1. Stop!
“Remember: In these cooler months when you’re drifting and casting, you want to stop when you catch one or two keepers or you’re likely to pass up the fish,” Capt. Gerald Ellender said. “If you catch a couple fish in a particular spot, they’re usually there for a reason. Maybe there’s a trench on the bottom or some feature holding bait there and therefore holding fish, so you need a means to be able to stop your boat as quickly and as silently as possible. Power-Poles, Cajun anchors, a stick anchor or an i-Pilot — anything to stop you right there. And when the bite stops, move on. Resume your drift or go back and redrift the same area again.
2. Downsize your baits.
“During December and throughout the colder months, fish will be feeding on small baits, such as glass minnows, etc.” Ellender said. “Use lighter leader line — nothing over 30-pound test — and get away from the big 3- and 4-inch plastics and downsize to 2-inch soft plastics: beetles, minnows or swim baits, or the small (original size) Vudu shrimp, which has been very effective. Use a good, firm 1/16-ounce short-shank hook on your plastics, and use whatever color you prefer but be sure to have some in chartreuse.”
3. Do the time.
“All the advice and tips and gear and gadgets are still no substitute for actually spending time on the water and being observant.” Ellender said. “There are times when your proven hotspot won’t produce. What then? You do the time, look around, explore, use your common sense, put into practice what you already know. Look closely at those points and cuts. Look for bait or water current. Look for slicks. Look for birds. Do the time.”
4. Go fishing.
“Keep in mind: When the cold fronts blow in and shut down the trout action, you can still catch redfish in the canals and bayous,” Ellender said. “Slow down your presentation and retrieve, and when you think you’re reeling in slow enough, slow down even more.”
