A few weeks while I was hanging out at the Venice pier one of the regulars was explaining to one of our new Florida residents the theory of fishing for reds. After about 45 min of explanation and some interruption from some of the other experts, our new resident who was so excited about his new found interest, Seemed to not only be overwhelmed but overloaded with all the do’s and don’ts of that elusive Redfish. There are many different systems, many techniques and all the other ways you should fish for them, but if you listen to them, they all say the same thing in different ways. What I do is keep it simple and explain there is no substitute for putting your time in on the water. Therefore, here is my explanation Florida West Coast style. I hope it helps.

For those of us living on the West Coast I-75 is the main North and South in the state. You have US 41 that for most of us are for local travel and business travel (Unless I-75 is closed for some reason) then it is the alternate route. You with me so far! Every morning people travel on I-75 to work, beaches, and other activities. The people that are trying to get to work jump on I-75 and drive going with the fast lane traffic to get from home to work in a hurry. Then you have the people going to activities or appointments. They need to be there on time, but have that extra time as not to have to hurry. They drive in the center and right lane and go with the flow at a nice pace, maybe they stop off to get some gas or a coffee and are relaxed on there way to there destination. Still with me! My favorite is the vacationers and the beach goers. There on cruise, no hurry, happy to be alive, there in the right hand lane bopping along, stopping for gas.coffee, food and relaxing. They will take Us 41 and side streets, check out the shops and drive at a snails pace if need be. If you can use this analogy toward your red fishing, it starts to become clear.

Redfish use troughs, ditches and any slight change in the depth as a way to move. the more water they have over there back the better they feel. I have even seen them laying in prop scars and moving to and from the mangroves and grass flats. Thus my I-75 theory! Then you have your Redfish that are moving in the troughs and ditches but they move off the I-75 highway and find a comfortable little pot hole or drop that they take a break in, rest and maybe feed a little. Thus my activities and appointment travelers. Now for my Favorites or as they say in Wayne’s World “Most excellent Dudes” the Vacationers and beach goers! These are the ones we all look for! These Redfish are on cruise, there moving through the ditches and troughs; they get off the super highway find a nice deep hole near the freeway invite there friends, get comfortable and start to chew. They have plenty of water over there backs and  can jump back on the highway if they need to or just hang out at the beach all day until they can get to the cover when the water is fat. Thus my US 41 side street theory.

You can sit at home in hopes you will find some fish or you can go out there with this new found knowledge! Check your tides, flats, grass beds. You can make mental notes of dips in the bottom, trough and potholes. You can check those spots at high and low tide. See weather the water is fat or skinny in the holes at different times of the day, month or year. Most of all check to see if your spots are holding fish. Look off the super highway for those fish in holes hanging out and ready to feed, but close enough to the highway in case they have to jump back on!  I hope I have cleared up any confusion and given you some insight on the World of Fishing for Redfish. No method is full proof or garenteed, but it is a great place to start. I use this method along with many others. Until next time, calm winds and tight lines. And as always “Take A Kid Fishing”