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Chief Osceola
MemberPosts: 64 Greenhorn
Busy Day and a Mystery Fish at the Port
Chief Osceola
MemberPosts: 64 Greenhorn
Decided there was no way I wasn't going to take full advantage of a early Spring day with perfect weather and increasing bait activity in back of my house on Sykes Creek. Started the day looking for trout and black drum on a couple of flats in the Banana River/Cocoa area. On the way, found the seagulls and ladyfish doing their usual springtime shuffle and stopped for non-stop ladyfish action for a good 15 minutes. Catching one after another of anything is a blast in my book.
Next up was the flats in the BRL. The water actually looks a bit cloudier that the last time I was here but found some black drum poking their tails up in the slick calm water. Watched one do a head stand on my shrimp but he wouldn't eat. Also saw what I believe was a juvenile tarpon. My wife took the flats title with one small trout.
Had enough of the this around 10:30a and decided to fish the beach with the beautiful weather. Made the run through the locks and out to the beach for almost nonstop action on bluefish and Spanish mackerel. Saw some bait schools so it looks like they should be thick on the beach pretty soon.
On the way back in, saw something I've never seen in 35 years of fishing this area. Inside the Port, we see a very large school of fish swimming in a perfect circle. I thought they were large jack crevalle. I pull up to the school with the only rods I had (wasn't planning on leaving the river - 3000's spooled with 30lb power pro). Hooked two of these fish, with the second coming fairly close to the boat before it cut/broke my line (30lb fluro leader). I would say these schooling fish averaged about 20 lbs each and they looked like bluefish. I couldn't get a good look. Wondering if anyone knows what the hell these fish were. All in all, great day out on the water with absolutely perfect weather. This is my favorite time of year to fish and I believe we're about to head into the "bait explosion" where we get schools of baitfish all over the river and the beach and everything is "feeling Springy". Tight lines.:USA
Next up was the flats in the BRL. The water actually looks a bit cloudier that the last time I was here but found some black drum poking their tails up in the slick calm water. Watched one do a head stand on my shrimp but he wouldn't eat. Also saw what I believe was a juvenile tarpon. My wife took the flats title with one small trout.
Had enough of the this around 10:30a and decided to fish the beach with the beautiful weather. Made the run through the locks and out to the beach for almost nonstop action on bluefish and Spanish mackerel. Saw some bait schools so it looks like they should be thick on the beach pretty soon.
On the way back in, saw something I've never seen in 35 years of fishing this area. Inside the Port, we see a very large school of fish swimming in a perfect circle. I thought they were large jack crevalle. I pull up to the school with the only rods I had (wasn't planning on leaving the river - 3000's spooled with 30lb power pro). Hooked two of these fish, with the second coming fairly close to the boat before it cut/broke my line (30lb fluro leader). I would say these schooling fish averaged about 20 lbs each and they looked like bluefish. I couldn't get a good look. Wondering if anyone knows what the hell these fish were. All in all, great day out on the water with absolutely perfect weather. This is my favorite time of year to fish and I believe we're about to head into the "bait explosion" where we get schools of baitfish all over the river and the beach and everything is "feeling Springy". Tight lines.:USA
Replies
You`re right ....non`stop ladies are a blast !
That's what I figured but I wasn't sure if my eyes were fooling me. I've never seen bluefish that big. In retrospect, I would guess the school was probably more like 12 - 15 lbs each but they were huge. The biggest bluefish I had ever seen previously is probably around 5 lbs or so.
krash, you definitely want to look for the bait to target the macs but they were mixed in with the bluefish and we had figured out that we could just anchor in one spot off the beach and the schools of bluefish and macs would move up and down the beach in the area we were in. Definitely better to look for bait schools but I've also found that areas of the beach hold them for a reason and you can anchor up and they will come and go in that same area. We were off the Bight which I have found is some of the best area for blue fish and macs on the beach. The last couple of hours of the incoming and first couple of the outgoing tend to be the best.