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Think Like a fish!
Capt. Michael Bales
January 29, 2009
Mosquito Lagoon - Saltwater Fishing Report
The month of January has been interesting to say the least...With temperatures ranging
from 25-80 degrees on the Mosquito Lagoon and the surrounding area.. This has a
dramatic effect on how our inshore species will behave. Feeding aggressively in the
shallows during the warmest parts of the day, to sluggish and lethargic on those extra
cool mornings..Paying very close attention to water temperature is key when these
winter COLD fronts move through..Starting your trip a little later in the morning can
make all the difference..
Iʼll give you an example, the other day I fished a rather large school of redfish on the
north end, these fish were a bit tricky to get to with the extremely low water, but with
some determined poling we reached them at about ten in the morning..(The outside air
temperature was a balmy 39 degrees) They were flashing and churning in a vast white
sand spot with broken grass..My customers were able to catch a few fish casting Gulp
Alive and live shrimp,letting the lure fall slowly and just dead-sticking it. Sometimes not
moving the bait for 5-10 minutes Most of these fish were slot reds with a few 30" guys
mixed in. After a dozen bites, not hook-ups mind you, we moved to another
location..The fish were very slowly eating and some over-reactive hook-sets resulted in
a few missed fish..Two hours of talking fishing, drinking coffee, and wishing for the sun
we moved to another location after landing 4 nice slot reds.
Two days later and 30 degrees warmer, I decided to check on those same slow and
lethargic fish..After poling in I noticed very FEW fish in the big depression, however the
were easily three or four dozen reds tailing in groups of 2-4 fish all over the grassy edge
about a foot shallower than the sand spot...These fish were responsive to a shrimp and
were eating with a fervor, sometimes slurping the shrimp off the surface as it was being
retrieved back to the boat making for some incredible surface takes.!! We managed to
boat 12 reds in less than an hour! The largest fish was right at 32".
It just goes to show that matching your presentation to the fish AS well as conditions
and timing pays off! No matter what, life is short, GO FISHING! OR, As always contact
me at 352-255-8175 or www.hotfishcharters.com to experience a great day on this
magnificent fishery!
Tight Lines and Stretched Leaders.
Capt Mike.
Target Species:
Redfish and Trout
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