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Mosquito Lagoon and more Fishing Report

February 11, 2020 by · Leave a Comment

Mosquito Lagoon and more Fishing Report

Thank you for reading this Mosquito Lagoon and more Fishing Report. The more includes the St. Johns River and the Indian River Lagoon. Since I’m typing this on Tuesday, and I won’t be fishing tomorrow, next week will be a bye week. No sense in posting a two-day fishing report.

Long-time angler and friend Todd Preuss sent me the following-

Thought I should share. BTW, I do have a will.

FISHING

Monday
Old friend Walt Jennings joined me for some shad fishing on the St. Johns River. I told him to meet me CS Lee Park at 1000. I got there at 0830 and Walt was already there. Talk about prompt!

We spent five hours looking for shad, from the outlet of Lake Harney to up near Puzzle Lake. We also went up the Econlockhatchee. We got five shad in five hours, plus a few small crappie. Shad fishing was pretty crappy. It’s been that way all season.

Tuesday
Old friend Tom Mitzlaff joined me for some Mosquito Lagoon scouting. We met at River Breeze. Tom was not an hour and a half early!

We looked in a lot of different places, and saw very little. We could have seen them, too- the water was pretty clean. We got a handful of dinky trout and a single dink redfish, but it was not looking good for my charter the next day.

We actually found a few sprigs of seagrass trying to photosynthesize. I wish them the best of luck!

Wednesday

Bob opened things up by landing this beautiful sea trout.

Matthew Pineda and his friend Bob joined me for a day’s fishing on Mosquito Lagoon. Tuesday showed me where not to go. We got some fish at our first stop. Bob’s first fish, a handsome seatrout, turned out to be the fish of the day. We got more trout, although most were small. All in all it was a pleasant day, with a decent number of bites.

Matthew got this fish a few minutes later.

Thursday and Friday

Did not fish due to high winds.

Saturday
I try not to fish on Saturdays and Saturday’s Mosquito Lagoon scout trip reminded me why. There was a redfish tournament going on and the place was a zoo. I really dislike fishing tournaments.

I launched at Eddy Creek. Thought I should check the south end of the lagoon, since I hadn’t been there in a long time. It was a waste of time- the water was opaque brown. No need to go back there for a while!

I ran around a lot, even going through Haulover Canal in to the Indian River Lagoon. I did not see much and got one bite all day, a dink redfish on the spin rod.

A word of caution- trying to pull the boat out at the Eddy Creek ramp with my two-wheel drive RAV4 dug a nice hole in the sand under my front tire. If a couple of muscular young guys hadn’t come along and pushed me out I would still be there.

Sunday
Chris Kent joined me for some fly fishing in Mosquito Lagoon. We mostly had the place to ourselves, surprisingly. We found a flat that had quite a few redfish on it, which surprised me in a good way. We worked it on five separate passes and did not get a bite, changing flies, angles, everything I could think of. Yes it was frustrating. I thought he should have hooked at least two and perhaps more, fish that responded to the fly but said no.

We found a spot with some nice trout. His line would hit the water and big mud poofs would come up. Those fish wanted no part of us, either.

The only fish we got were some small trout from a deeper spot, blind-casting with a Clouser Minnow. We saw 50 or more reds over the course of the day and couldn’t make a deal.

Monday
Johnny went kayak fishing in the Indian River Lagoon, all by hisself. He paddled to where he intended to start, and spent the rest of the time wading. He missed his first strike, but got the second, and nice trout of 22 inches or so. The fish took a black Clouser Minnow. There was a long time between bites, so he switched to a spin rod with a DOA Shrimp tied to the line. He was rewarded with two redfish (small ones) on back-to-back casts.

A word about spin tackle- I am transitioning to ultralight spin tackle- 1000 series reels, 5.5 and 6 foot rods. A few years ago this would have been unthinkable. Now the average size of the fish has dropped so much it seems to make good sense. Even the small fish seem sporty on tiny tackle. Sooner or later I’m gonna hit a real one and get my clock cleaned I bet…

Anyway, I ended up with a half-dozen nice trout, all in the slot or above, plus those two rat reds. It was not hot fishing by any means, but I’ve certainly had worse days.

And that’s my Mosquito Lagoon and more 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: , , , , , , ,

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: , , , , , , , ,

A Short Central Florida Lagoons Fishing Report

January 18, 2020 by · Leave a Comment

A Short Central Florida Lagoons Fishing Report

Thank you for reading this short central Florida Lagoons Fishing Report. Like last week, I got out two days this week.

Last week I wrote this about fishing in the Mosquito Lagoon: “There is no seagrass at all. The fishing was definitely not great.” Reader Mike Schafer responded with this email, reprinted with his permission:
“Just to let you know that I have been out on average 4 days a week since Oct. 1. I live in Light House Cove in Oak Hill and had many years of spectacular fly fishing on the lagoon but I’m afraid we are seeing the total collapse of the lagoon ecosystem and fishing. I have not been able to find a single blade of grass and the fish have all but disappeared. I don’t know what the future will be but I’m afraid I may not be here long enough to see a recovery.”

Another reader, Noel Bachtel, sent me a YouTube link about a topic I have touched on in the past- herbicide spraying in Florida’s freshwaters. Here it is-

What a mess.

FISHING

Tom Van Horn took me out on the Indian River Lagoon on Tuesday. He showed me the black drum around the bridges with his fancy sonar system. We did not fish them, instead opting to search the flats. Wow, that was a mistake (mine). We looked for hours and saw nothing until the end, when we found a school of- you guessed it- black drum. Tom hooked one on a Gulp!. After a lengthy battle it came unbuttoned. Other than puffers they were the only fish we saw, and that was the only bite we got. Ouch.

Thursday I went out in the kayak from River Breeze. Karty Sills was at the ramp, just coming in. I asked him if there was anything out there. He said, “Not really. I got a couple black drum at Haulover.”

I went out expecting nothing. Wasn’t I surprised when on an early blind cast I got a bite. In a few minutes I released a lower-slot red. A couple casts later I got a trout that may have held batter. Several more fish came to hand, one red and fifteen or so trout, before the boat got loaded up. All were shorts. I saw two reds, nice slot fish, cruising the shoreline. No grass. Water didn’t look great. My best spots didn’t work. But it was a beautiful day, with spoonbills, and pelicans, and herons, and eagles. Beats sitting at home.

And that’s my short central Florida Lagoons 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 2019. All rights are reserved.

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

North Indian River Lagoon System Fishing Report

November 12, 2019 by · Leave a Comment

North Indian River Lagoon System Fishing Report

Lagoon sunrise.

Thank you for reading this North Indian River Lagoon System Fishing Report.

Got out three days last week, even worked on one of them. Fished in both the Indian River Lagoon and Mosquito Lagoon.

Saturday there was a book signing at Kayaks by Bo. I’d like to thank those people who came out for making time in their day.

For those who were unable to make it to the book signing, Fishing Florida by Paddle is available here- http://www.spottedtail.com/fishing-florida-by-paddle/

I have a copy of the 1971 Professional Guide’s Manual written by George Leonard Herter for the North Star Guide Association. An excerpt is printed below-

Having done this numerous times, I suggest you use a forceps instead of fingers to hold the fly. That steam is hot!

Fishing!
Monday
Make hay while the sun shines, as the saying goes. The weather was nice so with a kayak on the roof I drove to the Indian River Lagoon, place I hadn’t fished in a long time. It wasn’t great. The water is high and not very clean. There were not a lot of fish around. I did manage to get a redfish (soft plastic shad, 3”) that I was able to sightfish (shoreline fish) and 15 or so trout to about 4 pounds on the same lure cast blindly. Got caught in the afternoon rain. Warm and gentle, the rain was surprisingly pleasant.

Wednesday
Was getting ready to go scout Mosquito Lagoon, and asked Susan if she wanted to go. She wasn’t out of bed yet so it was a surprise when she said yes.

We launched the Mitzi at Beacon 42 about 930. The color of the water caused a great deal of dismay. The trolling motor kept hitting the bottom- I could not see it.

I saw and got nothing at spot one. On the way to spot 2 she wanted to see the pelicans, so we got as close as legally allowed. While she watched the birds I threw a DOA Deadly Combo a few times and got a 20” trout. Into the livewell it went!

At spot 3 I got two more trout, both released, on the plastic shad. Then I cleaned the first trout and we went to Goodrich’s. https://www.goodrichseafoodandoysterhouse.com They cooked the fish for us and served it with slaw, hush puppies, and sweet potato fries. Yum-meeeeee! The boat sat noticeably lower in the water on the return trip to the boat ramp!

The water is high and horribly dirty. The Indian River doesn’t look great but it’s way better then Mosquito Lagoon.

orlando fishing charter

Thursday
Charlie and Crystal joined me for some IRL fishing. We started at Parrish Park at 7 AM. The first bite, a trout, took about 45 minutes. We got ten or so fish over the next hour or so, all on plastic shad, healthy trout with a rat red and a junior snook thrown in. Then it went d-e-d.

A couple location changes failed to improve our luck.

I didn’t want to run to a new spot late in the day but did anyway. There were trout there and we got a dozen or so before we were done. The boat was back on the trailer about 330.

And that is this week’s north Indian River Lagoon System Fishing Report. Thanks for reading!

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- 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 2019. All rights are reserved.

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

Mixed Bag Central Florida Saltwater Fishing Report

June 9, 2019 by · Leave a Comment

Mixed Bag Central Florida Saltwater Fishing Report

Thank you for reading this Mixed Bag Central Florida Saltwater Fishing Report!

Thanks to all of you who bought books. Shipping all those books reminded me of the good old days!

FISHING

Tuesday
Tammy and I took the Mitzi out of Port Canaveral. The ocean looked like a pond. I tossed the net a few times north of the jetty, and was finally rewarded with a couple dozen pound-and-a-half menhaden. Truly, I’ve caught much smaller fish while using hook and line. But we had some bait.

As we cruised along the beach looking, there were scattered outbreaks of Spanish mackerel and little tunny. I got a nice mack on a Sting Silver.

Finally we saw what we were looking for- rolling tarpon! I shut the boat down and dropped the trolling motor. For a couple hours it looked like Sea World- strings of tarpon cruising just under the surface, monster jacks running by, five foot sharks making their presence felt, even a few king mackerel attacking the baits. There were loggerheads copulating all around us. We had several tarpon bites and Tammy put a big one in the air a few times.

copulating sea turtles

Turtles were copulating all around us.

The bite slowed down and we made the mistake of thinking we could find more fish by searching again. We were wrong.

copulating sea turtles

More copulating turtles!

We returned to the hot spot to find only an occasional roller. But there were thousands of five pound jacks, many with fins in the air. A fly rod appeared, and several fish cooperated by crushing a Krebs popper.

Tammy lays the cast out.

 

A fish cooperated.

 

Mission accomplished!

All-in-all it was an awesome day, as fishing with Tammy usually is.

Thursday
Scott Radloff and I took the Mitzi back out of Port Canaveral. The ocean did not look like a pond. It was choppy and sloppy. I could not catch any bait.

I used the tried-and-true tactic of returning to the place where the fish were last time I was out. The fish did not use that same tactic, however. NO one was home.

We ended up off the tip of the cape. Northern sennett were thick and aggressive. Bluefish and blue runners were there. We got a few small jacks and ladyfish. We saw a few tarpon roll. So we caught a lot of fish, but they were all small ones.

Friday
Nils Johnson and Allen Dronko joined me at Port Canaveral for some ocean fishing. We cleared the jetties. It was choppy and sloppy. There were three of us the skiff instead of only two. So I turned around, loaded the boat, and went to Mosquito Lagoon. The trout bite had been good. It seemed like a solid plan.

The trout had left the building.

We worked it hard all day for exactly two slot trout, basically touring most of my trout spots in the process. It was a tough, frustrating day. But thank you for fishing with me, gentlemen!

As I left Haulover I realized that I had blown a wheel bearing on my trailer. Jim Savage used to tell me, “Trailering is the weak link in boating.” I had been meaning to do bearing maintenance, had procrastinated, and now probably have to replace the axle. Argh!

That’s this week’s Mixed Bag Central Florida Saltwater 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 · Tagged: , , , , , ,

Optimistic Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report

June 3, 2019 by · Leave a Comment

An Optimistic Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report

Thank you for reading this Optimistic Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report!

Summer has certainly arrived in central Florida, with the thermometer hitting the mid-90s every day. Start your fishing trips early!

FANTASTIC OFFER
This is the final week we run the book offer- three of my book titles are now available for five cents each, only from my website. Thanks to all of you who have already taken advantage!
–Flyrodding Florida Salt
–How and Where to Catch Redfish in the Indian River Lagoon System
–Fishing Florida’s Space Coast
Shipping is still $5.95 each. The mailers cost money, the post office wants a cut, and the mail boy has to bring the package to the post office. But you can have each of these titles delivered to your door for six bucks. Act now!
———————

FISHING
MONday
Just did some retention pond fishing with son Alex, only for an hour. We got three bass between us, all modest size-wise. Alex hooked a larger one, but you know what happens to the Big One.

Tuesday
Alex and I took the Mitzi out of Port Canaveral after waiting for a submarine to sail. We ran south, close to the beach, as far as Patrick AFB, finding very little other than two rolling tarpon. Alex caught a small bonnethead, using a jig.

I turned east and headed out to sea a couple miles, then headed north. The water was BEAUTIFUL, clear, blue, oceanic water with Sargassum. But we did not see any bait or fish.

We ran to Cape Canaveral, fishing around the breakers for a while. I got a dink ladyfish, also on a jig.

We followed the beach back to the jetty where we anchored, tossing out a chunk of mullet. That resulted in a sizable ray, and an exit from the fishing excursion.

Wednesday
Scott Radloff and I took the Mitzi out on Mosquito Lagoon. Recognizing I had been in somewhat of a rut I looked in places I had not been in a long time.

The first fish we saw was a tailing redfish. We did not get a shot. We found a couple dozen reds in water shallow enough that I was pushing the boat through mud. The fish were very spooky, giving us only two shots, neither of which was converted. But it was so good to see them!

Changing locations, I was happily surprised to find the water was much cleaner than it’s been lately. We hit a few dink trout. Then I saw a real one. It struck my bait (soft plastic shad) without hesitation. It was at least four pounds, perhaps more. I did not take it from the water before releasing it.

spottedtail.com

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

The best part was, it was one of four that size, plus several smaller ones. So while we did not hit a red we got about 20 trout including some real nice ones. And the water was cleaner.

Nice day!

Sunday brothers Chance and Charlie Moore, Texans both, joined me for some Mosquito Lagoon fishing. We first went to the redfish spot. I thought they would be tailing- WRONG. There were fish there, hitting bait. I thought we should have gotten a few-WRONG. Nary a bite. So we changed it up and went fishing for trout.

Trout fishing was pretty good. We got about twenty, with the best a fat fish close to five pounds. All were taken on 3” plastic shad, and all were released.

orlando fishing charter

Thank you for fishing with me, gentlemen!

The water looks pretty good, as clean as its been in quite a while

That’s this week’s Optimistic 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, port canaveral fishing report · Tagged: , , ,

A Short Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report

May 19, 2019 by · Leave a Comment

A Short Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report

Only got out one day this week, on Mosquito Lagoon with Tammy. Thank you for reading this short Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report!

FANTASTIC OFFER
We are still running the book offer- three of my book titles are now available for five cents each, only from my website. Thanks to all of you who have already taken advantage!
–Flyrodding Florida Salt
–How and Where to Catch Redfish in the Indian River Lagoon System
–Fishing Florida’s Space Coast
Shipping is still $5.95 each. The mailers cost money, the post office wants a cut, and the mail boy has to bring the package to the post office. But you can have each of these titles delivered to your door for six bucks until June 15. Act now!

TUESday
Launched the Mitzi at Beacon 42 around 8 am, so we missed whatever early morning bite there might have been. Worked the outside of the clinkers for an hour, to the tune of two trout. It was overcast, water was not clean, and there was significant wind. Impossible to see anything.

Floated across the flat inside of Tiger Shoal to the running lane. Tammy got a single redfish blind casting.

orlando fishing charter

Worked a couple lee shorelines in the pole-troll zone- nothing.

By this time the wind had changed direction, to NE, and increased in intensity. We ran back over to the clinkers and worked the inside. I got a dink red.

Ceiling was getting lower and rain was in the picture, so we headed back to the ramp, trailering the boat about 2 pm. Two other guys came in, said they hooked and lost a “big” snook, and caught about 30 trout. They were not where we were. As soon as we drove away the skies opened up.

Got the following report by email from Robert Knowles-
“My first time ever in the lagoon. Took kayak out of WSEG and headed North. Fished all the islands up to about a mile I guess. Started top water with no hits at all. Went to a jerk bait had a couple small hits. Hooked a nice trout on shad tail but being new to kayak fishing out there, it got off. I am able to stand in my kayak and did see a couple reds. At about 11am while fishing a jerk bait on a jig head I caught and released a slot red on the point of one of those islands. It was a blind cast. I am still learning the area (your class was extremely helpful in this).”

Thank you for the report, Robert!

That’s this week’s short 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 · Tagged:

Tax Day Central FLorida Fishing Report

April 14, 2019 by · Leave a Comment

Tax Day Central FLorida Fishing Report

Happy Tax Day to everyone, especially the CPAs. Thank you for reading this Tax Day Central FLorida fishing report.

Cartoon of the Week-

 

FISHING!

MONday Tired of not getting bites, decided to try something different. Loaded the bicycle and a spin rod into the car. Drove to a park. Unloaded the bicycle and fishing rod, wired the rod to the bike. Put hooks and purple plastic worms into my pocket and rode into the woods to a spot I’d been to only once before. Did not carry a camera.

Found the stream, surrounded by second growth cypress. The woods glowed a lovely spring green. Was not encouraged by the appearance of the stream- small, shallow, overgrown, hardly any current. Tossed a worm into a little hole. BAM! Two pound bass.

Under the trees the woods were dark, and other than the songs of birds, quiet. The air smelled sweetly. Lizard’s tail (https://plants.ifas.ufl.edu/plant-directory/saururus-cernuus/) was blooming. I found some old footprints but did not see anyone else. Only three pieces of trash were noted.

Lizard’s Tail, Saururus cernuus

The bass attacked that worm like they were starving. At one spot got three two-pounders on three casts without moving my feet. Don’t recall that ever happening anywhere with bass. I didn’t get any bigger than about two and a half pounds, but didn’t get any smaller than one pound. Got 25 or 30, enough to wear most of the skin off my left thumb. The fish were beautiful, healthy, fat. Almost black they were so dark. Even got a mudfish, a personal favorite. In a way the tiny creek reminded me of brook trout fishing in my youth.

Had a pair of otters swim almost right up to me. We observed each other for a couple minutes. I asked them how they were doing. They responded by swimming around and away. They looked like they were enjoying themselves too.

To illustrate just how good it was, after I loaded up the car and started driving home, it started to rain. Perfect timing, too! God smiled on me on Monday.

Would love to go back. Tiny spots like that are delicate, though. It will be quite a while before I return.

Thursday loaded up the expedition kayak (Prowler 15) and went to Spruce Creek, which is not much of an expedition. The boat handled beautifully. Fishing was slow. Got a decent trout (18”?), a smallish crevalle, and a flounder. Hooked and lost a beefier jack. That was it. Didn’t see much other than fishermen. Quite a few of those.

Friday Tom Van Horn joined me for some Mosquito Lagoon flats fishing. The wind was stiff from the south. We could not find any clean water, saw exactly two redfish. Did not get a shot, did not hit a fish blind casting the plastic shad. A juvenile blue crab pinched my line and was brought into the boat, our only animate catch. Does that chase the skunk away??

That’s this week’s Tax Day 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 · Tagged: , , , , , , ,

Meh Central Florida Fishing Report

March 30, 2019 by · Leave a Comment

Meh Central Florida Fishing Report and Herbicide Rant

Thank you for reading this meh central Florida fishing report and herbicide rant.

A Deal For You-
Three of my book titles are now available for five cents each, only from my website.
-Flyrodding Florida Salt
-How and Where to Catch Redfish in the Indian River Lagoon System
-Fishing Florida’s Space Coast
Shipping is still $5.95 each. The mailers cost money, the post office wants a cut, and the mail boy has to bring the package to the post office. But you can have each of these titles delivered to your door for six bucks until June 15. Act now!

T-Shirt of the Week-

 

FISHING!

Monday morning I had an appointment, so the start was quite late. The decision was to go somewhere “new,” to me at least. The destination was Fox Lake, in Titusville, the boat, the Bang-O-Craft.

The initial response was favorable. Quiet pond in a big park, lots of water lilies, nice ramp and dock, lovely. Fox Lake has a canal connecting it to South Lake. South Lake looked awesome, lots of vegetation, grackles working the lily pads. Lots of bullfrogs croaking, a sound associated with good bass fishing. I started casting a fly rod popper. Sunfish kept investigating.

In the distance I could hear an airboat, didn’t think much of it.

Casting doesn’t get the lake explored, so I went riding. I saw two airboats, spraying poison.

I shot this photo a few months ago on Rainbow River. We’re poisoning everywhere.

Disgusted, I went back to the boat ramp. Two pickups from Applied Aquatics Management were parked there. One of them had a bunch of boxes of diquat dibromide locked in a cage in the back.

In the lagoon system the algae is killing all the grass. We bemoan the fact. In the St. Johns River, South Lake, and other freshwater bodies around the state, we’re killing it on purpose. WTF??

We’ve known the following about diquat dibromide since at least 1993 (information from http://pmep.cce.cornell.edu/profiles/extoxnet/dienochlor-glyphosate/diquat-ext.html):

Diquat dibromide is an herbicide and plant growth regulator. It is a quick-acting contact herbicide, causing injury only to the parts of the plant to which it is applied. It is nonselective, meaning that it does not spare ‘nontarget’ plants from its herbicidal effects.

Diquat dibromide is a moderately toxic chemical. It may be fatal to humans if swallowed, inhaled, or absorbed through the skin. Concentrated solutions may cause severe irritation of the mouth, throat, esophagus and stomach followed by nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, severe drying out of bodily tissues, gastrointestinal discomfort, chest pain, diarrhea, kidney failure, and toxic liver damage. Very large doses of the herbicide can result in convulsions and tremors.

Diquat dibromide is acutely toxic when it is absorbed through the skin and the possibility for poisoning increases with repeated exposure. Cows appear to be particularly sensitive to this herbicide.

Diquat dibromide also causes eye irritation.

EPA has required more testing on the capability of this herbicide to cause mutations, since available information is contradictory.

Diquat dibromide is slightly toxic to fish. Its toxicity to fish, and food organisms on which fish survive, has been reported in many studies.

Traces, or residues, of diquat have been found to persist in soil for many years with very little degradation. Field and laboratory tests show that diquat usually remains in the top inch of soil for long periods of time after it is applied. Groundwater quality can be affected if soil adsorption sites become totally saturated because water moving down through the soil can carry any non adsorbed herbicide into the groundwater. Diquat has been found in the bottom soil of pools and ponds four years after application.

The EPA requires a 14-day interval between treatment of water with diquat dibromide and use of treated waters for domestic, livestock, or irrigation purposes. Swimming, fishing and watering of domestic animals should not be allowed for at least 14 days after application of the herbicide to water.

Diquat contains small amounts of a highly toxic chemical impurity, ethylene dibromide (EDB).

Diquat is only one of 17 herbicides (https://plants.ifas.ufl.edu/manage/control-methods/chemical-control/details-about-the-aquatic-herbicides-used-in-florida/ ) the state of Florida uses to control aquatic “weeds.” FWC in in charge of permitting the use of these chemicals. Thanks, FWC. “Control” and “elimination” are not the same thing. Why are we poisoning our fish?

Several people, including me, were out fishing while they were spraying. The St. Johns River gets huge doses of these chemicals daily. Someone is making some serious money, and we’re paying for it, in more ways than one.

Americans sure do love poison. There are aisles with nothing but in the home improvement store. We put it in our homes, our yards, our food, our water. We eat it, drink it, rub it on ourselves, smoke it. We use it to power our machines. They then give off poison exhaust. We put a LOT of poison into the environment. Is it any wonder so many of us get cancer? The surprising thing is that we all don’t get it.

Tuesday I took a kayak to the Mosquito Lagoon, spending seven glorious, sunshine-filled hours paddling, walking, and casting a plastic shad. Every once in a while a fish of some sort interrupted my daydreaming. I found some clear water, if not a lot of fish.

I got two fish on flies, even. One was a trout that may have been legal, blind casting with a Clouser Minnow. One was a slot red, one of a pair of tailers, that I got on a Homer Rhodes Shrimp Fly. The leader was in the rod when the fish took- up close and personal!

Homer Rhodes developed this fly in the 1930s. His, and the one I used, did not have lead eyes.

It wasn’t epic by any means, but I would do it again.

Wednesday, clouds, rain, wind, and lightning kept me off the water.

Thursday clouds and wind kept me off the water. Went for a bike ride with my camera.

Bronson State Forest

 

 

The trees there are awesome!

Friday the Bang-O-Craft got launched at the St. Johns River at State Road 50. I was curious to see if I could run it upstream to the Beeline. Google maps made me think I couldn’t. I made it past the powerlines at Tosahatchee. There the river braids a lot. The braid I took got too shallow, and I was forced to abandon the endeavor.

Red-winged blackbird. If someone can tell me what flower it’s sitting in I’ll gladly send you a book!

 

A “controlled burn” was going on.

 

Seven Palms shelter.

If alligators were a good indicator of environmental health the place looks really healthy. There were hundreds of them. The water, however, looked like the Banana River Lagoon looks. In other words, the water looks like s—.

Alligator, file photo

I didn’t fish much but picked up a whopper five inch bass on a small jig. Nothing I saw made me want to fish, or indicated that there might actually be fish. No aquatic plants hindered my running the boat, though.

If the wind stops blowing (not supposed to), the reports will soon be coming from near-shore Atlantic waters.

That’s this week’s Meh 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, St. Johns River Fishing Report · Tagged: , , ,
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