A few people have recently PM'd me with questions regarding Bull Red fishing. Today I am going to attempt answering those questions with a little tutorial. For those that may not already know, the normal bait selection for targeting Bulls in the river have been pretty much worthless. Blue Crab, Mullet, Menhaden and Lady Fish are normally killer when it comes to Bull Red fishing but as of late, these are not producing with the exception of Lady Fish . I believe these baits will start working again as we get closer to the spawn season but far as June - early August, not so much.
So, what's the cause for this? I have a theory that the Bulls are on a feeding pattern based on what is natural to the deep river channels during the summer. Mullet don't start showing up thick in the river channels until early Fall so it makes sense that Mullet are off the menu. The Blue Crab are often either in shallow water or on the surface making their way to the ocean. Based on that, it also makes sense that the Blue Crab aren't getting a lot of love either.
So what does that leave us with? Well, lets think about what inhabits the bottom on the dredge lines. Anyone that has fished with Shrimp in the river before has noticed that we are harassed by Croakers, Pin Fish, and Black Sea Bass constantly in the summer. Why not try those? We aren't allowed to use BSB as bait so that leaves Croakers and Pin Fish. Basically, Ive been farming up a live well full of Croakers, Pin Fish and Grunts in the Inlet and then turning around and using them as live bait further up river in the usual Red Fish haunts. The results have been very good. I went from barely being able to get a bite by the target species to doubling and even tripling up pretty often. It takes a little bit of effort but the work pays off in spades. I put together a little map of where I have found the best success digging up Croakers, Pin Fish, Grunts and Spots(aka Sailors Choice) and also Whiting. All five of these species have been working incredibly well. The easiest to keep alive with no effort at all have been the Grunts and Pin Fish. The Whiting have been the least productive. The Croakers often require venting before putting them in the live well. I poke a small hole in their air bladders with the tip of a small hook and squeeze the excess air out. Otherwise, you end up with croakers floating around in the live well upside down and eventually die. The other bait options rarely require venting and are incredibly hardy. I keep these guys in bait pens for days at a time with zero problems. They stay lively and get along well sharing the same space. In fact, the Pin Fish and Grunts actually travel and feed together in the wild.
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Danny Pardue