11/6/24 fishing report
MarshFest 2024 is finally here! This Saturday at noon North Guana Outpost is hosting the 2nd Annual MarshFest. If you missed out last year don’t make that mistake again! This is a great event for the entire family with live music, artist, food trucks, and vendors from across the state. The party is put on by Marsh Sessions, created by beaches local Javier Fabrega and organized with the help of Historic Coast Outfitters and North Guana Outpost. Funds raised from this years raffle will all be going to support fishing guides who lost their homes to this years hurricanes. Saturday from noon to dark come out and join us at 4415 Mickler Road just west of A1A, or the crossroads as we used to call it many years ago when the old Oarhouse bar had a fall turkey shoot every November.
This fall the wind hasn’t given us much of a break and that trend continues when looking at the forecast for the weekend ahead. Hard to find any hope for offshore anglers over the next few days but if you want to bend a rod inshore there’s plenty to do.
The creeks have been full of fall action, and for hiding from the wind a thick tree line with a creek along the leeward side is about as good of conditions you’re going to find when it’s blowing 15-20kts. There is still plenty of bait around and the Redfish are on the crawl on the lower tides. It’s always fun when you can hear the splashing of fish feeding before you round the bend. Ripples and wakes come sneaking past the next spartina point, hinting at more action just ahead.
Live shrimp and mud minnows on 1/4oz jig heads are hard to beat for getting bit in the creeks all year. If you’re looking to find new spots and stay moving compared to baiting and waiting I use almost exclusively soft plastics while creek fishing in the fall. You can get on the trolling motor and really cover water working a small paddletail or jig. Zman plastics are my go to, I’ve tried them all and these hold up exponentially longer compared to FishBites, Gulp, or NLBNs. I tend to throw the scented paddlerz and have had good luck with the smaller ned rig style baits they make especially when the water gets really cold and clear. As the water cools off and the fish school up more and more of the action will be contingent on finding groups of fish. Instead of picking off one or two every couple oyster beds there will be long stretches of nothing then 20 Redfish on one spot.
The fish have mostly been holding in the 2-3 foot depth areas on the low outgoing and working up shallow to feed as the bait is flushed from the grass while the tide recedes. Each spot has its own nuances for you to discover but this general pattern repeats in every creek across the low country. Look for ambush points, drains, structure that’s deep enough for predators to use and close to an area that will congregate bait. As the tide changes each spot usually has a finite window where the action is best. If you have a skiff or a kayak push back as far as the little finger creeks go and you’ll often be surprised at what you find around those last bends and shallow exposed oyster bars.
In the river the Sheepshead bites continued to be steady and the first waves of puppy drum have moved in around the inlets. There are still lots of Bull Reds cruising the main channel edges and when you can find clean water around the dredge sediment the trout bites been hot too. With the morning low tides this weekend and onshore winds we should have some cleaner ocean water pushing inshore. The swells might make the jetty a bit sporting especially towards the tips so exercise plenty of caution if you go herding for convicts on the big rocks.
As always wishing y’all tight lines, fair winds, and following seas going into the weekend! If you’re looking to book a charter, submit a photo, or have a report to share reach out to me directly at chris@fishjax.org or visit www.fishjaxcharters.com.
Longtime friend and beaches local Alex Puente got his first Rails and Tails experience with Gauge supervising the fishing and fetching birds. Rail season closes on 11/9, with the onshore wind we might see enough water for a closing day cast and blast.
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