By Keith Lozott, Contributing Writer
Fishing local is always super convenient and it is what most of us can afford to do in the first place these days. Fishing is proving to be a salvation for people that have been stuck inside their homes during the Covid 19 crisis. I for one need to be on the water casting a line at any inshore species to maintain my sanity!!!
A fishing buddy was able to come out with me for a day on the flats in Ft. Pierce. The wind was forecast to blow out of the west at 10-15 mph, so there was no better time to fish the west side of the Indian River Lagoon. The only issues we faced was high pressure and a full moon which can really shut down the trout bite. It proved to be the case when I spotted a school of speckled trout laid up shallow on the flat. I made several casts with go to lures that typically crush the trout. The fish didn’t respond and basically ignored my offerings. My fishing partner doesn’t have the experience that I do with trout and made a couple of critical errors. He bombed a cast right into the school of fish and spooked them instantly. After watching the fish takeoff at top speed after his lure blew them out, he won’t make that mistake again. You want to cast your lure well past the fish and bring it back with a subtle presentation to entice the fish to eat. One thing I’ve learned over time is that trout will go back to the same spot after they spook. Give them some time to calm down and you will most likely see them again.
Having diagnosed the trout with TMJ (lockjaw), I was focused on catching something that would bite. The few reds that I spotted had the same affliction and wouldn’t look at the bait. Next in line to save the day were a few small snook under the mangroves and one later that was over slot at 34.5 inches. I spotted the big girl cruising down the first drop off on the flat and I made a perfect cast. I was totally under gunned for a big snook, but if you’re far enough away from the mangroves you can make it happen. I was fishing a 2500 Daiwa reel spooled with 10 lb. braid and 25 lb. leader. I tossed a MirrOlure Lil John and reeled it right in front of her and she gobbled the lure instantly; the fight was on! We knew right away it was a big fish, so I took my time and made sure she didn’t get cut off by the trolling motor or trim tabs. Once I landed her, we took a quick photo and released her unharmed and fully revived. That fish was a day maker and probably in the running for fish of the year so far.
Keith Lozott The Fishing Realtor