Captain Phil

Part of the fun in bass fishing is theorizing about things like lure color. Bass fishing is not rocket science. A bass will eat anything it thinks will fit in it's mouth. They don't always hit a lure because they want to eat it. When I was a kid my grandfather caught a big bass on a piece of red rag. I have had fisherman in my boat that claim certain color baits work better than others. When I ask them what color they throw, it's always that color. They catch more bass on that color because that's what they throw. In a tournament, I carried pink, Merthiolate, purple, black, blue, red, green, spotted, striped, straight, curly, big, and small worms. Heaven forbid someone will catch a bass on a worm or lure I didn't have with me. The best color bait is the one you have the most confidence in. You will throw it more and stay with it longer. Anything that keeps you fishing has value. "Go early, stay late". :>)

I don't overly concern myself with what colors a bass sees. Blue worms have worked for years. Black and blue seems to work better in Florida during the winter months. Roland Martin was once asked what the secret to catching more fish is? He replied, "Start early and stay late." I believe bass will hit any lure color if you present it correctly. I have seen times when certain lures became hot for a period of time. A dark blue Bitter's glitter worm with a white wiggle tail was hot in the Harris Chain a few years ago. It seemed you couldn't get a bite unless you threw one. Color trends come and go. Personally, I think all you need is a bag of black worms and you will do as well as anyone.

Did anyone here ever see that huge white gator that used to be at Lox? I heard it was the oldest gator in Florida. Reported to be 17' long. I fished there once when the water was low. I saw this gator up on the mud flats as I fished with my son. It was gigantic!! It didn't move, but I was afraid it would spook and charge the boat. It scared the hell out of us and we left fast. I've seen lots of big gators in my life. Never seen anything like that since.

Long story about Loxahatchee. I'll make it as short as possible. Years ago Ellen's Rod Shop had a series of buddy bass tournaments. All the best bass anglers in South Florida fished them Their classic was at Loxahatchee. I had never fished there before. A friend's brother knew it well and agreed to be my partner for the classic. Back then, I had a high performance bass boat with a short shaft 150 on it. It rode like a light switch, either all on or all off. When the tournament started, my partner told me to shut off the big motor. Boats were running every which way and we were still sitting in the marina. I picked up my worm rod and started down the bank. A six pounder ate my worm on the first cast. We had our limit in about 30 minutes. The people running the tournament saw the whole thing. We won the classic and never fired the big engine. I have been back to Lox a few times, but the fishing was never as good as it was on that day. I don't know what happened to the trophy, but I remember it was huge.

I've had a few "Go Fast" boats in my day. The fastest was a 20' Gambler with a ProMax Merc. Bass Boats are fun. Fast bass boats are more fun. There is no relationship between the boat someone has and the quality of their fishing skills. Some country boys can kick your ass fishing off the bank. It's pretty humbling at times. I've seen some pretty bad boat wrecks. Our club was fishing out of Okee-Tantie once and the boats took off in before it was light. A bass boat collided with a jon boat and the small boat driver was killed. Took years to straight that out. Bad things can happen before you know it.

I don't buy expensive tackle. I have drawn partners in tournaments that had boxes full of Loomis Rods and $600 reels. They rarely catch more fish than I do. It's not the rod or the reel that makes a good fisherman, it's what you do with it. I haven't bought a new rod in awhile. All my rods came from Bass Pro. I bought them on sale for $39.95. The fish don't know the difference.

Shorter rods have their place. I use them for fishing hard jerkbaits and topwater lures. If you need to impart a lot of action to a lure, a shorter lighter rod will help you. A heavy rod will give you a bad case of "tennis elbow". I like longer rods for spinnerbaits and rattle traps. Today's hooks are so much better than we had years ago, you don't need a pool cue for worm fishing anymore.

I've lived in Florida all my life. Fished for everything that swims. Offshore, inshore, reservoirs, lakes, ponds and rivers. I've been fortunate to have traveled the world fishing. Caught 600 pound marlin, 4" bluegills and everything in between. I've caught big sailfish and tarpon on a fly rod. I've caught 10 pound Walleye and 25 pound Northerns. I always come back to bass fishing. Bass fishing with artificial lures is as challenging as it gets. Caught my first when I was 10. Caught my last two days ago. Every bass I catch reminds me of the first. My grandfather introduced me to fishing. I sat on the canal bank next to him and watched bass swim by. I dreamed of catching a big bass some day. Since then, I've caught more than my share. I'm sure I've caught tens of thousands of bass by now. I can never catch too many bass. :>)

To many bass fisherman, the boat is more important than the fish. Going fast is the name of the game. The run to the Three Pines was like the Indy 500. That canal looks pretty small at speed. I friend of mine hit a gator making that run once. The motor cocked sideways and threw him out of the boat. Luckily, the boat ran into the weed side instead of the levy. If it went the other way, I am sure he would have been killed. Here's a tip you may or may not know about. When the water is high in the Everglades, fishing gets very tough. The water will be running. Go to the intersection of two canals. The best place I found was where L67 and the Miami canal meet. Cast upstream and fish a Texas rigged worm with the current on the bottom. Pounding the banks under those conditions is fruitless. Good luck!

I believe all these lures have been modified or are cheap knockoffs. I agree the bottom lure is not a Dalton Special as a Dalton has a different shaped head. It looks more like a Creek Cub Darter with a spinner added. The orange lure could be a flatfish, a Lazy Ike or a copy of the same. Here in Central Florida, we used to run into rare old lures quite often. Wives or kids would bring them in to us after their old men passed away. We made some good money selling them. These days, everyone believes any old lure is valuable. Sadly, most are not.

I fished Holiday Park, Mack's Camp, Alligator Alley, Chrome Ave and Sawgrass for many years. My buddy and I were friends with Charlie Infinger before he started Charlie's Worms. Charlie had a gold stringer mounted out of the 84 Canal. I fished the old Bombing range before Saw Grass opened up. We didn't have trolling motors back then. As a kid, I was the designated rower. Learning to fish canals helped me in many tournaments. When other anglers were running the lakes, I was scouting trailer park canals. I fished the Okeechobee rim ditch and won my share of tournaments. Even today I would rather fish a canal than a lake. Most anglers overlook them, I look for them. I am happy to hear L67 and the Alley still have good fishing. With the Everglades restoration, I would think things have changed. Is the three Pines area of L67 still good? When I was a young man, I fished there at night by myself. I'm wiser now. :>)

The lure at the bottom is not a Creek Chub Darter, it's a Dalton Special. Sorry, I missed the tail spinner.

Lots of recreational anglers dream of being a fishing guide. Being a fishing guide is one of the worst ways you could ever can imagine to make a living. Your day starts early and ends late. There is always something to repair or replace. The customers watch fishing shows on TV and expect the same experience. By the time you pay for the boat, fuel, insurance and everything else, you are making about the same money as working at Walmart. The easiest way to be a bass guide in Florida is to soak $25 a dozen shiners. If that's what you want, any guide will do. The most important thing when choosing a guide is communication. Ask questions first and make your expectations clear before you book. Ask for references. Any decent guide will have them.

The lure I would like to see come back is the Hawg Hunter plastic worm. This worm was a 13" segmented worm with molded in weedless hooks. It became famous after it won a National B.A.S.S. tournament at Rodman Reservoir back in the seventies. The thing was so huge, it sounded like a whip sailing through the air. You didn't get many bites on it, but the ones you got were memorable.

It's hard to tell in your picture, but I believe some of these lures are knockoffs or have been repainted. The lure at the bottom is a Creek Chub Darter 2000 series in the frog pattern. The white one on the left with the red eyes looks like a Bomber Mudbug. The red/white/blue lure is a Heddon Hellbender. The orange lure is a Helin flatfish of some kind. The green and white lure is a repainted Heddon River Runt. The green one in the upper right is a Creek Chub Injured minnow or something simliar. I can't tell what the center jointed one is. None of them have any significant collector value.

Brings back old memories. I fished the Everglades canals most of my life. Moved to Central Florida in 1996. The best bass fishing I have ever seen is in those canals when the water is low. Some days the fish will fight over a Rapala. If one bass throws the lure another will have it before it hits the water. A hundred fish days are common. As the water rises in June, the bulk of the fish will follow the water level back into the flats. There is a magic few days when the canals are full of giants. I hope to make it back some day.

Most anglers fish spinnerbaits too fast. If you slow down and pick your structure apart from different angles, you will catch fish others are missing. A good example is a small group of pads. One angler may make one cast and move on. The better angler makes many casts to the same pads from different directions and catches that fish. Also, spinnerbaits work best when the cadence is right. The cadence is affected by many different factors, some having to do with the bait and some with the retrieve. When your cadence is in the zone, you catch more fish.

I can't help you with anything specific to Vero Beach, but this may help you. I grew up in South Florida. Most of my earliest bass fishing was done in canals. Every ditch in Florida contains some bass. I remember fishing a tiny drainage canal near the Opa-Locka airport. It couldn't have been deeper than 5 ft and I could practically jump across it. That ditch was full of small bass. Find a canal where you can cast from shore. Be careful not to trespass on private property. Ask for permission to fish. Water quality doesn't matter as much as you would think. Golf course ponds have great bass fishing. If the water is clear, downsize your line. The best lure for those canals is a black straight tail worm rigged Texas or wacky style. You may be surprised what you find. Good Luck!

A seven pound large mouth bass in Florida is a nice fish, but not uncommon. Since catch and release caught on with anglers, we have more ten pound bass now than ever. Most weekend anglers don't catch them because they don't fish exclusively for big fish.

Great display!! One of the nicest I've seen. As a certified "Old Timer", I can remember when we used to mount stringers of 10 pound largemouths. We called that a "Gold Stringer". Eventually we learned a dead fish on the wall is not something to be proud of. Congratulations for using replica mounts and not the real fish.

I have been fighting the weed wars for as long as I can remember. It's a futile fight. Florida lakes are managed for a wide variety of interests. Home owners don't want to look out the back of their million dollar home and see miles of weeds choking the lake. Boaters want to boat, not pull hydrilla off their props all day. No one wants to see the lakes topped out. What is required is systematic management of aquatic plants, not a zero tolerance policy. Fisheries managers tell me our lakes are the healthiest with about 30% weed cover. To maintain this level, the State needs a dedicated budget for this purpose. There is not the political will to make this a reality, so they attack the problem after it becomes a crisis. This will never change. As bass fisherman, what can we do? You can write all the letters you want. Walk up and down with placards, create videos and shout on the street corner. You might as well campaign against death and taxes. Aquatic weed control in Florida is here to stay. You don't have to like it. If you are going to fish Florida lakes, you have to learn to deal with it.

I have been fishing for bass in Florida for over 60 years, tournament fishing for nearly 50 of those years. Back when I was actively guiding, many northern anglers had problems catching our fish. The best bass fishing in Florida is in small ponds, canals and residential lakes. The worst is in large public lakes. The Harris Chain is a good example. Fish during the week and you can find fish. Fish on the weekend when the boat ramps are full and fishing will generally be tough. Summer heat makes this worse. Florida bass feed mostly at night during the summer. Here's some advice. Use lighter line. I catch most of my fish on 8 pound test mono and a spinning rod. Don't use braided line unless you are fishing extremely heavy cover. The best overall bass bait in Florida is a plastic worm. The less weight the better. If you can't catch Florida bass on a wacky rig, try golf. Seriously, this technique is deadly, especially in clear water. Find out what a mojo rig is. Slow down!! When you are fishing as slow as you can, slow down some more. The best worm is the good old Zoom Trick worm. Watermelon seed in clear water, black or junebug in dark water. If you have your limit and want big bass, flip heavy cover. You won't get many bites. Those fish that do will be worth waiting for. Don't make bass fishing more complicated than it is. Florida is full of bass. Get off the computer and go catch 'em.

Bass fishing has been an active part of my life since I can remember. I met my wife when she was 15 years old. We are both 71 now. We grew up in South Florida and fished together before and after school. We fished together our entire lives. When our son was born, we carried his play pen with us in the car and fished from the bank. When bass tournaments first started in the sixties, I fished everyone I could enter. I have great memories of those years. We fished together as a family until my son got married and had his own kids. He fishes to this day. I can not think of a better family activity. When you are on the lake, it's you, the fish and your troubles are far away. I'm too old to fish now. Those years of bouncing around Lake Okeechobee have taken a toll on my back. Take your family fishing. Get your kids away from the computer and teach them to appreciate a day on the water with their Dad. You won't regret it.

I don't live in your part of the country, but from what I can see from your map the shoreline along the bottom of the map is where I would start this time of year. I would especially check out any trees, big rocks or debris along this deeper bank. The mouths of the small coves on this shoreline look interesting. I wouldn't deep crank this shoreline myself, I would put on a Texas rigged worm, grub or jig and pull it down the slopes working it around any bottom structure. If the water is clear, I would use light line and a Zoom watermelon colored worm. If it's dark or murky, I would go to the same worm in black or June Bug. Good Luck!!

I live and fish on the Harris Chain of Lakes in Florida. At one time our lakes were the epicenter for this issue. In the eighties the Harris Chain started to have a problem with hydrilla. Lake owners were complaining, navigation started to be affected and water managers worried that the hydrilla would top out the lakes. This had occurred in other Florida lakes requiring expensive treatment or draw downs. Hydrilla is a serious problem in Florida as it never gets cold enough in the winter to keep it under control. In addition, hydrilla was declared invasive species enemy #1 by the State and all means was authorized to eradicate it. In the late eighties and nineties our lakes were assaulted with huge over treatments of Sonar. This chemical is very effective. Unfortunately, at the time treatment levels had yet to be worked out and the long term effects of this chemical was not known. The affect of these treatments was devastating. Most of the plants in the lake died along with the hydrilla. Acres of pads and reeds disappeared and the water turned green. Our great fishing lakes turned into a killing field. After a disastrous national tournament on the Harris Chain, B.A.S.S. devoted an entire issue to Florida and it's water problems. They even went so far as to eliminate Florida from their tournament schedule. Throughout the nineties you could not spend a day fishing the Harris Chain without seeing dead fish. Even the alligators who ate the dead fish started to die. Nearly 20 years after the onslaught, the Harris Chain and our fishing have recovered nicely. Lake managers are learning to manage the hydrilla in our lakes without creating devastating consequences. Natural water fluctuations were allowed to occur and locals helped replant native grasses. Chemical weed control is still used, but proper application and long term effects are better known. I have been fishing the Harris Chain for over 40 years and have never seen the fishing better than it is right now. Fish kills should not be a consequence of treating aquatic weeds. If this happens, the treatment was not done correctly. State officials need to make sure treatment personal are properly trained, treatments are managed and offenders are policed if necessary. Fish kills sometimes occur naturally, but they should never occur because someone wants weed free water.