With water temps starting to cool down…

September is here and that means fall is right around the corner. As we look forward to each day being just a little bit cooler than the next, the fishing will begin to pick up as well.  With water temps starting to cool down this gives many of our fish a little more energy to expend hunting for their next meal.  They also know they have to feed heavily over the next couple of months so that they will be fattened up before winter when their meals can become fewer and farther between.

Redfish- This is an incredible month for one of my favorite species! Redfish will be schooled up in huge numbers as they continue through their spawning season. Some days they can be picky but, other days they will eat just about anything that crosses their paths.  Most of these fish will be over the keeping slot size but, that doesn’t matter because there is still a closer on redfish until 2020. None the less they are an absolute blast to catch!

Snook- This is my other favorite species to catch this time of year! The season usually opens this month but, they will closed until 2020 as well. Snook will be heading back in from the gulf from spawning all summer long. But because they are quite sensitive to the colder water temps in the winter, these fish take complete advantage of the optimal water temps throughout the next couple of months. This means they will be feeding excessively making them easier to catch. Snook can actually die if water temps get down to around 55 degrees. So, in the coldest months they will travel far back into the backwaters as possible.

Tarpon- They will continue to become less active as the cooler months approach us. But, the juvi tarpon bite should stay pretty strong until we get those first couple of cold snaps. Catch them while you can! Winter is coming (haha)!

Since redfish and snook are still banned from harvesting, be sure and please handle all these fish with extreme care! We all have to do our best to preserve what we love so, that our fisheries will continue to be world flourish.

Eric Henson is the owner of Casting Kayaks LLC. a guided kayak fishing company out of Sarasota Florida. He specializes in inshore light tackle or fly fishing from Tampa Bay to Charlotte Harbor. To book a guided fishing trip with Eric check out his website www.CastingKayaks.com or give him a call at 941-504-1349