What are the Best Baits and Lures for Redfish Fishing?
The best baits for redfish are live shrimp, pin fish, white baits and finger mullet. The best lures for redfish are a 3 inch to a 5 inch white paddle tail with a 1/8 to a 1/2 ounce red jig head or a weed less gold spoon worked slowly near the bottom of the water column.
Redfish (red drum) are one of the most sought after fish in Florida. The reasons are very simple. The are amazing fighters once they realize that they are hooked.
They are a delicious fish to be filleted and released into the grease. And thirdly, they are found in all salt water through out the state of Florida.
Fishermen argue with me all of the time about what are the best baits and lures for a redfish but I will give you my opinion anyways.
I have been fishing the grass flats and oyster bars of Florida for 40 plus years and I am an INSHORE FISHING GUIDE along the Treasure Coast. Reds are one of my favorites to catch because they are excellent fighters and you can often sight fish for them in shallow waters.
In the article below, I will teach you simple tips and techniques to catch more redfish. Let's get started.
Watch the video below and catch more redfish.
The best baits for redfish are live shrimp, pin fish, white baits and finger mullet. The best lures for redfish are a 3 inch to a 5 inch white paddle tail with a 1/8 to a 1/2 ounce red jig head or a weed less gold spoon worked slowly near the bottom of the water column.
Redfish (red drum) are one of the most sought after fish in Florida. The reasons are very simple. The are amazing fighters once they realize that they are hooked.
They are a delicious fish to be filleted and released into the grease. And thirdly, they are found in all salt water through out the state of Florida.
Fishermen argue with me all of the time about what are the best baits and lures for a redfish but I will give you my opinion anyways.
I have been fishing the grass flats and oyster bars of Florida for 40 plus years and I am an INSHORE FISHING GUIDE along the Treasure Coast. Reds are one of my favorites to catch because they are excellent fighters and you can often sight fish for them in shallow waters.
In the article below, I will teach you simple tips and techniques to catch more redfish. Let's get started.
Watch the video below and catch more redfish.
Best baits and lures for redfish fishing-- OYSTER BARS/MUDFLATS
Oyster bars and redfish go together like peanut butter and jelly. If you are fishing somewhere and see an oyster bar, it is a safe bet that redfish are hunting nearby. The best dead baits for redfish around oyster bars are shrimp, pin fish and mullet.
DEAD BAIT
Fresh dead shrimp have accounted for probably 500 or more of the redfish that I have caught in my life. Reds love shrimp!!! The simplest rig to use is a fresh dead shrimp with a small split shot 6 inches above it. Throw this up current from the oyster bar and let it bounce past the oyster bar.
If you are fishing somewhere with a light current pitch the shrimp, pin fish or mullet chunk up to the oyster bar without using any weights and wait for the hit. Anytime that you can get away without using a weight or something like a large barrel swivel you will decrease your chances of spooking the fish. The more natural the presentation the better the hook up ratio will be.
LIVE BAIT
The best live baits in the oyster bar/mudflat environment are shrimp, fiddler and mud crabs, pin fish, mud minnows and finger mullet. One of my favorite techniques is to get up on the mud flats that have a definite deeper channel between them and wait for the reds to hit that channel.
The reds are usually the first predators to hit the mudflats just as the tide starts to come in. You have to get there before the reds do because they spook easily in super shallow water.
Send a live shrimp to the reds that will come in that channel before searching the flats for prey. You can sight fish them once they venture onto the flats. If you are fishing somewhere like Everglades National Park in Florida this usually only lasts an hour or so before sharks and dolphin show up and the reds have to leave for safety reasons. Other spots that have less sharks around will enable you to use this technique for a few hours or more.
LURES
The best lure for this environment are by far a Berkeley GULP scented imitation shrimp or a GULP swimming mullet on an 1/8 oz. red jig head. Another good one is a DOA CAL soft plastic shad with a paddle tail and a 1/8 oz. jig head. I like to use white or natural colored jigs. Just bounce the jigs on the bottom with a slower retrieve.
A weedless gold spoon is another winner for oyster bars and mud flat red fishing. I like to use a slow retrieve and bounce it along the bottom for the best results.
The shallow water oyster bars and mud flats are an excellent place to catch red fish using top water walk-the-dog style lures. Just about any brand of lure will do as long as they mimic a finger mullet. Zara Spook and Mirro Lure have a huge selection of sizes and colors.
I like to use a white or a natural colored lure for targeting reds. I know other redfish fishermen that swear by pink walk-the-dog top water lures. Try a few different colors and see which one works best for you.
BEST ALL AROUND ROD AND REEL COMBO FOR REDFISH
In my opinion, the perfect all around rod and reel combo for redfish is a 3500 series reel and a 7 foot medium or medium/heavy strength, fast action rod. Fill the spool with 15 pound braided line and use a 20 pound leader.
I have used many different rods and reels over the last 40 years of fishing like Diawa, Shimano and Penn.
My favorite line of reels that are out now is the Penn Spinfisher series reels. They are smooth, tough; have great drag systems; and best of all a sealed body so sand and water don't get inside the reels.
They are perfect for surf fishing, wade fishing and kayak fishing. (Any fishing technique that makes it likely for water or sand to get in them)
You can expect to pay $150 plus for these reels. BUT they are worth it.
My second favorite non-sealed reels are the Diawa BG reels.
They are the reels that I use on my flats boat because I know that they are unlikely to get dunked in the water or to get beach sand in them.
You can expect to pay $100 plus for these reels. They are a great bargain in my opinion.
Learn more in the Mirrolure walk-the-dog video below.
Best baits and lures for redfish fishing--DOCKS
Docks are a great place to catch red drum. Red fish like to prowl the dock pilings and adjacent mud and sand flats for invertebrates and small fish. The dock pilings are usually crammed full of sponges, oysters and barnacles for redfish to find prey in. Docks act like an artificial reef and attract many species of fish to them.
DEAD BAIT
The best dead bait for dock fishing is shrimp, crabs, pin fish and mullet chunks. If there is not too much current send the baits free lined under the dock and wait for the hit. If there is a lot of current you will have to use an appropriate sinker to secure your bait to the bottom.
LIVE BAIT
The best live baits for dock fishing for redfish are shrimp, white baits, pin fish and finger mullet. The reds like to actively swim with and against the current using their highly evolved olfactory systems to find food so it is best to present the bait from up current but it is not absolutely necessary. The reds will most likely smell your offering if they are near.
Read this article that I wrote and learn more about getting the correct tackle for catching redfish like a pro.
Depending upon the water depth I will use a free lined or popping cork style bait presentation for shallow docks. You have to know your bait's behavior patterns when deciding which presentation to use. A pin fish will always try to swim to the bottom. Conversely, a finger mullet will always stay near the surface.
So a pin fish will most likely tangle you in the bottom pilings if you don't control it with a cork. A mullet will wrap you up around the upper parts of the pilings.
I like to use a shrimp or white bait with a split shot if the dock pilings are deeper. If there is a redfish around they will most likely take this offering. Give it 5 minutes and then move to another spot of the dock if you don't get a bite.
LURES
The best lures for dock fishing are scented imitation shrimp and shad with paddle tails on a jig head. White with a red head is my go to color combination. If they don't bite white I will usually switch over to a darker or natural colored lure. Change colors and vary your retrieve speeds until you figure out what the reds are in the mood for that day.
The next best lure is a gold spoon. Use a weed less one if there are a lot of underwater hang ups to get caught on. Redfish definitely prefer gold over silver spoons. Just cast them up to and under the docks and work them back slowly near the bottom and get ready for a fight.
Another lure that I love to fish with is spinner baits. Spinner baits catch a lot of salt water species in spite of being thought of as a bass lure. Snook, redfish, blue fish, trout, black drum, flounder..... can all be caught with a spinner bait. The trout and the redfish prefer gold blades. I like to use a slow and steady retrieve near the bottom for reds.
Watch the video below and catch more redfish with lures.
Best baits and lures for redfish fishing--MANGROVES/CREEK MOUTHS
Redfish love to root around the roots of the red mangrove during the higher tides in search of shrimp, crabs and small fish.
DEAD BAIT
The best dead baits for catching mangrove redfish are mullet chunks, lady fish chunks, pin fish and shrimp. The key to this type of fishing is getting the bait at or under the mangrove branches and letting the stink attract the reds in the area.
LIVE BAIT
The best live baits around mangroves and creek mouths are shrimp, white baits, finger mullet and pin fish. I like to use a popping cork for this style of fishing with the mullet and pin fish but I usually free line the shrimp and white baits. You have to get the bait at or under the mangroves for best results.
You always have to keep in mind that redfish are on the menu for sharks and dolphin. They like to stay close to the shallow water and mangrove roots just in case they have to evade a predator.
LURES
My favorite lures for this type of fishing are weed less soft plastics and weed less gold spoons. The soft plastics that I like will mimic a shrimp, or a paddle tail shad or a fluke type of soft plastic.
If you can find them that are scented that will make them even more appetizing. Use a weighted weed less hook if there is a lot of current. Usually the normal unweighted ones work just fine.
Skip these baits up under the mangrove branches and slowly retrieve them for best results. Oftentimes you will get a strike the second the lure hits the water if there is a hungry red around. If it is scented sometimes you can just cast it up there and let it sit like you would a dead bait offering.
Toss a weed less gold spoon up into the roots and you will get similar results like you would using the soft plastics. Just remember to work it very slowly.
Best baits and lures for redfish fishing-- GRASS FLATS
Redfish love to root around in the grass flats. They will have their heads down looking for shrimp, crabs and other creatures in the grass or the sand that it is growing in. It can be hard to get their attention some of the time.
LURES
The best lures for finding these redfish are the Berkeley Gulp shrimp and swimming mullet coupled with a 1/8 or 1/4 ounce jig head depending upon the depth.
You have to keep the lure very close to the bottom to get the redfish to notice it so work the lure within a foot or so of the bottom for best results. You are looking for the sandy potholes that are in any grass flat that I have ever seen.
Use the white ones for water that is clear or slightly stained and use the root beer colored ones when the water is dirty for best results.
Predators like snook, flounder, speckled trout and of course redfish love to use those potholes to ambush shrimp, fish and crabs that the tide brings to them. Your best bet is to bounce your jig through those sandy potholes a few times before moving onto the next one.
LIVE BAIT
A great bait if you are anchored is a live pinfish or shrimp with a sinker to keep it pinned in the middle of one of those potholes. The struggling of the bait and the smell will attract any redfish in the vicinity. The key is keeping the bait in the middle of the pothole so that it doesn't get all wrapped up in the grass.
DEAD BAIT
A great dead bait for catching redfish on the grass flats is a pinfish with its head and tail cut off; a big chunk of mullet or a chunk of ladyfish.
The key to using this technique is to have a chunk of bait that is too big for most catfish to swallow. If it is too small then the catfish will usually find it first and eat your baits before the redfish can find them.
Best baits and lures for redfish fishing-- DEEP CHANNELS
Redfish will move off of the flats and shallow water when the temperatures get too hot or too cold. This means that you have to target them in deeper water.
DEAD BAITS
The best baits for this scenario are definitely dead baits on the bottom. Those redfish have highly evolved olfactory systems and will find your bait if they are anywhere near it down tide. Those odor molecules will travel for miles in the water.
The best dead baits for redfish in this scenario are the same as the grass flats. A large pinfish with its head and tail cut off; a large chunk of ladyfish and a large chunk of mullet. Another good dead bait for deep channels is blue crabs. A large blue crab cut in half is a great bait for redfish too.
The key to this technique is to keep the bait in one spot on the bottom so use plenty of lead to keep your bait in one spot until the redfish can find their way to it.
LIVE BAITS
The best live bait for redfish in deep channels is some sort or active fish like a pinfish, finger mullet, threadfin herring or any other white bait. Just keep the bait close to the bottom because that is the part of the water column where the redfish will congregate.
LURES
The best lures for a deep water redfish scenario are the jigs. You will need more weight to get your jig down deep to where the redfish are so you might need a 1 1/2 ounce jig up to 2 1/2 ounces to get the jig in the strike zone of the fish.
It is a good idea to add some scent to those jigs to get more of the redfish's senses involved. Procure is a product that is very appealing to redfish and can be added to the jigs to make them smell better.
You can also add a small piece of shrimp to the jig hook to make it more appealing to a hungry redfish. You will definitely get more bites if you add smell to your lures when you are targeting redfish.
I wrote another article on this website all about fishing for redfish with lures. It covers the best redfish lures in detail and you can see that by clicking right here.
Best baits and lures for redfish fishing--INLETS
Redfish will congregate in large numbers in inlets during certain times of the year. An inlet can be hard to fish for a bunch of different reasons.
1) The tide is often very strong in an inlet so you will need more lead to keep your baits pinned to the bottom.
2) There are usually a lot of other fishermen and your lines can get tangled easily.
3) Inlets are deep so it is hard to keep your lures near the bottom where the redfish will be.
LURES
Having said all of this the best lures for catching redfish in the inlets is a jig of some sort. A flair hawk style of snook jig is a great lure to catch redfish with. Just add a piece of shrimp or pro cure to the jig and you are good to go.
The best technique that I have found is to bounce the jig on the bottom from up current. The predatory fish like redfish and snook will be facing into the current most of the time.
You might need a jig from 1 ounce all of the way up to 2 1/2 ounces depending upon how much current there is and how deep you are fishing.
Deep inlets and big, over slot redfish might require you to beef up your tackle to a 5500 series reel filled with 30 pound braided line and a 30 or 40 pound leader.
LIVE BAIT
The best live baits for catching redfish in the inlets are white baits of some sort. It can be menhaden, scaled sardines, threadfin herring, pinfish, pigfish, finger mullet........
Just make sure that you get your bait to the bottom and walk with it if the current is moving it (as long as there are not any other fishermen) or use a lead weight heavy enough to keep it on the bottom.
WANT TO CATCH REDFISH? BOOK YOUR FISHING CHARTER TODAY!
Best water temperatures for redfish fishing:
What is the best water temperature range for redfish fishing? You need to know this if you want to catch a ton of redfish. There are a few factors that you will need to look for if you want to catch fish inshore.
1) You need to fish in a spot with a comfortable water temperature for the species that you are targeting.
2) You need to find clean moving water.
3) You need to find a place where there is bait for the fish to eat.
4) You need to find a place where there are not any predators like dolphins and sharks.
Those are the 4 factors that make a good fishing spot but temperature is number one for a reason because you can have the best redfish baits and lures in the world but if the water is too hot or too cold then you won't catch any fish.
Redfish are cold blooded just like a snake or an alligator. This means that they cannot regulate their body temperatures by themselves. They have to use the surrounding waters to heat up or cool down. If they get too hot or too cold they will die. This means that they will keep moving until they can find a comfortable water temperature.
The problem with boat thermometers and fishing kayak thermometers is that they only tell you the temperature on the surface of the water. What is the temperature 10 feet down?
Go to Walmart and get yourself a waterproof thermometer and tie it to a long string. Then you will be able to lower it to any depth and know exactly what the water temperatures are.
Then you will know if the temperatures are right for catching a ton of redfish or whatever it is that you are looking for.
The video below will teach you the optimal water temperatures for catching redfish.
Use stinky baits and lures to catch more redfish.
I think that many fishermen forget how well a redfish can smell. I mean c'mon they have 4 nostrils. Of course they can smell well. Many lures only incorporate a couple of the redfish's senses like sight, sound and touch but they forget the most important one. Why not incorporate smell and cover them all?
Why do you think the Berkely Gulp shrimp work so well? They move through the water so the redfish can use its lateral line to feel/hear it. When they get close enough they can use their eyes to see it. And it puts out tons of delicious smelling scent molecules that the redfish detects using its olfactory system.
I wrote another article on this website that covers in great detail the odors that repel and attract fish. You can access that article and video by clicking right here.
It's a perfect bait for those reasons. Stinky baits work!!!!!
Let's say that your go to redfish lure is a gold spoon and you are fishing dark and murky waters of some tidal creek somewhere.
Can the redfish see the lure? Probably not. Can the redfish feel/hear the lure? Probably. Can the redfish smell the lure? NOPE.
So you are only incorporating one of the redfish's senses with the gold spoon. AND they still work. That is how evolved redfish are. BUT why not add another sense to help the redfish find your lure.
There is a product called Pro Cure that is a sticky liquid that comes in many delicious smells. I would recommend the shrimp and mullet scents to add to your non smelly redfish lures.
I am not sponsored by Pro Cure, Mirro Lure, Berkely Gulp or any other brand that I mention in my articles. I only mention them because they will help you catch more fish.
Watch this video and catch more redfish by exploiting the sense of smell.
Watch the video below and catch even more redfish.
Bonus Video--How to Catch Redfish with Live Mullet
Conclusion:
Redfish are one of the most sought after fish in the southern part of the United States of America. Why? Because they are awesome creatures that fight well and are delicious. AND they will hit just about anything when they are hungry enough.
I hope that this article will help you catch more redfish or at the very least have a good time trying.
If you are ever down in the Treasure Coast of Florida book a flats boat charter with me. Our main target species are redfish, spotted sea trout, snook and tarpon. The redfish stick around all year so anytime is a good time to get on a redfish in my area.
About the author: The author of this article insists that we refer to him as The Tyrannosaurus Rex of Redfishing. BUT we all just ignore him and call him Mike, the co-owner of FYAO Saltwater Media Group, Inc.
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