Warming waters will bring bait, followed by large trout and spanish mackerel to the inshore waters and mahi to the offshore waters.

Fishing Forecast March 2011 Jacksonville-1.jpg

As soon as the inshore water temperature reaches 65 degrees, expect a migration of shrimp, minnows and small mullet to move into the waters. This brings our gator trout and they are ready to feed up before the big span. Trout in the five to ten pound class are normal in the spring in northeast Florida. These monster fish can be caught using and assortment of soft plastics, hard lures, live and natural dead bait.



One of the most fun and exciting methods is a surface strike. To achieve these spine tingling hair raising strikes, try a four or six inch Gotcha Shad Body with a 4/0 X-Point X25Z hook buried just under the surface. This lure fished on fifteen pound test Power Pro line can be worked just on the surface to entice monster strikes from both trout and redfish. The colors that have worked the best for me are chartreuse, black and silver, all black, and all silver. Toss it over the rocks or near the grassy edge and slowly twitch it until it comes to the surface, where you can keep it as it is worked back towards the boat or some great big monster fish eats it.



Other very good top water lures that have worked well in this area are the Super Spook in almost any color you can find. Last year I tried the freshwater version of the big spook and they worked to produce some quality strikes from both redfish and trout. The down side to the freshwater series is, the hooks only last a couple of trips before rusting up but what do you expect, they are designed for freshwater.



Live bait like shrimp work well fished under popping type cork over shallow rocks or oyster mounds that are submerged. Also try a live shrimp on a conventional float rig. This rig can be fished in depths from a few feet to how ever much line you have on your reel. The traditional float rig is best fished on a bait caster style reel like the Penn International 965. This reel in conjunction with an Ugly Stik Lite Inshore 7 foot rod make a great combination to do battle with big trout and reds that you will catch using the old fashioned float rig technique.



There should still be some sheepshead in the rocks around the inlets and these bait stealing, hard pulling fish can be (if you are quicker than they are) hooked using fiddler crabs, shrimp, clams, and oysters. There is one thing about hooking these bad boys and that is, YOU KNOW YOU HAVE ONE when the hook penetrates their mouth because they pull better than any other fish in the rocks and for sure, they eat good.



The Spanish mackerel are a no brainer to catch. Get a few Clark Spoons in 00 or 0 size, tie on a piece of 20 to 30 pound leader, find the diving birds, cast in the middle of the birds, turn the reel handle as fast as you can. You cannot turn the reel handle too fast. OR, you can get a Sea Striker size number 1 planer, clean the oil off of it, scratch it up with some steel wool and spray paint it flat black. From the planer tie on a five to ten foot piece of thirty pound leader then your Clark Spoon and troll around the outside of the diving birds. When the fish strikes the spoon, the planer will release and planer and fish will come to the surface for you to reel in.

Whether you are casting to the spanish or trolling, BRING MORE than one outfit per pole as these fish have a mouth full of razor blades and will separate some of your lures from you. Also be careful getting them off the hook as a bite from them will result in some of your blood being shed.



For you offshore folks, expect the MAHI MAHI to start showing up in late March in the deeper waters of the stream. Lures that have a history of producing good catches of Mahi

are the Sea Striker Sea Scoundrel, Tuka Trolls, Penn Tantalizer and any other lure in these designs. You can rig these from a single to triple hook rig in conjunction with a ballyhoo or fresh strip bait. Head for the edge of the stream, look for other boats or a nice weed line, send out your baits and get ready for an exciting battle with a fish that is a blast to catch.



A good rod and reel outfit would be a Penn International 30 or 50 on a Ugly Stik Custom six to seven foot rod and spooled with thirty to fourty pound test line.




Capt Jim's Fun Fishing Inc.
17184 Dorado Cir
Jacksonville, Fl 32226
904 757 7550
www.hammondfishing.com
jim@hammondfishing.com