Redfish still scarce in Centipede Bay
We fished the top of the tide for a few hours. The wind was blowing out of the east around 10-15mph. We looked for whitebait in the Hernando Beach channel and did not see any, we did see a lot of baby ballyhoo. So we picked up some mud minnows around the islands and headed back to fish.
The first stop just a few bait stealer, we tried a few more spots and never saw a redfish. We stitched to lures and started to hunt for the fish, fished top water and chatter baits. Due to the strong east wind the tide went out very quick, so we decided to hit the cuts.
We started out at marker 25 and worked our way west. While fishing the cut we would could take our time to check for whitebait at each cut. The first cast at marker 25 we picked up a trout and decided to anchor. Using only jigs we caught 4 or 5 more trout. Then moved to the next cut and had the same results. The trout where small and we ended up with 4 16-18 in trout and caught around 10-15 short trout.
We spent an hour or so in the cuts going from marker 25 out to marker 15 and never saw the first whitebait. The report I got from another angler was that there where only small baits in Aripeka. As far as I can tell the whitebait has not found a place to settle in out area. Next trip out will be north, so I will check smith rock and north Bayport.
Tide : 3.2ft falling
Water Clarity : Clear
Moon Phase: 28% full
Temp: 88 F
Water Temp : 84F
Wind: var 5 mph - E 10-15 mph
Bait: Lures
Results: Trout and no redfish