March Topwater Fishing

Topwater fishing during the month of March is usually pretty good to great in our area so I decided to give it a try this afternoon even though it was almost dusk before I got a chance to get on the water.

I was working with the crew who cleared out some of the nastiest vines and trees I've seen in a long time and after they left, I grabbed Odie, a couple of spinning rods, and headed to east Gator Creek Road.

The first thing I noticed as I drove into the refuge were the gators in the shallows.  They were all over the place which is obviously why the creek got it's name.

I parked at a bend in the unimproved drive and started pitching an XPS Slim Dog around the shallow flats to see if anything was interested in getting caught.

The air temperature was in the high 60s, there was no wind on the water, and the surface in most areas was glassy calm.  Just the right combination for topwater fishing.

At first the only thing trying to eat my lure was a few large ladyfish.  A couple hit the topwater bait and were briefly hooked but after the first or second jump, they flipped free.

As it got darker, the magic half hour for sea trout arrived and I picked up two dinks on the XPS Slim Dog which I promptly released.

Several casts to the other bank yielded follow ups so I decided to make a cast and let the lure just sit on the surface.

The dead stick tactic worked on my second cast and I picked up a sea trout of about 19" or so that I promptly released.

I had one more hit on the same lure before the mosquitoes started sucking too much of my blood to make fishing enjoyable.

I called Odie into the truck, and we headed home for a Pizza at Lil Ceasars.

I'm home all week so I'm planning on hitting Haulover, Playalinda Beach, and the flats at BioLab Road at least once before I head back to work.

Till next time,

Tight Lines.