I am looking for some ideas for a good lake/location to go bass fishing over the Christmas Holiday this year.  I live in Maryland and am looking to fish someplace else that has some really nice bass and will provide me some new experiences with bass fishing techniques.  

 

I looked at the top fishing Lakes in the US and see lots of lakes, but I am not sure where to go in late December.  I was thinking that Florida or Texas might be best.

 

At this point I am looking for some help and ideas from folks that live near or have done similar trips this time of year. 

 

I would be hiring a guide service, so having that is important also.

 

Any Thoughts?

 

 

Welcome aboard!

 

If I could pick a lake during the cold, it'd probably be Okeechobee

in FL. Guides aplenty. Never been, but it's on my bucket list.

You can't go wrong with Sacramento for winter fishing. Fly into sac and you have clear lake, lake Hennessy,  lake berryessa all within 1 hour. 

 

Winter temps mid 50s during the day. No ice fishing required. 

That will doubtless be a high demand week wherever you go. Lots of possibilities south of the MD line, not just FL, TX, and CA. I'd be doing my homework and making calls quick.

Contact Billy (yourlakeforkguide) Lawson or Josh @Bass_Fanatic Sikes for Toledo Bend & Rayburn.

The week between Christmas and New Years is my favorite week of the year for fishing. These were all caught during that week or the week before over the last few years. It also helps that I usually have that week off from work. East Tennessee is a good destination For Christmas lunkers if you bring everything from long jons to flip flops. I don’t even go down to chickamauga where people catch all the double digits

Sam Rayburn is fishing great right now nd will only get better.  December fishing consist of traps and chatterbaits ripped through hydrilla, dragging Carolina rigs on hard bottom spots offshore, and throwing a Alabama rig and deep diving Crankbait around points, creek swings, and ledges.  If your interested in a trip, call me anytime.  I book up pretty fast, but I’m still open that week.  Good luck.

 

my number is 318-308-5818

4 hours ago, TnRiver46 said:

The week between Christmas and New Years is my favorite week of the year for fishing.

 

My birthday is December 20th, my present is 3-4 days on the Big Pond between Christmas & New Year.

As a life time fisherman in Florida I would go to Turkey Lake in Orlando Fl.  It is right next to Universal Studios in Orlando and have boat rentals cheap supplied by BPS.  It is the cheapest rentals anywhere in the country.  Trackers with T/M only and only 5 boats on the lake in any one day.  There are big fish in the lake, and catch and release only.  Reservations must be made early to get a boat, so call if you are interested.  Info on line and also maps of the lake with break lines.  I have fished it at least 6 times and always caught fish and a few over 5 pounds.  Most caught on senko's, flukes, and wacky trick worms, jerked off the bottom in deeper water.  Rattle traps and square bills have also caught some.  25 dollar rental fee for a half day is the best deal around.  Whenever I am in Orlando I always enjoy a half day on Turkey Lake.  Then if you are with the family, you can hit Disney and Universal Parks. 

https://floridaevergladesbassfishingadventures.com/

Hard to beat catching some giants deep in the Everglades. I went last year and had a blast. 

Toledo Bend or Sam Rayburn. Can't go wrong with either.

Welcome to BR.

my initial thoughts would be weather related, what is the weather in late December at ________. Looking at east Texas and northern Califonia the temps range 15 to 50 degrees so that is a factor to consider. Florida and SoCal the weather is mild and comfortable between 45 ro 75 degrees with rain a possibility. Lots of very good bass fishing in both SoCal and Florida when hiring guides. 

I would consider Lake Havasu during late December, getting there isn't easy.

If your plans include California the San Juaqine Delta weather is decent, you can fly into San Fransico Bay Area easily to fish the Delta. My concern is it's duck hunting season in that area.

Diamond Valley Lake, DVL,  offer good bass and weather, easy to get to with good guides available, Rusty Brown. 

My home lake Casitas has good bass fishing and weather in late December, Rich Tauber is a good guide.

Good luck with your decision.

Tom

5 hours ago, WRB said:

my initial thoughts would be weather related, what is the weather in late December at ________. Looking at east Texas 

 

The weather during that time frame could be in the 30s or 70s, could be brilliant sun shiny days or total overcast. 

 

There are more double digits caught from December though February than any other time of the year.

Wherever you choose, I would suggest contacting guides asap.  I just got back from my first trip to Texas and my guide made all the difference.  The weather didn't cooperate, at all.  40 degrees in TX in October.  That being said he took into consideration what I wanted to get out of the trip and personalized it for me.  We built a good rapport before we even met, and made the experience very comfortable and enjoyable.

I decided to go the Okeechobee.  This is my first real guided fishing trip and this option was very easy to set up.  I am going to the Roland Martin marina and going out with a guide for 2 days right after Christmas.  I guess most out of towners fishing Okeechobee are pushed toward live shiner fishing.  I have heard that shiners are $20/doz and expect to use 6+ doz on an 8 hr trip.  That seems ridiculous to me, but I don't really know.  The guide that I selected does mostly artificial, but will offer shiner fishing if we want to do it.  He said we will fish grassy area in shallow water.

 

 

I think the next trip in a couple of months will be Toledo bend or Sam Rayburn.

38 minutes ago, AmSO4 said:

I decided to go the Okeechobee.  This is my first real guided fishing trip and this option was very easy to set up.  I am going to the Roland Martin marina and going out with a guide for 2 days right after Christmas.  I guess most out of towners fishing Okeechobee are pushed toward live shiner fishing.  I have heard that shiners are $20/doz and expect to use 6+ doz on an 8 hr trip.  That seems ridiculous to me, but I don't really know.  The guide that I selected does mostly artificial, but will offer shiner fishing if we want to do it.  He said we will fish grassy area in shallow water.

 

 

I think the next trip in a couple of months will be Toledo bend or Sam Rayburn.

Fished Okeechobee on a tour when I took the family to Disney over Christmas many years ago.  It was a blast.  I hate to say it but the fish in the area we went to seemed to be like pets.  We could see one 5lb+ bass after another but nothing big would bite on what I usually fish here (soft plastic, crankbaits, etc).  The guide had me go to live bait and the bite was on.  At $20 a doz. for shiners, I would be prepared to go through 4 doz. or so, easy.

Guides like thier clients to catch fish and live bait removes a lot of skill set issues for them, plus few clients offer tips for catching nothing. 

Good luck with and enjoy your out of state fishing trips.

Tom

On 11/13/2019 at 9:25 AM, Sweet Tater Pie said:

https://floridaevergladesbassfishingadventures.com/

Hard to beat catching some giants deep in the Everglades. I went last year and had a blast. 

Did he really just say 50-100 fish a day is normal. If I wasn't married with 4 kids, I'd be on may out there tomorrow.

You should check out Pickwick Lake! Its a beautiful place and I had a lot of success towards the end of last year.

2 hours ago, skekoam said:

Did he really just say 50-100 fish a day is normal. If I wasn't married with 4 kids, I'd be on may out there tomorrow.

I’m in high school, and last year I went there with my dad and two brothers. We weren’t very experienced bass fishermen yet, but we caught about 250-300 largemouth in around 5 hours. We didn’t catch anything over 2-3 pounds, but he said there’s just days like that. We drove in his truck for about an hour before we got to a very remote part that was a favorite of his. We also caught some exotic species(can’t remember what they were called). Remember, this is the full wild Everglades, with alligators and everything it was very cool. I don’t mean to be advertising or anything, but it was really a special time. 

57 minutes ago, Sweet Tater Pie said:

I’m in high school, and last year I went there with my dad and two brothers. We weren’t very experienced bass fishermen yet, but we caught about 250-300 largemouth in around 5 hours. We didn’t catch anything over 2-3 pounds, but he said there’s just days like that. We drove in his truck for about an hour before we got to a very remote part that was a favorite of his. We also caught some exotic species(can’t remember what they were called). Remember, this is the full wild Everglades, with alligators and everything it was very cool. I don’t mean to be advertising or anything, but it was really a special time. 

That sounds amazing.  I'll take a lot of dinks anyday.  What type of bait did you mainly use?  I can't imaging plastics right?  More hard lures?

23 hours ago, skekoam said:

That sounds amazing.  I'll take a lot of dinks anyday.  What type of bait did you mainly use?  I can't imaging plastics right?  More hard lures?

We actually used a lot of wacky worms, and some soft plastic swim baits. Looking back, I would have asked to tie on a lure better suited for big bass(not that swimbaits are for small ones). Also, I think I said 300. It was more like 150-200.