“A tropical storm will make our stained water higher than normal and the winds definitely stir it up some,” says Gallo. Like the other inshore guides, he can’t wait a long time to return to the water, so is forced to change the way he fishes within days of a storm’s passage.
Remnants of a Texas fish camp. Anglers report that the bite was hot within days after this photo was taken.
“I start out with a “spring-type” pattern. That is, I move to water that is about 18 inches deep with some deeper water nearby. I am also looking for moving water where baitfish are present.” He went on, “I then troll the shoreline casting to points, coves and cuts. I like to use a spinnerbait because it puts off a lot of flash and vibration in the black water and helps fish find the lure.”
Landfall by a hurricane or tropical storm in late summer or early fall somewhere along the coastline of the southeastern United States is inevitable. After these weather systems have safely passed, shallow-water anglers do not have to wait for waters to clear or recede before they can catch fish again from nearby flats, bays, marshes, lagoons and estuaries.
Although the areas in which they normally fish differed quite a bit, the guides that I queried were faced with similar problems after a tropical storm and addressed them in nearly the same way. The guides typically moved toward newly flooded areas, searching for the presence of baitfish and other food sources. If they could locate areas such as culverts or other structure that funneled the runoff and concentrated food sources, they spent time there. To a man, they employed spoons and spinnerbaits as search baits. Once they found a school of fish, however, they quickly returned to their favorite and time-proven techniques.
Rather than staying off the water for several days or weeks after a tropical storm passes, and once you have things shored up at home, why not try the techniques recommended by these seasoned, regional guides? Fill out their prescription for post-storm success.
Decipher NOAA’s Lingo
The hurricane season for the Atlantic and Gulf states lasts each year from June 1 to November 30. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) issues “watches” or “warnings” depending upon the strength of an approaching system and when it is predicted to arrive. A watch is issued when a tropical storm or hurricane threatens to impact a particular area within 36 hours. If you have not already done so, protective measures (boarding windows, securing a boat, leaving a barrier island) should begin at this time. A warning is issued when a tropical storm or hurricane is expected to be in your area within 24 hours. At this point, you should be in the process of completing your protective actions and have committed to where you are going to be during the storm or hurricane.
Whether a system is classified as a hurricane, tropical storm or merely a tropical depression depends upon the sustained wind speed. If the tropical system has sustained circulating winds less than 39 mph and is accompanied by thunderstorms, it will be classified as a tropical depression. Understand that a tropical depression, though weak wind-wise, can be slow-moving and very wet, resulting in heavier rainfall than even a major hurricane. These sloppy, often slow-moving storms can produce severe runoff that can have long-term effects on inshore fishing. Of course, a full-blown hurricane can be wet, though mostly around the center, and since they typically move forward at 10 to 20 miles per hour, rainfall may not accumulate too badly.
Storm surge is water pushed toward the shoreline and up coastal rivers by the force of the wind. When combined with the normal tide, a hurricane or tropical storm surge can increase the mean water level by several feet and cause severe flooding along coastlines, especially when the surge occurs at high tide.
Even inland areas, where storm surge is not considered to be a problem, can be subject to severe flooding because of torrential rain. Some of the weakest storms tend to be slow-moving, often stalling over an area for an extended period of time and dropping large amounts of rain. This, too, can result in extensive inland flooding, and of course, runoff that can affect water quality for weeks or even longer.
