Fishing The Cold Fronts

I usually don't like fishing the cold fronts but this afternoon, Karen and I decided to try a little bank fishing as the front was moving in.

We didn't get out until around 2:30 pm and were on the water about a half an hour later.

I was hoping that fresh dead shrimp and artificial baits would pick us up a few sea trout and reds but as it turned out the fishing this afternoon was pretty much a bust.

The air temperature was in the low 60s and there was a steady wind that made it feel like 40 degrees on the water.

We took Elmo and Odie along and managed to land a favorite spot on Gator Creek about half way down Catfish Creek Loop.  I was hoping that Peacocks Pocket Road would be open as promised, but the barrier was still up and it looked like road work was being done.

Who knows, maybe they will fix the deeper ruts before spring.

Karen and I set out a couple of rods with shrimp and I started tossing a chartreuse and pink D.O.A. Cal jerkbait around to see if I could catch a sea trout or two.

After 45 minutes of fruitless casting, I finally got a hit from what
I thought was a sea trout. 

The fish put up a short dogged fight and as I finally caught sight of the fish, I recognized it as an Oyster Toadfish or "Oyster Cracker".

I never heard of one being caught on an artificial bait but I guess there is always a first time.

Anyway, I showed Karen the fish, took a few pics and returned the fish to the water.

As it turned out, that was the only fish we caught all day.

We had several baits stolen and I missed two fish that took line but dropped the bait when I tried to set the hook.

The wind made it almost impossible to detect a bite and as the sun started to head for the horizon and the temperature began to drop, we decided to head for home.

I talked to several bank fishermen today and none of them were catching any fish.  I don't know if it was the front moving in but the bite was way off for this time of the year.

Anyway, as we drove out on East Gator Creek Road, I took a couple of pics of the sunset.

Fishing the cold fronts  for me has always been unproductive and this afternoon was no exception.

Till next time, Tight Lines.