Fishing forecast for Nov 2010 Jacksonville

[jackdaniels]

Fishing forecast for Nov 2010



Cooling water equals fired up fish



By now the water has cooled considerably since the hot summer months and this means several things for us fishing folks. With cooler water the dissolved oxygen is much greater in the water and with this the fish turn on. The big bait schools that have been way up the river all summer are migrating toward the ocean and everything is feeding on them as they make there swim to the ocean.



The reds, trout and flounder can be found in big numbers around the inlets, creek mouths and shallows in places like Mill Cove. This is a great time to get out your big top water baits. Favorites around here are the Zara Spook, Top Dog and the Got-Cha 4 and 6 inch Shad Bodies rigged on a floating jig head. I like to work these from the grass edge to about 30 feet off of the bank. The Zara Spook and Top Dog need to be worked slowly with the WALK THE DOG action. The Cot-Cha can be worked slowly with a slight side to side action. All of these lures produce nice catches of reds and trout this time of the year if worked properly. Keep in mind that most big fish are opportunistic feeders and rarely chase a bait that is moving fast. Keep it slow and steady and wait until the rod is doubled over before reacting to the strike.



Don’t be afraid to throw your cast net for some finger mullet. These shinny fish are great fished under a popping cork or a carolina rig in places that reds and trout hold, like over the top of oyster mounds, creek mouths and grassy points. A great rig for this is 20 to 30 pound Power Pro on the spool, a barrel swivel, a ¼ to ½ ounce egg sinker, a piece of 20 pound test Cajun Red leader and a Daiichi Circle Wide hook. Cast out to your spot, put the rod in the rod holder and sit back and wait for the rod to double over. This is a great way to relax and still call yourself fishing. Remember NO HOOK setting with a circle hook. The great thing about this kind of fishing is you can fish multiple rods all at the same time.



The ocean fishing should be getting in the fall mode with nice catches of seabass, vermillion snapper, red snapper, grouper, wahoo, tuna and more. The bottom fish should have moved in to close in waters, 5 to 15 miles out. Some good spots for these tasty critters are:

Nine Mile 45192.9 61948.6 3023.348 8110.620

Paul Main 45171.4 61966.0 3019.860 8111.130

Montgomery Reef 45234.6 61958.7 3026.637 8113.054

Montgomery Reef 45231.1 61959.7 3026.210 8112.979



All of these placements are with in site of land on a clear day and all hold nice fish. You might have to work these spots to get a nice box. Move around, fish up current, down current and all around. Bring your big bottom gear and lots of tackle as these placements have many snags. A great bait is a nice live mullet, pinfish, grunt and an assortment of dead baits like, frozen cigar minnows, boston mackerel, octopus, and a Got-Cha 6 to 9 inch paddle tail that you have had soaking in menhaden oil for about a week or longer. When you soak soft plastics in menhaden oil, they get harder and the little fish cannot get them off of the hook, but still peck at it, which attracts the larger fish. The scent that you introduce into the strike zone is a killer when it comes to attracting fish.



The offshore trolling action is usually pretty good this time of the year if you can make the long run to deeper water, say 100 to 150 feet deep.



King mackerel make their winter time run and days of 50 fish are not uncommon. A frozen cigar minnow rigged on a live bait rig and trolled at bout 2 to 3 knots is deadly.



If you desire larger fish try heading to water around 125 to 150 feet deep and your chances of hooking a wahoo, tuna, sailfish or maybe something real big are pretty good. For these fish try trolling 6 to 8 knots and for the rig, I like a Sea Striker Cedar Plug, Sea Scoundrel and Tuka Troll. The cedar plug can be trolled plain, the plug and a the hook. They come rigged or unrigged and are an easy bait to use. Tie it to your line and send it out about 30 to 50 yards, put the boat in gear and go. How much easier can it be?



The Sea Scoundrel and Tuka Troll work great in conjunction with a natural bait like a ballyhoo or belly strip from a bonita. I like a double or triple hook rig for these baits. I use Tru Turn 7/0 to 9/0 hooks either ties to 150 pound test monofilament or wire. Using wire will keep the toothy critters from relieving you of your lures but the mono usually produces more strikes. Take two of the hooks and using side cutters open the eye on two of the hooks, just enough to get the point and barb through it. Do this with two hooks, close the eye using a big set of pliers and you should have a rig that you will not miss many strikes. Slide the Sea Scoundrel or Tuka Troll on your leader and you are ready to go. I like the first hook to go through the top of the head on the ballyhoo. The bend the bait so the next two hooks will slide into it’s back. When you straighten the bait, the second and third hooks should be done into the bait and the bait should be straight, not bent. An excellent outfit for this is a Pflueger Contender G40L reel attached to a Shakespeare Custom USCSU 1166 medium heavy rod. This outfit will hold 450 yards of 40 pound test Cajun Red line and has a backbone stout enough to land anything you might catch.


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