Indian River lagoon Coast November Forecast
Capt. Tom Van Horn
October 29, 2011
Indian River Lagoon - Saltwater Fishing Report
Mosquito Creek Outdoors Indian River Lagoon Coast Fishing Forecast
November 2011
By Captain Tom Van Horn
Upcoming Seminars and Events
Saturday November 5th, 10 a.m. to noon, free fishing seminar, "Flounder and Pompano Fishing From Peir, Shore and Wade Fishing", instructed by Captains Chris Myers and Tom Van Horn. Seminar conducted at Mosquito Creek Outdoors, 170 South Washington Ave in Apopka, Florida. Visit www.mosquitocreek.com for more information.
Saturday November 12th, Gumbo Cook Off for Give Kids the World and Anglers for Conservation
Cooking begins at 12 Noon and the eating starts at 2 p. m. at Fish on Fire Restaurant in Orlando. For more details, visit www.fishingfloridaradio.com
Thursday November 17th Free Redfish on Fly Seminar, 6:30 to 9 p.m. Instructed by Captain Chris Myers at Mosquito Creek Outdoors, 170 South Washington Ave. in Apopka, Florida. for more information, visit www.mosquitocreek.com.
Central Florida Shad and Crappie Derby Dates
Thursday December 15th, Shad and Crappie Derby anglers meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m. at Mosquito Creek Outdoor, 170 South Washington Avenue in Apopka.
Saturday December 17th, Shad and Crappie Derby begins at safe light.
Saturday January 14th, 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. Crappie Rally and Seminar at Boat Tree Marina at the Port of Sanford.
Thursday, February 26th 6:30 - 9:00 p.m., Free shad and crappie fly tying event at Orlando Outfitters, 2814 Corrine Dr, Orlando, FL 32808, phone (407) 896-8220. Fly tying instruction and seminar by Capt. Beau Osborne.
Saturday February 25th, 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. Shad Rally and Seminar at the Jolly Gator Fish Camp on the St. Johns River and HWY 46 east of Geneva.
Saturday March 17th, Shad and Crappie Derby ends at dusk.
February 11th and 12th, Old Florida Outdoor Festival in Apopka, Florida.
November's Fishing Outlook
Although November is notorious for greeting us with howling easterly winds as our first significant cold front passes, fishing in and around the inlets will remain outstanding until water temperature drop below 70 degrees. In the inlets of Ponce De Leon, Port Canaveral and Sebastian, snook fishing will remain excellent during low light periods and at night as the remaining baitfish traveling down the beach are forced in close to the jetties and other structure with the best action occurring during slack tidal periods, especially the end of high tide. During these periods hungry gamefish take advantage of slow currents and feed heavily. As the tide begins to fall, gamefish move into their ambush locations to finish off their frenzy. Breeder Redfish, jack crevalle, bluefish, ladyfish, Spanish mackerel, sharks, and tarpon all share in the fury, so step up your tackle size and hold on.
My favored technique is to cast net live mullet, and drift them through the passes on a sliding sinker rig. Look for areas of feeding activity, birds diving and fish busting, and adjust the size of your weight based of current. The rig I use starts out with a Daiichi Bleeding Bait circle hook proportionate to your bait size to allow a natural swimming appearance. In simple terms, small bait small hook, large bait large hook. Next, I attach a 30-inch section of 30 to 40 pound test fluorocarbon leader to a 20-pound test braided mainline. If large tarpon are your target, step your leader size up to 60-pound test. Before I tie on my hook, I slide my slip sinker on to the leader, then attach the hook, and finish the rig off by using a split shot located between the barrel sinker and the hook adjusted to keep the weight off of the hook. As I drift through the passes, I like to cast parallel to my drift with just enough weight to keep the bait in the feeding zone, and increase the barrel sinker size as the current picks up. Additionally, as we near the end of November and finger mullet diminish, switch to pinfish on pigfish as bait. Finally and most important, pass fishing in November can be dangerous, so as I drift through the inlet, I keep the helm manned with my engine running, keeping a close eye on boat traffic and sea conditions, and always be prepared for evasive action if needed.
As the first significant cold front passes and surf temperatures reach the 68-degree mark, flounder slide into the inlets on their annual spawning migration out to sea. The exodus usually begins with the arrival of the smaller 1 to 3-poung gulf flounder (three spot), which are later joined by the doormat size 2 to 14-pound southern flounder. Many anglers prefer to anchor up and fish live finfish on the bottom, but I favor drifting the lagoon side of the passes bouncing a 1/4 ounce DOA CAL Jig 3" CAL Shad tail on the bottom. I've also learned adding the element of sound to my jig by inserting a Woodie's Rattle Capsule improves my catch. This vertical jigging technique allows me to cover more area and catch a wider assortment of species. Likewise, as lagoon temperatures cool, pompano are another likely target as they congregate on the lagoon side of the passes before moving out to their winter haunts along the beaches to feed on sand fleas (mole crabs) their favorite winter food.
Cobia and tripletail fishing can be very good this time of year depending on ocean temperatures (71 to 74 degrees is best) and winter weather conditions. To target them, head east out of Port Canaveral or Sebastian Inlet looking for rips, sargassum and flotsam pushed in by the easterly fetch. Once you have located the floating structure, work the rip with the sun to your back looking for fish suspended underneath, and catch then on spinning tackle or fly, and a live jumbo shrimp on a jig works best.
Inside the lagoons, falling water levels and cleaner conditions will facilitate increased sight fishing prospects for both redfish and sea trout. Also remember spotted sea trout are out of season in our region of the state for both November and December, so please handle and release them with extreme care.
For up to date fishing forecast by all Coastal Angler Magazine Orlando captains visit:
http://coastalanglermag.com/orlando/.
As always, if you have any questions or need help, please contact me.
Good luck and good fishing,
Captain Tom Van Horn
Mosquito Coast Fishing Charters
(407) 416-1187 on the water
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