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Bass Fishing in Florida

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Central Florida Bass fishing has been doing very good. Start of November has brought us some cooler overnight temperatures which has helped lower the water temperatures. What this has done for us is simple, it has turned on some very good bass fishing action here in Florida. Many people come here every year to fish the spawning season, in search of that trophy bass, but what many over look is the fact when these bass start feeding up for the spawn, like they are now, your chances of catching some nice trophy bass also increases.

Today was my day off so I did what I love to do, I went bass fishing. Hitting the waters in hopes of catching some action on a new mouse I have, only to find that the mouse action just was not going to happen. I switched lures up some and tied on one of my Spro Shads and the bass loved this thing. First bass caught on it was a dink, then a nice 3 pounder smacked it. This had me all pumped as I know these waters here hold some great bass. Working along weed lines and lily pads, I kept at it when the rod slammed over. After a brief fight, and a little tussle with the video camera, a very nice 5 plus pound trophy bass was coming over the side of the boat.

Bass like these are common all year long here in Florida, and Central Florida bass fishing is probably the best action the state of Florida has. With lakes like world famous Lake Toho, Lake Kissimmee, Butler Chain and Conway Chain, there is no need to travel any further. Remember, we are just a matter of minutes from all three major theme parks, and can put you on some great Disney area and central Florida bass fishing action.

Bass Fishing forecast for September

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Florida Bass Fishing in SeptemberFlorida Bass Fishing in SeptemberThe month of September is typically one of our hottest months of the year. For this reason, most people will feel the bass fishing will not be any good. I am here to tell you this is far from the truth. The early morning bite is typically a very good bite, hitting the water early does benefit the angler, not only with the bass biting, but also the chance to help avoid the heat.

Usually no later than high noon, most anglers will be making that mad rush to the boat ramp to get out of the heat, as they feel the bass will not be biting their lures or wild shiners anymore. Guess what folks, typically some of our biggest bass will come in the heat of the day. Why you ask, because this is the time of day when you really start to focus on pin point casting, putting your baits right into that little honey hole in the matting, where the bigger bass may be lurking and waiting for their food to come by them.

Heat dictates how a bass will bite, and although it is a given, when our waters heat up this month, the bass bite will slow down, but bass still have to eat, they just won’t be chasing fast moving lures in the heat of the day. The old adage is, why would I chase my meal, when it will eventually come right by me.

Well that is pretty much the mentality of the bass. Bass here in Florida eat year round, this is why Florida is the Bass Fishing Capital of the world!

With several great bodies of water here in Central Florida, there is always a lake that is producing bass, whether it be world famous Lake Toho located in Kissimmee Florida, or Butler Chain, which is within minutes of Disney World, Universal Studios and Sea World, your never far from getting that chance to land a lunker!

Lake Toho Bass Fishing End of June 2010

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June has been an eventful month for bass fishing. The last half has seen some pretty darn good days of bass fishing.

Lake Toho has been very good in the early morning hours, especially with some top water action. Horny Toads and buzz baits along the grass lines have produced some explosive strikes and some good bass. Redeye Shad and steel shads are still producing some numbers out here as well as the old reliable senko type baits and trick worms.

orlando bass fishingEast Lake Toho has been good. Early morning bite has been the best part of the day here. Scattered grasses through-out the lake has been producing not only some good numbers, but some good size as well. This has been an often over looked body of water, but believe me, this lake is a sleeper. You just need to know how to fish it. Start planning your fall and winter trips out here for split day trips, fishing for  four hours, breaking for lunch at one of the two fine restaurants on the lake, then fishing the last four hours.

Butler Chain has been pretty good itself, once again it’s the early morning bite that is the most active. This is pretty much the typical pattern this time of year with the Florida heat. Bass have still been hanging around the outside grass edges and close to drop offs, as well as under the docks out here.
Spinner Baits, Redeye Shads, senko type baits and trick worms have been the main ticket to catching bass. There has been some open water schooling out here but from the lakes we have been on that has been limited and scattered.

 
Johns Lake has had some good days, and some days where you have to work for your bass. The days you work for them, you just basically move around more than usual, but you will still catch the bass out here. Early morning hours generally see the schooling action in the Deer Island Cut, sometimes it is heavy schooling action, and there are those days where that action is very limited. The show up and are gone quick. Just toss a Carolina Rig and be patient, they are still around.

Great baits have been senko type baits, 7 inch worms, redeye shads and steel shads, remember these bass are chasing smaller sized shad, so for best results you want to stick to baits closer to shad patterns and try to match the size. All too often we hear “ bigger baits means bigger bass” sometimes this is true, but you will catch a lot of bigger bass with French fry type baits as well.

July Heat is now here, but there is still action going on. Best results can be produced in 6 hour trips. Fall is just around the corner and dates will start booking up so check your calendar and jump on board.

Butler Chain, save our water

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Would sewer switch preserve Butler lakes?

I found this article from the Orlando Sentinel. I think its time we all take a good look at our waters, not only here in Florida but everywhere, and start thinking is it really worth it to allow developers to build around lakes. Maybe there needs to be an increased buffer along with no more septic tanks around lakes. Here is the article.

July 29, 2007|By Rich Mckay, Sentinel Staff Writer
Years back, the water in the Butler Chain of Lakes was gin-and-tonic clear.

Sport fishermen could look 15 feet straight down and watch fat bass hunt through eelgrass.

Today the 11-lake chain in southwest Orange County rates among the cleanest in the state, but the water’s clarity has diminished. That has the county’s environmental officials worried.

A recent $250,000 study still under review by Orange County’s Environmental Protection Division found pockets of algae-feeding phosphorus at levels 30 times greater than water scientists recommend.

Leaking septic systems, nutrients from lawn fertilizers and stormwater runoff are cited by county scientists as likely sources of the phosphorus. If too much of it gets into the lakes, then algae will bloom, killing fish and toppling the balanced ecosystem.

Once-clear Lake Apopka was doomed to its rancid fate in large part because of phosphorus and other nutrients from sewage and fertilizers.

No one swims there. Clarity is measured in inches. And its few inhabitants are bottom-feeding fish that can thrive in oxygen-deprived waters, Orange County officials say.

To avoid that fate, the Butler study calls for Windermere’s 2,400 residents to all switch from septic to sanitary sewer.

But if political and financial woes faced by communities in similar situations — the Wekiva River basin, Port Orange in Volusia County and Key West — are an indicator of what lies ahead, Windermere is in for a long fight.

A pivotal point is the price of converting to municipal sewer or a different sort of septic-tank system.

The cost for a homeowner to change from septic to sewer in Orange County is about $2,000 per home, said James Michael, the owner of Patriot Plumbing. County hookup fees would add about $3,000.

But Windermere resident Jim Clark, who heads the town’s ad hoc committee to study the septic issue, said money is not the concern.

“I live right on Lake Butler,” Clark said. “If we need to fix something, we’ll write a check and do it. But the more we look into it, the more we find that septic works pretty darn good.”

Residents point fingers

But a growing body of evidence points to septic as part of the trouble. The Butler study by former University of Florida professor Harvey Harper was designed to measure what elements are in the water, not to trace the origin. Yet Harper said you don’t have to be a detective to see the obvious.

“Septic is the logical source,” he said.

Harper and Orange County environment officials say stormwater runoff is a source, as is development, which can unlock phosphorus naturally present in the ground.

Many residents point their fingers at the large golf courses outside Windermere that border the lake chain.

But Joseph Bow, the greens superintendent for Windermere Country Club, said that’s not true.

“If there’s phosphorus going into the water, it isn’t coming from us,” Bow said.

He said most of the fertilizer they use doesn’t contain phosphorus.

He said the South Florida Water Management District strictly monitors the golf course, and he keeps detailed records of every chemical and fertilizer they use.

Bow puts the blame back on the residents’ use of fertilizer on their lawns.

“A homeowner might just buy anything off the shelf and not be careful,” he said.

Windermere resident Vera Carter doesn’t deny that townsfolk could do more to protect the lakes, including switching to sewer.

She points out that Windermere includes just 16 percent of the shoreline of the Butler Chain.

“Everyone has to do this, or we’ll just be wasting our money,” she said.

Differing opinions

A switch from septic to sanitary sewer could burden the town with a tab of $20 million or more. Windermere’s annual budget is $3.5 million. And each household would have to pay about $5,000 to have its septic system properly abandoned and to hook onto sewer.

Clark knows high-tech systems can clean septic discharge very well, but many of those involve multiple filters, electric pumps and many more parts that can break down.

“Septic is simple,” he said.

Windermere resident Lori Bradford is the president of the advocacy group Butler Chain Concerned Citizens Association Inc. She said it might be more than one thing hurting the lakes, but that doesn’t mean everyone shouldn’t do all that can be done.

“We’re all in the same boat,” she said. “We live here.”

But the town isn’t of one mind. Longtime resident Karen Fay, who lives on Windermere’s Wauseon Bay and has just installed a new septic system, said the town is slow to change.

“Well, you know what they say, if it ain’t broke . . . “

 

 

Seasonal Bass Fishing

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Here we will touch base on the different seasonal patterns of Bass Fishing in Central Florida. Here in Central Florida, bass fishing is a year-round event. I will start with what I consider the best season for bass fishing in Florida, Fall/Winter season. As fall approaches us, water temperatures will start to fall from the sometimes highs of the mid to upper 90’s at times, to the perfect top water action of the mid 70’s. This we find to be one of the best times of year to get in on what is definitely one of the most productive times of year, as the shad and wild shiners start to really school up and the bass start feeding up on them in an aggressive manner in preparation of the up coming spawning season.
The fall season can be a spectacular time of year to be on the water, as bass are feeding up on their main forage, they can be easily enticed into some serious top water action baits such as Toads, pencil poppers, prop baits, and the list goes on and on. With the never ending wide range of top water baits, your day on the water can always be eventful and exciting.
Florida is probably the hottest destination for fall/winter bass fishing, as the weather is not really known to be as harsh as far as getting cold, and you can still be very comfortable out on the lake, without having to pick ice out of your rod guides after every few casts. Although, even in Florida we do get the cold fronts thru here, dropping the air temperatures to the uppers 20’s at times, the days usually warm up very nicely to the mid 60’s
Winter bass fishing in Florida as many know, is the place to be. Florida is known world wide as “The Bass Fishing Capitol of the World” and with the BassMaster Classic of 2006, record setting weights, and ten pound plus bass being caught, Florida will remain at the top of the list for many years to come. Lake Toho and Lake Kissimmee are usually the hot destination for many anglers in that never ending search for their first ten pound plus bass, and during this time of year, plenty are caught.
Winter months in Florida brings cold fronts, dropping water temperatures to the mid to upper 50’s. This will push the bass in most Florida lakes tight to cover, or in the case of the Butler Chain, which has a total of 12 lakes interconnected by canals, into deep holes. This time of year many anglers are coming and requesting live bait action, which can be probably the easiest way to catch that Trophy Bass in Central Florida, but with those deeper waters in Butler Chain, it also allows the northern angler the ability to employ tactics they may use on their home waters, such as drop shot, and jigging spoons to catch bass.
The winter months also mean spawn season, January and February can hold some of the hottest and best action, along with what can be the best possible chance at that trophy bass everyone is looking for. The bass have gorged themselves on shad and are fattened up and full of eggs, this is generally the time of year when they will be the biggest of the season.

Spring has been another great time for some serious bass fishing action in Florida. This time of year, bass are once again feeding up on their natural forage, shad and wild shiners, getting back to their normal weight after the spawn. This can and will see a lot of top water feeding going on during the day, which means some great top water action, our favorite top water baits will be buzz baits, and top water plugs produced by High Roller Lures. Early part of spring, you will still be able to catch a few bass that are still on beds or just coming off the beds, numbers caught will generally run anywhere from 15 to 35 bass per day, size of your catch can range from 2 to even 10 pounds, remember, your in Florida now, and on any given cast, you have that possibility of landing that trophy bass.
Summer bass season in Florida is the often overlooked season. With the dog days of summer, people generally think the bass bite is gone with only catching bass here and there. But this has been proven wrong time and again, as some big bass will continue to be caught even in the hottest part of the day. Some of the biggest bass during the summer months, bass in the 7 to 10 pound range have been caught between the hours of 11AM and 3PM. Typically the fishing pattern will be top water baits early in the day, and slowly progressing to a flipping bite, this will generally be when you will stand the best shot at getting that trophy bass during the summer months. Trip lengths generally run 4 to 6 hours due to the heat, and typical afternoon thunder showers, but we do get those hard core anglers that will fish all day.

Bass Assassin