Georgia Saltwater Fishing Report – November 2024

Saltwater: Inshore: Capt. David Newlin reports, “October fishing has been absolutely terrific. Redfish, trout and the black drum bites have been as good as it gets. This warm weather has turned the bite on. Redfish have been as good as I have ever seen it. Yesterday, I had my 15-fish limit in about 30 minutes. The 14- to 36-inch fish are all over the place, from 1 to 30 feet deep. I have caught a few on lures. Live shrimp is the way to go if you want to catch lots of them. I have caught them up the river all the way to Highway 17. Big numbers of redfish will start moving up the rivers by the middle of November. Everywhere that will hold redfish should have fish in it in November. The trout bite has recently really turned on. I got into them on a mud flat yesterday and caught a fish a cast for an hour. I have been catching a lot on mud flats as soon as the incoming tide covers them by fishing a shrimp about a foot under my cork. DOA Shrimp have been working really good. Right now most of the trout are in the sounds. In a few days, they should start moving up the rivers. The morning topwater bite has been good. A white Whopper Plopper worked really good a couple mornings lately. A fast walk-the-dog retrieve will get a bite. In November, all the usual jigs should catch trout. Black drum have been a good addition to the fish cooler lately. Fish a shrimp on the bottom around structure from 8 to 25 feet deep. Live ones or fresh dead shrimp will work. The Ogeechee striper bite has been good. I have caught a good number lately up to around 20 pounds. A 20-pounder is a big river striper for the Ogeechee. Dock lights have been holding a lot of them. A big live shrimp is a good bait in the saltwater. A silver Rat-L-Trap works good under the lights. You might want to stay out of the woods for a day and go fishing while the bite is hot.”

Capt. Judy Helmey  reports, “When the month of November rolls around, the inshore bite certainly picks up. It is much easier to score a Savannah Slam, which is redfish, spotted seatrout and flounder. The secret to catching more inshore fish during this time is to use live shrimp as bait. All fish like shrimp because it’s easy to eat, easy to kill, and it’s more plentiful. And it seems that once you get the bite going, it’s simple enough to change straight to any sort of artificial shrimp pattern. As far as how to present your live shrimp, there are several ways: popping corks with 3- to 4-foot leaders. It’s best to put a shot weight about 1 foot above the hook because this helps keep the bait deep under the cork. Another thing good about popping corks is the sound they make when they are popped. They sound just like a shrimp flapping its tail up against its body. This is a spotted seatrout, flounder and redfish head turner for sure. Traditional adjustable floats come in all sizes and work great when trying to find the bite at different depths. When anchoring is the plan, I suggest using the larger versions of the traditional adjustable corks because it enables you to make longer drifts. The larger corks can be seen for a farther distance, allowing you to be able to cover a lot more area without changing locations. This is a very good tip, especially when fishing in a cooler-water situation because the sound seems to travel farther. It seems the more you move, the longer you must wait to see if there really is any sort of bite in the area picked to fish. For those fishermen who want to use artificial only, this is the month for you. The secret when going this route is to use lighter tackle for that better feel. I like using the 8-lb. test monofilament line while tying the artificial bait directly, meaning no leader needed. Here are a few artificial suggestions: DOAs rigged or not, Berkley scented Gulps, Strike King soft-baits flukes, paddletails, etc. My favorite old-time cold-water colors are electric chicken, baby bass and root beer. And let’s not forget candy corn. Finally, there is just plain fishing naked. All you need is hook, leader and live shrimp. And here’s what happens, the shrimp swims where it thinks it’s safe and that’s just about where the fish are in waiting. The inshore big bull trophy red populations were strong in October, and the month of November is normally even better. These big fish love to school around anything that offers them a source of food. The deepest side of a creek or river mouth is going to be the best place to anchor. The best setup for getting this fish’s attention is going to be a standard beefed-up Carolina rig and cutfish for bait. A shorter leader works better than a longer one because it holds the bait closer to the bottom. As far as best baits, most like using whole mullet. Mullet that is cut up in slices like a loaf of bread will also work. However, my No. 1 choice bait is fresh whiting cut up into 2-inch slices, also known as fish steaks. I also suggest cutting your bait up and letting it air or sun dry. In other words, do not put it back in the cooler. As the bait dries, it seals in the fish-calling stinking juices that only a fish steak has to offer. Once introduced back into the water, the seal is dissolved and the trapped scent is dispersed. It worked then and it works now. I always suggest changing your baits out often. A redfish takes a feeding direction to the strongest scent, and you can count on that. You will need a larger dip net. When cutting your bait up, I suggest keeping the heads. Why? If you get low on bait, you can always put a lipped-hook head on the bottom. The fact of the matter is the fish heads deliver more scent longer than a steak. However, it might take the reds longer to get the fish head crushed and delivered to the gullet. We sometimes dedicate one rod to be baited with a fish head. It is a better way to get an opportunity for a stronger bite. It is a great time of the year to use the trolling motor and do what is better known as working the bank or the docks. As far as best baits, I suggest using your favorite soft plastics rigged on jig heads. Back in the old days, we used Renosky Mirror Image Darting Shad lures (three to a pack). We used 3-inch Darting Shad, which were pre-weighted with a 1/4-oz. head and 1/0 Lazer Sharp hook. Believe me, they worked back in the old days, and they will work now. This lure is part of yesteryear’s forgotten types that are not expensive and work like a charm. If you find them on the old tackle shelf, I suggest purchasing them all. Just tie them directly to your main line or leader and don’t forget your dip net or camera.”

Nearshore: Capt. Judy Helmey  reports, “During this time, the bottom fishing at the artificial reefs located in 50 to 70 feet of water are holding a nice build-up of black seabass. Just about all structures on the reefs will hold fish. However, sometimes you must look before you find the bulk of the bottom fish. Go to http://coastalgadnr.org/ArtificialReef for GPS coordinates. The best bait is going to be squid and cut fish. Artificial reefs such L, CCA and J buoy normally are holding the attentions of the winter-end run of the Spanish/king mackerel. The chances are normally strong during this month for mackerel activity. We normally pull 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 Drone spoons for the kings and small to medium Clark spoons for the Spanish mackerel. Best trolling speed is 5 to 7 knots. For those fishermen who want to drift these areas with light tackle and live baits, this is a good time to go this route. During this time, your by-catch could be a trophy redfish hook-up. You could find yourself catching them while trolling, bottom fishing or livelining these areas. Please remember these fish are on the federally protected program list. You can catch them, but you can’t keep them. Please handle it with care and release as soon as possible.”

Savannah Snapper Banks: Capt. Judy Helmey  reports, “There are a few grouper species closed. However, there are plenty open currently. I suggest before heading out that you go to https://safmc.net/regulations, which has all of the species listed that are open and closed. If you want to talk to someone, please call Kim Iverson, the public information officer for South Atlantic Fishery Management Council at 843.571.4366. Kim’s up to date with all regulations and is very helpful and easy to talk to. My suggestion is that you always know before you go. Best live baits when targeting grouper are small vermilion, pinfish, sand perch, bluefish and rock bass. If you can’t catch these baits while plain old bottom fishing with squid, give the old sabiki rig a try. Here’s a list of catchers and keepers: cubera snapper, white grunt, flounder, amberjack, almaco jack, banded rudder fish, porgy, trigger fish, black sea bass, vermilion snapper and other hungry biters. For those who like the standard old bottom fishing with live bait, such as cigar minnows or Spanish sardines or cut squid, now is the time. The best rigs to use to catch these live baits are going to be sabiki gold-hook rigs. Whatever you do, always carry extra bait rigs because they work great and get a lot of abuse. We have been catching bait in rips and over any sort of structure. The best news is during these times it is easier to find the bait because it normally is schooling in the upper water column near the structure. Now for those who don’t want to mess with catching bait, I suggest picking up a box of frozen cigar minnows or Spanish sardines at your local bait shop. You will notice that the cigar minnows will be more expensive than the Spanish sardines. I suggest purchasing the Spanish sardines and keeping them frozen as long as you can. These partially frozen baits, whole or cut in half, will stay on the hook better. If you can’t find any frozen baits, I suggest putting the old cast net in the boat because we still got lots of menhaden. This bait will work live and when cut up. While making way through the rivers, sounds and beachfronts, you could find yourself in menhaden catching heaven. When this baitfish is schooling near the surface, some will flip, indicating their exact location. I suggest giving them a catching try. Sometimes all it takes is one cast to fill your livewell. The smaller menhaden, whether they are dead or alive, work great and you don’t have to cut them up. If you do catch lots, I suggest not overfilling your livewell. When there are leftovers, I suggest putting them in a bucket and covering with saltwater. This type of soaking will help keep their shine.” 

Blue Water: Capt. Judy Helmey  reports, “For those fishermen who don’t mind a longer ocean ride, the blue waters of the Gulf Stream can certainly hold the interest of big-game fish, especially during the month of November. During this time, the edge between the cooler western waters and the continuously northern pushed warmer waters of the Stream is formed. This is where smaller fish feel safe and where larger fish feed. As far as best baits to drag, you certainly do have lots of options. For those fishermen who want to do some rigging, I suggest dragging ballyhoo from small dinks to large horse size dressed in different color skirts or rigged just plain naked with or without chin weights. For those fishermen who just want to drag the artificial stuff, believe me it does work. I like pulling cedar plugs that have been soaked in menhaden oil. This is where you forget the painted cedar plugs and just go plain cedar. Or do a little sanding/scraping on the painted ones to expose the wood. This wood can really soak up the oil and when trolled it leaves a nice oily happy trails. Dolphin Delight made by No Alibi is a plastic squid lure made with feathers, and it works great when pulled about 4 feet behind any sort of bird. Best lures to pull are old school black/silver and blue/silvers Halcos. Back in the old days, we pulled a black with orange bottom lure that was called Terminator and for good reason. Yo-Zuri Bonita lures are great big-game trolling baits. In the past, we have used this style lure instead of rigging ballyhoo. Artificial lures that push water when pulled really trigger a serious topwater bite. If the trolling doesn’t work, there is always deep-water jigging for big-bottom fish. The best jigs for deep water are the big boys Williamson lures (my favorite Benthos Speed Jig) or Shimano jigs (flat sides 7 to 10.5 ounces). All you have to do is to drop these jigs on the ledge, keep them close to the bottom and work them. Big bites will happen. I suggest jigging with a medium drag and you had better keep a strong grip on that rod. You don’t want it to end up swimming with the fishes!”

2025 Captain Judy’s Inshore Fishing Clinics: Captain Judy is offering fishing/learning inshore trips. You will go fishing and learn while you fish. If you catch legal-sized fish, your captain will clean them. Tip and fish cleaning is not included in the price. Please bring your own food and drink. Each fisherman will receive a signed copy of Captain Judy’s Inshore Fishing Techniques, as well as other information ($25 value). The dates are Feb. 22, 2025 and Feb. 23, 2025. On inshore boats in the water $200 per person and runs from 8 a.m. until 12 p.m.