- Joined
- Aug 9, 2010
- Location
- Coral Springs, Florida
I headed out fishing this morning and before I went I read the fishing reports. Here is the report for where I was going. Its called Holiday Park.
"Christmas came early this year for South Florida bass anglers.
Water levels in the Everglades have been low and the fishing in the canals that run through the vast marsh is red-hot, even in spite of recent cold fronts.
Anglers have been enjoying the best bass fishing in the country for the past few weeks. A good day for two people is catching and releasing 50 fish, but many boats have routinely caught more than 100 bass a day.
The fishing should only get better as water levels continue to drop, which forces bass out of the marsh, water temperatures warm and big female bass move onto their beds to spawn.
"I couldn't imagine if it was 70 degrees right now," Mike Lendl said this past Tuesday afternoon, when the water temperature in the canals along Alligator Alley had warmed to 58 degrees after a frigid morning.
With lethargic alligators watching us as they soaked up the sun along the banks, Lendl and I caught about 75 bass up to 2 and a half pounds. Nearly all of them were males that were in the deeper, warmer water along the drop offs in the canals. Just off the banks we could see the white beds that they had fashioned for the females to lay their eggs.
While we fished we bumped into Tim Feller, who does well in local events such as Lendl's King of the Glades trail, which begins its fifth season Jan. 9 out of Everglades Holiday Park with the first of five qualifying tournaments (visit kingoftheglades.com).
Feller told us he'd seen three big females cruising by some beds ahead of us. The fish weren't interested in eating, but when they get on the beds, "it means better fishing is right around the corner," Lendl said.
That has anglers excited. Guide John Pate launched his boat at Holiday Park Wednesday morning not to fish, but just to look for beds. Pate will be fishing Jan. 8 in a tournament to benefit his friend Jack Huggins and the following day in the King opener.
"Whoever finds them on the beds first," Lendl said, "that's the guy who's going to end up winning Round 1."
Even when the bass aren't on the beds, the fishing is a blast and virtually any lure you throw will work.
Among Lendl's favorites are Carolina-rigged soft-plastic baits dragged along the bottom and plastic frogs fished in the lily pads lining the canals. Capt. Alan Zaremba (954-609-3671) favors floating Rapalas, which his customers retrieve with a series of rapid jerks.
I like plastic stick worms rigged wacky style by hooking them in the middle on a 2/0 Daiichi circle hook. Just make a cast, let the worm fall and wait for a bite, then reel the line tight to set the hook.
Although I caught several bass on a BJ's Baits watermelon/red Yes!Yes!, I eventually switched to a shaky head jig because Lendl was using one to catch fish after fish after fish.
The lightweight jigs are especially effective in cold water. Lendl used a couple of different types with a black JDS finesse worm and I used a Jewel Squirrel Head with that worm. We'd cast the lures to the edge of the lilies, let them fall to the bottom and slowly drag and shake them.
We occasionally got bites by the pads, but most came well off the shoreline out to the middle of the canal. Numerous times one of us would hook a bass and then the other would get a bite.
It looks like it's going to be a very happy New Year."
Ok now I was a bit excited after reading this but I just got back after being there since 6 am and I only got two bites that resulted in two 1.5 pound fish. When I got back to the ramp I noticed they were pumping water in so maybe that changed things. One guy I talked to went down the other canal towards Alligaor Alley and he said he caught about a dozen. Maybe I headed down the wrong canal but man was I swearing all the way home. Things do change vey quickly in the canals from day to day as water levels fluctuate but I was damn near ready to sell the boat after that outing. Guess I can't though since I'm trying again tommorow
"Christmas came early this year for South Florida bass anglers.
Water levels in the Everglades have been low and the fishing in the canals that run through the vast marsh is red-hot, even in spite of recent cold fronts.
Anglers have been enjoying the best bass fishing in the country for the past few weeks. A good day for two people is catching and releasing 50 fish, but many boats have routinely caught more than 100 bass a day.
The fishing should only get better as water levels continue to drop, which forces bass out of the marsh, water temperatures warm and big female bass move onto their beds to spawn.
"I couldn't imagine if it was 70 degrees right now," Mike Lendl said this past Tuesday afternoon, when the water temperature in the canals along Alligator Alley had warmed to 58 degrees after a frigid morning.
With lethargic alligators watching us as they soaked up the sun along the banks, Lendl and I caught about 75 bass up to 2 and a half pounds. Nearly all of them were males that were in the deeper, warmer water along the drop offs in the canals. Just off the banks we could see the white beds that they had fashioned for the females to lay their eggs.
While we fished we bumped into Tim Feller, who does well in local events such as Lendl's King of the Glades trail, which begins its fifth season Jan. 9 out of Everglades Holiday Park with the first of five qualifying tournaments (visit kingoftheglades.com).
Feller told us he'd seen three big females cruising by some beds ahead of us. The fish weren't interested in eating, but when they get on the beds, "it means better fishing is right around the corner," Lendl said.
That has anglers excited. Guide John Pate launched his boat at Holiday Park Wednesday morning not to fish, but just to look for beds. Pate will be fishing Jan. 8 in a tournament to benefit his friend Jack Huggins and the following day in the King opener.
"Whoever finds them on the beds first," Lendl said, "that's the guy who's going to end up winning Round 1."
Even when the bass aren't on the beds, the fishing is a blast and virtually any lure you throw will work.
Among Lendl's favorites are Carolina-rigged soft-plastic baits dragged along the bottom and plastic frogs fished in the lily pads lining the canals. Capt. Alan Zaremba (954-609-3671) favors floating Rapalas, which his customers retrieve with a series of rapid jerks.
I like plastic stick worms rigged wacky style by hooking them in the middle on a 2/0 Daiichi circle hook. Just make a cast, let the worm fall and wait for a bite, then reel the line tight to set the hook.
Although I caught several bass on a BJ's Baits watermelon/red Yes!Yes!, I eventually switched to a shaky head jig because Lendl was using one to catch fish after fish after fish.
The lightweight jigs are especially effective in cold water. Lendl used a couple of different types with a black JDS finesse worm and I used a Jewel Squirrel Head with that worm. We'd cast the lures to the edge of the lilies, let them fall to the bottom and slowly drag and shake them.
We occasionally got bites by the pads, but most came well off the shoreline out to the middle of the canal. Numerous times one of us would hook a bass and then the other would get a bite.
It looks like it's going to be a very happy New Year."
Ok now I was a bit excited after reading this but I just got back after being there since 6 am and I only got two bites that resulted in two 1.5 pound fish. When I got back to the ramp I noticed they were pumping water in so maybe that changed things. One guy I talked to went down the other canal towards Alligaor Alley and he said he caught about a dozen. Maybe I headed down the wrong canal but man was I swearing all the way home. Things do change vey quickly in the canals from day to day as water levels fluctuate but I was damn near ready to sell the boat after that outing. Guess I can't though since I'm trying again tommorow