Another mix of early morning and evening trips this past week, and it definitely had its ups and downs.

I was able to find some solid fish throughout the week, including some good snook, redfish, and tarpon. Docks, spoil islands, and mangrove shorelines have been producing the most consistent action, although some trips have been much more productive than others.

Paddle tails, live finger mullet, and live pinfish have all produced this week. The paddle tails have been especially useful as a search bait, allowing me to cover water and figure out where the fish are holding before settling in with live bait.

Earlier in the week, though, the artificial bite was tough. On a couple of trips, there was plenty of feeding activity around me, but I couldn’t get a fish to commit. I worked through everything from 3 inch to 5 inch paddle tails with very little to show for it.

So I switched things up and started bringing more natural bait. That turned out to be the ticket. Live finger mullet and pinfish produced some solid fish, and I’ve continued leaning heavily on live bait for the remainder of the week.

The fish are definitely around, you just might have to change up your approach to get them to eat. 🎣