run on the surf and in the inlets all the way up to the heads of the rivers. I like to focus on potholes, grass flats, ledges, current rips, and points. Google Maps is your friend if you are fishing an unfamiliar area.
Some of the baits I will be using during this time are MirrOlure 17MRs, 18MRs, MirrOlure She Pups, Storm Shrimp, Saltwater Assassin plastics and Saltwater Assassin curly tails fished under 4Horsemen popping corks. I like 1/4 ounce swimbait hooks and jig heads in high current areas like the inlet and 1/8 ounce when in more inland type areas. When you are in the higher current areas I like to sweep the current with the lighter weight, not drag the bottom. Grandaddy wasn’t totally wrong about those 3/8 and 1/2 ounce heads, they do have their place when the fish are sluggish or pressured and on the bottom in heavy current.
You have places where you know the fish will be on certain tides and you may have to wait on the current, but I like to cover some ground during this transition time when I’m not in a “spot”.
Topwater plugs and popping corks are great search baits. The fish are on the move and you should be as well. If the fish are active they will let you know. Canals, ditches, river flats, bays all hold trout at one time or another in October. All you need to do is get out there and locate them.
CAPTAIN ALLEN JERNIGAN
