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An Only Fished One Day This Week Port Canaveral Fishing Report

October 26, 2014 by · Leave a Comment

port canaveral fishing report

An Only Fished One Day This Week Port Canaveral Fishing Report

Blog Posts This Week: When Are Tailing Redfish Best?

We purchased the vehicle I drive new- in 1999. It ain’t so new anymore, pushing 250,000 miles. It hadn’t been in for a check-up in a year and a half. When I brought it in earlier this week the news was not good. I needed a broken motor mount and all my belts replaced, as well as the water pump. Bam! There goes two days and a thousand dollars. It needs more maintenance work, but I can do a lot of it. Maintaining the car is not fun, but my cash flow has not been very good. Either way the piper must be paid to keep the chariot running.

Tuesday’s forecast screamed “BEACH” so George Alan joined me for some Port Canaveral fishing. It was good.

We found a school of menhaden right off the bat. There were tarpon rolling around it. A toss of the net yielded about two dozen baits. A couple minutes later a monster tarpon danced at the end of my line.

It was a brief interlude. My line was not up to the challenge. Shortly after we jumped another. That did not last long either.

Sharks joined the party, not exactly invited. Sharks as a rule do not wait for invites. There were some brutes and they kicked our butts.

George hooked a nice fish. It turned out to be a pushing-thirty-pounds redfish. Then I hooked one too. We ended up getting four of them. See photo above.

Then the sharks just got to be ridiculous. We left the fishy area just to get away from them.

We did not find much else.

On the way in we found another big school of menhaden. George hooked one of the bigger spinner sharks I’ve ever seen. Those always end the same way, with the line parting. On a day loaded with sharks it seemed a fitting ending.

I spent much of another day this week publishing another ebook, this one titled The Ten Best Redfishing Spots in North America. I hope it sells!

best redfish spots in north america

 

And that, my friends, is the Only Fished One Day This Week Port Canaveral Fishing Report. At least it was an awesome day!

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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An Up-and-Down Port Canaveral Fishing Report

October 18, 2014 by · Leave a Comment

An Up-and-Down Port Canaveral Fishing Report

First, upcoming events-

-October 25, Mosquito Lagoon Show and Tell Fishing Seminar. Learn more at http://www.spottedtail.com/mosquito-lagoon-show-and-tell-fishing-seminar/

-October 26 Mosquito Lagoon On-the-Water Show and Tell Fishing Seminar, learn more at http://www.spottedtail.com/mosquito-lagoon-on-the-water-show-and-tell-fishing-seminar/ – Only two seats left!

A couple weeks ago I wrote a blog about the mullet run. Unknown to me at the time it had already peaked and ended, all in that week. It’s scary how few mullet there are, and why didn’t they show up this year???

top ten flies for redfish

My newest mini-ebook is published- Top Ten Redfish Flies. You can see it here- https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/485052

We had strong east winds the first three days this week, along with thunderstorms on Wednesday. That cut fishing to two days. I spent my time building a hen house. Really.

Thursday George Alan joined me for some Port Canaveral scouting. We headed north up the beach, looking for mullet and breaking fish. The waves from the hurricane had the surf UP! We did not see any mullet nor did we see breaking fish.

Next we looked in deeper water, hoping to find weeds. The ones we found were sparse. We did not see any fish around them.

We continued south, heading in to Cocoa Beach a mile or so south of the pier. There was muddy water and diving pelicans. Tarpon were rolling. I tried for what seemed like a long time to net some menhaden, and finally had a throw that caught about 20.

I jumped the first tarpon about three minutes later.

port canaveral fishing report

George hooked a big one. While he fought it I hooked another, smaller one. A sweet form of pandemonium reigned aboard Spotted Tail for a few minutes!

port canaveral fishing report

We hooked about a dozen fish, leadering two. It was pretty awesome.

port canaveral fishing report

Friday Robert and Joe Salvino, father and son, joined me for some fishing out of Port Canaveral. The weather was awesome and the waves significantly bigger than the previous day. The surfers were loving it. The tarpon were rolling in muddy water out off the Cocoa Beach pier. I could not catch any menhaden to save my life. I met a guy named Joe at the dock when we came in who told me no one could catch any. We tried throwing Bait Busters without success for a while, and I found myself wishing I had a couple BFLs with me. But, I didn’t, so we went down the beach looking for bait and whatever else.

We found a school of jacks. Joe fired a CAL jig out and one nailed it. Joe learned that even an eight pound jack is a way different critter than a smallmouth bass or walleye.

joe jack

I kept throwing the net and coming up empty. Finally one throw yielded six pogies. By the time that happened though, the tarpon had disappeared. Joe hooked a shark, which bit through the leader. Yes, it was that kind of day.

We got a few more jacks and a few bluefish in Canaveral Bight, again on CAL jigs. We tried looking for tripletail. We found one small one. It looked at the DOA Shrimp but I think it intimidated him, since it was about a third as big as the fish.

We fished around the jetty on the way in, getting but missing one bite. It was a far cry from the previous day. As Terry Shaughnessy would say, “Ya shoulda been here yesterday!”

And that, gentle reader, is the Up-and-Down 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 Mid-October Saltwater Orlando Fishing Report

October 11, 2014 by · Leave a Comment

The Mid-October Saltwater Orlando Fishing Report

First, upcoming events-

-October 25, Mosquito Lagoon Show and Tell Fishing Seminar. Learn more at http://www.spottedtail.com/mosquito-lagoon-show-and-tell-fishing-seminar/

-October 26 Mosquito Lagoon On-the-Water Show and Tell Fishing Seminar, learn more at http://www.spottedtail.com/mosquito-lagoon-on-the-water-show-and-tell-fishing-seminar/

The mullet are not in anywhere near as great numbers as I thought last week. Sadly.

The season’s first cold front came in over the weekend.

On Monday Rodney Smith and I went fishing out of Port Canaveral. I had a jacket on, since it was about 60 degrees when I launched the boat. The wind was about 10, NE. Our first order of business was to run north along the beach, looking for the schools of mullet I knew would be there. They weren’t. Off the cape we looked for the menhaden schools that had been there. They were gone.

Rodney started off fly fishing, using a small Clouser Minnow. He took a fish on each of his first seven casts. When that slowed we tossed jigs up into the surf line, steadily catching ladyfish, bluefish, small jacks, and a few Spanish mackerel.

After a while the smaller sized fish ceased being entertaining, so we went looking for bigger fare. Off Cocoa Beach there were some menhaden schools. They were thick, and I wanted to net some. It was too deep. My net doesn’t sink fast, and in deep water the pogies just swim out from under it when they see it coming.

We each put a finger mullet on and tossed them by the menhaden. It didn’t take long for my line to come tight. A Monster tarpon tailwalked past the boat, shaking its head, rattling its gills. The 80 pound leader, apparently damaged by a bluefish, broke.

We hooked several 50-100 pound class sharks, but had no more tarpon bites.

We checked for mullet along the beach again before we went in, but they were still not along the beach. Waaagh!

My first ebook, How to Catch Fish with the 3 Inch DOA Shrimp, is now available. Check it out at this link!  Please support your local author!

DOAShrimpCover copy

Wednesday I went to Playalinda and got my Golden Age pass , the best thing about aging. It gives you free access to all national parks and monuments for the rest of your life. I hope I live long enough to get my money’s worth from it!

I stopped at the beach and talked to some gentlemen who were fishing there. One, a fly caster from the Seattle area, had gone through lots of flies and had a blast with jacks, ladyfish, and Spanish mackerel, right from the beach.

I launched the boat at the south end of Mosquito Lagoon and explored it pretty thoroughly. In spite of the glowing reports I had been getting I saw very little and did not get a bite.

After pulling the boat I drove to Port St. John and launched in the Indian River Lagoon to check it out down there. The result was identical. In both places the water was high and dirty. If you prefer to sight fish you’re pretty much out of luck. Most years at this time the power plant is killing it but I did not see a fish or get a bite there, either.

Friday I met angler Steve Gibson and we launched the boat at Kennedy Point, intending to fish the Indian River Lagoon. We worked it hard for six hours, and Steve did get some kind of slam, getting a redfish and a snook on a Zara Spook and a seatrout on a streamer fly. We won’t go into their size, but we did not take any pictures. Suffice to say all three together would not have made much of a meal.

So although I didn’t exactly kill it this week, that is the Mid-October Saltwater Orlando 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 Mullet Run Kick-Off Port Canaveral Fishing Report

October 4, 2014 by · Leave a Comment

The Mullet Run Kick-Off Port Canaveral Fishing Report

swimming mullet2

All Hail the Mighty Mullet!

First, upcoming events-

-October 11th-18th Third Annual SPACE COAST SURF FISHING TOURNAMENT. Learn more by going to: www.scisft.AnglersForConservation.org.

-October 25, Mosquito Lagoon Show and Tell Fishing Seminar. Learn more at http://www.spottedtail.com/mosquito-lagoon-show-and-tell-fishing-seminar/

-October 26 Mosquito Lagoon On-the-Water Show and Tell Fishing Seminar, learn more at http://www.spottedtail.com/mosquito-lagoon-on-the-water-show-and-tell-fishing-seminar/

Although they are coming in fits and starts, the mullet appeared along Brevard County beaches this week. There are two mullet flavors-

-The silver mullet (“finger” mullet) are the smaller species, rarely reaching 12 inches long. These fishies are cold intolerant and migrate south, like snowbirds from New York, along the beach and through the lagoons every year at this time. These are the mullet that we who use such things use for bait.

-The black or striped mullet are the larger species, reaching weights in excess of five pounds. I have used these for bait but you need a LARGE hook, and it’s real hard casting a bait that weighs over a pound. These fish can be filleted and fried, or broiled, or smoked, and are quite good if eaten when very fresh. They are more tolerant of cold water than the silvers, but are aggregating to spawn now.

port canaveral fishing report

You can imagine a mullet like this might be hard to cast.

Predators love both types, and both types are easily caught with a cast net when they are in the giant schools we find at this time of year.

To have maximum mullet run success, find a school of mullet that has an obvious escort of large predatory fish. You’ll be able to see the evidence, believe me! Cast the lure of your choice or your live baits into the mullet school, either live-lined or on an egg-sinker rig.

port canaveral fishing report

This is an example of a large predatory fish.

Things change real fast from day to day along the beach at this time of year, depending on air and water temperature, wind speed and direction, and bait movement.

On Monday Joe Bak and I did some scouting out of Port Canaveral for my Tuesday charter. The charter wanted tarpon and redfish so that’s what I was looking for. We found a few tarpon down by Patrick AFB, hanging around the menhaden schools that were there. I managed to catch one about 80 pounds using a live menhaden for bait.

There were lots of sharks there and after losing a half-dozen hooks we decided to try something else. There was Sargassum in the water so we went looking for tripletail. We found lots of weeds, but no fish at all.

We ended up in Canaveral Bight. Silver mullet were working down the shoreline and were being mightily harassed. We got ladyfish, bluefish, crevalle jacks, and Spanish mackerel of DOA CAL jigs and Chug Bugs. No redfish were seen.

port canaveral fishing report

A modest sized ladyfish, one of the rod-benders along the beach right now.

Approaching weather chased us off the water at about 1 PM.

Tuesday at 7 AM I launched the Mitzi at the Port, joined by Sherman Harris and his brother-in-law Brent. A toss of the cast net at the boat ramp yielded a day’s supply of mullet for bait. Then we went fishing.

A 45 minute stop at the north jetty yielded jacks, bluefish, and ladyfish, although nothing of any size. We then headed south.

port canaveral fishing report

There are LOTS of bluefish around.

Before we reached the pier we found a school of hundreds of seven and eight pound crevalle. Chug Bugs, jigs, and of course live mullet all worked, with Chug Bugs being the most fun.

South of the pier fish were breaking all along the beach, mostly small jacks with bluefish and ladyfish mixed in. Chug Bugs and DOA CAL jigs accounted for many fish.

We finally got to where the tarpon had been the previous day. Although the menhaden were still there, the tarpon were gone. Keeping an eye on the building clouds we went further south.

Schools of big mullet were working down the beach at Patrick AFB. Tarpon and sharks were exploding on them. We hooked a few sharks and one big tarpon, landing none of them.

A shrimp boat was working about a mile off the beach. We went out to investigate. No pelicans, no dolphins, and no fish, very disappointing.

Rain showers were now appearing all around us. I headed back north up the beach.

We ended up in Canaveral Bight. Silver mullet were working down the shoreline and were being mightily harassed. We got ladyfish, bluefish, crevalle jacks, and Spanish mackerel of DOA CAL jigs and Chug Bugs. No redfish were seen.

port canaveral fishing report

The Spanish mackerel is a personal favorite. They are delicious broiled or grilled.

Back at the boat ramp we ran into Capt. Rick Banks, who I had not seen in years. Rick makes a unique line of high quality lures. See them at this link…

Thursday son Alex and John Napolitano joined me for some beach fishing. After netting some mullet we headed south, and found what were probably the same school of eight pound jacks I’d found on Tuesday. They were not quite as cooperative, but we did get a couple, one on a mullet and one on a Chug Bug.

Again there were some breaking fish along the beach- jacks, ladyfish, bluefish, and Spanish mackerel, but not as many or as widespread as on Tuesday.

We got to south Cocoa Beach and the menhaden were all gone. Sorry boys, no one is home.

We went further south, hoping to find them. We did not. We did find a massive school of black mullet, which was being harassed by sharks and tarpon. We hooked one of each, losing both.

The mullets were big and thick.

The mullets were big and thick.

We went down along Satellite Beach, finding nothing. There was a lot of Sargassum, so we went out looking for tripletail.

The weeds were thick in places. The only tripletail we found were on things other than the weeds- a board, a plastic jug, a couple crab trap buoys. All the fish were very small. We caught one about a foot long on a chartreuse DOA Shrimp. We let the fish go of course.

We ran north again, ending up in Canaveral Bight. There were no mullet along the beach. There were some menhaden and we got some bluefish around them on jigs and Chug Bugs.

The mullet will be along the beach for a few more weeks, after which the run will be over until next year. Get out there and take advantage of this long, live chum line!

And that is the Mullet Run Kick-Off 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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Orlando Area Fishing Report

May 24, 2014 by · Leave a Comment

Orlando Area Fishing Report

It was a weird week. And even though I do not like to fish on weekends, especially Memorial Day weekend, fishing Saturday made up for almost all of the other weirdness.

Monday was a no fishing day and at this point I can’t even remember why not. On Tuesday morning I met Tammy and we paddled to a Mosquito Lagoon fishing spot. Fishing was not hot. I did get a seatrout of five pounds of so on an Electric Sushi streamer. I missed the three larger fish that bit prior to the one I caught. There were also blown shots and fish that weren’t spotted in time, etc.  I was not on top of my game.

Wednesday morning I went to the Econ. I had a new fly, a sexyfly tied in a fire tiger color, I was sure would kick bass butt. I got one bite, a bass that, if I were being generous, I would say was a foot long. Two others followed the fly but did not bite. The experiment did not work, although to my credit I stuck with it until I left at about noon.

Lighten Up for Black bass

These are some of the flies I throw for bass. The fire tiger one that failed is on the lower right.

Wednesday evening, Thursday, and Friday I had the pleasure of sitting in Florida Hospital with my mom and her husband, only to be told in the end that they couldn’t find anything wrong. She’s home again doing what she was doing before the hospital stint. If you should find yourself in this situation bring LOTS of stuff to do. And a sweater. You could hang meat in there.

Scott Radloff and I got to Port Canaveral at about 7 AM Saturday morning. The parking lots were already almost at capacity and it was a zoo at the boat ramp. Anything less would have been disappointing.

We got the Mitzi in the water and the car parked and went looking for bait. From a half-mile south of the Cocoa Beach pier south to Patrick AFB the menhaden are solid all along the beach. The first toss of the net came up empty but the second had more fishies than I could lift. We let most of them go.

I would have been happy with anything but I was looking for tarpon. We put six in the air and leadered four, along with bites from several moderate to large sized sharks of various types. The weather was warm and sunny. The best part was, all those hundreds of boats that had been launched were nowhere near us. I don’t know where they went but no one bothered us.

orlando area fishing report

There goes one hospital day!

 

orlando area fishing report

There goes another hospital day!

Catching four tarpon will make up for a lot of strangeness, that’s what I know.

orlando area fishing report

What hospital???

And that, gentle reader, is this week’s Orlando area 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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What to DO When the Big Fish Swims Under the Boat

March 27, 2014 by · 1 Comment

What to DO When the Big Fish Swims Under the Boat

tarpon boatside

OK, today’s lesson deals with what to do when a big fish swims under the boat. For some reason most fishermen want to lift the rod when the big fish makes its dive. I’ve watched too many guys do this. The result is always the same. The line rubs against the hull of the boat, increasing friction and virtually assuring a break-off. Since big fish don’t come along all the time, when the line breaks so does your heart. OOOhhh that hurts.

So, what is the correct response when the big fish makes its dive? You simply thrust the tip end of the rod down into the water. How far down? Far enough down to ensure that the line does not touch the hull or motor of the boat. If the fish is beefy enough to extend its run away from the “wrong” side of the boat, you simply walk the rod around the bow of the boat. As soon as the line clears the hull you can lift the rod out of the water and continue the battle in a more conventional fashion. On a particularly big, nasty fish you may have to perform this maneuver more than once.

We’re assuming here that the boat is small enough to allow you to do this. Honestly, although I would certainly like to I’ve never had the problem occur while on a Hatteras 48 or similar vessel. If any readers can expound on this I would love to hear from you.

So, to sum up what to do when the big fish swims under the boat- rod lift bad, rod thrust into water good. Keep this straight and catch more of those big fish.

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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Thanks to Ricky Dee for use of the photo!

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When to Use Small Lures

March 24, 2014 by · Leave a Comment

When to Use Small Lures

When to use small lures presents problems to the fisherman.

Small lures don’t cast well. The hooks are weak and prone to failure. You need to use lighter line and leaders. However, sometimes the fish don’t give you a choice. Use smaller lures or don’t get a bite.

Let’s look at four situations where small baits are necessary.

The fish are keying on small baits. In the southeastern saltwaters the bay anchovy, commonly called a glass minnow, is an important baitfish. These baits are small, frequently two inches or less. Certain gamefish species will feed on them selectively, ignoring other, larger baits.Whenever you find gamefish selectively feeding on small baits of any kind you need to “match the hatch.” Failure to do so will lead to frustration.

Haw River Tackle makes a great lure called a Sting Silver which many fish species will accept as a glass minnow imitation. Find them at www.hrtackle.com.

Orlando Saltwater Tarpon Fishing Report

The Sting Silver is the hot tip for tunny. Doesn’t look like much but they do like it!

Cold water– unlike humans, fish are cold blooded. Their metabolism slows as the water temperature drops. Consequently they are much less interested in eating large meals when the water is cold. For this reason winter fishing often requires the use of smaller lures than used during other seasons.

Heavily pressured fish– in areas where fishing pressure is heavy the fish have seen all the commonly used baits over and over again. The fish learn to avoid these commonly used baits. By using small lures the fisherman gains a competitive advantage. The fish haven’t seen a lot of small baits, and the bait itself is not perceived as a threat.

My current favorite for this situation is the DOA CAL Shad. At three inches in length it qualifies as a small bait. You can rig it with a 2/0 hook , which will hold most any fish likely to eat it.

orlando area fishing report

The lure is a DOA CAL Shad.

Some gamefish just like small baits. Tarpon come to mind. One wouldn’t think a 100 pound fish could derive much nutrition from a two or three inch long minnow. But tarpon often key in on small baits even when larger prey is available. I’ve watched tarpon swim through schools of glass minnows with their mouths open, just filtering the baits out of the water. Again, match the hatch or go fishless.

The DOA TerrorEyz is a small lure which is deadly on tarpon (and other fish). Find them at www.doalures.com.

I’m not suggesting that you toss all your large baits overboard. But you should carry a selection of small baits and be prepared to use them when condition require. If you want to catch more fish, know when to use small lures.

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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Orlando Saltwater Tarpon Fishing Report

June 6, 2013 by · Leave a Comment

Orlando Saltwater Tarpon Fishing Report

Since we are having a tropical storm I won’t be fishing again before the weekend, so here is this week’s Orlando saltwater tarpon fishing report-

Scott Radloff and I had an outstanding day tarpon fishing early in the week.

Monday we launched the Mitzi at Port Canaveral. We had no information about the fishing- no one had been out for almost two weeks due to the strong east winds. So we were on our own.

We found plenty of pogies by the Cocoa Beach pier. A couple tosses of the net and we were baited up.

We slow-trolled around the bait pods in a couple different places. Nothing. Apparently there weren’t any fish around the bait.

We headed out to sea.

Shortly we came across little tunny busting minnows. There is a very effective lure for this situation, the Sting Silver, manufactured by Haw River Tackle in North Carolina. I tied one on and was soon listening to the sweet sound of a reel in distress. Tunny are such awesome light tackle fish!

Orlando Saltwater Tarpon Fishing Report

The Sting Silver is the hot tip for tunny. Doesn’t look like much but they do like it! Photo by Scott Radloff.

Tunny swim fast and soon they stopped busting in our immediate area. Then Scott saw a tarpon roll.

Soon we were surrounded by rolling fish. Scott put a pogie on (Daiichi circle wide hook, 5/0) and cast it out. Five seconds later a behemoth tarpon came flying out of the water.

Orlando Saltwater Tarpon Fishing Report

This was a REAL fish.

It commenced to kicking Scott’s ass.

While it was doing that I had a strike from a more manageable fish of about 60 pounds. Tarpon double. You gotta love that.

I leadered and released my fish while Scott continued to struggle with Moby Dick. Finally after about an hour the fish broke off. Sadness and relief at the same time.

Orlando Saltwater Tarpon Fishing Report

Scott had Moby up close a couple of times.

Then I hooked one almost as big. I tried to kick its ass before it could kick mine and succeeded in breaking it off after five jumps. Sadness and relief at the same time.

Orlando Saltwater Tarpon Fishing Report

Scott hooked up to a more user friendly version.

The rest of the morning continued in the same vein. Most of the subsequent fish we hooked were significantly smaller. I got one that was only about 40 pounds. Scott video-taped that one. See the video here.

Orlando Saltwater Tarpon Fishing Report

Trying to get a handle on the fish, I received a shower.

The wind came up out of the east and the fishing died. No rollers, no bites, no nothing. We were pretty beaten up, having jumped around twenty fish and leadered a half-dozen. Just a spectacular, awesome day.

Orlando Saltwater Tarpon Fishing Report

The beast was subdued temporarily.

We were back at it Tuesday. Elvis had left the building. We saw maybe a dozen tarpon roll all morning. I jumped one of about 100 pounds. It tossed the hook after the second jump. Finally we didn’t see any rollers at all.

We got a half dozen tunny on Sting Silvers and pogies, and a half dozen blacktip sharks, too. Not spectacular like the previous day, but entertaining nonetheless.

Orlando Saltwater Tarpon Fishing Report

The sharks were a nuisance, but they photograph well.

That is this week’s exciting version of the Orlando Saltwater Tarpon Fishing Report.

I will not be posting another report until mid-July.

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 2013. All rights are reserved.

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Tarpon Fishing Report 526

May 26, 2013 by · Leave a Comment

Tarpon Fishing Report 526

This week’s Tarpon Fishing Report:

First, please remember the reason for the holiday. Lots of young men have died so we could have a day off.

Next, a Mosquito Lagoon update.

algae bloom in progress, indian river lagoon

algae bloom in progress, indian river lagoon

I had a reader send me this aerial photograph, showing the Indian River Lagoon north of the Max Brewer Causeway in Titusville. From the air the algae in the water is obvious. On Friday I spoke with Drew Cavanaugh, who told me that the algae in Mosquito Lagoon had bloomed and visibility into the water at Tiger Shoal was about one inch. Bad news for sight fishers and lovers of seagrass, this. I will have to investigate myself this coming week.

On to the tarpon fishing-

Tuesday I got up at 430, hopped in the chariot, and towed the Mitzi to Pineland Marina, launching the boat at about 10 AM. Went to spot number one, had a few bad shots while under way with the trolling motor. Still, there were fish there, a good thing. Ran out and set up camp on the beach, anchoring and waiting. Several fish came through. Had some shots and a few looks but no eaters. Still, was guardedly optimistic for the next day.

Wednesday Clint Scott, an expatriate fly fisherman living in Rio de Janeiro, joined me for a day’s fly fishing for tarpon. We went to spot number one. Clint was using a black and purple streamer. He had several shots and had an eat, putting an eighty pound fish into the air. The fish shook the fly on the first jump, however. We beat the spot to death and then ran out to the beach and anchored. Good numbers of fish came through. Clint had thre hard looks but no bites. We bagged it around 6 PM only having gotten the one bite.

tarpon fishing report

Thursday found Clint in the Mitzi again. We had a solid 15 mph wind from the west at the start. I poled into it about a half mile, sweating blood the whole time, and we did not see a fish. Went to another spot and had a couple shots but no interest from the tarpon. We went out to the beach.

It was sloppy out there, so much so the bilge pump was running constantly. Very few fish came through. We waited for hours and gradually all the other boats left except my friend Rick and us.

Finally a string of fish came right at us. Clint made a good cast. A tarpon came up and tracked the fly about ten feet, then turned off. I opined a fly change was in order, and tied on a black and purple streamer. I instructed Clint to make a practice cast, which he did. The line immediately came tight and sixty pounds of angry tarpon came flying out of the water. Dumb luck? Absolutely, but I’ll take it.

tarpon fishing report

Clint and his first tarpon go at it.

Thirty thrilling minutes later I removed the hook and released Clint’s first tarpon, managing a jump shot while operating the boat. Since it was 6:30 PM we decided we had had enough and went back to Pineland.

tarpon fishing report

 

On Friday Dr. George Yarko joined me. We went to the first spot, where we had several shots but no interest. We went to another spot where a hard west wind came up. We saw only two tarpon there and blew right past them. We took a beating running out to the beach against the wind, and anchored up once we got out there. Waves washed over the front of the boat constantly. Decent numbers of fish came by. We had several shots had three good, hard looks from the fish but no eats. We packed it in about 5:30.

On Saturday Dr. Yarko and I tried again. Now the wind was east at 15. We went to the first spot, where I netter some pinfish. We anchored up and tossed on out. Thirty minutes later the float disappeared and a large fish started screaming line off the reel. It kept going and before I could get off the anchor and pursue the line went slack. We had about 15 pounds of vegetation on the line, which was broken in the leader. We never did see the fish.

We went out to the beach. It was a crazy, beautiful weather, everyone-who-owns-a-boat-is-out Memorial Day weekend scene out there. We joined the fleet anchored up in the fishing spot and sat. And sat. And sat. We did not see a fish, did not get a shot, and finally at 5:00 left and went to Captiva Pass. There were a few crabs floating through and lots of boats. We only saw one fish and did not get a bite in two floats through. We then decided to bag it and returned to Pineland not having gotten a bite in two days.

 

Tarpon Lodge under a full moon.

Tarpon Lodge under a full moon.

That is this week’s exciting version of the Tarpon 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 2013. All rights are reserved.

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