May Fishing Forecast

May Fishing Forecast for the Treasure Coast

Inshore:

Finally, the windy months of March and April are almost behind us and we can look forward to the great fishing weather that May has to offer us on the Treasure Coast. Other than the usual windy days, it has been a pretty mild winter and spring has arrived. Look for warmer temperatures and little less blustery days. As the water temperatures climb, the fishing will steadily improve on the river. The water is already in the mid 70’s and that means the fish will be hungry. It will provide fantastic mornings for top water and lazy afternoons to drift the flats. May is one of my favorite months on the water!

Redfish will be our main target throughout the month of May. The past several years have bought us schools of slot sized redfish along the Indian River. Most of the fish we have caught have been in the 18 to 30 inch range. The mangroves have produced lots of redfish action again this year. They have been sunning on the flats and May gets their blood pumping and turns on the feeding. I always have three lures ready during May…DOA shrimp, CAL jerk baits and top water lures. Gold spoons and the DOA Airhead will also be great additions to the arsenal when fishing for redfish. As the fish school up, look for them around the edges of the flats. Most of the river here on the Treasure Coast has been holding redfish and you should be able to find some on your favorite flats. I tend to enjoy the east side of the river, but we have found many on the west side as well.

Snook fishing in the early mornings will bring some rod bending action as they head up on the flats for an early morning or late evening meal. Top water lures, Baitbusters and DOA shrimp are all great lures to tempt a snook into biting. We have been broken off numerous times by big snook under the mangroves. Docks will also hold snook lurking around for an easy meal. Live shrimp is hard to beat around the docks. In the inlet areas, try around the seawalls and bridges with live bait, Terror Eyz, feather jigs or deep diving plugs. I love early morning for great snook fishing opportunities!

Trout will continue to feed on top water at first light and live shrimp on popping corks during the day. As the sun rises, they will head off the shallows to deeper water in the two to four foot range. We have had some nice gator trout of late and should see some still big trout throughout the month of May. I have had great success with CAL jerk baits and Deadly Combos this year in place of live shrimp. If you are using live baits, try big shrimp or pilchards on the flats. Both sides of the river have been productive in early mornings. Winter fishing for trout has been good this year and spring should continue to give you some great action.

Bridges will hold the usual Sheephead catch, while snapper will be moving into the river along with flounder. Jacks and ladyfish will be patrolling the areas and creating havoc all over the river. Beaches will produce whiting with still a few catches of Spanish mackerel and bluefish along with the usual whiting. Tarpon will begin their trek into the river and you can start looking for them in the St Lucie River, Big and Little Mud areas and the channels of the river. May is a great month to fish the Treasure Coast….plan on a trip out on the river soon!

As always, remember, fishing is not just another hobby....it's an ADVENTURE!!

Good Fishing and Be Safe,
Captain Charlie Conner

http://www.fishtalescharter.com
captaincharlie@fishtalescharter.com
772-284-3852

Fishing with Captain Charlie this week....

South Indian River Fishing Report 4/17

Inshore:

Wind, wind and more wind this week on the Treasure Coast. It's been a challenge fishing this week, but we are catching fish and having fun on the water in spite of the weather. It's a typical April out there as the transition into summer continues. Expect more chances of rain this month and lots of windy days ahead. Fortunately, we have lots of places to get out of the wind and enjoy the fishing!

Buddy and Rose were out with me and found redfish, snook and trout biting along with many other species. Steve and Dave found redfish biting for them. They also caught snook and a nice pompano to top off the day. Ed and Steve caught lots of fish on a very windy morning. It was a smorgasbord of fish for them. Mark, Emmett and Aiden caught lots of fish on another windy morning. Emmett topped off the trip with a nice 24" slot redfish. We have been fishing lots of mangroves lately with good success. The fishing has been very good, but challenging to get to many areas to fish. Fort Pierce offers lots of islands and mangroves to provide good fishing and protection from the elements some days.

I fished the Treasure Coast Casters Tournament this month. Dylora Kohler was on the boat. It was a challenging day to fish with the full moon going on.
Dylora was persistent and ended up with a 24" trout to win a trophy and biggest fish award.If you have kids that love to fish, check out the Treasure Coast Casters on Facebook or go to treasurecoastcasters.org. It's a great organization for kids of all ages. If you would like to get your children involved in fishing, call Cammie Ward at 772-201-5773 for more information. This tournament season is wrapping up in May and you can get your child signed up for next season starting this summer. Treasure Coast Casters - Protecting Our Marine Resources Today For Tomorrow's Anglers.

As always, remember, fishing is not just another hobby....it's an ADVENTURE!!

Good fishing and be safe.
Captain Charlie Conner

http://www.fishtalescharter.com
email captaincharlie@fishtalescharter.com
772-284-3852

Fishing this week with Captain Charlie









South

South Indian River Fishing Report 4/11

Inshore:

We have enjoyed some fantastic weather and fishing this past week on the Treasure Coast. It's still windy most days, but the fishing has been improving steadily for us. Water temperatures have stayed in the low 70's most days and the fish are loving it. Baitfish are moving into the river now and the fish will be feeding heavily so get out and enjoy the action soon! We had a lot of exciting action this week.

The snook bite has improved this week and we have enjoyed catching a good number. We have had several slot size fish this past week. Drifting live bait around the deeper water has worked well for us. The jetties, bridges, inlet and sea walls have all been good for snook. Try a DOA Bait Buster or Terror Eyz around these areas as well. The trout bite has also been improving this week. The water temps are getting to their liking and they have been feeding on the baitfish that are filtering into the river. DOA CAL jerk baits are one of my favorites. Redfish have been hanging around mangroves and docks for us this week. We get broke off some around those areas but the fish are there! CAL shad tails or DOA shrimp are good choices around docks and mangroves. There are still some big mackerel in the inlet. We have had several in the five to six pound range. Bluefish are also cruising the same areas. Small shiny lures will help find these fish. The sheepshead and drum bite has been good around structure. This will slow down some by May.

I've had some new and returning customers this past week to enjoy the fishing in our area. Ron and Woody were out to find a variety of fish, including redfish and trout biting. Al and Ryan also found a nice mix of fish including a nice redfish. Vic had a good morning with a slot snook and 31" redfish to top off a day that turned windy on us. Bonnie and Brice also found a variety of fish on a very windy morning. The bite has been good for us. We have battled windy weather, but the rewards have been nice!

Expect the fishing to continue to improve in the area. Water temperatures are rising and the baitfish are moving into the river. Its a fun time of year to be on the water. Use plenty of sunscreen and drink lots of fluids now that things are warming up. Have fun and enjoy the great fishing action this month!

As always, remember, fishing is not just another hobby....it's an ADVENTURE!!

Good fishing and be safe.
Captain Charlie Conner

http://www.fishtalescharter.com
email captaincharlie@fishtalescharter.com
772-284-3852

Fishing this week with Captain Charlie

South Indian River Fishing Report 3/26

Inshore:

While spring is still on its way, March continues to roar like a lion most days for us. Even with the windy days, we have continued to have good catches along the river while hanging close to the mangroves and sea walls. March and April are always windy months, but we still complain about the conditions every year. We have enjoyed one or two days each week without the prevailing winds chasing us. It has been fun, but can get a little choppy around the area.

Duncan Haley was back down this year and we found several nice trout on the flats while exploring some areas I haven't fished in a while. Paul and Grover were down fishing and we found a few redfish under some docks to top of the morning. Shaun found a variety of fish including a nice pompano. John and Theresa were out on a nice morning and found a good variety of fish for a fun filled morning. Chris and his family were out for an adventure. Ava and Lucien had fun catching lots of fish on a windy day. Keith, Cai, Turner and Frank were back this year for spring break. It was windy but the boys had fun on the water catching a variety of fish. Peter, Will and Henry got into some nice snook that broke them off around the docks. Will ended the day by catching a fat 30-inch sea trout from under one of the docks. Walter, Mack and Holt found a variety of fish on another windy day to keep the boys busy reeling in the fish. Its been a fun week in spite of the windy weather!

Water temperatures have been up and down lately. It has been in the mid 60s to low 70s most of the time for us. We have found our redfish hanging under docks and mangroves and willing to take a DOA shrimp. Trout have been in three to five feet of water. CAL jerk baits work great on trout right now. Try the Airhead lures from DOA. It's gonna be a great asset this spring on the flats. Sheepshead and black drum have been around docks and under mangroves. We have found a few pompano around the river along with bluefish. We have been fishing south of Fort Pierce most days, but the recent gusty weather has pushed us back in the mangrove islands to the north of Fort Pierce. The water on the incoming tide has been dirty the past several days from all the winds. It has been difficult to fish in the surf most days. With a forecast for nice weather this coming weekend, the water will have time to clear up and warm back up. It should be a fantastic weekend on the water!

Dress in layers for a while longer. Some days you will find nearly a 30 degree change in temperatures on the water. We seem to end up with a pile of coats, sweatshirts and assorted warm clothes in the corner of the boat by noon each day. Sunscreen is essential this time of year with the wind and the sun wearing on you. It can't be much longer before it warms up to Spring weather! Have fun out there fishing.

As always, remember, fishing is not just another hobby....it's an ADVENTURE!!

Good fishing and be safe.
Captain Charlie Conner

http://www.fishtalescharter.com
email captaincharlie@fishtalescharter.com
772-284-3852

South Indian River Fishing Report 4/1

Inshore:

We had a fantastic week on the water with great weather and hungry fish around the river. It is still windy most days, but very fishable and lots of places to hide from the worst of it. Expect this type conditions for most of April as we transition into summer patterns and less windy days. Water temperatures have been in the low 70's and the fish have been feeding on the flats. It was a fun week on the water!

Walter had his grandsons, Mack and Holt, out for a fishing adventure this year. The boys caught lots of fish including sheepshead, ladyfish and snapper. Pierre and Sil were out on a very windy day that had us clinging to the mangroves, but the guys caught fish anyway. It was fun in spite of the weather. Jeff and Ryan were out on another windy morning. Ryan out fished dad all morning. They caught juvenile snook, snapper, sheepshead and a nice flounder to round out the day. The winds continue, but you can find somewhere to fish on most days. Peter had his grandsons, Will & Henry out again this year. After getting broke off by a couple nice snook, Will topped off the morning with a 30" sea trout!. It was an exciting week!

The trout bite was probably the slowest for us this week, but every trout we caught were slot or better fish. With warmer water, you can find them in shallow water at first light, moving to two to five feet as the sun gets higher. Top water, Deadly Combos, DOA shrimp or live bait are good ways to fish for trout this month. Redfish can be found around docks, mangroves and drop offs on the sand bars. Most of our fish have been around the mangroves. CAL grub tails, DOA shrimp or live bait can all help find you a slot fish. Snook fishing around the jetties has been good on the high ends of the tides. Most are using live baits out there. We continue to get snook up to 24" around the mangroves which means a good population of big fish are growing out there. Sheepshead and drum fishing is slowing down slowly now as the bigger fish are heading out of the river. You can still find nice size ones, but it is slowing. Snapper fishing is improving for us. We have had a number of 12" to 14" mangroves lately around docks and mangroves and lots of undersize muttons everywhere. Jacks and ladyfish continue to haunt the river April is proving to be another good fishing month on the Treasure Coast.

The surf has been slow due to the steady easterly winds most days. Not as many anglers are braving the conditions to get out on the beach. When you can fish the beach, expect whiting, bluefish and the occasional pompano. The inlet has mackerel, bluefish, jacks and ladyfish coming in with the tides. I think I can finally pack away those sweat suits and long johns for another year. It's nice to have 80 degree weather again! Time to get out and enjoy some good fishing action!

As always, remember, fishing is not just another hobby....it's an ADVENTURE!!

Good Fishing and Be Safe,
Captain Charlie Conner

www.fishtalescharter.com
email: captaincharlie@fishtalescharter.com
772-284-3852