Top 3 Fall Redfish Mistakes (And How To Fix Them!)
- By: Wyatt Parcel
- on
If you’re not catching as many redfish as you’d like right now, it’s probably due to one of these three common mistakes…
Just a few weeks ago summer fishing was in full swing.
The water was warm and the fish were following their summer trends.
But now that the weather is cooling down a bit and will only get cooler, what worked in July and August is what will likely get you skunked now.
So check out the video below to see what the most common fall redfish mistakes are and how to fix them.
Enjoy!
Top 3 Fall Redfish Mistakes [VIDEO]
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Gear used:
- Craft: Old Town Topwater PDL
- Rod: TFO Professional Signature Series (Medium – 7’6″)
- Reel: Daiwa Fuego LT 3000
- Mainline: 10 lb PowerPro
- Leader: 20 lb Seaguar Blue Label Fluorocarbon
- Hooks: Z-Man Trout Eye Jig Head
- Lures:
Mistake #1: Fishing in cold zones
When the weather was hot, fish were looking for cooler water.
But now that the water temperature is starting to drop, that’s no longer the case.
As it gets cooler, you’re more likely to find fish in areas of warmer water.
These types of areas include:
- Muddy bottom areas
- Wind-protected shorelines
- Areas out of the main current (like coves or the backside of points)
Mistake #2: Using lures that are too small
Whether you’re fishing with lures or live bait, you always want to match the hatch.
And since the majority of baitfish are at their biggest this time of year, you want to match the hatch by using a bigger lure.
Another reason bigger lures work well this time of year is because fish are looking for big meals that have lots of calories.
By eating a few bigger fish they can save energy, as opposed to spending a lot of energy chasing down lots of smaller fish or crustaceans.
I mostly use paddletails in the 5-7″ range this time of year.
Here are my two favorites:
Mistake #3: Fishing too fast
As the water cools, fish get lazier.
They’re less likely to chase down fast-moving lures than they were when the water was warm, so slow down your retrieve to catch more redfish this time of year.
You can do that by reeling in your lure more slowly, or just by adding more and longer pauses during your retrieve.
Conclusion
Fall is one of the best times to catch big redfish, but since the weather is getting cooler, you need to make some adjustments to how you were fishing during the warm summer months.
Fish warmer areas, like coves protected from the wind and main current, use bigger lures, and slow down your retrieve.
Have any questions about catching redfish in the fall?
Let me know down in the comments!
And if you know someone who’s making these mistakes, please TAG or SHARE this with them!
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Great tips Wyatt. The larger swim baits I’ve seen are pre rigged and some weigh an ounce or more. What’s the best size jig head for the Bomber and 5″ Slam Shaddy during the fall? Can they be rigged to fish specific water column? Or is it just best to use a heavier/bigger jig head?
i use a swimbait for snook red fish.
Definitley a good choice! Paddletails fall under the swimbait category, and this time of year, they can’t be beaten!
Rubber banding the soft tail out of the picture 2:47. To Cool!
That ElaZtech is super stretchy! Thanks for watching Robert!
Good stuff Wyatt! Looks like fall came a little earlier this year for us. Even though the water isn’t cold here it has already cooled off considerably and the fish are moving to their fall spots. Been seeing a lot of the same things as you are down here. BTW that mic is working great, it’s giving you that radio DJ voice. Sounds nice and clear.
Thanks so much Pat! The temps are definitely moving the fish around! Glad to hear the mic is working well. I had some issues with it recently and was hoping I’d gotten it fixed this time around!
Hello Saltstrong Fam!
My geo location finds most of my fishing done @ ENP. Ten K islands , Fl Bay and the like. Can a fellow member tell me what time of year this region experiences temp changes?
And when to consider transitioning more to a backwater scenario?
Thanks Guys!
Hey Guy!
There’s not a huge population of redfish in the 10k Islands, but there’s still quite a few! I’d be on the lookout for double digit drops in temperature to signal the switch to fall fishing. I’d start transitioning to backwater fishing about that time.
While I do agree to this idea mostly I believe that water temp is very important in justifying this approach while the water I agree has been cooling one must note that every species of fish being sought after has it’s own preferred comfort temp zone I believe it’s vital to know your species temp zone every species is different and not all of fl or anywhere else being fished is exactly the same either for instance a windbliwn point fished here in North East fl or maybe say further north like where your at Wyatt in North Carolina would be colder then let’s say central or south to but if you observe the water temps it will let you know just how cool the water has gotten and also every year is different as well in one year fall might not happen until late Oct where maybe the year before the beginning of Sept it started cooling off water temps always indicate how a fishes going to react in a given period of time and a certain area being fished anytime a new weather pattern starts to form totally different from the last and maintains itself I always let the water temp dictate how and where I’m going to fish then once I have found that temp other factors are important as well like you said bigger baits to match the hatch and fishing areas closer to the winter spectrum like looking for warmer water instead of cooler in summer and areas located out of the wind versus areas being blown by the wind for more dissolved oxygen anyways just saying what works for me have been a life member going on 3 years now thanks for all you do😁
You’re 100% correct Steven! I do agree that the switch to Fall fishing will occur at different times depending on your geographic region. This is why I try not to focus too much on water temperature in these videos, as it’s going to be relative to the area that you live, and my advice about water temperatures is likely is only going to be helpful in the Carolina regions. But it is important to pay attention to sudden changes like you mentioned, at let the temperature dictate your gameplan for the fish! Thanks for the awesome comment Steven!
It seems like Steven Free is correct in saying that water temp is important but he doesn’t say what temps or changes he looks for and Wyatt seems to be correct in saying “it’s going to be relative to the area that you live…”. And Wyatt’s advice is not related to actual water temp or % of change but rather “look for sudden change”. I don’t think I’ve ever seen many sudden changes except for storms or hurricanes here in Cape Coral, Florida. So I’m hoping for more specific advice like maybe “relative change” may be appropriate for Salt Strong coaches to discuss, i.e., “when the water temp in your area drops about 10% (or whatever % they think is appropriate) start switching over to fall. Is there a more or less standard range of temp drop that could be applied everywhere to trigger the start of fall fishing strategy? If so, would it be 10%, 15%, ? Or do y’all stick with “look for sudden changes”?
Ok, I should have read all the other responses before I replied. So “double digit” changes would be more appropriate than a standard % of change?
No worries James!
Yes, there’s a massive focus on exact water temps in the angling community, but defining exact temperature ranges will not only vary with each state, but will also vary depending on weather patterns in different regions of that state!
If it’s been a mildly cool summer, and it’s a gradual drop into the fall, those fish might not exhibit fall patterns until 5-10 degrees below what most folks would believe they would begin. That’s just one example, but there’s going to be 10 different scenarios for varying severity of temperature change.
Trying to simplify fish biology by limiting it to a single small temperature range would be doing a disservice to the complexity of what actually occurs with a rapidly changing environment.
In short, it’s relative, but the easiest way to spot a definite change is by looking at the average temperature over the last 2 months of a season (again this varies with the season: ex. I consider July and August to be the end of Summer) and when there’s 2 consistent weeks of double digit drops or rises, you will often see the seasonal trends begin to shift.
You should also consider the previous two weeks as well. Has it been a mild temperature change or a sharp one? All of these factors will influence how pronounced seasonal shifts will affect fish behavior!
Hope this cleared things up a bit!
I believe you should also have a segment on the moon phase of the month. It seems that when we have a full moon that fishing is real show during the day. Your thoughts?
I’d be happy to break down moon phases, but the simple explanation is that full and new moon periods really are only more productive because there is more current flow due to stronger tides, which means more bait is being moved and predators have access to a larger quantity of bait.
At what point do you start transitioning to colder zones. I’m referring to water temp drop. If my water is 83 and drops to 80, is that enough to change zones. Or are you look for a major change, like 83 to 73. I’ve noticed in the Florida panhandle, when it comes to redfish, you can catch them in rivers and flats year round. They tolerate temp changes much better than other inshore fish.
I try not to focus on exact water temperatures, because that is relative to the area you fish, and my advice on the best water temperature for trout fishing would really only be applicable to the Mid-Atlantic/Carolinas regions.
The advice I CAN give you, regardless of where you live, is look for double digit temperature changes. These are drastic enough to significantly influence fish behavior. Typically, a 3 degree change in average temperature isn’t enough to switch gameplans, but on a cold day, an area that’s 3 degrees warmer because of a muddier/darker bottom is much more preferable to the surrounding area that’s 3 degrees colder. As with most things fishing, it’s all very relative.
As for Reds in the Panhandle, you’ll have juveniles that don’t move much throughout the year as they grow, but larger, upper slot fish have more drastic movement patterns.
Due to larger fish having a much more developed and active metabolism, they lose heat faster than smaller organisms that don’t have as high of a body mass to metabolism ratio (for a more in depth explanation to this, check out this scientific study of heat loss in organisms: [Long Explanation – https://www.nature.com/scitable/knowledge/library/body-size-and-temperature-why-they-matter-15157011 & Short Explantion from PH.D Lupe Tanner – https://www.enotes.com/homework-help/what-relationship-between-body-size-heat-loss-601820 )
Another terrific video, Wyatt. Thanks!
Thanks so much David! I appreciate the kind words!
Great info Wyatt. You are a valuable addition to the Salt Strong Nation.
Thank you so much Sam!