Gulf Coast Fisherman Magazine Vol 39 No 2 - Spring 2015 | Page 14

(Continued from previous page.)

Keeping the sun at his back does two
things: It affords him optimal visibility
and minimizes the fish’s ability to spot
his silhouette. Wind behind him is also
key, as going into the waves increases
fish-spooking hull slap.
Holeman’s a big fan of dead-boat
fishing - finding a promising area, staking
out and intercepting the fish. It might
sound random, but he said it’s really more
about observation than site selection.
“You have to find their happy spot,”
Holeman said. “All fish have a happy spot
where they feel comfortable, so I look for
that area where they’ll make a big circle
and every 20 minutes or so, they’ll come
back around and I’ll catch a couple.
“I don’t ever want to be chasing
redfish; I want to dead-boat fish them and
wait for them to come to me.”
Also, dead-boat fishing means he
never worries about “lining” a redfish.
When an angled cast carries your line
across part of the school, the moment that
line drops onto a red’s back, it’s like
someone grabbing you in a dark alley not good.
Notably, Holeman has also guided
Southwest Louisiana where spotting fish
from elevated towers has become a
popular tactic, particularly for
tournament types. But in areas like Tampa
Bay, Charlotte Harbor, and the Keys, reds
have become so accustomed to being
chased around by tower boats and skiffs
with bow towers, they’ll often scoot away
from the site of an angler standing taller
than nearby mangroves.
Bait UP
Having spent more than two decades
refining his redfish repertoire, Randazzo
offers a bait selection game plan that can
be easily adapted with regional specifics
for most anywhere the bronze bullies
roam.
“For sight fishing, we usually try to
have three types of lures ready at all
times,” Randazzo said. “First, we like a
lure that has a high percentage chance of
getting attention such as a jig spinner.
The lure has flash, vibration, and a great
strike-to-catch ratio. You can also cast it
a long distance if you need to be stealthy.
If you see a fish and make a good
presentation, the odds are high that you’ll
get bit.”
If the jig spinner fails to impress,
Plan B involves a jig head rigged with a
4-inch paddle tail bait. Randazzo said
he’ll swim this rig right in front of the
fish and allow it to fall straight to the
bottom. Reds usually react quickly and
di