With a few warm days it feels as if summer is already here! The water is still a little muddy from wind and lots of fresh water pushing down river to the coast. That being said still, ” fishing has been good! “A strong if not great whiting bite! The whiting bite will lessen start as conditions continue to warm. Large pods of 6 inch pogies are thick in the sounds. With bait fish comes sharks. While fishing near a large pod we hooked and caught several male atlantic sharp nose sharks. A fun fighting fish about 3 feet in length. Lots of ladyfish have shown as well! The ladyfish action around the beachfront has been strong! This a fun fish particularly with a fly or artificial. The seatrout bite has been good particularly in the sounds fishing rips with live bait. Seatrout are keying on glass minnows but will readily take a shrimp. Most the shrimp are a little large. Don’t anticipate to see smaller shrimp until the brownies , brown shrimp, arrive which is about the 1st of June.
Lots of anticipation on the flounder bite. Generally the flounder bite corresponds to Memorial Day as general time frame when fishermen say flounder are biting! A few are being caught but anticipate the flounder bite to picking up in the coming weeks!
When pogies are flicking on the water there are likely predator around. As conditions warm large predator fish will be more and more numerous. For now most the pogies are being pushed up by blue fish, lady fish or small sharks but that will be changing.
The CCA Skidaway Chapter recently had their annual banquet. The chapter banquets are great opportunity to renew a membership as well as attend a fun event! This is definitely a organization that fishermen and conservationists can rally behind! Check their website for coming events at www.ccaga.org Miss Judy of Miss Judy Charters spoke recently at chapter meeting. These are fun learning occasions where one can pick up some information on fishing!
As water gets cleaner the bite should pick up. Tides are decreasing throughout the week. Likely the better seatrout bite will be locations with better currents. Redfish action has been good. Fishermen who are consistently targeting these fish are able to land six or more in an outing with up about twelve fish. Mud minnows as well shrimp are a great redfish bait! A report or two of large schools or redfish but don’t anticipate to see that. Those fish are on the move and not easily caught. As the flats heat the schools tend to break up but an occasional school can be spotted. Sharks also have a tendency to bust up schools of redfish or seatrout. As water raise look for reds hanging around dock piling in deeper water.
Hope this of interest and help! Fish On! Capt. Jack McGowan