Cockroach

[CoonHound53]

I have been going to cockroach bay for the last three months. It's a real good place to paddle, but I have not experienced good fishing. I currently use live bait (med shrimp), with circle hook, and a split shot weight up 3' from hook. It seems I mostly feed pin fish. Then I try the flats (straight out and to the left), using live shrimp and bobber, or a red jig head and white w. neon green tail gulp bait. What am I doing wrong?

[sfurman]

I rarely fish live bait so I can't help you much there and honestly this time of year fishing is a little on the tough side anyway and shrimp are a favorite of the pin fish. Try top water out on the flats or a gold spoon along the mangroves. Cast and retrieve slow. Look for "pot holes" on the flats, white pathes in the grass. Keep trying you will get it.

Oh yea, with the dog days of August it is best to be on the water before sunrise and pretty much off by 10:00am, IMO.

[jbdba01]

Like most fishing CRB can be feast or famine. I hear about people tearing up Bishop's all the time, yet somehow I seemed baffled on how to fish it consistently.

I agree with sfurman - get out there early in the summer (like 6am) and get to where you want to be just before the sun comes up. This will mean lots of bug spray.

Take all of the below with a grain of salt as I don't tend to fish live/dead bait. Strictly artificial.

Couple other general thoughts:

• - be there when the water is moving
  - on uber high tides like last week a bunch of the fish will be WAY back in the groves so you're eliminating fish right out of the gate
  - this time of year pinfish will tear up your shrimp in a heart beat; from what I've heard cut bait and pinfish might be better - be prepared for some catfish
  - snook will be on those ambush points and face into the current; if you're pulling lures/bait over their backs it won't be as productive; consider 45 degree casts versus head on
  - if you're heading out and left, find the cuts that spill into the bay and hit that deeper water - especially on an outing tide
  - if you're on the flats look for pot holes - work the holes from the outside in
  - mullet can tell you where the reds are; birds can tell you where the mullet are - osprey dive bomb 'em, pelicans will often spook them; looks for a bunch of 'em not just 1-2
  - fish the T's - intersections of water where one creek meets another
  - fishing this time of year things are pretty much done by 10:30/11:00

I didn't exactly tear 'em up last week, but for what it's worth more details here.

Lastly if you search on CRB or Cockroach on pf.com - you'll find plenty of people posting their thoughts. Read those articles; find common themes and execute those themes.

Oh yeah...I wouldn't go there alone at night or leave my truck there way into the night/early morning. Mornings are fine.

Were you the one I talked to at the ramp?

[CoonHound53]

Yea, we spoke at the ramp you told me about this forum. These are both really good tips, I will be out there Sunday using them. Jdbda1 what do you mean about going out at night, does CRB get sketchy. I hear Johnson spoons are good, what colors do you like, and how did you pick them. Also with top water what do you recommend. Thanks for the tips.

[jbdba01]

You'll learn a ton here. I have and am still.

IMHO Cockroach is very sketchy at night and there have been cases of vandalism (broken car windows), but that's pretty much true anywhere. Due to my schedule I fish alone a lot - like 80-90% of the time.

Being a product of Central America in the 70's and Miami in the 80's I tend to be have my streetwise radar up quite a bit.

With all that in mind CRB is poorly lit, at the end of a road (i.e. only one exit), and not exactly on the police beat. I've pulled in there at 10pm and seen about 5-6 large vans without trailer hitches or trailers. Best I could figure there were illegals being dropped off, dope, or a prostitution ring. It sure wasn't a party. It was all very suspicious. All I can say is my Miami radar was pegged and we didn't even strap my buddies boat down. Between his Yukon and Pathfinder it was certainly at least one annual salary of the folks there. I've been known to push the envelope, but I won't go alone there at night. That said I will go at 4/5am - there tends to be more fishermen there than people that don't fit the fishing profile around that hour. Call it risk management...

Gold Johnson spoons will catch anything - including the trashcan slam. I've used the 1/4oz and the next size up. I take that red thing off. Personally I like the Aquadreams - they tend to catch more quality fish but less fish. They are also bullet proof - the Johnson spoon treble hook will rust out in about 4-5 trips. The spoon itself is rock solid and my son just lost one he used for 11 months. He has an uncanny ability with that spoon.

Frankly other guys are better at topwater than me. It's exciting as hell and I have had some limited success, but you fish what you're confident in. Now...that said...Spook Jr. Bone pattern will catch reds, snook, trout. Just learn to walk the dog. I seem to be doing something wrong as I'm not having the success other people enjoy. Of the fish I have caught on the spook they are quality fish.

IMHO in this order I would start with spoons (gold), paddle tails (rootbeer, white), jerk baits (gold, green/white), then top water, but that's me. Between those 4 types of lures you'll fish all columns of the water. The paddletail can do all three. I have three rods - one for each column of the water. If I feel confident there's fish in a hole I start with the softest landing lure first - paddletail, then spoon, then plug. If that doesn't work I move on. I think I have A.D.D. fishing techniques.

Since you're on the Southside you may want to consider Southshore Bait and Tackle in Ruskin - I prefer to support the home team rather than the big chains. They'll have everything you need - that said I buy riptide plastics online; they've worked for me, they sponsored a tournament here last year, and they are reasonably priced - check out the clearance area (cuplrit lures). They are softer and you will go through more of em, but for me they "are bank".

BTW - Heywood has some great articles off the home page under Articles -> Fishing Tactics.

[TexasDan]

I fish south shore all the time and I tend to fish....
Topwater(Spook jr.) - 6am to 9ish
Aqua Dream Spoon(Gold or White) or DOA Paddle Tail - 10ish to 12ish on the way back to launch.
Anything after 11 or 12 it's just to Damn Hot out there.

[TheJoe]

It has always been a hit or miss for me at Cockroach. I find the best time to fish there is on an outgoing tide. I have caught most of my reds in the second inlet to the left just before you go out onto the flat. I hit the islands to the left and seem to pull out nice fish. I have only caught one snook there. Funny but it was at the boat ramp, first thing in the morning testing the top water. I always catch trout on the flats to the right just north of the inlet channel. Top water of choice is a High Roller in OLD BONE , or Spook Jr in Solid Bone.

Just picked up some spoons, so its time to master them now.

Joe

[BlueTuna]

I DID NOT READ THE THREAD... Just fish and have a good time. Coach Roach Bay is an awesome area!!! Explore AND fish!!! I have caught all kind of things!! Been swamped by a Mama Mantee (lost a damn camera), been scared by Terri's flying stingray, argued with dumb ass crabbers, and have had some of the best fishing EVER!!! Don't give up!! All these are firsts: FLOUNDER, SNOOK, RED, MAC, and SLIGH RIDE.

[CoonHound53]

Thanks for all the info, I will be out there this weekend. I will let you know what worked and what didn't. Cheers

[deacoes]

Paddle Tail:


Shad Tail:

[FlyFishermanUGA]

I've spent lots of time at CRB and the summer is the hardest time to find fish there due to water temps and higher tides around periods where fish are more active (morning). I usually try to get off the water there in the summer by 10:30/11:00 so that calls for a incoming tide in the morning and focusing on the mangrove shore lines. I like to target reds during the summer against the mangroves so that puts me in snook territory as well so I'll usually start out with a bone colored spook around humps on the flats and points on the mangroves. I did pretty well with that combo this summer catching quite a few good snook and missing a really really large one on a falling tide pretty far in the back.


If I have bait (shrimp) I'll target the same areas either free-lining shrimp or under a cork in areas that should be holding fish. Key piece of info though is to find moving water because there are lots of cuts and flats around CRB but not all promote water movement. I don't spend much time out front at CRB during the summer but as we transition to fall/winter/spring the fish will move out and stage during low tides. It turns into a great place to find reds and trout in the pot holes on lower tides and then follow those same fish right in when the water starts moving in.

During the fall/winter/spring the action follows the same patterns. Find moving water and focus on key periods of the tide that correspond to good weather. During the fall/spring that means the action could last a little longer in the day and begin a little earlier as the water temps and air temps are lower. It opens up a lot more tide options and allows form some good fishing. During the winter I target fish during the warmest time of the day though you usually have to deal with blue bird skies. During the low tides in the fall/winter focus on pot holes and creek mouths as they dump on to a flat. I've stood at hole on a creek mouth on an outgoing tide and caught reds and trout for hours due to them being "stuck" in the hole after the tide dropped out. Good thing about being in a kayak because I only had enough water to drag my kayak out of that spot so I was in shallower than boats could get too.

Keep at it because the best fishing is here as they days get a little shorter and the water temps are going a little further south. Sorry about rambling, if you have any other questions just PM me.




Fly