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Legendary Fall Fishing for Shallow Water Anglers!
By: Capt. Sally Moffett
In South Texas after a long, hot summer, everyone chomps at the bit for a bit of cool air to arrive from the north. In all reality, that doesn’t usually come along until about October, but fall patterns for fishing sometimes begin to appear in late September all along the middle Texas Coast.
It all starts with the migration of the big redfish from the flats and bays to the gulf as giant herds of hefty redfish congregate all along the way to the gulf passes. Beginning at the passes from the flats to the bays and leading all the way through the major channels to the jetties or fish passes, anglers of all kinds can key on moving tides at these locations for “redfish rodeos”. Flocks of birds and frenzied bait also tell the story of large congregations of these hungry predators that devour everything in their path as they travel toward the gulf.
The fun of fall fishing is this hearty feeding activity. Redfish, revved up by slightly falling water temperatures brought on by cooler nights, get the message from Mother Nature that it’s time to wake up from their summer time laziness and prepare for the upcoming winter. Cooler water temperatures give the first signal, but Mother Nature brings on another tiny shrimp migration about the same time, giving all predators another great reason to gather en mass in the back lakes, grassy flats and estuaries to feed on the newly arriving fare.
Water levels in the late summer drop very low and tend to stay there until the early fall. Then, as we move closer to the fall equinox, water levels begin to rise. This phenomenon helps to revive the hot, grass-choked back lakes with fresh, cooler gulf water and assists the new shrimp migration on their move to the protective grass along with the hoards of predators that follow to eat them.
At this point, reds and big trout along with flounder, all move into the shallow water. The shear variety of food available to them there leads them to drop their picky summertime habits and gorge on all types of food, all sizes and without concern. No finesse is necessary for the fly caster in the fall. As long as you get your fly in the general direction of the fish, they are going to hop on it like a tick! Throw a big fly, throw a small fly, throw a popper, it doesn’t matter. If you are a lure caster, toss a gold spoon, topwater, spinner bait, whatever, in the fall, the predators are eating like there’s no tomorrow! The food of choice for these hungry herds are finger mullet, pin perch, glass minnows, shrimp, killifish, two or three kinds of crabs, worms, you get the picture….anything that swims or walks is fair game when the water starts to cool off!
Moving on to hunting at that time of the year, you say? Too bad! This is the time to feel sorry for the anglers who give up the rod and reel for the 4-wheeler and the deer rifle. Missing this fishing action is like missing your daughter’s wedding because of a good football game on TV! Don’t do it!
There’s a good reason that fall fishing in Texas is absolutely legendary. After the hot, lazy days of summer, the change of seasons provides new energy for the fish and fisherman to hunt and gather for the upcoming winter. Be there with your stringer in hand for some of the best fishing the year has to offer!
Springtime Shallow Water
Fishing Tactics
By: Capt. Sally Moffett
The change from winter to spring on the coast is not just a date on a calendar. More specifically it is a water temperature! When the magic number of 70 degrees arrives and stays around for a while, Mother Nature signals to all creatures in the water that winter is officially over and that the feeding frenzy of spring should begin.
70 degree water does many things. One of the most important of them is the emergence of moss and tiny grasses on the bottom in the shallow water marshes, lakes and estuaries. Grass provides many important things, one of which is cover for the tiny new members of the community. The first to show up are tiny minnows who struggle to find adequate protection from the hungry redfish that have tentatively just arrived. Any piece of grass or moss that you’ll find on the bottom will be inhabited by mass quantities of these tiny fish. New grassy or mossy areas are a prime target in the early spring for both the hungry redfish and an astute angler. As the water continues to warm, and stays consistently around 70 degrees, the tiny new grass really begins to grow and more new arrivals start to appear, in mass quantities.
The next bait to appear is a new shrimp migration coming in from the gulf and entering the estuaries for cover, food and growth. About the same time that this early springtime phenomenon occurs, Mother Nature signals the redfish to leave its wintertime grounds and seek out this new source of food, in mass quantities!
All of these conditions also coincide with a springtime rise in water levels from the low water of the winter, allowing the fish to easily enter these shallow areas and stay there through the spring. All of these things are orchestrated to give us at least two months of non-stop fish feeding activity! Very windy days may interrupt this schedule, but not for long! Don’t let marginal weather stop you from stalking these hungry herds of redfish!
Springtime fishing is a time for beginner fly fishermen to have great success! The sheer numbers of fish who inhabit these areas give even a beginner a good shot at catching their first redfish on the fly!
Because everything in these lakes, marshes and estuaries are small and emerging, make sure that you match your fly or lure size to coincide with this condition. Throwing a giant #2 fly or a great big ol’ Top Dog, Jr. might appear to be something akin to a car battery to the herds of redfish roaming these lakes for tiny, tiny shrimp. Take your fly sizes down to a #6 or #8. When the reds are tailing in big groups, feeding on the bottom, make sure you allow time for your fly to get to the bottom of the pile before moving it in small, short and slow strips. If you are throwing lures, use a 1/8th ounce gold spoon and present it the same way.
Your powers of observation will tell you how the fish are feeding, what they are doing, how many there are, and what they are feeding on. Use those observations and adapt your techniques to fit right in to the conditions of the day. You will have unbelievable success if you try and understand the dynamics of springtime feeding in the shallow water.
Moving into the early summer, you will see a change in the voraciousness of these giant herds of redfish. Come mid-June, they will have eaten a substantial amount of food, the shrimp who have survived the spring will leave the back lakes, marshes and estuaries for the deeper water of the bay (this is when you’ll notice the bay shrimpers dragging their nets right outside your favorite back lakes…). Bait fish will have grown and so will the crabs. More observation will tell you that it’s time to adapt a little. The key to good angling success is to understand how to fish each season as it comes along, making small adjustments to your presentation, fly or lure size and the locations you are fishing.
Springtime fishing is by far, rivaled only by fall fishing! After the long, cold and windy winter, it is a very fast start to a new angling season! Don’t wait for summer to start fishing – do it now!
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