Trout Report, St. Marks, Florida

If that darn lion would ever quit roaring, the trout bite is going off on the East Flats, from the St. Marks River east to the Econfina River. A rising tide is the most productive phase and good-sized trout are aggressively striking lures in depths ranging from just over three to five feet. Suspending twitch baits like Redfins and Catch 2000 plugs are working well, especially around rock grass and over broken bottom. The usual gambit of noisy topwater plugs are effective, too, along with soft-plastic jerk baits such as the DOA CALs, Exude Flukes or Bass Assassins. No particular color is dominant, although glow is always a good choice, along with root beer or new penny. Redfish are prowling the shorelines, where they’ll respond to Aqua Dream spoons, topwater plugs and jerk baits. Nearshore water temperatures are in the mid-60s and will continue to rise with the warm weather.