Croaker In The Marsh?

Since I didn't get a chance to wet a line yesterday, I decided to try it this afternoon.

I packed up my top water rod, a bait caster for live bait and another spinning rig fitted with a D.O.A. Paddle Tail bait and headed for the nearest salt water.

It was after 6:00 p.m. so I opted for the Indian River.  The wind was still coming in pretty strong or I would have headed for the Mosquito Lagoon flats just west of the Wales Tail.

Gator Creek was first on the agenda.  There were lots of mullet in the shallow weed beds and a few trout occasionally popping one. 

I "walked the dog" in several locations with a new Top Dog Mirror Lure that I picked up last week in Savannah.

The only fish that showed any interest was a large ladyfish that I landed and a small redfish that I got to the bank and shook off.

I moved on towards Peacocks Pocket and found a spot where I netted a couple of small mullet for bait.









My second cast netted me a huge mullet and a couple of eating size croaker.  That's the first time I've seen croaker in the marsh areas.  They normally run in the river.

I didn't feel like cleaning fish so all five of them were returned to continue their spawn.

The wind made it pretty difficult to fish a top water in the Indian River side and the marsh canal was too calm to work the lure without spooking the fish.

I cast on top of at least three nice sized redfish that took off to parts unknown before I changed over to a green D.O.A. Paddle Tail swim bait.

I had several hits and finally caught another lady fish and later a nice slot sized sea trout.

It was getting dark and the gators were out in force.  These two were in different areas but both were in the 9 to 10 foot range which put them on top of the food chain. 

  
Several people were fishing the area and the two fishermen that I talked with both said they caught a slot redfish on finger mullet.

I decided to try one at my last stop which was just west of an area I call the "duck blind".

I soaked to mullet until the beautiful sunset was almost over and finally got a hit.

Whatever it was pulled off the mullet, so I decided to head for the homestead and call it a day.

Till next time, Tight Lines.

Post Hurricane Irene Fishing Report

Thankfully hurricane Irene bypassed the Space Coast this time around and as of the last report is heading towards New York city via the outer banks of North Carolina.

The weather around Titusville late this afternoon felt like the calm after the storm.  The air temperature hovered around 88 degrees and there was very little wind on the water.

My wife and I packed up our fishing rods and Elmo our wonder dog for a brief fishing excursion around the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.

We didn't hit the water until about 7:00 p.m. and the water where we began fishing was dead calm.

There was very little visible fish activity in the first area we stopped to fish but it looked "fishy" and I was aching to try out a couple of new top water plugs.

I started fishing  a 100 yard stretch of very shallow water that led into a saltwater pond which usually holds a redfish or two and only got two strikes for my efforts. 

My wife was fishing with a dead shrimp and I was "walking the dog" using my new black and silver
Heddon Super Spook Jr. top water plug I picked up at Bass Pro.

Karen wasn't getting any action so we moved up the road a bit to try the brackish water pond.

On the second cast I hooked this under size sea trout.

The plug I was using was almost as big as the trout!

Two casts late and I caught a twin to the first trout.  At least the lure was working.

Karen wasn't having much luck and after missing three more fish, we decided to move to another area about a quarter mile up the road.

There were fish moving about but the big ones were out of casting range.

As I was considering wading out to within casting range, Karen spotted a large gator that immediately changed my mind.  This one was at least 9 feet long and could definitely do some damage.

I managed two more small sea trout and missed a small redfish before the sun set. 

The weather was just beautiful this evening and it was hard to imagine that hurricane Irene had just passed us.

Tomorrow is supposed to be 105 degrees plus according to the weatherman, so if I get a chance to go fishing tomorrow, it won't be until late in the afternoon when things cool down a bit.

Till then, Tight Lines!

Indian River Fishing Report For Week of August 20, 2011

This Indian River fishing report is for the week of August 20, 2011. 

The water levels in both lagoon systems has risen over the last couple of weeks and has opened up some fishing areas, particularly in the marsh areas,  that were previously on dry land.

The best bite has been early in the morning for sea trout that are targeting the schools of bait fish that can now be found in good numbers in both the Mosquito Lagoon and Indian River.

Top water plugs or a live ladyfish or finger mullet free lined on the surface will get the larger fish.

As the water gets warmer in the late morning, the trout have been moving into the 3 and 4 foot depths around large pot holes and over the sea grass.

You can catch them using a variety of baits but the one "do nothing" rig that works well that my wife Karen swears by, is a Cajun Thunder clacking bobber rig with either a D.O.A. shrimp or a plastic paddle tail bait under about 12" to 18" of fluorocarbon leader.

The D.O.A. Deadly Combo Lure, Oval Float, Gold Glitter works just as well and is less expensive but be sure to use a loop knot when you fish it and give the bait time to settle between jerks.

Flip the rig out and twitch it.  When the bobber sits upright in the water,  wait a second or two and twitch it again.  Every time it flips upright, the shrimp drops slowly to the bottom and this is usually when you get the hit.

This rig is really deadly using live shrimp.

The grass beds that are in 3 to 5 feet of water in the northern part of the Indian River are loaded with good sized sea trout right now and there's not much fishing pressure in this area.

I've got a few reports about the Dummit Cove area being full of big sea trout feeding over the grass beds and some guys catching nice sized redfish in the shallows throughout that area.

The grass flats that parallel the Western shore of the Indian River from Titusville north have always been a relatively under fished area for schools of big redfish in depths from 1 to 3 feet

Some really big redfish in the 30 pound plus class are now being caught on the flats south of Titusville by sight fishermen.  I talked to a couple of guys at The Fly Fisherman who pick them off with Dahlberg Divers.

These fish are spooky right now and require longer casts with lighter line.

The eastern shores of the Indian River in the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge from  Peacocks Pocket south, is still hot for redfish in the shallows and sea trout in the early mornings and late evening.

My wife and I have only been able to get out just before dusk but we have been spotting some really big redfish and sea trout throughout this area.

Again the best baits are live finger mullet, ladyfish, D.O.A. jerkbaits or top water baits.

Yesterday evening we picked up several trout, a garfish and missed three over sized redfish in only a little over an hour of fishing. 

I caught the trout on top water STORM Rattlin' Chug Bug - 3.25" - Gizzard Shad and missed all the reds on large finger mullet.

Hopefully, I'll be able to get more time on the water on Sunday.

Till then, Tight Lines.

Sea Trout Were Biting

The sea trout were biting late this afternoon in the mosquito control canals in the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.

Even though it was late when I got home from work, my wife and I decided to take Elmo for a little fishing trip.

We didn't even get out until about 6:00 p.m. and then lucked out netting bait.  My first cast picked up several nice fat finger mullet and four ladyfish that were about 7" long.

The thermometer registered 89 degrees and there was a moderate wind blowing in from the west pushing the water in the lagoon to the eastern shore.

There was a stench of rotting vegetation that took a while to get used to which is probably why we only saw one other soul in the preserve.

Karen baited up her rod with a fat 7" finger mullet and I did the same with a ladyfish on one of my other rods.

I pulled out a casting rod and started flipping a 3" - Rootbeer/Gold D.O.A.® TerrorEyz around the opposite bank to see what was causing all the swirls.

There was a lot of activity on the river this evening, despite the balmy conditions. 

On the second cast I missed a sea trout so I flipped the TerrorEye back to the same spot and promptly hooked up with a nice 18" fish pictured below.

I missed several other fish on the same bait before deciding to change tactics.

There were a lot of sea trout hitting the surface, so I tied on one of my favorite Bagley top water baits and started flipping it towards likely looking spots.

I missed at least six fish before finally hooking a small sea trout that slurped up the bait.

The fish wasn't much larger than the top water lure.

Meanwhile, Karen yelled to me for help with a fish she hooked with her big finger mullet but before I could run up to where she was fishing with the boga grip, she lost the fish.

It was one of those big gator seatrout that she said was about 30" or so.  Because of the size of the bait she was using, I don't doubt it.

In our haste to go fishing, I didn't bring along an aerator and the mullet were all laying dead on the bottom of the bucket.

I chunked up a ladyfish and skewered it on to Karen's hook so she could try for one of the redfish that were cruising down the canal while I continued fishing with my top water bait.

I moved down past a culvert that was barely flowing into the marsh and started pitching my bait to an area where a large pond emptied into the canal.

It only took a couple of casts before I missed a large redfish.

The fish was swimming in from the pond as I cast the top water bait into it's path.

The fish gave the bait a half hearted tap with its nose and took off like a shot to where Karen was fishing.

I yelled to her that a nice redfish was coming her way but the fish never took her bait.

I caught a couple more small trout before we decided to call it an evening.

As usual, the mosquitoes were out in force but I bought a couple of those mosquito repellants that you hook on your belt and apparently they work quite well.

Karen wasn't bothered by the flying vampires and I left the other one in the truck so Elmo wouldn't go crazy.

Might have to buy another one for myself!

Till next time,

Tight Lines.

Night Shrimping On The Indian River Is Still Going Strong

Night shrimping on the Indian River is still going strong in August.

Normally in August the sport shrimping run on the Indian River is over and done with.  However, this year the norms have been redefined by this past winter's severe cold fronts.

It seems like everything has been pushed back a month or so.

Sunday evening I got bored watching the doom and gloom on the boob tube, so I decided to drive down to our new fishing piers and check out the action, if any.

I didn't expect to see many people doing anything but partying at the pavilion but was pleasantly surprised by how many people were on both piers shrimping, catching blue crabs and fishing.

I took these pics of the activity and composed this short video to show the "goings on".

I arrived about 10:00 pm armed with my trusty Nikon and a 7' spinning rod baited with a Rootbeer/Gold D.O.A. Shrimp just in case the trout were biting.

It was windy and there was a little chop on the water.  The shrimpers had their shrimp lights out and the fishermen were doing their thing using mostly live or dead shrimp for bait.

This gentleman in his motorized wheelchair was catching a good number of shrimp and had the bottom of his bucket covered when I got there.

He had only been shrimping since it got dark and expected to net up quite a few more before heading for home.

He told me that he comes to the pier about once a week to shrimp and that this is the first time the shrimp were still running in good numbers through the month of August.

I moved on down the length of the pier taking pictures of all the people enjoying the evenings activities.

One couple even had a crib out there with their kids while shrimping and several others were lounging around on the chairs they brought with them.

I flipped the
D.O.A. Shrimp out a few times around the lights, caught a couple of under size sea trout and missed several more before calling it a night and going home.

On the way out, I took a snippet of this guy's cooler that he was filling up with blue crabs which were drifting by on the surface along with the shrimp.



He told me that he planned to fill it up before leaving.

I wished him well but personally I hate messing with cleaning them.  Especially the smaller ones.

I much prefer soft shelled blue crabs in sandwich form!

I'm happy to be able to report that the night shrimping is still going strong on the Indian River.

Till my next report, Tight Lines.

Playalinda Beach Bluefish

The Playalinda Beach bluefish and Spanish mackerel were supposed to be hot this month, so I decided to give it a try.

After finishing some chores, I grabbed a matched pair of 10' surf rods seated with a pair of
Okuma Baitrunner Coronado Saltwater Spinning Reels   and headed for Playalinda Beach to see if the bite was on.

The tide was out and the water was relatively flat at the beach. According to the tide tables, good fishing should have been from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm plus or minus an hour or so.

I hit lot #6 first at about 2:30 pm and saw only two serious surf fishermen.

One was catching whiting and the other guy didn't seem to be doing anything worthwhile.

There weren't many people at the beach today but there were quite a few surfers and sea kayakers on the water.

I took some pics and moved on to lot #8 at Eddy Creek. This area is usually crowded with fishermen and beach goers and today was no exception.

Again, nobody was catching bluefish or Spanish mackerel, only whiting.

Again I took some of these pics and moved down to lot #10 where it is usually free from beach goers.

When I got there I loaded up my rods and trudged to a spot that looked "fishy". There was a slough about 30 yards from the beach and another about 50 yards out from that on a little bit south of that one.

I baited up a sliding sinker rig with a frozen whole ladyfish about 6" long and waded out as far as I could safely go before tossing out my offering.

I waited patiently for something to bite, all the while looking for signs of fish.

I spotted a large school of menhaden that were jumping out of the water trying to escape from some unknown predator, but they were too far out to cast to.

I saw lots of glass minnows jumping out of the water closer to me but my bait was too large to "match the hatch". Whatever was chasing them didn't want my ladyfish.

After about a half an hour I got a savage hit that left me with only the head of the ladyfish.

I baited up with another one and cast out to the same area. After another half hour or so without a bite, I started reeling in my bait and almost got run over by a pair of tarpon cruising parallel to the beach.

There was definitely fish activity in the area but everything was beyond casting distance.

Finally, after getting another ladyfish cut in half, I decided I had enough fun and sun so I packed it in.

On the way out of the beach, I decided to take a ride over to Haulover Canal and use up the rest of my ladyfish.

The current in the canal was relatively strong but there weren't many weeds for a change to bog down your line.

There were some people canoeing the area and one serious fisherman anchored over a rock ledge who was catching mangrove snapper. Several other people were fishing from the bank.

I baited up with a whole ladyfish and had been fishing for about an hour before hooking up with one of those Bull Redfish you hear about being caught in the canal.

The fish but up a great fight and appeared to be around 40 inches long, but I lost it when it wound around a coquina outcropping near the bank.

Anyway, it was a damn good fish if it could break off from a 65lb. Class, Power Pro Spectra Fishing Line above the leader.

Disappointment wasn't the word for what I was feeling today. It was much worse than that.

Feeling like I lost a 12 rounder, I packed it in and headed for home and a pizza instead of a fish dinner.

Tight Lines to you all!

Why The Mosquito Lagoon Got Its Name

Now I understand why the Mosquito Lagoon got it's name.

Because of the mosquitoes, I didn't get much fishing in on Friday even though I did give it a half hearted attempt.

When I got home from work Friday evening, my wife didn't feel like wetting a line in the blistering heat so I took Elmo our wonder dog with me to see if anything was biting in the Merritt Island National Wildlife Preserve.

It was late in the afternoon so I headed for Gator Creek road first to check out the water levels.

The water levels in the swamp areas were up, probably due to thunderstorm activity in the late afternoons this past week.

There were a lot of fishermen parked in various locations throughout the area but no one was catching. Everyone was just fishing.

The cutting crews had mowed some time this past week and the mosquitoes were deadly.

Poor Elmo wouldn't leave the safety of the truck and I had the windows closed to keep the mosquitoes out.

I left the confines of the truck two times to make halfhearted casts to a couple of oversize redfish I saw attacking baitfish in the shallows, right on the bank.

Both fish didn't care for the D.O.A. shrimp I offered them.

I saw a lot of sea trout activity but didn't even bother casting to them because of the hordes of mosquitoes.

I took a few of pics of the scenery but unfortunately today I couldn't come up with any pictures of fish.

I'm not sure if the full moon had anything to do with the fishing but it was definitely full as we left the preserve.

Today, Elmo and I should have taken my wife's advise and stayed at home.

Anyway, I'm hoping to try out Playalinda Beach tomorrow for some bluefish that are supposedly hitting in the surf.

Tight Lines.

Sea Trout Bite Best When It Rains

Apparently the sea trout bite best when it rains during the summer months.

It was about 6:30 p.m. before my wife and I decided to get out of the house and escape the depressing news about our economy.

Fishing keeps down ulcers and clears the mind. Or so they say.

Anyway, we left the house and headed to the Indian River for some sea trout fishing.

After netting a few small ladyfish for Karen to use for bait, we proceeded to one of our favorite spots.

Karen impaled her bait on a 4/0 hook under a Cajun Thunder bobber and I decided to use paddle tail swim baits and DOA shrimp to see what I could roil up.

Karen got the first and largest fish of the day. A nice fat 20" sea trout on the ladyfish.

I unhooked the fish fully intending to release it, but it was gut hooked, bleeding badly and I couldn't get it to revive in the almost hot water of the marsh canal.

I took a pic of the fish and continued with my fishing up from where my wife was fishing.

The Creme paddle tail swim bait that I initially used wasn't producing any bites so I changed to a glow white DOA shrimp.

Thunderstorms were moving through the area and what has become the norm during this time of the year, the sea trout started to get more active and bite.

I hooked a twin to Karen's fish and released it without taking a picture. The water temperature today didn't allow for photographs if you wanted to release fish alive.

In about an hour I managed to land two more nice trout and missed about the same number before the mosquitoes started to get unbearable.

The grass around the road hadn't been cut in a while and the mosquitoes were literally everywhere.

Elmo, our perfect "wonder dog" was being tormented and wouldn't leave the confines of the truck .

It rained a bit and after it cleared up the fish stopped biting so we decided to leave the area and head for home.

I took these pics of the scenery you might enjoy.

I'm not sure why the sea trout bite best when it rains, but every time we fish before and during a rainstorm we get some great action.

Till next time, Tight Lines, hang on to your money and go fishing to clear your head.

The stock market is going to tank tomorrow!

Indian River Trout Bite

The Indian River trout bite is still good early in the morning and just before dusk in the evening along the shallow flats.

My wife and I fished Peacocks Pocket road Friday evening just before dusk.

Since it was late, I didn't feel like fooling around with a cast net getting live bait. Instead I used a D.O.A. white paddle tail swim bait on a 7' graphite spinning rod loaded with 10# mono tied directly to the lure.

The setup was apparently what the fish wanted.

I missed several smaller trout and landed one about 22" in about an hour of fishing.

The fish were attacking small baitfish that were meandering close to the bank in very shallow water.

As I released the fish, I couldn't help but notice how hot the water temperature was.

Although I didn't have a thermometer with me, the water had to be at least in the upper 80s.

I took a some pics of this big wild boar we saw in the marsh area along with the beautiful scenery and a quick one of one of the fish I caught here.


Although Karen and I didn't get into the area until about 7:30, we never saw a single soul fishing or sight seeing in the area.

I just love having the area to ourselves!

Hope to get out tomorrow and try out the bluefish that are supposed to be running in the surf from Playalinda Beach south.

Till next time.

Tight Lines and good fishing.