# Aggressive Reds and Trout- 4/3



## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

The warmer temps definitely have the fish feeding up. Got out on the water around 1 and decided to look for some reds. Went to an area that seemed like it would hold some fish, and started throwing the BF1 around in some deeper water. Caught a bunch of 14-17" trout in a short period of time but no reds. The bite shut off so I decided to move shallower and start fishing a sand flat.

Water depth was only 1' and the clarity was very good. Hooked up almost instantly with a big redfish, and it did all it could to break me off in the numerous snags all around me. Finally wore it down, landed and released after a great fight. Very fat fish, well over 8lbs and just over slot. A few minutes later hooked up again with one of the fattest reds I've ever caught, 25" and over 7lbs. Wind picked up and pushed me off the flat, but found a few more reds hiding from the wind and landed 3 more between 25-27". Would have been some nice fish for the tournament, definitely the right quality. These reds had a lot of energy and were putting up some awesome fights. 

By now the tide is flooding the banks fast and the waves are rolling through but the trout start biting again. Fishing some pothole type areas 3-4' deep, landed 4 trout between 20-23" and a few more in the slot. 

Retrieve was not very slow today. The fish were aggressively chasing lures so a faster retrieve was triggering them. After the hookup, trout were jumping and head shaking and reds were making long drag ripping runs. All fish were caught and released on the BF1 today. Clarity was clear to tannic stained/muddy. Took a few pics before the waves started rolling:


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## redfishreaper (Apr 23, 2012)

hell yea! way to tear em up man! good job on the catch and release! haha thanks for the repot.


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## jcb60 (Mar 9, 2016)

Very nice! I'm going to be out in the yak tomorrow, hope I'm half as successful as you were. Was this escambia bay?

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## Jason (Oct 2, 2007)

Them are some fatties brother!!! Good deal on getting em!


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## Riverfan (Apr 5, 2015)

Jason said:


> Them are some fatties brother!!! Good deal on getting em!


Ditto


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## dabutcher (Apr 19, 2008)

Great report!

Those are some pigs.


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## fsu alex (Aug 3, 2011)

Those are some biggins!


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

redfishreaper said:


> hell yea! way to tear em up man! good job on the catch and release! haha thanks for the repot.


Thanks man, been a while since I switched up tactics to chase some reds. Always enjoy catching them.


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

Thanks guys. I'm not sure what they have been eating but there's plenty of it out there. The trout have gotten skinny though.


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

jcb60 said:


> Very nice! I'm going to be out in the yak tomorrow, hope I'm half as successful as you were. Was this escambia bay?
> 
> Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk


Yes upper Escambia


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## redfishreaper (Apr 23, 2012)

Jeffbro999 said:


> Thanks guys. I'm not sure what they have been eating but there's plenty of it out there. The trout have gotten skinny though.


have the trout breeded out maybe?


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## testoner (Oct 18, 2014)

Nice!


Tight lines.


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

redfishreaper said:


> have the trout breeded out maybe?


Trout spawn late spring through fall so that should start soon. More to do with the water temps and metabolism. They don't digest food quickly in the winter, and there's plenty of bait(mullet, shad) moving slowly in the cold water. They have such a steady buffet line during winter that they build up a lot of weight. I always notice the trout get really fat after a strong cold front. Now that the temps are warming, the bait is moving out of the backwaters so not as much food around.


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## timjb83 (Jan 23, 2013)

Great report Jeff. Those reds are some fatties for sure.. I'm gonna do my best to get out this weekend 

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## Riverfan (Apr 5, 2015)

Jeffbro, I’ve looked at your photos several times and I’m cerious about your setup. It looks like your wading and you have some kind of work/storage device in front of you. Can you describe it for me?


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

timjb83 said:


> Great report Jeff. Those reds are some fatties for sure.. I'm gonna do my best to get out this weekend
> 
> Sent from my SM-N920V using Tapatalk


Thanks man! Send me a text this weekend, I should be out there stalking some fish on Sunday. Water is warming up nicely. Shouldn't need any waders where Ive been catching those reds.


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

Riverfan said:


> Jeffbro, I’ve looked at your photos several times and I’m cerious about your setup. It looks like your wading and you have some kind of work/storage device in front of you. Can you describe it for me?


Sure, its a floating fish basket, and I made a top to keep my stuff on. Very convenient and don't know what I would do without it. Recently added the measuring board and it seems to work well. Still floats with an 8lb red on it. I made a post last summer detailing how I made it, I will try to find that for you.


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## Riverfan (Apr 5, 2015)

Thanks:thumbsup:


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

Here's the description:
http://www.pensacolafishingforum.com/f28/getting-set-up-wading-583730/
I keep my Boga and pliers clipped on my belt and scissors in the box, so I mounted the measuring board across there instead. It also helps keep the tackle box and drinks from moving around.


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## Riverfan (Apr 5, 2015)

Thanks Jeff, I can't add much to how the guys replied to the original post other that it's well thought through. I tried wade fishing once here and the one thing that I learned is you need to be very organized. I wasn't!


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

Riverfan said:


> Thanks Jeff, I can't add much to how the guys replied to the original post other that it's well thought through. I tried wade fishing once here and the one thing that I learned is you need to be very organized. I wasn't!


Thanks, and yes organization is very important! I also like to keep everything dry, including my phone, so I had to figure something out. Chest packs were uncomfortable to me, and always seemed to get wet. Noticed what the guys in S. Texas were doing and it gave me the idea. Now I feel lost if I go without it!


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## astrachan (Oct 22, 2015)

Please help a noob...what is a BF1?


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## Jeffbro999#2 (Feb 17, 2014)

The BF1 is a custom lipless twitch bait/swimbait made by a forum member, Gastonfish. He does a great job and they are amazing lures. Similar to a Mr17, but has a lot more action.


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