This month has been consistent with cold fronts averaging 3-5 days apart. On the warming trend between fronts,fly fishing for redfish has been extremely productive around the new and full moon phases.
You can expect redfish to be schooled up on the big negative low tides because of the lack of water.Look for these fish to be sitting in troughs or depressions waiting for the incoming to tide to bring water up on the flat. These fish will be feeding on everything from crabs, shrimp and worms that burrow in the sand/mud. Fishing smaller flies on #4 and #6 hooks has been the most productive and it’s important to keep your crab/shrimp on the bottom when providing action to your fly. When sight fishing, it’s imperative to give these fish a large lead so that your fly is on the bottom before they reach it and also so that the splash from the fly landing, doesn’t spook the fish.
Trout are a lot more sensitive on our shallower tampa bay flats. I find that lighter flies that have a silent entry work best, along with an extremely long leader. There is also an abundance of trout in our creeks that have a much more willing attitude than the fish in shallower water. Clouser Minnows have no problem getting the job done when blind casting the deeper cuts.
Now that the days are getting longer, we can expect to see some higher temperatures during the day in between fronts. Night time fly fishing for snook will begin to pick up when the temperatures begin to climb above the 65 degree water mark.