Coastal Georgia Fishing Report winter 2021

Here we are just 5 days until Christmas. Yesterdays high was 85 degrees and today’s is 50. Typical Mother Nature jokes here in Coastal Georgia as usual. I just wanted to do a quick Coastal Georgia fishing report for winter of 2021 before the new year.

I honestly have never been more ready for a new year and will welcome 2022 and what it brings with open arms and an open mind. Its been a crazy year not because of the novel corona virus or a new president or the things most people would think. Instead it’s because it was one of the most trying years as a guide I have had in my 25 year career.

The weather was relentless, the world is changing, and so is this business. Social media and Youtube have made people who are not anglers feel they deserve to catch any fish they deem a target with no skill, practice, or patience involved. It’s actually quite shocking.

Companies who are no more than middle companies booking trips for charter boats have created complications in bookings and left clients standing on the docks in wrong cities and marinas looking for guides who don’t even exist. Ripped off by some fraudster on the other end of a computer. The government continues to reward people with money for not working and a good number of those people who have no business running charters are now doing so for “cash only” some with and some without the required United States Coastguard Captains License, state licenses & permits, insurance or first aid certification. These illegal charters diluting the clients that licensed guides rely on to make a living in the slower months of our season.

A lot of marine manufactures have gotten slack in quality. Boats, motors, electronics, trolling motors, rods, reels, hooks, weights, bait and anything marine related have been hard to get. Even worse they have all gone up in price in a big way. Dockage, boat launches, ice, and fuel have all gone up at least 40 percent in the last couple years and we have held our prices the same not raising our rates. Unfortunately we will have to change that in 2022 with fuel and marina costs alone up over 50% YOY.

I wanted to give our clients and everyone who reads this a chance to take advantage of our current rates and call before Jan. 15th 2022 to book before our rates change. Let us know you read this report when you call.

So…..So long 2021!!!!!!!

Fishing the last week

So is been really great! Several days on the water have yielded catches of 40-60 trout with a few redfish and black drum in the mix as well. Water temps are all over the place with yesterdays being the highest I have seen at 67 degrees in places. I’m sure after the wind and cold last night and today that number is 3-5 degrees less today.

Artificial or live bait

Well just a couple weeks ago I wrote a report and talked about how D.O.A. Lures paddle tails were outfitting live shrimp and wow has that changed. It’s not the popping cork and live shrimp that has taken the lead either. It’s the 1/4 ounce jig head and shrimp that has been the goto the last several trips.

The Techniques

Pinch the tail off a shrimp and thread it on backwards. To target redfish and black drum work the shrimp slow on the bottom and work creek mouths and oyster bars. For trout speed up the retrieve and work the rod tip. It’s been almost every cast in some spots the last week which is surprising on this full moon. It’s been a great feeling watching clients catch fish and not feeling like a failure not catching fish. This year has been tough so its been nice to watch bent rods and big smiles on my clients faces. Kind of an early Christmas present to me….

Near Shore Bite

Winter and early spring are our favorite time to fish the near shore artificial reefs and wrecks which are located anywhere from 8-15 miles off the coasts of St. Simons and Jekyll Islands. Bottom bumping as we call it is the technique of choice. Jigging rods paired with both spinning or conventional reeds and 3 to 5 ounce diamond jigs get the job done! You can expect Black Sea bass, snapper, bull red drum, and more. It’s a winter time favorite trip of our guides. For more information click HERE