Looking for Palm Beach County Florida Shore Fishing Spots

[Pkfish49]

I just moved to the sunshine state and need some places to fish.

 

Last weekend, I spent two hours in Lake Osborne in Lake Worth and didn't get any bites.  I also fished for around five hours in Lake Ida West Park in Delray Beach and didn't get any bites.

 

I'm looking for lakes not more than thirty minutes away from Boynton Beach with shore access and legal, accessible parking near the shore.  I have very good boots, so I don't mind some rough terrain, but I'm not going to stand in the middle of a thorny bush and side-cast all day.  My PB is very small, so I'm of course looking for some lunker bass, but don't mind other species or smaller bass.

 

What are some good lakes near me?

 

Happy New year!

 

Thanks!

[FL_Angler]

Isn’t Lake Ida suppose to be a really good for Peacock Bass? 

[Pkfish49]

The other anglers I ran into there told me that as well.  I was there just after a cold front.  Maybe the weather interfered with their normal biting patterns.  

[FL_Angler]

It’s starting to warm up now so I’d definitely try again this weekend. As far as bass fishing in the area I don’t really know since I’m in Central Florida. But if you like big snook fishing I would try the Lake worth Spillway. Bouncing flair hawk jigs on the bottom early morning or late afternoon as it’s getting dark. 

[Pkfish49]

On 1/22/2021 at 7:10 PM, FL_Angler said:

It’s starting to warm up now so I’d definitely try again this weekend. As far as bass fishing in the area I don’t really know since I’m in Central Florida. But if you like big snook fishing I would try the Lake worth Spillway. Bouncing flair hawk jigs on the bottom early morning or late afternoon as it’s getting dark. 

Went back to lake Ida on Saturday with no luck.  The boaters were landing Peacock bass and Largemouth bass, (not a lot - nobody was reporting a great day) but I didn't see any of the shore anglers catching anything, so it looks like the fish were in deeper waters .  It was such a beautiful day and the park is so beautiful, that I can't complain about anything.

Regarding the Lake worth Spillway, pictures of the snook look huge.  I'm afraid to cast out with my 10 LB mono.  I may have to spool up something heavier.  I'm just learning the area, I'll land some fish soon and post pictures in the appropriate sub-forums.

 

Ty

[FL_Angler]

18 minutes ago, Pkfish49 said:

Went back to lake Ida on Saturday with no luck.  The boaters were landing Peacock bass and Largemouth bass, (not a lot - nobody was reporting a great day) but I didn't see any of the shore anglers catching anything, so it looks like the fish were in deeper waters .  It was such a beautiful day and the park is so beautiful, that I can't complain about anything.

Regarding the Lake worth Spillway, pictures of the snook look huge.  I'm afraid to cast out with my 10 LB mono.  I may have to spool up something heavier.  I'm just learning the area, I'll land some fish soon and post pictures in the appropriate sub-forums.

 

Ty

I would say go to the boat ramp and ask the people there what lures they are using to catch the bass. Soft plastics work almost everywhere for me but when it comes to hardbaits like rattle traps and plugs there only a few lakes I’ve had luck with them on. 
 

For big spillway snook you definitely need big tackle. 4000-6000 size reels with 40-50lbs Braid and as heavy as 80lbs mono leaders. And you drag either a 1.5oz-2oz flair hawk jig or big swimbait like a Hogy on the bottom. Much less bites than bass but when you hook a snook there hold on because they will be big and pull like a freight train. Juno bait and tackle has a great selection of snook lures and the guys there can give you a lot of tips for catching them. 

[philb]

Hi, i'm in Boynton Beach and have gone out 5 times with NO luck so far...no bites. Went to Arthur Marshall couple of times, and the canal on 441, along with one canal on BBBlvd under the Fl Turnpike. still nothing. will try kayak into the Glades at Arthur Marshall next week. Hopeful it's too early or it's been too cold. good luck to ya. 

[Pkfish49]

6 hours ago, philb said:

Hi, i'm in Boynton Beach and have gone out 5 times with NO luck so far...no bites. Went to Arthur Marshall couple of times, and the canal on 441, along with one canal on BBBlvd under the Fl Turnpike. still nothing. will try kayak into the Glades at Arthur Marshall next week. Hopeful it's too early or it's been too cold. good luck to ya. 

 

I can catch Bass all day in a small, private residential lake, but have had no luck anywhere else.  I was on the Arthur Marshall Canoe trail last Saturday and didn't get anything.  I'm a canoe guy.  I tend to fall out of kayaks, and don't want to be alligator food.   I didn't do the entire trail.  I probably went around a mile and a half or so.  Guys were catching small Bass on the dock and some guys who ventured off the path caught some big ones, but none of the other fisherman on the trail that I ran into got any bites.  

I wanted to go back to Arthur Marshall on Saturday, but threats of thunderstorms kept me away.  I'm hoping the rain can bypass us most of the next long weekend so I can go back.

 

Let me know if you get anything on the trail and if so, what you used.  

 

Good luck.

[Aaron_H]

If you're bank fishing, try looking into smaller bodies of water (IE ponds and canals). I'm a bit north of you so I can't point you to any specific spots, but the area from WPB down to Ft Lauderdale is absolutely littered with ponds. Just hop on Google Maps and work your way through them figuring out which are legal to fish and then which ones have quality fisheries.

 

You can use Google Earth Pro to look at past satellite imagery for the area to get an idea of when the pond was formed and if/how the structure/vegetation changes throughout the year. This will help you weed out the ponds that will be a waste of time (no fish or only small fish). Try and fish ponds that have been around 10+ years, they'll be your best bet.

 

You can absolutely break your current PB pond hopping here in FL. Even small ponds can have hold some big ones, so don't think you have to fish lakes or huge ponds. I've got a buddy that fishes a little rinky dink pond that's just a hair over 3/4 of an acre, but he caught two 6lb bass in one day from it.

[Pkfish49]

18 hours ago, Aaron_H said:

You can absolutely break your current PB pond hopping here in FL. Even small ponds can have hold some big ones, so don't think you have to fish lakes or huge ponds. I've got a buddy that fishes a little rinky dink pond that's just a hair over 3/4 of an acre, but he caught two 6lb bass in one day from it.

 

Funny you should mention this - I just set my PB last week in a small residential lake.  Quick calculation has it at around 1.5 acres.

 

Living in a Bass fisherman's paradise, I'm confident I'll be breaking this in the near future.

 

[Aaron_H]

2 hours ago, Pkfish49 said:

Living in a Bass fisherman's paradise, I'm confident I'll be breaking this in the near future.

 

 

Florida is definitely on another level along with Texas and California. Looking forward to seeing your PB grow.

[JoePhish]

I lived in Palm Beach Gardens for 8 years. Got a several spots for ya.

- San Matera condos in PBG, across from Gardens Mall. Park on the east side across the street from the development.

- L shaped pond behind the Target on Okechobee Blvd and 7.

- Okeeheelee Park.

-  Donald Ross and Military Trail, ponds behind the school. I would bring a machete with me. Watch out for snakes here too.  Caught some beasts there.
 

That’s off the top of my head. I used to catch plenty of fish in all those spots but not sure what the look like now.