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Sometimes the PH in the water gets screwed up, they will stop doing anything! Especially eating! This sometimes happens after a heavy, drenching, rain storm. I hate that!

I do the same thing regardless of the catching. I take a NAP!

Everythingthatswims, throw the smaller 4" senko type bait (watermelon red), weightless, on a Gama EGW hook. They have been killing it down here for months. Slow fall, hangs in front of there face. Let it sit on the bottom for a minute and then just shake it. Someone will pick it up. You have to fish slow, most of the time.

Sunday 4/13/14, Overcast with some showers, wind from the east 10-15. Went with a friend to my usual spot that has produced big numbers for almost three months, Like a light switch the fish almost shut off completely. Using the same techniques that have been successful over a long period, were a struggle today. We worked hard for 12 bass, a warmouth, and a big mudfish. Others around us were having the same problem today. What turned them off has me stumped. Good cloud coverage and lower water levels should have had us cleaning up today. That's fishing for you, you just never know.

Here in South Florida we are now in low water conditions in the glades. The bass are concentrated in the only deep water around, the man made canals and gator holes. 100 fish for a full day are the norm now. I fish 6 days a week in a number of locations. I have caught between 1500 and 2000 bass since January. Keep your line wet and you will catch a bunch of fish. This is one of the reasons I picked this place to call home.

I have fished alot of lakes in south Florida but one lake takes the prize as a monster lake. I have fished the Stick Marsh in Felesmere, Florida several times. The first time there was an unbelieveable experience. A friend an I fished it for 5 hours and caught 42 fish, not unusual for Florida. The real kicker was my friend that lives close to the lake caught 36 pounds for 5 fish, and I had 28 pounds for 5 fish. We caught 18 fish over 5 pounds. These weights are not unusual for this compound. The government has decided to double the size of the compound and is in the process of constructing a bass fishing paradise. It looks good for the future of this place. Now the down side. This compound is mostly 3 to 4 feet deep. It is loaded with stumps and lay-downs. My friend lives minutes from the Marsh and knows where to run and where to crawl along. You could lose a low unit easily at the stick marsh. Places that look wide open often have stumps everywhere. If you get a chance try the Marsh, but be extra careful!

Yes all fisherman fish differently. You have to use what you have confidence in. I throw a senko type bait more then any other bait. I throw it weightless most of the time, and I throw it from the boat and from the bank. It casts a mile if you have the correct set up and the correct line. I use floro most of the time, but if your just starting out I would use Berkeley Big Game. You will have alot less problems and it will cast a mile. To show you how fisherman are different, I'll give you this example. I fished the Stick Marsh in Felesmere Florida (a place known for monster fish), last year with a new friend. We were in an area with stumps and laydowns everywhere in three feet of water. I was throwing my a big weightless senko with a big heavy #6 gama hook. My new friend pulls out a 2.5 KVD square billed crankbait. For every fish I caught, he caught 4. I couldn't believe this thing could make it through this narly crap without getting hung. He made me a believer and soon we were both throwing crankbaits. I've been fishing 40 years and learn something new almost every trip out. If you stop learning, you have only one way to go, and that's down hill! Keep watching others, and try out some of their techniques when you can. Fishing is a on going process.

I once foul hooked a huge grass carp on a wacky rigged trick worm. I set the hook on what looked like a huge musky. This carp fought me fouled hooked for what seemed like 10 minutes taking drag time and time again. It was a thrill. I purposely try NOT to target bedding bass. I don't think its good for the fish or this sport, and I'm not a tree hugger!

Lots of good information from a bunch of guys. I fish for fun and don't worry about catching just big fish. If I was a tournament guy, I guess I would think differently. I fish over 200 days a year and catch a hundred of fish over 6 pounds each year here in Florida. I don't target just big fish, I target all fish. If I targeted just big fish, I would FLIP all day, the nasty thick cover we have down here. I just don't enjoy doing that, and therefore don't do it that much. I would rather catch one hundred 2 pound fish, then one 8 pound fish. I would rather catch 10 in ten minutes, then one fish an hour. I target the cover, the structure, the ledges, and rip rap. If there is a 2 pound fish or an 8 pound fish, I try to catch them all, and I am happy. If your catching fish, a big one will come along at some point. For me the important thing is that tug on the line. If I feel that tug I a happy camper and it makes my day! Its all about having fun, not the competition of catching the biggest 5 fish. My big fish to date is 11.4 caught along a 3 foot ledge next to a 8 foot drop off. It was caught on a spinning reel with 10 pound test, and a weightless zoom fluke. Definitely not what you would use targeting a double digit bass. One of the things I like about fishing is, you never know what will tug on your line. Just keep catching fish, the big ones will come!

Ouch, I'm sure hurt like hell. I've been hooked four times, always a crank bait snagged, or the fish coming unbuttoned at the boat. I have pushed the barb through my finger and then cut off the barb, no problem. The string thing never worked for me, and I tried it several times. Went to the same ER a month apart. Same doctor was laughing at me the second time. Don't fish crank baits very often anymore, my Co-Pay went up too much!!!!!!!!

Sunday 4/6/14, Holey Land, US 27 at the Palm Beach Line, water gin clear, wind 0 in the morning, 20+ at 10:00. Went out this morning and wow, it was beautiful. Started casting right at the ramp and caught 3 in 5 minutes. Realized I forgot sunglasses and a hat, a SENIOR MOMENT! Returned to the ramp and ran into a good friend (Eric NitroZ7) I hadn't seen in 6 months. We talked for some time and he ran 5 miles to his honey hole. I stayed right by the ramp in the big lake. By 10:00 the wind was doing a steady 20+, and I called it quits. In 2 hours I caught 20 the biggest 3 lbs. and I never started the big motor. There are loads of places in the glades producing big numbers. No slow down in sight yet.

Bill, keep positive and if this site helps then we are all doing something positive by participating. Keep posting away and I hope this whole thing is behind you soon. I have had two back surgeries over the years like many on this site. Sometimes they do help. Make sure you have a good Neurosurgeon, not an orthopedic surgeon. They specialize in this type of surgery. God bless and may relief come soon.

Stick Marsh does not allow tournaments. Fished it last year. The guy with me had 36 lbs. for 5, and I had 28. This happens all the time out there. Toho is great but the Marsh is off the chart. Down side to the Marsh is you better know where your going or you got a good shot at losing your lower unit.

We just went through this type of post about 3 weeks ago. Not again!

Lou that's great your son caught so many. He will be hooked for sure. Lots of boaters out on 27 this morning, I went up to Holey Land.

Try to find a break line close to a flat. Fish that break line hard. Pre-staging bass my be positioning there.

Saturday 4/5/14, Alligator Alley MM 39, 7:00 - noon, clear, wind SW 7 - 10, Had the canal almost to myself. Went out early myself and ran to the east and the dead end. There was lots of signs of fish chasing bait fish. Started with a Gambler Cane Toad back in the pads. I caught a few in the pads early but this behavior stopped pretty quick. Then went to a senko type bait and starting catching at the drop-off in 10 feet of water. Most were caught on the fall hugging the wall. Decided to throw a zoom fluke weightless along the drop-off. Caught the big fish of the day a 4.5 on the fluke. Finished the day with a wacky rigged Zoom Trick Worm caught another quality fish under the bridge. The glades are still producing good numbers and will continue until the water level goes back up. Finished the day with about 45 caught, two big mudfish and an Oscar. Lots of big gar back in the shallows and the pads. They tore up a bunch of baits. Still a fun place to fish!

The other day I actually had a released bass swim into a potato chip bag. He swam around for 15 minutes with only his tail sticking out of the bag. I could not agree with this post any more. Also tons of old fishing line left on the bank. Some people are just plain stupid.

In Florida in these shallow weedy grass filled lakes I use at least 15lb test. Floro allot, or Trilene Big Game. I only have 65 lb. braid on my flipping set up. I have found you have less problems with the heavy braid digging in, then the lighter stuff. Any lighter then 15 lbs. and your going to lose a bunch of quality big fish with all our weeds. You have to get their head up real fast.

I'll give you a better one for a Carolina Rig. Take a tube and put a small piece of packing foam into the tube. Styroform works fine. Then Texas rig it right through the foam and skin tack it. The tube will float high above the weight. When you pull it, it will dive down behind the weight, When stopped it will slowly float back up and shake in the current. If you just shake the weight without pulling it, the bait will just sit there shake, and dance. I have used it on Okeechobee for years, works good on big flats, fish can't help but notice.

Nice job, keep your line in the water and good things happen!

Swim baits like Gambler E-Z swimmers on the outside edges. I like the Harney Pond Canal area of the lake, West Side.

Like Jaxbasser said it depends on the size and thickness of the bait. I do like thin wire Gama hooks better then heavy duty. The thin ones stick um much better. Exception is when fishing real heavy cover. In Florida I use #4 EWG hooks most of the time. I do not flip allot or I would use a different set up.

Gambler E-Z swimmer and Big E-Z are great swim baits Texas rigged, weightless. You don't need belly weights with the big hooks. Use a big #6 ewg Gama hook. Throw in the heavy nasty stuff and swim it out. Works great through pads, grass, timber or any other type of cover. There is a wide variety of colors to choose from.

Line makes a big difference when fishing plastics. I use Berkeley 100% Professional Grade Floro. I can feel every piecec of grass on the bottom, branches and rock and can tell the difference between them.. When I set the hook, its short, and solid, with no line stretch. The floro is near invisable in water. As you can tell I really like this stuff. Expensive, but to me worth the extra fish. There are people that hate this stuff but other then cost its in a class by itself. Not all Floro's are the same, this stuff is good. You need a quality reel or you may have more problems then with regular mono line. Every little thing helps.