Whiteys Fishing Report, November, 2009
The seasons of change are definitely upon us as the bluefish have shown up in huge numbers. With the surf, dirty and rough the bite along the beaches and at Sebastian Inlet has been great. When fishing for the blues, remember they have a mouth full of tiny little razor sharp teeth that destroy any plastic bait or mono leader. Break out the metal lures and wire leaders or a morning of fishing will soon become a huge financial burden. Tie on a Gotcha jig, silver spoon, diamond jig or any other metal like lure in your tackle box, attach a section of wire leader in front and start working the water. The use of a wire leader will help reduce the loss of tackle but will not guarantee it. Fishing for the blues can be very exciting while you are waiting for the other winter favorites like the pompano to show up.
Speaking of pompano, there have been several reports of a few fish scattered along the surf but until the water cleans up and the wind backs off, the action will be slow. As the cooler NE winds drop the water temperature, the pompano will settle in for the next few months.
Standard surf gear is a 10-12 ft. rod, with a larger sized reel, spooled up with 12-20 lb. mono. Most rigs consist of two gold hooks with or without floats and sandfleas or cut clams for bait. When casting out your rods, stagger them by throwing one rod short and winging the other one as far as you can throw. This will help locate the bite, as the pompano move around looking for a food source, either right close to the beach or as far out in the ocean as you can cast. Keep the weight as light as the wave action will allow, usually on calm days a 2-3oz pyramid will work and a 4-6oz weight for the windy days. If pyramids are not holding on one of those rough days, try using a Sputnik weight, offered in 2-6oz. weights, they are made up of little wire legs that stick into the sand, when tugged tight they dig in deep and when really pulled hard roll open to allow the weight and rig to be retrieved back to the beach. Sputniks are a little costly, but on days when the ocean and wind just will not cut you a break- they are worth every penny.
Snook fishing has been great at the Inlet in the early mornings and late evenings. Schools of bait are getting pushed around the jetties and the redfish, jacks, bluefish, snapper, flounder and tarpon are there to feed. Windcheaters bucktails and the larger swim baits are working along the channels and from shore. Live pinfish, mullet, croakers and shrimp can also be casted from the jetties or drifted through the Inlet channels by the boats. Bucktails on the south side rocks have been producing a lot of fish recentely at night on the outgoing tides.
November can be a big month to flounder fish as the water temperatures in the river start to drop. The flounder bite is defiantly one of the hottest things going this month, but the best action will come on the second COLD front. That second drop in temperature really gets the flatties moving out of the river, through the Inlet and on their way offshore to warmer water. With each consecutive front the action just gets better.
The ideal time to fish for flounder is slack tide. The window is short and the conditions can be a bit extreme, not because of the weather, but because of the competition. So do your homework, get your bait and get moving to your hot spot early ahead of the others. If you are up to some competition, join the Whitey’s Flounder Tournament. Anglers must sign up before fishing and the entry fee is $20 per person, with 100% payout. The tournament runs for two months. You can log on to www.whiteysonline.com for more rules and information as well as the daily leader board.
Whitey's Bait & Tackle
321-724-1440
9030 S Highway A1a
Melbourne Beach, FL 32951
captstovall@whiteysonline.com
www.whiteysonline.com/
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