Waterfowl In The Wildlife Refuge

This afternoon my wife and I finally got a chance to check out the waterfowl in the wildlife refuge.

I had planned to do some fishing but the rods were left at the house and after talking to some of the guys bank fishing around the refuge, I didn't miss much.  Nobody seemed to be catching fish.

Anyway, the waterfowl were out in numbers that even avid birdwatchers would really appreciate.

As we entered the Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge, I was surprised at how low the water level was along the west side of the road.  Where I was catching rat redfish and sea trout a couple of months ago, there was only a mudflat loaded with sandpipers.

As we drove around Gator Creek and Catfish Creek Loop I took tons of waterfowl pics, some of which I have below.

We spotted mallards, teal, mud hens, ibis, pelicans, and even a few roseate spoonbills feeding in the shallows.   Definitely a duckhunters dream.

As we drove around Catfish Creek Loop, Karen and I came up on a huge gathering of Cormorants.  I have no idea why they were in this area in such great numbers but I'll let the pics speak for themselves.

 Click on the pic for a short video.

I'm not sure what the lone angler in the kayak was fishing for, but I don't believe he caught much around the birds.

As we drove around the refuge, I exited via East Gator Creek road to check out the mudflats in that area and took some pics of the area.

The pods of black drum feeding in the shallows in this area are now concentrated into the deeper areas along the main road.

As we headed for home, we spotted a family of Sandhill Cranes that didn't mind me taking their pic.

Although I didn't get any fishing in,  we thoroughly enjoyed watching the waterfowl in the area.  

Hopefully my work schedule will allow me to do some serious fishing in the next few weeks.

Till next time,

Tight Lines.

Tying The Mortician Rig

A couple of weeks ago when I was home, I tried my luck surf fishing at  Playalinda Beach.  

 

Except for a few small whiting which I returned, the fishing was less than stellar however, I did get schooled on how to use and tie a Mortician's surf rig by one of the guys fishing at the same Lot number.

This guy was catching bluefish and smaller whiting on the same rig using different size hooks and baits, so I asked him what kind of rig he was using.

He told me that his go to surf rigs were made with 60# fluorocarbon leaders so he could toss up to a 6 oz. pyramid sinker or Sputnik sinker when necessary. 

The problem with using a 60# dropper loop rig is that you can’t down size the hooks for smaller mouthed species like whiting, croakers, and pompano.   

The smallest size hook you can get on a 60# dropper loop rig is a 2/0 Eagle Claw L197F Circle Hook.  

I tried it with a Gamakatsu 2/0 circle hook but the eye was way too small for the 60# mono.   

When you consistently miss bites and need to go to an even smaller hook like the 1/0 Mustad 39940NP-BN Ultra Point 1X strong circle hook, it's impossible to use the heavier mono rig.

The solution to quickly changing hook sizes is the so called Mortician Rig that he was using, which is nothing more than tying two figure eight knots in the 60# dropper loop rig.   

The knots form a slot where you can easily add a larger or smaller pre tied hook to accept different sized baits without re-tying an entire leader.

The video above shows how to tie the rig with the figure eight knots.

My four surf rods are all spooled with 30# and 60# Power Pro and with this rig as terminal tackly,  it should make casting different size baits on the same rod a snap.  

When I get back home again, I'm looking forward to staking out a couple of rods on the sand using these rigs with a clam or sand flea on one hook, and a piece of chunked bait on a larger hook, to see what is biting on any particular day.  

The Mortician's rig definitely makes it easier to switch out hook sizes and try different baits without the hassle of re-tying the rigs on the beach.

I've been out of pocket for the past several months but plan on wetting a line more often when I get back home.

Till next time,

Tight Lines.