[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he bulk of my effort in July will be focused on the near-shore waters of the Atlantic and Sebastian Inlet. There are the kingfish, cobia, bonito and jack crevalle within a couple miles of the beach. They can provide fast paced run and gun options when they are breaking on bait pods, or more often slow trolling live bait will allow a relaxing way to wind up connected to a large specimen of one of the above mentioned species. Slow trolling live mullet and pogies has yielded kings pushing 40-pounds as well as plenty of 25-plus-pound jacks. The little tunny (bonita) have been gorging themselves with glass minnows and fish fry every morning and will usually hit a small diving plug ripped through the feeding frenzy. Dolphin and cobia have also moved into small boat range of Sebastian Inlet and can be slow-trolled up or cast to when sighted around floating weeds or basking turtles.
Sebastian Inlet is a great place to find action from redfish and snook in July. Live bait is the way to go during the day and pigfish, croakers or pinfish can pay off in the form of photos of oversized reds and snook. Night fishing is cooler and easier, as inlet predators will take artificial lures after dark.
The Indian River Lagoon is showing some signs of trying to re-establish some grass beds. There are some gator trout, reds and snook along the shorelines of the lagoon, especially around docks and oyster bars. Trout can be found scattered around in troths on the flats and around deeper water structure. One thing I have some success with in the summer when I can’t get in the ocean, is drifting open water casting jigs and plugs for anything that bites, such as ladyfish, jacks, blues, and more. When we catch a ladyfish, I put it out on a steel leader and let it drag behind the boat for shark. It is amazing, how quickly the sharks find the struggling ladyfish. Most are bull sharks in the 50- to 100-pound range and are released without attempting to bring in the boat.
The Sebastian River has continued to provide a tarpon fishing option for my clients. I am able to hook up from two to ten juvenile tarpon most mornings on D.O.A. Terror-Eyz.
Sebastian is a great place to visit and a better place to live. For more Sebastian Area fishing and real estate info check out the frequently updated videos on my website homepage at: www.WelcomeToSebastian.com.
Tight lines!