Tis The Season – Early Winter Inshore Fishing

Happy Monday Spacefish!

How about that cold snap this week eh? With frigid (ish) temperatures at night and in the morning, this can throw our fishing plans, and production for a total loop. With that said, there are a few spots over the years that have proven to be productive for me during these weird late fall, early winter days when the temps are in the 40’s in the morning and warm all the way to the lower 70’s by mid afternoon with high barometric pressure, and blue bird skies mixed in. Today I am going to break down 2 good spots that worked out really well for me last December.

Formula

So one of the hardest things about fishing in the conditions I described above is figuring out where the fish are, and to be honest if you are out on a day with the barometric pressure is way up, it’s probably just going to be a grind it out slug fest type day anyway. But the formula I have found to give myself the best chance of success is to fish areas with deeper water, next to shallow flats that are sun baked areas where they can go lay up to get sun and warm up. It’s important to remember that fish are warm blooded creatures that need exposure to sunlight or to find warmer water during cold snaps.

When it comes to presentations, a variety of things work. But the key with all of them is to slow it down. I move slower, and feel more lethargic in the colder months, so do the fish. Downsizing lures, bouncing the bottom are good strategies, and shrimp lures work well in the colder weather too.

Space Coast South – Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge

Pictured on the map above is an area of the Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge, just south of Sebastian Inlet that I like to fish. The easiest way to access this area is via the kayak launch on Jungle Road, which can be accessed from A1A (Jimmy Buffet Memorial Highway), or you can launch from Riverview Park in Sebastian and cross the Indian River Lagoon to get to this area.

This area is a good winter spot, in which you will have the opportunity to catch a mixed bag of inshore fish – Snook, Trout, Redfish, Jacks etc. A few features about this area make it productive; there is deeper water in Spratt Creek, there is a big shallow flat west of Roosevelt Island, and there are ample spots to catch protection from the wind no matter which direction it is blowing, and to utlize ambush points. This spot also has a ton of mangrove shoreline to fish, which makes it a fantastic winter Snookin spot. Pictured below is a nice one I caught last December on a post-cold front day. The fishing was slow that morning, but really picked up throughout the afternoon when things warmed up.

Space Coast Central – Merrit Island (Banana River Side)

So another area I really liked fishing when I went on a trip right after Thanksgiving of last year was this area on the Banana River side of Merritt Island. I launched from the shoreline of Kelly Park East, which is just south of 528. I ended up going south, but you can also go north to the Barge Canal which runs east-west above 528, there is deep water in the canal, which can be good for winter time fishing.

But on this trip I went south, and spent most of my time fishing the area circled, as well as the residential canals south of this area. I was able to catch a lot of smaller Trout throughout the trip, but the highlight was finding some Redfish, including the one pictured below. These creeks are “muddy” which is a good place to find Redfish in the winter. The muddy bottom of the creeks retains warmth much better than a sandy bottom, so these fish will push back into the creeks to stay warm, and look for food.

Space Coast North – ???

So I haven’t personally gone north and experienced success in the winter…yet. I have some spots picked out to try this winter, but I am open to suggestions for anyone reading this to throw some spots out there that are good winter fishing spots that I should try out this winter.

Kayaks By Bo

If you haven’t already started, I am sure you will soon, it Christmas Shopping season! Don’t forget to stop into Kayaks By Bo in Cocoa! Kayaks, paddles, PFD’s, gear, accessories, apparel…if you need it, they have it, and they are running sales across the board. So check them out!

That’s all for me today folks, I wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving! Stay safe, eat well, and try and squeeze in some time on the water. You deserve it! Thanks for reading, until next time!