Mosquito Creek Outdoors Indian River Lagoon Coast Fishing Forecast



August 2011



By Captain Tom Van Horn



Upcoming Seminars and Events



Saturday, August 13th Introduction to Fly Fishing



10:00 - 12 Noon, Free Introduction to Fly Fishing Class instructed by FFF Certified Instructor and veteran Mosquito lagoon Fishing Guide Captain Chris Myers. Located in the Outback section of Mosquito Creek Outdoor, 170 South Washington Ave. Apopka Florida www.mosquitocreek.com



August 13th Captain Rick Murphy and his tour will be at the Apopka Winn Dixie 9 am
to 4pm.



Saturday, August 20th Snook Fishing



10: 00 - 12:00 Snook Fishing Tactics "Free Seminars" instructed by Captains Tom Van Horn, Chris Myers, "Snook Fishing Tactics ", located in the Outback at Mosquito Creek Outdoors, 170 South Washington Ave., Apopka Florida, www.mosquitocreek.com.



Nikon Digiscope and photography demo with Tom Dunkerton at the Viera



Wetlands near Melbourne 8 am to Noon



National Wild Turkey Fredration Banquet at the Apopka VFW 5 pm



September 3rd Fishing Seminar Mullet Run in the Outback at Mosquito Creek 10 am to 12pm.

September 10th 9 am Fly Casting class at Mosquito Creek Outdoors with Capt Chris Myers $75.00 per person limit of 6. www.mosquitocreek.com



August Fishing Outlook



The heat is on, as fishing opportunities kick in along the Indian River Lagoon Coast of Florida. So far, the summer squalls have stayed away, and as long as they do, fishing along the beaches and in the inlets will remain equally as hot.

Along the beach, look for the silver kings (tarpon), smoker kings, blacktip sharks, jumbo jack crevalle, and redfish to be shadowing pods of Atlantic menhaden (pogies), threadfin herring (greenies), Spanish sardines, and bay anchovy (glass minnows) in close to the beach. Also look for snook fishing in the surf to improve as we get closer to the commencement of the fall bait run. Remember snook are out of season, so if you target them, please handle and release them with extreme care. In and around the inlets, look for Spanish mackerel, tarpon, jack cervalle, and bonita to be working schools of glass minnows on the outside, and snook, redfish, mangrove snapper, and flounder in the area of jetties and other structure. If snook are of interest, Sebastian Inlet is the place to be.


Look for the blue water bite to improve along the inshore reefs and wrecks of Chris Benson, 8A Reef, and Pelican Flats, with kingfish, dolphin, black fin tuna, and cobia serving as the primary species, along with an occasional wahoo or sailfish. This is also the time of year when cooler waters sometimes pushes the giant manta rays in close to the shoals off the Cape, bringing cobia with them. Further off shore, the Gulf Stream typically moves in closer making tuna a possibility for smaller boats working in the areas of anchored shrimp boats and thermals, and as long as the summer squalls (tropical storms) stay away, running to the other side of the stream isn't out of the question.

Angling on the in-shore lagoons will continue to show improvement, with fishing in the predawn and late evening hours being most productive. Look for small groups of redfish in the skinny water holding in the vicinity of bait concentration, and target them utilizing smaller top-water plugs like the Storm Chug Bug. Once the sun starts to grow hot and the top-water bite will slows down, bait becomes your better option. For larger trout, fish live pigfish in close to docks and other structure adjacent to deeper water. In deeper water, look for large schools of ladyfish, small trout, and tarpon pushing schools of glass minnows near the surface. When these schools move in, they are easy to locate by watching for concentrations of birds, terns and cormorants joining in on the frenzy, and they are perfect for fly anglers who are interested in the continuous fast and furious action provided by these speedsters. Last but not least, look for pompano schools holding in the shadows of the causeway bridges. Fish jigs tipped with shrimp or sand fleas (mole crabs) along the deeper edges and drop-offs.

As always, if you have any questions or need help, please contact me.



Good luck and good fishing,



Captain Tom Van Horn

Mosquito Coast Fishing Charters

(407) 416-1187 on the water





























Mosquito Creek Outdoors Indian River Lagoon Coast Fishing Report, June 19, 2011



Upcoming Seminars and Events



Saturday, July 2nd Summer Lagoon Tactics



10: 00 - 12:00 Summer Lagoon Fishing Tactics "Free Seminars" instructed by Captains Tom Van Horn, Chris Myers, "Summer Tactics for Redfish and Sea Trout", located in the Outback at Mosquito Creek Outdoors, 170 South Washington Ave., Apopka Florida, www.mosquitocreek.com.


This Weeks Fishing Report



It was a crazy week on the Lagoon as the IFA Redfish Tour paid visit with their 61 tournament teams buzzing around pre fishing for yesterday's event. Add this extra angling pressure to the normal weekend crowed and the beautiful weather and the results equaled a Zoo on the water.



Despite all of the craziness, we still experienced some decent fishing for sea trout and the larger redfish which are not the targets of the Redfish tour. The shining star this summer has been the sea trout, with some good fish coming on top-water plugs very early in the morning fishing in two to three feet of water in the areas of active mullet schools. Redfish have also been mixed in with the mullet, but they haven't been fining up very well making them hard to see. For sea trout, the smaller Rapala Skitterwalks preformed well with a DOA silver glitter shrimp at a close second. For redfish, cover the flats looking for mullet schools. Once located, watch closely for fins just breaking the surface and toss in a DOA Shrimp or a fresh chunk of mullet, ladyfish or pinfish.



Fish behavior is much different this year compared to past both in the Lagoon and along the beach. Inside the Lagoon, I have yet to see the schools of glass minnows we normally show up around the first of June, and I haven't seen the first tarpon on the inside. Outside in the near-shore waters out of Port Canaveral, the kingfish and tarpon have not shown up in the concentrations seen last year.



Along the beach, we experienced a large amount of bait schools (pogies), but very little predators feeding on them. On a yesterday's tarpon charter, we located an area with hundreds of rolling fish, but only managed to get one to eat, which came unbuttoned after its third jump. On the bright side we did find fish, and I did see one nice kingfish caught on the Port Canaveral buoy line. Also, the seas are starting to settle down, so it's only a matter of time before things improve.



The July fishing forecast are by all Coastal Angler Magazine Orlando Captains are posted, so visit:

http://coastalanglermag.com/orlando/.



As always, if you have any questions or need help, please contact me.

Good luck and good fishing,

Captain Tom Van Horn
Mosquito Coast Fishing Charters
(407) 416-1187 on the water

www.irl-fishing.com



For all of your outdoor adventure equipment needs, visit Mosquito Creek Outdoors at www.mosquitocreek.com.





Mosquito Creek Outdoors Angler Improvement Clinics



2011 Clinic Schedule











Become a better angler by learning from the pros.



Veteran lagoon fishing guides Captains Chris Myers and Tom Van Horn will provide instruction on the skills and techniques necessary to become a more successful angler through free seminars, provided as a service to you by Mosquito Creek Outdoors and Coastal Angler Magazine Orlando. Would you like to learn what it takes to be a successful Angler? Here is your chance and all it will cost you is your time.



Saturday, August 13th Introduction to Fly Fishing



10:00 - 12 Noon, Free Introduction to Fly Fishing Class instructed by FFF Certified Instructor and veteran Mosquito lagoon Fishing Guide Captain Chris Myers. Located in the Outback section of Mosquito Creek Outdoor, 170 South Washington Ave. Apopka Florida www.mosquitocreek.com



Saturday, August 20th Snook Fishing



10: 00 - 12:00 Snook Fishing Tactics "Free Seminars" instructed by Captains Tom Van Horn, Chris Myers, "Snook Fishing Tactics ", located in the Outback at Mosquito Creek Outdoors, 170 South Washington Ave., Apopka Florida, www.mosquitocreek.com.


Saturday, September 3rd Fishing the Mullet Run



10: 00 - 12:00 "Free Seminars" instructed by Captains Tom Van Horn, Chris Myers, "Preparing for the Fall Mullet Run", located in the Outback at Mosquito Creek Outdoors, 170 South Washington Ave., Apopka Florida, www.mosquitocreek.com.



Saturday, September 10th Introduction to Fly Fishing



10:00 - 12 Noon, Free Introduction to Fly Fishing Class instructed by FFF Certified Instructor and veteran Mosquito lagoon Fishing Guide Captain Chris Myers. Located in the Outback section of Mosquito Creek Outdoor, 170 South Washington Ave. Apopka Florida www.mosquitocreek.com



Saturday, October 22nd Fall Lagoon Tactics

10: 00 - 12:00 Fall Lagoon Fishing Tactics "Free Seminars" instructed by Captains Tom Van Horn, Chris Myers, "Fall Tactics for Redfish and Sea Trout", located in the Outback at Mosquito Creek Outdoors, 170 South Washington Ave., Apopka Florida, www.mosquitocreek.com.



Saturday, November 5th, Flounder and Pompano

10: 00 - 12:00 Flounder and Pompano "Free Seminars" instructed by Captains Tom Van Horn, Chris Myers, "Fall Tactics for Flounder and Pompano", located in the Outback at Mosquito Creek Outdoors, 170 South Washington Ave., Apopka Florida, www.mosquitocreek.com.

Saturday, November 12th Introduction to Fly Fishing

10:00 - 12 Noon, Free Introduction to Fly Fishing Class instructed by FFF Certified Instructor and veteran Mosquito lagoon Fishing Guide Captain Chris Myers. Located in the Outback section of Mosquito Creek Outdoor, 170 South Washington Ave. Apopka Florida www.mosquitocreek.com





Tight Lines and Let's Go Fishing,

Captain Tom Van Horn
Mosquito Coast Fishing Charters
407-416-1187
http://www.irl-fishing.com