Fall Trout Trends (On-The-Water Tips & Best Tactics)
- By: Tony Acevedo
- on
Where can you find big trout in the fall?
What should you be looking for and using to catch trout in the colder months?
This is one of the best times of year to catch big trout!
Check out more below!
Fall Trout Trends [VIDEO]
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Equipment Used:
- F.R.E.D. Paddletail
- 3/0 Owner Weighted Twistlock Hook 1/8oz
- 10lb Power Pro
- 20lb Berkley Vanish Leader
- Daiwa Procyon 2500
- 7’6 Century Weapon Jr. Medium Power Fast Action
A typical pattern of trout fishing in the fall is the bite starts a little bit into mid-morning after the sun has risen.
Trout like to push up onto the shallow, sandy flats to warm themselves up and to feed.
Schools of baitfish that look like raindrops on the surface are a big indicator of trout in the area.
Sometimes you won’t see the fish but they are there.
If you can see the fish, then the fish can see or sense you!
Aim your casts around the visible schools of bait, because the fish won’t be too far from the bait.
Do you have any more questions about fall trout patterns and tactics?
Let me know down in the comments section below!
And if you know someone who wants to learn more about fall trout trends, please TAG or SHARE this with them!
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I really Tony’s stuff, but if you don’t fish from a kayak, this vid was totally useless. He was in a foot of water where most boats couldn’t get anywhere near.
Fun watching you catch fish, Tony.
I need to do something different… I fished last Sunday, 11/14/21, in the Indian River north of Fort Pierce. Almost identical water… flats starting at the mangroves & pushing out to 4 feet deep over 100 yards from the shore (gradual) with pot holes, etc. There were little pods of bait everywhere. I was using a couple setups, but all about the same… 2500 or 3000 size Penn spinning reel, St.Croix Mojo or similar fast action rod, 10lb braid, 20lb flouro leader. I used a slam shady on a trout eye jig head, silver spoon, mirrorlure suspended twitch, and a couple other things… casting around the bait, over the bait, through it, away from it, into the mangroves, etc… nothing.
I covered 3 miles on my kayak until I got to a nice point where a creek flowed in and started using some live shrimp just to get a tight line… and landed mangrove snapper every cast. Switched back to artificial and continued to land fish.
As I made my way back to my launch site, I was floating / trolling / casting riding the current. The spoon I was trolling got hammered by ladyfish – one of the biggest I have ever caught – but still no gamefish. Finally I had a decent sized trout (17″) hit the paddle tail I was trolling.
I’m happy with the day… caught a number of fish, put some nice Mangrove Snapper in the cooler, even landed a juvenile Goliath Grouper in the deeper ledge where the creek flowed in, but I continue to struggle to find any REDFISH, SPECLED TROUT, or SNOOK.
I have very little luck down that way when it comes to redfish. Trout I tend to get early morning on topwater around those schools of bait on the flats. For snook try focusing on points with current coming around them and a little depth. Also choke points with current flowing through. Will also typically find them tucked up in the mangroves in overhangs and pockets.
In Jacksonville the trout seem to be in the creeks’ flowing waters and at outlets where bait may be flowing.
Yes a bit different up there in the marshes and creeks!
Would like to know what water Temps are as I am in NC Outer Banks and it would make.it a better comparision as to conditions.
Hey Nelson!
Water temps in this video were in the high 60’s. For trout in the North Carolina region, you will most likely start finding them in the deeper areas with structure. They behave a little different up there since temps drop much quicker.
On all these reports, water temp, wind and tides would be a plus
Hey Richard!
This is a public video. The Insider Only report can be found here that includes all of those details and more:
https://www.saltstrong.com/insiders/fall-inshore-slam-tactics/
why did you choose to use the fred? Thanks
Hey Richard! I’ve had good luck with it in the past in this area, so it was more of a confidence thing. I’m sure the Slam Shady 2.0 would have worked just as well.
I am more interested in fishing in Panama or Costa Rica along the shore or inshore.
I am in California, not on the East Coast, Florida or Texas.
George Washington
This is exactly what I’m enjoying! These type of tutorials are very informative.
Thank you for the great feedback Michael!
Be sure to also check out our full reports. Even if they aren’t in your exact location you can still learn a lot about the trends and tactics and apply them to your area. Here is the full report from this trip:
https://www.saltstrong.com/insiders/fall-inshore-slam-tactics/
Bob, Richard, James,
If you watch again, you will see the bait activity in the area that Tony slipped up to and cast to where the activity was seen. It was not a random open flats cast, but a calculated determination as to the potential presence of trout. A SUCCESSFUL determination!
As many of the Saltstrong discussions bring up, structure is not only the trees and grasses at the shoreline, but a pot hole in the flats grasses, a 4in drop-off, an oyster bed, etc. Any change/difference in the surrounding enviroment could constitute ‘structure’.
Hope this helps!
Tight Lines!
Good point on the “structure.” We’re usually used to looking for major “structure” but in the shallows it can be a subtle depth change, sometimes just few inches of difference.
What was water temp? What tide? Tks.
Hey Ed!
All of those details can be found here on the full report from this trip:
https://www.saltstrong.com/insiders/fall-inshore-slam-tactics/