Gone Fishin` - Monday Morning

Mondays. Up early and hustle around and get in the car and rush into town and into the office then drink a few cups of coffee and get to work. That`s what my crew of five did March the 3rd.

Oh, but what a difference our commute to the office was, compared to our landside brothers and sisters. Our rush to the office took us from the dock at Cedar Key to just off the shore of Seahorse Key and right into a school of silver trout and whiting.

I had a group of five on my 24ft. pontoon that Monday morning. The temperature was around 65F and the wind was coming out of the southwest at about 10 knots. Incoming water with high tide at 1: 15 p.m. Excellent conditions.

Folks, I`m here to tell you that spring has sprung. The fish are back. Winter is over.

Fishing has been real slow in the Cedar Keys National Wildlife Refuge this past winter season. Water temps were as low as 59F just 2 weeks ago. Last Monday the temperature of the water had risen 5 degrees to 64F to 65F throughout the keys. You didn`t need a thermometer to tell the fish had returned for their annual spring run.

We caught 50 silver trout and a dozen plump whiting. I was busy cutting up bait and netting fish. And just as busy cleaning all those fish when we returned to the dock. My guests had a gallon ziplock bag full of trout fillets and another one with whiting. Mixed up with ice cubes and stowed in their coolers for the ride back home. They gave me 2 trout and a whiting for Whitey (my cat).

I`m looking forward to a great spring time of fishing here in Cedar Key and out of the mouth of the Waccasassa river. If you`d like a wonderful diversion from your busy life style you should call me at 352-486-1656 and we can arrange a fishing trip for you and your friends or family and you
can bring home the freshest seafood in the neighborhood. e-mail me at shanadan50@hotmail.com and
go to my web page and check out some of the cool pics at www.inshorefloridafishing.com Capt.Dan