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Some Wintry Wisdom For Cold Weather Fishing

Photo by FRANK SARGEANT

Trout are one of the more common catches in temperature refuge areas in winter.

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By FRANK SARGEANT

Tribune Correspondent

Published: January 25, 2009

Sure, some people prefer to head for the docks on those perfect 72-degree spring mornings. But that time is still far off, and right now we have Arctic Expresses, Siberian Clippers and Fargo Choo-Choos to deal with on a weekly basis.

Nonetheless, it's possible to go fishing and catch a lot of fish. It's also possible to go fishing, get soaked, freeze half to death and never get a hint of a bite.

The trick is being in the right place at the right time.

Cold weather concentrates inshore fish in what might be called temperature refuges, areas that for one reason or another are somewhat warmer than others. Of course, this moves them out of the places where you are used to finding them, and it means it's easy to completely miss the productive spots.

Where do you start looking? The most obvious spot on Tampa Bay is the massive TECO power plant at Apollo Beach, where the water is literally warmed to bath temperature as it cools the generators. So much water goes through this plant that it creates a plume of warmth that extends more than a mile into Tampa Bay. The fact that nearly all the manatees in the Bay area spend the winter there is evidence of how pleasant the temperatures remain.

Just like the manatees, snook, redfish, trout, cobia, flounder, jacks, ladyfish and even Spanish mackerel stack up in the warm water. Unfortunately, most of the very best fishing is now off limits due to the expanded manatee zone. But the fish have to swim in and out of the warm area; when they do, they pass through water that's open to boaters.

Anglers fishing from shore at the Apollo Beach Park can easily reach some of the best water. Tossing a jig tipped with shrimp along the northern tip of the island is likely to hook you up with something, day or night. The power plant at Tarpon Springs can be similarly productive.

There are many other good winter fishing areas that are somewhat less dramatic, but just as productive.

Deep holes in coastal rivers such as the Manatee, Little Manatee, Myakka, Peace, Pithlachascotee and others produce fish all year. One of the best tactics is to find a creek mouth and fish it as the tide falls. Baitfish and crabs are pulled out into the main river, and the fish stack up there to feed on them. This is a good spot for a plastic shrimp, fished with the flow of the water.

Fish also gather in the Intracoastal Waterway where there's deep water around boat docks, particularly those with lights low over the water. Snook and trout are particular targets in these cases, and live shrimp fished unweighted is the primary bait. Many anglers also do very well after dark with tiny white flies, size 6 or so, that imitate glass minnows.

Dredged residential canals are also winter gathering spots. The canals around Apollo Beach and Longboat Key are famed winter fishing spots. Sheepshead, snook, reds and trout gather in these cuts, particularly where rocky bottom is exposed. Many anglers do well with artificial bait such as Gulp! fished slowly around the structures and docks.

It's also possible to find fish by slow-trolling quarter-ounce jigs or shallow-running minnow plugs.

Fish also move around during the day to take advantage of changing conditions. While they might stay off the flats at night and in the morning because that's when shallow water is coldest, you might find more active fish on a given flat between 1 and 3 p.m. when the sun warms things.

The same is true of black mud bottom, which soaks up heat. Lots of redfish have moved into this sort of zone with water only 12 inches when a sunny, calm day follows an extremely cold night. Of course, fish in water this shallow are usually extremely spooky, but it's occasionally possible to get them to take a Gulp! bait or a live shrimp.

Winter is a good time to try wade fishing - if you own a pair of neoprene waders to make it bearable - because the low tides and clear water can make it difficult to get close to flats fish in a boat. By wading, you present a low profile and you can move slowly and silently into range.

The main thing, however you fish, is to keep moving until you locate a concentration of keepers. There are a lot of holes as barren as the Arctic tundra at this time of year, but when you hit that tropical oasis, it might be loaded with fish of every species.

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