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INSHORE JUNE 2008 CAPT VAN HORN

Indian River Lagoon Coast Fishing Report

First, let me wish all of you dads a happy Fathers Day.

As we approach the summer solstice in the tropic of cancer, long hot days set the stage for some of the hottest fishing experienced along Florida's Indian River Lagoon Coast all year. Long hot days also signal a shift in strategy to fishing early in the morning and late in the evening and at night to beat the heat and our typical afternoon thunderstorms.

My first adventure this past week was a near-shore trip out of Port Canaveral with one of my longtime fishing buddy and best friend Mike Murray, and our plan was to target kingfish along the beach. We left the Port heading south along the beach, and we quickly located and netted pogies just south of the pier. After acquiring bait, we immediately started trolling live baits with no success. That's when we started looking instead of fishing, covering 40 miles of ocean with only one shark, one barracuda, and a 50-pound class tarpon who released itself after leader touch. As it turned out, the kingfish were staging in about 30 feet of water, one of the only locations we didn't look.

Next, it was off to Jensen Beach to attend the D.O.A. Outdoor Writers conference held at the River Palms Cottages, where I had the opportunity rub shoulders with an outstanding group of journalist while we learned and fished with D.O.A.'s newest products. Hosted by Captain Mark Nichols and his staff, the event also included two days of fishing with members of the D.O.A. Pro Staff.

On my first day of fishing, I had the pleasure of spending the day with another great friend and mentor Captain Rodney Smith as we were skippered by local angling guru Frank Caimotto. Frank's plan was to run north to Fort Pierce and fish the inside for snook, sea trout, and redfish, and then work our way out the inlet and south down the beach to the Stewart Inlet. The plan worked out great as we boated eight different species of fish all caught on D.O.A. Lures. The highlight of the day was a 5 foot sailfish that fired up on our jigs before departing in 15 foot of water right off of the beach. Frank did an excellent job putting us on fish, and it was great to fish with someone else doing all of the work.

On my second day of fishing, I was paired up with Robin Smilley of Florida Sportsman Magazine, and the legendary guide Captain Squeaky Kelly. Day two was only a four hour trip, and our plan was to target snook in the inlet and then tarpon on the beach. Once we arrived at the inlet the tide wasn't right, so we ended up working the beach south. In a matter of minutes Squeaky had us on a pod of tarpon, but they swam right into us before we could get a decent cast off. The rest of the morning we spent running the beach looking instead of catching, and that is why they call it fishing.

All in all it was a great week of fishing, and I would like to thank Captain Mark Nichols and the staff of D.O.A Lures for the great time and their assume hospitality.

As always, if you have any questions of need information, please contact me.

Good luck and good fishing,

Captain Tom Van Horn
http://www.irl-fishing.com
407-416-1187 on the water
407-366-8085 landline

Kingfish Stinger Rig

Currently, conditions off of Florida's east central coastal beaches are prime for targeting heavy duty game fish using a light tackle approach. The water is clean right to the beach and the kingfish and other predators (jumbo jacks, tarpon, and sharks) have pushed pods of pogies (Atlantic menhaden) and other baitfish into shallow water (15 to 40 feet), and slow trolling live baitfish on steel stinger rigs can reward you with fast and furious drag screaming action.

Due to the keen vision and razor sharp teeth of kingfish, it is important to use the shortest length and lightest wire leader as possible and still have a good chance of landing the big fish. Lowering the profile of your terminal rig will greatly improve your chances of a strike, and in some cases, can even making the difference in catching a fish at all. It is also very important when utilizing a light tackle approach to counter their long speedy runs and sharp teeth of a kingfish with a light drag setting on your reel. The combination of a light drag setting and the extreme speed and long run of a kingfish will often smoke the line off of your reel, thus the term smoker kingfish. Most inshore kingfish range in the 20 pound class, but it is not unheard of to tie into a 40 to 60 pound smoker, a 100-pound class tarpon, or a 30 to 40-pound jack carvalle or shark.

With these thoughts in mind, here is how I approach this situation. First, you need a medium heavy rod and reel combination spooled up with at least 200 yards of 20-pound test braided line or 30 to 40-pound monofilament. Next, I like using about 8 to 10 feet of 30-pound fluorocarbon leader, and if big tarpon are a possibility I tip the end with several feet of 50-pound test. Next, I attach my stinger rig which is described below:

I start by attaching a very small swivel (Sea Striker Bill Fisher Krok 70-pound test stainless steel swivel) to 18-inch of #2 or #4 American Fishing Wire stainless steel leader brown in color, using a haywire twist. I like using darker leader colors to keep toothy fish like small Spanish mackerel and kingfish from striking the flashy swivel high, thus reducing cutoffs. The #2 leader is rated for 27-pounds and the # 4 is rated for 38-pounds. Larger kingfish can cut through the lighter leader during extended battles, but the finesse of the light rig is required to gain the strike in the first place. Next, I twist in a VMC #1 Fast Grip Kingfish Live Bait hook. For the stinger I attach a VMC #4X Treble Hook to 4 to 7 inches of #4 American Fishing Wire leader, and then twist in the opposite end through both the loop and the eye of the VMC #1 hook.

Once you have netted live bait and it's in the live well, hook the #1 Live Bait hook through the bait's nose from side to side, and the 4X stinger near the tail. For best results your bait should swim as naturally as possible. When kingfish strikes a bait, they often slice thought the tail to crippling the bait, and then quickly turn around and eat it. With the stinger near the tail, you have a greater chance of a hook up on a short strike. I also like to troll three baits. The first (short bait) directly in the prop wash of your engine, the middle bait about 20 feet back, and than a long bait about 50 feet back. This arrangement helps keep the live baits from swimming into each other, and it prevents tangles during turns. Also, I like to troll my baits at the slowest speed my boat will run to allow the baits to swim rather than skip across the water.

Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report by Captain Chris Myers

Wind has been the dominant factor in our fishing for th past two weeks. Add in some clouds along with smoke from numerous fires and sight fishing has been nearly impossible on most days. The last two days, the winds have finallysubsided but the clouds persist. On a positive note, the fish have been plentiful and bait is everywhere. As soon as the weather stabilizes, fishing should be as good as it gets.

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Tight Lines and Let's Go Fishing,

Captain Tom Van Horn
Mosquito Coast Fishing Charters
407-416-1187
http://www.irl-fishing.com