I always preface my comments by saying this is what has worked for me and by no means is this the ONLY way to catch fish. Each of you should hone your observation skills and spend as much time as you can in the areas you have confidence in. Familiarize yourself with the places you fish so that you will know where you are and where your next “target” is no matter what the conditions are.

One of the first areas I look for are grass lines. Baffin Bay, especially the south shoreline, has many areas where the grass lines make strong transitions and stop in shallow water. Typically in these areas you will see a change to a white sandy bottom from the dense shoal grass found elsewhere. On a good, clear day with high visibility the contrast from these transitions sticks out like a sore thumb.

Depth changes are another area to look for in addition to the shallow water grass line changes. These can be a very subtle change as the grass goes from dense to very sparse while only changing in depth a few inches. This transition is harder to spot but can be very productive as redfish love these areas. It provides few hiding places for the crabs and other species that redfish feed on, so you will usually find some quality fish hanging around these areas.

I like to start out with a fast-steady retrieve looking for a reaction strike. If you get fish that follow your lure in but just won’t hit, you may need to vary your retrieve. A very fast retrieve with occasional pauses or a “wave” retrieve which involves a steady rate with raising and lowering of the rod tip can be effective. There is no single right way to work your lure so experiment and vary your retrieve. Just make sure you remember what it was you did that triggered the strike.

Potholes are another one of my favorite grass line features. These are often small, but sometimes can be several feet across, so be looking for both sizes. Smaller baitfish love to hang around the edges where they can keep an eye on the openings, so there is usually a bigger fish somewhere nearby waiting for the surprise attack. Some times these edges are smooth, but often in Baffin Bay they are steep and rocky, with the rocks sometimes reaching out past the surface and then going deeper than you are tall. This is another situation where some old-fashioned Bass fishing tactics can come into play. Key on these areas and work around the edges, but be careful to not lose your lure on the rocks.

One of the techniques that I have brought over from Bass fishing is to use short and quick hops, with various speeds of retrieve. When using this method I prefer to use a Devil Eye (made by Brown Lures) Texas rigged on a 1/4 oz bullet sinker weight. This saltwater fishing lure has been effective on Bass as well, and works great when slowly bouncing along those potholes and rocky drop-offs. I think that the large eye on the lure also gives a strong target for fish, which is why it gets so many aggressive strikes when fishing with this method.

The weather has been very cooperative and the winter fishing looks to be very good this year. We have already seen a few small flocks of teal, while mourning and white wing dove are everywhere. Give us a shout and we’ll “hook” you up for your next Outdoor Adventure.