Find Mullet = Redfish
Capt. Joe Porcelli
November 5, 2010
Mosquito Lagoon - Saltwater Fishing Report
Just a short drive from Daytona Beach and Orlando will bring you to some of the best flats fishing I have seen. Redfish waiting in the grass to have you drop a Gulp shrimp on their nose. They will eat it and strip seventy + feet of line from your ABU Garcia. Got to love that song. This scenario has played out about five times this week. Last week the moon was full and the fish foraged through the night. The mornings after many redfish would be laid up in the grass sleeping. You can do one of two things when you come up to a redfish or trout that is sleeping. 1 Poke him with your rod. I still don't know what possesses an angler to poke stingrays. Or 2 Drop a Gulp shrimp in front of him, I always chose 2. I rig my Gulp shrimp Capt. Joe Porcelli style with a kahle hook in the nose or tail. I use a #2 kahle just about 1/4 inch hooked through the Gulp shrimp. This is my favorite way to rig my Gulp shrimp or jerk shad etc. I have been using this rig for all my shad or jerk style baits for 36 years how. I even got laughed at for rigging my artificial bait this way but it has won many tournaments for us. You won't have much time from the time you see the fish sleeping and getting your bait about five inches from his nose. That is when he will smell the Gulp sent and grab it. Just hang on because the first thing that fish experienced when he was awaked is a lip piercing before coffee, ouch. Taking a fish less than the distance of your rod is quite the thrill but many things need to happen before this is possible. We have taken trout over seven pounds this way as well. Try to always pull your bait away from the boats movement to make the fish move and look away from you. If possible Powerpole down if you don't have time you have to act fast. If the fish starts to move off give him a lead, if not drop it in front of his nose.
Keith and Pam fished with me on the flats and caught four redfish and twenty trout. A few days later I had Fred Bergert out solo and he took many nice redfish and trout to four pounds working Gulp Jerkshads in the chartreuse color.
On the fun day we fished this week Kim Rideout took a redfish on her third cast of the day and on the sixth cast my brother Pete hooked up. We made two drifts in a few hours and caught ten reds and four were hooked up real close to the boat. When choosing the flat you are going to fish look for the mullet schools not the reds, they just may be sleeping. Think like a fish to catch fish or just call me at 386 314 5656 or go to captainjoeporcelli.com
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