Bass Fishing Vacation, Help Please!

[FrogFreak]

I'm looking to book a bass fishing vacation for my wife and I for the Feb/March time frame. I'm looking for recommendations. Here's my wishlist.

 

Reasonably priced package that includes:

Boat rental

Lodging

Meals

 

Close to a major airport would be nice.

A guide isn't needed but would be ok.

 

I suppose the budget here is 2-3K total (include airfare) and I'd like at least 2-3 days of fishing.

 

The destination should be within the US and warmer than North Dakota

 

If any of you have some real life experience with this I would greatly appreciate it.

[Catt]

Falcon Lake 

 

Steve Big O Parks can give you guide names

 

#2 would be Fork, send PM to Tom Reddington

[DILLY07]

Lake Okeechobee 

Winter Park

Lake Toho

Kissimmee Chain

Lake Fork

California Delta

[FrogFreak]

Lake Okeechobee 

Winter Park

Lake Toho

Kissimmee Chain

Lake Fork

California Delta

 

I appreciate the list of lakes but I'm looking for a package or a guide that someone can recommend. Possibly a place to stay, eat, fish etc.

[FrogFreak]

Falcon Lake 

 

Steve Big O Parks can give you guide names

 

#2 would be Fork, send PM to Tom Reddington

 

Catt,, thanks I'll hit up Steve. What's his member name?.

[Catt]

,

Catt,, thanks I'll hit up Steve. What's his member name?.

 

To contact Steve send him a PM, he's a member, you know the guy that invented Rage Tail 

[LMB KING]

Lake Okeechobee. Everything is very cheap around that town.

[DT6 4 days]

Dreamstrike Lake... $50 dollar boat rentals and one of the best bass fishing places in America!(opinion)

[FrogTosser88]

California delta.... March would be a great time.. not quite spawning season, but the weather will be warming a bit.. there are too many marinas here to even mention.. I live here so i dont rent boats or rooms. But do some research and I'm sure you will find something.

[Fisher-O-men]

San Diego is nice that time of year.  Great guides there (here)!  Outlandish license fees!  If you like sight fishing you could get a DD with the right guide.  (no, I'm not a guide)

[Catt]

Texas or Mexico for a dream bass fishing trip!

 

Florida & California aint even close for bass 10# plus

 

We had this discussion back in the early spring, I put the stats up, & no state came close. Only Mexico & 00mod could compete!

[buzzed bait]

just one "qualifier" question, but do you intend on doing anything else on this vacation aside from fishing?  that may help with suggestions, but if it's solely for fishing it leaves the possibilities nearly endless....

[WRB]

For the San Joaquin Delta area contact Andy "Cooch" Cuccia fishing, guide service. Cooch is the best guide I know of anywhere! Fly into San Jose, rent a car. The Delta is a world class bass fishery and you can fish for stripers . The San Fransicco Bay Area is close by.

Little further north is Clear Lake, If Cooch isn't guiding there, then contact Larry Hemphill guide service for Clear lake.

Tom

[plumworm]

Get on the web and investigate the Table Rock lake area. There are 100's of resorts, A lot of them rent boats and are well within your price range. I have been there twice in late March and the fishing was really good. Airport near by.

[RoLo]

Texas or Mexico for a dream bass fishing trip!

Florida & California aint even close for bass 10 # plus

 

Based on nationwide statistics, no place on earth produces more 10-pound bass than Florida, USA.

This should come as no surprise, as Florida is the home of Florida-stain largemouth bass

 

Florida has additionally yielded its fair share of world-class bass over 17.5 pounds, but unfortunately,

the state's biggest obstacle is 'bureaucracy'. Florida's heaviest bass on record are documented & certified

by the "IGFA", "Field & Stream", “International Spin Fishing Association" and others, but not by the state.

Listed below are certified bass taken in Florida that are not recognized by the state  (up to 2011):

 

1) 20-lb 2-oz - Big Fish Lake - May 1923 - Fritz Friebel (fully documented but not FL certified)

2) 19-lb 15-oz - Keystone Lake - 1927 - R. E. Lucas 

3) 19-lb 11-oz  (29" L x 23.25" G) - Stick Marsh - Jul 1994 - Doug Thompson

4) 19-lb 8-oz  (29” L 23” G) – Stick Marsh – May 1994 – Ed Johnson

5) 19-lb 4-oz – Taylor Creek Reservoir – Jun 1974 – Phil Jay

6) 19-lb 0-oz  (31”L) – Lake Tarpon – Jun 1961 – Riley Witt (former Florida state record)

7) 18-lb 13-oz  (29.5”L x 26.5”G) St Johns River - Apr 1987 - Buddy Wright (fully documented & certified)

8) 18-lb 8-oz – Orange Grove Lake – Jan 2008 – Jeffrey Smith

9) 18-lb 4-oz – St. Johns River – Dec 1948 - J.W. Smith

10) 18-lb 2-oz – Taylor Creek Reservoir - Jun 1974 – Phil Jay

10) 18-lb 2-oz – Lake Brooklyn – Mar 1966 – Hugh Paul

11) 18-lb 1-oz – Stick Marsh – Apr 1994 – Robert Bloom

12) 18-lb 0-oz – Orange Grove Lake – Steve Smith (IGFA documented)

12) 18-lb 0-oz (30”L) – Tucker Lake – 1964 – L.L. Petty 

12) 18-lb 0-oz – Lake George (St Johns River) – May 1958 – Marlin Coston

12) 18-lb 0-oz – Ashley Lake – Mar 1951 – Carl Swisher

13) 17-lb 15-oz – Undisclosed waters – Mar 1988 – Donald Brunson 

14) 17-lb 12-oz – West Lake Tohopekaliga (West Toho) – Jul 1986 – John Faircloth 

15) 17-lb 9-oz – Lake George (St. Johns River) – Babette Morgan

16) 17-lb 8-oz (28”Lx25”G) Lake Rose – 1985 – Mike Paule 

16) 17-lb 8-oz (28”Lx25”G) Hurricane Lake – Mar 1983 – Robert Earl

16) 17-lb 8-oz – Lake George (St. Johns River) – Justin Morgan

 

Under a weight of 17-1/2 pounds, the entries are piled up at every ounce, far too numerous to bother listing.

Owning up to feeble recordkeeping, the state of Florida finally incepted a Hall-of-Fame Club (13-lb+ only),

now in its 2nd year. This year, Joe Morrell submitted two "state certified" teeners, a 13-lb 12-oz & 14-lb 9-oz.

Be reminded that for every 13-3/4 lb bass landed in Florida, there are thousands of double-digit bass.

This isn't the case anywhere else, where catching a double-digit bass is like watching paint dry or grass grow.

The future of Florida-strain transplants is speculative, but the Florida-strain bass in Florida are forever. 

http://m.myfwc.com/news/news-releases/2014/march/11/trophycatch/

 

Roger

[WRB]

I don't want to hijack this thread and believe the OP. was not asking about giant bass, just a good bass fishing vacation for himself and family.

If you want to discuss bragging rights, then California holds that honor with 19 or 20 of the top 25 bass listed in whatever listing you choose. I have a 19.3 lb and 18.6 lb bass that belongs in the list and so does Butch Brown or several other anglers who didn't officially record catches, which is also true in Florida. California doesn't keep track of largemouth bass caught over 10 orc12.lbs, they are a common occurrence. Texas has a lot of good trophy bass lakes and 10 to 12 lb bass are also common there, as they are in some Mexico lakes.

California offers a good opportunity for vacations, so does Florida in Feb and a March. Some of Texas trophy bass lakes may not be that easy for families, lake Fork should a good.

Tom.

[Catt]

Sorry ROLO!

 

That's history! tell me how many 10#+ those lakes producing today 07/30/14 

 

WRB, who on this sight we thinking of a dream bass fishing trip & not have it include a shot at a double digit bass?

[Dinky]

To be honest with you 2/3k is not enough for 2 for Baccarac or El Salto. It takes at least one days travel each way, and often two. for Baccarac, and it can for El Salto as well sometimes. The drive to Baccarac is brutal-4 hours. The drive to El Salto is 2. You do have a new Lake 45 minutes from Mazatlan that is getting rave reviews (pichachos)  and you can even book a combo for it and El Salto through Anglers Inn. El Salto also has the benefit of off shore rooster fishing and jack fishing through Anglers Inn available in Mazatlan, but that adds to the cost.

 

If you fly a lot of your budget will be eaten up by airfare and I think you stated it included airfare.

 

Your best bet might be to look to some of the State Parks in the southern states lakes- Pickwick-Tennessee, Dale Hollow-Kentucky/Tennessee,

Guntersville, etc. Most have boat rentals and will also have links to guides in the area as well.

In Florida I would check out the St, Johns River area-Palatka. It is much closer than Okeechobee and the fishing is just about as good overall.

 

Whatever you decide, good luck and if I can answer any questions don't hesitate to pm me.

[RoLo]

Sorry ROLO!

That's history! tell me how many 10#+ those lakes producing today 07/30/14 

 

Tom, the lakes listed above have nothing to do with 10-pound bass, that's a list of World-Class bass taken in Florida

'beginning' at 17.5 lb and up (published 2011). Realistically, a list of 17.5 lb plus bass from ANY state,

would necessarily delve back in time. Last year (2013), Florida finally introduced the "Hall-of-Fame Club",

which observes a minimum qualifying weight of 13 lb+, the same as the Texas "Share-Lunker" program.

This year (2014), one man submitted two "state certified" entries (13-12 & 14-9).

 

10-Pounders (Back On-topic)

The waters mentioned above and hundreds of other Floridian waters are teeming with 10-lb bass today.

Bass between 10 and 12 pounds are reported virtually every weekend in Florida throughout the entire year.

If you attend a major weigh-in in Polk County, Florida, you'll generally see one or more double-digit bass

and the occasional Teener.  Florida is irrefutably the only place on earth where any small pond

or any retention pool can produce a 10-lb bass, and typically does.

 

Bassmasters is comprised of the world’s best professional anglers whose livelihood depends on bass fishing.

The Classic and Elite tourneys takes them to all the best bass waters in continental United States.

Since the *** of B.A.S.S. in the 1960s, the all-time heaviest one-day stringer was taken from Lake Toho

in 2001 (45-lb 2-oz). Lake Toho is in Florida...not Texas and not California. This is a direct quote from Dean:

"I couldn't believe what I saw," Rojas said. "I saw 10 pounders, 9 pounders, 8 pounders everywhere I looked."

During that same Bassmaster Top-150 Tournament, 21 double-digit bass were brought to the scales in '2' days!

 

Roger

[WRB]

Roger, I think you mixed Catt's statements up with what I posted. California should have a trophy bass program, we don't to the best of my knowledge.

Catt, both the Delta and Clear lake still produce good quantities of 10 lb+ bass every week and during tournaments, so the OP's dream could easily be realized at either place and still be a great family vacation.

Didn't say California was better bass fishing then Texas or Florida, it's on a par when going on a family vacation that includes bass fishing. Both Texas and Florida have better over all bass fishing then California has to offer, IMO.

Peace.

Tom

[RoLo]

Roger, I think you mixed Catt's statements up with what I posted.

 

I don't believe there's any mix up, by the way Catt's name is also Tom

Here's the deal: The original poster is looking for a fun family vacation during the Feb/Mar time-slot.

Based on nationwide statistics (not mine), if FrogFreak is fishing in Florida during that period,

his odds of a 10-lb plus bass are better than anywhere else in the world.

We all have our favorite Utopia but no place is the Holy Grail, not California, not Texas, not Mexico & not Florida. 

So what do we do?  We turn to recent history which is an excellent tool for predicting the future,

the same way we would invest our money.  With all due respect to California, it stands head-&-shoulders

above all other states for producing the all-time heaviest Florida-strain transplants, no state comes close.

On the other hand, historic all-time weights may not necessarily lend to a fun family vacation:

 

Bassmaster Top-25 Bass (all-time):

California   20

Florida       2

Japan        2

Georgia     1

Texas         0

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

 

In 1998, BassMaster Magazine introduced the “Lunker Club”, a national register for largemouth bass with an official

weight of 10 lb or more (double-digit bass). Below are the Lunker Club results during its first 12 years of existence:

 

Lunker Club (1998 to 2010)

Florida         514 entries

Texas           300 entries

California     3rd ranked (unpublished total)

 

Roger

[WRB]

Roger, I have no idea how anyone could keep accurate statistics on California 10 lb + largemouth bass caught, no official collection system in place. The big bass fishing in SoCal has crashed in recent years and now slowly recovering. I will look into 10 lb + numbers estimated for CA and let you know what I find, if interested. The 3 to 5 hundred number is well within CA's ball park this year, in the past those numbers could be met at Castaic and Casitas and It's possible those numbers are achievable between the Delta and Clear, if you count catch and release bass, not catch and killed.

I think the OP would be happy with California, Texas or Florida for a bass fishing family vacation.

I done with hijacking this thread.

Tom

Ps, there was a 13 lb+ LMB caught this weekend at lake McClure in NorCal mid summer. The vast majority of teeners are caught between Jan to Mar in CA.

[jtharris3]

Personally I would head to Florida. Lake Okeechobee to be exact. That's a dream trip for me and has been for years. Every time I see a show done there I think to myself what a unique fishery that it is.

 

I've fished Lake Fork many times and absolutely love that lake, so to me, you couldn't go wrong going there either. Which remind me that I need to get back down there soon!

 

Good luck in your choice.

[FrogTosser88]

The thing about the Delta is the amount of water you have acess to... hundreds of sloughs and bays and ponds you will be able to explore

[FrogFreak]

Thanks for all the advice.

 

Buzzed bait, this trip is just about fishing.

Tom, I think I saw Cooch on a YouTube video the other day. The Informative Fisherman had him on I believe. Thanks for the recommendation!

 

While I would love to catch a DD bass, the trip is really about going somewhere warm and fishing. The winters are brutal up here and most folks try to get away for their sanity.