May 6, 2006 -Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Guide Capt. Chris Myers East Central Florida report Last weekend, I participated in the Redbone Mosquito Lagoon Red and Trout Celebrity Tournament. This is a photograph and release tournament held to benefit Cystic Fibrosis. I had the pleasure of guiding Dan Faherty of Titusville and Tim Litchet from Sarasota. Both days of the tournament, we were faced with extremely high winds making casting conditions difficult. Although we did not win, Dan did walk away with the trophy for the biggest redfish caught during the tournament. It was a 37" fish he caught on a white zoom super fluke pinned on a red 1/4 oz. jig head. It gave him a great fight on 10 pound braided line and a 2500 size reel. The winds finally calmed down this week and the flats are alive with activity. The mullet are thick and the trout are around the mullet in 2-4 feet of water. Schools of jacks can be encountered from time to time marauding the mullet. The big redfish have been consistent along the deeper edges of flats and respond to a well placed pinfish. On the shallow flats, redfish can be found in water barely deep enough to cover their backs. A gold or baby bass jerk bait, Exude crabs, and DOA shrimp, are all effective. On Wednesday of this week, I fished with Chuck Myers of Tampa and Ed Fisher of Cape Coral. It was a beautiful calm day and we were rewarded with hundreds of big redfish. Using live pinfish, Chuck and Ed boated several big reds and had several that escaped capture. Thursday, I fished with David Diggs and Don Bjoring of Central Florida. We fished for the big reds early in the day. David struck first with his biggest ever redfish. Don was not as lucky and had two nice fish part the line. Just after making a cast, Don handed his rod to his David so he could assist his good friend in locating a snack. Seconds later, the drag began to scream and a big red was attached to the line. David, being the good friend that he is to Don, decided to help his friend by reeling in the fish to save his friend's arms from getting tired. The result was David's second big red which was larger than the first. Don was a good sport and took a bit of ribbing from his friend and I. We moved to another spot and ended the day with several nice trout caught by each using Capt. Joe's Shredders in rootbeer/pink, and a DOA shrimp under a cajun thunder float. The flats fishing will continue to be hot throughout the month as we have moderate water temperatures and an abundance of bait. Topwater baits will provide plenty of action in the morning providing there is not too much floating grass. If you are looking for a Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Guide or want to experience some of the best fishing near orlando, please visit my HOME page for charter information. View pictures of fish you can catch in east central Florida.