Tactics & Tackle
10 Spots for Finding Fish
by Mark Sosin
The most successful technique for locating fish centers on elimination. If you know the habits and habitat of your quarry, the first part of the process is mental. Experience should indicate where they probably won't be on a given tide, time of day, time of year, and so forth. That helps to narrow the search area. Even without specific knowledge, you can still employ a systematic approach tailored to testing various possibilities.
Fish tend to frequent particular types of habitat on a regular basis. If you can isolate and identify these important zones, it may speed up the elimination process. Anglers now talk about pattern when referring to the specific behavior of certain fish at a given time. Sailfish, for example, may be in 120 feet of water off Fort Pierce and West Palm Beach (Florida) at the same instant. That's one pattern. It does not mean that all sailfish are at that depth or in water of a specific temperature. If some are, it's a pattern. All you have to do is uncover a single pattern to catch fish.
Start by using your experience to rank the various options. If necessary, write them down and number them. Then, begin with the most promising and work right down the list. As you attempt to eliminate each possibility, stay alert to signs and signals that could give you the needed clue. Here are 10 places where you should be able to find fish consistently.
1. POINTS
Points offer predators the perfect place to ambush their prey. The jutting land mass provides concealment, excellent visibility, and a sanctuary out of the current. Usually, water flows past one side of a point, creating a lee on the backside. The key lies in presenting a bait or lure so that it sweeps through in a natural manner.
If you see a point of land, you can be reasonably certain that the same configuration continues underwater. In some places, points may be shallow, but if the visible land drops, expect the fall to continue beneath the surface. Points with access to deep water frequently rank as more productive.
2. POCKETS
Certain species lie or cruise well back in shoreline pockets, following the contour of the land mass. They know that baitfish tend to push into the very shallow water to escape the gaping jaws of a huskier critter. Pockets that have a thin lip and then drop off are even better. Forage species stay on the rim, while the predators wait for an errant tidbit to venture over the edge.
Tide can make a difference. If the shore is coated with mangroves or other vegetation, the fish may work beyond casting range on high water. As the tide falls, look for the perfect situation to form. Place your casts as close to the bank as possible. Even a foot or two closer could make a difference.
3. DROPOFFS
Put this factor high on your list. Fish love dropoffs. If the sea floor slopes downward, they'll position themselves along the slope. It's even better when you can combine a point with a dropoff. Bait tends to remain higher and the big boys wait beneath, ready to pick off a straggler or two.
The key here lies in finding the right depth. Try walking a leadhead down the slope and then reverse the procedure, working it from deep to shallow. If a current is running, remember that the fish will be facing into it.
4. EDGES
Animals tend to track along edges. Mammals do it routinely and so do fish. If the bottom changes from mud to rock, sand to grass, or anything else, concentrate on the transitional zone. Dropoffs represent a particular type of edge that can be exceptionally productive when the change in depth moves from the shallows into a channel.
When you find an edge, the trick lies in determining which side of the change the fish happen to prefer right now. To run a simple test, try one side and then the other, but stay close to the edge.
5. RISES
Any rise in the sea floor is worth investigating. Fish hang around humps, lumps, mounds, rocks, reefs, and anything else that sticks up from the bottom. In some areas, it doesn't take a very significant rise to hold quantities of fish. Anglers sometimes ignore smaller rises, searching for a major change in the real estate. Check out anything that sticks up. And, keep in mind that wrecks and artificial reefs fall in the category of rises.
6. JUNCTIONS
Investigate junctions where one body of water enters another or two currents join. These spots represent primary ambush territory. A tiny, tidal tributary may flow into a river or bay. On falling water, predators may line up at the junction waiting for baitfish to be swept into the main body of water. Think in terms of junctions whenever the water flows. Picture a scene where the water flows past two points of land and comes together some distance away. You can almost bet that someone will be home at this spot. Don't forget that wherever a river, canal, spillway, or anything else enters a larger body of water constitutes a junction.
7. INLETS
An inlet is a neck or funnel that shuttles water from an estuary to an ocean. Predators know instinctively that food will be carried by the current and they take up feeding stations. The key centers on figuring out where they will be on a particular stage of the tide. During the fastest flow, the fish could seek sanctuary behind structure, working more in the open as the force of the water eases. On an outgoing tide, the water moves a considerable distance into the sea. The fish could be beyond the confines of the inlet while benefiting from its function.
8. COLOR CHANGE
You're looking for any type of change on the water. If the color shifts from green to blue on the offshore grounds or turbid to clear in an estuary, it's worth fishing. Stay close to the edge of the transitional zone, trying one side and then the other. You may think that the fish will be on the blue water side or the clear side, but the other corridor may hold the bonanza.
9. TEMPERATURE CHANGE
Water temperature is probably the single most important factor in determining where fish will be at any given moment. They can often detect changes as minute as 1/100th of a degree. That means that if the temperature is one degree warmer or cooler than the surrounding area, you could find fish. Again, they may be in the warmer or the cooler water depending on the season and the species. Monitor temperature constantly and check out minor changes.
10. CURRENTS
Major ocean currents flow like a river, drawing surface water as they move. Replacement water comes from the depths through a process known as upwelling. Plankton blooms along the edges, attracting forage species. You don't have to train a gamefish to prowl the edges. Currents carry food, making them worthy of investigative time. Rips describe turbulent water that tends to disorient baitfish. The heavyweights can handle the tumult easily and move in to feast on the hapless prey.
Regardless of the species you seek or where you fish in the world, the same basic guidelines should serve you well. One may certainly add to the list, but if you concentrate on these factors, you should find enough critters to keep you busy.
Copyright 1998 - 2008 Mark Sosin's Saltwater Journal
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