Hooked Up: August 2025

It’s downright stifling outside. The humidity wraps around you like a steaming towel, and our wades are creeping deeper every day just to find a little relief. Staying hydrated isn’t optional – it’s survival. I always pack plenty of water and keep a few bottles of Propel on hand. One trick I swear by is tossing a cotton towel into the ice chest. After a wade, it’s Heaven to wipe your face or wrap it around your neck. Another trick is pulling the drain plug on your ice chest and letting ice-cold water flow across your bare feet. Scoop a few handfuls and dump it on your head. Silly? Maybe. But I’ve been overheated before; I’d rather look goofy and stay cool than toast my core and ruin the day.

August is always tough – on the body and on the bite. If you’re a lure purist like me, it can humble you fast. I’ve learned to temper expectations and focus on making the most of what each day gives us. That early trout bite? It’s still there – but you better be in position by sunrise, because it fades fast once the sun starts cooking.

After that, we shift gears. When the topwater bite dies off and the water heats up, I’m quick to pull the trolling motor and start rock-hopping; working deep structure in 5- to 7-foot depths. These rock piles hold fish during the dog days, and almost every piece of structure will produce at least one bite, often more. If you can find mullet on top of those rocks – especially ones acting skittish – you’re in business. Something’s down there making them nervous.

One of the most effective (and surprising) patterns I’ve found during late summer is chasing black drum. Yep, you heard right – big, rooting schools of black drum. And no, I’m not about to pitch you on a Topwater Drum Charter. But hear me out…

Years ago, I stumbled across what I thought was a big school of redfish. I eased in ready to crush them, only to discover they were black drum. I couldn’t get them to bite, but something weird happened. I started getting hit by trout. One after another. After ten or so I finally got that redfish thump I’d been waiting for…except it wasn’t a redfish. It was a big ol’ trout pushing 30 inches.

Call it a lightbulb moment. As the sun got higher, I realized the trout weren’t schooling with the drum; they were tailgating them. Those wise old trout were cruising just outside the chaos, picking off all the bait getting flushed out as the drum plowed through the rocks like bulldozers. It was a buffet line, and the trout were gorging.

Since then, I have used that pattern many times – with solid results. In fact, that exact approach helped me win a Baffin Troutmasters Tournament and secure Angler of the Year. I didn’t even wade that day. Just let the drum do the heavy lifting and target the trout following them.

Pro Tip: If by chance you hook into a black drum by accident, there’s no need to advertise it. Just fillet the evidence – they’re delicious.

Topwaters are still your best bet at first light, especially if you can find those tightly packed mullet rafts on the south shoreline of Baffin. But once the sun comes up and the bait leaves the surface, it’s time to tie on the 5” Bass Assassin. That plastic has put more fish in my boat than just about anything else, and it remains my confidence lure through the heat of the day.

The pattern I just described is going to hold through September. The heat will not be letting up, and neither is the need to adapt. After all, even for the most diehard waders, the fish sometimes push deeper than we can follow. When that happens, pride takes a back seat to productivity and trolling motors become tools, not crutches.

Mother Nature is a beast. Just when you think you’ve got her dialed in, she throws you a curveball. But that’s what keeps it interesting. Thirty-five years of fishing these bays, and I still get humbled – and I still learn.

So, my best advice? Get out early. Wade shallow for trout before the sun gets up. Then follow the bite to deeper structure; rocks, and even schools of black drum. Pay attention and be flexible. And when the bite is slow remember that the heat is beatable, the trout are catchable, and every day on the water is still better than one off it.