Steve P.

Bring that "tater chip" boat down to Stick Marsh and fish in the stumps for a week. Then you and I can crawl under your boat and I'll show you all of the stress cracks on the bottom of the boat from working your way over the pointed stumps. Be sure and bring your title with you........ ;D The bottom line is no matter what brand you buy, they're all junk when you consider what they cost these days. You're going to have issues with ANY brand. The only people who think otherwise are people who have never owned a boat. They're a lot of work/money to maintain.

oteymc, without being shown in person, I'd avoid the diagonal run across the Stick Marsh side that we make and go the long way. The long way would be the east canal on the Marsh side and then west down the divider canal. Watch the sandbar on your left turn into the Farm. Also, don't cut the corner when you transition into the divider canal from the east Stick marsh canal. Topwater should be very good at that time based on what we've seen lately. As with any lake that is navigationally challenging, a guide on the first day would be a good idea. My most important piece of advice is NEVER assume that the guy in front of you knows where he's running. I see a LOT of visitors run on plane in places that they shouldn't be. Good luck!

Today was a pretty good day..............

Here's one from today. Got her on a Horny Toad. I found a new area today that is stacked up with egg laden females. Shoot me an email before you come down and I'll let you know what's going on.

I had 22 to 6# on Monday by myself in half a day. Tuesday, myself and one person had 35 and lost about another 20. Toads, Traps, Senkos. Our 2 biggest fish came unbuttoned on Toads. 6 to 7# or so. Grass is coming back real good. Water levels are holding steady and the water is very clean in most areas. A cold front and some high winds could change that overnight. The spawn is in full swing. The majority of fish I'm getting are egged up. Heck, you can even see some beds if you're in the right area. That doesn't happen very often on Stick Marsh. The first 4 acre grass restoration project is scheduled to be completed by June of this year. If it works, they will consider building them all the way across the outside wood in the south end of Farm 13. That's according to the FWC guy in charge of the project that I talked to at the ramp. Hope this helps. Let me know if you have any more questions.

It's not going to be accessible by boat from the Stick Marsh as far as I know. I was told by an FWC guy last month in the parking lot that they are in the process of planting trees and digging some deepwater areas to hold fish. They're actually trying to make this a fishing lake instead of just flooding it like they have done in the past. Those were his words. I have heard rumors that airboats will be prohibited and boats will be limited to 10 HP. Of course, the first words out of everyone's mouth around here is how dangerous it will be to have little 10 hp boats out on a 10,000 acre body of water. I have heard conflicting reports about there eventually being houses on the lake too. The FWC guy I talked to said that's crap because it will someday be Fellsmere's drinking water supplyt and there needs to be a littoral(sp)zone around the lake. Keep in mind that this is just hearsay that I have heard and I claim nothing as FACT. You could probably give St Johns water management district a call. They might have more info??? Problem is, different agencies give me different answers :

Hydrilla is laying down some. Look for a bed here and there.

You're taking a risk by running the South canal that you describe. Take the North canal and run around the long way. Water level is still good out there right now too. The bottom muck has got a lot deeper, so be careful that you don't clog your motor. It's 3.5 feet of muck in some places that used to be sand bottom/beds.

2:15 is awesome! Do you have some type of polarized lens on your camera?

Your partner caught 10 Bass on a CRANKBAIT. You caught ZERO Bass on a JIG. Is this a trick question?

Those motors are famous for lower unit failures. Now they don't want to cover it? That's great that insurance is covering it, but why won't they cover it? Please tell me that your are NOT going to EVER buy one of their motors again?

That's awesome!!

Fishing has been very good. On thursday I had a 9 1/4 and a 6. On sat I had an 8 and a 5#. Today I had a 7#. Catches are averaging around 20 fish per person in 6 hours or so IF you know where they're at.

I'd be more concerned with creatures that have 2 legs and walk upright.

That's a fish of a lifetime for a large percentage of Bass fisherman. Nice work! Tell me something........were you shakin just a little bit after catching that fish? You're not human if you weren't!! ;D