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Happy Thanksgiving Central FLorida Fishing Report

November 17, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

Happy Thanksgiving Central FLorida Fishing Report

A peaceful and blessed Thanksgiving to everyone. Here is a short Happy Thanksgiving Central FLorida Fishing Report

Sunday and Monday I got to prep for and receive one of the wonderful parts of the adventure called aging, the colonoscopy. System performing within normal parameters, thank you.

Tuesday I took son Maxx and friend Catalina out on Mosquito Lagoon. Let’s just say it was really slow and leave it at that. The water was high and very dirty. We did not get skunked.

Thursday was an Econlockhatchee River trip. Two new flies needed to be tested. One was a crayfish pattern that failed miserably. Perhaps modifications are needed! The other was the Krebs popper (see how to tie here…), which I cannot say enough great things about. It accounted for numerous redbellies, stumpknockers, largemouth bass, and a single chain pickerel, something I have never caught in the Econ before. I did not put legs or paint mine. No photos were taken.

The rest of the week was spent getting ready for Thanksgiving. Again, best wishes for yours to be wonderful!

That is the Happy Thanksgiving 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 2018. All rights are reserved.

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

A Good East Central FLorida Fishing Report

November 11, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

A Good East Central FLorida Fishing Report

No news or announcements, so let’s get right to the Good East Central Florida fishing report!

Monday Tammy, the new Katmai Lodge fishing guide, joined me for some Mosquito Lagoon fly fishing aboard Spotted Tail. The weather was spectacular and we spotted tails almost immediately. Tammy made the most of the opportunty. The fly was a grizzly seaducer.

east central florida fishing report

Tailing redfish, Mosquito Lagoon

Subsequent shots did not go as well, and that was the only fish we got. We had quite a few more chances though.

east central florida fishing report

Tammy’s fly-caught redfish.

Tuesday Scott Radloff joined me for a Port Canaveral excursion.We went through $25 worth of jigs, getting cut off by fat Spanish mackerel and bluefish.

east central florida fishing report

These mackerel were going through #40 fluoro on the strike.

There were jacks and ladies, too. I pulled out a six-weight and did a litle damage with that, great fun. It was a pretty awesome day. So much so…

…that on Wednesday I returned with my two sons for a repeat performance. We found a school of eight pound jacks. Alex got one with the six-weight, using a gurgler. The whole day was pretty much a repeat of the previous one. LOTSA FISH!

east central florida fishing report

Alex used an UL spin rod…

 

east central florida fishing report

…to get this jack.

 

east central florida fishing report

Then he used the six-weight…

east central florida fishing report

 

east central florida fishing report

…to get this one.

 

east central florida fishing report

Maxx’s mackerel thrashed right onto my lens.

Thursday Shane Thomas joined me for an enhanced on-the-water Show-and-Tell seminar on Mosquito Lagoon. We enhanced it by taking an extra two hours and fishing. We did not see much other than manatees at the south end of the lagoon, but as we worked our way north tailing redfish started to show. He got one to bite a shad tail, but unfortunately missed it. We got a few short trout. Shane did claim to be on information overload by the end of the trip, something this instructor loves to hear.

That is A Good East 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 2018. All rights are reserved.

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

Another Dirty Water Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report

October 20, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

Another Dirty Water Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report

Better than no fish.

The water was dirty in the lagoons again this week, so we have another Dirty Water Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report for you.

Upcoming Events-

–MINWR Show and Tell Fishing Seminar. Oct. 27, 0830 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/

Space still available for both events!

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 clean and ready to go right now!

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

Sunday
Needless to say I was at the AFC Fundraiser, a wonderful event. A gentleman introduced himself to me and said he’d found out about the event from this newsletter! Hallelujah! Some folks actually read it!

Fishing!
Monday I went kayak scouting on the dirty waters of the Mosquito Lagoon, hoping to find some water clean enough to sight fish. If the water is more than about 12 inches deep you cannot see the bottom. Sight fishing is possible in select places, but is not easy even at those. I sure do love progress.

Hopefully a couple strong cold fronts will cause the water to clear up. My optimism is quite guarded.

Tuesday Chris Olson joined me for some Mosquito Lagoon kayak fishing. Chris got a couple slot trout on a plastic shad. I got a short red and a trout on a plastic shad too, and added a micro-snook on the fly rod for a mini-slam. I had three shots at tailing reds, which is how I got the one I got. It was a beautiful day. Afterwards we went to Kayaks by Bo to see the pretty, new boats!

Wednesday I drove to the Villages to talk to the Tri-County Fly Fishers  about winter fly fishing in the lagoons. The talk went well- they seem like a really nice group. This email came to me the next morning- “I enjoyed the talk. I’ve always been impressed with your observations and honesty.” Thank you, Russell!

Thursday I took the Mitzi to Port Canaveral hoping to catch some mullet. The parking lot had a few cars, which was encouraging. There were only a few mullet at the boat ramp, and none between there and the jetties.

The Mitzi cleared the north jetty. On the north side of it was a single school of mullet, way up in the surf. They quickly disappeared. The seas were at the design limits of the Mitzi’s capabilities. The forecast was for a strengthening east wind.

A Coast Guard zodiac came to tell me that a submarine was on its way in, and in a few minutes I should be somewhere else. After a moment’s consideration, I loaded the boat onto the trailer and drove to Mosquito Lagoon. Perhaps I could catch some mullet there. And I’ve never seen a submarine there, either.

inshore fishing report

I need to get a new model.

It turned out I could not catch mullet there. Using a DOA Deadly Combo  I did get a dozen or so trout, including several keepers, along a shoal. The first strike surprised me, but they came steadily until I left the spot. It was a pleasant surprise.

After watching the Red Sox Wednesday and Thursday nights I must have been sleep deprived, because Friday I did not wake up until after 0830- that never happens to me! Spent the day futzing with tackle, inventorying flies, that sort of thing. Gotta tie up some crayfish patterns.

And that is another Dirty Water 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: , , , , , , ,

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: , , , , , , , , ,

Paddle Fishing Central Florida Fishing Report

September 29, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

Paddle Fishing Central Florida Fishing Report

We checked out some widely spaced fishing spots again this week, with some wild goose chases tossed in for good measure. So we have a Paddle Fishing Central Florida Fishing Report for you.

Upcoming Events–


–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

–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 succesful. 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 ut 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/

On to Fishing-natti!

Monday I took the kayak up to the Tomoka River, launching at River Bend Nature Park .

Paddle Fishing Central Florida Fishing Report

It’s a simple launch site…

The birds were beautiful but I was not impressed by the scenery. There was very little activity in the water, and most of the fishing was in people’s back yards. They were nice back yards, but still… One micro-snook and one mudfish graced my boat during my almost four-hour-long visit. A guy with a loud weed-whacker drove me out of there. Doubt that I’d go back.

Paddle Fishing Central Florida Fishing Report

This beautiful mudfish was my best catch.

Stopped at Spruce Creek on the way back for a three-hour tour. Got there after noon, tide was falling. Hit a flounder almost immediately. Should have quit right there- did not get another bite. All the fish were taken on a RipTide Sardine.

Paddle Fishing Central Florida Fishing Report

A Fabulous Flounder on the Sardine.

Tuesday I visited my old friend the Mosquito Lagoon for a solo paddle trip. The wind was from the east, the water was dirty. I expected nothing. The first thing I found was a dead manatee.

Paddle Fishing Central Florida Fishing Report

The vultures are happy about this.

Wasn’t I surprised when my first two fish were snook! They were small ones, but I don’t remember ever catching two in 20 minutes there before.

I found a single (?!) black drum tailing. Could not get a shot.

Got a trout about 18” by dragging the Sardine behind me while I paddled. It was almost a cheat. All fish were released hopefully unharmed.

I spent some time wading, sight fishing for redfish. The first one I saw hit the Sardine, but I missed it. Did not get shots at the other two because I almost stepped on them. It was hard to see!

Back in the boat, ran over several single reds. Got out to wade, and here came one down the shoreline, happy and stupid, its back out of the water. Switched rods, dropped the fly in front- BAM! Nice.

Paddle Fishing Central Florida Fishing Report

It was not huge, but it did take a fly!

I have a book called A Paddler’s Guide to the Sunshine State, by Sandy Huff. In it she describes a trip on Reedy Creek. I decided I wanted to go there.

Thursday we started late, “we” being Alex and I. We got stuck in a parking lot kind of traffic jam on 417 and could not make it to Reedy Creek. We hit several retention ponds in consolation, getting thrown out of one by local law enforcement and netting three bass to three pounds.

Friday morning I decided to try Reedy Creek as a solo. It’s down by Intercession City, so it’s a drive for me. I finally find the right spot, and all access to the creek is fenced off. Even though I’m 100 yards from the water, I can’t get there. Thoroughly disgusted at this point, I just drove home and wrote this report.

And that was how my fishing week ended. I may have an interesting report next week.

And that is the Paddle Fishing 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 2018. All rights are reserved.

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

Autumnal Equinox Mid-Florida Fishing Report

September 22, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

Autumnal Equinox Mid-Florida Fishing Report

We checked out some widely spaced fishing spots this week. And the equinox is September 22! So we have an autumnal equinox mid-Florida fishing report.

For those of you who did not take my earth-space science class back when I was teaching, you can get a superior explanation of this important pagan holiday here…

Monday
Son Maxx was home from Connecticut and son Alex was home from Alaska. They wanted to go fishing, so we tied some plastic boats to the roof of my car and went to Spruce Creek. I would not say the fishing was red-hot, but there was definitely some fishing.

We got there on a low outgoing tide. Almost immediately Maxx got a flounder on a jig. It wasn’t very meaty so we released it. Then while Alex explored the islands and oyster bars near US 1, Maxx and I cruised around the margins of Strickland Bay to see what could be seen. There were some fish in the shallow water but we kept blowing them out. They were seeing us first.

Autumnal Equinox Mid-Florida Fishing Report

Maxx battles the beastie…

I finally spotted a redfish with its back out of the water while it was still 100 feet away. Maxx handled the fishing rod competently, and was rewarded with a nice red that took his shad bait. A short time later we found another one. Maxx hooked that one too, but it came unbuttoned on the way in.

Autumnal Equinox Mid-Florida Fishing Report

…and he successfully landed and released it!

In the meantime Alex had some bites and caught a few small snook with his fly rod. Then he got a redfish too.

When we got back together the tide had turned and the flow had reversed. Alex got a redfish on an articulated trout (as in rainbow trout) streamer, fishing around an oyster bar. Maxx ended up getting another red, too. So all-in-all it was a good day, if not wildly productive. The boats were back on the roof about 2 PM.

Autumnal Equinox Mid-Florida Fishing Report

Redfish on an articulated fly. Why? WHY, I say?

Thursday
Wednesday while looking for new places to fish I learned of Bulow Creek, near Ormond Beach. I called Alex and recruited him to explore with me the next day.

We launched the kayaks off of the side of High Bridge Road and went exploring, casting as we went. Before 10 minutes had passed I had released a 16” trout and a 12” snook, both taken on a Clouser Minnow. Changing flies did not help my luck! My total for the day would include a mini mangrove snapper and two more diminutive snook.

Alex used both a DOA Deadly Combo and the fly rod. He got the fish of the day with a 5 pound snook. I didn’t get to see it as we were not in close proximity at the time. But he did get several other fish that I did see, including the snook in the photo and a trout that was the twin of the fish I got.

Autumnal Equinox Mid-Florida Fishing Report

The snook in the photo was larger than any I got.

I like the area and think it has great paddle fishing potential. It’s a long drive for us, though, so it’s not a place I would visit often. If you live up that way you might want to check it out.

Friday
I got a tip that there were tarpon around the bridges in Melbourne. Being a fool for tarpon, I planned to meet Tammy at the Front Street ramp at 0830. Surprisingly, she was a no-show.

So were the tarpon. I was not surprised at that, though.

The water didn’t look terrible and there was some bait, but I neither saw nor caught any fish. On the ride home I wanted to check the Port St. John and Kennedy Point boat ramps. Both were closed. Brevard county, you are failing your boating population by not getting these facilities open again!

And that was how my fishing week ended.

And that is the Autumnal Equinox Mid-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 2018. All rights are reserved.

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

 Nearshore Port Canaveral Fishing Report

June 8, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

Nearshore Port Canaveral Fishing Report

This is a nearshore Port Canaveral fishing report, my last Florida fishing report until September. I write this on an Alaska Air Big Bird, headed to Alaska’s Katmai Lodge on the Alagnak River.

port canaveral fishing report

Tunny will shake. Tunny will bleed.

Monday Mike Conneen joined me on Spotted Tail for some spin fishing. We headed out of the Port and went off down the beach. Near the fishing grounds I threw the net once, got all the bait we might need. It’s nice when that happens!

Tunny were breaking all over the place, as were Spanish mackerel. We got a few Spanish for my aunt, then went a-tunnying.

port canaveral fishing report

Mike got this kingfish without using wire.

It was borderline ridiculous, fish breaking everywhere. We used white CAL jigs and Sting Silvers. I broke out the seven-weight and got a couple on a Bouncer streamer.

port canaveral fishing report

This was as much jump as I got.

Mike wanted a tarpon, so once our appetite for tunny was sated we went searching. We found a place with scattered rollers, and so deployed the baits, what I believe were scaled sardines. Big tunny loved them. Crevalle jacks loved them. Blacktip sharks loved them. King mackerel really loved them, cutting us off repeatedly. Mike hooked a 20 pounder on the back of the head and so landed it. I put on a stinger rig and got one about half that size.

port canaveral fishing report

Mike has the beast near the boat.

We got a lot of bites. Finally I jumped a big tarpon. One jump and it was off. I was not sorry.

By this point I was ready to head back, but Mike really wanted that tarpon, so I made one more drift. A dinosaur-sized tarpon took his bait. Let the games begin!

port canaveral fishing report

It was a BIG fish.

I did not time the length of that fight, but it was a big fish and not jumpy at all. All thoughts of heading back were gone. I stood by with the cameras, waiting for jumps that never came.

Mike finally got the fish close to the boat. I leadered it six times, the last one getting the hook back. I could not hold onto that fish though, and the photo Mike wanted so badly did not get taken.

port canaveral fishing report

Breaking fish, fly rod. Life is good.

Tuesday Tammy joined me, same time, same station. Similar action, minus the tarpon. Tammy and I were both more interested in fly fishing, and whacked more than a few Spanish macks and tunny. When the surface action slowed we deployed scaled sardines. Tunny and jacks, with sharks and king macks taking turns cutting us off.

port canaveral fishing report

Lift that fish!

We would have liked a tarpon, but there were fewer rolling and we did not jump one. It was still another ridiculously good day though.

port canaveral fishing report

Tunny will shimmy. Tunny will vomit.

 

port canaveral fishing report

This one was better behaved.

 

port canaveral fishing report

This one was well behaved, too!

Wednesday Tom Finger joined me. We ran down the beach, got the bait, went looking for breaking fish. Nothing. I had called him telling him how great it was, and now had a major sinking feeling. The bazillions of fish that had been there the previous two days were all gone.

port canaveral fishing report

Tom’s tunny. All his buddies were gone 🙁

We went out to deeper water looking for jacks, tunny, and king macks. Not much there, either. Tom got a tunny on a sardine. We missed several strikes.

Heading back north we found a sizable area of breaking Spanish macks. We each got one before they disappeared. Then lightning started flashing and we headed back to the ramp at all possible speed.

Thanks to Mike, Tammy, and Tom for sharing these days with me!

And that is my Nearshore Port Canaveral Fishing Report! Next report will be from Alaska- trout and salmon!

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, Orlando Fishing Report, Photo Essays, port canaveral fishing report · Tagged: , , , , , , ,

Early June East Central Florida Fishing Report

June 2, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

Early June East Central Florida Fishing Report

June- tarpon time, and I go to Alaska soon, far from tarpon. This early June east central Florida fishing report covers the Mosquito Lagoon and Port Canaveral.

It still rained a lot this week.

Tuesday Robert Ungvarsky and his two delightful daughters joined me for some Mosquito Lagoon fishing. Our goal was simple- keep the girls catching fish. To that end we stopped at Anchor Hardware and bought 50 shrimp, small ones, to be tossed on ultralight spin tackle. Terminal tackle consisted of a #8 hook and a split shot. We broke each shrimp in half, effectively getting two baits out of each one. Even at that we used all but four.

As luck would have it one of the first fish we got was a 13 inch pompano. Lots of squealing from happy kids on that one! Trout, catfish (of course), pinfish, snapper, ladyfish, a couple of big whiting, a puffer, and a flounder rounded out the catch. The plan worked well, something that doesn’t always happen in fishing. Everyone was happy and we all had a great time. Robert, thank you and I hope you will join me again.

east central florida fishing report

Fred with one of many trout they caught.

Friday found the Finger twins, Tom and Fred, on Spotted Tail, on Mosquito Lagoon, hunting for fish. The hunt took about 30 minutes. Then we hit trout steadily for a couple of hours. Although many were just under slot, we got some to about three pounds. CAL jigs were the weapon of choice. Once that bite dried up we did not find much else, and trailered the boat about 2 PM.

Saturday I joined Tom Van Horn and Rodney Smith on Tom’s Hewes out of Port Canaveral. Someone was holding a tournament and the ramps were chaos. We managed to get out of there and went for a ride.

east central florida fishing report

Zzzz-ZZZzzzzz-ZZZZZZZZZ! Tunny are awesome!

I spotted some breaking fish and tossed a jig at them. BAM-ZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzz! I love that sound! Little tunny, one of the ocean’s finer light tackle fish. They were good sized ones, 12 pounds or so. We got several, along with a single Spanish mackerel.

east central florida fishing report

We knew we might hook some larger fish when a 100 pound tarpon jumped after eating Rodney’s jig. We’re lucky it jumped off. That little spin rod was not designed for that work. We went close to the beach and netted some pogies.

east central florida fishing report

Two musketeers? Two stooges? Two hookups, definitely!

Moving back to deeper water we almost ran the tarpon over. Rodney and I both cast baits out, using actual tarpon gear. Getting his bite took about 20 seconds, mine about twice that long. So we had a tarpon double, both 100+ pound fish.

east central florida fishing report

happy Rodney

 

Getting close!

 

east central florida fishing report

A graceless ballet ensued aboard Tom’s vessel, punctuated by grunting and an occasional curse, and sounds of delight when the fish jumped. After about 40 minutes I had my fish near the boat when the hook pulled. Rodney’s took a little longer. He broke it off next to the boat. After that we messed around long enough for Tom to hook a five foot blacktip shark. After that it was all over except for the ride back to the boat ramp. We left early to beat the crowd!

east central florida fishing report

And that is the early June east central Florida 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, port canaveral fishing report · Tagged: , , , , , , , ,

Memorial Day Central Florida Fishing Report

May 27, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

Memorial Day Central Florida Fishing Report

It’s Memorial Day weekend. You know you need to spend a few moments considering how lucky you are that no one needs to remember your sacrifices on this day. But please consider those who sacrificed everything.

central florida fishing report

file photo of a bluefish

Tuesday Paul Glaser and his son joined me for some Mosquito Lagoon fishing. I picking them up at JB’s. “We just want to catch some fish,” they said. They tossed DOA Deadly Combos, getting five species- trout, ladyfish, bluefish, crevalle jacks, and gafftopsail catfish, staying pretty darned busy while doing so. We were out about six hours, and probably caught fifty fish or so. Entertaining, and quite novel these days. Thank you, gentlemen!

central florida fishing report

file photo of a crevalle jack

Thursday, expecting a repeat performance, I took longtime friend Kevin Linehan out for the same drill. When he caught a nice trout on the second cast I thought it actually would be a repeat. HA! It’s never the same. We had to work for every bite. At least we got some bites, and caught a few fish.

Kevin had to leave around noon. After dropping him off I went to an old favorite spot that had not been producing. There were some fish there for the first time in many months. By sight fishing with a plastic shad I caught an eight pound redfish and a seven pound trout, both beautiful fish, and enjoyed the sunshine until after 4 PM. Remember sunshine?

The following morning I picked up Al and Adam Winnicke at JBs. They wanted trout and reds so I took them to the spot from my previous afternoon. It’s never the same, but the trout were still there and they got several to four pounds on plastic shad and DOA Shrimp. Then clouds built up, thunder started rolling, and we called it a good day. The boat was on the trailer about 130 PM. Thank you for fishing with me, gentlemen!

Saturday morning I drove to Satellite Beach, picked up Rodney Smith, then continued on to Sebastian River. Fishing was slow enough that Rodney took a nap in the canoe, not an easy thing to do. I jumped a tarpon on a DOA Shrimp, and caught three large gafftopsail catfish on the same bait. All that took about six hours, after which the canoe was returned to the roof of the car.

And that is the Memorial Day Central Florida 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: , , , ,

Another Orlando Area Fishing Report

May 12, 2018 by · Leave a Comment

Another Orlando Area Fishing Report

This is another Orlando Area fishing report.

Monday Anthony LaBarbera, a fly fisher from New York, joined me for a day’s fishing on Mosquito Lagoon. I’d had a great scout day on Friday and was cautiously optimistic. The fish utterly crushed that optimism- he did not get a single shot. Ouch.

Tom in a serious moment.

Tuesday I joined Tom VanHorn for a different kind of scouting, based on a report from Chris Myers. We bought 50 shrimp for ten dollars, and using ultralight tackle went fishing out of River Breeze.

Maybe not the fish of the day- the spectacular sea robin.

I caught eight species- snapper, ladyfish, seatrout, bluefish, flounder, catfish (of course), a puffer, and even a sea robin.

Doubles on the snapper. Yes, they were small ones.

Using two hooks I got doubles on snapper, ladyfish, bluefish, and catfish. WOW! Technical fishing it wasn’t, but getting steady bites was a novelty.

And a cute little flounder, too!

Wednesday Tom joined me for some kayak fly fishing on the St. Johns River. With the exception of water lilies and cattails, all the vegetation was gone. We did not see a bass or a sunfish, nor did we get a single bite. I sure am glad the state is having all that herbicide sprayed out there.

Tom fly fishes.

I would like to thank Tom for being in every photo this week!

Tom paddles.

Friday I went solo kayak fly fishing on the Indian River Lagoon. Unlike my friend Anthony I had three excellent shots, all three of which I thought should have converted. The fish all spooked off the fly. I did not get a fish.

And that is another Orlando area 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.

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