I'm struggling please help me! 2024
Carter11neal reply :
I've been bass fishing basically all my life. And now I can't even get a bite. I'm on vacation in Florida. I'm in a private gated community called Grand Harbor in Vero Beach. I'm wondering if anyone has ever fished the ponds in the community? I've been trying all week and all I've caught is a 1lb 3 ounce bluegill. I'm not complaining but I just want to catch a bass. Anything you can tell me will help.
fishnkamp reply :
I would google local tackle shops. Go in and ask where they suggest to fish and with what. They know their area.
Carter11neal reply :
On 3/24/2017 at 9:08 AM, fishnkamp said:I would google local tackle shops. Go in and ask where they suggest to fish and with what. They know their area.
I have tried this but all they tell me is how to fish saltwater, they don't seem to aknowledge that freshwater fishing is a thing.
Bassguytom reply :
Try a weightless lizard with a 3/0 hook. Reel it just fast enough to keep it on top. I did very well on private ponds with this in Florida last time I was there with the family.
Carter11neal reply :
On 3/24/2017 at 9:13 AM, Bassguytom said:Try a weightless lizard with a 3/0 hook. Reel it just fast enough to keep it on top. I did very well on private ponds with this in Florida last time I was there with the family.
I'll give that a shot tomorrow.
Darren. reply :
Welcome aboard!
What other methods are you using for bass?
Is there any structure, humps, downed trees
or such in the pond? I suspect not if in a gated
community.
A spinnerbait, TX rig, even a Ned rig could all
produce fish. There's a ton of material on the
forums on each of those.
Good luck!
Carter11neal reply :
On 3/24/2017 at 9:18 AM, Darren. said:Welcome aboard!
What other methods are you using for bass?
Is there any structure, humps, downed trees
or such in the pond? I suspect not if in a gated
community.
A spinnerbait, TX rig, even a Ned rig could all
produce fish. There's a ton of material on the
forums on each of those.
Good luck!
I've tried a spinner bait, chatterbait, buzz toads, swimbaits and senkos. The only cover I can see/feel is vegation, rocks, and drainage pipes.
Darren. reply :
On 3/24/2017 at 9:22 AM, Carter11neal said:I've tried a spinner bait, chatterbait, buzz toads, swimbaits and senkos. The only cover I can see/feel is vegation, rocks, and drainage pipes.
When you say senkos, are you TX rigging them, or
wacky style? Either way, I've fished a few ponds
here that sound like yours and I found that mostly
slow presentations caught the fish.
I'd suggest a drop shot rig with a small minnow or
finesse worm. And be patient. You've tried a lot of
power fishing techniques, might need to sloooow
down and go with a more finesse approach.
Carter11neal reply :
On 3/24/2017 at 9:24 AM, Darren. said:
When you say senkos, are you TX rigging them, or
wacky style? Either way, I've fished a few ponds
here that sound like yours and I found that mostly
slow presentations caught the fish.
I'd suggest a drop shot rig with a small minnow or
finesse worm. And be patient. You've tried a lot of
power fishing techniques, might need to sloooow
down and go with a more finesse approach.
I've tried Texas rigging it and wacky rigging it. I need to and will slow it down
Darren. reply :
On 3/24/2017 at 9:31 AM, Carter11neal said:I've tried Texas rigging it and wacky rigging it. I need to and will slow it down
Yeah, the old saying goes like this:
"When you think you're going slow enough, slow down some more."
Downsizing the bait can help, too. I love to rig a Yamamoto Shad
Shape Worm via drop shot, wacky, and Texas. Little tail works
its magic. Bluegill like it, too, but bass love it!
WRB reply :
We have several Florida members that can help you. Your area has good canals with bass, just watch where you walk...gators!
I would think a Senko and Rapala F13 minnow would be very effective.
Tom
Angry John reply :
Super fluke and swim jig both work wonders to simulate more natural prey. 4 inch swim baits normally get murdered.
Kidflex reply :
Zoom trick worm, rigged weedless and weightless. Work the entire bank. Throw it out and wait a while before moving the bait. If no takers on that rig there just isn't any bass in the pond.
Jon Morris reply :
This may be a stupid question but....
Are you sure there's bass in there at all?
If you've done all the things you say you have and there's not some insane variable giving the fish lock jaw (ridiculously cold temps, weird algae bloom, chemical spill, etc....) then the simplest explanation is that there aren't any bass in that body of water.
My advice? Switch locations.
Fortunately you're in Florida and the you can throw a rock in any direction and hit a bass pond. Get on Google maps and turn the satellite mode off and search for bodies of water near where you're staying.
I do this every time I visit Florida to find quick little spots to fish. Oh, and don't turn your nose up at tiny ponds and even drainage canals. You can literally catch bass from storm drains in Florida, bass are everywhere...... dont waste your time banging your head against the wall.
Carter11neal reply :
On 3/24/2017 at 12:25 PM, Jon Morris said:This may be a stupid question but....
Are you sure there's bass in there at all?
If you've done all the things you say you have and there's not some insane variable giving the fish lock jaw (ridiculously cold temps, weird algae bloom, chemical spill, etc....) then the simplest explanation is that there aren't any bass in that body of water.
My advice? Switch locations.
Fortunately you're in Florida and the you can throw a rock in any direction and hit a bass pond. Get on Google maps and turn the satellite mode off and search for bodies of water near where you're staying.
I do this every time I visit Florida to find quick little spots to fish. Oh, and don't turn your nose up at tiny ponds and even drainage canals. You can literally catch bass from storm drains in Florida, bass are everywhere...... dont waste your time banging your head against the wall.
On 3/24/2017 at 12:00 PM, Kidflex said:Zoom trick worm, rigged weedless and weightless. Work the entire bank. Throw it out and wait a while before moving the bait. If no takers on that rig there just isn't any bass in the pond.
I started wondering if there were bass at all, now I think there aren't any, but still shouldn't there be some sort of predator.
SFL BassHunter reply :
On 3/24/2017 at 8:59 AM, Carter11neal said:I've been bass fishing basically all my life. And now I can't even get a bite. I'm on vacation in Florida. I'm in a private gated community called Grand Harbor in Vero Beach. I'm wondering if anyone has ever fished the ponds in the community? I've been trying all week and all I've caught is a 1lb 3 ounce bluegill. I'm not complaining but I just want to catch a bass. Anything you can tell me will help.
Throw a watermelon red 4" stick bait in there. If that doesn't work, go find another pond lol.
geo g reply :
Get a bag of 4" senkos in watermelon red. Rig them on a #3 EWG thin wire Gama hook, and a 1/32 bullet weight. You will catch fish in Fkirida with this rig. Change up the cadence from a dead stick to a hop and stop, to a slow drag, to a steady jerk Change the cadence until you find what they want. You will catch bass when nothing else will, it has worked for me all over Florida.
Mike L reply :
If its a fairly new community there very well may be nothing in there.
However, if there is the best luck I have when fishing retension ponds including golf courses, is with a white fluke, watermelon red stick bait and a frog.
Good Luck, and watch where you step...Make some noise as you approach the bank if its overgrown and keep watching the water in front and both sides of you for any signs of unusual surface disturbance.
If you have a small dog, leave it home.
Mike
Mike
Carter11neal reply :
On 3/24/2017 at 10:36 PM, Mike L said:If its a fairly new community there very well may be nothing in there.
However, if there is the best luck I have when fishing retension ponds including golf courses, is with a white fluke, watermelon red stick bait and a frog.
Good Luck, and watch where you step...Make some noise as you approach the bank if its overgrown and keep watching the water in front and both sides of you for any signs of unusual surface disturbance.
If you have a small dog, leave it home.
Mike
Mike
The nice thing about these ponds is that the bank isn't overgrown it is mowded quite frequently,
Jon Morris reply :
Adult bluegill might be the top predator in those lakes.
N Florida Mike reply :
Theres probably bass in there.I have been skunked more than once in ponds I had caught plenty of fish in before.
All good advice above.
My favorite 3 baits mentioned above are senkos,super flukes,and zoom trick worms.If the waters fairly clear,use watermelon colors.If its murky,use black/ blue. I do better weightless,but thats another thread topic!!
I fish my way slowly to drains,then fish them REAL slow.I catch more fish somewhat parallel to the bank,instead of casting straight out.
Some of the biggest bass I ever caught were the only ones I caught at a particular location.There may not be many,but they may be monsters ,esp. if its 15 years old or more.
TravisVirginiaAngler reply :
Definitely a Ned rig with a black senko
RoLo reply :
One thing is sure, the advice and information gleaned from this forum is second to none!
What's rarely addressed though is that the vast majority of information pertains to 'northern-strain bass'.
I grew up bass fishing in NJ, PA, NY and Ontario, Canada. In the northeast I was fishing exclusively
for northern-strain bass, a highly aggressive, easy-to-catch game fish. In fact, I had myself thoroughly convinced
that I was a crackerjack bass angler. That notion was soundly trounced however, when I moved
to central Florida, where I was converted back to a rank beginner (KVD admits that he fears Florida).
Northern Florida isn't bad at all, because it supports northern-strain, Florida-strain and intergrade bass.
But whenever you're fishing south of Ocala, Florida, you're dealing almost exclusively with Florida-strain bass,
an aloof, apathetic. recalcitrant creature 
Roger
Gundog reply :
On 3/26/2017 at 10:00 AM, RoLo said:
aloof, apathetic. recalcitrant creature
I don't no what any of those words mean but I agree....or not, maybe.
RoLo reply :
On 3/26/2017 at 10:19 AM, Gundog said:I don't no what any of those words mean but I agree....or not, maybe.
I'm not sure myself, but I figured it's better than profanity 
Roger
Mike L reply :
The Mental State of Pure Florida Bass...
Aloof....You hit her in the head with a 1 oz weight and she'll just look up at you and shake it off.
Apathetic...Hungry or not, if she don't feel like moving she won't. She'll just sit in one spot and watch your bait swim by and look the other way.
Recalcitrant....You do the right thing, in the right place, at the
right time...She knows it but couldn't care less.
Mike
RoLo reply :
On 3/26/2017 at 11:22 AM, Mike L said:The Mental State of Pure Florida Bass...
Aloof....You hit her in the head with a 1 oz weight and she'll just look up at you and shake it off.
Apathetic...Hungry or not, if she don't feel like moving she won't. She'll just sit in one spot and watch your bait swim by and look the other way.
Recalcitrant....You do the right thing, in the right place, at the
right time...She knows it but couldn't care less.
Mike
You sound like a bass fisherman who lives in Florida.
But we love our cantankerous ladies, don't we? 
Roger
Mike L reply :
On 3/26/2017 at 12:27 PM, RoLo said:
You sound like a bass fisherman who lives in Florida.
But we love our cantankerous ladies, don't we?
Roger
Yes we do!
And wouldn't want to live or fish for anything else anywhere else.
Truly a special place
Mike
frogflogger reply :
The great thing about Florida bass in their home state is they eat surface baits - most, ( 80%+) , of the over 7# bass I've caught in Florida were on top.
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