Never had a bite in South Florida lake 2025
Pritch13 reply :
So i live at the side of a lake. Its pretty deep in the middle and towards the edge it gets very shallow and weedy. I have visually seen sailfin catfish and some huge grass carp in there, but after fishing there for just over two weeks daily, i have yet to get even one bite. I have used every rig imaginable but i just cannot seem to get the fish interested. I know theres fish and i know others have fished here but i am yet to even get a nibble!
I have tried everything from soft plastics, to float fishing, drop shots, crank bait, spinners and sweetcorn, hot dogs, dough bait, bread..etc.
Any tips and advice would be greatly appreciated, and I'm pretty sure i have seen some baby bass in there.
BassinLou reply :
On 1/17/2016 at 9:33 AM, Pritch13 said:So i live at the side of a lake. Its pretty deep in the middle and towards the edge it gets very shallow and weedy. I have visually seen sailfin catfish and some huge grass carp in there, but after fishing there for just over two weeks daily, i have yet to get even one bite. I have used every rig imaginable but i just cannot seem to get the fish interested. I know theres fish and i know others have fished here but i am yet to even get a nibble!
I have tried everything from soft plastics, to float fishing, drop shots, crank bait, spinners and sweetcorn, hot dogs, dough bait, bread..etc.
Any tips and advice would be greatly appreciated, and I'm pretty sure i have seen some baby bass in there.
How old would you say this lake is? From what you say you have described, it sounds like all the lakes in South Florida, which is bowl shaped. What time of day are you fishing? If you live on this lake, try fishing at night for bit and see what happens.
davecon reply :
Ultralight tackle, 4 inch worm, 1/32 oz slip sinker. Color - watermelon or black
Pritch13 reply :
Im sorry i would have no idea whatsoever how old the lake is, i have fished all times of day from dusk to dawn and through the night but had nothing. I started out with 5inch pro bait worms with small slip sinkers on a texas too.
atcoha reply :
where is the lake?
Pritch13 reply :
Pembroke pines, broward county. Also been fishing wolf lake in Davie too.
BassinLou reply :
On 1/17/2016 at 12:00 PM, Pritch13 said:Pembroke pines, broward county. Also been fishing wold lake in Davie too.
Hmmmm.... Pines and Davie are very productive areas to fish. Especially for Peacock Bass. What setup are you using?
James Frise reply :
I'm in Coral Springs. I noticed that when nothing is biting the lures that i usually use I have to switch to a really small bait. The bait I find the most successful at this time is a Wordens Rooster Tail. I work it with a medium speed and it always produces fish when used.
Pritch13 reply :
On 1/17/2016 at 9:55 PM, BassinLou said:Hmmmm.... Pines and Davie are very productive areas to fish. Especially for Peacock Bass. What setup are you using?
started off with a 5 inch watermelon worm texas rigged or carolina but recently been using rat l traps, heddon torpedoes and crank bait
Pritch13 reply :
On 1/17/2016 at 11:07 PM, James Frise said:I'm in Coral Springs. I noticed that when nothing is biting the lures that i usually use I have to switch to a really small bait. The bait I find the most successful at this time is a Wordens Rooster Tail. I work it with a medium speed and it always produces fish when used.
what size rooster tail do you use? is that also the color you use?
James Frise reply :
On 1/17/2016 at 11:49 PM, Pritch13 said:what size rooster tail do you use? is that also the color you use?
I use a 3/8 ounce and the color I usually use is more like one down below.
Wurming67 reply :
Try a spinnerbait covers alot of water and has alot of action and attracts alot of different species ie monster snakeheads 
BassinLou reply :
On 1/18/2016 at 12:11 AM, Wurming67 said:Try a spinnerbait covers alot of water and has alot of action and attracts alot of different species ie monster snakeheads
This is a good point. Work a search bait thoroughly until you find active fish. Crankbaits will also serve you well in covering lots of water.
If you bank fish, covering water is the key imho. Standing around and not covering water can be frustrating. Canal bass are always on the move unless they are spawning. They will stay put for a little while.
Pritch13 reply :
Any recommendations for a good spinner bait then? Is the rooster tail classed as a spinner bait?
BassinLou reply :
On 1/18/2016 at 12:21 AM, Pritch13 said:Any recommendations for a good spinner bait then? Is the rooster tail classed as a spinner bait?
A rooster tail is considered an in-line spinner.
Spinnerbaits that consistently work for me but don't stand up to abuse for too long are booyah spinnerbaits
Pritch13 reply :
On 1/18/2016 at 12:27 AM, BassinLou said:A rooster tail is considered an in-line spinner.
Spinnerbaits that consistently work for me but don't stand up to abuse for too long are booyah spinnerbaits
Thanks, so should i be letting the spinnerbait sink to the bottom before retrieving then?
BassinLou reply :
On 1/18/2016 at 12:29 AM, Pritch13 said:Thanks, so should i be letting the spinnerbait sink to the bottom before retrieving then?
Spinnerbaits can be fished many different ways. You can fish the entire water column with this bait. Cover water until the fish tell you what they want.
Personally I like to fish the SB on top, and form a wake on top of the water. The blow ups are crazy when I do this technique.
BassinLou reply :
Also the colors you choose are important. Matching the hatch in this situation will help you tremendously.
Pritch13 reply :
So matching the colors of the tiny fish i see swimming around the banks? sorry I'm rather new to fishing lakes, only ever deep sea fished before.
Wurming67 reply :
Walmart has these $1 spinnerbaits that ain't bad I use them all the time cause snakeheads trash lures I'll get about 4 snakeheads per spinner bait my favorite spinnerbait color is white with willow leaf Colorado blade combo
Pritch13 reply :
Has anyone ever used the soft plastic frog lures? Ive never seen them before a few days ago
Wurming67 reply :
Frogs are great bait to throw on top of vegetation make sure u got braid line on they will wrap up in the cabbage fun bait to catch fish on!!!
BassinLou reply :
On 1/18/2016 at 12:59 AM, Pritch13 said:Has anyone ever used the soft plastic frog lures? Ive never seen them before a few days ago
Fishing the frog, tops my list as favorite baits to throw. Once you understand when, and where to throw this bait, you will catch some very nice bass.
James Frise reply :
On 1/18/2016 at 12:58 AM, Wurming67 said:Walmart has these $1 spinnerbaits that ain't bad I use them all the time cause snakeheads trash lures I'll get about 4 snakeheads per spinner bait my favorite spinnerbait color is white with willow leaf Colorado blade combo
I love those spinnerbaits! I get those all the time for snakehead. I like to put a treble hook trailer on to the original one. Works like a charm.
Wurming67 reply :
I've fished on big lakes in big boats and I love fishing canals in my jon boat
Pritch13 reply :
FINALLY CAUGHT!
Just caught a lovely 2-3 pound catfish with a simple #6 hook with some bread on the end. Threw a few slices crumbled up next to it and success! Unfortunately the fish inhaled the hook and i couldn't even see it down his throat, so i had to cut the line as there was no way of retrieving it.
Pritch13 reply :
Feel kinda bad for gut hooking it, but there was no way whatsoever I was getting the hook out so I just cut the line.
soflabasser reply :
On 1/18/2016 at 1:20 AM, BassinLou said:Fishing the frog, tops my list as favorite baits to throw. Once you understand when, and where to throw this bait, you will catch some very nice bass.
Yes sir both spinnerbaits and hollow body frogs are great lures,have caught many big bass on them
SFL BassHunter reply :
That is a good looking catfish! Curious have you found any bass in this pond yet?
Alonerankin2 reply :
Congratulations on your success, as we say around here, no hill to high for a climber..
Pritch13 reply :
On 1/27/2016 at 3:33 AM, SFL BassHunter said:That is a good looking catfish! Curious have you found any bass in this pond yet?
Not yet no, I see lots of peacocks bass but haven't hooked one yet though
James Frise reply :
On 1/27/2016 at 7:49 AM, Pritch13 said:Not yet no, I see lots of peacocks bass but haven't hooked one yet though
For peacock bass I like to use live bait. For bait I throw out a very small amount of bread on a very small hook with a bobber and I end up catching baby Mayan Cichlids, Bluegills, and occasionally a Tilapia. I then throw this out on on another rod with a bobber. I usually have a decent sized peacock bass in about 20 minutes or so.
geo g reply :
When things get tough, slow down, and down size you bait. Look for drop offs in the lake and slowly drag you finesses worm along side the drop off. Many of my bigger fish have hit while the bait was sitting still, at the bottom of the drop off. Don't be in a hurry, let them see the bait and swim over and decide if its time to take the bait. Works everyday for me especially since the temps have dropped. Zoom finesses baits, 4"senkos, zoom centipedes, and trick worms. The bass are there, but not in a mood to chase baits. You will have plenty of time to throw reaction baits, and search baits, when the water temp come up and the bass are more active. Good luck, and catch some big ones.
I don't know how you throw a in line spinner with treble hook from the bank in Florida. I would lose that on my first cast. I am always pulling a bait through 20 feet of Lilly Pads or buggy whips, or catching on rock walls. An in line with a single hook and a grub tail Texas rigged is a good choice, and you can slow roll it.
TheBrewBass reply :
I've fished Silver Lakes Rotary Park in Davie but have only manage to get 3 fish out of there. Haven't seen much life in that lake lately.
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