I liked the yesterday's forecast - sunny and warm, not much wind - so headed up to Jonathan Dickinson despite the tide prediction, which was for low tide around 12:30. We're somewhat in the middle of the tide cycle, when there isn't that much inflow or outflow from the tides. I thought that might mean there wouldn't be much fishing action, but decided to give it a try anyway.
Well, I was right - caught no fish at all; just the odd bite here and there. I did see some otters, though, that I captured on video. They were fun to watch. I didn't see them catch anything but over the course of the day I bet they did better than I did.
I've been trying to figure out why it is that there seems to be less current on an incoming tide at JD than on an outgoing tide. Thinking about it, I've come up with an hypothesis that makes sense. Right now, and for the past several weeks, there's been quite a bit of water coming downstream on the Loxahatchee, due to rain we had this past month. It could be that this flow coming downstream mitigates the speed of the incoming tide. I've noticed that the water level at high tide does get well up on the trunks of the mangroves. But it may be that the incoming tide is fighting against the flow of fresh water coming down the Loxahatchee from upstream. This would also explain why when the tide is flowing out, it moves with quite a bit of speed - not only is the lunar cycle pulling the water toward the ocean, there's also the outflow of fresh water from the Loxahatchee. If someone has a better idea, I'd like to hear it.
Here's the video I shot: http://youtu.be/U2gSYWck75o
You'll see otters but no fish.
Tuesday, January 28, 2014
Thursday, January 23, 2014
Riverbend Park fishing
The cool weather continues down here. But since the sun was going to be out all day, I figured, How cold could it get? Well, with a strong wind most of the day, pretty darn cold. I could have used a sweatshirt.
I hadn't been back to Riverbend Park since early December and wanted to give it a try. I like to fish what I call the "Cypress Swamp" area of the Park, which is comprised of a series of interconnected sloughs and ponds. To paddle a kayak or canoe back there, you need a sufficient cushion of water. At some point every year, usually in the spring, the sloughs turn to mud and pretty much dry up altogether, until the rains come again in the summer and fall.
With all the rain we've had lately, I figured there'd be plenty of water back there, and so proved to be the case yesterday. But with the radical drop in water temperature over the past ten days, there was no way to know if the bass would be biting until I started twitching a plastic worm in front of them.
I've had pretty good luck on one pond in particular back in the swamp, so I went there directly. There's a small cove or bay at the north end of this pond where I caught a five pound largemouth a year or so ago and many other smaller fish. When I pedaled my kayak into this cove yesterday I noticed an enormous alligator sunning itself on the bank. At first I thought it was two gators, it looked so big. But as I edged closer I could see that it was just one, but it was bigger than my twelve foot kayak. Had I made a commotion, it probably would have just slithered into the water and found another place to hang out. I think if gators were aggressive towards humans, they never would have been allowed to re-populate after they were nearly extirpated throughout Florida years ago. Still, with a gator that big, you never know. I'd earlier seen two baby gators whose mama I might be looking at. Gators are known to be onery when they have young in the vicinity. Besides, I felt like an intruder disturbing this critter's nap in the sun, and so left it in peace.
Out on the main pond I had to deal with the strong west wind. But I found some lee behind an island out in the middle. I also found fish. I caught a four pounder, then a three pounder by casting my plastic worm close to the island, then retrieving it slowly back to my kayak. This encouraged me to take out one of my fly rods and cast a popper toward the island and also toward the shallow shoreline of the pond nearby. Nothing rose to chomp on it. Cold weather usually discourages surface action, so I wasn't surprised.
For most of the rest of the day, I stuck with spinning tackle and a plastic worm. Eventually I worked my way to the south end of the pond and found fish in the slough that connects to the pond at that end. I was catching bass pretty regularly with the plastic worm. I switched to the fly rod one more time, but snipped off the small popper I had been throwing earlier and tied on a black streamer. I trolled it behind my kayak for a bit and hooked and boated one more bass.
Every time the wind came up, I regretted not wearing another layer of clothes. The air temperature was in the mid 60's, which isn't too bad, but with a fifteen mile per hour wind blowing across the water, it felt much colder. Had the sky been overcast, I wouldn't have lasted an hour or so out there. But with the sun and the good fishing action, I didn't head back to the launch site until four o'clock.
Here's a link to the video:
http://youtu.be/CLi7nmA2BVE
Some of the audio got blasted by wind-roar. Nothing I can do about that, as I'm using my point and shoot digital camera with a built-in microphone. Also, I'm holding the camera with one hand and trying to play the fish with the other. This can cause some disorienting video, as when I was holding the camera when a bass went under my kayak and my line got tangled in the pedal drive of my Hobie kayak.
See you on the water.
I hadn't been back to Riverbend Park since early December and wanted to give it a try. I like to fish what I call the "Cypress Swamp" area of the Park, which is comprised of a series of interconnected sloughs and ponds. To paddle a kayak or canoe back there, you need a sufficient cushion of water. At some point every year, usually in the spring, the sloughs turn to mud and pretty much dry up altogether, until the rains come again in the summer and fall.
With all the rain we've had lately, I figured there'd be plenty of water back there, and so proved to be the case yesterday. But with the radical drop in water temperature over the past ten days, there was no way to know if the bass would be biting until I started twitching a plastic worm in front of them.
I've had pretty good luck on one pond in particular back in the swamp, so I went there directly. There's a small cove or bay at the north end of this pond where I caught a five pound largemouth a year or so ago and many other smaller fish. When I pedaled my kayak into this cove yesterday I noticed an enormous alligator sunning itself on the bank. At first I thought it was two gators, it looked so big. But as I edged closer I could see that it was just one, but it was bigger than my twelve foot kayak. Had I made a commotion, it probably would have just slithered into the water and found another place to hang out. I think if gators were aggressive towards humans, they never would have been allowed to re-populate after they were nearly extirpated throughout Florida years ago. Still, with a gator that big, you never know. I'd earlier seen two baby gators whose mama I might be looking at. Gators are known to be onery when they have young in the vicinity. Besides, I felt like an intruder disturbing this critter's nap in the sun, and so left it in peace.
Out on the main pond I had to deal with the strong west wind. But I found some lee behind an island out in the middle. I also found fish. I caught a four pounder, then a three pounder by casting my plastic worm close to the island, then retrieving it slowly back to my kayak. This encouraged me to take out one of my fly rods and cast a popper toward the island and also toward the shallow shoreline of the pond nearby. Nothing rose to chomp on it. Cold weather usually discourages surface action, so I wasn't surprised.
For most of the rest of the day, I stuck with spinning tackle and a plastic worm. Eventually I worked my way to the south end of the pond and found fish in the slough that connects to the pond at that end. I was catching bass pretty regularly with the plastic worm. I switched to the fly rod one more time, but snipped off the small popper I had been throwing earlier and tied on a black streamer. I trolled it behind my kayak for a bit and hooked and boated one more bass.
Every time the wind came up, I regretted not wearing another layer of clothes. The air temperature was in the mid 60's, which isn't too bad, but with a fifteen mile per hour wind blowing across the water, it felt much colder. Had the sky been overcast, I wouldn't have lasted an hour or so out there. But with the sun and the good fishing action, I didn't head back to the launch site until four o'clock.
Here's a link to the video:
http://youtu.be/CLi7nmA2BVE
Some of the audio got blasted by wind-roar. Nothing I can do about that, as I'm using my point and shoot digital camera with a built-in microphone. Also, I'm holding the camera with one hand and trying to play the fish with the other. This can cause some disorienting video, as when I was holding the camera when a bass went under my kayak and my line got tangled in the pedal drive of my Hobie kayak.
See you on the water.
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
Cool water bass fishing
I've stayed off the water for the past several days, waiting for the temperatures to get back to normal. That hasn't happened, so I figured I might as well go out and see if I could get any bass to bite at the Loxahatchee National Wildlife Area. The water temperature has dropped from the high 70's to the mid 60's in the past six days or so, a change in environment which usually gives fish lockjaw. But you never know, until you give it a try.
Since yesterday was a national holiday, I thought the place would be pretty crowded with people off from work. But I was pretty much alone when I arrived at 9:30, except for two people I saw paddling through the entrance of the canoe trail.
I started out trolling a streamer behind my kayak along the west bank of the canal. After half an hour or so of no action whatsoever, I switched to a plastic worm. Before too long I brought a small bass to the boat and then a second one. A few minutes later I hooked something quite a bit larger. I thought it might be a bowfin, or "mudfish," as they're disdainfully known down here, and so it turned out to be. I guess bowfin are to the fresh water what Jack Crevalle are to salt: dogged fighters but lacking respect from anglers. Bowfin do tend to destroy hooks and lures. They have large mouths that are circular like a catfish's and rimmed with small, needle-like teeth. They've also got long and powerful tails that will cause havoc if you make the mistake of sliding them up into the boat with you. I tend to be wary of both their mouths and their tails. In trying to extricate the hook from the mouth of the one who ate my plastic worm yesterday the shank of the hook actually broke off. I'm pretty sure that the end left in that fish's mouth will quickly rot away and cause it no permanent damage.
After that flurry of action I switched back to the fly rod, this time with the largest and heaviest streamer in my flybox attached to the leader. The fish weren't interested. If I could find a fly that worked as well as a plastic worm does on spinning tackle I'd fly fish for bass exclusively. So far, I've not found any fly that has the same action as a six inch plastic worm. I own a couple flies that are supposed to act like plastic worms but they've never produced for me. If anyone knows of such a fly, I'd sure like to hear about it!
When I went back to spinning tackle for the final time there was a bit of a lull. Eventually I did catch a couple more small bass and a second bowfin.
There was strong sun throughout the morning and virtually no wind, both of which made it pleasant to be out on the water. I was back at the boat ramp around one o'clock. By then, the parking lot was quite crowded. A couple of folks stopped to ask me about my Hobie Pro Angler kayak, as often happens as I'm re-trailering it.
All in all, not a bad day after all.
See you on the water.
Here's a link to my video:
http://youtu.be/yzcEylly3uw
Since yesterday was a national holiday, I thought the place would be pretty crowded with people off from work. But I was pretty much alone when I arrived at 9:30, except for two people I saw paddling through the entrance of the canoe trail.
I started out trolling a streamer behind my kayak along the west bank of the canal. After half an hour or so of no action whatsoever, I switched to a plastic worm. Before too long I brought a small bass to the boat and then a second one. A few minutes later I hooked something quite a bit larger. I thought it might be a bowfin, or "mudfish," as they're disdainfully known down here, and so it turned out to be. I guess bowfin are to the fresh water what Jack Crevalle are to salt: dogged fighters but lacking respect from anglers. Bowfin do tend to destroy hooks and lures. They have large mouths that are circular like a catfish's and rimmed with small, needle-like teeth. They've also got long and powerful tails that will cause havoc if you make the mistake of sliding them up into the boat with you. I tend to be wary of both their mouths and their tails. In trying to extricate the hook from the mouth of the one who ate my plastic worm yesterday the shank of the hook actually broke off. I'm pretty sure that the end left in that fish's mouth will quickly rot away and cause it no permanent damage.
After that flurry of action I switched back to the fly rod, this time with the largest and heaviest streamer in my flybox attached to the leader. The fish weren't interested. If I could find a fly that worked as well as a plastic worm does on spinning tackle I'd fly fish for bass exclusively. So far, I've not found any fly that has the same action as a six inch plastic worm. I own a couple flies that are supposed to act like plastic worms but they've never produced for me. If anyone knows of such a fly, I'd sure like to hear about it!
When I went back to spinning tackle for the final time there was a bit of a lull. Eventually I did catch a couple more small bass and a second bowfin.
There was strong sun throughout the morning and virtually no wind, both of which made it pleasant to be out on the water. I was back at the boat ramp around one o'clock. By then, the parking lot was quite crowded. A couple of folks stopped to ask me about my Hobie Pro Angler kayak, as often happens as I'm re-trailering it.
All in all, not a bad day after all.
See you on the water.
Here's a link to my video:
http://youtu.be/yzcEylly3uw
Thursday, January 16, 2014
The weather forecast predicted a series of cold fronts would pass through south Florida starting yesterday. I figured I might as well get out on the water before things got even worse, later this week.
It was overcast and breezy when I got to the boat ramp at Jonathan Dickinson. The temperature was in the upper 60s. I thought it might get up into the 70s by the early afternoon. I was wearing lightweight pants and a short sleeve shirt, which I thought would be sufficient. But once I was out on the water I wished I'd dressed a bit more warmly - something that rarely happens down here.
I could see a pretty strong outgoing flow headed toward Jupiter Inlet, once I got away from the ramp. I'm learning that in salt water environments, fish bite best when water is moving one way or the other. And the quicker, the better.
I started out with spinning tackle, trolling a Mirrodine suspending crankbait behind my kayak. I had barely gotten out into the Loxahatchee river from the ramp when I had a solid strike. The way the fish stayed well down in the water column and pulled like crazy told me I'd probably hooked another Jack Crevalle.
And so it proved to be. I released Mr. Jack and switched over to my fly rod. Since the jacks were out in the river I thought it worth trying to hook one with a streamer fly. I'd just gotten a new reel and sink-tip line to go with it and was anxious to try them out.
I pedaled upstream in the middle of the river, where jacks tend to hang out, against the current for a quarter mile or so, then let the tide pull the kayak down close to one of the river banks. I was hoping I might entice a snook to snatch my fly, as they tend to hang out near the shoreline along the mangroves, which provides them with a hiding place to ambush prey. It wasn't too long before I had another strike. The fish came to the surface, which led me to believe it was something other than a jack. A few seconds later I saw the dark lateral line bisecting the fish's body from nose to tail, the hallmark of a snook. It wasn't a very big one, but for me, pretty exciting. I've been pursuing snook at Jonathan Dickinson for several years now and have only managed to catch one.
Over the next couple hours I hooked several more snook but only got one more into the boat.
The sun stayed mostly hidden behind the clouds all day and with that brisk wind coming downriver along with the tide, I started to feel a bit chilled. The velocity of the outgoing tide slowed down after two o'clock, and so did the fishing action. For the final hour or so I switched back to spinning tackle but only managed one more bite.
With the fishing action pretty much stopped and goose bumps popping out on my forearms, I decided to call it a day around three o'clock. The first day with my new fly reel and line had been a good one.
At least one or two more blasts of cold air are supposed to pass through over the next few days, so I may stay off the water until next week.
Here's a link to video I shot during yesterday's trip: http://youtu.be/gtI24geSPDM
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
Fishing at John D. Macarthur Park, 1-13-14
I've been reading reports of big jacks being caught at John D. Macarthur recently. I've fished there many times in the past, though not recently. I haven't caught too much there and the tides can be a bit of a problem. The kayak put-in is on a lagoon within the park and at low tide all the water in the lagoon drains out, leaving nothing but muck that would be tough to walk through, much less drag a kayak over. If you're out on the water as the tide is falling, you'd better get back in before you're faced with a trek over mud. If you're justing staring out, you need to wait until low tide has passed and fresh water is coming in to help you exit the lagoon and get out onto the portion of the Intracoastal Waterway that runs past the park.
That was my plan yesterday. Low tide was at 12:30, so I arrived at 2 p.m. The tide was indeed coming in by that point but the water depth in the lagoon was still only around 12-15 inches. We're at a stage in the lunar cycle where tides tend to be on the extreme side. And so it was taking quite a while for the lagoon to fill back up, after being drained dry during low tide. It was a bit of a struggle to get out of the lagoon, as the Mirage Drive on my kayak needs around 18 inches of depth to work properly. I ended up having to do quite a bit of paddling instead of pedaling. My kayak can be paddled but it's really designed to work best by pedaling the Mirage Drive.
A month or so ago, when I was fishing at Jonathan Dickinson Park in Jupiter, I was having decent success using spinning tackle and a type of lure called a Mirrodine. That's what I started out with yesterday and because I got action with the Mirrodine immediately, I stayed with it through the afternoon. I had a couple strong hits within five minutes of pushing off from the put-in, then pulled a small ladyfish up close to the boat, before it shook itself free.
The wind was coming up pretty strong from the south, which was the direction I was heading in order to pass under the A1A highway bridge and get out to where I thought there'd be deeper water, between the bridge and Munyon Island. Between having to paddle because of the shallow water and the wind, it was a bit of a struggle to reach the bridge. Once beyond it, I discovered that I still only had a foot of water in many spots. I pulled the Mirage Drive out of its slot and allowed the wind to push the kayak across the flat, over towards Munyon.
As I approached Munyon, I got a bit of lee from the wind, and eventually found some deeper water. I had a strike on the Mirrodine in that deeper water and hooked a nice jack. Formally known as "Jack Crevalle," these fish aren't much respected in south Florida, probably because they're so common. But pound for pound they are the strongest fish I've ever caught. A five pound jack would easily win a tug-of-war with a five pound largemouth bass.
I continued on south along Munyon, headed toward a pass between Munyon and another island, known as "Little" Munyon, where I could see that the incoming tide was pouring through. I saw lots of mullet toward the south end of Munyon and what appeared to be a large jack busting through a school of these jacks. I threw my lure in amongst the commotion numerous times but nothing chased it. I had thought I might want to go through that passageway between Munyon and Little Munyon and fish the flat to the south of both islands. But between the tide surging through there and the strong south wind I would have to fight against, I decided to forego that idea. By then it was already three o'clock or so and I needed to be back at the put-in by five o'clock, in order to exit the Park before they closed the gates for the night.
So I turned around and headed slowly back the way I had come. Near the north end of Munyon I caught a small mangrove snapper. A little while later I caught a puffer fish in one of the small bays along the A1A embankment. Finally there was plenty of water for me to pedal through.
I was pulling the kayak out of the water at the put-in around five o'clock. All in all, I caught four fish in about three hours, including that nice jack. Not bad for mid-January.
Here's a link to the video I shot: http://youtu.be/xgwT8v9OS3s
That was my plan yesterday. Low tide was at 12:30, so I arrived at 2 p.m. The tide was indeed coming in by that point but the water depth in the lagoon was still only around 12-15 inches. We're at a stage in the lunar cycle where tides tend to be on the extreme side. And so it was taking quite a while for the lagoon to fill back up, after being drained dry during low tide. It was a bit of a struggle to get out of the lagoon, as the Mirage Drive on my kayak needs around 18 inches of depth to work properly. I ended up having to do quite a bit of paddling instead of pedaling. My kayak can be paddled but it's really designed to work best by pedaling the Mirage Drive.
A month or so ago, when I was fishing at Jonathan Dickinson Park in Jupiter, I was having decent success using spinning tackle and a type of lure called a Mirrodine. That's what I started out with yesterday and because I got action with the Mirrodine immediately, I stayed with it through the afternoon. I had a couple strong hits within five minutes of pushing off from the put-in, then pulled a small ladyfish up close to the boat, before it shook itself free.
As I approached Munyon, I got a bit of lee from the wind, and eventually found some deeper water. I had a strike on the Mirrodine in that deeper water and hooked a nice jack. Formally known as "Jack Crevalle," these fish aren't much respected in south Florida, probably because they're so common. But pound for pound they are the strongest fish I've ever caught. A five pound jack would easily win a tug-of-war with a five pound largemouth bass.
I continued on south along Munyon, headed toward a pass between Munyon and another island, known as "Little" Munyon, where I could see that the incoming tide was pouring through. I saw lots of mullet toward the south end of Munyon and what appeared to be a large jack busting through a school of these jacks. I threw my lure in amongst the commotion numerous times but nothing chased it. I had thought I might want to go through that passageway between Munyon and Little Munyon and fish the flat to the south of both islands. But between the tide surging through there and the strong south wind I would have to fight against, I decided to forego that idea. By then it was already three o'clock or so and I needed to be back at the put-in by five o'clock, in order to exit the Park before they closed the gates for the night.
So I turned around and headed slowly back the way I had come. Near the north end of Munyon I caught a small mangrove snapper. A little while later I caught a puffer fish in one of the small bays along the A1A embankment. Finally there was plenty of water for me to pedal through.
I was pulling the kayak out of the water at the put-in around five o'clock. All in all, I caught four fish in about three hours, including that nice jack. Not bad for mid-January.
Here's a link to the video I shot: http://youtu.be/xgwT8v9OS3s
Wednesday, January 8, 2014
Not sure why this happened but the link I provided in my previous link was to another angler's video. Here's the link to my own video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zPz_3dx9SL4&feature=c4-overview&list=UURDkdkwjV228oFTKX66tqYw
Actually, the video I linked to by accident is very good. It was done by an angler whose fishing adventures I've been following. I believe his name is Marty Zoffinger and he lives and fishes on the west coast of Florida, near Tampa (I think.) He's got better equipment than I do and is a much more sophisticated videographer. Like me, he's interested in showing the arc of a fishing trip and is a very good visual storyteller. You can search for him on Youtube by entering his last name or on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/lovekayak.fishing
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zPz_3dx9SL4&feature=c4-overview&list=UURDkdkwjV228oFTKX66tqYw
Actually, the video I linked to by accident is very good. It was done by an angler whose fishing adventures I've been following. I believe his name is Marty Zoffinger and he lives and fishes on the west coast of Florida, near Tampa (I think.) He's got better equipment than I do and is a much more sophisticated videographer. Like me, he's interested in showing the arc of a fishing trip and is a very good visual storyteller. You can search for him on Youtube by entering his last name or on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/lovekayak.fishing
Tuesday, January 7, 2014
Back in sunny Florida after our brief stint in the frozen north country for the holidays. Saw our daughter Emily and lots of friends while we were up there. We're glad we made the trip and equally glad we headed south just ahead of the brutal arctic vortex that folks up there are dealing with now.
I like to fish close to home for my first couple of trips, once we get back here. I caught a couple bass at our community pond on Sunday evening while walking along the shoreline. Then yesterday I took my first trip of the new year in my kayak. I'll try to embed the video in this post. If it doesn't work, it'll be available on youtube.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qF9Jimc6H2o
I took my kayak to the Loxahatchee National Wildlife Area and fished the canal and the canoe trail for a few hours. It was warm and sunny but I knew the cold air up north was going to creep southward and spoil the fishing down here for the rest of the week.
I started off, as I usually do, using a plastic worm, just to gauge the action. I had a bite on the first cast, then caught a small bass on the second. Soon after that I switched over to fly tackle. I was casting a small popper toward the sawgrass around the entrance to the canoe trail, where some small fish were hitting the surface. The wind was coming across the Everglades from the west and the sawgrass around the entrance to the trail provided some protection from it and allowed me to cast the popper up close to the bank. It looked enticing to me but not, apparently, to the fish, which ignored it.
The entrance to the canoe trail was blocked by some floating weeds. I gave it some thought, then decided to paddle through them and try the trail for a while. I switched to a plastic "fluke" worm that was easy to cast and seemed to move well in the water. Fish went after it immediately. Where it emerged from the surface, my line went every which way as fish tried to swim off with my plastic bait. Unfortunately, they were pretty small and they locked their mouths around the tail of my bait, a couple inches from the point of the hook. No matter how much time I gave them, whenever I tried to set the hook I'd only succeed in pulling the bait out of their mouths. I wanted to see what these fish were, and gave one quite a bit of time to show itself on the surface. Eventually it just bit off the tail and so I never did get to see what kind of fish it actually was. The tail-grabbers were probably small warmouth, of which there are an abundance at Loxahatchee.
Eventually I gave up on the canoe trail and spent the final hour of the morning fishing the main canal. I managed another small bass on a plastic worm. The action pretty much stopped around noon. I stayed out until 12:30 or so and then pedaled back to shore.
Today the high temperature will probably only reach the 60s--frigid by south Florida standards. I'll leave the fish alone for a few days. By Friday, we're supposed to be back in the 80s and I'll be back on the water somewhere.
I like to fish close to home for my first couple of trips, once we get back here. I caught a couple bass at our community pond on Sunday evening while walking along the shoreline. Then yesterday I took my first trip of the new year in my kayak. I'll try to embed the video in this post. If it doesn't work, it'll be available on youtube.
I took my kayak to the Loxahatchee National Wildlife Area and fished the canal and the canoe trail for a few hours. It was warm and sunny but I knew the cold air up north was going to creep southward and spoil the fishing down here for the rest of the week.
I started off, as I usually do, using a plastic worm, just to gauge the action. I had a bite on the first cast, then caught a small bass on the second. Soon after that I switched over to fly tackle. I was casting a small popper toward the sawgrass around the entrance to the canoe trail, where some small fish were hitting the surface. The wind was coming across the Everglades from the west and the sawgrass around the entrance to the trail provided some protection from it and allowed me to cast the popper up close to the bank. It looked enticing to me but not, apparently, to the fish, which ignored it.
The entrance to the canoe trail was blocked by some floating weeds. I gave it some thought, then decided to paddle through them and try the trail for a while. I switched to a plastic "fluke" worm that was easy to cast and seemed to move well in the water. Fish went after it immediately. Where it emerged from the surface, my line went every which way as fish tried to swim off with my plastic bait. Unfortunately, they were pretty small and they locked their mouths around the tail of my bait, a couple inches from the point of the hook. No matter how much time I gave them, whenever I tried to set the hook I'd only succeed in pulling the bait out of their mouths. I wanted to see what these fish were, and gave one quite a bit of time to show itself on the surface. Eventually it just bit off the tail and so I never did get to see what kind of fish it actually was. The tail-grabbers were probably small warmouth, of which there are an abundance at Loxahatchee.
Eventually I gave up on the canoe trail and spent the final hour of the morning fishing the main canal. I managed another small bass on a plastic worm. The action pretty much stopped around noon. I stayed out until 12:30 or so and then pedaled back to shore.
Today the high temperature will probably only reach the 60s--frigid by south Florida standards. I'll leave the fish alone for a few days. By Friday, we're supposed to be back in the 80s and I'll be back on the water somewhere.
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