Capt. Chris Myers
Fishing Report and Newsletter July 27, 2008
Hot weather and hot fishing continue to be the story. There are a variety of fish to be caught right now in Mosquito Lagoon and the north Indian River Lagoon. If one species will not cooperate, another one surely will. Be prepared to change your tactics if necessary.
Monday, I began the day tarpon fishing. On the first cast to a big fish, I was hooked up. In an unusual occurrence, the line broke and the fish was free. A short while later, I cast my Baitbuster to another rolling tarpon and was hooked up again. This time, the fish stayed on. A quick boatside photo was taken and the fish was released.
The tarpon action slowed so I went in search of other species. At my second spot, I caught two snook on the holographic shrimp. Now it was off to look for a red and a trout. I tied on a shallow running Baitbuster and hit the flats. The trout was a bit small but the two reds I landed were both over 27 inches. With the grand slam complete, I went home.
The next Day, I went back to look for tarpon again. I only had about 10 shots the entire morning but one of them resulted in a fish around 70 pounds being released. After the tarpon stopped rolling, I headed back.
Thursday and Friday, I chartered Robbie and his son Chad. They made a trip up from south Florida to experience Mosquito Lagoon. Our objective was to do some sight fishing. We began Thursday by looking for some tarpon. We only saw about five and had no good shots. The rest of the day, they had steady shots at redfish and huge trout. Robbie landed a trout and a 33 inch redfish on a DOA CAL.
With two thirds of a slam complete, we tried for a snook but could not find them. On Saturday, we tried for some tarpon again. This time resulted in a few legitimate shots but no hookups. As on the previous day, they had shots at redfish of all sizes including a good number of tailing and cruising fish in very shallow water. Robbie connected with a trout and later watched a redfish eat his holographic CAL tail about 20 feet from the boat. Although Dad won the first redfish wager, Chad finished strong with a bigger redfish a short while later.
Tip of the Week - Large Tarpon Tactics During the summer months, I am targeting tarpon every chance I get. I prefer to fish for them with artificial lures or fly casting only to rolling fish. This significantly reduces the number of sailfin catfish, large ladyfish, and jacks I catch. These fish are frequently in the same area as the tarpon and will commonly take live baits before the tarpon get to them. For tarpon over 70 pounds, I like to use a trolling model DOA Baitbuster. I cast 2-3 feet in front of a rolling fish, let the bait sink a couple seconds, and then begin a slow retrieve. The faster you get the lure to the fish, the more bites you get. The bite is very subtle and you must react quickly. Convincing the fish to eat is only half the battle. When you get a bite, you must set the hook quickly and forcefully to penetrate the bony mouth. Usually, the fish will surface and jump within a few seconds. This is where the battle often ends. To stay connected, you should be prepared for this jump and put slack in your line by pointing your rod at the fish and extending your arms. As soon as the fish is back in the water, get a bend back on your rod.
To keep the fight to a reasonable amount of time, you must use a lot of drag and always pull in the opposite direction that the fish is travelling. Pulling with your rod tip low to the water will increase the pressure on the fish and end the fight quicker.
Once the fish is at the boat, you have to make a safe release. The ARC Dehooker will easily remove the hook or lure. Do not use a gaff to hold the fish near the boat. Large tarpon cannot be brought into the boat without possessing a kill tag and can be harmful to the fish and you.
August Seminars
Come to the Central Florida Boat Show August 15-17 athe the OrangeCounty Convention Center and visit the Coastal Angler Magazine booth. There will be seminars from local guides, including myself, on a variety of fishing topics.
Capt. Chris Myers
Central Florida Sight Fishing Charters
http://www.floridafishinglessons.com/
321-229-2848
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