August Fishing Outlook
The summer doldrums have arrived along the Indian River Lagoon Coast of Florida, and as long as the summer squalls stay away and the Labrador currents do not cool inshore waters too much, fishing along the beaches and in the inlets will remain good.
The Labrador currents should be pushing in soon, cooling down bottom temperatures and the bottom fishing in some areas along Florida's east coast. With average bottom water temperatures in the mid sixties, finding warmer water will be 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 and cobia in close to the shoals off the Cape, which was the case last several weeks.
Along the beach, look for the silver kings (tarpon), smoker kings, blacktip sharks, 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 structure. If snook are of interest, Sebastian Inlet is the place to be.
Angling on the 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 and soft swimbaits like the D.O.A. Bait Buster. Once the sun starts to grow hot and the top-water bite slows down, bait becomes your better option. For larger trout, fish live pigfish in close to docks and other structure 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. Currently, the Lagoon water levels are extremely low, so be extra careful operating in skinny water. Last but not least, look for pompano schools holding in the shadows of the causeway bridges near the end of the month, and try fishing jigs tipped with shrimp or sand fleas (mole crabs) along the deeper edges and drop-offs.
As always, if you need information or have questions, please contact me.
Good luck and good fishing,
Captain Tom Van Horn
www.irl-fishing.com
captain@irl-fishing.com
407-366-8085 office
407-416-1187 on the water
For all you outdoor shopping needs, visit Mosquito Creek outdoors at www.mosquitocreek.com.
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