# Fishing After the Storm



## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

Conditions have really changed since TS Cindy passed through, but the fishing has been on fire in certain areas. Dirty water can change things, but the fish usually don't move far. The big trout have been feeding hard and less spooky because of the clarity, slot trout have been schooled up a little deeper, and the reds have been very happy up shallow with conditions like these. These fish have been packed into small areas and are hanging out together daily. Ive mainly been catching fish on jerkbaits and topwater fished fast, more vibration is always good in dirty water. Mullet have been very plentiful, with lots of finger mullet mixed in with the bigger mullet. After figuring out where the fish were holding on this bank, I invited Josh to join me, and it didn't take long for him to get the bite. He couldn't believe how quickly it happened, 3rd cast and it made the day! Went back Saturday and landed one of the biggest I've caught all year. Despite the conditions, they are hungry!


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## DLo (Oct 2, 2007)

Wow, those trout are some slobs, nice job.


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## Walton County (Aug 23, 2016)

Very nice! That top trout has hardly any spots at all. 

You get any measurements on the one in the orange Kayak? That is a toad.

I found the same with regard to the fishery over this way. I was on fish pre storm but they were picky and eating slow fished jerk baits. Post storm, mixed with wind, cloud coverage, and dirty water turned on an unreal top water bite.


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## Achim2 (Apr 25, 2011)

Impressive! Some nice gators! Congrats!


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## etrade92 (Jul 30, 2015)

Sweet!


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## Pcola4jr (Jan 29, 2017)

Monster trout! Nice!


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## Fishing Grandpa (Jul 2, 2017)

Thanks for the advice and the pictures! Glad to know that there are still monster specks out there these days.


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## SurfRidr (Apr 24, 2012)

Wow, nice job Jeff! Way to find some quality fish!


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

Walton County said:


> Very nice! That top trout has hardly any spots at all.
> 
> You get any measurements on the one in the orange Kayak? That is a toad.
> 
> I found the same with regard to the fishery over this way. I was on fish pre storm but they were picky and eating slow fished jerk baits. Post storm, mixed with wind, cloud coverage, and dirty water turned on an unreal top water bite.


The first trout pictured was in the 28"+ range, Josh's fish was in the 26"+ range,but much fatter. We just get quick measurements and back in the water. Shows the difference a camera and a GoPro makes on picture quality!

Topwater has been working well over here on slot trout, but the jerkbait has been putting the big ones in the boat. That dirty water does get them fired up for baits on the surface though.


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

Fishing Grandpa said:


> Thanks for the advice and the pictures! Glad to know that there are still monster specks out there these days.


They are out there and they are ready to bite despite the conditions!


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## barefoot (Nov 3, 2011)

Good looking fish Jeff.


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## Fishing Grandpa (Jul 2, 2017)

Jeffbro999 said:


> They are out there and they are ready to bite despite the conditions!


 Yes indeed, they are out there. A 9-10 year old boy fishing next to me yesterday landed a nice speck using his bull minnow under a bobber I loaned him. I kept reminding him to keep an eye on the float, which can get boring for a young fella. It was a joy to hear him yell, "I got one!" and watch him fight that trout. He was some kind of tickled and it made my day.


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## Riverfan (Apr 5, 2015)

Wow Jeff what a haul! Trying do decide what brand the jerk bait is. Is that your Flash Minnow?


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

Fishing Grandpa said:


> Yes indeed, they are out there. A 9-10 year old boy fishing next to me yesterday landed a nice speck using his bull minnow under a bobber I loaned him. I kept reminding him to keep an eye on the float, which can get boring for a young fella. It was a joy to hear him yell, "I got one!" and watch him fight that trout. He was some kind of tickled and it made my day.


That's awesome! You helped make that young man's day, great job!


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

Riverfan said:


> Wow Jeff what a haul! Trying do decide what brand the jerk bait is. Is that your Flash Minnow?


Thank you! It's been a fun couple weeks since the storm. The jerkbaits that are pictured are the Shadow Rap Shad and the YoZuri 3ds Minnow. Josh caught his on a MR17, and a Shadow Rap Shad caught mine, but was destroyed in the process, huge crack down the side. It did its job though!


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

barefoot said:


> Good looking fish Jeff.


Thanks Bruce! I was lucky to get a picture of her. Only one rear hook in the corner of the mouth for most of the fight, luckily it held through all the chaos!


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## livetofish (Mar 21, 2011)

Hey Jeff wanna go fishing this afternoon! Lol

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## Lieutenant ZKO (Jan 19, 2015)

Yesterday was the first day I noticed stained water over here in Choctaw but we were just there for the fireworks so I didnt get to see how it changed the bite. Nice jobs guys. Those are some impressive specks. Makes me wanna move out of the reds and try for some gator trout. Larger bag limit at least.


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## travhale (Apr 19, 2017)

Great report, Jeff. Those are some quality fish.


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## AlbinoTurtle (Jan 7, 2017)

Killer Trout, man!


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## MixMasterMike (Jul 5, 2016)

Man... I had issues finding fish Monday. And Saturday wasn't stellar by any means. Slightly jealous to see that you tore it up when I struggled all damn day. Oh well... that's fishing I suppose


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

livetofish said:


> Hey Jeff wanna go fishing this afternoon! Lol
> 
> Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk


Lol, missed out on the last few days, but I'd be down to fish sometime. Send me a PM one of these days and we can work something out.


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

Lieutenant ZKO said:


> Yesterday was the first day I noticed stained water over here in Choctaw but we were just there for the fireworks so I didnt get to see how it changed the bite. Nice jobs guys. Those are some impressive specks. Makes me wanna move out of the reds and try for some gator trout. Larger bag limit at least.


That west wind finally made the clean areas dirty, but it should clear up soon. Some SE wind would definitely help. Targeting trout isn't a bad idea if you are going for groceries, mix in a few black snapper and you've got some great dinner!


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## livetofish (Mar 21, 2011)

Jeffbro999 said:


> Lol, missed out on the last few days, but I'd be down to fish sometime. Send me a PM one of these days and we can work something out.


Sounds good buddy 

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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

MixMasterMike said:


> Man... I had issues finding fish Monday. And Saturday wasn't stellar by any means. Slightly jealous to see that you tore it up when I struggled all damn day. Oh well... that's fishing I suppose


It's definitely been tough. Can go miles without catching anything right now, but get in the right spot and it can be magic. It is definitely just fishing, keep hunting them and I know you'll find something good!


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## Lieutenant ZKO (Jan 19, 2015)

Jeffbro999 said:


> That west wind finally made the clean areas dirty, but it should clear up soon. Some SE wind would definitely help. Targeting trout isn't a bad idea if you are going for groceries, mix in a few black snapper and you've got some great dinner!


Yeah thats what I've been doing and luckily the conditions have been great. I love reds so I always seem to start there and have to switch it up later for a couple snapper and a couple slot trout. Next trip I'm gonna just shoot for a couple upper specks and one good 22 or 23 that way I don't have to re tie and move around a lot hahahaha summer heat has me feeling lethargic. Only have a couple more trips before I move anyways. Definitely gonna do one more fly 3mb too.


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

Lieutenant ZKO said:


> Yeah thats what I've been doing and luckily the conditions have been great. I love reds so I always seem to start there and have to switch it up later for a couple snapper and a couple slot trout. Next trip I'm gonna just shoot for a couple upper specks and one good 22 or 23 that way I don't have to re tie and move around a lot hahahaha summer heat has me feeling lethargic. Only have a couple more trips before I move anyways. Definitely gonna do one more fly 3mb too.


That sounds like a great plan. That heat is terrible right now, and tough to get anything done. Those jerkbaits will catch trout, Reds and snapper all day long though, no need to switch up presentations. Hope you catch those big ones before you move! Good luck man!


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

Pictures seem to have disappeared. Not sure why Photobucket decided to charge for picture hosting, but I'm not paying for that. I'll see if I can get them posted back up the normal way...


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## flynavy812 (Mar 19, 2017)

Jeffbro999 said:


> Lieutenant ZKO said:
> 
> 
> > Yeah thats what I've been doing and luckily the conditions have been great. I love reds so I always seem to start there and have to switch it up later for a couple snapper and a couple slot trout. Next trip I'm gonna just shoot for a couple upper specks and one good 22 or 23 that way I don't have to re tie and move around a lot hahahaha summer heat has me feeling lethargic. Only have a couple more trips before I move anyways. Definitely gonna do one more fly 3mb too.
> ...


I have some zoom flukes I bought on clearance a while back, never touched them. Forget the color... someone pearly maybe. Anyways maybe I'll give those a shot rigged on a 4/0 weighed offset? It's hard for me to switch lures I'm stuck in my habits but I might just purposely leave some stuff at home next time and really try to work a jerk bait.


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

flynavy812 said:


> I have some zoom flukes I bought on clearance a while back, never touched them. Forget the color... someone pearly maybe. Anyways maybe I'll give those a shot rigged on a 4/0 weighed offset? It's hard for me to switch lures I'm stuck in my habits but I might just purposely leave some stuff at home next time and really try to work a jerk bait.


I saw your update, you caught some nice fish with your jerkbait, nice job! You have them rigged perfectly, may also consider a weighted EWG swimbait hook to get them deeper when out near the edges. I prefer hard jerkbaits during the summer because I don't like wasting time re-rigging soft baits constantly. Hard jerkbaits like the Rapala Xrap 08 and Shadow Rap Shad catch the majority of my fish in the summer, and catch Reds just as good as specks. If the grass is really bad, I make shorter casts directly past my targets, so it doesn't have time to grass up before it passes the fish. Both lures have their place, but definitely stick with whatever is working for you!


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## flynavy812 (Mar 19, 2017)

Jeffbro999 said:


> flynavy812 said:
> 
> 
> > I have some zoom flukes I bought on clearance a while back, never touched them. Forget the color... someone pearly maybe. Anyways maybe I'll give those a shot rigged on a 4/0 weighed offset? It's hard for me to switch lures I'm stuck in my habits but I might just purposely leave some stuff at home next time and really try to work a jerk bait.
> ...


I usually have my wife work a hard jerk bait for simplicity, she has actually caught quite a few trout and lady fish on it. I just haven't given it much effort. Resetting the jerk bait the other day was a little annoying but not a big deal, I was using a 1/8 oz with bait lock. 

There seems to be a ton of grass constantly floating in big lagoon which further deters me from the hard baits too but I'll definitely start throwing it more. Any particular colors? Have you seen the aisle that sells those things? I can't believe how many variations they have it's insane.


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

flynavy812 said:


> I usually have my wife work a hard jerk bait for simplicity, she has actually caught quite a few trout and lady fish on it. I just haven't given it much effort. Resetting the jerk bait the other day was a little annoying but not a big deal, I was using a 1/8 oz with bait lock.
> 
> There seems to be a ton of grass constantly floating in big lagoon which further deters me from the hard baits too but I'll definitely start throwing it more. Any particular colors? Have you seen the aisle that sells those things? I can't believe how many variations they have it's insane.


It's only bad when the pufferfish are around. They constantly take the tails, and can easily go through 2 packs of flukes some days. If your not having issues, and catching fish on them, sounds like you are on to something! I love throwing a fluke when they are biting it!

The floating grass can be a nuisance, but work the bait hard and it will usually rip off the hooks. I stay pretty basic on colors, especially in the clear water. Natural colors like olive green for sunny days, and white for cloudy days. There is a ton of variety out there for sure, but I try to keep that simple as well.


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## flynavy812 (Mar 19, 2017)

Jeffbro999 said:


> It's only bad when the pufferfish are around. They constantly take the tails, and can easily go through 2 packs of flukes some days. If your not having issues, and catching fish on them, sounds like you are on to something! I love throwing a fluke when they are biting it!
> 
> The floating grass can be a nuisance, but work the bait hard and it will usually rip off the hooks. I stay pretty basic on colors, especially in the clear water. Natural colors like olive green for sunny days, and white for cloudy days. There is a ton of variety out there for sure, but I try to keep that simple as well.


I'm going tomorrow morning, hitting big lagoon on an incoming tide. Haven't really figured out where the best place to work on a tide like that is. Any last minute tips? I want to say shallow along the banks but it gets so hot so fast. So my next idea is docks, trying to get my up shallow and in the shaddows.


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## livetofish (Mar 21, 2011)

Hey Jeff I sent you a pm! Gonna head out in the morning if you wanna go!

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