Hi,
The never-ending stucco job is almost through. Hallelujah!! Now the challenge is the wind!!! The trout have been hard to find. They haven't been at Walton where I usually wade until Friday (I did catch 5-- total -- in 5 or 6 trips there and my neighbor Jim caught about a 25" trout shallow- an awesome fish.
We (Jim and I) went out in the boat and caught about 15 trout on the East Side (North of Herman's and South of Bear Point), I caught about 12 of those. The next day we caught about the same but I only had 7 but one big one about 27". I also caught a 25" trout wading North of Herman's last week.
As for snook, about two weeks ago the big snook came back in the lagoon. I've been catching 20-24" snook shallow but only one slot since late July. I caught 7 snook one day (two slots) plus a bunch of jack in a brutal Northeast wind. Then I went with Ken Turner and caught my second 50" snook. I didn't have my camera but it was measured on my fishing rod and it was just over 51" - my other big snook was much heavier and a whopping 54" (over 25 pounds). Since then (10 days ago), the big snook have disappeared.
I'm recapping two recent trips.
Jack City: Walton Scrub Friday Dec. 18th about 11:00 AM low tide incoming- very little wind. Some scattered bait. 1/8 oz. jig with a paddletail- white and sparkle.
Jim and I went at low tide. The tides in general have been higher and the wind has been blowing hard. Today the shallows were too shallow and no wind. We went deep and there were two boats fishing on either side of us. I caught six jacks all medium small (2 lbs) and Jim caught one. The people in the boats weren't getting bit and they left. We headed North, fishing around patches of bait. Still no wind!!!!
I caught three more jacks and we made it to the first pier. Too shallow and dead to fish the pier. I started catching a jack on almost every cast- it was unreal. I caught about 10 as we got to the second pier. Jacks are the hardest fighting fish- they turn on their sides and just pull and they rarely come up after being hooked. Then they swim around you in a circle. My biggest jack I caught last May- about 18 pounds and it took almost an hour to land!!!!
The 18th was Jack City -- I caught way over 30 jacks in two hours- whew-- my right arm ached!!!
The trout are back!!!! Walton Scrub-- Saturday afternoon (Dec 19) about 2:00 low tide incoming- Windy but out of the west so I had no problem casting- the waves were big but no whitecaps on the west side. I fished a 3/8 oz. jig with a sparkle paddletail. I was expecting jack City but it wasn't all jack today.
It was only 2 1/2 feet deep on this side of the sand-bar but there was some wind. The tide was coming in and the wind was swirling- rain was on the way. On my first cast I caught a 20" snook. Then fishing North I hooked a bigger snook- around 24". I went deep past the sandbar and hooked a 23" trout- 3 fish and no jack!!!
Then I stared catching Jack- one nice on and two medium before I hooked my second trout- it came up but I didn't get a pic of it before it jumped and threw the hook. I headed North toward the post where I caught trout during the summer. I saw a school of baitfish (pins) jumping across the water and cast deep to them- fish on!! It came up and I saw it was a trout- not what I was expecting. I took a pic and released it. Next cast- another trout on- they're back- finally the trout were back. I caught 10 trout and 4 jack before the bite slowed. I headed back in - rain clouds were coming. I caught another snook and a trout shallow before the rain started. I went up the hill and jumped in my car with my waders on- it was pouring!!!
My totals: 3 snook, 12 trout (4 over 20" and I lost at least 8 trout) and at least 10 jack. A great day on the water!!!
