# Cold day on Escambia Bay- 1/1/16



## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

Started out the day trying to fish Texar again, but the wind was making it miserable to fish pretty much everywhere. Saw forum member Nlytme out there fishing it for the first time and said they were doing pretty well :thumbup: After a few hours I decided to make a move to Escambia Bay since I knew the area would be out of the wind. 

Arrived about 3:30 and started throwing a Mirrodine on a shallow flat. Immediately caught a couple reds around 20" and a rat. Worked down to the target area and cast the Mirrodine out over deeper water. About half way back it gets slammed. I'm not thinking much of it, since there can be a lot of big sailcats in the area, but after a few big head shakes I knew better. After a nice fight over deep water, an upper slot red finally gives up. Decided to change lures to a suspending jerkbait and they were loving it. Could definitely tell its what they wanted as they were inhaling it head first almost every time. Left around 4:45 after catching 7 fat slot reds from 25-27". 

The water was very dirty, but didn't seem muddy, just stained. There wasn't much current flow at all and it was lightly raining off and on. Very cold day on the water but ended up being well worth it. Here's some pics:


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## LIM-IT-OUT (Aug 26, 2014)

Dam hell yea!!
Hahaha they took it in deep! Ya they were eating and wanted that all right...
Nice report bro


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

LIM-IT-OUT said:


> Dam hell yea!!
> Hahaha they took it in deep! Ya they were eating and wanted that all right...
> Nice report bro


Been getting lucky lately with not hooking the gills. The one with it sideways was barely hooked on the tail hook, really just wedged in there haha


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## timjb83 (Jan 23, 2013)

Awesome job brother! That's a good day in my book. It's make the rain and cold all worth it. Happy new year! 

Sent from my SM-N920V using Tapatalk


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## NLytle (May 13, 2014)

Jeff, nice report. Sounds like you had a good time.

We caught a few more keeper Trout when we headed South. Seems like a nice area. May fish it again soon.


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## BlueWaterWarrior (May 28, 2015)

Great report Jeff.

You just continue to amaze me.


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

Thanks Tim and Tim. Happy New Year guys!

Nick- The bayou was not kind to me today, but glad you guys were able to land some good ones on an ugly day after driving over. Any warm, cloudy days coming up, try to make it over again. It will be well worth it. We need to fish together one day soon:thumbsup:


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## LIM-IT-OUT (Aug 26, 2014)

You should only expect the best from the best... gosh common BWW* you should expect this hahaha


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## testoner (Oct 18, 2014)

Great job and great report. Were you on a boat, kayak, or just wading? I wanted to go wade fishing (it has been a record two weeks now since I last wet a line), but momma had other plans.


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

testoner said:


> Great job and great report. Were you on a boat, kayak, or just wading? I wanted to go wade fishing (it has been a record two weeks now since I last wet a line), but momma had other plans.


Thanks, I was wading, and it was a cold day to be in the water. Hope your able to get out soon, that's a long time to go without fishing.


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## Riverfan (Apr 5, 2015)

Which jerk bait? Looks like a Pointer or Storm Titchstick.


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## Jason (Oct 2, 2007)

Some beautes!!! Congrats on a cold productive day!!!


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

It was a Pointer. Love the action they have, it is unmatched.


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## Skiff "N" (Dec 22, 2015)

way to go bro tear them reds up


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## testoner (Oct 18, 2014)

I definitely need to get up to Escambia Bay and try it out. Probably out of laziness, I've never ventured there to try it out, kayak or wading. Might as well before I move this spring. Time for some map scouting.


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## Riverfan (Apr 5, 2015)

"It was a Pointer. Love the action they have, it is unmatched." Try the Storm Twitch it's half the price and works as well as the Pointer. They work nicely on the trout in OBA last winter.


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## blue water addiction (Dec 26, 2015)

Great job man. right or wrong is that a H2O I see in that reds mouth? hope it's not a big secret if so sorry about that, I've had good success using rapala jerk baits now my secret is out.


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## LIM-IT-OUT (Aug 26, 2014)

Hahaha
If someone is catching a butt load of fish on a lure, why would they change? It obviously works, but more then that in his mind its the best thing to throw. Fishing is 99.9 percent mental and .1 percent physical if your mind is thinking I should be using a different lure the entire time of fishing thats going to mess up your thinking process and get you off track... a lure can build confidence which keeps your mind focused which leads to catching more fish. Sometimes its not the lure at all but the person using it... and the confidence that person has while using it. If I took Jeffs Jerk bait and gave him a H20 jerkbait even if they where the same size same actions same color and then caught 2 reds b4 he did that would automatically trigger a reaction in anyones mind that its the lure because he has confidence in the lure...


Now Im not dogging on any jerk bait brand or make but we all have our go2s

Although Im also the type to try any new lure and will give just about anything a fair shot. So yalls advise and opinions are duly noted, from my perspective.

Sorry for ranting Jeff. But I felt the need to say that

Lucky Craft , Jackall, and Rapala Nation for life!


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

I can agree, confidence is a major part of fishing. I have certain lures and colors I have built confidence in over the years. The Rapala Xrap and the LC Pointer are 2 of those lures. I own a lot of different jerkbaits(including the Storm Twitch Stick) but for some reason always end up going back to the ones I'm confident in. Some of my Pointers are 4 years old and have no paint left but still catch fish like new out of the package. 
Next time I am out there I will fish the Twitch Stick head to head against the Pointer and see what happens. Colors are different,so not a direct comparison, but it could be interesting.


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## Desert Eagle (Apr 25, 2012)

What an outing!!! Great report and pics...


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## Riverfan (Apr 5, 2015)

Guys,

I’m a tournament fisherman in smallmouth country for 10 months a year. The jerkbaits is one of the best tools we have. However, the smallmouth can be incredibly selective. One day the want the pointerand the Megabass the next, so i//we fish em all. Some times it’s the depth they run but most of the time I have no clue. In a fall tournament two years ago the pointer, Megabits and X-rap went untouched for the first hour. Tied on the Twitchstick and the smallies turned and on and we won the tournament. Since than I start with the Twitchstick and change from there. However the beauty of the is it’s price. We have these toothy fish called northern pike (you’ve got way more species to deal with) and they love those $20 baits. The quality of theconstruction, hooks and the detail of the Twitchsick do not reflect it’s price. 
The next question is how the freshwater baits behave in Saltwater. one of the keys to this class of baits (up here) is they will suspend motionless in cool freshwater. I believe thats not true in Saltwater. I assume they will slowly rise. My other concern is changing hooks. I’m not sure if weight tined hooks will affect the lures balance and performance. Any ideas?

John


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## blue water addiction (Dec 26, 2015)

I agree guys because not all baits work the same for everyone because of the technics we have required over time. I've fished with friends in the same boat using the same lures and out fished them and vise a verser ,did I spell that right? so it makes sense to try different brands because they all respond differently to everyone more or less ( RAPALA for life and MIRRO- LURE ).


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## blue water addiction (Dec 26, 2015)

Basically the same Riverfan other than the buoyance is different so experimenting with larger hooks helps displace the difference .where are you fresh water fishing at in the Orange Beach area? (avid largemouth fisherman myself).


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

Changing to a larger hook hasn't changed the action from what I have seen. I usually carry size 4,5 and 6 Owners st36 and swap hooks around until I can get it to suspend. Right now I have 2 size 6 on it when fishing near the river, but change the front hook to a size 4 when fishing Texar which is much saltier. Sometimes a slow sink will work great if needing to get a little deeper so upsize the hooks. Really just have to test it when you start fishing and make adjustments from there.


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## Riverfan (Apr 5, 2015)

Great advice, I'll bring an assortment of trebles with me. Blue Water, I'm all saltwater in Orange Beach but do catch a few in Fish River


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## blue water addiction (Dec 26, 2015)

I've considered dragging my rig to Perdido pass looks so dam productive when I drive threw there on business, When you say fish river you don't mean the canal do you?


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## LIM-IT-OUT (Aug 26, 2014)

Riverfan said:


> Guys,
> 
> I’m a tournament fisherman in smallmouth country for 10 months a year. The jerkbaits is one of the best tools we have. However, the smallmouth can be incredibly selective. One day the want the pointerand the Megabass the next, so i//we fish em all. Some times it’s the depth they run but most of the time I have no clue. In a fall tournament two years ago the pointer, Megabits and X-rap went untouched for the first hour. Tied on the Twitchstick and the smallies turned and on and we won the tournament. Since than I start with the Twitchstick and change from there. However the beauty of the is it’s price. We have these toothy fish called northern pike (you’ve got way more species to deal with) and they love those $20 baits. The quality of theconstruction, hooks and the detail of the Twitchsick do not reflect it’s price.
> The next question is how the freshwater baits behave in Saltwater. one of the keys to this class of baits (up here) is they will suspend motionless in cool freshwater. I believe thats not true in Saltwater. I assume they will slowly rise. My other concern is changing hooks. I’m not sure if weight tined hooks will affect the lures balance and performance. Any ideas?
> ...


Jeff
John sounds like you and I... a bass fishermen tinkering with his artificials for Saltwater applications. 

John let me tell yah... I use freshwater hooks only, do they rust yes in time but they are 4x as sharp then stalk SW hooks. As for larger hooks changing the action. Well I dont believe I have ever put a hook that was over sizing the lure per say. And you mentioned weight of a hook yes the weight will effect how it suspends or slow sink fast sink or float. Regaurdless of the weight the action stays the same as long as the hook size is still within reason. You also mentioned blanence again as long as the front hook is the same as the back hook your lure will sit naturaly, which brings up another point that with floating jerk baits I like the ass end of the lure at almost a 45 while the lure sits on the surface with only the head of the bait sticking out.


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## Riverfan (Apr 5, 2015)

Thanks for the feedback, I do like to tinker as well. I'll stick with the freshwater hooks and change them out once in a while. I've tried weighting hooks with solder to make the lure suspend or change its attitude (head up-head down) and have seen the change (kill) the lure action. What is interesting is we've found an head down attitude is better for our bass. Not sure why, maybe the lure suspend over a bass's bed in the spring.
You hit on confidence and I agree it's very important but how about the other C...cadence? What work best for the winter reds and trout? My basic is the traditional jerk-jerk-pause on slack line. The variable is the length of the pause.


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## Riverfan (Apr 5, 2015)

Blue Water, My experience at the pass is limited to Feb and March. One of the reason I'm trying to learn more about the Pensacola area is the fish has been very inconsist the last couple years. Last year the water was colder and I had 1 good trip to 4 tough one.The go-to at the pass is sheepshead on shrimp which is fun but I love fishing artificials. Can't beat fooling em with your lure and retrieve.
Considering trading a trip to the pass for a trip to your area. My boat is small but works on the good days.


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## LIM-IT-OUT (Aug 26, 2014)

As far as cadences go in the winter slow is best there are alot of versions of slow just have to ask the fish what thet want that day and in the summer hahaha Jeff has to answer that its a jerk bait cadence Ive only seen and learned from him


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

Yep, slow in the winter and fast in the summer. That summertime retrieve was what got them fired up again when Rick was with me. Tried to snatch the rod out of my hands a few times:yes:


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