 The past week in Orange Beach and its’ surrounding areas have been a little tough, but anglers are still managing to piece together some nice messes of fish! With the neap tide behind us and strong tides for the remainder of the week, expect to see some improvements throughout the area. Mild weather should make for extremely pleasant fishing conditions regardless of how the fish bite!
Perdido Pass has been the go-to spot over the past six weeks, and still continues to produce a few bundles of redfish here and there. The bluefish are by far the most abundant species in the pass for now. For anglers just looking for some hot action, bluefish fishing is hard to beat. Live baits, hard plastics, and a variety of jigs and spoons will all entice a ferocious bluefish bite. A clouser minnow stripped across the submerged jetty has worked well for those fly fishing. Expect to see some mixed in redfish action around the bridge in the early morning on the falling tide and late in the afternoon once the tide has pushed back in. Live baits, four and five inch Gulps!, and larger swimbaits have all been effective in coercing the redfish to bite!
The annual fall flounder run seems to be on hold for the time being. The pass and the beach have both been covered up with an abundance of ten inch flounders. There have been some larger fished mixed in, but they have been few and far between. With the new tide cycle and the full moon this week, we hope to see a push of some larger flounder. Only time will tell in this manner! Successful anglers have been using live bull minnows, Berkley Gulps!, and an assortment of soft plastics.
The back bay waters have been showing a warming trend when it comes to catching trout. Waters north of the ICW have been holding quite a few school-sized speckled trout. Getting these trout to consistently bite has been tough at times. Fishing an assortment of Gulps! rigged on a weighted Owner Twistlock has been most effective for me. Live shrimp and LYs have also put fish on ice for us as well. In areas with significant ledges along with a little push of the current, we’ve been picking a few redfish and black drum. A live shrimp rigged under a popping cork has been most effective when fishing these ledges. A shrimp imitator, such as a D.O.A., methodically fished has been equally effective also.
The night fishing, despite the chillier weather, has still been good for local anglers. Terry Cove, Cotton Bayou, and Bayou St. John have all been stacked with white trout. Huge incoming tides during the early evening will have the water crystal clear. Lightening your leaders and main lines will play a key role in convincing picky speckled trout to bite under the lights. Concentrate your fishing efforts on the edges of the lights. It’s easier to persuade a speckled trout to eat baits in poorer lighting conditions. Live shrimp, LYs, and bull minnows are all great baits for night fishing. Mixing in an assortment of artificial baits will help making finicky fish bite as well.
Another option for the night owl angler is to fish the falling tide under the full moon in Perdido Pass. Big bull reds will push into the deeper water with heavy current under the full moon this week. Dead mullet halved is my favorite bait for BIG redfish! A heavy Carolina rig and a half a mullet is all it takes!! Bundle up for warmth and wait on that big bite!
Last, the beach is teaming with life and the bull reds should be right around the corner! Sunday, the beach was flat and LOADED with red minnows. Acres and acres of bait made finding redfish almost impossible. We watched a fellow angler boat 3 redfish off the beach near the state pier. A handful of other fish were caught trolling from reports we have received at the shop as well. All the pieces are in place, it’s just a matter of time before the red fishing erupts!! For the fly fishermen in the area, the Bonita were thick just to the west of the Four Seasons pier. A white clouser or deceiver is all it generally takes to entice the Bonita bite! Finally, Spanish mackerel have still been caught well around bait bundles on the surface and an occasional king mackerel has been trolled up as well.
Thanks and Good Fishin,
Captain Mo Shaver
Mo Fishin Bait & Tackle, Inc.
www.MoFishin.biz
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