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March '12 - Mosquito Lagoon, New Smyrna, Ponce Inlet Area

Capt. Nathaniel Lemmon
March 18, 2012
New Smyrna Beach - Saltwater Fishing Report

March is here, but spring started a while ago. It's been an amazingly warm winter and our fish have been on spring time mode for the past 2 months. Things this year have been running about a month ahead of schedule. Baitfish like finger mullet and pinfish are showing up everywhere, water temperatures have consistently been in the 70's, and fish are fat and feeding well. Sight fishing is good in all areas from Ponce Inlet to Titusville. Redfish have broken up into smaller groups of 25-50-100 fish. Big speckled trout have been laid up in shallow sand spots on the flats and others are staged on deeper edges. Black drum are in big schools for their annual spring spawn. There's no shortage of places to find any of the above species in the Mosquito Lagoon or the North Indian River Lagoon, it only depends on what your preference is or what you would like to target.

The Redfish bite has been really strong the last few weeks and where they are depends on the fluctuating water levels. Low water levels or falling tides have fish either staged on the edges of the flats and/or in deeper creeks/sloughs. On rising tides and/or high water levels redfish have been scattering into small pods over shallow grass flats or on top of oyster mounds/shell beds. We've been averaging around 10-15 redfish per day over the past 2 weeks. The hot ticket has been live finger mullet, but some days they've preferred live shrimp. Lure anglers have done pretty well casting Aqua Dream spoons, Mirrolure and Sebile suspending plugs and DOA shrimp. Fly anglers have done well with clouser minnows, spoon flies, and seaducers. spoon flies, worm patterns, and deceivers. Trophy size 15-30lb redfish in the Mosquito Lagoon and North IRL have begun schooling in deeper water adjacent to shallow flats. You still need really light winds and lots of sun to find them, those days will become more regular as we get into March and April.

Speckled Trout fishing has been phenomenal over the past few weeks. Typically we don't see this type of action till Apri. Warm waters have triggered strong numbers of finger mullet to move into the shallows, cruising the creeks, flats, and channel edges. This annual showing of baitfish triggers the big gator trout to feed aggressively. We've really only been targeting the trophies, skipping quantity for quality. We've landed numerous trout in the 4-6lb range, as well as a few trophy fish in the 7-9lb range. Find areas holding these baitfish and trout will be on the perimeters. Live mullet are the hot ticket, free lined over sand spots, edges or around oyster bars. Lure anglers throwing soft plastic shad style jerkbaits and/or Mirrolure or Sebile suspending plugs have also caught a fair share of fish. Fly anglers have connected using clouser minnows and deceivers.

There are still several schools of Black Drum in the southern half of Mosquito Lagoon and the North Indian River Lagoon. These fish are all spawning during this time of year, and frankly they are about the easiest thing ever to catch. Many of the fish range from 5-25lbs, with a few larger fish upwards of 40-50lbs. Live shrimp and cut crabs almost never get refused. If you want to throw lures, dark colored jigs and soft plastic shrimp will produce bites. Fly anglers will have a good chance at scoring using black clouser minnows and black crab flies.

Only a couple openings left in March. Limited remaining dates in April. So book ASAP if you have a desire to fish the early spring months. As always short notice trips are available if I have the date open. Call or email to secure a reservation. I look forward to fishing with you soon…386-212-4931.

Pictures from the past month can be found on my website...http://www.floridasightfishing.com/report.htm

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Capt. Nathaniel Lemmon guides light tackle and fly anglers on the inshore waters of East Central Florida, including world famous destinations like the Mosquito Lagoon, Indian River and the Ponce Inlet Backcountry. Fishing charters for Redfish, Seatrout, Tarpon, Snook, Black Drum, and more.

Contact Info:

Florida Sight Fishing w/ Capt. Nathaniel Lemmon
PO Box 735
Edgewater, FL 32132
Phone: 386-212-4931
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Visit his Web Site
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