|
Florida Bass Adventures
Orlando Bass Fishing Guide
Service reports are for West Lake Toho and the Kissimmee Chain of Lakes which
are located just minutes
from the theme parks. These are trophy bass fisheries
that offers clients the best opportunity to catch big Florida Bass while
on their vacation.
Live bait or artificial lures -
As a full time guide and tournament angler I can specialize in catching
trophy bass using live bait as well as artificial lures. Which one works
best really has a lot to do with the angler. I for one will never tell a
client that you "have" to use live bait to catch a trophy. For most of
my clients I often hear that "we only fish with lures at home" and this
is understandable because Florida is the only place where you can get 10
inch shiners to catch big bass. But if you are an inexperienced angler
or unfamiliar with Florida fishing, live bait may provide you with the
biggest fish of your life within the first few minutes of fishing! Very
few anglers that live in Florida experience this using artificial lures
so there is a distinct advantage live bait can provide. I have had
clients catch trophy bass on both live bait and artificial lures but the
ratio is 100 to 1 in favor of live bait.
Generally when clients mention
a preference to using artificial lures I will accommodate them by
locating fish for their trip so that they can have a successful day. In
the event live bait is doing extremely well I may recommend doing a
combination trip so that the best of both worlds can be achieved. If
your goal is to catch a trophy and we will be fishing Lake Toho clients
really need to be able to use bait casting equipment proficiently to have
the best chance. Yes, we can use spinning gear but due to the amount of
vegetation that we fish and the size of bass we are targeting, using
spinning gear has limitations and fewer techniques to choose from.
Regardless of what you choose you can guarantee that I will do
everything I can to put you on a trophy bass.
Just about every client wants to know when is the best time to go bass fishing in Florida. Because we enjoy year round bass fishing with lakes such as Lake Toho that always have trophy bass in them there really is no bad time to come to Orlando to go bass fishing. August and September for sure can be the hottest months where most trips are 6 hours or shorter but make no mistake, those can be the most exciting 6 hours of your life. Keep reading for a breakdown of our seasons and what clients in the past have experienced with Florida Bass Adventures.
December - June - While many in
Florida believe the spawn only happens in January and February I am here
to tell you that I have seen bass spawning as early as November and as
late as July. For the most part though December through June is the
length of our spawning season but can be cut short by warmer than normal
winters. During this time of year our bass can be extremely aggressive
as they move from pre spawn stages to full blown spawning. It is this
time of year that Florida became famous for using live bait because the
shiners we use are the primary food choice for big bass looking to get
ready for the spawn. Our live bait will range from 5 inches to as much
as 12 inches which can be rather entertaining to watch when a bass is
exploding on a bait this size.
Numbers and size - While we do
catch numbers of fish this time of year it can fluctuate from year to
year. My high number during this time frame is 80 bass which happened
the first week of January. Overall I would say the average is 25 bass
per trip. Size is always the goal but this time of year our bass carry
more weight therefore will be larger than other times of year. Average
size for this time of year would be 4 lbs on live bait and 2 lbs using
artificials. Big bass per day would be one at least over 7lbs just about
each day. Cold fronts can affect this result depending on the severity.
Weather - As with most everyone
this time of year cold fronts are a constant with the weather changing
daily. In Florida you can expect anything from 26 degrees during our
worst winter to highs of 75 degrees. Every year is a little different so
it is best to come prepared. Unfortunately, catching big bass does not
make you feel any warmer so appropriate attire makes the day much more
enjoyable.
April
- July - Hopefully you have noticed that there is some
overlap in these dates. This is because we can have spawning and post
spawn fishing going on from April - June and then early summer fishing
happening from June to July. While this may sound complicated it simply
means fish feeding heavily throughout the entire lake.
If you like using artificial lures
this is quite possibly the best time of year to go bass fishing in
Orlando. Surface activity can be at it's highest during this time of
year allowing clients to experience catching the biggest bass of their
life on a topwater strike.
Live bait is equally enjoyable this
time of year for the very same reasons. Average numbers for this time of
the year can be 20 - 40 fish using live bait especially in the first 4
hours. The average numbers will be higher this time of year and yes, the
overall size will be down a bit. But the opportunity to catch a trophy
is just as good this time of year as during the early spawning season.
Remember, it's Florida and we always have big bass!
Weather - plain and simple this is a
great time of year to be in Orlando. Mild weather with highs barely
touching 80 degrees until we get into July can be expected. Generally,
it doesn't begin to feel warm until 12:00 p.m. each morning.
July - September - If your first thought of bass fishing during this time of year is that it is too hot to go fishing then you are missing out on the great fishing we have during this time of year. Sure, it's hot but only for those of us above the water! Our big fish don't leave and they don't stop biting. During the Summer months everthing is possible from great artificial fishing to live bait fishing. Most trips are 4 or 6 hours starting in the morning but this is when the evening bite really starts to pick up. If you are reading this forecast and want to know what we are catching here are some photos. If they aren't enough to encourage you to book a trip, you need help!
  
|
