Indian River Lagoon Fishing Report
Capt. Tom Van Horn
October 7, 2011
Indian River Lagoon - Saltwater Fishing Report
Mosquito Creek Outdoors Indian River Lagoon Coast Fishing Report, October 5, 2011
By Captain Tom Van Horn
Although October welcomed us with stunning fall weather conditions, our cool sunny days will transition this weekend from gorgeous to gloomy as nasty weather moves in. On both Saturday and Sunday, high winds up to 30 knots and rain are predicted. In addition, the heavy onshore fetch will kick the seas up to 7 feet, shutting down any chance of venturing out of the Port. I know this is not what you wanted to hear, but it is what it is, and our time this weekend may be better spent catching up on chores or spending time with family and friends.
On the lagoons this past week, water conditions are still high and dirty with a water temperature has cooled off to 76.7 degrees. For the most part, sight fishing was tough and the best results came from staking out on the flats and chunking cut mullet and ladyfish. For those of you who fish in the Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge (Mosquito Lagoon), the park service implemented a new ramp fee of 5.00 on October 1st, with an annual pass of 15.00 available at the Visitors Center.
Offshore, this easterly fetch should push the weed lines in closer, but the wind and heavy seas could also bring in the jellyfish again. This past week, conditions were perfect, and some nice wahoo and dolphin were caught around weed lines in 120 feet of water out of both Port Canaveral and Sebastian. Again, heavy seas will keep folks in Port this weekend, but once seas settle down, offshore trolling should be good.
Along the beaches and in the inlets of Ponce De Leon, Port Canaveral and Sebastian, the mullet run is in full swing with heavy concentrations of silver mullet pushing through. There have been good reports of snook and flounder in the surf, feeding on finger mullet, as well as your standard bluefish, jacks and Spanish mackerel, with the best results coming from casting live mullet on a slip sinker rig. The snook fishing has also been in Port Canaveral and Sebastian, especially at night, again fishing with live mullet and mullet imitation lures like the DOA Baitbuster.
More Fishing Reports:
