Hello Folks, 

I hope you’re havin’ a great week, and… you’re lookin’ forward to doin’ some fishin’ this weekend. They’re callin’ for rain this weekend, but… they call for rain most days and we don’t get any! If you decide to go fishin’, just take a long some rain gear, and you should be good to go.  

They’re still catchin’ some bass in Lake Fairview durin’ the Maitland Bass Fishin’ tournament. The FWC is invitin’ anglers to celebrate their freshwater fish catches with the Big Catch program. This program is open to all anglers and all ages to give everyone a chance to celebrate their memorable catches through this program. You can go to BigCatchFlorida.com to learn more about it. You need to get yourself registered and submit your catch. There are 30 freshwater species to choose from, and you’llreceive recognition of your fish! 

The folks that fish the Wednesday Night Shootout on Johns Lake are still doin’ pretty good… even in this hot weather. It’s takin’ as little as 12 pounds for three bass to get in the money. A couple of weeks ago, a 9.75-pounder was caught durin’ the tournament. So, the big’uns are still bitin’… if you’re in the right place at the right time! Last week on the Johns Lake Wednesday Night Shootout, the team of Justin Evans and Connor Lietz won the tournament with three bass that hit the scales at 11.80 pounds. The Big Bass for that night weighed in at 6.15 pounds and was caught by the team of Nick Paulett and Randy Fitzgerald. 

Folks are catchin some nice bass in West Lake Toho. With (accordin’ to the statistics) 22,700 acres (Wow!), that’s a pretty good-sized lake! Again, you need to get out there at the crack of dawn if you want to catch some bass. Most of the big bass are bein’ caught on shiners.  

The bass fishin’ on the Kissimmee Chain has been hit or miss. You need to get on the water early and fish a noisy topwater bait around the Kissimmee grass at first light. Once the sun gets up, try and find some deeper water with some submerged hydrilla or eel-grass patches, and you should be able to catch a few more bass before it gets too doggone hot.  

The shellcrackers are still bitin’ really good in Lake Kissimmee. Lots of folks are gettin’ on the water real early (like about 6:30 a.m.) and catchin’ their limit by 10 a.m. If you want to get in on the action, get get you a bucket of red worms… find a shellcracker bed… and go to catchin’em! When the shellcrackers are on the beds, you’ll smell’em before you get to ’em! Most of the shellcrackers that are bein’ caught are caught in the pads.  

The fishin’ on the Headwaters Lake is still doin’ good, and most folks are gettin’ on the water real early. You’ll do best with shiners, and then you can try fishin’ some artificials later in the day. Try fishin’ a chatter-bait or a slow sinkin’ Senko type bait.  

Well, that’s it for this week. I hope to see you on the water real soon.  

Tip of the week: Shellcrackers on the beds and a full moon (named the Sturgeon Moon!) on Friday!  

SAVE A FEW AND GOOD LUCK!