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Redfish are generally a shallow water fish. They live in and around the estuaries along the eastern seaboard and gulf coast of the Untied States. They can be found in the salt marsh creeks and rivers, oyster bars, open sounds, and backwater flats. Smaller fish tend to school more than the larger fish, and once you catch one, you are almost sure to catch more.They migrate offshore each winter to deeper water and hold on natural and artificial reefs. In the warmer months, they can be found inshore where the bait is plentiful. During their fall migration, they can be found in the deep channels leading out to the ocean – hence channel bass. These may be the biggest reds you will find, and they may be the easiest to catch as well.

Redfish are very aggressive fish and will chase a lure 25 to 50 feet to snatch it up. The strike is very powerful and
similar to a bonefish strike. Redfish will run parallel to the mangroves during the hookup, unlike Snook that will head back into the mangroves and break you off on the barnacles and shells attached to the mangrove roots. The key when fishing near mangroves is to lay your rod down to the side the fish is running on. If a redfish strikes and runs to your left along the mangroves, drop your rod to your left and crank like crazy to get all the slack out of your line and the fish heading more to the left. If you lay your rod to the right side instead, you will pull the fish back into the mangroves and he will break off on the barnacles. I usually fish light line in the 8 to 10 lb class for redfish using artificial lures and rarely lose a redfish this way. The light line allows me to make long accurate casts with a jig into and underneath the overhanging mangroves.
What do they taste like?
The only problem with redfish is that they taste great. In the mid-'70s, New Orleans chef and book author Paul Prudhomme promoted blackened redfish as gourmet fare, and the resulting demand caused a commercial fishing frenzy that nearly eradicated the species from many areas. It took massive changes in many state fishing regulations, and the participation of sportsfishermen (who became catch-and-release fishermen) to save the species from exctinction and bring redfish back to their current levels of abundance. Today redfish are found in the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico from New Jersey to Mexico, and everywhere in between. The best places to fly fish for them are over shallow flats with sandy or muddy bottoms. They are most commonly found in inlets, channels, and estuaries with brackish water, but can tolerate both salt and fresh water.
 
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