Lake Okeechobee trip

[basswest1]

I made a trip down to Lake O today, I was anticipating a hot bite with all the good looking water and all the current pushing around.

It was an extremely discouraging day, and I only made out with one keeper for my efforts.  

It looked like everyone was having a tough time......noone could sit still, everyone was moving to new spots, and I never saw another boat catch anything, and everyone I talked to had zip.  I even got pulled over by the aqua cop who was pulling everyone over he saw and he said not a single person he pulled over had caught anything.\

I fished observation shoal around Cochran's Pass and boy did it look good.  decent water clarity, teeming with life and current.  There was all kinds of fish jumping, mullet, mayan cyclids, and who knows what else.  I was absolutely amazed that I couldnt at the very least be able to drag one out with a worm.

The only thing I can think of is that these fish have gone through some crazy changes......from about 10ft elevation to 15ft in a matter of two weeks............that is a huge amount of incoming water especially for a natural lake.

Did anyone else go out this weekend to Lake O........Id appreciate if youd share your experience.

L8tr

[gar-tracker]

How did you fish the Shoal? Their catching fish in the outside line, also Long point and Baybottom have been producing big sacks.

Okeechobee is a hard lake to fish you can fish 300 yards of reeds and the fish will be holding in a 20 yard stretch. My partner was up there yesterday he said it was slow as well, he was with 3 other boats and they only turned about 6 fish between all of them. however the day before they caught an 8 and a 10 1/2, big fish have been biting.  

[basswest1]

Considering the amount of life around Cochrans I probably could have fished a little more there.  I started off on the outside edge with a small Money Minnow and then proceeded inside the grassline with a Toad, a gold spinnerbait, a fluke and then later on a 7" worm.  If i had got at least a bite I would have stayed longer.

I moved to florida in 2006 and when i got here it was already on the fall, so Ive never really got to fish it this high.........its actually relaxing because you dont have to worry about running it.

[gar-tracker]

Its good that you got to see it low, it helps understand the lake, sounds like your doing the right things,I talked to my friend today hes been catching them about midway in, in other words not all the way back but half way between the outside and the back, in 3' of water.