Fishing Forum

April 26, 2007

Inshore:

April sure isn't going out quietly. Lots of windy weather this week to keep you guessing about the weather patterns. We faced lots of wind this week, but fishing has been good if you can fish in these blustery conditions. Looks like the weekend will be a little on the windy side, but this won't last much longer as summer nears the Treasure Coast.



Tim Freeman with his uncle, Paul, caught redfish this week...

Redfish are back and gathering for their summer jaunts around the flats. We encountered a good number of redfish in small schools this week and Tim Freeman and his uncle, Paul, boated three nice reds, including a double hook-up on the flats. Live bait, soft baits and twitch baits worked best for us and most of the favorite redfish flats should be showing signs of activity now. As the water warms up, look for an increase in redfish sightings around the river.



Paul and Tim also caught some nice trout this week....

Snook fishing around the bridges has been spotty most of the week with all the windy weather. Fewer anglers braved the conditions so reports are fewer of late. Tim and Paul each had a nice snook while enduring the windy stuff out there. We lost another good sized one down south on the eastern flats on a top water lure. Live bait is best around the inlet area, while top water or live bait works well along the flats. Early mornings have been best on the flats.



Paul and Tim topped off the week with a few snook too!

Trout slowed down earlier in the week or at least you could find few places to fish for them. We found one day that we could slowly drift the flats. Paul and Tim caught a number of very nice trout from 18" up to 22" in just a few hours. Most were hitting soft baits and twitch baits for them. Look for clear water flats that hold sandy area around the grasses. A lot of areas were difficult to fish most of the time.

We did manage the usual smorgasbord of the varied aqua critters that also inhabit the river. Ladyfish, jacks and a host of others are out there more than willing to take your baits and lures. Bridge fishing slowed down, but some snapper, sheephead and black drum are still being taken off the catwalks. Bluefish, spanish mackerel and jacks have continued to rule the jetties. Beaches, when fishable, have been yielding whiting to those anglers.

Tip of the Week: In less than two hours on the flats, we observed three boats run aground in the shallow waters. One pontoon boat sat there twice in less than a foot of water racing the engine at full throttle in an attempt to get off the flats. What a waste of our environment that is fragile enough as it is without a few idiots out there helping to make it worse! If you leave the channel in unfamiliar waters...slow down and learn to read the water. Boats are expensive enough, too. Please take care of our waters and also your boats......

As always, remember, fishing is not just another hobby....it's an ADVENTURE!!

Good Fishing and Be Safe,
Captain Charlie Conner

[url "http://www.fishtalescharter.com"]www.fishtalescharter.com[/url]
email: [url "mailto:captaincharlie@fishtalescharter.com"]captaincharlie@fishtalescharter.com[/url]
772-284-3852
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That's a good tip skipper. Even for the experianced angler, it's wise to take a slow joy ride from time to time with the sonar on and note any changes that might have occured. Creeks and channels have a tendacy to change, sand bars can move, and banks can shift.

I never fish a new body of water until I scout it out first. It's also difficult to be effective at fishing while doing so blindly in a body of water you don't know.

Proper maintenance on your boat is also part of that same ordeal. I towed someone to the dock just this past sunday because of a faulty steering rod. This could have been prevented by simply doing routine inspections of your equipment. [cool]
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