Hey, its summer time…. get to the beach! This month pogy pods will be just off the beach with predatory fish in hot pursuit. Sharks, cobia, bull reds, spanish and king macs, giant jacks, bluefish, and one of my favorites the silver king, aka tarpon, will all be crashing the pogy pods in an exciting free-for-all that has to be seen to be believed. A favorite way to fish the pods is to rig a live pogy on a medium to large circle hook. Use about 5 feet of 60-80lb. florocarbon leader then add a splitshot or two a few feet above the hook. This will keep your pogy slightly under the pod and make for an easy lunch for lurking predators. Bring some heavy tackle because you never know what may lie underneath.
Inshore, some of the best redfish and trout catches will come at daybreak and at sunset. A top-water plug will be the lure of choice at these times when worked around mullet schools. If the fish seem to be short striking try to vary your retrieval rate. Sometimes they like it fast and sometimes a little slower. If they just don’t seem to want to inhale the topwater switch to a sub-surface lure like one of my favorites the Sebile Stick Shadd. This lure perfectly imitates a wounded mullet or small pogy and will stay just under the surface when worked correctly. It can be just the right look for those fish that seem to be just “sniffing” your topwaters. During the heat of the day switch up your presentation… again locate the mullet schools and jig a Fishbites Xtreme paddle tail or jerkbait paired with an 1/8 ounce Slayer Inc. jighead. Trout, jacks, ladyfish, and reds, just to name a few, will be hiding underneath looking for an easy snack.
With the water turning towards that summer “yoohoo” color a gold spoon tossed along grass edges and oyster bars during the higher tide stages is sure to get a few reds and flounders attention. Another option for our murky summer water is one bait that has gained a huge amount of popularity with pro tournament anglers and many hardcore inshore fisherman… the spinnerbait. My favorites spinners come from Slayer Inc. whom are now making quite a few different models that are built to withstand the harsh saltwater environment. Sometimes spoons and spinners will have just enough vibration to call out those hard to find fish.
-Capt. Tommy Derringer
www.InshoreAdventures.net
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