soflabasser

Nice freshwater drum, I have caught a couple of them while fishing up north. They remind me of the black drum I catch in South Florida.

The easiest, expend the least energy type of bass fishing I have done is hire a guide for peacock bass fishing. The guide did all the research on where to fish, caught the bait, and even told me where to cast. I give him credit since I caught many peacock bass that day and got a couple new spots to fish but it felt like cheating since I felt he did most of the work in putting me on those spots. Because of this I no longer hire guides for bass fishing and instead catch my own fish 100%. I do all the research where to go, decide what to use, and catch my fish without the help of anyone else. It is a good feeling when you catch a 8 pound or better bass from public waters and you know it was all you that was responsible for catching that bass!

You really love vacationing in Florida from what I have read in your previous post and I do not blame you. Florida is known as ''The fishing capital of the world'' and people from all the states visit Florida for fishing. Many of these tourist eventually move down to live here so they can be closer to the state they love. As for ''pumping money into the local economy'' we have no problem with money, in fact Florida is a very wealthy state in both money and natural resources. Floridians have no problem with snowbirds that are respectful and drive well but we do dislike the ones that have the ''I am better than you attitude'' and other aggressive behaviors which are very common from some snowbirds. We also do not like the snowbirds that break the law by speeding, not putting the turn signal, tailgating less than 10 feet away while driving +65mph, and other obnoxious behaviors we have observed from tourist. Hope you have a good time in your next Florida vacation and hopefully the guide is good enough to put you on a 8 pound or better bass.

Welcome to the forum

Welcome to the forum

Not surprised your area is having flooding since it seems to be a common occurrence every spring in northern states. All that melting snow and rainwater has to go somewhere. Might be a good idea to learn how to fish flooded rivers or fish lakes that are not too affected.

Caught the following species of fish today while fishing in South Florida freshwater canal systems; 1. peacock bass 2. largemouth bass 3. oscar 4. mayan cichlid 5. jewel cichlid 6. midas cichlid 7. jaguar guapote 8. bowfin 9. gar 10. bluegill 11. redear sunfish 12. spotted sunfish 13. warmouth Ended the trip early so I could of caught more species of fish if I wanted to. This was a typical day of multi species fishing for me and it is safe to say that South Florida is a fisherman's paradise.

Now you know how many South Floridians feel when some snowbirds come down here and present less than acceptable behavior. I can talk for hours about this subject but I will make it short...not much you can do about disrespectful out of towners so it would be best to focus on your own fishing and fish in other locations to avoid these type of people. You can also not talk to them and ignore them, that tends to make most of them go away.

I would be fishing for redeye bass and shoal bass more than largemouth bass if I lived in Georgia. Have caught Altamaha redeye bass in Georgia along with other species of bass. The Suwannee river is a great place to fish and it has Suwannee bass which is one of the rarest species of black bass. Did you catch this 8 pounder during the summer or very warm weather? Have noticed that big bass fight harder during the winter and less when the water is over 80 degrees.

I use mostly size 4000 spinning reels for bass fishing and do very well. I do not find these reels to be too heavy, but I do workout often with big weights which helps makes fishing and other hobbies easier for me. I have a size 1000 reel I use to have a fun challenge while fishing. So far I have caught snook, bass, peacock bass, carp, and even a +26 pound pacu on my size 1000 spinning reel. Still prefer my size 4000 spinning reels for bass fishing.

How's the river bass fishing been for you lately in Georgia, any shoal bass or redeye bass? That is when you know you have a good one, although sometimes the big bass do not fight much during the summer. I have caught several 8 pound or better bass that leaped completely out of the water and others that stay down and just make strong runs. Seems like big bass do whatever they want and they are not 100% predictable in the way they fight.

Most of the big bass I catch make long, strong runs (compared to normal sized bass) with a couple jumps to shake off the hook. I catch most of the big bass that bite but there are always a couple smart ones that shake off the hook like a tarpon does.

I often catch 10 or more species of freshwater fish in 1 day of fishing. It helps that I fish in South Florida where there are dozens of species of fish swimming in the canals, ponds, and lakes.

When a largemouth bass is over 24 inches it is as long as a legal black grouper so I sometimes give these big bass the nickname of green grouper.

Looks like he is thinking ''come on in the water is fine!''LOL On a serious note I have wade fished both in freshwater and saltwater for over 20 years now in South Florida. Have also dived in areas with alligators, crocodiles, sharks, and other animals so I got more in water experience than most who just stay on dry land or on a boat. You have to know where you are wade fishing in and always pay attention to your surroundings. Do not enter the water if it is alligator mating season, when sharks are actively feeding, etc. Having fear of animals will take away from the overall experience of being in the outdoors so it would be best for every fisherman to educate themselves on the animals they can possibly encounter while wade fishing in Florida.

I did some wade fishing in the ocean this past weekend in an area well known for shark fishing and have done wade fishing in Florida for over 20 years now. Also wade fish in freshwater. So far it has been a fun, productive experience for me since I always watch where I step and pay attention to the wildlife around me.

The times you ran those distances are very good and you will always have those achievements for the rest of your life. Yes I have ran full marathons and half marathons for the past 11 years now. I love to run since it is good for my health and helps me in all the sports I practice.

The fish you are holding is a northern strain largemouth bass.

Those cheap Walmart spinnerbaits are better than many people give them credit for. Have caught lots of quality size bass on them and know of a guy who caught a +9 pounder on them. Tarpon and snook will hit a spinnerbait both in freshwater and saltwater. They will also hit a hollow belly frog and largemouth bass will hit lures made for saltwater fishing. If it moves and looks like a meal it will get hit!

I have fished in the Chipola river in Northern Florida and this river has many shoals in it. There are many ways you can fish a shoal but the most important factor is the river water level and how long the water has been at a favorable level. Try fishing with jigs, jerkbaits, crank baits, and topwaters.

Welcome to the forum

That is crazy that this bass weighed 9 pounds yet only measured 21.5 inches. Most 9 pound or better bass I catch are 25 inches or longer with a healthy body frame. Goes to show you bass get big quickly on dumb easy to catch stocked trout.

Try fishing at night or try a different technique that you do not use but is known to work well in your area. You can also go fishing in a river for muskie and smallmouth bass which is more fun than catching northern strain largemouth bass in lakes.

Welcome to the forum

Florida has the best overall fishing of all the states. The more north you go in Florida the more cold weather you will see during the winter. It snows in northern Florida every once in a while and it snowed in Tallahassee and surrounding areas on several occasions. With that said few people like the snow/bitter cold winters so it is a good thing it rarely snows in Florida and instead we have beautiful, warm weather most of the year. As for multi species fishing Florida cannot be beaten by any other state! We have fish from many continents in South Florida (peacock bass, clown knifefish, bullseye snakehead, various tilapia species, Midas cichlids, jaguar guapotes, lionfish to name a few) and the whole state has plenty of big largemouth bass to keep you busy for a lifetime of big bass fishing if you want. LOL!