Page 49 - South Mississippi Living - February, 2026

From the islands to the marshes,
anglers can catch redfish all along the Mississippi Gulf Coast. The Pearl and Pascagoula delta marshes offer some of the best places to catch redfish. Also try the marshes between Bayou Caddy in Waveland and East Pearl River. Anglers can fish many other marshy areas around the Back Bay of Biloxi, Old Fort Bayou and Bay St. Louis among other places.
“The barrier islands are excellent
places to look for redfish,” suggested Mark Wright with Legends of the Lower Marsh Charters in Gulfport. “The mouth of any bayous, rivers or creeks that feed into Biloxi Bay or Bay St. Louis should produce good fishing. The marshes at the upper end of Bay St. Louis where the Jourdan and the Wolf rivers hit the bay can produce a lot of good redfish action.”
Redfish feed primarily by smell and feel, rather than sight. Therefore, lures that create significant vibrations attract more of these spot-tailed coastal predators. Spinnerbait blades give off significant vibrations that fish detect even in the murkiest waters.
On sunny days and in moderately clear waters, the whirling blades reflect
sunlight, simulating the flash of baitfish scales. The blades also resemble the rounded swimmer fins on the back of crabs. The wobbling vibrations simulate a crab swimming, and a redfish likes nothing better than crunching a crab!
Spinnerbaits can catch redfish from the surface to the bottom, but during the winter, cold-blooded fish in chilly water don’t want to move far or fast. At this time, work spinnerbaits very slowly. Crank the reel just enough to barely rotate the blades and run baits just off the bottom. Over oyster beds, work spinnerbaits slowly over the reef tops. If possible, let the blades clink against the oyster shells.
In deeper water, try a “helicopter” or “yo-yo” retrieve. Let the bait sink a few feet. As it descends, the blades continue flickering like a struggling baitfish. Big spot-tails commonly attack lures as they fall. If nothing happens, pull the bait back to the surface, move it a few feet and try again.
Like largemouth bass, redfish habitually hang near cover, such as grassy shorelines, rocky jetties or other objects, waiting to ambush an easy meal.
Points also make great places to work a spinnerbait. Watch the water flow. Reds regularly lurk on the downstream side of points. Spot-tailed marsh marauders watch the tidal or wind current to bring them bait. Throw upwind past a point and work a spinnerbait across the tip.
Whenever possible, run baits parallel to shorelines. Keep the baits just over the drop-off edge if one exists. In places with submerged vegetation, like river delta marshes, let the bait sink until it runs just across the submerged grass tips. Pause the retrieve periodically to let the bait sink into the grass. Then, pull it out.
Since spinnerbaits can cover so much territory in all depths of the water column, they make phenomenal search baits. Even if a fish doesn’t strike the offering, the spinnerbait makes such
a commotion that redfish will react
to one passing close to it. If a redfish reveals its position and doesn’t attack the spinnerbait, follow up with a more subtle temptation like a soft-plastic shrimp. Anywhere that redfish lurk, try throwing a spinnerbait all year long.
SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living | www.smliving.net February 2026 | 49
Spinnerbaits come in a variety of shapes, configurations, and colors, but they all work on redfish, as the young lady on the right found out.