Everglades Fishing

[B-Gee]

Several folks have posted photos of big bass and peacocks they’ve caught in the Everglades. I’m in Naples, Florida and would like to get in on some of that fine action. I’m wondering if anybody can tell me where to go for bank fishing in the glades that isn’t too far south of Naples?

[geo g]

Well my friend, I fish the glades all the time, and have fished areas in your side.  Alligator Alley has multiple spots you can fish from either the bank or a boat.  Anywhere you see water will have bass in it.  I would go on google earth and see what available.  There are lots of reports from the everglades.  Several colleges have ponds with bass in them.  All subdivisions have bodies of water if you can excess them.  If your bank fishing wear good leather boots, or get some snake boots.  There are no shortage of snakes.

[JDHoss]

On 6/26/2022 at 7:44 PM, geo g said:

Well my friend, I fish the glades all the time, and have fished areas in your side.  Alligator Alley has multiple spots you can fish from either the bank or a boat.  Anywhere you see water will have bass in it.  I would go on google earth and see what available.  There are lots of reports from the everglades.  Several colleges have ponds with bass in them.  All subdivisions have bodies of water if you can excess them.  If your bank fishing wear good leather boots, or get some snake boots.  There are no shortage of snakes.

Any advice for fishing the Tamiami canal coming in from the Miami side? I live in Fort Pierce, and drove down one day last February to do some bank fishing. It was abnormally cool and windy after a forecast high of 76, so I didn't have much action. I fished all the way out past the Miccosukee reservation with only a couple of strikes, using flukes and small crankbaits. I'd like to go back down when things cool down a little maybe in November. I came back up 27 to Belle Glade and stopped at Holey Land and threw a few, but no luck there either. 

[geo g]

41 as lots of spots for bank fishing.  Flukes, senkos, trick worms, I often throw.  Big bass there, peas, and some snook.  Go for it!

[JDHoss]

On 7/22/2022 at 10:15 PM, geo g said:

41 as lots of spots for bank fishing.  Flukes, senkos, trick worms, I often throw.  Big bass there, peas, and some snook.  Go for it!

I'm going to make an effort to fish the opposite bank from 41 next time because it had way more access. 

[Captain Phil]

I started bank walking the Tamiami Trail canal back in the mid sixties.  Like all the Everglades, action depends greatly on water levels.  Sounds like you ran into a cold front besides.  Next time, use light line and a Rapala floating minnow.  Walk the bank and cast to the far side twitching the lure on top.  Alligator Alley has great fishing but bank walking is limited and could be dangerous.  

[geo g]

Look for the areas with water flow.  Like culvert pipes, small bridges, anywhere you see water movement.  Concentrate on those areas.  Water flows pretty good after rains.  Wear proper footwear, snakes are in the area.  On the Naples side, you have smaller canals in some really isolated areas.

[JDHoss]

On 7/25/2022 at 2:19 PM, geo g said:

Look for the areas with water flow.  Like culvert pipes, small bridges, anywhere you see water movement.  Concentrate on those areas.  Water flows pretty good after rains.  Wear proper footwear, snakes are in the area.  On the Naples side, you have smaller canals in some really isolated areas.

The two strikes I had were around a culvert pipe a few miles past the reservation stores and gas station. The area looked like it was heavily fished, due to the amount of trash left on the ground. I hate people sometimes...?

On 7/25/2022 at 2:11 PM, Captain Phil said:

I started bank walking the Tamiami Trail canal back in the mid sixties.  Like all the Everglades, action depends greatly on water levels.  Sounds like you ran into a cold front besides.  Next time, use light line and a Rapala floating minnow.  Walk the bank and cast to the far side twitching the lure on top.  Alligator Alley has great fishing but bank walking is limited and could be dangerous.  

Yeah, the NWS website had the area with a high of 76 and sunny that day. Instead, we had a high of 68, mostly cloudy and a steady 10+ MPH wind. It was downright cold. 

[geo g]

12 minutes ago, JDHoss said:

The two strikes I had were around a culvert pipe a few miles past the reservation stores and gas station. The area looked like it was heavily fished, due to the amount of trash left on the ground. I hate people sometimes...?

 

Were you fishing Alligator Alley, or US 41?

Don't give up, those could be big bites.  If it's running hard just increase the weight to get it down in the water column.  Off US 41, At the big bend, you can cross over and fish the side away from the road.  Also at the big microwave towers off 41,  there are some clear areas and you can fish a much smaller canal.  L 27. 

[JDHoss]

22 hours ago, geo g said:

 

Were you fishing Alligator Alley, or US 41?

Don't give up, those could be big bites.  If it's running hard just increase the weight to get it down in the water column.  Off US 41, At the big bend, you can cross over and fish the side away from the road.  Also at the big microwave towers off 41,  there are some clear areas and you can fish a much smaller canal.  L 27. 

I was fishing off of 41, past the Miccosukee village area and just past the loop road turn. I'm looking forward to getting back out there once things cool down. I did see a guy fishing out of a kayak just to the east of the village. I have a 10 ft Pelican sit on kayak w/stabilizers, but I'm a little skittish about getting out there in that vs just bank fishing. 

[geo g]

On 7/26/2022 at 11:14 PM, JDHoss said:

The two strikes I had were around a culvert pipe a few miles past the reservation stores and gas station. The area looked like it was heavily fished, due to the amount of trash left on the ground. I hate people sometimes...?

 

 

Don't give up, those could be big bites.  If it's running hard just increase the weight to get it down in the water column.  At the big bend you can cross over and fish the side away from the road.  Also at the big microwave towers there are some clear areas and you can fish a much smaller canal.  L 27. 

[geo g]

If I were you I would also feel the same way.  99% of all gators are no problem and very respectful.  But during low water levels, and breeding time I have had several experiences with a big male, and a female who was guarding a nest in another area.  One charged the boat, and bumped the trolling motor hard with her nose.  Another day the big male came up along side the boat and slapped it's tail against the hull so hard it shook the entire boat.  40 years of fishing the glades and that's it.  No big deal unless your in a KAYAK!

[JDHoss]

11 hours ago, geo g said:

If I were you I would also feel the same way.  99% of all gators are no problem and very respectful.  But during low water levels, and breeding time I have had several experiences with a big male, and a female who was guarding a nest in another area.  One charged the boat, and bumped the trolling motor hard with her nose.  Another day the big male came up along side the boat and slapped it's tail against the hull so hard it shook the entire boat.  40 years of fishing the glades and that's it.  No big deal unless your in a KAYAK!

Absolutely. My dad had a friend who lived in Clewiston that we'd visit some when I was a teenager. I've seen big gators in the water and around our boat, but as a teenager, I thought it was awesome. Now as an old, retired man sitting on a kayak 6-8 inches above the water, it's pretty nerve wracking, even with the outriggers. 

[avidone1]

Question   With all the awesome fishing in the glades for snook tarpon etc  why would target bass ?     
seriously,  bass can be caught anywhere  but you don’t want to pass up a shot at a juvenile tarpon or full grown snook

just sayin …?‍♂️ 

[roadwarrior]

I would much rather catch a 10 lb bass!

[the reel ess]

3 hours ago, avidone1 said:

Question   With all the awesome fishing in the glades for snook tarpon etc  why would target bass ?     
seriously,  bass can be caught anywhere  but you don’t want to pass up a shot at a juvenile tarpon or full grown snook

just sayin …?‍♂️ 

Double digit bass can't be caught just anywhere. I spent two days in So FL with a guide. We targeted bass the fist day in an Everglades canal and peacocks the second day. That day we actually caught a 7 pound largemouth. 

[Captain Phil]

I started fishing when I was about 12 years old.  Living in Miami, I had many choices.  We caught Spanish Mackerel and King fish off the piers and bridges in those days.  Tarpon and snook were often hooked.  I say hooked because landing a big snook or tarpon is not as easy as hooking one.  This was before Peacock bass were introduced.  I always loved LM bass fishing.  There is something about a bass that keeps me interested.  Fishing in the Everglades and flood control canals, the biggest bass I caught was about 6 1/2 pounds. When I was in my twenties, I caught an 8 1/2 pound bass out of L67.  I didn't start catching bass over ten pounds until I moved out of South Florida.   The farther north you go in Florida, the bigger the average bass.  The largest bass in Florida are in an area from Ocala to Orlando to Tampa. As for numbers. the Everglades has them all beat.   When the water is low, it's nothing to catch 100 bass in a day.   When the water is high, you would think someone poisoned all the fish. 

[SC53]

Phil I was born in Miami Springs but moved to Plantation when I was 5. Started fishing the canals around my house soon after we moved there. As I got older, I was able to fish the glades more. Sawgrass, Holiday Park, the Alley, Terrytown, Loxahatchee and Hwy 27. 
My biggest in south Florida was 7# off the Alley. 
This was before peacocks, but you could catch tarpon and snook in some of the canals. They’d be gold color that far west. 
In my  20’s I got into light tackle saltwater fishing off Miami and the Keys. 
But eventually went back to bass fishing as that is my first love. 
I can see we’ll have a lot to talk about when we get to fish together. Looking forward too it. 
 

[JDHoss]

On 8/26/2022 at 10:58 AM, avidone1 said:

Question   With all the awesome fishing in the glades for snook tarpon etc  why would target bass ?     
seriously,  bass can be caught anywhere  but you don’t want to pass up a shot at a juvenile tarpon or full grown snook

just sayin …?‍♂️ 

Personally, I'm not opposed to catching any type of fish. The most fun I've ever had in a day of fishing was sometime in the 1970s during a locust hatch. My dad and I were fishing on Cherokee Lake in East TN and we were catching carp on topwater plugs one after the other. Many of them were in the 5-10 lb range too. We caught a few bass (smallies and largemouth), but the carp were everywhere scarfing up the newly hatched locusts. It was nonstop action. 

[geo g]

On 8/26/2022 at 3:35 PM, Captain Phil said:

I started fishing when I was about 12 years old.  Living in Miami, I had many choices.  We caught Spanish Mackerel and King fish off the piers and bridges in those days.  Tarpon and snook were often hooked.  I say hooked because landing a big snook or tarpon is not as easy as hooking one.  This was before Peacock bass were introduced.  I always loved LM bass fishing.  There is something about a bass that keeps me interested.  Fishing in the Everglades and flood control canals, the biggest bass I caught was about 6 1/2 pounds. When I was in my twenties, I caught an 8 1/2 pound bass out of L67.  I didn't start catching bass over ten pounds until I moved out of South Florida.   The farther north you go in Florida, the bigger the average bass.  The largest bass in Florida are in an area from Ocala to Orlando to Tampa. As for numbers. the Everglades has them all beat.   When the water is low, it's nothing to catch 100 bass in a day.   When the water is high, you would think someone poisoned all the fish. 

 

Phil, I agree with you that the further north you go the better your chances of catching a big DD bass.  Although I caught an 11.4 bass at Loxahatchee in the late 80's, and a DD at Okeechobee, and at a road pond along I 75, I chalk that up to fishing 300 days a year and just being in the right spot at the right time. 

There is a good reason for the lack of DD down here.   An old timer told me 50 years ago, every years our waters flood, big bass move out into the miles of shallow grass to feast on everything that lives there.  Then we always have the dry season, and a high percentage of big bass get caught up in the shallows and don't make it back to deeper water.  They become Bird, Turtle, and Gator food.  This culls the population and keeps them from reaching there max size.  Although some do make it in time, many do not.  The Everglades are unique with tens of thousands of square miles of shallow grasses  with only a small percentage of deep sanctuaries, the man made canals, and gator holes!  I never forgot this insightful conclusion from a guy that grew up on a ranch in Eastern Naples, hunting and fishing.   The glades just lose big fish every year during the drought.  Still the numbers of normal fish caught are just off the charts.

[Justbass11]

Ok @B-Gee, I lived in Naples for 40 something years, The one thing I’ll say is this: don’t forget it hit the golf courses in the late afternoons. I have had the best luck fishing golf course but you have to wait tell they are about to close and no one should bother you.  Good luck fishing.