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Fishing Reports
Indian River Lagoon Coast Fishing Report
December 15, 2005
Posted by Captain Tom Van Horn
Chuluota, FL 32766 USA
Email: captain@irl-fishing.com
Current Report
Indian River Lagoon Coast
Fishing Report
Mosquito Coast Fishing
Charters
Passion for the sport of
angling and the outdoors is
what drives many diehard
anglers like myself towards
the ultimate goal of the
perfect day on the water.
Many of us only dream of
such a day, and in my life,
Ive been blessed by more
than my share. This was
the case once more on
Monday, as my good friend
and lagoon mentor Captain
John Kumiski joined me on a
venture into the backwaters
of the Banana River No-Motor
Zone.
With the goal of catching my
first respectable redfish on
fly, and hopefully taking a
shot at the mystical black
drum, John and I have been
talking about this
expedition all summer. You
see, my specialty has always
been light tackle spin
fishing, and for years, my
good friends and expert fly
guides Captains John, and
Rodney Smith have challenge
me to take the next step up
into the saltwater fly
fishing arena.
We started our endeavor at
around 0930, as the cool 50-
degree morning air deterred
an early start. The skis
were crystal clear with a 10-
knot northwest wind, which
is very manageable for
winters day on the lagoon.
As we paddled into the zone,
I had one of those feelings
you get in the pit of my
stomach. I knew the
catching was going to be
good, and in this case, and
my intuition was dead on as
my fly-fishing lesson soon
began.
Paddling into our first
stop, we spooked a
substantial school of large
black drum and decided to
stake out the canoe and wade
with the hopes the school
would settle down. The fish
were still present as we
waded back into the area,
but the hip deep muddy water
made site fishing tricky,
and we soon gave up hopes of
a clean shot. As we worked
our way back to the canoe,
John initiated my fishing
lesson by scoring the first
of what he called stupid
redfish. I was next to have
a good shot at a nice
redfish, but I planted my
fly squarely between his
eyes, and as it bolted in
the direction of John, John
presented the perfect cast
and the waking fish slammed
on the brakes and devoured
Johns fly. Fish number two
was on, and before we
departed stop number one,
Johns score was three
respectable redfish and two
hefty sea trout to my squat.
Next, John polled me along
the shore and we quickly
spotted another stupid fish
swimming straight at us, and
I missed the strike four
times before finally
sticking the fat redfish.
As I worked my redfish to
the boat, three more redfish
approached, and John hooked
one for what would be the
first of our four double
hookups.
The hot bite continued for
the remainder of the trip,
and at one point John asked
me when I was planning on
calling it a day. Together
we agreed that this day
would only end when the fish
wised up or the sun set. We
quickly lost count of the
number of quality fish
caught, but a conservative
estimate would be about 30
redfish up to 20 pounds, and
at least 25 sea trout up to
7 pounds. All with the
exception of four fish were
taken on clouser minnows,
chartreuse and black, orange
and black, and purple and
black. Oh by the way, John
ended the day catching
another hefty redfish on his
last cast only a couple
hundred yards from the ramp,
as the sun settled into the
lagoon.
Now, you may think this was
the most unbelievable
fishing story youve ever
heard before, but today I
returned to the Zone with
both of my mentors, Captain
John and Captain Rodney
Smith, and the catching
greatly improved over
Monday.
We pushed away from our
launch site at about 0830
facing a gentle north
breeze, and clear sunny
skis. As the day grew
longer, the air warmed up,
the breeze lay down, and our
catching bonanza commenced.
Combined, we each caught
double the amount of fish
taken on Monday, with a
number of triple hook-ups,
and we each caught a slam,
redfish, sea trout, and
snook. Top hook for the day
was Captain John, with a fat
30-pound plus redfish. The
majority of the fish caught
were top of the slot or
larger, and again taken on
various flies. Yes, I am
convinced there are fish
gods, and this week, they
have been grinning from ear
to ear.
On a side note, only a few
black drum were seen on the
flat with none taken, so I
still have a big black drum
on fly on my list for later.
As always, if you have any
questions or need
information, please contact
me.
Good luck and great fishing,
Captain Tom Van Horn
www.irl-fishing.com
407-416-1187 on the water
407-366-8085 office
866-790-8081 toll free
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