Jerry and Brenda caught some nice size large-mouths using live bait on Lake Okeechobee. Excellent job guys! Till next time tight lines and good fishing…. From Staff Writer Capt. Roger G.(fishing@bassonline.com) BassOnline.com / 888-829-BASS
Florida Bass Fishing Report Week Ending Feb 18th
Paul on day three had his good friend Dave join us on Lake Jackson once again. Dave started out working live bait while Paul worked an arsenal of artificial baits. Tossing creature baits from zoom brush hogs to the Gene Larew Biffle Bug Paul worked it hard. Main artificial baits to produce once again was the senko type baits.
Dave had been catching some good numbers using live wild shiners and we slowly switched him over to the Yum Dinger as he had not bass fished in as he says about 20 years. Well let me tell ya folks, Dave hooked a sweet bass that would have been an easy 10 pounder with no doubts, but the hook pulls out just a matter of feet from the boat. Just minutes later Dave is working the Yum Dinger perfect, as a massive wake comes along and SLAMS his bait and the fight is on!
Dave was working this bass perfect, she was definitely bigger than the one he had already lost on the pulled hook, and as her back came out of the water all I could think was she is even bigger than the 11.4 pound I had caught. This baby started rippin drag and makin the reel screen, and then it happened, she got around the one darn grass patch just ten feet from the boat, wrapped herself around and shook loose. Paul and I could have sat on the deck and cried, and Dave says “ That was cool!!”
It was a great bass fishing day despite the two trophy bass getting away from us, and will definitely be a day Paul and Dave will never forget. Paul is back home in Texas and has already called me to tell me he is planning his return trip for next year.
Week Ending Jan 15th 2011 Bass Fishing Report
Ari and Karl fished 6 hours out on Lake Jackson with me on Sunday and had a pretty darn good day. I believe final numbers were 16 bass boated and a few others missed. Bait of choice was wild shiners and it was a good choice for sure. The guys boated a couple bass that went three to four pounds with the big gal coming in just over six pounds.
Weather was great with a fair amount of wind, but was not bad at all as the day warmed up and the Dig in Anchor held the boat in place perfectly. Bass were relating heavily to structure, and that structure was sunken trees, if you tossed five feet short, you waited awhile for a hit, or didn’t even get one. Big key was placing it very close to the trees and let the wild shiners swim along them on a float set about a foot deep. For the most part the bite was not aggressive as it typically has been, this day the bass would mouth the bait and swim some before it would really commit to it.
This required patience on our part where it seemed at times we were letting them have the bait for twenty seconds before we could set the hook, and with the circle hooks they were set perfect right in the corner of the mouth like they should be. The guys did a great job out there and we all had a blast.
What can I say folks, with wild shiners in tow the Polley father and son team banged some serious bass out on Lake Jackson. They come down from Canada and Dan gave his dad a Christmas present of Florida Bass Fishing. The bass definitely did not let these two guys down as we had a steady bite all day long.
For the most part the bass were slow to commit to our offerings of wild shiners, just mouthing the baits and swimming some with them before really taking them. This meant patience once again on our part, but the guys got their hook ups and boated well over 20 bass for the day.
When the live bait ran out, we switched up to some artificial baits landing a few more bass, with several missed bass, as the bass we located were deep in the slop in very shallow water. We started the day out fishing in four to six foot of water with live bait, and ended it in under a foot of water, casting to basically just inches of water where the bass were chasing bait fish around.
The guys had a great day on the water and had a blast catching some great Florida largemouth bass. Nothing better than seeing a father son team enjoying some quality time on the water together.
Florida Bass Fishing with Shiners
Florida bass fishing with shiners in Florida can be an absolute blast!. The best live bait to use of course is the wild golden shiner. These shiners can range anywhere in size from as small as four inches to what feels like 2 pounds at times. Winter time down here is a great time to use the wild shiners, as they will trigger some very aggressive strikes from bass and it can also be one of the best ways to catch that trophy bass of a lifetime.
When we get hit here is the south with a cold front, yes we do get them, and out water temperatures dip into the upper 40’s to low 50’s, sometimes bass just don’t want to chase their food. Don’t get me wrong, spinner baits and Strike King Red Eye Shads will still catch bass, as well as Senkos and worms, but to keep that bite steady for my clients we sometimes use wild shiners.
This is the perfect bait to catch some great numbers of bass, and yes you will catch your fair share of those two pound bass like in this video, but you will also stand a much better chance at the lunker bass. Most of the time we are free lining the wild shiners, hooking them thru the lower jaw and out the nostril and just pitching them to the edges of the grass beds or lily pads.
With the cooler water temperatures the bass will generally head to two areas on a lake. The first would be deeper drop offs and the other of course is tight to cover. One of the easiest ways to locate bass along the grass lines is to rig up two rods, one free lined and one with a float and just slow troll along the grass, staying about 2 foot from the grass and just move very slowly. This tactic has been very good for us as it is found us several places where we can then just slide our anchor into the water quietly and catch a ton of bass.
Remember that when the bass are feeding aggressively, hang on to those shiners that have already been hammered, as they will still catch bass for you. Just rig them thru the nose again, pitch them out there and slowly twitch them back to the boat.
Butler Chain Bass Fishing Nov 7th 2010
Orlando Bass Fishing has been doing very good as of late. Cooler air temperatures as well as cooler water temperatures have made for some very good bass fishing in Florida.Butler Chain of Lakes has been a great place to bass fish, with the bass starting to school up and move into shallower waters this has made for some very fun action. Live wild shiners have been doing very good out here. Drop offs are still producing some good numbers as well as some quality size bass. Main areas that have been producing have been the areas with some good weed lines and hydrilla patches that are scattered around the chain.
Artificial lures are doing great out here. Skipping senko type baits and flukes under docks are producing some good numbers and size. Spinner baits and Strike King Red Eye Shads are catching the bass in a big way right now. The bass have been very aggressive hitting these lures as they are now chasing bait fish around as they start to fatten up for the upcoming spawning season.
Main lakes that have been fishing best for us have been Lake Chase, Lake Butler which is the main lake and Lake Tibet. These three lakes have some of the best vegetation on them and they have been holding some of the best action as of late. My trips out here have been producing some good numbers and quality size. Capt. Rob Warfield has also been getting some quality action as seen in these pictures with two youngsters holding some nice bass they caught using artificial lures. Nothing more satisfying than seeing youngsters catching bass, whether it be with live bait or artificial baits, this is what it is all about.
Remember, when you go bass fishing, take your child with you, it’s a great way to spend some quality time together and grow that bond between you and your children. Special thanks to Capt Warfield, who is also my tournament partner. We have been fishing together for over 15 years now, and he helps me out with multi boat trips and corporate trips as well as picking up trips if I am already booked.
Kissimmee Chain Bass Fishing Report Oct 22nd 2010
Kissimmee Chain Bass Fishing-Florida Bass Fishing Guides
Bass fishing on the Kissimmee Chain of lakes has been great! Most of our trips have been artificial bait trip and they have been producing good numbers of bass, 20 to 30 bass in a day, with some good size mixed in.Bass coming in at or just over 5 pounds have been common with the typical schoolie sized bass mixed in to help keep the action steady throughout the day.
The typical trip using artificial baits has been tossing a lot of senko type baits but the bigger bass as of late have been coming on a 7 inch ribbon tail in June bug color. The bass we have been catching have been mostly scattered but have been holding to a steady pattern of holding tight to scattered grass patches and areas of thinned out lily pads.
Red Eye shad and steel shad have been very good at producing some good numbers in open water areas, and ripped thru the scattered hydrilla. We have been tossing some top water plugs, and the Strike King Rage Tail but the bass have not responded too well to these baits as of yet. Water temperatures in the morning have been in the mid 70’s so maybe a few more degrees and they will light up on the top water. We fully expect the top water bite to light up like it did for us last year.
Live bait trips out here have been doing pretty much the same. We have been working mainly areas of 3 to 6 foot of water and slow trolling the shiner about 2 foot under a cork. With more productive spots I have deployed the dig in anchor, which slides in fast, easy and quiet and we have worked over the area really good before moving to the next spot. Key areas with the live bait have been the spots holding more hydrilla than any other type of cover.
