I’m getting a little better at this.

[skeetbum]

Went back to mosquito lagoon this morning. No sunrise pics cuz I traveled across in the dark and there was good cloud cover. That did a couple of things: the top water bite lasts longer and I never had to put my shades on. The skeeters were as bad as always but they don’t last forever. There was some bigger fish feeding by the sound of it. Got smacked around on top a few times, and had two snook come unbuttoned before their pic got taken. One was little but the other had some shoulders, he threw the plug while he was airborne. Found some trout and hooked one deep that had to come home, wouldn’t revive. The topwater bite slowed and I started throwing a chartreuse paddletail jig and got one small trout and a red. Pitched it toward some activity and got the strike of the day. A very good snook was giving me a good fight. He shook his head on the surface a couple of times and I couldn’t loosen the drag for the mangroves nearby. Having handled a 24” a little while back , I can safely say this was upper slot or over. BIG head on this one. I reached the drag knob to loosen up but it was too late. He shook his head hard and was gone, wore through the 15lb leader that on for the trout I expected. 30lb over there from now on. Caught a lot of reds, for me anyway, at 10 or 11 cookie cutter versions all about 20” give or take a little. One was a 16” or so and you could tell by the fight he didn’t have. And of course, a ladyfish had to show up long enough to poop on my boat. If I had gotten him early he’d have been cut into bait! I saw some movement among some mangroves and stood up to see a red feeding close to some branches in the water. I threw the jig about a foot to his right, he heard the splash and turned and then came the thump and the fight. It doesn’t get much better than that!

So with 3 snook almost caught, the reds, trout and lady that had me busy, I didn’t feel too bad when the weather started to look like it might have some pop and sizzle in it and I thought it wise to go. I know this bite is going to change when the water temp changes, the flounder are already gone from here. No doubt closer to the inlet. I used a Zman diesel minnow in redbone color that was recommended to me and they didn’t lie at all. The Elaztech material is different to work with but the stuff is tougher than anything else I’ve used. 8 redfish and it’s still ready to go. Had it rigged on a weedless head that would come back over a branch and not get hung. No one around at all today and I had a very large time. The trout and one 20” red came home for dinner and the rest swim free. Just a couple of pics, as I say they were all close in size. Hope y’all had as much fun as I did and I hope to get out next weekend. Til we see each other again……Skeet