Bait is thick right now in the ICW, especially south of the rte. 100 bridge in Flagler Beach. There are large schools of Menhaden, Mullet, Shrimp and Glass Minnows moving with the tides. With all the bait that is available to predator fish it can make catching them difficult at times. They become more selective about the choices anglers present to them.
Try matching the bait that is in the area you are fishing. For example: when there is menhaden around try throwing something like a 17 MR Mirrolure. When retrieving this lure, as with other artificial lures, try to make it look like a wounded baitfish. Twitch it and then pause it then twitch and pause again. It is usually on the pause when a fish will strike it. When it comes to mullet try a Mirrolure catch “2000”. This is a sub surface lure that looks like a mullet and is very effective when fished the same way as the 17 MR or in a “walk the dog” motion.
There are numerous shrimp imitations on the market and the D.O.A. shrimp is one that comes to mind. Fish this the same way you would free line a live shrimp, very slowly.
The only thing I haven’t found a good imitation of is the glass minnow. The closest I can come to one is a fly fishing pattern.
The reason I am mentioning these artificial baits is that it can become hard this time of year to get live shrimp at your tackle shop. If you don’t know how to throw a cast net or just don’t feel like it, artificial baits can save the day for a fishing trip.
Fortunately last week I was able to get shrimp for 2 trips that I had. Both trips had mangrove snapper, jacks, ladyfish, flounder, redfish and trout, lots of trout.
Jeffery Lademann and I went looking for snook and tarpon in the Tamoka River this past Friday. On our way up the river we saw a couple of huge explosions under a dock light. We went and worked the area but came up empty handed. Further up the river Jeffery landed a small snook with Catch 2000 and I landed one on a fly. There was tarpon all over the place but we couldn’t get any to eat our artificial baits. Sunday afternoon Capt Ralph Olivett and I headed out Matanzas Inlet in search of tarpon but came up empty handed. There were lots of schools of menhaden but no tarpon feeding on them. Next time we will try early in the morning when the tarpon seem to feed the best.