# A Tail of Woe - Inshore 12/18/07



## HaMm3r (Dec 11, 2006)

Today was…different. Not bad exactly, but certainly not good either.  







It was filled with exciting moments, but still failed to satisfy in many ways.  







With that said, I'd do it again tomorrow!









The day began beneath a canopy of auburn clouds and blue sky, but with temperatures hovering around 39 degrees







, I opted to let the sun warm things up a bit before hitting the water.









As I had mentioned to a friend the night before, my plan for the day was to seek out tailing winter reds at low tide, in places where I’ve had good luck finding them in past years.  







So, by 9am the thermometer had risen to 47 degrees and I quickly headed out, before the dropping water levels prevented me from reaching my quarry.









By 11am, I had spotted a tail or two, had one red nudge my Sugar and Spice Gulp shrimp, and managed to land a 17” trout, also on the SS Gulp.

















The water was crystal clear and I was having no trouble finding fish, but I was having serious problems getting them to eat!  







A couple of flounder had managed self-releases







, and one other trout climbed aboard







, but most of my infrequent strikes missed the hook and none of them were redfish.









It wasn’t that the reds weren’t around, it was that they just weren’t interested. Over the course of the day, I must have seen at least twenty different tails, some even with their backs exposed







. Most of them were single fish, and none appeared to be in groups of more than two. These fish were so intent on nosing around in the mud, that they seemed almost oblivious to my presence







. For example, I was watching one for a few minutes before I lost track of where it went. Then out of the corner of my eye, I see its tail pop up right next to my outboard! I could have touched it with my rod tip…









Since I didn’t bring my cast net and I had no live bait







, I decided to at least try to get a tail or two on film. And let me just say that I am terrible at photographing reds. Every time I’ve tried, I end up missing the shot, so I was real happy with these!









My best shot ever…

















My new best shot ever!

















That’s the tip of a tail on the far left. I was almost on top of him.  









There’s a back and dorsal fin…  









I fished until the tide came back in enough to let me pass, which was around 4PM. The heavy cloud cover made it look like a beautiful sunset, but that was still over an hour away. 









Tally for the day;
2 Trout – 17”

While not a good outing in the usual sense, it was still a great opportunity to observe redfish behavior up close.







 And after about my tenth failed attempt to get them to eat any of the lures I had, I just settled down, relaxed and watched the show.


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## phishphood (Dec 15, 2006)

It's always fun to be around the fish. I almost came up your way today, but hit the St. Johns instead. Caught 10 crappie, 1 bass, and 1 bluegill. The bass and 1 crappie were keepers, so there's lunch for tomorrow. If my plans work out, I'll be on the water Friday. How about you?


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## HaMm3r (Dec 11, 2006)

> If my plans work out, I'll be on the water Friday. How about you?


Well, yes actually, but I won't be fishing and I won't be in my Noe. There's a Christmas caroling thing going on with the yacht club, so I'll be in that. :


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## tojo (Dec 12, 2006)

> > If my plans work out, I'll be on the water Friday. How about you?
> 
> 
> Well, yes actually, but I won't be fishing and I won't be in my Noe. There's a Christmas caroling thing going on with the yacht club, so I'll be in that.  :



Ahhhhhhhhh...singing to the poor masses and handing out grey pupon... ;D ;D ;D ;D

Sounds like a good day on the water


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## HaMm3r (Dec 11, 2006)

> ...singing to the poor masses and handing out grey pupon... ;D ;D ;D ;D


It's mostly for the kids.  However, I am tempted to troll a line off the back and see if anyone yells at me. ;D


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## phishphood (Dec 15, 2006)

Anything bigger than a microskiff is a yacht to me. Have fun spreading some holiday cheer.


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## choppercity47 (Jul 30, 2007)

nice shots, your in some skinny water!


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## HaMm3r (Dec 11, 2006)

> nice shots, your in some skinny water!


Thank you.  As I implied in the report, I had to essentially strand myself to get to these fish during low tide. The passes in and out of the area become impassable when the tide is that low, but the flats and adjoining creeks retain enough water to keep you afloat. It's fun, but requires a 5-6 hour commitment, and if you misjudge the tides or the fish don't bite, it can make for a miserable day.


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## choppercity47 (Jul 30, 2007)

> > nice shots, your in some skinny water!
> 
> 
> Thank you.   As I implied in the report, I had to essentially strand myself to get to these fish during low tide. The passes in and out of the area become impassable when the tide is that low, but the flats and adjoining creeks retain enough water to keep you afloat. It's fun, but requires a 5-6 hour commitment, and if you misjudge the tides or the fish don't bite, it can make for a miserable day.


Great excuss not to come home ;D


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## Apollobeachsam (Dec 14, 2006)

Great stuff man I love tailers... my favorite


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