Last night brought some steady wind, but I decided to make the most of it and see what the conditions would allow. The open areas were too rough to fish effectively, so I focused on the wind protected sides of a couple spoil islands. The first island was loaded with trout. I landed five solid fish, all over 15 inches, using a 3 inch paddle tail and a 4 inch topwater. These smaller lures matched the bait in the area perfectly and kept the action steady for a while. After a few good trout, I moved on to an area with more current flow and found a section of mangrove that created a natural break. That’s where I connected with a beautiful snook that put up an incredible fight, nearly pulling me into the trees before I managed to land her. A few more casts didn’t produce any extra bites, but by that time the wind had started to ease up, making for a calm ride back. Takeaways from the trip: • Focus on wind-protected zones when conditions get tough. • Match your lure size to the local bait. • Breaks in current near structure often hold the bigger fish.