By Helen Petre
Choctawhatchee Bay is open to fishing for redfish all year, but the best season is fall, and the best time is early morning. The bay is probably the best place in Florida to catch them, and once you have caught one, you will more than likely be hooked.
As the water cools in autumn, the bay fills with redfish. You can even see them in the shallows. The bay offers 130,000 acres of prime habitat, stretching more than 30 miles from east to west — prime fishing for our favorite inshore fish.
Inshore fishing has several advantages over offshore fishing. The water is calmer, boats are smaller and the experience is quieter and more technical, especially if you are sight fishing. You are not battling the open gulf with 20 other people on a charter boat.
Redfish are hard-fighting fish that like structure and edges, especially grass flats. They are not picky. The most reliable baits are pinfish, mullet, crab or shrimp, fished on the bottom or under a popping cork. Artificial baits, like gold spoons and plastic worms, work as well. Or try flies.
Eating
Although this fish was released because of its large size, redfish in the 18- to 22-inch range are excellent eating fish. The flesh is firm, white and mild, similar to snapper but sweeter. While the slot limit is 18 to 27 inches, any fish over 22 inches is probably better released. Larger, older redfish have coarser flesh, and releasing larger fish protects the breeding population.
Now is the best time for redfish fishing in Choctawhatchee Bay. Go out and enjoy a day, or a few, in the sun and on the water. Whether you eat them or release them, the experience is sure to be a memory worth keeping. Get hooked! I will see you out there!
Helen Petre is a retired biologist enjoying the wild things of the Florida Panhandle. If you have science questions or suggestions for articles, email petrehelen@gmail.com.
Bailey Lee, of Lee Boatworks, caught this redfish with his own homemade fly on a fly rod. Most redfish have one characteristic tail spot, but some have two, like this one. Some even have three or more spots. Bailey’s redfish is about 30 inches and ten pounds. While not quite a trophy, which would be larger than 35 inches, this one is over the slot limit and should be released. It is certainly possible to catch more than one redfish, but the bag limit is one.
