Capt. Tommy Thompson's Saltwater Angler's Guides

Just before the “BIG” cold front fishing on the Nature Coast was classic spring like conditions. On low tide the creek channels and backcountry holes were holding good numbers of sea trout most were under sized but some big fish were mixed in with them and for a bonus pompano were in the same spots also. If it was a deep hole up to 10 feet with sand on the bottom that’s where we would catch most of the pompano. I used a chartreuse D. O. A. jig head tipped with fresh shrimp. What was great about using this jig head was that it just took a second to put on a glow C.A.L. shad and that worked best on the trout.
When the tide was in the large trout were gathering on top of the outside points and submerged rock piles. This is a pre spawn and warming action that always happens every spring. Some of the trout that I cleaned had a very small pencil sized row in them. The best bait that I use for these very shallow water trout is the 5.5 D.O.A glow jerk bait nosed hooked with a Owner 3/0 bait style hook.
What happens after this front is something that I could only speculate on. I do know it will push fish deeper into the backcountry and those new fish that moved in from offshore might head back out there. A few redfish were being caught on the outside keys but I expect them to look for deeper water. Fishing our local rivers like the Homosassa and Crystal Rivers may be the ticket to find the bite. This weekend look for a mid day incoming tide.
Capt. William Toney    www.homosassainshorefishing.com