11-11-2004, 05:33 PM
After getting hammered with 2 major hurricanes on the Treasure Coast this season, the inland waters are beginning to show signs of improvement. Finger mullet that simply refused to enter the Indian and St. Lucie Rivers weeks after the storms are now roaming our waterways. The west bank of the Indian River is loaded with baitfish and is a definite good sign. The water is still brown but salinity levels are slowly creeping up. The diesel smell is gone and I believe things will get back to normal real soon.
Starting in the grassflats, trout are all over the place and why not. Season closed November 1st . Sometimes I believe these fish read the Stuart News knowing it’s safe to enhale anything that moves and they will be safely released. We have mainly been throwing DOA glow and rootbeer colored shrimp in 3-4 feet along with topwater plugs up close just outside the bait schools. Mixed in are some jacks to 5 pounds , flounders and bluefish. Since relocating To Pelican’s Nest Marina in the St. Lucie, I have not been running as far north on the Indian River as I would like but I have talked to a few guides telling me the trout bite is on north of the power plant to Fort Pierce. I expect to return to my home (AA Marina) on Indian River Drive January 1st. Remember the season is closed thru December so crimp those barbs and release these trout in good shape. When January rolls along, you will be glad you did.
Structure fishing inside at bridges and channel markers were really slow weeks after the storms but is on the rebound. Snook, tripletail, gag grouper, croakers, sheephead and black drum have begun to reappear eating shrimp on trollrites. Mangrove snapper have been a rare sight. Bridge fishermen off the quarter bridge have been banging sheephead using fiddler crabs. Speaking of the quarter bridge, pompano season is right around the corner. I’m not certain when DOT will halt bridge fishing for the new bridge construction but I have seen people fishing up there recently. If I hear anything I’ll post on next report.
The St. Lucie inlet has been a challenge. You may have 3 hours of decent water near the end of incoming tide and the first hour of outgoing. A few snook and jacks last week but that’s about it. Once that fresh water starts rolling out the St. Lucie, things go downhill. The detached jetty is holding small snapper, spots, blue runners which are perfect for bending those ultralite rods. Outside the rocks some sheephead and jacks with an occasional blue or Spanish.
Peck’s Lake is beginning to show Spanish Mackerel. Most fish are under 2 pounds with a few 3’s mixed in. I will be fishing there every chance I get this fall and winter (weather permitting). I have been rigging a combination of clark spoons, Capt. Joe’s silver jigging spoons, Gulfstream minnow jigs and green tube lures. I like to rig the following: using an Albright knot connect 36” of 40 lb. (mono or flurocarbon) to 10” of # 3 wire. Next, haywire twist your lure of choice to remaining wire allowing 6” length. Next I tie a black swivel to end of mono. Finally connect your mainline to swivel. To totally eliminate all “jewelry”, use a line to line knot instead of swivel. I prefer the swivel because I can pre-rig at home and is quicker for me with my Fred Flintstone fingers I was blessed with. The black swivel is important. Mackerel will go after a brass swivel that shines. The Mac’s have been scattered but chumming them up with glass minnow chum really gets their attention. In another month or so they will be so thick in there you can catch them on beef jerky!!!
We took a beating here in South Florida but conditions and fishing are slowly improving week by week. I’m looking forward to a great winter fishery and there is no place else I would rather live.
Capt. Bob Bushholz
http://www.catch22fish.com
(772) 225-6436
Starting in the grassflats, trout are all over the place and why not. Season closed November 1st . Sometimes I believe these fish read the Stuart News knowing it’s safe to enhale anything that moves and they will be safely released. We have mainly been throwing DOA glow and rootbeer colored shrimp in 3-4 feet along with topwater plugs up close just outside the bait schools. Mixed in are some jacks to 5 pounds , flounders and bluefish. Since relocating To Pelican’s Nest Marina in the St. Lucie, I have not been running as far north on the Indian River as I would like but I have talked to a few guides telling me the trout bite is on north of the power plant to Fort Pierce. I expect to return to my home (AA Marina) on Indian River Drive January 1st. Remember the season is closed thru December so crimp those barbs and release these trout in good shape. When January rolls along, you will be glad you did.
Structure fishing inside at bridges and channel markers were really slow weeks after the storms but is on the rebound. Snook, tripletail, gag grouper, croakers, sheephead and black drum have begun to reappear eating shrimp on trollrites. Mangrove snapper have been a rare sight. Bridge fishermen off the quarter bridge have been banging sheephead using fiddler crabs. Speaking of the quarter bridge, pompano season is right around the corner. I’m not certain when DOT will halt bridge fishing for the new bridge construction but I have seen people fishing up there recently. If I hear anything I’ll post on next report.
The St. Lucie inlet has been a challenge. You may have 3 hours of decent water near the end of incoming tide and the first hour of outgoing. A few snook and jacks last week but that’s about it. Once that fresh water starts rolling out the St. Lucie, things go downhill. The detached jetty is holding small snapper, spots, blue runners which are perfect for bending those ultralite rods. Outside the rocks some sheephead and jacks with an occasional blue or Spanish.
Peck’s Lake is beginning to show Spanish Mackerel. Most fish are under 2 pounds with a few 3’s mixed in. I will be fishing there every chance I get this fall and winter (weather permitting). I have been rigging a combination of clark spoons, Capt. Joe’s silver jigging spoons, Gulfstream minnow jigs and green tube lures. I like to rig the following: using an Albright knot connect 36” of 40 lb. (mono or flurocarbon) to 10” of # 3 wire. Next, haywire twist your lure of choice to remaining wire allowing 6” length. Next I tie a black swivel to end of mono. Finally connect your mainline to swivel. To totally eliminate all “jewelry”, use a line to line knot instead of swivel. I prefer the swivel because I can pre-rig at home and is quicker for me with my Fred Flintstone fingers I was blessed with. The black swivel is important. Mackerel will go after a brass swivel that shines. The Mac’s have been scattered but chumming them up with glass minnow chum really gets their attention. In another month or so they will be so thick in there you can catch them on beef jerky!!!
We took a beating here in South Florida but conditions and fishing are slowly improving week by week. I’m looking forward to a great winter fishery and there is no place else I would rather live.
Capt. Bob Bushholz
http://www.catch22fish.com
(772) 225-6436