A Warm Winter
But the current winter has been changing all that. Weather guessers tell us we have been averaging at least 5 degrees over the "normal" winter low temperatures, and that 5 degrees can make a major difference in your comfort. So, more people in the northern climes are fishing this winter.Stripers!
Striped bass fishing has been lust short of phenomenal. With January being the peak month for catching huge rock fish off the Virginia coast, a new state record was set just a couple of weeks ago. Striper tournaments, normally attended by only the diehard crowd are filling up with the predicted milder weather.In my neck of the woods, we are seeing migrating fish making appearances at least a month ahead of their normal schedule. Bluefish and Spanish mackerel are chopping leaders off along the Florida coast north to Georgia. Spring Fish in WinterOn a trip this week, we boated bluefish, ladyfish, Spanish mackerel, flounder and spotted seatrout - all on the same tide and all within a half-mile stretch in the Intracoastal Waterway (ICW). I've never seen this kind of variety in the middle of winter. This is spring time fishing!
I pattern my trips and fishing plans around my past experiences. In January I fish here and catch this; in February, I fish there and catch that - you probably do the same thing. But the current weather has me both excited and concerned. It makes me wonder what the spring fishing will be like!
Beating the Drum - Black That Is
My next trip is looking for huge black drum - upwards to 90 pounds or more. They normally make their showing in March and April in the inlets and deep channels. These are big fish and they are easily targeted by even the most basic angler.But, with the warm winter we are having, I believe these monsters will begin showing up early - my bet is at least a month early. That's why I am going this early in February to find them!
Fishing for them is easy, and if I find them in southern Georgia waters this week, they will be early all along the Atlantic coast. It's a water temperature thing. When the water warms, the fish react.
Black Drum - Here's How
I find a channel edge in an inlet - like the inlet to Cumberland Sound, anchor along the edge of that channel and put a bait down on the bottom. Thirty or more pound test gear is a must, and the bait needs to be on the bottom along the deep edge of that channel you find.My bait of choice is a quartered blue crab. Or, if the crab is small, I use a half or even a whole crab. I break the back shell off and cut the legs and claws off and hook it in the corner with a 10/0 circle hook. Then I put the bait on the bottom, the rod in a rod holder, and pour a cup of coffee. It's a waiting game now, for a big guy to come by and pick up the bait. He hooks himself with the circle hook and the fight is on.
These fish fight hard but sluggish, often just hugging the bottom making you think you're hung on the bottom. I release them - because in my opinion, these drum are terrible table fare. I do keep and eat them under about 5 pounds, and they are great - just as good as tout or red drum (their cousins). But the big ones are coarse and fatty, and that fat ruins the flavor of the fish. My advice: let them go to breed and live to fight again another day.
