Northern Indian River Lagoon Photo Outing

With a cold front moving through the area, and a robust wind blowing over the swamp; it was not a very good day for fishing.

A photo outing became the agenda, and what better place to take pics but in the Wildlife Refuge around the Indian River Lagoon.

My wife and I headed east on to the Peacock Pocket road and we got a glimpse of some wild boar rooting along side the road. The group moved off, but I did luck out and got a shot of a large sow standing off the dirt road.

Moving South, around the pocket area, the water level was the lowest I've seen in years.

The wind pushed the water West towards Titusville, and where we were hoping to jump some redfish or trout, there was nothing more than mud flats.

This was ideal for the shore birds and other waterfowl in the area. They were covering the flats looking for crabs, worms and whatever else birds and ducks eat on the mud flats.

White and purple ibis, ducks, egrets, all sorts of gulls, rails, pelicans, etc. were out in force. All were feeding and huddling together to get out of the chilling wind.

The photo possibilities were endless and my trusty Nikon got a work out.

The 2 gig card was almost filled before I decided to give fishing a try.

I just had to give it a shot before heading home.

There was a nice sheltered cove, which usually produces redfish and trout, that I decided to fish.

A dead shrimp or mullet fished on the bottom usually works as a last resort. Today, however, there was nothing in the area within casting distance interested in eating either the shrimp or the lures I was trying to feed them.

The only feeding fish we spotted were far beyond casting distance in deeper water.

After about an hour, with only a small stingray to show for my efforts, we decided to head home and see how the pictures I took came out.

I have posted some here in movie format for you to check out .

I hope 2009 is as good a fishing year for you as this year was for me, regardless of where you fish.

 

Have a HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Peacock Pocket

Well folks; to any of you who are interested, Peacock Pocket road is finally open to the public for fishing, birding, or just the enjoyment of the salt marshes.

After a four hour drive from Savannah, Ga. I had enough left in me to pick up a rod and try to catch something before dusk on the Indian River.

Some of the culverts were open and flowing but nothing of consequence was hitting my lures.

I didn't get to the river until about 5:30 and it was almost dark before I made my first cast.

The sunset was beautiful as usual and tomorrow's weather looks good for an early morning fishing trip.

Both the Indian River and Mosquito Lagoon provide excellent fishing this time of year.

The crystal clear water makes for good sight fishing however the fish do spook more easily.

Guess I'll break out the trusty Maverick now that the gas price has gone down.

Hummm, wonder for how long?

Black Point Wildlife Drive

December in central Florida is a great time for shrimping, fishing and bird watching.

The Black Point Wildlife Drive, located around the Indian River lagoon in the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, is a spectacular bird watching location that draws visitors from around the world.

The one way drive begins and ends on S.R. 406 and provides a means of viewing all types of migratory waterfowl as well as the sometimes seen wild boar, deer, raccoon, bobcat and other animals and reptiles.

Some of the pics found here give a fair representation of what you might come across on the drive.

I have personally seen just about everything while fishing and taking pictures in the area and additional examples of bird species can be found throughout this blog.

This weekend provided some great photo opportunities for some of the early arrivals as pictured above.

The roseatte spoonbills usually show up later on towards spring, however these obviously didn't get the memo.

If you enjoy nature, and are in the neighborhood; the Black Point area attracts more bird species than ever before and is considered one of the premier birding areas in Florida.

The best time to visit the gateway to the "great Florida birding trail" is anytime. 

I say this because it's true; the duck population peaks in the fall thru winter and spring brings in a new crop of visitors via the flyways

This past weekend the scenery was just great.

If you ever get the chance to visit the Black Point Wildlife Drive, I highly recommend it.

Hope you enjoy the pics.

December Afternoon Photo Outing