Well the blustering temperarures of 90's and a heat index of 104 make for some very uncomfortable conditions for the angler. Couple the temperature with high water, afternoon thunderstorms and water temperatures in the high 80's . Although most of these are not the prime conditions for the angler, the fish are very comfortable in all of the above situations. Getting an early start before daybreak is definately the way to go to enjoy the best of both worlds and be off the water in time for lunch and a refreashing beverage.

Early morning trips are producing slot to slightly oversized redfish in the mosquito lagoon and the indian river. When the grass is not too thick the topwater action is hard to beat, and if you are not too intimidated by a little grass on your plug sticking with it has been very productive. Smaller plugs like the super spook jr in bone color have been the favorites because of size. Another advantage of the smaller plug is that it is easier for the fish to inhale on the initial strike, rather than the need to kill and recover method that sometimes results in a missed fish. The second most important thing in choosing a topwater lure is the "sound chamber" that the lure produces. This in itself can be the difference in calling fish or scaring them away from the lure. Lures with loud rattles "heavy sound chambers" are more suited for deeper water where the sound needs to travel a great distance, 3 ft water depth. Lighter "sound chambers" are more attractive in shallow water as the typically mimic not only smaller baitfish but indicate this forage is in a happy envioroment. Lastly is color and I will have to admit, all baitfish have light colored bellies.

With the changing water levels we also get large mats of floating grass throughtout the flats and the open water. As the temperature rises during the day many of these fish seek refuge under the grass awaiting an easy meal in a comfortable setting. Approaching these areas quietly and paying close attention can result in some exceptional opportunities. A weedless jerk bait is usually a good choice when playing in the grass and often looks like something that is fleeing from cover. Overall I am convinced that a watermellon colored soft plastic will out fish any other color plastic on any given day. The Exude Dart in Mangrove Red is my "go to" year round. If the dark color is not producing I switch to a "natural shrimp" color. Another key factor is the size of the lure, at 4 inches it is also an easy meal that requires very little effort to consume. Higher water temperatures also come with a disadvantage to the fish as they cannot sustain long fights on light tackle resulting in a greater mortality rate. I have had several fish that required up to 15 minutes or revival to get them going again, and these are slot sized fish.

Fly anglers have had their choice of redfish, black drum and trout on most days making this a great time to land a fish on fly. Early morning tailers have been the best bet so far using crab patterns. As the sun gets higher we are spotting fish on the flats at around 50 feet and enjoying some explosive strikes from some well placed casts. As the season continues the Trophy redfish will have formed larger groups and will become very agressive taking almost any offering. Most of the fish have been in the upper to just over slot size, with the largest fish on fly comming in around 16lbs. We have a great black drum population in both the river and lagoon and finding a school of them is always exciting as well as some excellant table fare as most of the fish are in the 7 to 10 lb class. Sometimes it's hard to catch a limit under 24 inches as most seem to be around 25 to 27 inches, but fun non the less. This is a great time to get out and ad a new dimension to you angling skills if you are not already a flyfisher.

The highlight of my month was a trip that I donated to the "Biegler Family" a fundraiser held here locally in titusville for the family that has had some misfortunes and health issues. You may remember "Tank" Biegler from the american gladiators show. Brian a long time family friend was the lucky winner of the auction and wanted to take his special angler "Mike" the son of his Girlfriend. While we had many opportunities at small groups of fish, the excitement of casting at tailing redfish was at times too overwhelming for the both of them. We did end up with a very respectable 29" fish taken on artificial. Niether angler had the desire to use bait and were happy to have seen so many fish. At the end of the day we had shots at fish well over 30 lbs, but they would have nothing to do with the lures.

One of the best times of the year to experience non stop action is to get out just after a heavy down pour of rain and fish the flowing water from the backcountry impoundments. If you are lucky enough to be one of the first to fish these areas you can bet you will be rewarded with hungry fish feeding aggressively for a good period of time. Even the rain will not turn off the bite in these conditions, it does however turn off most anglers. I put the rain suit on and make my way to the promised land in hopes of non stop action on my fly rod. The primary food source at these out flows are small finger mullet and glass minnows. Downsizing your tackle and lures will produce more strikes from most of the fish. Fishing these areas very early in the morning or late afternoon just before dark have been the best times to target larger species like redfish, snook,trout and small tarpon. Topwater lures get a good bit of attention if you see fish crushing bait on top. Fishing weighted jerkbaits on the outside of the bait pods has been the best technique for the redfish that are looking for an easy meal without working for it. On several days we fished a single culvert and caught over 100 fish without moving the boat. The key to these days was getting on the water as soon as the front passed.

After working baitfish type lures like the storm wild eye shad or simular type swim jig, change over to a doa shrimp to introduce a different type of forage for the fish. They seem to get used to the same lure after an hour or so and the bite slows down. While in this smorgasboard of bait take the time to net up a few livies and be sure to toss one out the back free lined.

Trophy redfish are also a favorite for this time of the year as the schools of breeder sized fish in the 25 to 50 lb class begin to stage in areas to spawn. Finding groups of these fish in shallow water with their tails above the water is sure sign they are eating. Most of the fish landed have been in the 23 to 36 lb class with a few larger fish lost. For several years I have been following an estimated 60lb fish that stays with one particular group of fish, but I have not had her on the end of a line yet, she dwarfs the 30 to 40 lb fish she is with by more than half their size. If you are lucky enough to get on these fish eary they agressively take topwater as well kinda sounds like a cinder block falling into the water. While live pinfish are used by most of the anglers a well placed chunk of ladyfish or mullet will get the job done. A live blue crab is almost a sure hook up as the crab population in the river and the mosquito lagoon has been at it's lowest for a few years now and seeing a blue crab is like finding a diamond in the rough.

Be careful on the water and watch the weather, storms can form in a matter of minutes. One of the good things about fishing inshore here is you can usually be back at the ramp in a matter of minutes if things start to go bad. As always feel free to contact me if I can help with making your day more productive on the water, I answer e mails and the phone as well. Good luck and may the winds lie down enough to get some quality time on the water!

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