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Reel in Insider’s Tips and Recipes for April Inshore Fishing on the AL Gulf Coast

By: John Phillips

Wednesday, April 01, 2009

Editor’s Note: Captain Jeff Chambliss of the charter boat, “Baby Therapy,” based out of SanRoc Cay Marina in Orange Beach, Alabama, fishes the waters around Perdido Pass, the jetties, the bridge and inside Perdido Bay. Chambliss tells us what’s biting now in April.

Pompano:
In April, I’ll start catching pompano, weighing from 1- to 3-pounds each, around the jetties and under the Perdido Pass Bridge, using live shrimp, sand fleas and pompano jigs. I’ll fish for pompano on spinning tackle with 10-pound-test line. The limit on pompano is three per person.

Flounder:
April’s a great month for flounder because the flounder will be moving into the estuary areas from the Gulf of Mexico. You can catch the flounder at the jetties, the Perdido Pass Bridge and around docks and pilings near deep water inside Perdido Bay. Oftentimes the flounder will be holding in the middle of Perdido Pass, and you can drift through the Pass, bumping the bottom, to fish for the flounder. I’ll fish a 1/2-ounce lead up the line, like a Carolina rig, with 1 foot of leader coming off the barrel swivel, below the lead and a No. 1/0 hook. To catch flounder, don’t set the hook as soon as the flounder takes the bait. Wait at least 20 seconds, and then set the hook hard.

Speckled Trout:
I’ll catch speckled trout, weighing from 1- to 7-pounds each in April, under the Perdido Pass Bridge, along the jetties and around piers close to deep water. The specks also will be in the Intracoastal Waterway. This month, the trout will be just about everywhere. I’ll catch most of my trout with live shrimp, and later in the month, I’ll catch them using live croakers, jigs with Berkley Gulp! grubs on them and Berkley PowerBait Shrimp.

Redfish:
This month, I’ll usually catch slot-limit-sized (16 to 26 inches) reds, weighing 2- to 6-pounds each. You can keep three slot-limit reds per person. The reds will be holding in the Pass, underneath the bridge, around piers close to the Pass and in shallow water along the edges of the grass beds.

Sheepshead:
A number of sheepshead will be concentrated in the region near the Pass, especially around the jetties. There usually will be large schools of sheepshead at the ends of the jetties, and you’ll have the most success fishing for them on an incoming tide with live shrimp, fiddler crabs, sand fleas, and occasionally, dead shrimp. I’ll use a Carolina rig with a 1/2-ounce lead and a No. 1/0 hook to catch sheepshead in April that will weigh from 1- to 10-pounds each.

Pompano Supreme:
My favorite pompano recipe, Pompano Supreme, is delicious and easy. First, fillet the fish. Cover the bottom of a 9x13-inch glass baking dish with slices of sweet yellow onion. Drizzle olive oil over the onion slices, and then lightly sprinkle Tony Chachere’s Cajun Seasoning over the onion. Add a little garlic powder or fresh garlic. Lay the pompano fillets on top of the sliced, seasoned onions. Mix together olive oil and melted butter, and pour over the tops of the fillet. Squeeze fresh lemon juice over the mixture. Next, place fresh tomatoes, thinly sliced, over the fish. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Bake at 425 degrees for 20 minutes or until the tomatoes are tender.

Captain Chambliss runs 4-, 6- and 8-hour trips, and guides families with children, individuals and groups. To contact Captain Jeff Chambliss, call him at 251-979-1209 or 251-981-2463, or email him at chambliss@gulftel.com.