TARGET SPECIES: Florida Strain Largemouth
Location: St. Johns River, Central Florida Date: May 27–28, 2012 Weather: Sunny and windy with Tropical Storm Beryl approaching Water Conditions: Stained, lots of vegetation B.A.S.S. Length Requirement: 16 inches Don’t Miss: A side trip to chase redfish in Mosquito Lagoon
This was the first stage of our eight-day bass marathon. As if the pressure wasn’t bad enough, we had Hurricane Beryl breathing down our necks. Since Florida strain and northern strain largemouth look alike, we had to fish south of the Suwannee River to be sure we caught the right species. We started the first day throwing frogs over weed patches. Bill landed a nice 21-incher right off the bat, but I couldn’t seem to catch a qualifier. Bass were attacking our bait from under isolated clumps of vegetation. Just before the wind and rain hit, I landed a feisty 22-incher. Off to a good start, two six-pound fish on the first day. The next day we landed a few more nice bass on frogs, the biggest about 18.5 inches. We had a run-in with big bowfin and a 12-foot alligator. I nearly soiled myself when that beast slid past my kayak. It was going to be hard to beat our first stop.
TARGET SPECIES Suwannee Bass
Location: Santa Fe River, North Florida Date: May 28–29, 2012 Weather: Rainy, overcast and breezy Water Conditions: Clear, mixed vegetation, cypress knees, springs B.A.S.S. Length Requirement: 10 inches Don’t miss: Swimming in the crystal clear limestone springs—find one at
www.floridasprings.org
The rain started as soon as we arrived at the Santa Fe River. With cypress trees, lily pads and deadfalls, this place looked so fishy that it was actually hard to find the fish. Suwannee bass are only found in southern Georgia and northern Florida. They have a blue tint and a vertical bar pattern down the side. We caught 30 largemouth before our first Suwannee bass. We eventually discovered that they wanted small plastic worms. Both of us landed fish up to 12 inches. On our second day on the river, the sky was clearer with a heavy wind in the afternoon. Fishing was better, too. We caught a dozen Suwannee including a 14-inch fish that weighed two pounds and qualified for a Florida “Big Catch” trophy citation. That triumph was almost lost when Bill dropped his GoPro in eight feet of water. I almost cried—that camera held proof of our catch. Luckily the water was clear enough for us to dive in and recover it. Suwannee bass fight hard; they were my favorite species of the slam.
SUWANEE BASS, SANTA FE RIVER, FL
SHOAL BASS, FLINT RIVER, GA 70 PADDLING THIS MONTH || March 2013
FLORIDA STRAIN, ST. JOHNS RIVER, FL
TARGET SPECIES Shoal Bass
Location: Flint River, Georgia Date: May 30–31, 2012 Weather: Sunny, hot, clear skies Water Conditions: Clear, rocky shoals and boulders, limestone bluffs B.A.S.S. Length Requirement: 12 inches Don’t miss: Hiking the trails in Sprewell Bluffs State Park
The Flint River in western Georgia is the star of several country songs. I was stoked to finally get a chance to fish it for shoal bass. Shoalies have a red eye and red fins and they only occur in Georgia, north Florida and one river in Alabama. We spent a day on the lower Flint River and another day on the upper Flint in areas recommended by a good friend. The upper Flint flows fast between steep limestone cliffs and the action was fast, too. I managed a 15-inch shoalie on a Deep Creek Lures MT worm. Bill landed a giant bowfin before catching a few 12- to 14-inch shoalies. In the after- noon we caught shoalies up to 16 inches on SOB Lures buzzbaits. We spent the next day on the lower Flint, which was wide and shallow with rocks and chutes. Early in the day, we caught a few nice fish on topwater plugs then switched to five-inch Yamamoto senkos. We caught fish up to 18-inches and lost a couple big fish. Shoal bass fight like a freight train and our fore- arms burned for hours after we got off the river.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74