During the spring, the best baitfish to use are mullet, pilchards, greenies or pogies. Although redfish also eat shellfish and crabs, they’ll eat the prey that’s easiest. If you’re not able to get some live bait, you also can use dead bait too. Use a 7/0 hook and put some mullet fillet on it.
How do you attract red fish?
Best Lures For Redfish
- Shallow Water (3 ft or less) Soft plastic jerk baits on light hooks. Suspending hard plastic lures. Weedless spoons. Topwater plugs.
- Deeper Water (over 3 ft) Soft plastic baits on Weighted Jig Heads. Swim Baits. Diving Crank Baits. Bucktail Jigs.
What bait do you use for Reds?
Cut mullet is by far the best Redfish bait, according to popular vote. This bait will prove pretty successful, more so if you manage to get fresh mullet and cut it up. Frozen mullet can also work, but it’s risky business as the frozen flesh will turn mushy in the water and might fall off the hook.
What is the best time of day to catch redfish?
The best time of day to catch redfish is in the morning before the sun heats up the shallows and in the afternoon off in deeper water features like jetties, wrecks, and bridges. Redfish funnel back into deeper water in the afternoon because it is both cooler and holds more bait than the shallows.
What is the best bait to catch redfish? – Related Questions
How do beginners catch redfish?
If the reds are near baitfish or sitting motionless, throw poppers. Free swimmers at the surface, floating “high and happy,” make easy targets. When reds are moving with purpose, cast baits out in front to make sure they see them. Sometimes redfish will be in water so skinny that their back sticks out.
What color lures do redfish like?
Finally, wherever you go, redfish like the color gold. Everyone knows that a simple gold spoon is a redfish staple, and for good reason. Having some baits littered with gold flake, like Golden Boy or the new Beer Run color, is always a good idea when reds are the target.
What pound test is good for redfish?
Generally, a 20-30 pound braid is just what you need for redfish. A 15-pound leader for small redfish and speckled trout and a 20-30 pound leader for big red bulls. You can go lighter but risk losing bigger redfish. On the other hand, you can go stronger and aim for the biggest of the red bulls.
Do redfish bite better at night?
Redfish smack some lures and bait at night, and it can be more productive than fishing during the day.
Are redfish top or bottom feeders?
A redfish’s diet consists mostly of smaller fish, shrimp, clams, worms, and crabs. They’re primarily bottom feeders, but can be aggressive and feed much higher in the water column if the opportunity arises.
What depth do redfish need?
You can catch redfish from just about any water depth from 6 inches in the back country shallows to more than 100 feet deep when you are fishing the offshore reefs, wrecks and oil rigs.
What month is best for redfish?
Late summer into early fall is when Redfish start showing regularly around jetties, increasing in numbers through fall and early winter during annual spawning runs. That’s the best time of year to catch the biggest ones, but fortunately, redfish are available all year long, especially in the Florida area.
What size hook is best for redfish?
Hook Size for Redfish: So you may be wondering what the best size hook is for catching redfish with white bait. I recommend 1/0 to 3/0 size circle hooks. For small white bait (2-3″) I usually use smaller 1/0 size circle hooks to avoid affecting the way the bait swims.
What is the best month to catch redfish?
The best season for redfish is late summer & mid-fall in grassy flats. August & September are particularly good in Tampa Bay area grass flats. During the summer, the larger redfish, called bull reds, come up from the deeper waters to the shoreline and can be found along jetties and bridges around this time.
Are redfish good eating fish?
The mild, sweet flavor and moist white meat seems to be far superior, especially from those smaller redfish less than 10 or 15 pounds, as the meat of larger “bull” redfish can be coarse, stringy, and unpalatable.
How old is a 40 inch redfish?
The fish ranged in size from 22 to 42 inches in length. The oldest female was 36 years old (40 inches and 26.3 pounds) and the oldest male was 37 years old (38 inches and 23.1 pounds).
What gear do I need to catch redfish?
The best tackle for redfish is a 3500 series spinning reel coupled with a 7 foot medium heavy rod. You will want to spool your reel with 10 pound braided line with a 30 pound mono filament leader. Learn how to fish with a gold spoon or a 3 to 5 inch paddle tail with a 1/8 or 1/4 ounce jig head.
Do you set the hook on redfish?
Making the hook stick
A good hookset is needed to drive the point through the hard, bony mouth of a redfish. Once you have successfully fooled the wily redfish into striking your bait or lure, it’s a nice idea to make the hook stay in his jaw until you land it.
What size cut bait for redfish?
You don’t need a weight, just freeline out the chunk of mullet. Cut a 2″ to 2.5″ piece of mullet. Hook in through the meat and out through the skin and make sure the hook point is clear of scales. And if you’re fishing in current, go through the narrower part of the bait so the mullet is more streamlined in the water.
What size weight should I use for redfish?
1/8 ounce to a 1/4 ounce in less than 6 feet of water and 1/4 to 1/2 ounce jig heads for water deeper than 6 feet. You don’t need to fish your jig as slowly as you did with the flounder. Redfish are ravenous and will swim quickly after a potential prey item once they know it is there.
How old is a 28 inch redfish?
Redfish spawn from late August through October. At one year old, they will range from 10 to 17 inches long, averaging 14 inches. At 2 years old they will range from 18 to 24 inches, and weigh 3 to 6 pounds. At 3 years old, they will range in size from 20 to 28 inches, weighing 4 to 9 pounds.