Skunked

My wife and I decided to try Peacocks Pocket road Saturday evening to see if we could rustle up a few sea trout or a redfish and we both got skunked!

I guess it was overdue. We have been catching instead of fishing on every outing ever since I can remember, but this evening was unbelievable. We both couldn't hold our mouths right.

I netted some small ladyfish and a couple of large finger mullet for bait at the entrance to Peacocks Pocket road before proceeding to a couple of spots we regularly fish.

Karen baited up with a small 6" ladyfish and I started flipping damn near every lure I had with me in the truck.

I had a couple of hits on a small gold Johnson's spoon from small trout and one half hearted topwater hit on a chartreuse colored Chug Bug, but other than those two hits my artificial lures were not attracting any attention.

We moved several times and finally settled on a spot about half way through the road near a culvert and small backwater pond where I hoped we could pick up a redfish before dark.

I baited up with one of the large finger mullet while Karen put on another smaller sized ladyfish on a Cajun Thunder rig.

There was a lot of activity in the water. Fish were being chased all over the place but the bite just wasn't there.

Karen missed three bites and lost all three ladyfish and I finally lost my finger mullet to a redfish that was cruising down the canal. I saw it's wake as it was swimming towards the mullet and as it hit, I tried to set the hook too quickly and lost the bait.

I guess I'm not much of a live bait fisherman.

The scenery was beautiful despite the fact that the temperature was hovering in the low 90s, but it was the mosquitoes that finally ran us out of the preserve.

Poor Elmo wouldn't come out of the truck because of the skeeters.

Anyway, here are some pics of the area sans fish this time around.

That's why they call it fishing folks!

Till next time, Tight Lines.

Windy Evening On The Indian River Lagoon

Although it was a windy evening on the Indian River Lagoon and my wife and I weren't even sure that the wildlife refuge would be open we still decided to give it a try.

It was late afternoon before I got home from work and after packing a few rods, some lures and the cast net, it was after 7 o'clock before we got to a spot where I can usually pick up some bait.

This evening, there were lots of small ladyfish and a couple small finger mullet for the bait well.

Karen and I looked for signs of where the wildfires last week had caused the refuge to be closed and we quickly found areas on the east side of the road that were burned.

The wind made it difficult to spot signs of feeding redfish or sea trout, so we finally decided to try the last spot we fished and hoped for the best.

I dropped Karen off at her spot and I drove a few yards up the road to fish another area I hoped would be productive.

I tossed a green DOA jig head with gold and chartreuse jerkbait body on one rod and baited up my other rod with a 5" ladyfish for bait and didn't get a bite on either offering the entire evening.

Evidently I wasn't holding my mouth right.

Karen on the other hand yelled that she had a big trout on so I picked up my Nikon CoolPix and ran to help her out with her fish.

The gator trout was over 24" and inhaled the live ladyfish Karen was using for bait.

I took her picture and after I snipped off the hook, Karen released the fish unharmed.

It started raining again and after the wind died down the bite stopped dead.

The fish seemed to have lockjaw; nothing was hitting anything.

Since it was getting dark and the mosquitoes were eating me alive, we decided to call it an evening.

I didn't get a fishing report from any of my friends this week, but the fishing should still be good early in the mornings and late in the afternoons. At leas it was this evening for my wife.

Till next time, Tight Lines.

Shiloh Marsh Road Fishing

My neighbor told me that since the water levels in the marsh areas have come up, fishing for sea trout and reds has picked up considerably around Shiloh Marsh road.

This past weekend was pretty much a bust for my wife and I as far as fishing was concerned.

The areas we normally fish were closed because of the wildfires in the area and instead of taking our Maverick flats boat out on Saturday as I had planned, I wound up doing a bunch of yard work instead.

Late Sunday afternoon, despite the windy conditions, Karen and I decided to take the long drive around Shiloh Marsh road and scout out the area.

The wind was blowing in strong from the northeast pushing the water in the Indian River lagoon towards the west bank.

Water levels in the marsh area were up considerably since the last time we drove through the area and fish were chasing finger mullet all over the place.

I spotted several nice size sea trout and a couple of large redfish that were well over the slot limit but the wind made casting to them almost impossible.

Although had I brought a light casting rod loaded with a DOA CAL and a spinning rod with a Chug Bug, I didn't bother casting much. The mosquitoes were vicious.

Because of the direction of the wind, the water levels on the Indian River side of the road was only inches deep throughout most of the drive.

A few areas like the one in the video below were fishable but except for the few places where I tried making a cast to a feeding fish, we never did any serious fishing.

When we drove through the area, almost no one was fishing.

About half way into the drive, two barefoot kids asked us if we could give them a jump and a lift back to their truck where they had a dead battery.

Since I had battery cables, I loaded the kids into the truck bed and drove at least 3 miles along the pot holed road back to the northern entrance of Shiloh Road where they left their ride.

A wrecker they called had gotten there first, so we left them with their friends and headed home.
Let's hear it for Herb Daniels!

Shiloh Marsh road is no place to have car trouble, especially with no one around.

Those kids were badly sun burned and must have lost a pint of blood each to the mosquitoes.

Anyway, with any kind of luck the fishing conditions next weekend should get better.

Till then, tight lines.

Controlled Burn In The Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge

Got home late this afternoon hoping to catch another gator sea trout or at least a redfish only to find a controlled burn in the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.

Despite the thunderstorms that were rolling through Titusville late this afternoon, my wife and I still hoped to get in a little fishing.

We loaded up and headed to McDonald's to get a couple of smoothies before heading to the swamp, only to find that the entire Peacocks Pocket area was closed.

Before driving down to the easternmost entrance to the Pocket I stopped to take these photos of the area.

I was hoping that only part of the refuge was involved in the burn but as we drove closer to the area it was obvious that the entire marsh area was up in flames.

Since there the thunderstorms were moving to the east and because it was already close to 7 o'clock, Karen and I decided to give it up and head for home.

If the area isn't open tomorrow, we plan to take out the Maverick and try our luck in the Mosquito Lagoon flats around Whale's Tail for some trout and reds.

At least that's the game plan providing the weather doesn't put a monkey wrench into the mix.

Till next time,

Tight Lines

Sea Trout And A Fireworks Display On The Indian River Lagoon

Catching sea trout and a fireworks display on the Indian River Lagoon makes for a great fishing trip.

My wife and I almost didn't bother to go out fishing this afternoon.

We thought that the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge would be loaded with visitor traffic due to the Independence Day holiday.

We didn't bother even packing our gear until about 6:00 pm and then took our time getting to one of our favorite locations.

I netted up about a dozen 6" to 8" finger mullet for bait and moved down the unimproved road on to one of our spots.

We came into Peacocks Pocket road at the eastern most entrance and passed by only three other groups of fishermen who had staked out their spots on the Indian River.

Everyone seemed to be having a great time enjoying the wildlife and the outdoors in general.

The alligators were out in force. Karen and I spotted at least five good sized ones on the way in on both sides of the road.

When we staked out our spot, Karen moved up the road to where she saw a large redfish pushing water right onto the bank. She put on a 6" finger mullet and free lined the bait at her spot.

The fish today were holding tight to the shoreline in the canal and on the river side.

I impaled the biggest finger mullet in the bait well (almost 8") and tossed it to the opposite bank of the canal near a closed culvert.

The bait lasted all of 5 minutes before a 24" sea trout inhaled the bait and took off up the canal.

I came prepared today with a casting reel loaded with 60# Power Pro braid, an 8' section of 15# fluorocarbon leader and a 5/0 Owner hook.

The sea trout didn't have much of a chance but it still put up a respectable fight.

I landed the fish and intended to release it but it was hooked in the gills and was bleeding badly so I decided to keep it for dinner.

Karen was way up the road so I just took these pics of the fish and the rod for size reference before putting on another bait.

To make a long story short, neither Karen or I had another bite until just before dusk.

Another big sea trout picked up the live finger mullet and headed towards an open flats area.

I briefly fought the fish before taking it's picture and releasing it to fight another day.

One trout for dinner is enough.

The mosquitoes were draining the blood from our bodies and Elmo was looking just plain miserable in the truck. He refused to get out of the truck because of the mosquitoes.

Karen missed a redfish but didn't get another bite so we decided to head for the exit.

On the way out, we found a spot to park where I managed to take this video of the fireworks display that the city of Titusville put on.



We didn't catch the redfish we were hoping for today, but what could be better than some nice sea trout and a fireworks display on the Indian River Lagoon.

Till next time,

Tight Lines and a Happy Independence Day!



I

Pelican Island In The Mosquito Lagoon

The Whales Tail area of the Mosquito Lagoon is noted for the resident schools of big redfish, sea trout and an occasional tarpon.

However, Pelican Island which is seldom talked about is also a great area to fish and is usually free from competition.

The best way to access both areas is from the Eddy Creek boat ramp off of Playalinda Beach.

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With a Ghenoee, kayak or a shallow draft flats boat, you can access the southernmost reaches of the Mosquito Lagoon where there is relatively little fishing pressure.

From Eddy Creek you can go south west to Pelican Island or due south to a smaller (unnamed) Island and can get in some great fishing for big redfish or sea trout on the flats around both Islands.

There is a deeper area just west of Pelican Island that holds a lot of redfish, slot size and larger sea trout and sometimes tarpon.

To get to Eddy Creek, follow the road through the pay station at the Canaveral National Seashore all the way north on the beach access road past parking lot #7.

The parking area for Eddy Creek is on the left side of the road just after the #7 beach parking area.

At Eddy Creek there is a small fishing dock at the boat launch that is usually occupied however, the shorelines along the southern edge of the cove are great for wade fishing.

Fish live a shrimp under a Cajun Thunder bobber for redfish, sea trout, and a variety of other species such as mangrove snapper, sheepshead, black drum and even an occasional gag grouper.

You never know what's going to hit in this area.

My wife and I have had good luck fishing both in the cove and out on the lagoon from our old 16' canoe. We never tried taking out our Maverick flats boat but I'll probably give it a try when I get it back from the shop.

The last time we went out she picked up several bluefish, a whiting, some sea trout and missed a nice redfish.

Outgunned again!

A friend of mine asked me about fishing in the area which is why I'm devoting time for a reply.

We didn't get a chance to get any fishing in today because of yard work but tomorrow is another day.

Till then.

Tight Lines!

Fishing Peacocks Pocket Road

Fishing Peacocks Pocket road is becoming a habit for me and my wife.

Every Friday evening after I return home from work I'm usually jonesing to go fishing and the closest place is the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge around Peacocks Pocket road.

The thunderstorms this afternoon died down at about 5:30 p.m. so we packed up a few rods, netted some bait and headed for a couple of our favorite spots.

Our first stop netted me a couple slot sized sea trout. One was caught on a live finger mullet and the other on a CAL DOA white paddle tail bait fished just off the bottom.

The water was almost dead calm this afternoon and longer casts generated more hits than the usual lobs I use when fishing this area.

There were plenty of finger mullet in the marsh side of the road and because of last weeks incessant rains, the water levels were up a bit from where they were last week.

Karen was fishing live finger mullet for a change and when we were almost out of bait changed over to 6" live ladyfish.

At our second stop, Karen missed a nice redfish that ate her finger mullet and pulled off.

Several minutes later she hooked this nice slot size 20" sea trout on a free lined ladyfish, which she promptly released.

At our second stop I missed a nice redfish and landed another slot size sea trout that I also released.

A couple stopped to talk to me about the fishing and the bird life in the area and while I was talking to them, I didn't realize I was standing on an anthill.

As they left, I started feeling real pain in my leg all the way up to my crotch as the angry ants chewed away at me. I got rid of my sneakers and swatted away the ants but I was in real agony for awhile.

It was getting late but we continued to fish even though I was feeling miserable from the ant bites and just as I was ready to ask Karen to call it a day, she missed another redfish on a live ladyfish.

We finally decided to give it up and come back tomorrow for another try.

As we were leaving, I stopped to talk to the only other fisherman we saw in the preserve. I noticed him casting a CAL type jerkbait up the road from where we were fishing and decided to ask if he had any luck.

He told me he caught three sea trout and two smaller redfish which he released. I didn't get his name but I did give him the name of this website.

Jokingly, he asked me if I wanted to by his flats boat. He said he didn't need it with the fishing as good as it was in this area.

I told him that I have a Maverick I seldom use, for exactly the same reason.

One this is for sure, fishing Peacocks Pocket road is getting better if you know how to fish it and hit it at the right time.

I'll never get over the beautiful sunsets.

Till next time,

Tight Lines.