The Report from Spotted Tail 11/20/11
I'm smoking some salmon as I write this. Good eating, coming right up!
Best wishes to everyone for a blessed Thanksgiving. Try making a list of all you're thankful for. My own short list would be my wife, my boys, my health, my friends, the fact I was born American, and the wonderful way I get to earn such living as I make. Life is great!
The water level gauge dropped as low as 0.4 this past week, although it's going up again. A significant event (to me) occurred this week- I got my first redfish from the kayak since coming back from Alaska.
I wrote last week, "Wednesday found me at one of my favorite paddle spots on the Indian River Lagoon. Of course the water was too high. That's been a recurring theme. The water was also very dark. I lost sight of the paddle blade about halfway down… there were fish blowing up along the shoreline."
I was back to that spot on Thursday. The water, although still dark in places, was cleaner, lower, and dropping. The wind was out of the west but fairly mild. But it was still overcast, as a front was moving in.
There was a flowing culvert with fish blowing up around it. Using a Mosquito Lagoon Special I got a slot red and a nice trout. Then I threw the fly into a tree and lost it.
I switched to a redfish worm and got another slot red, missing another. I changed flies hoping to entice the missed fish into another mistake, but no dice.
Getting back into the kayak I went looking for fish. One tailed a short distance ahead of me. I stopped and waited for it to show itself again.
I could barely see the tiny ripples the tips of its fins made on the surface. When it took the Estaz crab the leader was in the tip of the rod. Yahoo! A fish from the kayak, again! It felt good, I'll tell you. The paddle season is officially here.
Friday Dr. George Yarko and I launched at River Breeze. The wind was howling out of the northeast at 20-25. The cold front had come through, dropping the water level about six inches and the water temperature almost four degrees. I reasoned that the fish would have dropped into holes and sloughs. We fished five spots, just chunking mullet. In one spot we got two out-of-the-slot reds, and one 24 inch fish. In the rest of the spots we got nothing.
When I cleaned that 24 inch fish it had the remains of a small fish, probably a pinfish, in its stomach.
Yesterday and today are honey-do days as we prepare for our guests on Thursday. And I have to monitor the smoker, so, see ya! Have a great Thanksgiving!
Embrace simplicity.
Life is great and I love my work!
Life is short- go fishing!
John Kumiski
http://www.spottedtail.com/
All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2011. All rights are reserved.
