A Central Florida Fishing Report

Thank you for reading this a central Florida fishing report. Fishing was less than stellar two days, but at least I was able to get out. And, happy Valentine’s Day.

We have a well to supply our water. That means we have a pump, and a water softener, and several other components to the system. Like any mechanical devices, the system requires maintenance, and components need to be replaced. Monday and part of Tuesday was spent dealing with that.

Tuesday

after the technician left, I visited the local retention pond, hoping to get a few bluegills. That did not happen, so I removed the crappie jigs and put on a 3″ twisty tail. Wasn’t I surprised when I got a bite. A feisty, 14-inch bass came flying out of the water, and stayed on the hook. I removed it from his face and threw him (gently, I hope) back into the water. ‘Twas the only bite I got…

Thursday

against the wishes of my bride, I saddled up the kayak and went to Mosquito Lagoon for some fly fishing. It was cool, overcast, with a slight breeze when I launched, around 10 AM. Before long I saw a tailing redfish. I thought the cast was true. The fish thought otherwise. Oh, look, there’s another one! I thought the cast was true, again. Again, the fish objected and left. And that was that for tailers.

I stopped at a reliable spot for about twenty minutes, and got two trout, 16 inches or so. Little did I realize, that would be it for the day.

I was out five and a half hours. In that time I would see one redfish, warming itself over a dark mud bottom. I would get exactly zero more opportunities. The wind would get strong enough to whitecap the place. I enjoyed every moment of being out there, but the catching was terrible.

This time of year, when the water is cold, fishing can be good if the water temperature is rising. If it stays the same, or worse yet, drops, not much is going to happen except in deep holes. There are not many deep holes in Mosquito Lagoon. When I got back to my van, its thermometer read 63 degrees. Not much warming going on with that air temperature, that wind, and those clouds. So while fishing may have been enjoyable, the catching was pretty bad!

Friday

morning Walt Jennings drove up and met me at CS Lee Park, where I launched the Bang-O-Craft and we went shad fishing. Maybe I should change the name of the boat to the Shad-O-Lack! Stupid idea, won’t happen. Anyway, the bite was OK. Walt had never fished for shad before, and got his first ever on spin and then got his first ever on fly. We also got a bass, several warmouth, and several crappie. No bluegills or redbellies, which was odd.

The river is low. I hit bottom several times. My outboard is an old Mercury 8 two-stroke. When we came in around midday, there were three guys getting ready to launch a 22-foot Pathfinder with a 250 HP motor. I told them the river was low and they would likely get stuck. The owner said he was just going to run the trolling motor. Well, OK, but that boat probably still draws more water than the shallow spots have, especially with three guys on board. They launched the boat anyway, and he was stuck before I drove off. I hope they’re not still out there…

That’s the central Florida fishing report. Thanks for reading!

Every day is a blessing. Don’t waste it- Go fishing! Go paddling! Go walking! Stay active!

John Kumiski – https://spottedtail.com

A Central Florida Fishing Report