Schooling Redfish
Capt. Tom Van Horn
September 13, 2010
Indian River Lagoon - Saltwater Fishing Report
Mosquito Creek Outdoors Indian River Lagoon Coast Fishing Report, September 13, 2010
By Captain Tom Van Horn
Upcoming Classes, Seminars and Events
Saturday, September 18th, 9:30 - 10:30 AM, "Free Seminar" Fishing with the Pros instructed by Captains Tom Van Horn and Chris Myers, Basic fishing open forum, followed by "Fishing the Fall Mullet Run" 10:30 - 11:30 AM in the Outback at Mosquito Creek Outdoors, 170 South Washington Ave., Apopka Florida.
Saturday October 2nd 10 AM - 5 PM, "Discover Fly Fishing Day" in the Outback at Mosquito Creek Outdoors in Apopka Florida. Guides, Professionals and Factory representatives will be on hand all day to introduce new comers to fly fishing and discuss casting, destinations, tactics, and equipment.
Saturday, October 23rd, 9:30 - 10:30 AM, "Free Seminar" Fishing with the Pros instructed by Captains Tom Van Horn and Chris Myers, Basic fishing open forum, followed by "Fall Fishing Tactics Redfish, Trout and Flounder" 10:30 - 11:30 AM in the Outback at Mosquito Creek Outdoors, 170 South Washington Ave., Apopka Florida.
Tuesday, November 9th, 7:00 - 9:00 PM, Orlando Kayak Fishing Club Meeting (open to all) in the Outback at Mosquito Creek Outdoor in Apopka Florida.
Saturday, November 20th, 9:30 - 10:30 AM, "Free Seminar" Fishing with the Pros instructed by Captains Tom Van Horn and Chris Myers, Basic fishing open forum, followed by "Preparing for the Shad Run & Crappie Season & Shad Derby Meeting" 10:30 - 11:30 AM in the Outback at Mosquito Creek Outdoors, 170 South Washington Ave., Apopka Florida.
This Week's Fishing Report
My adventures this past week led me to the Indian River Lagoon and to the near-shore waters out of Port Canaveral, and although the weather was absolutely glorious, the catching was very tough. In the Lagoon, water levels are about a foot above normal, and the schools of redfish have spread out into areas that have been dry all summer. The water was also dirty for the most part, and floating grass was everywhere. Most of the redfish we found where either singles laying up or small groups on the move, with the exception of a large breeder school we found out in the open water. We also had good success with sea trout on top water plugs and we found a good number of large tarpon rolling out in the ICW channel.
Near-shore along the beach, we found a good number of Spanish mackerel schools feeding on glass minnows at first light. The Spanish were very aggressive and easy to catch, and they were eager to take a DOA CAL on a jig head fished with a very fast retrieval. When fishing for toothy critters like Spanish mackerel using monofilament or fluorocarbon leaders, it's important to reel your lure fast to avoid getting cut off.
We also found a number of large black mullet schools working south along the beach, but there were very few larger fish working them. Black mullet are the larger of our mullet species typically running in the 8 to 15 inch size, and they are migrating south to spawn. The small silver mullet are a tropical species, which hasn't flushed out of the lagoon yet. The smaller silver mullet (finger mullet) make up the bulk of the mullet migration, and should be leaving the shelter of the lagoon flats for their run south at any time.
The extended weather forecast looks very good for the balance of the week, so hit the water and catch some fish.
As always, if you need information or have any questions, please contact me.
Good luck and good fishing,
Captain Tom Van Horn
Mosquito Coast Fishing Charters
http://www.irl-fishing.com
407-416-1187 on the water
407-366-8085 land line
Visit Mosquito Creek Outdoors at www.mosquitocreek.com, it's where your adventure begins.
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