Beating the Red Drums
Indian Summer Promises Hot Redfish Action

They call the days when summer gradually merges into fall Indian Summer, and for fishermen that September-October time frame is when to begin thinking seriously about beating the drums of Fall – Red drums, that is…

September and October, depending mostly on the water temperature, are the two months of the year when vast schools of spawning red drum begin moving into the waters of Mississippi Sound. Where once local fishermen thumbed their noses at these big, tackle-busting reds, now that the red drum has gained national prominence as one of the premiere game fishes in northern Gulf waters, everyone wants to catch them. It is little wonder that they will take center stage this month.

Typically the first of the big fish are seen in Cat Island Channel and its approaches, but that’s far from a hard and fast rule. You can anticipate big reds in the twenty and even thirty-pound-class to begin showing up most anywhere in the Sound in the next several weeks. At first these fish will linger in and around the barrier island passes, but before too long they will begin migrating into the nearshore zone and feeding most anytime the wind and wave action stir things up.

If you’re fishing along the front beaches, cut-bait on the bottom is a good choice for catching big reds. Purists will have good luck with casting spoons like the venerable Johnson Sprite or its less expensive cousin the Chandeleur Special. Generally speaking you will enjoy greater success fishing a gold spoon over its silver equivalent. The more scuffed up it is, the better. Too much sparkle and glare does not appeal to these fish. Plastic jigs – Sparkle Beetles, Tout Tails, Stingray Grubs, and the like -- are also effective baits for taking red fish. Fly fishermen will enjoy good success using a copper and orange Clouser Minnow.

Of course most of the early season reds will be taken in and around the barrier island passes on cut bait, crabs and other naturals. Trolling using Tony Acetta Pet or Reflecto spoons is yet another sure-fire way to make the red fish connection.

Nearshore and offshore, red drum will steal the show during the months of Indian Summer...