Take advantage of the low tide, and chilly water

Several people have asked me about our extremely low tides recently. I’ll try to help you understand what creates them. First, of course, is the moon. Both the full and new moons exert strong influence on our water and tides. It’s called conjunction because the sun and moon are pulling in the same direction. The moon’s gravity dominates and pulls the water towards or from our coast.

Then our weather factors into the tides. Winds create friction and push or pull surface waters. High-pressure systems, like conditions following cold fronts, push down on water surfaces. Finally, the wind direction – northeast – pushes water out and creates these extremely low tides. Winter low tides occur in the mornings, and summer tides are in the evenings. The sun migrates north in summer and south in winter.

So, early this week we had everything lined up creating flat-bearing low tides. In Lemon Bay, the tide never came in enough to cover all the grass flats. Extended cold exposure, especially any frost, can kill our exposed seagrasses.

This provides an excellent opportunity to learn exactly where the oyster bars and sandbars are located. You can see how the dredging of our intracoastal waterways dammed many of our natural flows. Reducing those flows allowed sands to settle in new places and messed things up even more. This is part of why we need to dredge our passes frequently.

I use these opportunities to understand tide flows in and off flat areas. Notice how clear the water is over any healthy grass flats you observe. You can understand just how important these healthy seagrass habitats are. The seagrasses filter cloudy water and slow current flow, allowing sand to fall from its suspension. They also provide habitats for smaller fish and shrimp, etc. Clams and oysters also help filter our seawaters.

The direct flows from nearby Gulf beaches and passes will be very silty and sandy-colored. The beach renourishment’s new sand is full of silt; it suspends rapidly with any wave action. Silt suspends first and settles last. Heavier sand falls first. This is how the bars around our passes change every time it storms. Tide currents move this sandy water around.

Live shrimp will be very challenging to find now. This chill sends them down into the bottom, escaping the chill. Fish are slowed down. Fish are cold-blooded, and their metabolism slows as they get colder. Expect things to improve as temperatures warm up in the afternoons. Save your energy and forget white bait now. Smaller pinfish can be good, especially for redfish. Soft plastics work, but slow down and then slow further. Natural baits should be allowed to sit still for best results. Be patient and sit still. The shock waves broadcast by your boat from your movements scare fish. The faster you chase them, the farther they run away.

This is a wonderful time to fish. We just need to adjust to colder conditions.

Capt. Van Hubbard’s column Hook, Line and Sinker began in the Boca Beacon in 1988. He lives in Placida. Email him at captvanhubbard@gmail.com