Kayak Fishing: Banana River and More

Happy Monday, Spacefish…

I hope everyone had a great Memorial Day weekend, I have been enjoying my first week off of school, and have taken advantage of the opportunity to get out and fish and explore new places/places I haven’t been in over a year. I fished a new spot on the Banana River outside of Cocoa Beach, fished an early morning on the Indian River Lagoon and did some Bass fishing with my cousin Mark who is down for our family reunion. So let’s dive in!

Banana River & Indian River Lagoon Fishing

The topwater fishing has been white hot if you get out early in the morning, I have been throwing two plugs primarily. I throw a Rapala Skitterwalk SW-08 in Bone and I throw the classic Heddon Super Spook Jr. in Bone. These plugs have been getting torn apart! The only knock on the Skitterwalk I have is the factory treble hooks are weak. I actually had the hooks bend out on both of my Skitterwalks my morning on the Banana River, one was a larger Juvenile Tarpon in the 50ish pound range, and the other was on a mammoth Snook that actually came off when the hooks bent out. So I was down two Skitterwalks by 7 am. I swithced over to the Bone Heddon Super Spook Jr. and continued to catch smaller and medium sized Snook and Trout. I threw a White topwater Frog, made by Fish, or Die Bait Company, which they call the Ambush, in King George’s Wig (White) and caught my biggest Trout of the morning.

On the Indian River Lagoon outside of Honest John’s Fish Camp I caught Snook and Trout in that medium sized range and also had another giant Snook come up knock the plug out of the water twice before finally getting a hold of it, and without even going into structure I was broken off on 40 pound Mono – which on a bait caster with 30 pound braid, I thought would be enough to handle anything inshore, but I guess I will go to 50 pound this week as I go to stock up on more topwater plugs!

Once the sun came up both mornings I shifted to sub-surface baits. I caught medium to small Snook on the Fish, or Die Warbird, which is their version of a soft plastic jerk bait, and I have to say is the best soft plastic jerk bait I have ever used. It’s got a segmented body, and it dives, darts and falls in the water column like a wounded bait fish. I have caught Bass, Snook, and Trout so far playing around with this bait.

I rig the 4 inch version on a 2/0 weightless screwlock hook, BKK hooks is my favorite, for the bigger 5.5 inch model, I have used a Mission Fishin’ 4/0 1/8 oz Screwlock hook in windy/choppy water, and a 5/0 Gamakatsu G-Lock Worm Hook weightless if it is calmer. These baits are dense, they skip well, and they cast really well weightless. I have also caught Snook and Trout on the Fish, or Die Minutemen, which is their version of a paddletail. This bait excels in choppy or murky water because it is ribbed and gives off a great wobble and vibration in the water. I have rigged this bait on a Mission Fishin 3/0 1/8 oz Screwlock hook, or in the wind, I like a Z-Man Trout Eye Jighead in 3/16 oz, with a Golden eye to pair with my favorite Fish, or Die color to fish inshore, which is called “Swampfox”. This color is a light silver with gold flake, and it is absolute money!

Bass Fishing – What Worked

So I went out to Headwaters Lake, I wanted my cousin Mark to be able to get on some Bass, which he did, we had a ball! We didn’t catch anything of remarkable size, but we caught them in good numbers and had a few thick and chunky ones that were fun to pull out of the Hyrdrilla. My cousin fished the heck out of the Bitter’s Baits “Buzzin Gator” in Watermelon Red, a north Georgia boy catching Florida Bass for the first time, he had a blast on topwater and never wanted to fish anything else!

My top fish catcher was a speedworm (anyone surprised? haha) I fished Gambler in Watermelon Red, and Zoom in Junebug Red, Texas rigged and pegged with a ⅛ oz tungsten weight pegged on a bobber stopper, with a 5/0 Gamakatsu G-Lock Worm hook. But I also caught them on the Fish, or Die Warbird in Swampfox, rigged weightless and weedless on a BKK Hooks 2/0 Screwlock; and I caught them on a Texas Rigged Fish, or Die Musket in Philadelphia (Junebug Red). I fished this like any slow worm presentation in Florida through dense vegetation. I just bumped and twitched this bait through the grass and hydrilla and let it fall into holes. The Warbird I fished like I would a weedless fluke. Bumping it through the hydrilla, and twitch-twitch-pause in the open water. I also picked up a few small fish on the Heddon Super Spook Jr in Florida Bass. Most of the time at a place like Headwaters I would opt to go weedless for practically everything, but you can get away with exposed hooks on topwater.

Fish, or Die Baits – Try Them Yourself!

So prior to reading my reports, you probably have never heard of Fish, or Die. Neither had I until we connected on instagram a few weeks ago. But I am always looking for new and improved fishing products to try out, and especially if it is a business that I vibe with! Fish, or Die is a small, veteran owned bait company, they make quality, durable soft plastics that come scented in their custom in house “Stench of the Trenches” scents. Their Warbird is the best soft plastic jerkbait I have ever used, and their Musket is an extremely unique take on a worm that has been highly effective in the times I have used them. My brother ordered a couple packs and has been slaying Bass up in Georgia on the Musket! They also sell cool hats and apparel (like the one I am wearing below). If you are interested in any of these baits yourself you can shop for them here at fishordiebaitcompany.com – use promo code “Spacefish (Recruit)” when you check out!

Conclusion

If you want to get out and experience some exciting topwater fishing, this is a great time to do it! But set you alarm early and get out when the sun is rising. Now that we are in the summer time, inshore fish will definitely be pushing up under shaded docks and mangroves, and the bass will be looking to do the same under matted vegetation. Sunrise seems to be the time when all of the gamefish we want to target are active, hungry, and moving around.

For inshore fish, my best method of success has been to target fish around bait, on mangrove points and on the shorelines of mangrove islands. If you are interested in the spot I mentioned on the Banana River, there is good fishing around the 4 little mangrove islands, especially the deeper cut between the islands and the residential canal, that stretch was loaded with Trout.

For Bass, they were all over the place at Headwaters, but we caught the most fish in the shallows along the west bank going down and back to the Indian mound, but we also fished the north bank and had success. They were also active along the hydrilla ditches off shore in the northwest corner of the lake. The whole time fishing, we never got more than a mile or two away from the kayak launch. Which I will add, is extremely overgrown, be prepared to haul your kayak and gear a ways down the bank to find a place that is launchable.

I hope this week provides great fishing for all of us. Summertime is here, the dawn and dusk bite is picking up, beat the heat, sling some topwater, and have a blast out there. Until next time!