Windy conditions have held the upper hand all week along Florida’s east central coast.  Thus far, April weather patterns have carried into mid May making fishing conditions less then desirable.  Additionally, the hot western flow and drought conditions have combined to create dangerous brush fire conditions with tragic results.  If you plan to be out and about in the outdoors anytime over the next few weeks, please be vigilant and take extra precautions to prevent wildfires.

My adventures this past week started last weekend when brothers Robby, Allen, and Dave Robertson joined me for a day on the water.  The trio has fished together for years in a number of locations, and I was honored have them aboard Three Quarter Time for a day of fishing. 

After studying the conditions and our options, I chose to launch early at Kennedy Point in Titusville to avoid encounters with tournament anglers fishing the Extreme Redfish Tour.  Of course, we faced strong west winds, so my first stop was on the west shoreline about a mile south of the ramp.  As the morning light began the wane and I polled in, the trio began working a Storm Chug Bug, three inch Rapala Skitterwalk, and a Mirodine, and the small sea trout and ladyfish were chewing.  The bite was consistent in three feet of water, but as I polled in shallow looking for redfish it shut down.

When exploring for fish on a flat, it is important to poll in a diagonal direction, crisscrossing from the deep edge in shallow and then back out again until you locate the depth the fish are holding at.  In this case, the action began to pick up once we returned to deeper water. Soon the west wind began to settle down, and I opted to give the east shore a shot, where we scored seven redfish and one respectable sea trout all caught on chunked ladyfish.

My next adventure was with repeat clients Don and April Christopher from the Jackson area as they celebrated their 33 wedding anniversary.  Two years ago we fished together and we scored several sizable fish, but this was not to be the case this time.  I spent the first several hours checking some of my favorite locations for big redfish, but the choppy conditions availed.  So we decided to target sea trout instead and the action was fast and furious.  The majority of the sea trout were dinks, but at one point we were seeing how many we could catch on consecutive cast, and the record was 8.  All together, at least fifty sea trout were caught, and the hot bait was a 3″ chartreuse RipTide Mullet on a ¼ ounce jig.  If you are interested in some real fun, fish anywhere along the west flat in the north Indian River Lagoon between the Carbide Flat and the Scottsmore ramp just off of the deep edge where the flat drops off into 2 to 3 feet of water. 

As always, if you need more information or have questions, please contact me.

Good luck and good fishing,

Captain Tom Van Horn

Contact info - visit guides - www.flyfishingfl.com

Complements of Mosquito Creek Outdoors, Apopka Florida

As the days grow longer, angling enthusiasts along Florida’s Space Coast take pleasure in spending their afternoons after work relaxing on the water.  Warming coastal waters draw streams of baitfish north followed by warm water predators, as our prevailing easterly winds give way to summers genially shifting sea breezes.

Offshore, dolphin fishing will be the focus of blue water anglers this month. April and May are the time of year when the larger bulls are taken off the Florida Space Coast.  The early season dolphin bite has already yielded fish in excess of 60 pounds.  Also, as a bonus, the potential of taking a blue marlin or sailfish are good. Near-shore, the kingfish bite has heated up on the near-shore reefs and wrecks and some cobia are around. As the seas settle down and the bait schools move in close to the beach, look for the kingfish action to move in also.

Spanish mackerel, snook, redfish, jack crevalle, bluefish, flounder, sheepshead and black drum are just some of the species available in the Lagoon inlets and beaches this month.  As the baitfish migration moves north, this type of fishing will only get better. 

Inshore, the bait pods, Atlantic menhaden (pogies), have shown up along the beach, and now is the best time to target the ocean predator shadowing these schools.  It’s not uncommon to catch large redfish, large jack crevalle, blacktip sharks, cobia, and tarpon from within these pods of bait. To locate bait pods, simply look for feeding birds, flipping and jumping bait, muddy water along the beach, and busting fish.

On the Lagoon flats, redfish and spotted sea trout will provide the majority of action for light tackle and fly anglers.  The water has warmed up to the point where jack crevalle, ladyfish, snook, and tarpon are showing up in good numbers.  I like to target redfish and sea trout at first light or at dusk, with top water plugs like the High Roller Florida Special, Rapala Skitterwalk, or Storm Chug Bug.  As the day heats up, change your focus to the deeper edges of the flats (2 to 3 feet deep) jigging with a RipTide 4” mullet on a ¼ ounce RipTide Screw Jig.
As always, if you have any questions or need more information, please contact me.

Good luck and good fishing,

Captain Tom Van Horn
Contact Info - See guide section at FlyFishingFL.com

Compliments of Mosquito Creek Outdoors in Apopka Florida

First, let me apologize for the tardiness of this report.  This past weekend I was off of the water attending the Coastal Angler Magazine Fishing and Boating Expo in Melbourne, Florida.   Although the weather was nice, we still had great turnout, great speakers, and a great show.  Yes, nice weather on the same weekend of a fishing show typically draws attendees away, but in this case, our attendance was good. We also conducted another Hook Kids on Fishing event on Saturday, which was a ton of fun and a tremendous success.

My adventures last week started out with the pleasure of sharing a three-day charter with father and son team Rico Panilo and Rico Jr. from New Jersey.  Our plan was to mix it up a bit by targeting a different style of fishing each day. 

On our first day we launched out of Kennedy Point in Titusville for some sight fishing for redfish and sea trout, and the catching was tough.  We had some shots at tailing redfish early out, but after a hard day of fishing we ended up with a good number of ladyfish and small sea trout.  The schools of ladyfish have moved into the north IRL and they are working schools of glass minnows under terns and seagulls.

On our next day we opted to fish near-shore out of Port Canaveral in search of tripletail and cobia, and again we had a tough day managing only one tripletail, a spadefish, one flounder, and a sheepshead. 

On day three we ventured into the freshwater arena targeting schooling bass on the St Johns River near Lake Harney and again the fish weren’t jumping into the boat, but Rico Jr. did manage some decent size largemouth bass and a 5 pound southern flounder of all things caught on a live menhaden.  Oh by the way, we ended up taking the flounder to lunch at the Jolly Gator Fish Camp, where the nice folks whipped up some tasty blackened flounder sandwiches, yum. 

On Monday I guided a group of three into the Banana River No-Motor Zone where we caught a good number of sea trout and ladyfish on top water plugs.  The bite was fast and furious at first light with our best results coming from Storm Chug Bugs and Rapala Skitterwalks fished in 2 to 3 feet of water. As the day grew longer and the wind picked up, we decided to chunk out a few ladyfish, and managed a 36-inch and a 47-inch redfish.  The larger redfish was 47-inches long with a girth of 28-inches, and using the standard fish weight calculator measured out to be 46.06 pounds

As always, if you have any questions or need more information, please contact me.

Good luck and good fishing,

Captain Tom Van Horn

Mosquito Coast Fishing Charters
Contact Info - http://www.flyfishingfl.com/fly-fishing-guides.html

Compliments of Mosquito Creek Outdoors, Apopka Florida

Reflecting back on past fishing adventures, April stand out as one of the finest months to experience the true diversity of the fishery existing along the Indian River Lagoon coast of Florida.  April serves as a transitional period where the winds of March give way to the heat and humidity of summer.  As spring progresses and water temperatures rise, fishing opportunities abound with the influx of bait moving north within the lagoon and closer to the shoreline along the beaches. 

April marks the beginning of the fishing season for many blue water anglers, representing the start of the northern migration of dolphin in deeper water, 120’ and beyond. This first wave of dolphin is usually credited with some of the largest bulls taken all year.  It also marks the beginning of the spring kingfish run on the near-shore reefs and wrecks off of Port Canaveral.  Traditionally, April is the time of year when the larger kingfish, 30 to 50 pounds, are caught off of 8A Reef, and Pelican Flats.

As we move into the near-shore waters, we can only hope the cobia are still around.  The cobia run was going on last month with some great catches reported in between passing fronts. On flotsam and along the Canaveral buoy line, tripletail should become more dependable throughout the month.  Along the beaches, pods of Atlantic menhaden (pogies) have been showing up south of the Cocoa Beach Pier, and the arrival of these bait pods is a sure sign of predators lurking in their shadows.  Look for tarpon, jumbo redfish and jack crevalle, Spanish mackerel, bluefish, blacktip sharks, cobia, and smoker kingfish to begin showing up in the vicinity of these bait pods.

Inside Port Canaveral and Sebastian Inlet, look for a good number of sheepshead and black drum to be holding around structure such as jetties and docks and look for Spanish mackerel, bluefish, and jack crevalle in deeper water areas.  Also look for nighttime snook and tarpon action to begin heating up in both the Port and in Sebastian Inlet as we move deeper into the month.

On the Lagoon flats, it’s time to start fishing the early morning and late evening bite with your favorite top water plugs for extreme sea trout and redfish action.  During midday periods, work the deeper areas, 2 to 3 feet, with your favorite soft plastics, jerk baits, or jigs.  Remember, April is one of the months where the larger sea trout (all females) become egg laden for the spawn, so it’s very important to handle and release these larger fish with extreme care.  Sea trout have one of the highest mortality rates of catch and release game fish on the Lagoon.

Last but not least, look for the large mouth bass action to heat up on the St. Johns River.  Look for schooling bass at first light feeding on menhaden from the Osteen Bridge to the Econ Creek.  Some of my favorite places to look are the river bends between Lemmon Bluff and Lake Harney, and the south end of Lake Harney where the river dumps in.  To locate the areas of schooling fish, I simply look for congregations of white pelicans and other wading birds lined up along the riverbanks waiting for an easy meal when the hungry bass push the bait to the surface along the shore.  When in the feeding mood, these fish will eat just about anything, but the heavy bite usually only last from first light to the point where the sun crosses the eastern horizon, so an early start is essential. 

Seminars and Events

April 18^th, 19^th, 20^th, Coastal Angler Magazine Boating and Fishing Expo, Melbourne, Florida, Angler’s Improvement Clinics Sponsored by Mosquito Creek Outdoors, RipTide Soft Plastics, Woodie’s Rattles, TTI-Blakemore Fishing Group, and D.O.A. Lures

Future Hook Kids on Fishing! Program Dates

April 19 - Melbourne: To register contact the Melbourne Leisure Services 321-255-4608.

As always, if you have any questions or need more information, please contact me.Good luck and good fishing,

Captain Tom Van Horn

Mosquito Coast Fishing Charter

Contact Info

Complements of Mosquito Creek Outdoors, Apopka Florida

Although some nice fish were caught on every outing this past week, the catching was very slow for the most part.  Over the past 8 days, I had the pleasure to fish on the St. Johns River for American shad on three occasions, the east side of the Banana River No-Motor Zone, and a solo scouting trip to the Indian River Lagoon in Titusville.

For starters, I fished the St. Johns River in the area south of Lake Harney, and the American shad have arrived, but they are not in good numbers yet.  On both of these excursions we caught several nice shad each and a mix of some nice bass, speckled perch, and even catfish, but the catching wasn’t on fire.

Billy’s No-Motor Zone Redfish Caught on a Salt and Pepper RipTide Flats Chub

On Friday, I had a charter with three brothers Chris, Tom, and Billy on a quest for a large redfish, so we paddled in to the east shore of the No-Motor Zone.  Although it was a nice morning, with light winds from the south at about 5 knots and a marine forecast of 5 to 10 knots in the afternoon, I was a little concerned about this wind situation because paddling in would be a breeze; paddling out would be a challenge.  In the afternoon my apprehensions proved true as my experience with the marine forecast is a prediction of 5 to 10 knot winds means you add the two together, and in this case, as we faced at least 15 knots right down the teeth on our return trip.  Notwithstanding the wind situation, we did not see a single tail the whole day, and our final score was 6 puffers and one nice upper slot redfish caught by Billy on a RipTide Salt & Pepper/ Chartreuse Flats Chub.

Due to the windy conditions today, I returned to the St. Johns River with Captain Chris Myers.  I wish I could tell you the bite was on fire, but the truth be known, it was not.  We fished hard in the area of the old Marina Isles Fish Camp, and I caught on shad on a pink crazy Charlie, and between us we boated a half dozen speckled perch.  As my good friend Captain Chris stated, “It was a good day to be out of the offices”.

Seminar and Event Schedule:

January 17^th, 18^th, 19^th, and 20^th, Central Florida Boat Show Orlando Convention Center.

            No Motors, No Problem Seminar Friday the 18^th at 700 PM.

January 22^nd, Orlando Kayak Club Meeting, Gander Mountain in Lake Mary 7 PM, Rigging Soft Plastic Baits for Redfish and Sea Trout.

March 1^st, 2^nd, and 8^th Bass Pro Shop Spring Fling, Orlando Florida

April 18^th, 19^th, 20^th, Coastal Angler Magazine Boating and Fishing Expo, Melbourne, Florida.

As always, if you have any questions or need more information, please contact me.Good luck, good fishing,

Captain Tom Van Horn

Contact US HERE

FLYFISHINGFL.COM 

Complements of Mosquito Creek Outdoors, Apopka, Florida

As the mid-summer doldrums settle in on the Indian River Lagoon Coast of Florida, summer weather patterns dominate and angling success requires a shift in tactics to beat the heat and afternoon thunderstorm.  An early morning predawn start allows anglers to enjoy cooler conditions and magnificent sunrises, and have the boat trailered and home in time for a snooze in the Lazy-Boy while the afternoon storms brew outside.  Once the storms have past, the window of opportunity reopens for some excellent angling conditions as the sun settles below the horizon, and after dark.

Angling on the in-shore lagoons will continue to show improvement, with fishing in the predawn and late evening hours being most productive.  Look for schools of redfish in the skinny water holding in the vicinity of bait concentration, and target them utilizing smaller top-water plugs.  Once the sun starts to grow hot and the top-water bite will shut down, bait becomes your better option.  For larger trout, fish live pigfish close to docks and other structures adjacent to deeper water.  In deeper water, look for large schools of ladyfish, small trout, and tarpon pushing schools of glass minnows near the surface. These schools are easy to locate by watching for concentrations of birds, terns and cormorants, joining in on the frenzy, and they are perfect for fly anglers who are interested in the continuous fast and furious action provided by these speedsters.  Look for pompano schools to become more prevalent in the shadows of the causeway bridges and on the flats.  Fish small pink jigs tipped with shrimp or sand fleas (mole crabs) along the deeper edges and drop-offs and in areas of skipping fish.  Lagoon water levels are typically low, so please use caution when accessing skinny water.

Offshore, the Labrador currents have pushed in on queue, cooling down bottom temperatures and the bottom fishing a bit, which is normal this time of year. If bottom water temperature drops into the sixties, finding warmer water is the key to locating fish.  Look for the blue water bite to improve along the inshore reefs and wrecks of Chris Benson, 8A Reef, and Pelican Flats, with kingfish, dolphin, black fin tuna, and cobia serving as the primary species, along with an occasional wahoo or sailfish.  This is also the time of year when cooler waters sometimes push the giant manta rays in close to the shoals off the Bite of the Cape, bringing us a mid-summer cobia run. Further off shore, the Gulf Stream typically moves in closer making tuna a possibility for smaller boats, and as long as the summer squalls stay away, running to the other side of the stream isn’t out of the question.

Along the beach, look for the silver kings (tarpon), smoker kings, blacktip sharks, jumbo jack crevalle, and redfish to be shadowing pods of Atlantic menhaden (pogies), threadfin herring (greenies), Spanish sardines, and bay anchovy (glass minnows) in close to the beach.  Also look for snook fishing in the surf to improve, as we get closer to the commencement of the fall bait run.  Remember snook are out of season, so if you target them, handle and release them with care. In and around the inlets, look for Spanish mackerel, tarpon, jack cervalle, and bonita to be working schools of glass minnows on the outside, and snook, redfish, mangrove snapper, and flounder in the area of jetties and other structures.  If snook are of interest, Sebastian Inlet is the place to be.

Last but not least, I would like to inform all of the ladies about the Mosquito Creek Outdoor Ladies Social Angler Seminar and Wine Tasting scheduled for September 29^th from 10am to 3pm. This free event is designed to teach the ladies the basic fundaments needed to enjoy fishing with their family and friends.  Mosquito Creek Outdoors, Woman in The Outdoors, and Coastal Angler Magazine sponsors the event and it features speakers like Robin (Fish Girl) Folsom and Captain Rodney Smith of Coastal Angler Magazine, Captain Chris Myers D.O.A. Pro Staff, and Captain Tom Van Horn RipTide Pro Staff. For more details, check out the attached PFD.

As always, if you have questions or need information, please contact me.

Good luck and good fishing,

Captain Tom Van Horn

Mosquito Coast Fishing Charters

http://www.irl-fishing.com/

captain@irl-fishing.com

407-366-8085 landline

407-416-1187 on the water

866-790-8081 toll free

FLYFISHINGFL.COM