Georgia Saltwater Fishing Report April 2011

Saltwater: Inshore: Capt. Bob Barnette reports, “It appears that winter has gone. The water is now 68 degrees, and the water is clear in most places. There have been several reports of trout being caught, and the redfish are still in small schools. You will have to look around to find shrimp in the bait shops, but I have been told that Kilkenny Marina will have shrimp shortly. If trout are your target, live shrimp on a float rig is always good, but if you have sport in mind try artificial. The DOA or Gulp jerkbaits work well, but remember to try to match the artificial to the food that your target is feeding on. Redfish will be moving up the rivers and feeding on crabs and mullet over the next few weeks. I might add that the whiting have shown up, and also I have heard of a few flounder being caught. Both of these can be caught on the bottom with dead bait. I prefer to use a slip-sinker rig on the edges of the channels and around the sound entrance. If you have enough for a good meal, please release the roe trout this month.”

Nearshore: Capt. Greg Hildreth reports, “The inshore trout fishing has not picked up very much as of yet. I think the cold weather took a toll on them. Maybe by mid April we will see them pick back up. The nearshore fishing for sheepshead has been fantastic, though! We have been getting good numbers of fish in the 5- to 8-lb. range with the average being around 4 pounds. The standard bait for this is a live fiddler crab on a No. 2 circle hook with a 30-lb. mono leader about 14 inches long. Depending on the tide, I’ve been using a 1 1/2- to 3-oz sinker. The tripletail have just started to show nearshore and should be very good in April.”