Port Canaveral Fishing Report and more…, Saltwater Fishing Report

The Report from Spotted Tail 9/18/11

Upcoming Events- Show and Tell seminar on November 5 and 6. The 6th will be an on the water seminar. Details and the signup will be posted 30 days prior.

Beat up from traveling, Alex and I got home on Monday. On Thursday I cleaned up the boat and cleaned and greased the steering cable. On Friday at about 8 AM we launched at Port Canaveral to investigate the ocean's offerings. The weather was outstanding, no wind, no clouds, warm and sunny. Yay Florida!

We idled around the north jetty. Three boats were anchored there. No one had a fish on. There was no bait. We kept going.

We ran up the beach looking without success for any sign of life. Finally, near the tip of the cape, we saw some pelicans diving. There were mullet there. I threw the net three times and had enough to deal with any situation we might encounter.

Around the tip of the cape there were quite a few people fishing from the beach, and a couple of boats anchored up. We idled and looked. Other than an obvious concentration of mullet there were no signs of fish. We anchored up and tried it ourselves for half an hour. We did not get a bite, or see anyone else get one.

We ran east three miles or so looking for flotsam, trash or weeds, but didn't find much. At a buoy there were some barracudas and we did get one to eat a mullet. Although we only used a 20 pound leader the fish was hooked in the corner of the mouth and we released it. They sure can fight on light tackle!

We saw a bunch of net boats. One was pulling it's net so we stopped to watch. With the exception of a few small (bluegill sized) fish it was empty. We tried trolling some small jigs for a few minutes, hoping for a Spanish mackerel. No dice.

We looked around most of the Canaveral buoy line buoys, but did not see anything.

At the port entrance we saw Capt. Fred in his Boston Whaler. Fred is a commercial hook-and-line fisherman and is out almost every day. He is as reliable an information source as exists about fishing around the Port. He said a week ago there had been quite a few tarpon off the tip of the cape. Other than that there was very little in the way of fish around, reinforcing what we had just observed for ourselves.

The boat was back on the trailer at 1 PM.

Yesterday I was smoking some fish, tying flies while monitoring the smoker. In a minorly philosophical moment I pondered the relationship between tying flies to catch fish and smoking fish that had already been caught. One can actually come full circle while sitting on one's behind! Then the moment passed.

Water in the lagoon system is high and from all accounts very dirty due to an algae bloom, making sight fishing very difficult. I will be investigating this week. Stay tuned…

Embrace simplicity.

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- go fishing!

John Kumiski
http://www.spottedtail.com/

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2011. All rights are reserved.

About the Author:

Captain's Bio: Call Capt. John Kumiski for guided fishing trips on the Mosquito Lagoon and surrounding waters. John has been a flats fishing guide on central Florida waters for over 20 years. He specializes in sight fishing for redfish, seatrout, tarpon, and more. He also fishes the near coastal waters of the Atlantic Ocean for tarpon, snook, king mackerel, cobia, and more. For the most enjoyable and educational fishing trips in Orlando, including kayak fishing and canoe fishing trips, call Spotted Tail Charters, 407.977.5207. "I have fished all over the world with dozens of different guides. Capt. John Kumiski would have to rate as one of the best. He is knowledgeable, patient, and skillful. My son and I will never forget catching on fly rods two redfish weighing a total of 40 pounds." -Michael Barnett Life is great and I love my work!