Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Indian River Lagoon.....a little scenicism.

This is a terrible way to have to live, ain't it? 

Indian River Lagoon near Jensen Beach, Florida

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

BIG FISH!!!!!!

Well, we had a winnah at the pier today in the "Big Fish" category at Jensen Beach Causeway.  I'm mildly envious, too.  He was next to me in the pier, and he hooked into this monster 40 pound +/- Jack.  His name is withheld for privacy reasons.















My little Blue Runner paled in comparison.

















Fishing was very slow, though today, again at the Causeway.  The tide came in so fast my bait was planing on the surface with even my big baitcaster rod and 6 oz of lead weights on the head of the leader on the main causeway pier.  There was an inordinate amount of weed floating in as well that kept fouling everyone's hooks.

In addition, the Army Corp of Engineers is reducing the water levels in Okeechobee, so the salinity is down again in the Indian River Lagoon, which is adversely affecting the fishing.

Monday, June 17, 2013

Stuart Causeway and Jensen Beach Causeway and Elsewhere

The bite was slow and small this afternoon at both bridges, Stuart A1A Causeway and Jensen Beach Causeway.  All I got was nibbles and a lost rig at Stuart, and over at Jensen Beach, I caught a whopping 2 Grunts and a Red Snapper too small to keep.  In both cases, I tried the East sides today, rather than the west  Both locations were crowded and not really pleasant to fish.  Then again, it was Father's Day, today and there were lots of families at all locations, and it's no surprise that all locations were swamped.

Conditions at Stuart are shallow with a sloping drop and beach conditions.  The East side of Jensen Beach causeway has a large grassbed on the downstream side of the bridge  with  an inbound tide.  If you are using a rig that depends on a tidal float to get out away from the dock, this location really isn't for you. One of my pol4es is a vintage Lamiglass pole with roller guides and Penn Senator reel from the 1950's, for example, strung with 80 pound test.  Not really a good pole for this location, although the west side is a perfect location for it with stronger tidal flow and no deep weed bed to snag your hook if you are trying to stream with a float on  the tide.   Water depth is around 8 feet, though off the pier.  The fish in the east side seem to run more to smaller snappers and grunts.

On my way home, I stopped and made a few casts at the small riverside park in Stuart at SW Gaines and SE Paulson near Lost River Road.  Water conditions were murky and black.  This isn't unusual.  I got a few nibbles on some shrimp, but no solid bites.

Tomorrow, St Lucie Locks is on the agenda for both some salt and freshwater fishing.

Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Welcome!

Welcome to the Martin County, Florida Fishing Report.  Recent fishing conditions in the Indian River lagoon around the Jensen Beach causeway.  Tropical Storm Andrea dumped a huge amount of rain and the runoff reduced the salinity in the lagoon, so we've had a few days of poor to mediocre fishing.

Salinity is returning to normal levels, though and as a result fishing is improving.  My last trip was 6/10/13 and I had a pretty good day.  I baited with shrimp, squid, and swam a live fish (Pinfish) on my heavy action rod. Catch was 2 sheephead, one spadefish and one 25" Bluefish.  The Blue I caught on the live bait on my heavy.







Hobe Sound:  No bites of note and mostly bait thief small fish at the Greenfield Park Fishing Dock.