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East Central Florida Fishing and more Report

August 22, 2020 by · Leave a Comment

East Central Florida Fishing and more Report

Thank you for reading this east central Florida Fishing and more Report. Only fished two days this week. 🙁

The More (most of it)
September is nine days away. The year is flying by!

There are two tropical storms churning out there. Both are supposed to hit the same spot on the Gulf coast. Someone’s gonna need some prayers and financial assistance….

Government Newspeak- announce a new initiative with no funding or personnel. Brilliant! https://www.floridaphoenix.com/2020/08/20/musings-on-florida-and-the-politics-of-pythons/

Cheryl Kumiski, the official sister of the Spotted Tail, is an artist working in glass. You can see her work, and maybe purchase some of it (unique and thoughtful gifts) at this link- https://www.etsy.com/shop/cherylkumiskiglass

Lion Cub in glass, by Cheryl Kumiski

The FISHING!
Monday Walt Sheppard joined me again for some action out of Port Canaveral. My goal was to get him some tunny on fly. We found the bluefish and Spanish mackerel first, then went looking for tunny.

At first they were no-shows. I kept looking, and they started showing. Walt got his first on a sting silver. The tip-top fell off his spin rod though, and rather than use mine he picked up his fly pole. Perfect!

It took us a few opportunities but we finally got close to a group of fish that kept breaking. Walt laid the fly into them and BAM!

 

Walt got this tunny with a glass minnow fly.

The process repeated itself a few minutes later.

Then Walt said to me, “You should get one.” So I did. By now the fish were going off pretty good, but it was noon, and it was hot. Walt said, “I’ve had enough,” so we loaded the boat and headed home.

Thanks for a great morning, Walt!

Tuesday‘s visit with the pulmonologist was less fun than Monday was.

Wednesday Susan and I went to the beach up at New Smyrna. The surf fishermen were catching a few whiting. The surfers were loving life.

Thursday I went kayak fly fishing on Mosquito Lagoon. The water was as high as I’ve seen it this year, 1.4 feet on the Haulover Canal gauge https://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/uv?02248380. It’s real dirty, too. It took a couple hours but I found a shallow area where I could kind of see the bottom. There were a few redfish there and I used a slider to catch a couple. It was more fun than the pulmonologist visit.

I (and the rest of humanity) will be happy and relieved when the pandemic is over.

Life is great and I love my apparent retirement!

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, port canaveral fishing report · Tagged: , , , , , , , , , ,

Port Canaveral and More Fishing Report

August 15, 2020 by · Leave a Comment

Port Canaveral and More Fishing Report

Thank you for reading this Port Canaveral and more Fishing Report.

Sunday morning, sick of being house-bound, I had Susan drop me off at the 419 bridge over the Econ. No fish were harmed in the making of this trip. It was a speed test. I left the bridge at 9 am, reaching Snow Hill Road at 1140. Pretty zippy! Saw only seven alligators!

Love, love, love to see this!

Monday– Susan joined me for a Port Canaveral scout. She has to limit her sun exposure, so it was to be a short trip. Launched the boat at 9, ran up the beach. Found a large school of breaking mackerel and caught a few, then continued on. Found a spot with some bluefish. Headed out to sea. Lots of tunny! Got one on a jig, then headed back to the port. Done at noon.

First tunny of the season for me. Here’s to many more!

Tuesday– family beach trip to Bethune Beach. There were balls of glass minnows along the beach. I did not see any tarpon, but something (I suspect ladyfish) was wearing those poor minnows out. Saw larger fish breaking sporadically farther out. I’ll be happy when Canaveral National Seashore starts opening early in the morning again.

Wednesday– Walt Shepperd joined me for a Port Canaveral trip. Boat left the dock at 730. Found a small school of breaking mackerel, caught a few. I tossed a Sting Silver , Walt a No-Eql . The macs were relatively small ones. They were scattered all along the beach. The bluefish were still at the bluefish spot.

Walt battles the wicked tunny.

We went out looking for tunny. We only found a few at first, but they got really thick, just awesome. I love watching them blitz! The Sting Silver worked best, although I did get one on a streamer.

It was a beautiful fish!

We caught 30 or 40 fish, a great morning all-in-all. Thanks for joining me, Walt!

Thursday– had errands to do, and then had the great pleasure (!) of pressure washing my driveway.

Not my photo, but this is ceviche.

Friday– I wanted to make ceviche  and needed a fish, so I boldly took the kayak to Mosquito Lagoon looking for a slot redfish. I found one, 23 inches, that took my slider. The filets are in my refrigerator as I write this (it’s the first redfish I’ve killed in four or five years), and the ceviche will be eaten for supper tonight. Bon appetit!

Time for Some Simple Frugality??
Two centuries of industrialization, population growth, and frenzied economic activity has bequeathed us smog; polluted lakes, rivers and oceans; toxic waste; soil erosion; deforestation; extinction of plant and animal species, and global warming. The philosophy of frugal simplicity expresses values and advocates a lifestyle that might be our best hope for reversing these trends and preserving our planet’s fragile ecosystems.

Think about it.

Thanks for reading this Port Canaveral and more fishing report!

Life is great and I love my apparent retirement!

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, port canaveral fishing report · Tagged: , , , , , , ,

The Ode to Little Tunny Port Canaveral Fishing Report

September 19, 2014 by · Leave a Comment

The Ode to Little Tunny Port Canaveral Fishing Report

That’s right, you heard right. The secret word for tonight is mudshark little tunny! This is the Ode to Little Tunny Port Canaveral Fishing Report!

First though, the bumper sticker of the week–

DSCN0817

Next, upcoming events-

-October 11th-18th Third Annual SPACE COAST SURF FISHING TOURNAMENT. Learn more by going to this link… 

-October 25, Mosquito Lagoon Show and Tell Fishing Seminar. Learn more or register at this link…

-October 26 Mosquito Lagoon On-the-Water Show and Tell Fishing Seminar. Learn more or register at this link… 

I got out on the Atlantic out of Port Canaveral three times this week and two of those days the tunny were going off like I’ve never seen anywhere- not off Jupiter, not off Cape Lookout, just insane numbers of tunny going off on little anchovy-looking fishies. The birds loved it.

port canaveral fishing report

Tunny going of outside of Port Canaveral.

 

port canaveral fishing report

There were LOTS of them!

 

port canaveral fishing report

This is such exciting fishing!

OK, so what are tunny?

Properly called Euthynnus alletteratus, tunny are the most common tuna in the Atlantic Ocean. Occurring in large schools and weighing up to 36 pounds (the current IGFA all-tackle record), it is the smallest member of the tuna family, and is one of the finest small game-fish in the Atlantic.

It’s commonly called a false albacore or, here in Florida, bonito. It is sought-after as a sport fish due to its line-stripping 20+ mph runs and hard fighting ability when hooked.

They are absolutely fantastic on a light fly rod and tons of fun with a light spin rod. There were lots of them off Brevard County beaches this week.

On Tuesday son Alex and I put in a half day, launching at the wonderful new boat ramp at Port Canaveral. The wind was light out of the west. The tunny were going CRAZY, diving birds everywhere over large schools of breaking fish. We got a bunch on craft fur minnows and DOA CAL jigs, doubling up several times. Even got a selfie of us fighting fish.

port canaveral fishing report

Alex and I doubled up, he on fly, me on spin.

We finally tore ourselves away to look for other targets. We found a large school of Spanish mackerel doing their best little tunny imitation and got several of those. They weren’t too exciting after the tunny.

Then we found some tarpon rolling. We doubled up, using live menhaden. When Alex’s fish made its first jump, at least 15 sharks came flying out of the water, all through the school of menhaden, one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen while on the water.

We could not get a bait through the sharks to the tarpon after that.

We hit a couple more tunny on the way back, and had the boat on the trailer at 1 PM.

On Wednesday my good friend Tom Van Horn joined me on the Spotted Tail, again launching at the Port. Tom had never caught a tunny on fly and wanted to get one. The fish were just as crazy as the previous day. The wind was still west but blowing with more gusto, waves slopping over the gunwales as we chased fish around. We hooked a bunch of tunny. Although we lost a bunch of flies (craft fur minnows, some tied like Clousers), the mission was accomplished.

port canaveral fishing report

Tom hooked up to a tunny. His fly rod had never had such a workout.

 

port canaveral fishing report

I made him boat his own fish so I could get this photo.

 

port canaveral fishing report

The first of several fish Tom got.

We went to where the tarpon had been the previous day. They were still there. I hooked and broke off two, then the sharks ate everything we threw out there.

We both had errands to run in the afternoon, so again were off the water at 1 PM.

Thursday morning I had my annual physical, and was not intending to fish. When I got home though, Mr. Damien Kostick had called and wanted an afternoon half-day charter. Hey, the fish are off the Port, why not?

At 11:30 we launched the Mitzi. The wind was out of the east. It was light at first but it kept increasing in velocity. It got real sloppy out there.

The tunny had apparently vacated the premises. Crap.

We went to where all the tarpon and sharks had been the past couple days. Gone. Double crap.

We ran south all the way to Satellite Beach. We saw a single tarpon free-jump. We spotted a free-swimming tripletail. Damien got one cast at it. Then it spooked and dove. Other than that and the menhaden there were no signs of fish of any kind.

Heading north again, we spotted birds working to the east. We headed out to sea. The tunny were working out there, although nothing like the previous two days.

There were enough that by being patient and working it hard we got a half dozen or so. By now it was rough enough that the waves were washing over the deck pretty freely.

port canaveral fishing report

Damien with one of his tunny.

We went back towards the beach, still hoping to see some tarpon roll. We looked well up into Canaveral Bight and saw nothing at all. The boat was on the trailer at about 530 PM.

And that is this week’s Ode to Little Tunny Port Canaveral Fishing Report.

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- Go Fishing!

John Kumiski
http://www.spottedtail.com

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2014. All rights are reserved.

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The Back in Orlando Saltwater Fishing Report

September 6, 2014 by · Leave a Comment

The Back in Orlando Saltwater Fishing Report, featuring ALEX!

The trip home from Alaska started at 4 AM one morning and ended at noon on the following day. Not only did we make it home just fine, but we got to visit with a dear friend along the way, and meet Ray Troll besides. Does getting from point A to point B get any better?

SO, Sunday Alex and I took the Mitzi out of Port Canaveral. We headed south along the beach. The water was muddy. The menhaden were scattered all along the beach, hard to net. Lots of glass minnows, though, and the occasional mackerel blasting through them. We got about halfway down Patrick AFB before turning out to sea.

We hadn’t gone very far out to sea when diving birds and busting fish told us the tunny were partying. We joined in, using DOA CAL jigs and tails as favors. The fish received them enthusiastically, and we caught ten or twelve. They are such awesome fish on light tackle!

orlando saltwater fishing report

Alex goes toe-to-fin with a tunny.

orlando saltwater fishing report

I shot the first one we got, but we got some significantly larger than this beauty.

Still, we wanted tarpon, so left the tunny behind and kept looking. Once we got north of the Cocoa Beach pier we started seeing sargassum, and started thinking cobia/tripletail. We found a lot of weeds but only saw one junior-sized tripletail, eight or so inches long. I was surprised and disappointed at the same time.

We looked all the way to Cape Canaveral, and did not see any tarpon. We did find three schools of jumbo crevalle, though, hooking two and boating one. We also found lots of bait with regular sized jacks, ladyfish, and bluefish blowing up on it. There are loads of bait of all kinds in Canaveral Bight.

orlando saltwater fishing report

It turned out to be pretty hefty.

 

orlando saltwater fishing report

 

orlando saltwater fishing report

Do you like your fish photos vertical or horizontal?

 

orlando saltwater fishing report

And then there’s the classic close-up. It was a real nice jack.

So we did not find any tarpon, but we did catch some fish. It was a great day out on the Atlantic.

Thursday at sunrise found Scott Radloff and I launching kayaks in the Banana River Lagoon. We were out five hours on a slick calm lagoon and had a pretty slow morning. I got two slot reds, one by blind casting and one by casting to an obvious push, both on an Electric Sushi fly. I jumped one very small tarpon on a gurgler. Scott caught a very small tarpon on a DOA Shrimp. We did not miss a strike.

The grass is all back like there was never a problem and the amount of bait is approaching mind-boggling proportions. The water is pretty dirty in most places we fished. But we did not see very many fish. It may be a few weeks before I go back.

Friday Vincent Serra joined me for a day of searching for tarpon out of Port Canaveral. My plan to run south, to Satellite Beach if necessary, fell apart as soon as we cleared the jetties. The sea was already a bit worked up, and I didn’t trust the weather to make such a long run. As it turned out we could have done it, since the weather got better during the day. When I’m responsible for someone’s safety I can’t count on that happening.

We ran north, along the beach in Canaveral Bight. Lots of bait, but no fish did we see for a while. Around Canaveral Shoals all kinds of birds were working over breaking fish. We ended up with bluefish, blue runners, little tunny, ladyfish (BIG ones), jack crevalle, and Spanish mackerel, using DOA CAL jigs, Sting Silvers, and Chug Bugs. But we only saw a solitary tarpon, which we did not hook. We went through a few lures, as you might imagine. It was good, clean fun, and another great day out-of-doors.

And that, gentle reader, is the Back in Orlando Saltwater Fishing Report.

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- Go Fishing!

John Kumiski
http://www.spottedtail.com

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2014. All rights are reserved.

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