Tarpon, Manatees, and Mayans on Bio Lab Road

My wife and I decided to take Elmo and Odie for a ride along Bio Lab Road to see if the Tarpon I fished for yesterday were still in the same area.

Although today's trip was a scouting trip I brought along four spinning rods "just in case" anything was hitting.

Normally, I don't even bother wetting a line when air temps are in the 90s and the sun is directly overhead, but for tarpon, you can never be sure when they decide to eat.

We loaded the dogs into the truck and headed to the entrance of Bio Lab.

Along the way, we spotted a blue runner off the side of the road and a tortoise that decided on having a snack next to the highway.

When we drove into the road, I was surprised to see that the pump was still going full throttle moving water from the Mosquito Lagoon into the marsh on the other side of the road.

For a microsecond I thought about fishing but when I saw eight anglers lined up side by side tossing a variety of baits, I quickly changed my mind and continued down the road.

The scene was like opening day trout season on a Pennsylvania  trout stream.

As we drove down the road, I spotted some activity on the marsh side of the road which was enough to get me to try several lures.  At first I thought the fish were tarpon but it turned out to be ladyfish.

I missed one small lady on a soft paddle tail bait and after a few more casts decided to give it up.

We stopped a few times to fish the southern Mosquito Lagoon but I never got a hit on any of the baits I tossed to the fish.  The fish were targeting mullet but none of my lures could get a hit.

I talked Karen into trying an area close to Playalinda Beach road where some larger tarpon call home but she said that there would probably already be people there.

I drove in anyway and was surprised to find that nobody was around.

We let Elmo and Odie out to do their duty while I tossed a Creme paddletail bait around a shallow area where I spotted some juvenile tarpon.

After a few blind casts, I got a hit but missed the fish.  After several more missed I finally hooked and released this Mayan Cichlid.

The little fish put up a surprisingly good battle before giving up and I could have caught several more but I was worried about Odie around the water.  There are a couple of very large gators that could easily make him and Elmo an afternoon brunch.

As I walked back to the car, I spotted some Manatees having a good time in the shallows.  I took this short video before packing it in and calling it a day.

Till next time, Tight Lines.

Bio Lab Road Tarpon

Got home from work late yesterday and decided to hit some spots this afternoon to see what the bite was like along Bio Lab Road.

Both sides of the causeway at the A. Max Brewer bridge were loaded with people having a good time swimming, jet skiing, and fishing.    

I thought about driving around Catfish Creek but nixed the idea because of the number of people fishing.  Instead I decided to hit Bio Lab road to see if any of my tarpon or snook spots were open to fish.

As I drove into the entrance to Bio Lab, I immediately noticed that the pumping station was moving tons of water from the Mosquito Lagoon into the backwater marsh areas.  The  video below gives you an idea of the amount of water that was moving.

I also noticed that the area looked like a fish hatchery for juvenile tarpon.

I pulled out one of my spinning rods and started casting on the lagoon side where the water was being pumped from.  There was a good current going but nothing taking my Creme paddletail bait so I decided to move across the road where an angler was tossing a soft bait around the fish.  

I don't usually intrude on another anglers fishing area but when there is a concentration of fish in only one area, it seemed like a good idea.

He mentioned that we might cross lines so I moved downstream from where he was fishing and timed my casts so we wouldn't get tangled.  I don't particularly like party boat fishing for the same reason.

Anyway, we talked for a bit and managed to fish the area without screwing each other up.

It turns out that Miles Howard (below) owns MPH Customs and builds custom fishing rods.

He told me that he had been fishing the spot all morning and had hooked a couple of fish earlier.  

The tarpon that were rolling in the area ranged anywhere from small juveniles to at least a hundred pounds.  Most were in the 20 to 60 pound category, and they were all super picky.

I fished the paddletail bait and had a couple of bumps but after numerous casts I decided to change baits.  

I tried a topwater SkitterWalk, a DOA Bait Buster, a large DOA TerrorEyz, and a larger Tsunami paddle tail bait that finally started producing hits.

I hooked and lost three tarpon in the 30 to 50 pound category and had hits from several fish before a larger tarpon took my lure.

When I lost that bait I switched to a large white TerrorEyze that produced a couple of brief hookups before I lost it to a tree on the other bank.

The discharge from the Mosquito Lagoon was creating an eddy close to the bank with a deeper drop off right at the bank where the fish seemed to be targeting.

Miles was also changing lures trying to "match the hatch" as we talked about the effectiveness of several baits as we fished the area.   He hooked and landed a medium size ladyfish that I would have used for bait, but he returned it to fight another day.

I took several videos of the fish action in the area before I lost all of my productive lures and decided to head up the road to another spot.

There were a lot of bank fishermen along Bio Lab Road all the way down to Playalinda Beach road and when I took the cutoff to a spot I wanted to fish, there were already four trucks parked in the area.  

One group even had a tent pitched where I wanted to fish for larger tarpon, so I turned around and called it a day.

Hopefully, the area will be cleared out during the week.

Till next time, Tight Lines.

Early Dog Days of August

The Dog Days of August have come early in east central Florida with temps in the 90 degree mark daily.

This makes for very early and late fishing as I know so well from experience.

Yesterday, my wife and I took Elmo and Odie for a spin around Bio Lab road and the Vistas on Playalinda Beach road.

I tossed a few paddletail baits and a Skitterwalk around until my wrists gave out and only had one bump on the Creme paddletail bait.  

The area we spent most of our time around was in the southernmost section of the Mosquito Lagoon around Pelican Island.  

There were several big tarpon in the area and a bunch of juveniles darting around the shallows.  I spotted two tarpon jumping that were easily in the 100 pound category but nothing was interested in what I was tossing.

After an hour of fishing that area, we decided to hit a couple of Vistas on the beach road.

Both Vistas I fished proved to be a bust.  It was around 4:00 pm when we decided that the 92 degree temps were just too much for us, especially Elmo and Odie.

Both dogs had their tongues hanging out and I was afraid Elmo was going to have a heart attack.  The poor guy is 17 years old, almost blind from cataracts, and deaf as a doornail but he still loves to go with me and Karen for a "road trip" fishing.

I took a few pics of the areas we fished but unfortunately no fishy pics today.

Maybe next time,

Till then, Tight Lines.

Mosquito Lagoon Tarpon

After installing a new indexing valve on our sprinkler system this afternoon, Karen went to pickup a prescription and I decided to grab a couple of rods and hit Bio Lab Road to see if anyone was catching fish.

I was told that the Mosquito Lagoon Tarpon and black drum bite along Bio Lab road was pretty decent, but the rain and accompanying wind associated with the upcoming cold front might be putting down the bite.

When I drove into the Bio Lab, the wind was whipping up waves in the lagoon and the air temperature was dropping.

I tried fishing a Skitterwalk topwater bait but it was impossible with the wind, so I tied on a Creme Spoiler Shad paddletail bait and started pitching it around some "fishy" looking areas.

Despite the wind blowing across the lagoon, several groups were parked along Bio Lab fishing for black drum and reds.  

I talked with a couple of groups who said they were getting bites with shrimp but couldn't hook the fish.  The wind was making hookups difficult.  The other group of bank fishermen said all they were catching was catfish.

I moved down the road to fish a relatively sheltered area where I found snook, sea trout, and tarpon in the past.

When I got there, I was surprised to find I was the only angler in the vicinity.

The first thing I noticed was a sea manatee up close to the open culverts.  The air temperature was 66 degrees and dropping, so I guess the manatees were moving into deeper, warmer water.

I noticed an occasional fish blasting the surface apparently after baitfish, so I started pitching the Creme Shad around the area to see if I could scrounge up a hookup.

I noticed a lot of fish fry tight along the banks of the entire area trying to hide from predators so I guess that was what the fish were after.  

Anyway, after several casts I had a few hits but couldn't hook into a fish.   A large alligator was moving into the area so I opted to move past the wire rope barrier and started fishing another area a bit more sheltered.

After a couple of casts hooked into a juvenile tarpon about two feet long.

The fish jumped twice before disgorging the lure.  I continued fishing the area and was getting hookups on almost every other cast.  The problem was that I couldn't land a fish.

The tarpon were ranging in size from around two feet in length to three fish that were at least five feet long.

The big tarpon were out in the middle near some sunken tree limbs and would take the lure as it hit the water or on the drop.  

After losing the only three Storm lures I brought along, I changed baits to fish a 1/4 oz. Berkley Pogy Swim Shad Powerbait that I had lost in the center console of the truck.

The baits seemed more effective at getting hookups and after losing three or four more tarpon in the 3 foot category, I managed to land and release the fish below.

It was around 3:00 pm when the bite abruptly came to a halt.    After a dozen or more unfruitful casts, I finally decided to walk the bridge to build up my cardio and head for home.

As I walked back across the wire rope barrier, I took these videos of the manatees huddling up to the open culvert.

They are almost cuddly looking in a weird way.

Till next time,

Tight Lines.

Haulover Canal Tarpon

This morning seemed like a great day to hit Haulover Canal and try for some black drum.

I loaded my heavy surf rods into the back of my truck, stopped at the local bait shop to pick up a half dozen blue crabs for bait, and headed for Haulover.

When I got to the canal the bridge was down so I hit the northwest side and got a spot right at the bridge.

I cut a blue crab in half and put one piece on both of my heavy rigs.  

I was using a 10 foot Tournament surf rod with an Okuma baitrunner reel loaded with 60 pound Power Pro.  

The current was pretty strong so I rigged the 6/0 hook on 40 pound fluorocarbon leader with a 3 oz. sliding sinker to hold bottom.

The other rod is a Penn Fierce III spooled with 30 pound Cajun Red line and the same terminal tackle setup.

I tossed the baits out, set both rods on medium drag and sat down to enjoy the beautiful day.

I immediately spotted a Cormorant swimming under my rods to grab an oyster cracker for lunch.  As I caught him on video I also caught a couple of tarpon busting the surface just under the bridge.  Click on the pics to see a video.

There was a pod of about 7or 8 tarpon in the 80 to 100 pound range rolling on the surface in the area of the bridge for about an hour after I arrived.  

There were a ton of glass minnows in the canal, so I assume that they were chowing down on them.

I briefly thought about trying to hook up with one of them but there wasn't a chance in hell I could have landed one that size from the bank, especially were I was set up.

I continued watching the fishermen on the other side of the canal and a little blue heron that was catching glass minnows for his lunch as I waited for something to bite.

Finally, the baitrunner took off and I tightened up the line to set the hook on the fish.  As soon as I pulled back, I felt the weight of the fish briefly before the fish cut me off on the rocks.

I reeled in the barrel sinker without the hook and snelled on another 6/0 Owner hook.  I baited up with another half of a crab and tossed the bait almost across the canal.

The current was getting stronger than when I arrived and there was a lot of weeds in the canal that were causing problems holding bottom.  

After 5 minutes or so, you had to reel in, strip off the weeds and make another cast.

Finally, I got tired of catching weeds and moved to another spot near the middle of the canal, hoping that the weeds would not be as much of a problem.  Unfortunately, after an hour of removing weeds with only one bite that took my crab, I decided to call it a day and give it up.

I normally fish artificial baits but I do enjoy fishing the canal but when the weeds are this thick, it's too much like work.

I finally packed it in around 5:00 pm and let the tarpon have the canal to themselves.

Till next time,

Tight Lines.

Late Afternoon Topwater Action

Finally got a chance to get out of the house to wet a line and get in some topwater action with some ladyfish this afternoon.

I didn't get out until quite late and it had just stopped raining when I got to the grassy flats I usually fish.

The wind put a nice ripple on the water and was blowing right into my face, making casting and working a topwater bait a challenge.

I started fishing with a gold and black back BadonkADonk topwater lure smeared up with some Pro-Cure.

I'd like to say that I nailed the hell out of the fish but I had to work for every bite I managed to eke out.

After several unfruitful casts and a couple of birds nests in the Power Pro I was using, I finally picked up a ladyfish that hit the topwater and danced all over the flats before giving it up.

I took a quick pic before releasing the fish and continued casting into the wind.

I caught two more ladys about the same size as the first fish and released them both before moving on to an area that was less windy.

At this spot I changed baits and started tossing a Bass Pro topwater bait I picked up on sale when I was working in Mobile, Al.

After several casts and a couple of follow ups, I hooked into a small tarpon that made two jumps right at the bank before pulling off.

I spent the next half hour casting, hooking and releasing all sizes of ladyfish that just couldn't leave the smaller topwater plug alone.

Finally, after a 7' gator started getting too interested in my topwater baits, I decided to head for home and call it a day.

In total I managed to hook, land, and release seven ladyfish in all sizes.  

I just had to take a pic of the smallest one I hooked who had an appetite of a gator trout and the mouth of a guppy.

Till next time, Tight Lines.

 

Patillo Creek Culvert Tarpon

It was a gloomy rainy Saturday afternoon, so I decided to wet a line at the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.

When I drove over the A. Max Brewer Bridge to the refuge and got to the first entrance, I was surprised to see that the roads to Gator Creek and Catfish Creek Loop were cordoned off.

I remembered that there was a SpaceX launch tomorrow, so I decided to drive over to Haulover Canal and check out some other spots.

When I got to the Haulover Bridge, there was a crowd of anglers on both sides of the canal and several boats anchored at both entrances to the canal fishing for oversize reds.

Since I hadn't been to Patillo Creek in a while, I decided to try it out.

I stopped briefly at the first set of culverts when I spotted something hitting on the surface and tossed around a small white Creme paddletail bait for a while.   

After several casts, I had a gar follow the bait and finally got a hookup with a juvenile tarpon of about 14" long.   

I shook off the fish at the bank and continued up to the next set of culverts in hopes of something larger.

When I got to the culverts, the water was really flowing strong and I saw a lot of activity on the surface.  

Tarpon of various sizes were everywhere so I parked the truck and took a couple of rods down to the culvert to fish.

The wind was blowing and there was a misty rain that continued throughout the time I was fishing.  I pulled on my Frogg Toggs and started casting a black backed Badonk-A-Donk smeared up with some Pro-Cure.

On the first cast a large tarpon of about 4 feet or more smashed the topwater bait and tailwalked for a couple of jumps before sending the bait back to me.

I was surprised that fish of that size was in the area so I set my camera on video and set it up on a nail in a board to record any future action.

I started casting the Badonk-A-Donk  around the culvert discharge and had two more hits with a brief hookup before the bite died down.

I switched to the white Creme Spoiler swim bait and started getting more hits.  

After a couple of brief hookups and a lot of "bumps" I switched lures to see if I could get into some larger fish.  

The juvenile tarpon were between 18 and 24 inches or so in length, but after losing a half dozen or so fish, I was getting frustrated.   I just couldn't land a tarpon today for some reason.

Anyway, I kept changing baits and getting hits but no hookups until the rain finally ceased.  When the ran stopped, so did the tarpon bite.

The only lure that was getting any hits was a MirrOlure Heavy Dine sinking bait that I picked up at Bass Pro in Mobile, Al.  I smeared up some Pro-Cure which seemed to help, but I still couldn't manage to land a fish.

I made enough fruitless casts so that my wrist was getting tired so I decided to move to another spot to see if anybody else was catching fish.

Around the bend, I bumped into Al Bookhard and his wife who were fishing the canal for black drum.  

When I asked about his catch, he bent my ear about catching nothing but catfish.  He said that he had caught a limit of black drum when the water was colder, but not much today.

I swapped numbers with him and since I was chilled and tired, headed to the hacienda for some grub.

Till next time,

Tight Lines.

Fishing The Thunderstorms

Went fishing the thunderstorms this afternoon in the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge for tarpon and I wasn't too disappointed.

Late this afternoon around 4:00 pm I decided to wet a line and try to beat the thunderstorms that were predicted to roll into the area,

When I crossed the A. Max Brewer bridge towards Playalinda Beach, the causeway on both sides was jam packed with people bent on enjoying themselves for the 4th.

Social distancing was definitely not on the agenda but everyone seemed to be having a great time.

I passed the throng and headed to East Gator Creek where I missed some fish on topwater baits the other afternoon with Karen and the dogs.

I pulled into the same area and saw some topwater activity on the other side of the shallow grassy flats.  Something big was busting on baitfish just off from the deeper water canal on the opposite bank.

I spotted a couple of soft shell turtles swimming along the deeper canal close to the road and a two gar at the bank waiting to pounce on some baitfish.

I pulled out the Badonk-A-Donk that I was using the other day, smeared it up with a goodly amount of Pro-Cure super gel and started fan casting around the dropoff on the other side of the shallow flat.

I spent about 15 minutes casting with only a couple followups and was getting discouraged when the wind started picking up and the skies darkened.

Like a light switch, the next cast had a fish bust on the lure knocking it out of the water.  I walked it back but the fish didn't follow.

I made a couple more casts over the shallow grass and as I sped up the retrieve a bit, a juvenile tarpon of about 3 feet nailed the bait, jumped once, and sent it flying back to me.

I tossed the bait around for a few more minutes without another hit and changed rods to fish an XPS Slim Dog.

On the third or fourth cast a small snook hit the bait and started jumping all over the place.  The fight lasted until it headed to the mangroves at the bank and got off.

I lost the lure to either the fish or the mangroves.

I put on another Slim Dog that looked like a finger mullet, smeared it up with Pro-Cure and started casting as the thunderstorm got closer.

Just as it started to rain, another tarpon a little larger than the other fish busted on the bait and took off over the flats.   It jumped once when it was over the grass and when it landed, the lure let loose.

About this time, the air temperature dropped, the rain started blowing into the windows of the truck, and the gusty wind turned into a gale.   When it started lightning, I decided to call it a day and head for the house.

I took a few pics of the area before and during the thunderstorm as I was leaving the refuge.

My wife called to ask me when I was going to come home as I was leaving and I told her about the tarpon.  She asked me why I didn't take along the Go Pro I bought so I could record the action and the truth is, I really didn't even think about it.

Next time I will.

Fishing the thunderstorms is almost always productive especially during the summer months, but when it gets as bad as the conditions in the two videos below, it's best to just pack it in.   (Click on pics)

By the way, I was the only fool out there during the storm.

Till next time,
Tight Lines.

Beach Patrol

Went on a beach patrol this afternoon to see if anybody was fishing at Playalinda.

Got out around 2:00 pm when the air temperature was 94 degrees.  There was only a slight wind blowing this afternoon which made the temperature feel like 100 degrees.

I brought along some downsized lures today to hit the vistas along Playalinda Beach road.   As I drove past the toll booth I decided to stop at the Vistas first to see if any juvenile tarpon were in the area.

I stopped at Vista 4 first and tossed around a small Chug Bug smeared up with some Pro-Cure.  This area is very shallow and weedy.  I had a small ladyfish nail the bait and missed another before moving down to the next area.

The next Vista held a gator around 9 feet long that decided to be my "friend".  

 

He wouldn't leave my topwater baits alone  and finally parked his carcass right next to the bank so I couldn't cast around the area.

I switched rods and tossed around a suspended Mirrolure mullet pattern, but the gator continued following me around.

I packed up and headed to the beach to see if anybody was catching whiting or pompano.

For a Monday, there were a lot of people at the beach.  Most were sun worshipers trying to develop a tan or a case of Melanoma.  

I drove around Eddy Creek and stopped at lots #8, #9, and #10.

I only spotted three guys actually fishing, and they didn't seem to be getting any serious action.  

The tide was out and the seas were extremely calm.  The two guys fishing at lots #9 had some whiting that they caught on shrimp but nobody had any pompano.

 I thought about tossing a silver spoon around the surf but decided against the idea.  Instead I took some pics of the people on the beach and a short video of some guy sailing along on a surfboard.

I decided to head for home an try the Vistas again on the way out..

I switched to an XPS topwater bait at the first Vista and after several casts finally caught an released a small ladyfish.   A few casts later resulted in a hit by a small sea trout which was almost too small to eat the bait.

I hit the next three Vistas looking for juvenile tarpon but I didn't spot any rolling or chasing mullet.

Back at the second last Vista before the exit, I was casting on both sides of the road when  Cayden and his girlfriend. pulled in to fish.

He said he jumped some tarpon that were moving around and that he had caught some ladyfish. 

When he left I continued to fish both sides of the road and caught two more small ladyfish on the XPS bait before deciding to head for home.

I was ready to leave but decided to try the last Vista one last time.

This is a very shallow and weedy one with some tree stumps in casting range.  If it was freshwater, it would be great bass habitat, but it was brackish.

I kept getting grass on the Mirrolure, so I switched to a small size Chug Bug that I smeared with Pro-Cure.

I fished the bait so slow that a soft shelled turtle grabbed the Chug Bug.  I tried to land it but it finally let go of the bait.

I was about to give up when I made one last cast towards a tree coming out of the water.  The 'small Chug Bug bounced off the tree and sat in the water for a second before a nice tarpon inhaled the lure.

The tarpon jumped about five times before heading to the grass farther out from the bank.  The fish got tangled in the grass and as it jumped, broke the line at the lure.

If anybody catches a 30" tarpon in the area with a small Chug Bug in it't mouth, I'd appreciate a call from you.

I was one of my favorite all time baits.

I didn't have any more small size Chug Bugs so I tied on a Baby Bass pattern regular size Chug Bug that I also smeared up with Pro-Cure.

I must have made at least 20 casts with that bait before packing it in for the day.  The fish just were not interested in the larger bait.

Apparently size does matter!

Till next time,

Tight Lines.

Gator Creek Tarpon

Since I've been home this past week, I've noticed a lot of juvenile tarpon in the deeper shallows of Gator Creek.

This area is where I enjoy catching ladyfish for fun and occasionally for bait, but yesterday when I took Elmo and Odie out for a ride around the "swamp", I jumped one tarpon along the deeper shallows on a freshwater bass pattern Chug Bug, and a second one that was about 4 feet long that hit the Badonk-A-Donk below.

The ladyfish have been acting like they haven't had a meal in months.

When I first started casting the Chug Bug, I got a hit on every single cast until they finally wised up and stopped chasing the bait.

I managed to land 5 ladyfish that ranged from about 12" in length, to one that topped 24" in about a 20 minute period.  I lost more than I landed but since I released all of the fish, I really didn't care.

I enjoy topwater fishing, and these guys keep the action at a high level but when I hooked into the first tarpon, it really got the old muscle pumping.

The larger size tarpon hit in an area that I never expected to hold fish.  I'm keeping that place to myself but as soon as I'm finished with this post, I plan on visiting the location to see if I can get him to hit another topwater bait.

These guys are hard to hook on light tackle.  I use 10 pound test Cajun Red line with a 20 or 30 pound fluorocarbon leader on most of my topwater rods, and unless you really set the hooks, the fish usually shake off the plug.

Anyway, it's about 6:00 pm and I'm ready to head for the refuge to see if I can scarf up another Gator Creek tarpon.

Till next time, Tight Lines.

Tarpon And Ladyfish

Well Tarpon and Ladyfish is what was on the menu this weekend.

I was having trouble with my truck and didn't bother going out on Friday evening so I decided to hit the Lagoons on Saturday instead.

I decided to fish a "secret" spot that my friend Ron put me on last weekend to catch a few ladyfish and juvenile tarpon.

I got to the spot around noon and the air temperature was in the high 80s or low 90s.  

There was a mild breeze blowing in which made fishing almost comfortable.

The spoonbills in the area were certainly enjoying themselves!

I packed a small tackle box with a couple of top water baits, two paddletail baits and  a spare gold hammered spoon.

I tucked a spare rod with the gold spoon in my britches, slowly waded out to where I spotted some topwater action,  and proceeded to toss around a blue backed silver STORM Rattlin Chug Bug.

I smeared the lure up with some Pro-Cure Gel scent and had a strike on the second cast to the area.

The fish was barely hooked and shook off the lure after the second jump.  It was a ladyfish of about two feet long.

Several casts later hooked me up to another larger ladyfish that again shook off the Chug Bug.

I decided to switch over to the rod with a gold Johnson The Original Sprite Spoon and started fan casting from the shallowest area outward to the deeper channel.

It took three casts in water about 20" deep to hook up with a juvenile tarpon.  The fish hit the spoon and quickly tore off to my right making the Power Pro on my reel sing.

The fish jumped twice and on the second jump shook out the spoon.

I didn't expect to hook up a tarpon in only 20" of water and had to compose myself before starting to fish again.

The treble hook on the spoon was straightened out so I reshaped it back into place with my pliers and made a mental note to replace it when I got home.

I continued fishing the area and within an hour hooked and released six more ladyfish. The largest one that I originally thought was a tarpon was close to three feet long.

Thunderclouds were moving across the area and when the sun went behind the clouds, the bite came to an abrupt stop.

I waded back to the truck and decided to see what was going on around Peacocks Pocket road in the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.

I passed up most of the spots I normally fish because the wind made fishing too difficult but I finally pulled into a small marsh pond that was partially out of the wind enough to make casting feasible.

I wasted about a half an hour trying to get a hit before finally admitting defeat and headed up the road to another spot.

To make a long story short; I hit a half a dozen spots and only got one hit on my gold spoon.  I have no idea what the fish was.

Thunderstorms continued to cross the area and when it started lightening close to where I was fishing, I decided to give it up for the day.

All the time I was in the refuge, I saw only four vehicles and they weren't fishing.

I took a few pics of the scenery and some pigs I spotted on the way out of the refuge that didn't turn out, but no pictures of the fish I was hoping to catch today. 
  

If it wasn't for the tarpon and ladyfish that I caught earlier this morning, I would have been skunked today.

If it doesn't rain tomorrow, I may get out.

Till then,

Tight Lines to all.

Tarpon In The Marsh

As summer fishing conditions come upon us here in east central Florida, tarpon become the target of many Mosquito Lagoon and Indian River fishermen.

Early this afternoon after working around the house, my wife wanted to hit Subway for a couple of subs so we loaded Elmo and Odie into the truck along with a rod (just in case) and headed out to chow down with some late lunch.

We decided to make a quick run around Peacocks Pocket road and eat or subs on the way.

The air temperature was in the low 90s and there was a mild wind blowing over the river. 

About half way down the road it was evident that not many people were out fishing.  We didn't see the usual parade of Refuge visitors checking out the gators and waterfowl.

I stopped at a couple of places and got a couple of hits from sea trout but didn't land any fish.

As we pulled up past an area we call "Bobcat Bay", Ron, a fellow fisherman friend of mine, was putting out a couple of rods rigged with mud minnows.  I asked him how he was doing, and he told me he had caught something he never expected to catch in a pond up the road from where he was now fishing.

He proceeded to show me a fish scale the size of a quarter which was obviously from a tarpon.

He described the tarpon as being around four feet long, which was corroborated by the size of the fish scale he showed me.

As  we parted ways and left the refuge I told Karen we needed to go out later and catch some fish.

Around 4:30 pm I started packing up my rods and headed out to the refuge.

The air temperature dropped a bit but was still in the mid 80s and the wind had died down to a  mild breeze.

I spotted a couple of guys fishing in the middle of the Indian River.  One guy was wading and the other was in the boat. The guy wading caught something but I couldn't make out what it was.

 


I was fishing primarily with a white Creme Paddle Tail SwimBait and a gold
Johnson The Original Sprite Spoon.

I was getting hits in several spots with both baits and managed to catch four slot sized sea trout before the wind totally died down.

 
I had a couple of hits from redfish that I missed before finally hooking up with an oversize red on the gold Johnson Sprite spoon. 

The fish made a nice run up the marsh canal and then headed for the pond that it swam out from.  As it made a run around a grass island, it got caught up in an underwater stickup and broke free.

As it started getting dark I switched over to a blue back Chug Bug and missed two more sea trout before I hooked up with what was to be the last trout of the day.

The "super moon" was out and the bite was coming to a halt.  The mosquitoes were out in force as were the gnats, so I decided to give it up for the day.

Today, the sea trout and redfish bite was pretty decent until it started to get dark.

I didn't see any tarpon in the area I was fishing however, that could be because they prefer and are most active during the hottest time of the day.

All in all it was a productive fishing trip.  Five sea trout and a hookup with an oversize redfish in justy a few hours.

Till next time,

Tight Lines.