Do you Southerners wade? 2025

billmac reply :

I was reading the young man's post about not being able to catch bass, and I was about to suggest he wade into the lake or pond to get closer to the fish. But then I thought better of it. I live in northern NY. I've been wading rivers and other bodies of water all my life. But we don't have alligators or water moccasins or other such hazards. I didn't want to give advice that would get someone hurt. Do you guys down south wade the waterways? I think I remember reading about Tom Mann wading ponds. I lived in SC for a few months and took a local guy fishing with me, wading a pond, and he was jumpy and terrified that there were snakes nearby.

Jleebesaw reply :

I live in new york too, but I have seen people in Alabama and Mississippi swimming to get catfish on tv and the internet, so I guess some people go in the water in the south. I'm sure it's not all that dangerous.

Troy85 reply :

The only time I wade is fish is in the summer time on the beaches, trying to catch speckled trout. As far as any other time, no. Other than at beaches, the bottom is usually to muddy/soft to wade fish successfully, especially when freshwater fishing.

813basstard reply :

Ehhh..as a southerner surrounded by gators and snakes, I would caution a 14year old doing it especially on his own. Adding to the fact I’m sure he’s somewhat new at it and doesn’t know his surroundings as well as an older angler.

Too many times I’ve felt uncomfortable and I’m in a boat. Seeing a 12-14 footer thrash his tail and spray the inside of the boat got my attention and gets my full respect and distance.

Not worth catching a 2lb fish in my opinion.

Alex from GA reply :

All summer I kayak and wade the rivers in GA. I'm in my late 70's and go alone some of the time. I am not afraid.

TnRiver46 reply :

It all depends on how far south. I'll Wade anything anywhere near me but I don't want to suck into quicksand muck in a Louisiana Marsh . Here's what happened to my buddy wading in Edisto trying to net some bait hahaha! Boy did he smell rotten for a few hours

Johnbt reply :

"Boy did he smell rotten for a few hours"

Oh boy, marsh gas aroma. I have a heavy 1648 and fish a lot of small ponds and lakes that don't have ramps. I always take my rubber knee boots and quite often take my insulated camo chest waders, just in case I need to help the boat onto the trailer. Or if it's gale force windy or the water is really cold after the ice melts. I keep them in an old red metal cooler with rusty hinges. It rides really well in the boat on the way home. I hate stinking up the truck almost as much as stinking me up.

HeyCoach reply :

If I go to a certain wildlife management area in northeast Alabama, I’ll wade in the middle of the creek and fly fish for fun. It’s easy to get to and I know the area. But, I’ll carry a small .22 revolver loaded with shot shells instead of a solid bullet.

I’ve had water moccasins want to get cuddly. I try to stay out of their way and brush them back with the rod. I’ve not had to use the revolver yet.

roadwarrior reply :

Too dangerous for some of our "mature members". It's not about

snakes or gators, it's slipping and falling. No big deal when you are

younger, but a huge issue for old farts like me.

:love-093:

MAN reply :

Here in southeast Texas we do not wade freshwater unless its a shallow river and you needing to get to a deep hole or something. Super rare. All our wading is coastal wading. We got gators in both, but not enough to worry much. Heavily populated gator areas are well known and people tend to be more careful around those areas where they gather.

Me and my 4 year old son go fishing at our community lakes almost daily. His job has always been to spot the gators first before we hit the shoreline. As long as we can see them we are ok. Its when we can't find them that we have to stay further back from the waterline.

greentrout reply :

65 yrs. plus .... my calculus no longer do i wade .... i do understand some seniors are different ...

good fishing ....

"a man's got to know his limitations". dirty harry callahan

Choporoz reply :

@roadwarrior and @greentrout, I had been thinking similarly, but I've always liked pulling the yak ashore on a river float and wading in for a bit...as much to give the back a short rest as anything. Saw a vid the other day with a guy using a 'wading staff' --had never heard of such a thing, but I think it's on my short wish list. folds up nicely, but can attach to belt while wading and just let it float alongside while casting...seems like a great idea

As to the question about reptiles -- I'm in VA, but so far north as to longer be in the South, IMO. No gators and the snakes are (nearly) all harmless

Jrob78 reply :

I live in TX, don't see many gators here where I am but plenty of water snakes and moccasins. I don't wade but not really because of that, I just don't do it. I did fish out of float tubes a lot when I was younger and never worried about it. Snakes don't normally bother you unless you bother them.

the reel ess reply :

I'll wade a creek or a sandy or rocky bottom in a heartbeat. But in some ponds that I fish, the bottom is so silty you take one step into the pond and sink up to your knee.

Glaucus reply :

Roland Martin has a set on him. Can't imagine ever doing this in South Florida.

bowhunter63 reply :

I still do in Missouri, Don’t know about Florida

billmac reply :

Roland's wading is particularly impressive because I've seen a bunch of his videos where gators have followed his fish right to the boat, and one actually got his fish and lure.

Catt reply :

I used to wade all over the marshes of Southwest Louisiana & Southeast Texas.

At 68 I don't anymore but I always carried backup & it aint no stinking .22 with rat shot!

redmeansdistortion reply :

On 4/23/2019 at 1:53 AM, Choporoz said:

@roadwarrior and @greentrout, I had been thinking similarly, but I've always liked pulling the yak ashore on a river float and wading in for a bit...as much to give the back a short rest as anything. Saw a vid the other day with a guy using a 'wading staff' --had never heard of such a thing, but I think it's on my short wish list. folds up nicely, but can attach to belt while wading and just let it float alongside while casting...seems like a great idea

As to the question about reptiles -- I'm in VA, but so far north as to longer be in the South, IMO. No gators and the snakes are (nearly) all harmless

Wading staffs are great. Here in the north, we wade the streams in search of salmon and steelhead. A wading staff, while not a must, is a great safety item. If the water is murky and you step into a hole, you could find yourself in a heap of trouble. You can feel the bottom (or not) with a staff and they help immensely in navigating the rivers. Rivers can change very fast. The spot you fished last week could be totally different the following week. Stay safe out there.

TnRiver46 reply :

On 4/23/2019 at 4:13 AM, Catt said:

I used to wade all over the marshes of Southwest Louisiana & Southeast Texas.

At 68 I don't anymore but I always carried backup & it aint no stinking .22 with rat shot!

I saw a customer shoot a snake with rat shot and it was just bouncing off the snake. Then he put a regular LR round in there and killed it first shot

Catt reply :

On 4/23/2019 at 4:35 AM, TnRiver46 said:

I saw a customer shoot a snake with rat shot and it was just bouncing off the snake. Then he put a regular LR round in there and killed it first shot

Snakes are the least of my worries! ????

soflabasser reply :

On 4/22/2019 at 8:25 PM, billmac said:

I was reading the young man's post about not being able to catch bass, and I was about to suggest he wade into the lake or pond to get closer to the fish. But then I thought better of it. I live in northern NY. I've been wading rivers and other bodies of water all my life. But we don't have alligators or water moccasins or other such hazards. I didn't want to give advice that would get someone hurt. Do you guys down south wade the waterways? I think I remember reading about Tom Mann wading ponds. I lived in SC for a few months and took a local guy fishing with me, wading a pond, and he was jumpy and terrified that there were snakes nearby.

I did some wade fishing in the ocean this past weekend in an area well known for shark fishing and have done wade fishing in Florida for over 20 years now. Also wade fish in freshwater. So far it has been a fun, productive experience for me since I always watch where I step and pay attention to the wildlife around me.

TnRiver46 reply :

On 4/23/2019 at 4:45 AM, Catt said:

Snakes are the least of my worries! ????

Looks like supper

geo g reply :

In Florida the water are loaded with gators of all size. I often see 10 footers in the everglades. We had a women walking her dog close to the bank taken by a 10 footer. In the boat I have had them nose my my Trolling Motor, slap a tail long the side of the boat. I have had them follow the boat for a half mile making false runs and vibrating their backs in a show of force. In some areas they are as numerous as cockroaches! On a normal day in the glades in the boat I'll see 20 to 25 gators. If the water is low easily see 100 gators in the course of the day. These aren't small gators. The small ones would become food fast for the bigger ones.

Then the glades also have a good population of Burmese pythons and African rock pythons caught up to 17 feet long and over 300 lbs. These are escapees form numerous hurricanes, and stupid people where they just get too big to keep. These big ones are top of the food chain with no predators except humans. Plus of course, we have a healthy population of poisonous snakes.

You ask if I wade while fishing. The answer is no way in hell for freshwater fish. I have waded at the beach for salt water, surf fishing.

It's a different world this far south. But always exciting!

soflabasser reply :

On 4/23/2019 at 4:45 AM, Catt said:

Looks like he is thinking ''come on in the water is fine!''LOL

On a serious note I have wade fished both in freshwater and saltwater for over 20 years now in South Florida. Have also dived in areas with alligators, crocodiles, sharks, and other animals so I got more in water experience than most who just stay on dry land or on a boat. You have to know where you are wade fishing in and always pay attention to your surroundings. Do not enter the water if it is alligator mating season, when sharks are actively feeding, etc. Having fear of animals will take away from the overall experience of being in the outdoors so it would be best for every fisherman to educate themselves on the animals they can possibly encounter while wade fishing in Florida.

NittyGrittyBoy reply :

I wade a small river in South Ga when in the summer it nearly dries up. You Target the deeper water and they get stacked, snakes are abundant but lizards are few.

Just be cautious and take protection if you decide to. I enjoy it

davecon reply :

When I was in my teens and twenties we waded all the time. Keep in mind that this was before “catch and release” was ever thought of. We had to go to croaker sacks to keep the fish in because if you put them on a stringer the gators would try to steal them. We didn’t think anything about it, it’s just what we did.

However, with the influx of northerners feeding gators for some strange reason the gators have lost most of their fear of humans.

I’m getting pretty old to wade nowadays but probably would in the right places. Wouldn’t be in a residential area though.

Catt reply :

@soflabasser Exactly!

I've hunted, fished, & trapped all over the Gulf Coast & while I always carried a gun of some type I've never fired a single shot other than hunting. Well except for one nutria rat in the bottom of a duck blind I had just jumped into!

I'm way more concerned with water moccasins than alligators!

Mobasser reply :

On 4/23/2019 at 7:43 AM, Catt said:

@soflabasser Exactly!

I've hunted, fished, & trapped all over the Gulf Coast & while I always carried a gun of some type I've never fired a single shot other than hunting. Well except for one nutria rat in the bottom of a duck blind I had just jumped into!

I'm way more concerned with water moccasins than alligators!

Catt, I've done a lot of the same stuff as you, here in Missouri. We don't have gators of course, but we do have copperheads and the occasional moccasins. I'm not afraid of snakes, and we have others that are non poisonous, but I always just leave them be. I've seen plenty, but have never been bit. It pays to know what's in your area for sure!

N Florida Mike reply :

On 4/23/2019 at 4:45 AM, Catt said:

Snakes are the least of my worries! ????

You got that right !????

smr913 reply :

I'm lucky to be at the very north of the water moccasin's territory and have never seen one in person. I encourage anyone to get out and wade. The numbers of fish I caught went up when I got off the bank and started wading. It went up again when I got a kayak. Moral of the story is the easiest accessed water will be the most pressured.

N Florida Mike reply :

I've been wading most of my life here in Florida. Especially the St John's river. Have only been skeered once or twice of Gators.

On 4/23/2019 at 7:23 AM, davecon said:

We had to go to croaker sacks to keep the fish in because if you put them on a stringer the gators would try to steal them

Or the Alligator snappin turtles , lol. I saw one bite a bream in half off a stringer a friend had on his belt.

Another friend felt a tug on a stringer of fish he was cleaning, and when he pulled it up there was a big cottonmouth hanging on.

One time 2 nine foot Gators came out , one in front and one behind me. They weren't trying to get me, I obviously didn't look like like a food source ???? Giving you the short version of that story though , but it ended after dark ????.

It's just something I grew up with. We did a lot of things in the woods and swamps we could have died or got hurt from back then. And a lot of it barefoot !!

I don't do much wading anymore in the river. Getting lazy.

Don't know if I'd advise anyone to do what I did. But so far so good....

PhishLI reply :

I'm in NY, not the south, but...I night wade during the summer. Last season I was pretty far out and above my waist when a Smithsonian sized snapping turtle cruised within inches of me. It was the size of an ottoman. The reptile core of my brain told me to flee to safety, so I did. I realize a turtle isn't a crocodilian or a venomous snake, but the beak on this thing was terrifying. I sped home then googled "titanium underwear".

gnappi reply :

Growing up in upstate New York you simply couldn't fish the narrow streams without wading. Down here in South East Florida most canals are deep right at the water's edge, and at lakes walking into a few feet of water doesn't get me anywhere a decent cast won't.

Even my boat, we stick close to the shoreline as the fishing is best there for us. With my DF, I mark lots of fish in deeper water, but don't really fish there.

Walking along a canal or lake you're just as likely to meet a snake or gator as wading, they never bother me, but my buddy was attacked by a huge otter once ????

Koz reply :

"Do you southerners wade?"

No.

Hog Basser reply :

Not in the Arkansas Delta. We have a few gators, never know if they're around or not. I pretty much kill at least one cottonmouth every time I go out. Keep "the judge" handy with 410 shells. The lake I fish is separated from a large bayou by a levee, so gators come and go.

Tennessee Boy reply :

I spent a lot of time wading in Tennessee as a youngster. No gators here. Only had one close encounter with a cotton mouth. Never went back to that creek.

the reel ess reply :

There are a lot of southerners named Wade

I got the kayak so I could...Row (vs wade)

.ghoti. reply :

On 4/23/2019 at 11:27 PM, the reel ess said:

There are a lot of southerners named Wade

I got the kayak so I could...Row (vs wade)

Now that's funny right there!!!

GReb reply :

As a kid I would wade fish and swim all the time. Snakes always scared more than gators. We still swim and ski at Ross Barnett all summer long but stay in the areas where gators are less prevalent. The more “fishy” areas have 8-12 footers everywhere though.

People wade for crappie at Grenada Lake all year long. They dont have as many gators up there though.

Darren. reply :

I will wade where I can, if I am in the mood to do so, usually

if there's a hard sandy bottom. Unfortunately, most of the

reservoirs where I fish are mush and suck your shoes off, LOL.

We also have a lot of snakes, and water mocs are common

here, less-seen are copperheads, but they're around, I've

seen them. Fortunately, no gators.

There are river otters and beavers, too. Had the bahookie

scared outta me a few times with beavers sneaking up on me

and slapping their tail on the water. Otters are curious critters.

billmac reply :

Do you guys not have any rivers with rapids? By far most of the bass I've caught in my life have been in river rapids.

detroit1 reply :

By those pictures..that looks like a Culprit...

Lead Head reply :

I have wade fished some of the smaller rivers around here (Saline, Ouchita) never ran up on a gator but people swear they are around. In my experience most of the snakes people call cottonmouth (or water moccasin) are harmless banded water snakes. Not saying it's never a cottonmouth, just that the water snakes are far more abundant and 90% of people I know declare every snake they see in the water a moccasin. I have come face to face with a swimming copperhead while wading waist deep water on lake ouachita.

Koz reply :

We have to be very careful this time of year because it's alligator mating season and the alligators are moving from lagoon to lagoon and very aggressive. In fact, today I got chased off of three different lagoons by gators. Most of the time they hang out in the distance, but today each came right at me once they saw me. There's no way I'd ever chance a kayak with them, especially this time of year.

Yumeya reply :

I wade here in Northern Utah, but like the OP said we don't have any animals that will eat you.

I did have a beaver chase me that was the size of a Labrador, d**n thing was a giant, I carry a .22 mag just in case.

OCdockskipper reply :

My sister lives in Southern Georgia, right on the Florida border and has a couple of small lakes on her property. Each has a small gator that rules the roost, but are pretty people shy.

First time this dumb Californian went to visit her there, she told me what was the best way to navigate around the lakes and to never take shortcuts across the feeder creeks. So of course, after fishing one side of the larger lake, I cut across the feeder creek to get to the other side. As I am going along, all of a sudden one of my legs is knee deep in mud. It was stuck and not moving. As I wiggled my leg out of my boot to get it free, I remembered seeing one of the aforementioned gators earlier in the day. I would have been in a bad position to fight him off had he decided to come over & investigate what was struggling in the mud.

With added urgency, i got my leg free, recovered my boot out of the mudhole and started listening to what my sister advised...

TnRiver46 reply :

On 4/24/2019 at 8:51 AM, billmac said:

Do you guys not have any rivers with rapids? By far most of the bass I've caught in my life have been in river rapids.

Yes I wade those all the time . Fun stuff

Koz reply :

On 4/24/2019 at 11:48 AM, OCdockskipper said:

My sister lives in Southern Georgia, right on the Florida border and has a couple of small lakes on her property. Each has a small gator that rules the roost, but are pretty people shy.

First time this dumb Californian went to visit her there, she told me what was the best way to navigate around the lakes and to never take shortcuts across the feeder creeks. So of course, after fishing one side of the larger lake, I cut across the feeder creek to get to the other side. As I am going along, all of a sudden one of my legs is knee deep in mud. It was stuck and not moving. As I wiggled my leg out of my boot to get it free, I remembered seeing one of the aforementioned gators earlier in the day. I would have been in a bad position to fight him off had he decided to come over & investigate what was struggling in the mud.

With added urgency, i got my leg free, recovered my boot out of the mudhole and started listening to what my sister advised...

A lot of people don't realize that gators aren't always in the lakes and ponds. The females especially will make big nests in boggy areas for their eggs. If you're in the woods and see a big mound of dirt and debris it's always best to steer clear.

One day I was about to go fish my favorite rip rap spillway area and as I neared a big 12 foot bull gator came out of the woods and over the spillway. I don't fish there anymore.

junyer357 reply :

Most of the ponds i fish are too soft to wade. You will sink over knee deep in water that would be ankle deep on a harder bottom.

I wade a few creeks, but they have harder bottoms.

As far as snakes, i try to avoid them, and have a pistol for the ones i cant.

stratoliner92 reply :

Florida - Yes, most places have hard sand bottoms where we lived.

Mississippi - Good luck you may not get out of most ponds/lakes Lot's O Mud????????. Some creeks have nice hard bottoms.

Gators never bother us as long as you give them space but water moccasins can be a problem sometimes

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Do you Southerners wade? 2025

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