The Big “O” can finally say we have water and were getting more. The lake level is at 11.16 feet above sea level and coming up at an amazing rate. We can now get back into the grass in most areas to fish and the best news of all is we have eel and pepper grass growing again on our great lake. If the water on the lake continues to raise at the rate it has been we should be around twelve feet above sea level by the end of the month and hopefully they will leave it in the lake. The fishing has slowed down some as we are into our summer pattern here on Okeechobee. One day you can go out and catch a good number of bass and the next day the fish have moved and it is almost impossible to catch them. One good thing is with this water now getting back into the grass and some eel grass really starting to grow the bass will move into these areas and should stay. When I say that the water is back in the grass it doesn’t mean that it isn’t still shallow and that you can just run your boat anywhere on the lake as this is not true, but the water level has definitely improved and you run around the lake in more places than you could last month.

As I mentioned above the fishing has been hit and miss and if you make a living on the water like I do it can be frustrating at times. But with the eel and pepper grass showing up in a lot of areas the bass are now starting to hold around these grass patches. The eel grass that I have been seeing is in small to medium sized patches but it seems like there are more ever day and the patches that are out there are getting bigger everyday. Mother Nature is continuing the healing process on Lake Okeechobee as the water is cleaning up and the grasses that we so desperately need are starting to grow everywhere. Give this lake a month or two and God willing we don’t get a hurricane we will once again be able to say that this is one awesome lake.

The bass that I have been catching have been on a shakey head rig and a Carolina rig for the most part. I have caught a few on a swim bait but nothing consistent. The shakey head rig I’m using is a Gambler Giggy Head jig and a 10” worm, this combo seams to come though the grass really well. The Carolina rig consist of a ½ to ¾ ounce sinker and a 4/0 hook with a Senko. Some worm colors that have been working this past month are junebug, black-blue, green pumpkin, and black grape. Be sure to use fluorocarbon line in the lightest pound test that you are comfortable with, I use a lot of fourteen to seventeen pound test line as seems to work best for me. The King Shad swim bait made by Strike King Lures has worked the best for my clients and I this past month, this bait has great action and is about the size of the shad I’m seeing on the lake.

Some of the areas I have been fishing are the shoal out from Ritta Island and the shoal and grass line around Observation Island. Both of these areas have been holding some bass. I need to get out and look around with this water level coming up there should be many more areas holding bass that you should be able to access with a boat now. The rim canal has had such an inflow of the dirty red agricultural water that it is almost impossible to catch any bass in or around the canal. The bluegills are still around and can be caught on crickets under a cork. Key in on areas with active fish on the beds and you should be able to catch enough to eat pretty easy.

You can contact me at mark@markkingfishing.com or visit me on the web at www.markkingfishing.com

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