On the Water: Knowing the tides will improve your fishing luck
It’s that time of year in Southwest Florida that we progress into our cooler or winter months. On the water, that will bring a change that affects how we fish. Tides and water depth play a key role for coastal anglers and dictate where and when we find fish throughout the year.
If you study a yearly tide chart you will notice a slight role reversal for the high and low tides. Over the warm months of late spring, summer and early fall, the lowest tides are generally late in the evening and at night and the highest occur during the day. Study the same chart for late fall, winter and early spring and you will find just the opposite, the lowest tides are generally in the early morning and during the day and the highest are during the night hours.
No big deal — we still have days with good strong tides to fish, right? If you have spent any time fishing the inshore waters of Southwest Florida you quickly learned just how important tides are and not just that there is good water movement, but more importantly how high or low the water will rise or drop. We have a lot of very shallow inshore waters; a foot of depth makes a huge difference.
In my opinion, one of the best things you can do to improve your inshore fishing success is learn how the tides work and how weather affects the tide. Many newcomers to our area do not realize just how much shallow water we have for large bodies of water.
With less water to work with during the day it will affect where we fish and might also play a role in running or moving from one spot to another. There are many areas that I fish for snook, redfish, trout and others over the high tides during the warm months that just don’t have enough water depth through the cooler months. And likewise, many of my favorite winter holes that I like to fish when the tides are super low, I wouldn’t think about fishing over the summer or warmer months.
During our warm months I prefer fishing an incoming tide and the higher the better but beginning this month some of our best days fishing occur on the lowest stages of falling tides.
If you fish the falling tides make sure you do a little homework and have an exit plan. It’s easy to get caught up in the moment, especially when you are catching fish and before you realize it the plug has been pulled and you are looking at real estate or dry land 360 degrees around the boat, believe me, not a good sight. With an exit plan you should always have an out; an egress path that you know will provide enough water to float the boat out to deeper water. This is where it’s imperative to learn your boats draft and limitations and the water depths in areas you fish at all stages of the tide.
If you are not very familiar with an area or body of water, take it slow and careful, and I recommend learning an area over the incoming tide. This way if you mess up and end up grounded (we all have) while taking it slow, the incoming water well have you floating again soon. The ability to sit at the computer and study the areas you intend to fish on Google Earth is a huge advantage from the old days. It takes a few hours to study a satellite image of an area and learn what it took me years and years to learn growing up in Southwest Florida without that advantage. But still, there is no substitute for time on the water.
If you want to become a consistently successful angler, put in the time to learn how local tides work and how weather and seasons affect the tides, then apply that knowledge to areas you want to fish. This is one of, if not the most important aspects of consistently catching fish inshore. It will take some time, including trial and error, but you will become a more complete angler as your catch rate increases.
Keep up to date with fishing rules and regulations in your area by visiting www.myfwc.com for all current Florida and Federal fishing regulations.
Thanks for taking the time to read our column. Everyone have a safe and Happy Holiday season and a Happy New Year.
If you have a fishing report or for charter information, contact Gulf Coast Guide Service at 239-410-8576 (call or text); on the web at www.fishpineisland.com; or via email at gcl2fish@live.com.
Have a safe week and good fishin’.
As a lifetime resident of Matlacha and Pine Island, Capt. Bill Russell has spent his life fishing and learning the waters around Pine Island and Southwest Florida, and as a professional fishing guide for the past 23 years.