Redfish are the bread and butter of inshore fishing on Florida’s Emerald Coast, and Choctawhatchee Bay holds them all year. They’re hard-fighting, they pull drag, and that bronze body with the signature black tail spot makes them as fun to photograph as they are to catch. Whether you’re planning to fish on your own or get on a charter, here’s how we target redfish on the bay — where they hold, what bait works, and how the bite changes with the seasons.
Where redfish hold in the bay
Redfish relate to structure and edges. In Choctawhatchee Bay we find them tailing on shallow grass flats, cruising the edges of potholes (the sandy depressions in the grass), and stacked tight around dock pilings, bridge supports, and the mouths of the bayous. Most of this water runs between 1.5 and 18 feet deep. On a calm morning you can sometimes sight-fish them in skinny water, watching the wake or the tail before you ever cast — that’s some of the most exciting fishing on the bay.
Best bait for redfish
Redfish aren’t picky, which is part of why they’re great for beginners. Live bait is the most reliable: live shrimp and pinfish are hard to beat, fished on the bottom or under a popping cork near structure. If you’d rather throw artificials, redfish will crush soft plastics worked slowly along the bottom and gold spoons fluttered past their nose. The simplest rule: get a live shrimp near a dock piling or grass edge and hold on.
| Approach | When it shines |
|---|---|
| Live shrimp under a popping cork | Around grass flats and edges; great all-around, easy for kids |
| Live pinfish on bottom | Near docks, bridges, and structure for bigger fish |
| Gold spoon | Searching shallow flats, covering water |
| Soft plastic (paddle tail / jerk bait) | Working potholes and edges when fish are spread out |
Redfish by season
Redfish never really go out of season here, but the fishing changes through the year:
Spring: Active and feeding around docks and structure as the water warms. Steady, reliable fishing.
Summer: Good action on the flats early before the heat; live bait around structure stays productive.
Fall: The best of the year. As the water cools, big schools of bull reds flood the bay and push bait to the surface — you can watch them bust in open water. This is your shot at a trophy red over 30 inches.
Winter: Redfish stay active in the shallows on sunny days when the water warms up, even when other species slow down. Quieter water, fewer boats.
Want us to put you on them?
Redfish are what we chase most days. On a Choctawhatchee Bay inshore charter, we run a 22-foot Pathfinder into the skinny water where the fish hold, provide all the gear, bait, and your fishing license, and clean your catch at the end. It’s a calm-water trip that works for first-timers and serious anglers alike — and a great way to learn the bay before you ever fish it on your own.
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