2014 End of Year Report - Pensacola Fishing Report

2014 End of Year Report

The last part of December was tough here on the Gulf Coast, with lots of rain and wind, making it more difficult to get out on the water.

There were still plenty of days that were fishable, so I was able to splash the Triton, and enjoy some end of the year angling.

 

The big reds were MIA for a while during December, but did show up again just in time for the last week. While the big reds were gone, I was able to get my clients on some light tackle slot and upper slot reds while either jigging live shrimp or soft plastics at some of our local bridges. It’s always good to have a plan B.

Since the weather has not been the best the past 10 or so days, I don’t have much new to report, as I’ve not been out as much lately.

In the meantime, let’s talk about what the New Year should bring to the panhandle. In January the big reds should be around most of the month. But if the wind is too strong there are other areas to fish including upper Escambia Bay and Escambia River. Another good area to check out, and I might spend a little time over there in the near future, is Blackwater Bay and the rivers that feed it.

Since I’ve not been out much because of Mother Nature and me having an upper respiratory infection I’ll post a more detailed report in a week or so.

Tight Lines…
John

www.captainjohnrivers.com

www.satltwateracademy.com

850-341-9816

December Brings Big Reds - Pensacola Fishing Reports

November is in the books and it was the best I have ever seen with the amount of fish caught and the size. December came in with warm temps the first week, around 72 degrees all week, which was very nice. We did have a full moon the first week, which did impact the bite some on a couple trips, but not too bad. We just didn’t catch as many, but when you’re used to hooking up 20 –40 fish a trip and then it drops to only catching 6 or 8, then I guess I’m getting spoiled. Last night we got a small cold front and it will surely fire them off again. If you striper fish, these fish behave in similar fashion. They like the cold fronts and usually after each one they kick it up a notch. I’m still tossing Spro 1.5oz jigs at them with 7 and 8 foot

Medium Heavy Rods with 4000 to 5000 reels. I use two different rods on my trips, both St. Croix and Wright McGills, and for reels, I use Shimano.

I have found that these big reds can retire a reel fast if you don’t have good equipment that can hold up to their hard runs and their pure power. When you’re fighting a fish for 3 –6 minutes you need your tackle to hold up and not fail.

The last thing I want is you to lose that trophy fish because I didn’t have the proper tackle in excellent working order. 

The season should go strong until the middle of January and start to taper off. So if you want to experience some fun fast action fishing, you need to give this a try. Take a few days off, put the snow shovel down, head to the Gulf Coast and let’s get a bent rod in your hand with a monster redfish attached at the other end.

If you’re on Facebook, check out my fan page, you can keep up with me while I’m on the water and see what’s going on each day. I post more often on there than I do on my fishing reports page. This page gets updated about twice a month; Facebook is usually every day while I’m on the water.

 

Tight Lines... John