One fish I look forward to in January is sheepshead. During warm or rainy winters I do best catching them in in our rivers and if the winter is cold I do best catching them on the near shore rock piles out to 15 feet. Our state record was caught in my home waters in the Homosassa River in 1981 in January. Eugene Lechler must have thought this is a big redfish or huge black drum the day he caught that fish just west of Hells Gate in Puckett’s Hole. The best bait is live shrimp on a knocker rig or jighead. The color of the jighead seems to make a difference to me and I prefer to use a chartreuse color when fishing on the nearshore rock piles. Cast the shrimp and jig next to the structure and let it settle. Slow hops with the rod tip in the sand will get the bite. It will feel like a heavy slow pull when a sheepshead takes the bait and when that sensation happens to the angler set the hook. River fishing for sheepshead is different because you should let the bait sit until you feel the bite. Moving the bait across the bottom will most likely get you hung on the rocks. High incoming tide this weekend will be late afternoon.
- Nature Coast - March 23, 2024
- William Toney - February 29, 2024
- Nature Coast - February 14, 2024
