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Fishing Report for Homosassa, Florida
Capt. Mike Locklear
September 29, 2004
Homosassa - Saltwater Fishing Report
Hurricane Jeanne was gentle to Homosassa in comparison to Francis. Perhaps because the eye of Francis remained on land as it passed directly overhead of Citrus County last Sunday afternoon. Even though the winds from Jeanne were gusting to 65 mph, most the wind damage was sustained by Francis.
Coastal flooding on the Homosassa River was minimal from Jeanne due to the eye wall remaining within peninsula Florida. Power outages for our area were minimal. Time with power off was less than with Francis due to preventative tree trimming by both the power companies and the residents alike. Our power was off 26 hours from Francis compared to 54 hours with Jeanne.
Just before the eye wall hit, I evacuated to Ft. Valley, Georgia and was invited to the comfortable home of Bill and Ann Tribble. Motel 6 has nothing on the Mrs. Ann and Mr. Bill. Fine food and comfortable accommodations were enjoyed. Monday afternoon we returned to Homosassa in my Chevrolet Silverado pickup that weighs 6,000 pounds. I enjoyed the security of the extra weight gripping the wet roads and high winds both going and coming through Jeanne.
Returning home, debris scatterd about was less than Francis and yards were spared of big limbs unlike the mess Francis created. Surprisingly, the raked up piles of debris from Francis remained intact for the most part that has been sitting for a week or two. Baby toad frogs were hatching out by the thousands near our house and I am sure everywhere else there was standing water.
My childhood house in Homosassa where I was raised suffered a huge oak tree limb that crushed the roof in where my bedroom used to be. No one was hurt as the old house looks more condemned than the one in the movie where Jenny saw when she came back as an adult with Forest Gump and began throwing rocks at it.
More traumatic than my old house and the memories is the home of Jim Johnson who lives 2 blocks south of my old home. His house is in shambles. Huge trees still sit perched on his roof. One came all the way through his house in his living room.
A front page story of our local paper featured Johnson. It was to the point that FEMA had not yet found him and from the phone calls he made, busy signals to FEMA were all he could find.
My heart hurts for him and others as he is a Viet Nam veteran and it is pretty hard for him to know how to get the help he needs. Not only does he need prayers, but he needs immediate help.
I am not sure what good I can do, other than to perhaps offer him some neighborly assistance. When I drove by for the first time today and visited with Capt. Alec Williams, I heard a chain saw buzzing. Someone was working at Johnson’s home.
He lives near the end of Willard Street in old Homosassa, the street just before the school. Perhaps tomorrow, I will drop by and pay him a visit.
For the fishing report, many groups have cancelled, however, on Tuesday, two days after the hurricane went by, two storm victims came forward from the Mount Dora area and chartered me for a fun half day trip. Steve and Marylyn Vaughn caught and released over 30 redfish with two keepers in the slot. The full moon has brought in a lot of rat size reds. Spoons and shrimp worked for us. This was a make up trip from Francis undoing.
Finally, the heavens are visible and the winds are calm again. I noiticed the enlarged harvest moon tonight glowing red as it rose aboce the tree line from the eastern skies. I expect good fishing the rest of this week.
God thank you for blessing me today and keep all the readers and residents safe and protected in this great free country of USA.
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