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Central Indian River Lagoon
Capt. Ron Bielefeld
November 17, 2000
Indian River Lagoon - Saltwater Fishing Report
On Tuesday November 14 I fished with Richard Bielefeld from Menomonee Falls, WI. If you did not notice, Richard has the same last name as I do, that’s because he’s my dad and the reason I got started fishing in the first place. We fished the Wabasso area and had a great morning catching trout on top-water. The wind was up and the water rough, but that is the time to fish the surface. Just put a little extra effort into achieving the walk-the-dog action. I have found that Fireline with a fluorocarbon leader works great. You are able to get great action with much less effort than if you used mono, and the feel and hook set are solid. We boated 15 fish (all over 18” with some pushing 22”) in just a few hours and had numerous other strikes. Of course trout season is closed, but unlike many other people, that does not signal the end of trout fishing for me, just the beginning. You can’t keep them, but they sure are fun to catch. We also hooked up with a couple (two) large ladyfish. There is nothing like ladyfish on light tackle, especially large ladyfish.
On Thursday my dad and I fished the Sebastian Inlet and surrounding flats. We caught 9 flounder but the action was slow and all the fish were small. During the late morning we turned to the flats for some top-water action (my favorite, if you haven’t guessed), but the water was slick calm and that is not the time for top water (as far as I am concerned). So we switched to Crystal Minnows and worked them just under the surface. This produced some exciting sight fishing. Not the kind where you see the fish and cast to them, but the kind where you watch the fish attack your bait. We watched as the trout hit the baits. At times I counted up to 8 trout darting after the bait with one finally taking it. We saw several fish in the 25” class, and boated 8 trout from 15” to 18”. We also peaked the interest of 3 jacks and 2 ladyfish.
On Friday the wind was up again and the conditions right for some more top-water action. This time it was for Blue fish in deeper water off the flats. I managed to boat 5 before the school left me and I was unable to relocate them. Blue fish on 8 lb test and a light-action rod is nothing but exciting. I also caught a large sail cat (by the way, they are good eating, but be careful not to get stuck by their spines, take it from me, it hurts) and 2 trout in about 3 hours of fishing.
The Indian River never ceases to amaze me when it comes to the variety of fish you can catch and its beauty. I was almost always in sight of dolphin, manatees, and countless other wildlife. Of course this is not unusual, so get out and experience what this wonderful place has to offer.
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