Late February Indian River Shrimping

Friday evenings on the Indian River Lagoon are always interesting.

If I get home early, which these days is seldom, I hit the river with my wife and trusty dog Elmo for a little "jump fishing". Unfortunately the rainfall has been close to zero and the water levels are the lowest in about ten years.

My usual spots are now on high ground, much to the delight of the waterfowl in the area, and since it was too late in the evening to bother launching my flats boat, I just chewed the fat with the fishermen and shrimpers, trying to get the latest "scoop".

This Friday, the wind was light to moderate on the bridge and all the regular shrimpers were complaining about the "bad shrimp run" this year.

The "regulars" I spoke with all had a reason for not getting their 5 gal. bucket limits. but the general opinion was that it was just a crappy season for shrimping.

I got to the bridge, that was crowded on both sides by shrimpers and fishermen, about 8:30 and stayed until about 10:00.

I saw quite a few people sporadically catching shrimp and a couple of fishermen picking up some medium sized sea trout that were competing with the shrimpers. One was using a D.O.A. glow shrimp and the other was using frozen shrimp. The artificial lure guy was out fishing the live bait guy about 3 to 1.

There were also the "huge" redfish patrolling the zone just inside the area of the shrimp lights. They started coming in around about 9:30 and were still there when I left. They looked a lot like torpedoes as they occasionally swam over the shrimp lights.

I plan on hitting the river on Sunday before the cold front comes in early next week.

Hope its a good day.

Tight lines to all.

Shrimping On the Indian River

The shrimpers are at it again this evening.

I got home from work this evening and decided to check out the Lagoon to see what was shaking.

Depending on who you speak with, the shrimping is still somewhat mediocre or great.

One gentleman I spoke with said he limited out the night before with the 5 gallon bucket allowed by law. He was at it from 8:00 in the evening until 3:30 a.m. and said that he had dipped up about 30 shrimp that were over 7 inches long.

Not bad if you don't mind standing over a rail in chilly weather looking at the water all night.

Another fellow I spoke with was setting up his Honda generator under the bridge and his story was a bit different.

He said that on the previous night, Thursday, he only dipped enough medium shrimp to cover the bottom of his bucket. He never told me how long he stayed on the water shrimping, but I suspect not very long.

In any event, this evening the water was relatively calm and when I looked over the rail, I only saw a couple of shrimp scooting around and they were promptly dipped up by the guy next to me.

There were also several schools of finger mullet swimming around the lights. I believe if I would have stayed around for a while, the big trout and "bull" red fish that frequent the area would probably have shown up for a free meal. This activity usually happens much later in the evening.

I got to the bridge about about 7:35 p.m. and didn't stay long without having my jacket on. The cold weather is good for shrimping, not for me!

In general the folks I talked to this evening said that the shrimp "run" was not near as good as last year. We shall see.. The shrimp in this area usually run best well into late March or early April.

I took some pictures that are in movie format for you to check out.
Enjoy, and tight lines.

Indian River Shallow Water Fishing

Reds, trout and black drum are being trapped in some of the deeper shallow water pockets in the flats of the Indian River north of Titusville as well as in areas of the northern Mosquito Lagoon.

Right now if you can get a boat or kayak into these areas quietly, you can to pick up some very nice sized sea trout and slot red fish. 

 The shallow waters have concentrated the fish into small schools and if you have a boat with a shallow enough draft, you can get to them.

Just make sure that if your running flat out, you don't kill yourself by a sudden stop on a mud flat or submerged log.

The water levels are the lowest I have seen in the 11 years I have been fishing down here but sight fishing opportunities abound.

With the temperature as cold as it has been, you don't need to set the alarm early. Wait until the sun warms up the water a bit, about 11:00 or there about; then the fish become more active in the shallows and are more apt to smash a lure or bait.
I've been sticking with D.O.A. shrimp and am still addicted to the Storm or Creme swim baits. I haven't tried any of my top water baits lately but when the water gets a bit warmer in the spring, a Rapala Skitter Walk in the morning usually does the trick.

Well, I have no fishing information yet about the beach or inland waters, except for the fact that the shad run hasn't been up to everyone's expectations. 

 I may get to Playalinda this weekend and get in a little surf fishing, if so you'll get an up to the minute report.

Tight lines to all and enjoy the scenery.

February Mosquito Lagoon & Indian River Wildlife

Wildlife photography along the banks of the Indian River and Mosquito Lagoon is fantastic when the weather first warms up in February.

This collage was produced using Picasa 3 from the photographs I took this past weekend.

All the pictures were taken around the Peacock Pocket area of the northern Indian River and the southern most part of the Mosquito Lagoon along the Bio Lab road dirt drive towards Playalinda Beach.

The pictures were taken with a Nikon Cool Pix 8700 camera with effective 8.0 Megapixels and Zoom Nikkor ED 8.9-71.2mm 1:2.8-4.2; 35-280mm 8X Optical Zoom w/ED glass.

I got a super deal on my camera that I bought on the Ebay auction site from a guy in California. It was in new condition and came with an extra battery, charger and 4.0 GB San Disk card.

No tripod was used for the photographs, mainly because I forgot to bring the darn thing, and some of the photos were slightly out of focus due to this and the need to take quick opportune shots.

I thought the above movie might better show you the abundance of wildlife my wife and I got a chance to appreciate over the week end. When you drive around the swamp and lagoon areas in central Florida, you never know what you might run into. 

A great example is the alligators we took pictures of from the Bio Lab road. 

These guys were HUGE and looked like they could eat a horse. Now that I think of it...they probably would.

Enjoy!!

Indian River Shrimping

When anyone mentions shrimping, most people automatically think BOAT.

Not in Brevard County, Florida.

With the moon full this past weekend, the shrimpers were again out in force.

Although a lot of shrimpers opt for a boat, many prefer the camaraderie of shrimping from a causeway or a bridge.

The Max Brewer Memorial Parkway bridge on the Indian River at Parrish Park in Titusville, Florida, is one such gathering place.   The shrimping cranks up in the fall but actually lasts well into the summer.

Shrimpers use 12 volt batteries, or small compact Honda type generators, to provide juice for their lights. Usually, several water proof white or green lights are positioned on the bottom for each person to light up the water column with.

Long handled, fine meshed circular dip nets are then used to "dip" the shrimp from the water when they are spotted swimming through the lit water column. 

The shrimp are collected in the "heel" of the dip net where they cannot escape and then periodically dumped into a 5 gal. bucket used for transport.

When the shrimp are "running" you can load up a bucket in a very short time. The trick is to know, when they are running.....

Since there is no tide in the northern Indian River Lagoon, the wind plays a major role in water movement and successful shrimping.

The full moon is also locally believed to be big factor in shrimping, however, I have reservations about it. I have seen some of the biggest jumbo shrimp ever caught on the back side of a full moon and at other times, during the full moon. I do believe it's easier to see them during a full moon.

I have been on the bridge a few hours after sunset, when the shrimpers have their lights out, and the place looks like a fish hatchery! The sea trout, usually under sized trout, are all over the place eagerly gulping down the shrimp.

This frenzied feeding activity often attracts super sized bull redfish that can be seen moving through the water column like mini submarines. Although this activity usually occurs in warmer weather, you never know when they are going to be there!

Baiting, cast netting, push netting, frame netting and shrimp traps are also allowed for recreational harvesting of shrimp.

A valid resident or non-resident saltwater license is required and the daily bag limit is 5 gallons, with heads on, per person, daily. Boaters are limited to a 5 gallon bucket per vessel per day.

Shrimping is an enjoyable, cheap, fun activity and for me; beats the hell out watching the boob tube all night.

CLICK HERE to check out the rules and regulations you will need to be aware of if you get the itch to go night shrimping on the Indian River in central Florida.

Who knows, you MIGHT even get a shot at one of those 40 pound bull redfish!

Tight Lines!!