fishing trip across florida.

[jaysen]

I am planning a fishing trip in mid September for a week from Miami, to west palm beach, Orlando, Sarasota, and eventually tampa. I will be bringing my own gear and targeting freshwater and saltwater. I haven't been to florida in a few years and was hoping to find some fishing partners or at least get some info on what to use and where to go.

I am strictly catch and release for all of my fishing and do not spot burn. I am rarely in florida to begin with.

I will gladly return the favor if anyone decides to visit nyc.

 

[MikeOGNR]

5 hours ago, jaysen said:

I am planning a fishing trip in mid September for a week from Miami, to west palm beach, Orlando, Sarasota, and eventually tampa. I will be bringing my own gear and targeting freshwater and saltwater. I haven't been to florida in a few years and was hoping to find some fishing partners or at least get some info on what to use and where to go.

I am strictly catch and release for all of my fishing and do not spot burn. I am rarely in florida to begin with.

I will gladly return the favor if anyone decides to visit nyc.

 

Wolf lake creek park in plantation Florida. If you wanna catch peacock bass. And if your looking for a trophy get some live shiners. BJs bait and tackle in plantation Florida they sell them for 75 cents a piece. Also John prince park in lake worth Florida. Fish the canals with live shiners or if you can get out on a boat go deep. 

[jaysen]

thanks. appreciate the advice. does any artificial bait or lure work as well as a shiner? do these lakes also have carp and gar?

[davecon]

On your way north you might want to stop in Dunnellon. From the public ramp downtown you can go a few miles downriver to lake Rousseau. Lots of huge bass in the old river channel and vegetation. You can also go upriver from the public ramp about a mile and enter the Rainbow River. It is literally crystal clear and absolutely gorgeous. The fishing can be tough due to the clear water and you must use light line. Expect to catch a lot a small fish but it is so beautiful it is worth a day. I fish there 2 or 3 times per year, up until the last 2 years due to some health issues, but I have caught a dozen or so between 8 and 11.

It is definitely worth the trip. For sure old school Florida.

[soflabasser]

Here's a couple locations near the Miami area where you should have a good time bass fishing;

Location #1: Amelia Earhart Park in Hialeah.This is a beautiful park that has excellent bass fishing for numbers of bass,as well as quality sized bass(biggest bass I have caught out of this park was over 8 pounds and +24" inches in length ).The bite has been pretty good in the lake closest to the soccer field.

Location #2: The canal behind Opa Locka airport on Red Road and NW 142nd Street.Its the part of the canal that is "L" shaped. This canal has a good population of largemouth bass and it's LOADED with peacock bass.Fish with live shiners here and your almost guaranteed a couple peacock bass,along with other exotic species. This canal is only a couple minutes away from the first location,so you can fish both places in 1 day.

Let me know if you need more help and I will provide more information. 

[Onvacation]

When you get to Orlando, I can't say enough about the great value the boat rentals are at Turkey Lake. It's a cheap way to get out on the water with limited boat traffic and good fishing. Of course a guide trip on Toho is nice too.  I can't wait to go back.

http://m.myfwc.com/conservation/freshwater/fish-orlando/turkey-lake/

[Dalde003]

Wolf Lake Park is in Davie.. and the fishing there is horrible i do not recommend going there.. i went there recently and i didn't even see a minnow

[davecon]

When you are in Sarasota you should really try for Snook on the beaches. They should still be there in September. Just stop by one of the small local tackle shops and they can and will help you out and point you in the right direction. You catch them just walking along the beach.

If you want the trip of a lifetime hire the "Mad Snooker". He fishes at night and is a local legend. Just google "Mad Snooker", but you might want to book him early. Only problem is you will never look at bass fishing in the same way.

[jaysen]

thanks to everyone for the advice. I truly appreciate it. if anyone wants to be a guide for me, ill gladly cover fuel and lunch.

are all of these places public? do these locations have available parking?

[davecon]

I do know that Dunnellon has free parking. The beaches around Sarasota have parking also. Depending on where you park there might be a minimal fee but it's no biggie. 

Both of the above are public waters with free public access.

let us know how you do !

[soflabasser]

Both places I mentioned are public bodies of water that you are allowed to fish with a Florida freshwater license.Parking is easy to find in both places,just find where you are allowed to park and walk a short distance to the water.You should be able to have a good time catching largemouth bass and peacock bass(along with other exotic fish ) in these spots.

[jaysen]

chances are I will be fishing from shore. Im flying down so I cant bring a boat. I will be in windermere Orlando. are there good areas with lilies than I can legally and easily access from the land?

[soflabasser]

20 hours ago, jaysen said:

chances are I will be fishing from shore. Im flying down so I cant bring a boat. I will be in windermere Orlando. are there good areas with lilies than I can legally and easily access from the land?

I went to Turkey Lake earlier this year and did pretty good fishing from the shore.Would definitely recommend this lake to anyone who wants to fish a public lake in Orlando with lots of quality bass in it.Might go fishing to the canal soon and if I do I will post the report to let you know how the current conditions are.

[SFL BassHunter]

I highly recommend Turkey Lake in Orlando. Look up on their website and give them a call. It is actually in a local park there. They do jon boat rentals there on certain days of the week for about 4 hours. The lake can only be fished from land or their rental boats. They do not allow outside boats in there. The boat rental is like a 16 or 17 foot jon with a trolling motor. No outboard.

Though I have not caught any huge bass in there, I have seen them with my own eyes hanging by the pilings of a fishing pier that they have. Also there are some very nice delicious catfish in that lake.

[soflabasser]

On 8/21/2016 at 2:22 AM, jaysen said:

thanks to everyone for the advice. I truly appreciate it. if anyone wants to be a guide for me, ill gladly cover fuel and lunch.

are all of these places public? do these locations have available parking?

How's your trip going?I recently went to the canal and park I mentioned earlier, the largemouth and peacock bass are biting well.

[jaysen]

36 minutes ago, soflabasser said:

How's your trip going?I recently went to the canal and park I mentioned earlier, the largemouth and peacock bass are biting well.

I fly down to florida on Saturday morning. I will be in boca doing some ocean fishing until Monday when I will be driving to Orlando. that Thursday or Friday I will be heading to Sarasota. did you take a boat to the canal or fish it from shore? what are they striking?

[Ray K]

I live in Mount Dora which is about 30 miles northwest of Orlando and about 40 minutes north of Windemere.  If you'd like to fish the Harris Chain which is one of our best fisheries, PM me and we'll try to hook up.  I'm usually available any day and the next couple of weeks could work for me.

[soflabasser]

18 hours ago, jaysen said:

I fly down to florida on Saturday morning. I will be in boca doing some ocean fishing until Monday when I will be driving to Orlando. that Thursday or Friday I will be heading to Sarasota. did you take a boat to the canal or fish it from shore? what are they striking?

Sounds good.You should have a good time fishing in the ocean this time of year, make sure to use live bait or fresh cut bait. You can also use various saltwater lures if you don't like using bait in saltwater.  I was bank fishing when I went to the canal, caught several peacocks on various Rapala jerkbaits and caught most of the largemouth bass on senkos, flukes, other soft plastic lures. Let us know how you do both in freshwater and saltwater!

[jaysen]

Just got here yesterday afternoon.  Went out on a friend's boat and caught big yellowtail,  Spanish mackerel,  and big bonita. This was by chunking and drifting cut bait.  The fight on the false albacore is amazing.  I was using a mh travel rod,  static ci4 4000, 20lb braid, and a 15lb flour leader. Will try for largemouth later today. 

[jaysen]

On 9/15/2016 at 1:08 AM, Ray K said:

I live in Mount Dora which is about 30 miles northwest of Orlando and about 40 minutes north of Windemere.  If you'd like to fish the Harris Chain which is one of our best fisheries, PM me and we'll try to hook up.  I'm usually available any day and the next couple of weeks could work for me.

i sent you a pm. 

[soflabasser]

Sounds like you had a good time doing some light tackle fishing in saltwater. Those bonita are pound for pound one of the strongest fish that swim in Florida and are always eager biters.Did you catch peacock bass during your trip in South Florida?

On 9/18/2016 at 6:24 AM, jaysen said:

Just got here yesterday afternoon.  Went out on a friend's boat and caught big yellowtail,  Spanish mackerel,  and big bonita. This was by chunking and drifting cut bait.  The fight on the false albacore is amazing.  I was using a mh travel rod,  static ci4 4000, 20lb braid, and a 15lb flour leader. Will try for largemouth later today. 

 

[jaysen]

no chance for peacock bass, storms came in too quickly. today i fished lake down in orlando. i caught one dink and a decent sized largemouth but i was out from 11-230. i got a nasty sunburn and then a storm came in. tomorrow will be better. i will post pics at the end of the trip. i know you guys dont like to catch gar, but i saw them blitzing minnows today and they are active all day. any advice on how to target them? are there perch in florida?

[soflabasser]

17 hours ago, jaysen said:

no chance for peacock bass, storms came in too quickly. today i fished lake down in orlando. i caught one dink and a decent sized largemouth but i was out from 11-230. i got a nasty sunburn and then a storm came in. tomorrow will be better. i will post pics at the end of the trip. i know you guys dont like to catch gar, but i saw them blitzing minnows today and they are active all day. any advice on how to target them? are there perch in florida?

September is known as a month of heavy rains,so it's best to plan ahead for it.I have had success catching gar with topwater poppers and jerkbaits.You can try live bait or even cut bait for gar as well.We do have yellow perch in Florida(there are reports of them being caught in Chipola river and dead lakes area), but they are small and don't fight much compared to our native fish and exotics such as the peacock bass.

[geo g]

On 9/21/2016 at 0:38 AM, jaysen said:

no chance for peacock bass, storms came in too quickly. today i fished lake down in orlando. i caught one dink and a decent sized largemouth but i was out from 11-230. i got a nasty sunburn and then a storm came in. tomorrow will be better. i will post pics at the end of the trip. i know you guys dont like to catch gar, but i saw them blitzing minnows today and they are active all day. any advice on how to target them? are there perch in florida?

No peacock in Orlando, you will have to head south to the palm beaches.  The further south the better, Palm Beach to Miami.

[soflabasser]

@jaysen , how did your last bass fishing trip go?