gar-tracker Posted May 3, 2011 Posted May 3, 2011 No its not my IQ. Be careful boys!! Okeechobee's at the lower unit, prop busting, level right now. Some unbelievable fishing if you know the lake, getting to them can be scary if you don't. Where the photo of me adjacent to the thread was taken can be accessed by my truck right now. 1 Quote
Shane Procell Posted May 3, 2011 Posted May 3, 2011 Thats a BadAzz looking photo. If you ever need a backseater at the Lake O, I would love to go. I still have yet to put my eyes on the lake. Quote
salmicropterus Posted May 3, 2011 Posted May 3, 2011 Shane, there isn't as much Lake to see. What is so disappointing about this level is how we got here. The US Army Corps of Engineers released about 1.75' of Lake level between October and January. Now, keep in mind that this was at the end of the rainy season, not the beginning and some of it well into what has been a drought. I can kinda understand a major release program in say March-April if the Lake was at 14, in anticipation of the rainy season but the timing of this made no sense. I have researched the heck out of this and while I used to lay blame with South Florida Water Management and all the computing constituencies for water supply, it isn't them-it's the Corps. They have absolute control of the Lake level and while they may receive input from various sources, they have no responsibility or accountability to anyone. The stated reason was to protect the dike but if that was the case, why did they allow the Lake to go above 15' in June July in the middle of the rainy season??? Quote
Super User South FLA Posted May 3, 2011 Super User Posted May 3, 2011 Shoot, I thought you meant you caught a 10.89 and were showing us the goods! I don't get it back in high school the lake level was in the mid teens consistently, so what is the difference from then to now, can someone explain it logically? Quote
GLADES Posted May 4, 2011 Posted May 4, 2011 No its not my IQ. Be careful boys!! Okeechobee's at the lower unit, prop busting, level right now. Some unbelievable fishing if you know the lake, getting to them can be scary if you don't. Where the photo of me adjacent to the thread was taken can be accessed by my truck right now. The best way to get to them now is probably a 16 ft john boat with a small outboard...especially with the $4 per gallon gas. Do the draw downs have a beneficial effect on the lake habitat? Does anyone know if the corps of engineers planning on doing any muck scrapping or bottom improvements while the water is down? It would be nice to see some improvements, dredge channels, etc. Quote
Super User Bassn Blvd Posted May 4, 2011 Super User Posted May 4, 2011 acres and acres and acres of muck scraping would be great. I'd love to wade on some hard sand bottom without sinking in muck. Has anyone noticed what the bottom is like from where they scraped the muck away last time? Quote
gar-tracker Posted May 4, 2011 Author Posted May 4, 2011 The lake bottom is rock hard with very little muck to dredge, 9 out of 10 times stick your rod down and you'll hit shell beds and rock hard sand bottom. The first drought when it hit record lows cleaned out most of the dead vegetation and completely rejuvenated the lake. Truth be told the draw downs are the reason we have this awesome fishery. The rain will come and with it will be acres of cleaned out flats for feeding and spawning. Too high is what kills the lake, not too low. Fishing is still great you just have to know the lake. The bass are roaming like wolves gorging on giant schools of shad and bedding blue gills. Signed: My 2 cents Quote
salmicropterus Posted May 4, 2011 Posted May 4, 2011 The lake bottom is rock hard with very little muck to dredge, 9 out of 10 times stick your rod down and you'll hit shell beds and rock hard sand bottom. The first drought when it hit record lows cleaned out most of the dead vegetation and completely rejuvenated the lake. Truth be told the draw downs are the reason we have this awesome fishery. The rain will come and with it will be acres of cleaned out flats for feeding and spawning. Too high is what kills the lake, not too low. Fishing is still great you just have to know the lake. The bass are roaming like wolves gorging on giant schools of shad and bedding blue gills. Signed: My 2 cents I totally agree that too high is bad for the Lake and does great harm to the natural vegetation. but too low has negative impact also, particularly to other wildlife who need that backwater. These are relative terms but people I've talked to at FWC say optimal levels are probably 12-13, which is enough water to allow growth of pre-emergent grasses and gets some, but not too much in the backwater areas and marshes needed for habitat. Like anything in nature, there is probably no right answer at the extremes and there are trade-offs to any event, not unlike the occasional forest fire that clears out overgrowth and allows the forest to grow better. I know the Lake knows better than any of us including the experts and will adjust. Now...I am going up on Friday and hope to find some fo those wolf-packs! Quote
Super User SoFlaBassAddict Posted May 4, 2011 Super User Posted May 4, 2011 10.89? Thats scary low. Be careful running around out there guys. You don't want to deal with tearing the lower unit off of your engine. I've postponed the trip I was going to make up with my father and uncle. They've never fished the lake before and were really excited until I told them the possibility of having to pay for an engine. I'm not comfortable enough to run around the lake on somebody elses boat with the water that low. Quote
Super User SoFlaBassAddict Posted May 4, 2011 Super User Posted May 4, 2011 Shoot, I thought you meant you caught a 10.89 and were showing us the goods! I don't get it back in high school the lake level was in the mid teens consistently, so what is the difference from then to now, can someone explain it logically? Global warming? Heck if I know, but it seems like we're getting less and less rain each year. The lake levels here at my house are the lowest I've seen since the house was built 10+ years ago. I actually need to figure out a better way to slide my jon boat into the water right now. It's just scraping along rocks and stuff the way it is at this point. Quote
gar-tracker Posted May 5, 2011 Author Posted May 5, 2011 Droughts and high water have been going on for century's. The rain will come, one tropical depression wll dump a foot and half of rain come rainy season. Quote
Fishing Cowgirl Posted May 5, 2011 Posted May 5, 2011 Thanks for the heads up gar-tracker. We will make sure to lighten up our boat before we head down next month. It is a scary thought of busting up something. At least we have a push pole, if we need it to get in closer. Quote
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