Mosquito Lagoon

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Anticipation

After a short trip to the St. John's River testing out my new casting platform, I was excited to put it to the test in the Mosquito Lagoon near Oak Hill, Florida.

I designed and fabricated the custom platform after relentlessly searching pre-built platforms that would not fit my boat in hopes of sight fishing Redfish.

With spare materials laying around in my shop, I built a light weight wooden structure and covered it with FLEX SEAL Rubberized Paint ( I am not compensated for this endorsement ). I'm impressed with the outcome.

I mounted the platform with Aluminum eye bolts and aluminum turnbuckles connected to compartments on either side of the stern. 

(Scroll to bottom to see video)

Preparation

A tropical disturbance was inbound to Florida's east coast. I searched several sites and apps like Weatherbug, NOAA and Windy that I use regularly to stay up to date on weather conditions.

The system was working its way West and projected to hit near Jacksonville later in the day. As with all systems it had bands of rain extending outwards.

The system was not expected to intensify and was just an area to watch. From all of my research it appeared I had a five hour window to hit the lagoon and try my luck.

Let's Go!

I trailered my sixteen foot Cape Craft boat with the fancy new custom platform to Oak Hill. I stopped at Anchor Hardware, a family owned shop because I follow numerous guides on social media and they were all putting fish in the boat with FishBites Dirty Boxer Curly Tails.

I know I own my own Custom Poured Bait Company but I always support other companies because we are all in this together.

FishBites is a local company headquarterd in St. Augustine, Florida and has an amazing store you can visit.

I picked up a package of Dirty Boxer Curly Tails and Butt Kicker Paddle Tails and headed to the ramp just down the road.

Being Smart

I launched the boat in the intracoastal waterway and headed South. The skies were severely overcast and the wind was hardly present. A stark difference to all the predicted forecasts.

There were obvious showers in the distance to the East so I opted to stay close to the ramp (Just in case). 

I headed east into the lagoon and started fishing. My first realization was "Holy Cow, I can see for miles!" my second realization was "Man, these clouds are making it difficult to see the bottom!" 

The lagoon has a very consistent depth of about one foot nine inches. White sandy areas with grass cover the seafloor. With cloudy skies and a light wind being able to see the bottom or anything swimming in it becomes very hard, even with polarized glasses.

I threw the Dirty Boxer at the shore and at numerous bait pods for about an hour with no results.

Change Your Latitude

I still wasn't where I wanted to be where I had recently seen Redfish but I had seen them where I moved. The water was dark and cloudy apparently from all the recent wins. I worked my way around to a cove and saw tons of bait.

I worked halfway around the small cove using the remote control to slowly bump my MinnKota Riptide Trolling Motor making the least amount of noise possible.

Nothing..... Not even a bite.

Freedom

I cranked my 4 stroke Yamaha and pulled up the trolling motor. By now it looked like the showers had passed and I was anxious to hit a stretch of shoreline I could actually see Redfish.

I was suprised to first hear and then see two U.S. Navy Helicoptors flying just over the mangroves. An awesome site!

Sight Fishing

I idled South on the Intracoastal and cut through a couple of islands finally arriving on the site where the last two visits produced numerous Reds. I looked to the East and saw a rain shower quickly approaching.

Heading South with the trolling motor on MAX Speed, I barely outran it. I stopped at a nearby island and quickly realized why this area is called The Mosquito Lagoon!!! Holy &*@#!!!!! Thousands of mosquitos attacked me and I ran back to the water. 

Still overcast and the wind blowing ripples on the waters surface, the rain was gone and I headed back to my spot.

Being higher on my new platform I could see farther than before. I spotted a tailing Redfish foraging on the bottom with its tail out of the water five feet from shore. I was one hundred yards away but put the trolling motor in stealth mode. 

The anticipation was killing me but I knew I had to be patient. It took forever but when I approached where I had last seen it, I saw a shadow in the water travelling South. I made a perfect cast from 100' away and the damn thing turned 180 degrees while the bait was in the air.

My new platform worked, It was doing its job. I could see the Redfish but it could'nt see me. I just had to do my job and make perfect presentation.

I turned the trolling motor off to reduce any noise. I saw it! The Red moved slightly into deeper water but still didn't see me. I lead it by twenty feet allowing the bait to settle and be ready to put right in front of the Red.

For some reason the Redfish sped up and went right by my Dirty Boxer. I was reeling but it was too late. 

Lunch

After five hours of hunting, fishing and missing I decided to have lunch. Fortunately a restaurant was nearby.

Founded in 1971 (Same year as me lol) Goodrich Seafood located right on the water is the place to go. Fresh seafood with a smile. (hardly any boat dockage, follow the poles in it's shallow)

Had the Fried shrimp basket, it was perfection!

Back To It

I travelled back to my spot and found the cloud cover had dissipated. It was a different world. The only problem was I saw no fish. I threw at the numerous finger mullet pods and changed up my retrieve several times. 

With a dinner date fast approaching I called it a day and headed back to the ramp. After docking the Cape Craft I was approached by a bioligist with FWC who was doing a survey. 

I answered her questions and relayed my disapproval of the one day Snapper season. She stated she hears that from everyone. 

Boat on the trailer and headed home. Hope you enjoyed the post. Not every adventure has an epic catch. That's why they call it Fishing : )