GLADES

I would rather fish Ida as well. Osborne is OK though. What do you think Bassin? 1 fish sounds good to me as well. Good point about the FWC.What are the slot sizes allowed? Im still waiting for some call backs for another team or two. With it being the day after turkey day, it might be last minute decisions for them. I will be there fer sure.

Friday at 2PM sounds fine with me. The weather should be upper 70's and sunny with a lite north breeze. Not like Ohio :0 How are the ramps at Lake Worth RD? The last time I fished that chain, I put in at Pioneer Park. The ramps were narrow and the trailer bottomed outas well. Can we fish till 6PM? Does the launch have a gate? How far is it to Lake IDA from the ramps? I will try to bring along a few buddies to make things interesting. I will make some calls tonight.

I would prefer the morning, but I dont know when the bite is on. Is the afternoon better there?

I was planning to fish Ida/Osborne on friday. Count me in. I dont want to be anywhere near a shopping mall. Which boat ramp would we be leaving from? I have a boat and a partner.

Hey Guys, The trip to the O(belle glade) was a tough day. A cold front passed through saturday night and the temps were in the 50's with a howling 30 MPH north wind. At 5AM at the launch, it was a bit chilly for a fla boy. At first light I headed into boyscout cut. The lake was completely choked with 12"grass except for two 10' wide trails cut by boat traffic. I took the right hand trail and headed NW then north. It was a blast zig zagging the trail at 50 MPH into that wind. It is times like these I was glad for my Procrafts windshield. After a few miles, I got close to the open lake, and was met by 2-3 ft rollers through the grass. I stopped and tried to fish. To much weeds, wind and waves. I tried using the frog around the trail,but it was tough controlling the boat. I saw a small 3' wide trail in the grass heading east toward Torrey island. I went for it and made my way to open water with a wind break thanks to some large brush and trees. Finally in bussiness. I alternated horney toads (green/yellow, june bug, white, black) with 10" & 6"(wat/red, red/pearl/green, pumpkin/red ) worms. I also threw strike king and rapala shad crankbaits ...Not a bite on anything ! After a few hours of nothing, I decided to move. Go to crank the trusty black max...the starter just spins with out engaging. 5 more times and I start cussing. Finally after about 15 tries the motor engages and fires up. Whew. I start heading back to the 10' wide trail and everything looks different. Thank goodness for the GPS. I headed west and after I burned a new trail, I found my way to the 10' wide trail.I headed south and SE, back to the rim canal. At the canal I hung a right and headed toward Clewiston stopping at the dynamite holes halfway there. As I shut off the motor, Im thinking the starter will work again. So I test it. Fired up 1st time. No worries. I fished for two more hours. Not a single bite. Decided to call it a day and pack up and head home for some food and football. The starter acts up again. I lost count and I was thinking if IT WOULD ONLY START, I would head straight back to the trailer. Finally, it starts. I headed back to the dock without incident. At the ramp, there was a couple of other boats from the tourney leaving as well. The guys had the same luck as I did. I was lucky today anyway. I went fishing, saw some beautiful souroundings and had a few laughs with good friends. As I pulled into my driveway at home, I noticed the bearing buddy on my single axle was missing. I looked closer and to my shock the wheel bearing was destroyed. I could not believe the wheel didnt fly off. I just drove 75 miles at 65 MPH. I was lucky again. Let see..I need axle bearings...a new starter....

You need a winter home in south fla. The bass fishing will start heating up in the next few months. The ocean fishing isnt bad either!

Thanks. I dont know the locations of the cuts, etc. Is there a map to help me out?

If it gets you out there, its a good deal. Trihull's are a bit heavy, but they are very stable. If you build a deck up front, use lightweight materials where you can. If you get too heavy up front, that bow makes a good water scoop. If there isnt enough hull to mount the trolling motor, fabricate an aluminum bracket to hold the TM.

Im fishing a tourney next sunday out of Belle Glade (Public ramp next to Slims fish camp). I have not fished the big O since spring and before all the rains and the increased lake level. I have been told that the lake looks alot different because of the new weed growth. Im looking for any advice for which direction or area to go on the lake. Fishing the rim canal is out due to the muddy chocolate milk color water. I know that if I can get back into the weeds and find a clearing, the water is clear. Anyone have any current info they want to share? Also, anyone have a link to a map of the cuts near belle glade from the rim canal. I checked mapquest and google earth, but I am not sure if it up to date. thanks

I dont know what the standard size is, but I started off with a small 2 shelf plano box when I began fishing as a teen. Over the 30 years I have collected so much tackle that my tackle boxes are now actually suit case size. I have 2 of them full of stuff. If I bring both fishing with me, there is no floor space in the boat and I lose 3 MPH on the top end! I think I will get a new Plano and just put into it what I actually use!

Your engine should be run at or near MAX RPM. The outboard is designed to safely run wide open. 5500 + Use the prop calculators and try to find a prop store that will let you try out the prop before you buy. Tempest Plus is a good brand. You will need a GPS to determine your speed and a RPM gauge to measure your engine RPM to judge your performance. Good luck

I think it is OK to eat locally caught panfish one or two meals a month. Kids and pregnant women should probably not eat the fish though. With all the fertilizer, chemical, runnoff and mercury issues in the local canals and in the glades, I personally would not the fish in south fla. Some of the lakes in less populated central florida counties would be a good bet. Blue Cyprus (east of Yeehaw Jct) lake is very pristine and the speckled perch there is supposed to be excellent.

NW Broward county I fish central and south florida

Thanks bocabasser. I have a bassboat. I have never fished the holylands, but I did drive over there after the new ramps were opened to check it out. Which direction should I go when I get there? Whats the deal with Holiday park? It seems to me that they could lower the water if they wanted to. I think the county is trying to discourage the use of Holiday Park. Hows the water clarity at Lox south? I drove by there sunday and the flood gates were closed by ramps. Kevin

Take it in for service and get it checked out. If you run the motor with no or low oil, it might spoil your christmas.

According to a report I read dated 10-1-08, the bass are holding tight to the grass edges in the areas around Ritta Island, Observation Island. Look for clean water with a little chop and fish deep into the holes in the grass. 10"-12" worms, frogs, crankbaits and shiners. Sorry I cant give you some first hand info. Kevin

I have not been able to go fishing for a couple of months. Looks like I will be able to go this upcoming weekend. With all the rain that has fallen here in south florida recently, where would be a good bet? Kevin

with all due respect stick marsh grand wizard, mr. welcome is as good as it gets when stick marsh is concerned. if you don't know him or have never heard of him, then you my friend need to do some more research. No disrespect to Bocabasser but if he talked to the FWC and they said there was a fish kill who are you to tell him that he is wrong. Mr Welcome is the authority on the Stick Marsh/ Ansin Garcia as far as I am concerned. The Grand Wizards' tude' seems a bit pompuss ;D

I have not heard about this. The rain run off is likely to contain a plethora of pollutants. Hopefully, if it is true, it is confined to a small area.

Any of you guys running a fury prop? How do you like it. Does your boat perform better. I want to upgrade to a fury. Will my Merc 150 be able to turn the 24P on a 17.5 FT Procraft?

Welcome to South Florida. Right now your best bet is fishing at the south end of Loxahatchee at first light - 10 AM. If you google earth search, then zoom in on the satelite view, you can see the cuts leading into the sawgrass flats. The best cut in my opinion is between the 1st and 2nd spill way while heading west. it opens up pretty nice back there. Its easy to get lost back there, so keep a tab on your position and your route back. Use senkos, soft platics, top water plugs, and shallow running crankbaits. When the weather starts cooling off, and the rainy season is over, the canals at Holiday Park, Sawgrass, and the boat launches along alligator alley are great. There are so many great places to fish in south and central florida that are only a short drive. Kissimee, ToHo, Istokpoga, Stick marsh, blue cyprus, etc...

If you install a 6" - 12" jackplate (you didnt mention that you had one) you can raise the engine on the transom to reduce the drag. This also has an effect of increasing the engine RPM's, which will allow you to go to a Tempest 24P prop. You should be able to get 54-56 MPH. Be carefull that you do not raise the motor to the point that you lose water PSI. It should be 12-15 psi minimum when fully trimmed out and while turning. From my experience, I would just save my money and leave well enough alone. If you really have a need for speed, sell it and buy a Allison boat.

Welcome back.

Some things to consider.. The outboard controls do not work with other brands. You didnt mention what type of motor you had blow up. You should stick with the same brand motor unless you want or need to change the controls. What is the rated HP for you hull? You should not exceed that. Is your hull and transom in good condition? Make repairs before you repower the boat. With the oil companies adding ethanol (10%) to the pump gas, you should choose a newer motor if possible. I have owned a 140 evinrude, 115 johnson, and i now have a 150 mercury. All run well if properly maintained (prevent overheating!) and can last for many years. The jap motors...Im not so sure. Water pressure and water temperature gauges are a must. I prefer the mercury motor now only because I have one! Good luck