St. Johns River Shad Run

The shad run on the St. Johns River is also in full swing however, getting the fish to eat is another story.

Fishing has reportedly been challenging but the bite is expected to pick up with the upcoming weather change.

Most of the shad are being caught by fly fishermen using chartreuse or white Crazy Charlies.   The fish that have been caught were mostly found in the upper portion of the water column.

I've been getting consistent reports of shad, crappie and lots of good sized bluegill being caught on the St. Johns. by fly rodders.

With the current moon phase; the bite should be improving by this weekend.

There are good schools of redfish around the very shallow flats in both the Mosquito Lagoon and north Indian River Lagoon.    A canoe, kayak or very shallow draft boat that can navigate really skinny water is definite asset this time of year.

The fish are really spooky, as is usual, in the gin clear water and a delicate bait presentation is in order if you want to catch some fish.

Poling the boat, or careful paddling, is also very important to as not to spook the fish.

I sometimes get better results by power poling down and waiting for a school to come by.    Sitting on the platform and making long casts to the fish usually gets results.

Using light lines of 8 to 10 lb. test and light wire hooks also get more hits from the schooling reds.

For me the baits of choice are D.O.A. shrimp, Gulp jerk baits, and finally live shrimp if all else fails.

I'm looking forward to at least one successful day on the water this weekend.