Shore Thing Fishing Report, 2/21/2024

February 21, 2024

The big fish are out there, but the conditions need to be just right to get them to jump into your boat.

- by Sonny Schindler, Shore Thing Fishing Charters

Tom and Joe with a gigantic black drum and a juvenile sheepshead caught near Heron Bay, then released.

We were able to get out several times over the last few days. The salinity levels still remain a little low in the Sound, from Waveland to Pass Christian. Despite the murky water, our boats have still been able to pick off a mixed bag of fish. The majority of what we are seeing on the near shore reefs is still sheepshead, puppy drum, and redfish. As with most days, the better bites are on the bigger swings in the tide; with the saltier water getting pushed in, the rising tide seems to produce better results.
 

This Fishing Report 
​is supported by

We have not had a big run on the smaller black drums (2-4 pounds) the last year or two. Hopefully what we have been experiencing the past week or so is a sign of good things to come. These smaller and very tasty black drums (“puppy drum”) have been showing up from Lake Borgne to Bay St. Louis. We’re almost always catching them on the nearshore reefs or any type of manmade rock and/or reef structure.
 

Mitch and Charlie Thompson from along Beach with a hefty bull red (photo n release) they caught near Half Moon Island.

 
Live shrimp definitely work for the redfish and sheepshead. Fresh dead shrimp seems to outperform anything for those delicious puppy drum, especially in the murky water. We are fishing everything on the bottom, near the structures, with very little to no movement. 
 
Just about all of our trips have produced big fish at some point during the day. From Bayou Caddy to just outside of the Pass Christian Harbor, a lot of our crews have been lucky enough to tangle with the gigantic black drum or bull reds. Some of these fish are in the 20- to 30-pound range and an absolute blast on light tackle.
 ​

Mitch Thompson with a huge sheepsheads caught near Bayou Caddy.

​ 
It’s mid-February, and this is typically a tough time of the year to put a box of fish together. Despite mother nature’s best efforts, things are looking good and should only get better as the temperature and salinity start creeping up. Just watch the weather and try to get out between the fronts on those lovely calmer days.

---

Enjoy this feature?