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Central Florida Smorgasbord Fishing Report

February 1, 2020 by · Leave a Comment

Central Florida Smorgasbord Fishing Report

Thank you for reading this Central Florida Smorgasbord Fishing Report. I got out every day this week, and managed at least a few fish every day.

NEWS UPDATE
Today, February 1, the rules for taking seatrout change statewide. Here in east central Florida the slot changes from 15-20 inches to 15-19 inches. The bag limit per angler changes from four to two. Formerly, one fish of the bag limit could exceed the slot, per person. Now one fish may exceed the slot, per boat. For more info click this link- https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/FLFFWCC/bulletins/271263f

FISHING
Monday was to be a scout day. I got to the Indian River and the boat battery was dead. I brought the boat home and put the battery on the charger. Then I hooked up the Bang-O-Craft and went to the St. Johns River. Four hours of casting turned up a half-dozen shad and a half-dozen crappie.

Shad boatside.

At the ramp when I got back was an FWC Creel Survey man. I like talking to those guys, you get some good information from them. He told me my six shad were the best report he’d gotten all week. Ouch.

Tuesday I launched at Beacon 42 for some scouting. It was blowing 10-15 and the water was full of mud. I got a few small trout and a floundah! Saw seven or eight decent reds, had shots at two. Both blew out when the lure hit the water. In general pickings were pretty slim.

This picture is for Tammy’s fans.

Wednesday Tammy Wilson (who has fans!) joined me for that Indian River Lagoon scout. We went to three spots, did not see anything living. I pulled the boat and went to River Breeze. We got a couple redfish and a few smallish trout. In general pickings were pretty slim.

Thursday Tom Campbell and Jack Florio joined me for some Mosquito Lagoon fishing. It was overcast, with a forecast of 10-20 out of the north, awesome weather for flats fishing. We launched at River Breeze and had a go of it.

We got five species of small fish- trout, flounder, catfish, puffer, and pinfish. When it started raining we packed it in. Pickings were really slim.

Friday Tom and Jack joined me again. We launched at Beacon 42 this time. The wind was not blowing, although it was still overcast.

Jack with the best fish we got in two days.

We found a lot of trout. With two or three exceptions they were all small. We found a few redfish. They were all small too. Everyplace we looked for larger fish looked like a virtual biological desert. There is no grass, we saw no bait.

Tom with his best trout. It would have held batter!

Tom and Jack, thank you for fishing with me again, and good luck in the Keys!

And that’s my Central Florida Smorgasbord fishing report. Thanks for reading it!

Life is great and I love my work!

Every day is a blessing. Don’t waste it- Go Fishing!

John Kumiski, author of Fishing Florida by Paddle- An Angler’s Guide
Purchase Fishing Florida by Paddle- An Angler’s Guide at http://www.spottedtail.com/fishing-florida-by-paddle/

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2020. All rights are reserved.

Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report, Orlando Fishing Report, St. Johns River Fishing Report · Tagged: , , , , , , , ,

Father’s Day Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report

June 16, 2019 by · Leave a Comment

Father’s Day Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report

Thank you for reading this Father’s Day Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report! And to all you dads, Happy Father’s Day! I just spent my morning cutting grass.

FISHING

Tuesday
The skiff was not available while the trailer was being repaired. So early Tuesday morning I met Bob Reed at Snow Hill road for some Econlockhatchee fly fishing.

It’s been raining a lot. The river was blown out. So we just went home.

Once home I checked the gauge – it was over 5 and still rising. The river won’t fish for a while.

Friday
Ed Wasicki joined me for some Mosquito Lagoon scouting. We did not stay anywhere long. There were several places to check before the storms started. But I got a slot red, and Ed lost one. Ed also got a couple nice trout, one well over 20 inches. And there were a few dinker trout too. We were off the water a little after noon. The skies opened up shortly afterwards.

Saturday
Sebastian Fasanello, a fly fisher from Buffalo, joined me on Mosquito Lagoon. We went to a spot, fished tailing redfish all morning (!), and then left at 11 AM.

Hadn’t seen this in quite a while!

Sebastian boated three slot fish and missed a couple strikes. The fly of choice was a black and purple streamer. It was a pretty awesome morning!

Sebastian was happy with his redfish!

I have a lot of non-fishing things to do this week. There may not be a report next week.

That’s this week’s Father’s Day Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report! Thanks for reading!

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- Go Fishing!

John Kumiski
www.spottedtail.com
http://www.spottedtail.com/blog
www.johnkumiski.com
www.rentafishingbuddy.com
https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jkumiski

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2019. All rights are reserved.

Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report, Orlando Fishing Report · Tagged: , , , , , , ,

Mostly Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report

March 9, 2019 by · Leave a Comment

Mostly Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report

Thank you for reading this mostly Mosquito Lagoon fishing report. There’s a littls Spruce Creek tossed in, too.

Blog Posts This Week– An Angler’s Journal- A Review

Upcoming-
–Mosquito Lagoon Show and Tell Seminar, March 23. An all-day fishing seminar that takes place in the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, with the express goal of helping you catch more fish in the Indian River and Mosquito Lagoons. For more information, http://www.spottedtail.com/mosquito-lagoon-show-and-tell-fishing-seminar/

–On-the-Water Show and Tell Seminar, March 24. Fun, educational four-hour fishing seminar that takes place in my Mitzi on the waters of the Mosquito Lagoon, with the express goal of helping you catch more fish. For more information, http://www.spottedtail.com/mosquito-lagoon-on-the-water-show-and-tell-fishing-seminar/

For Sale– Canoe Creek racks, fit any pickup truck (except Dodge RAM with toolbox). https://orlando.craigslist.org/pts/d/oviedo-tuff-truck-rack-by-spring-creek/6791721077.html

————————————————————

I got an email from Rick Meeks this week, who is doing fine in North Carolina. In it he said, “it has been 25 years since I left central Florida and moved to North Carolina. I have not made it back to fish the Space Coast in many years. I hear that the grass beds in the Lagoon and no motor zone have been decimated. Is that true? Is fishing still good?”

Well Rick, in the Banana River Lagoon there’s no seagrass. You can’t see the bottom. I don’t bother going there any more.

In the Indian River Lagoon there’s no seagrass. You usually can’t see the bottom. I seldom bother going there any more.

The Mosquito Lagoon has lost about 75 percent of its grass. When the water is “clean,” you can see the bottom, but it’s hard to spot what fish are there. It ain’t like it used to be.

The seagrass had several functions. It anchored the sediments in place. Now when it gets windy, the wave action stirs up the bottom and the lagoon gets all muddy.

The grass was the primary food producer in the lagoons, using sunlight to convert carbon dioxide and water to carbohydrates that kept all the invertebrates happy. The fish ate the invertebrates. There’s a lot less food, and many fewer fish now. Additionally, most of those big reds are gone.

The grass served as a nursery for baby trout, redfish, etc. No grass, no place for them to hide. My feeling is that recruitment has fallen way off. You don’t see nearly as many fish as you used to. We have lost so much…

So, “Is fishing still good?” You can still catch fish. But the expectations of getting eight or ten pound trout or 20 or 30 pound reds is no longer there.

Fishing et al–

Monday Scott Radloff joined me for some Mosquito Lagoon scouting from the Mitzi. Scott was tossing a plastic shad and had a pretty good day with it in spite of the wind- three slot reds and ten or so trout to about five pounds. My catch was much more modest.

spottedtail.com

The best fish of the day, caught and released by Scott.

Tuesday it was cold and windy. I went for a long walk at Orlando Wetlands Park.

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The irising are blooming at the park.

 

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This stream was loaded with fish. No, you can’t fish there.

Wednesday was colder and windier. I went for a walk on the Florida Trail.

spottedtail.com

This is the yard of a neighbor. Because nothing says “I love you” like a T-rex skeleton??

 

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The fiddleheads have unfurled.

 

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This guy was sunning himself until I showed up.

 

spottedtail.com

The remains of last season’s flowers.

Thursday I had the pleasure of fishing with Dr. Robert Fuller and Dr. Rebecca Fuller, both Ph.Ds, on Mosquito Lagoon. It was still cold and windy, although warmer than the previous two days. The water was cleaner than on Monday and we found some fish. They were not real cooperative. Rob got two bites which he turned into two slot reds. Other than good bird-watching, that was it for the day. Thank you for fishing with me, Rob and Rebecca!

spottedtail.com

Rob and his first redfish ever.

Friday Scott Radloff and I took a canoe ride on Spruce Creek. There were fishing rods involved. We got five bites. I got a 12 inch bluefish, as did Scott. Scott also got two slot reds and lost another. Although I hate writing this, Scott was using a Gulp! shrimp.

spottedtail.com

Scott and his redfish.

That’s this week’s mostly Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report! Thanks for reading!

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- Go Fishing!

John Kumiski
www.spottedtail.com
http://www.spottedtail.com/blog
www.johnkumiski.com
www.rentafishingbuddy.com
https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jkumiski

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2019. All rights are reserved.

Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report, Orlando Fishing Report · Tagged: , , , , , , ,

Central Florida Fishing Report

February 10, 2019 by · Leave a Comment

Central Florida Fishing Report

This is a central Florida fishing report covering the Indian River Lagoon, the Mosquito Lagoon, the Atlantic Ocean, and the Econlockhatchee River. Yeah, we got around this week.

Upcoming-
-Mosquito Lagoon Show and Tell Seminar, March 23. An all-day fishing seminars that take place in the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, with the express goal of helping you catch more fish in the Indian River and Mosquito Lagoons. For more information, http://www.spottedtail.com/mosquito-lagoon-show-and-tell-fishing-seminar/

-On-the-Water Show and Tell Seminar, March 24. Fun, educational four hour fishing seminar that takes place in my Mitzi on the waters of the Mosquito Lagoon, with the express goal of helping you catch more fish. For More information, http://www.spottedtail.com/mosquito-lagoon-on-the-water-show-and-tell-fishing-seminar/

Monday found me paddling on the Indian River Lagoon. It was pretty windy. I found a few redfish tailing but could not get near them. The waves made the kayak slap, and the fish all disappeared before I could get into fly casting range. Three dink trout managed to get impaled on the point of the fly’s hook, though.

Tuesday I took the Mitzi out of River Breeze to see how far south the clean water went. And, as long as there was clean water, I could do a little sight fishing, too. Find some fish for the upcoming trips, maybe. Such an idea!

I looked in a half-dozen spots, working as far south as Tiger Shoal. The water was still clean there. Fish were scarce, though. While I did see a few black drum and redfish I didn’t get a shot at them. Blind casting with the shad imitation netted me a few dink trout.

Working my way back north I fished a flat which has been a fish producer in the past. There were some redfish and decent sized trout there. I got a nice slot red and a solid 20” trout, and pooched a couple of strikes. It was a nice way to end the day.

orlando fishing charter

The best trout of the week, on a plastic shad.

Wednesday found me back at the lagoon, still scouting. At the first spot I released four slot reds. NICE! There were more there but not wanting to beat them up I left them and looked elsewhere.

A couple elsewhere spots had nothing. But then I found another batch of fish and got a half dozen or so reds and trout, all slots. Again, I left them so as not to beat them up.

orlando fishing charter

Not the biggest redfish of the day, but the spots!

At the next spot an hour plus was invested. A few dink trout were caught, and four redfish were spotted too late. Then three more slot reds came in quick succession. Then it was time to quit. It had been a very solid day, even though the fly rod was not touched. And, clean water almost everywhere I went.

Thursday Mike Conneen joined me for some near-shore Atlantic exploration. Off Cape Canaveral we got a few dink bluefish and a couple of the smallest pompano I’ve ever caught. We spent hours looking for tripletail, ending up near the steeple in Cocoa Beach. We saw thousands and thousands of cannonball jellyfish, but only one tripletail. He did not eat our offering.

orlando fishing charter

The cannonballs aren’t very sporty.

Saturday Marisol and Cheryl joined me for a shad outing on the Econlockhatchee River. Two awesome ladies who love to fish, it’s a wonderful thing! The shad were cooperative enough that we got two doubles and lots of singles, releasing a couple dozen, all on little crappie jigs.

orlando fishing charter

Cheryl got the first fish, a tiny crappie.

Great day, and thank you for fishing with me, Cheryl and Marisol!

orlando fishing charter

Marisol with one of many shad they got.

I have not heard from the publisher about my latest book. While the suspense is killing me, not hearing is usually a good thing. If you hear right away it’s because the work ain’t up to snuff. I will try to continue being patient.

That’s this week’s Central Florida Fishing Report! Thanks for reading!

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- Go Fishing!

John Kumiski
www.spottedtail.com
http://www.spottedtail.com/blog
www.johnkumiski.com
www.rentafishingbuddy.com
https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jkumiski

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2019. All rights are reserved.

 

Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report, Orlando Fishing Report, port canaveral fishing report, St. Johns River Fishing Report · Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Orlando Shad and Redfish Fishing Report

February 3, 2019 by · Leave a Comment

Orlando Shad and Redfish Fishing Report

We fished for shad (three days) and redfish this week, so we have an Orlando shad and redfish fishing report.

Monday the weather was too cold and windy (for me!) for fishing.

Tuesday I took the Bang-O-Craft on the St. Johns and up the Econ looking for shad. Six were caught, along with a single crappie, in six hours, all on crappie jigs. Mr. Creel Survey, at the dock, told me shad had been electroshocked in the Econ. Interesting indeed.

Wednesday the weather was awful, cold, gray, windy. I drove to the Snow Hill Road bridge and fished under it for about 45 minutes, releasing four shad and hooking and losing another. Mission accomplished!

orlando fishing report

The shad love the Al’s Goldfish.

Thursday I had a shad charter with Bob Gilbane and his brother-in-law, Dennis. We went straight up the Econ. Got only two in the first spot, three in the second. The third spot was a keeper though. We spent about four hours there, getting at least 20 fish, even a couple doubles. And TWO, count them TWO, red breasted sunfish as well! It was cold and windy but we were protected by the trees and it waren’t bad ay-tall.

Thank you for fishing with me, gentlemen! I had a great time!

Friday saw the kayak raised to the roof of the car, which then drove to River Breeze Park. Surprised and delighted to see genuinely clean water, like I thought I would never see here again. There was not a lot of grass except in really shallow spots. I paddled at least ten miles over shallow flats and through canals, and saw exactly one redfish. But in the three holes I fished there were fish. I was using a six-weight with a faux slider (Borski’s is awesome but I’m not tying anything that’s that much trouble.).

The first hole yielded two dink trout. Hey, ya gotta start somewhere.

The second hole gave up a mix of dink reds and trout, about a dozen fish.

Slider redfish!

The third hole reminded me of the old days. There were at least 40 slot reds in there, as well as a couple giant trout. The trout eluded me but I released four nice reds (one had seven spots, just lovely), and missed a half-dozen strikes. I saw every take, just awesome. No, I was not on top of my game. Yes, I may just go back next week.

That’s this week’s Orlando Shad and Redfish Fishing Report! Thanks for reading!

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- Go Fishing!

John Kumiski
www.spottedtail.com
http://www.spottedtail.com/blog
www.johnkumiski.com
www.rentafishingbuddy.com
https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jkumiski

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2019. All rights are reserved.

Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report, Orlando Fishing Report, St. Johns River Fishing Report · Tagged: , , , , , , , , ,

Happy New Year Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report

December 29, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

Happy New Year Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report

Best wishes to all my readers for a happy, healthy, and prosperous New Year in this Happy New Year fishing report!

Got a few slot trout.

The Mitzi met the water twice this week, both times with Mike Alfers and Mike Alfers (father and son) aboard. The water was the still-dirty Mosquito Lagoon.

Thursday we had partly cloudy skies, south wind to about 15. Friday it was mostly cloudy, wind south to about 20, a tougher day.

I looked for tailing reds for two days and saw two. Slim pickins there. Friday we saw two reds all day. Slim pickins there, too.

Over two days we got 40 or 50 trout on plastic shad and the DOA Deadly Combo. The biggest was three pounds or so. Most would not hold batter.

Thursday we saw maybe 15 reds. I spotted one that was about 15 feet from us. Mike dropped the shad next to it and to my astonishment it ate the thing. Next, we’re measuring the beast and it’s 31 inches long, the fish of the trip by far.

Got the red on the CAL Shad.

Mike and Mike, thank you both so much for two enjoyable days!

Got a report from PDM that shad were already in the St. Johns River.

That’s the Happy New Year Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report! Thanks for reading!

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- Go Fishing!

John Kumiski
www.spottedtail.com
http://www.spottedtail.com/blog
www.johnkumiski.com
www.rentafishingbuddy.com
https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jkumiski

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2018. All rights are reserved.

Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report, Orlando Fishing Report · Tagged: , , , ,

Merry Christmas Fishing Report

December 22, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

Merry Christmas Fishing Report

Best wishes to all my readers for a very Merry Christmas and the happiest of New Years in this Merry Christmas fishing report!

A piece of good news came across my “desk” this week. The headline read, ‘Red Tide’ Lawsuit Launched After Feds Ignore Wildlife Harms of Lake Okeechobee Discharges. If you’re inclined to read about it, this is the link- https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/press_releases/2018/red-tide-12-19-2018.php

Fishing!

Right next to the boat ramp…

Monday I drove to Teneroc, kayak on roof. A cold front just came through. I had never been there. You know I don’t have a depth sounder. I fished two different lakes and got exactly one bite from a dink bass that jumped off.

The ramp in question.

The gentleman at the registration desk told me no one did well that day, but Tom Van Horn wanted to know how I got skunked in “the best fishing around,” as he put it. That’s fishin.

He got some bigger ones.

Tuesday Alex and I drove to Fellsmere Grade Recreation Area, two kayaks on the roof, where we met Mike Conneen, and the Queen of Farm 13, Dee Kaminski.

Long live the Queen!

The weather was awesome. The fish were biting. I got more on fly, but better average size with plastic worm. The tough decisions I have to make sometimes! That’s fishin.

There is some vegetation in the water.

 

Alex got into the act, too.

Wednesday Mr. Mitzi and I went to Mosquito Lagoon. It was good to see the old friend, even if the water still looks bad. There were redfish at the first spot I went, got one on a plastic shad. Switched to the fly rod and got one on a Seaducer and another on a slider. Went trout fishing and got many slot fish on the DOA Deadly Combo. Did not see many big trout, but that’s the worst I can say. It was a good day.

That’s the Merry Christmas Fishing Report! Thanks for reading!

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- Go Fishing!

John Kumiski
www.spottedtail.com
http://www.spottedtail.com/blog
www.johnkumiski.com
www.rentafishingbuddy.com
https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jkumiski

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2018. All rights are reserved.

Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report, Orlando Fishing Report, St. Johns River Fishing Report · Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Dirty Water Central Florida Lagoons Fishing Report

October 13, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

Dirty Water Central Florida Lagoons Fishing Report

lagoons fishing report

The water was dirty in the lagoons this week, so we have a Dirty Water Central Florida Lagoons Fishing Report for you.

Upcoming Events-

-Last call for the Aloha Protect Our Waters Fundraiser! It should be called th FUN-raiser- Mai-tais, tropical cuisine, and live music highlight this event. There might be some well-known fishing personalities, too. All funds raised help support Anglers for Conservation’s youth fishing education programs. Oct 14, 3-6 PM. For more information visit www.anglersforconservation.org/pow . I hope to see you there!

-MINWR Show and Tell Fishing Seminar. Oct. 27, 830 AM. In this all-day seminar I SHOW you where to fish, and TELL you how to be successful. For more information visit http://www.spottedtail.com/mosquito-lagoon-show-and-tell-fishing-seminar/

-Mosquito Lagoon On-the-Water Show and Tell Seminar. Oct. 28. In this four hour seminar I take you out in my skiff and show you all my secrets. For more information visit http://www.spottedtail.com/mosquito-lagoon-on-the-water-show-and-tell-fishing-seminar/

For Sale–

sailboat for sale
15 ft Sailboat for sale with trailer! Sails are 2 years old and always dried and rolled into their sailbags. Main and Jib. Great little boat for cruising or racing. Custom trailer.

Boat is ready to go right now!

Visit this link for more information! http://www.spottedtail.com/15-sailboat-for-sale/

Microadventures
Son Maxx showed me a wonderful website called The Art of Manliness. While learning how to get the savoir-faire of James Bond, I also learned of a concept called microadventures. Most folks work from 9-5. What do you do from 5-9? You could be outside, fishing, hiking, bicycling, or simply watching the sun set.

Most people’s lives could benefit from the 8 Week Microadventure Challenge. Read all about it here- https://www.artofmanliness.com/articles/my-8-week-microadventure-challenge/. It could change your life for the better!

Fishing!
Monday the weatherman scared me into staying home. It was nice all day! I did learn about microadventures, though.

Tuesday, with microadventures fresh in my mind, I ignored the weatherman and went to the Econ. The gauge read just a bit under three feet, higher than I like it but lower than it’s been for the past month. With a hurricane about to blow by I figured it might go up again real fast, so I got out there.

Fly fishing with a popper netted me four species- bass, bluegill, stumpknocker, redbelly. A two-weight would have been more appropriate than the four-weight used, fish-size-wise. It was a beautiful day and the river looked great. Saw herons, ibis, kingfishers, hawks, vultures, painted turtles. Did not see snakes or alligators.

Thursday I took the Mitzi to Port Canaveral hoping to catch some mullet. The parking lot was nearly empty, never a good sign.

I could not get to the jetty because the seas were so rough.

A tour of the Port turned up zero mullet, or anything else. The Obsession and two other charter boats were trolling inside the port, though.

I pulled the boat and drove to Titusville Marina where I launched the boat among the floating dead fish. A look-see north of the railroad trestle turned up exactly four redfish. I caught a small one while blind-casting a soft plastic shad. You could hardly see the bottom because the water was so dirty. I netted a few mullet up, too.

lagoons fishing report

Friday son Alex and I took the Mitzi to River Breeze to do some scouting. The water was dirtier than it was in the Indian River. You could not see the bottom at all. It’s high, too.

lagoons fishing report

It took us a while (maybe the sun had to get high in the sky) to get down to the main basin of the lagoon. There we found a few fish. Alex got a decent red on a jerk bait, then got a nice trout, too. Dad got three dink trout.

lagoons fishing report

So the water in the lagoons is high and dirty, and fishing could be better (and it could be worse too).

lagoons fishing report

That is the Dirty Water Central Florida Lagoons Fishing Report! Thanks for reading!

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- Go Fishing!

John Kumiski
www.spottedtail.com
http://www.spottedtail.com/blog
www.johnkumiski.com
www.rentafishingbuddy.com
https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jkumiski

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2018. All rights are reserved.

Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report, Orlando Fishing Report, port canaveral fishing report · Tagged: , , , , , , , , ,

Just Another Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report 

March 18, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

Just Another Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report

This week Spotted Tail visited Mosquito Lagoon four times. It did not sink under the weight of the fish caught! This is just another Mosquito Lagoon fishing report.

Upcoming Events–

-Florida Fly Fishing Association meeting, Kay’s Barbeque, Cocoa, March 27, 7 PM.

Wednesday

On an almost frigid morning I ran from River Breeze to JB’s Fish Camp to pick up Jim Weaver and Warren Martin. Then off we went for some fishin’ and adventurin’!

Jim with the day’s best fish.

We fished in many places where I had found fish just a few days before. They were mostly gone (the fish, not the places). I poled for miles. We got four or five trout, only one of which made the slot. Tough fishing. Many thanks to Jim and Warren for joining me.

Thursday

On Thursday I had the pleasure of hosting Scott Kruchowski, a fly fisher from St. Lewis. We got on a small school of mostly uncooperative redfish. Scott managed to fool two on an Estaz Crab, one barely legal, the other not even close.

Scott’s first redfish on fly was this specimen.

Not wanting to further traumatize the fish we visited another spot. There were some fish there but we could not see them, running over several and not getting a bite. Reluctantly, I went back to spot #1. Ha! The joke was on me- all the fish had disappeared. We looked around a bit more, saw nothing, and called it a day. I’d like to thank Scott for fishing with me.

Saturday

Kevin and Caroline Rice, a father-daughter team from California, graced Spotted Tail for a half-day fishing trip. Weather-wise it was probably the day of the year, simply spectacular.

The day of the year.

By accident I found some fish on a shallow flat. They had their radar on and we hardly got a cast to them. They would just pace us, out of range and staying that way. The old adage is don’t leave fish to find fish, but when it ain’t working it’s time to go!

Father and daughter teamed up on this redfish.

Working behind the spoil islands we found a few fish. None of the ones we saw would bite, but they got five redfish including a giant 24″ specimen by blind casting plastic shad.

The first redfish Caroline ever caught!

 

The nail polish was awesome.

Our time was too soon over. Thanks for joining me, Rices! I had to rush home, wash, turn around, and head to Kayaks by Bo for what turned out to be another strongly attended seminar. Thanks to everyone who came out!

Sunday Mike, Moe, and Buzz (sounds like three astronauts) joined me for the Show-and-Tell seminar. We launched at Haulover Canal, went to the east end, and headed south paralleling the west shoreline, all the way into Max Hoeck Creek. We circumnavigated the Whale Tail along the way. No one was fishing there. We did not see a fish or any seagrass to this point. Water clarity varied between reasonably clear to can’t see three inches.

From Max Hoeck Creek we started running north along the east side of the lagoon. On the bar that comes off Gallinipper Point we saw the only fish of the day.

From Gallinipper we ran up to Turtlepen Point. The water was clear but there were no fish. There was nothing on the flat north of Cucumber Island, or on any of the shoals we checked all the way up to Pardon Slough.

We couldn’t see the bottom in (formerly) White Sands.

Going around the Pole-and-Troll area we ran to the south tip of Tiger Shoal, then took the south entrance of the running lane to the north entrance. We did not see any fish, or any fishermen here. No fishermen on Tiger Shoal on a lovely Sunday morning! There is some sparse grass east of the running lane, especially past Bird Island.

After coming out of the north entrance we ran across the basin to the ICW and headed south again, back to Haulover. Total time elapsed was four and one-half hours.

Many thanks to Mike, Moe, and Buzz for joining me for this excursion.

And that is just another Mosquito Lagoon fishing report!

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- Go Fishing!

John Kumiski
www.spottedtail.com
http://www.spottedtail.com/blog
www.johnkumiski.com
www.rentafishingbuddy.com
https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jkumiski

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2018. All rights are reserved.

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Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report, Orlando Fishing Report · Tagged: , , ,

Shad Attack! Orlando Fishing Report

January 27, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

 Shad Attack! Orlando Fishing Report

The shad bite this week was really good. We have a shad attack Orlando fishing report.

Nothing to do with fishing–

We can’t just confine our litter to the planet, we have to litter space too. This video about satellites in orbit was fascinating stuff- https://www.msn.com/en-us/video/wonder/how-many-satellites-are-currently-orbiting-earth/vi-AAv8uZz

Upcoming Events

Paddle Fishing Seminar at Kayaks by Bo in Titusville on January 27 from 5-7 PM. Please make a reservation if you plan on attending- 321-474-9365.

Monday

Tammy and I went paddle fishing on the Mosquito Lagoon. She nailed a trout almost immediately. I wasn’t expecting much and was caught by surprise when I spotted a pair of tails. The water was too dirty to see the fish themselves. I pooched the shot.

Tammy took the next shot at a small group of tails. I wanted to capture the whole episode on film (pixels, actually) but she pooched the shot.

I spotted a cruising fish, and made a cast. I misjudged its trajectory, and stripped like crazy hoping to get the fly in front of it. The leader was in the rod when I did, and the fish just crushed that fly, a Homer Rhodes Shrimp Fly.

Tammy had a chance to redeem herself and of course she did, getting a nice red on a Copper Liz. So we ended up getting three fish between us, and were off the water at 1 PM.

orlando fishing report

Tammy and redfish- good combination!

Before we got off the water a guy in a Carolina Skiff came running near where we were paddling. I expected him to get stuck. The water was low and quite shallow where we were. He started hollering at us, and with motor trimmed up, throwing mud all over, he idled over towards us. It seems he was lost, and wanted directions to the Biolab ramp. Really??? We pointed him the right way. Get a map.

Tuesday

The weather seemed quite lovely, so I hooked up the Bang-O-Craft and headed to the St. Johns River.

When I was a child my Dad and I used a lure called an Al’s Goldfish. They are back in production as of a few years ago (https://www.alsgoldfish.com) and I had bought a dozen. On a whim I tied one on, a 1/4 ounce silver one.

The shad LOVED it.

I tried fly fishing, working it pretty hard. I got three bites. Two were missed, one was a fat redbelly.

I tried small crappie jigs. I got three buck shad.

The Al’s Goldfish produced at least a dozen shad of all sizes, including a hickory, and several hooked and lost fish. That’s the hottest tip this week!

Wednesday 

I went scouting on the Indian River Lagoon. Maybe there are some fish left there but I certainly did not find them. I saw exactly two seatrout and caught one on a Riptide Sardine that generously was eight inches long (the fish, not the lure). It will be a while before I go look there again.

Thursday

I worked on the Indian River Lagoon Chronicles most of the day, and got the ebook republished on Smashwords and Amazon. I also ordered the proof for the print version. And did some boat maintenance!

Friday

My fisherman for Friday was Tom Campbell, from Maryland. The original plan was to fish the lagoon. The “east at 20” forecast caused a change in plan. We went to CS Lee Park and went shad fishing, starting at 8 am.

orlando fishing report

Mr. Shad, meet Mr. Campbell.

By 11 we’d gotten 15 or so on jigs and spoons. I pulled the boat and we went to Mullet Lake Park for a change of scenery. I learned there are many fewer airboats there, but many more bass boats going 50-60 mph. I mean, must you really go that fast? There might be other folks out there… Anyway, the shad bite was pretty strong. We got both Americans and hickories, several doubles, and I got a needlefish for the weird catch of the day.

And that is the Shad Attack! Orlando fishing report.

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- Go Fishing!

John Kumiski
www.spottedtail.com
http://www.spottedtail.com/blog
www.johnkumiski.com
www.rentafishingbuddy.com
https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jkumiski

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2018. All rights are reserved.

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Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report, Orlando Fishing Report, St. Johns River Fishing Report · Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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