A lone mangrove seedling sprouts on a flat in South Biscayne Bay two weeks after epic Hurricane Andrew. Waters cleared within a week, and bonefish returned in droves.

“After three of four days, redfish, but not so much seatrout, will move to and feed in newly flooded areas. And where it is shallow enough, we return to soft plastics and flies to take fish that we can see tailing, just like before the storm,” said Clancy. He also added that culverts where storm runoff flows directly into Mosquito Lagoon really attract the fish after heavy or prolonged rain. Redfish gather in front of the culverts to feed on baitfish and crustaceans funneling through. Clancy advises anglers to fish such inflows by casting and retrieving so that a lure moves naturally with the current.

The South Atlantic coast, also a bull’s eye for tropical cyclones, is topographically similar to Florida in that it has barrier islands, coastal bays, inlets, rivermouths and marsh lands. Capt. Jon Huff of Circle H Charters, in Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, fishes the flats, creeks and tidal river marshes near Cape Fear. I asked him about his post-storm strategies and he was forthcoming with his remedy.

“Heavy rains after a tropical storm substantially lower our salinity levels, especially inland and upriver. This may force you to fish closer to inlets,” he said, adding a caveat.

“Even in off-color or fresh water, fish may hang tough in their usual locations. However, they tend to gather in tighter groups and in tighter quarters than usual.”

Navigational Hazards After a hurricane , it may be tougher to get around by boat than it is to find fish. I would advise that you take things slowly, even in waters that you “know like the back of your hand.” Last year’s Florida “fearsome foursome,” Charley, Frances, Jeanne and Ivan, clogged many inland waterways with tree limbs, dock lumber, portions of rooftops and sunken boats. Besides that, many government and private channel markers were knocked down, and though great efforts have been made to mark and clear debris, much of it remains, and it will take time to find it all.   Stand at all times while at the helm of your boat, and do most of your running when the sun is high in the sky, at least until you have determined where most hazards are. And also make it a point to get out at low tide, when more debris is visible above or just below the waterline. Many private anglers and charter guides are marking hazards in their areas with floating jugs, but should you come across storm debris that poses a navigational hazard, make a note of its location (preferably with GPS) and report it to your local Coast Guard office or the marine department of your local police. On the flip side, keep in mind that sunken debris may in time be a great fish magnet! —L.K.

Huff claims that reds in particular feed voraciously after the storm clears. “Fishing with cut bait in areas that held redfish before the storm may produce even better after the storm,” Huff said. This is probably because their sense of smell is their keenest sense and therefore the best tool to find food.

When I inquired about his favorite post-storm baits, he replied, “Cut and live menhaden seem to attract redfish best in cloudy or off-color water.” When I inquired about his favorite lures to use in stained water after a tropical storm, his answer caught me by surprise, though it made very good sense.

“I prefer topwater plugs because they are the easiest for a fish to see and hear in the stained water.” Huff also noted that depending upon the amount of rain associated with a tropical storm, it could take as much as a week or more before fishing conditions return to normal.

I decided to continue my informal survey by talking to guides on Florida’s Central Gulf coast, an area also hit hard by the 2004 hurricane season. There, numerous rivers dumped copious amounts of fresh water onto extensive flats soon after a tropical system passed. My inquiries led me to Capt. Steve Kilpatrick, who fishes the shallows around Cedar Key and Homosassa, and, as you may recall, guided a client to the only 200-pound tarpon ever caught on a fly.

Kilpatrick talked about higher-than-normal water levels and lack of visibility on the flats as a result of the rainfall associated with a tropical storm.

“The fish definitely move to find more suitable conditions. Anglers here often have to move back into newly flooded areas, sometimes even fishing at the base of trees well back of the shorelines,” he said. “To find fish, I typically go to a spoon. It casts farther than most lures, so it covers a lot of water and puts out a good vibration that fish can readily locate. Sometimes, I’ll even attach a rattle to help fish find it where the water is especially bad.” Once he finds a school of fish, however, Huff changes tactics. “When I have them located, I go back to a live shrimp under a popping cork.”

The Louisiana coastline is yet another area with an outstanding shallow water fishery that is often impacted by tropical systems in late summer and early fall. I contacted Capt. Mike Gallo, of Angling Adventures of Louisiana, to discuss his post-storm strategies. Gallo regularly fishes the Biloxi State Wildlife Management Area in southeast Louisiana where the Pearl River and Lake Pontchartrain spill into the Gulf of Mexico. He refers to the dark, skinny water found in the marsh as “black water.”