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!