Lake Okeechobee Bass Fishing Reports

Clewiston-----Summer and the fishing continue to heat up on the Big “O”. With temperatures in the 90’s and the water temperature almost the same, the bass fishing is heating up almost daily. On most guide trips the past two weeks the bass have been eating wild shiners as fast as you can throw them in the water, and the artificial bite has been equally as good. Most bass have been in the three to five pound range with a few big one mixed in like the 9.1 caught Saturday by Scott Gallerani from Boston Mass. With the rain that we have been getting the lake level has been staying steady around 8.91 feet above sea level, which is great to not have the lake going down more everyday. Most are still fishing out the main channel from Clewiston toward the water tank, one thing to keep in mind is with the wind not blowing as much the water is cleaning up more each day. And as you go out toward the water tank you will want to key in on water that is a little stained. Usually the farther out you go toward the middle of the lake the dirtier the water is so look for the areas where the dirty water is mixing with the clear water. The channel has been working so well because these bass can lay in the deeper water then go up on the flat to chase bait when they are hungry. My choices for artificial baits for a couple weeks now have been a Berkley 7” worm in tequila sunrise color and a Gambler Ace in bluegrass color both fished on a 4/0 Owner wide gap hook and a 3/16 ounce tungsten weight. The key to fishing these worms is to fish slow and I mean real slow. My next lure choice would be a Spro Aruka shad in blue shiner color and a Lake Fork Tackle “Live” Magic Shad swimbait, both of these lures have been producing great when the bass are up on the flats feeding. I have been very impressed and pleased with the results from the Lake Fork swimbait, it is about as real looking and swimming as you can get and the bass have been eating them up here on Okeechobee and at the Everglades. Some other areas that you might also want to try are the dynamite holes south of Clewiston, the Football Field, the Bare Beach channel and the rim canal north of Moorehaven. Some baits other than the ones I have already mentioned that you may want to try in these other areas are a crankbait, Carolina rigged worm, a shaky worm rig and a topwater like a Zara Super Spook or a Heddon Torpedo. If you decide you want to fish with wild shiners take at least five dozen and that will only last a couple hours. Whether fishing with live bait or artificial lures you will want to try and get out as early as possible because by noon the fishing slows down and the heat is more than most can bear. The bluegill fishing has still been pretty good around the Bare Beach channel and around the shoal islands along the Clewiston channel, be sure to take along lots of crickets. Remember during these hot summer months to be sure and take lots of cold water to drink and a good sunscreen like Smartshield Sunscreen to avoid that nasty sunburn. Yes the ramps in Clewiston are very usable since they dredged out the canal to the locks. Tight lines and hope to see you on the lake.
Bass Wishes
Capt. Scott Martin / Capt. Mark King