a fishing buddy of mine is moving to orlando FL and his new job will give him the free time for me to visit and do lots of fishing trips. im interested in doing some flats fishing, freshwater, just everything i can. im used to NC near the SC border fishing, and im excited now ill be able to try warmer waters and the gulf coast without having to pay for a hotel room! who here from florida can tell me some good spots to check out when i visit?
Hunting & Fishing fishing in flordia
- Thread starter PalmettoShooter
- Start date
Re: fishing in flordia
Im from Tampa and fish a lot. Ive been all over the gulf coast along with the keys. what kind of fishing are you interested in? any particular species you like? time of year is a big deal also, along with what sort of access you have to a boat and what kind of boat it is, or if you want shore/wade fishing.
A guide is obviously your most productive option. Id highly recommend one for at least one trip to learn the ropes of the area you're fishing along with the specific techniques and tackle used in that area for that time year.
Some of the major areas that i would recommend looking at as far as the west coast goes would be charlotte harbor, tampa bay, and the everglades. the pan handle area is also very productive and has some top notch offshore party boat trips that are relatively inexpensive, comfortable, and down right fun.
like i said though, any specificity as to when and what you want to fish for would be ideal. Florida is the sport fishing capitol of the world. pretty much everywhere in the state has excellent fishing for some species at some time in the year.
Im from Tampa and fish a lot. Ive been all over the gulf coast along with the keys. what kind of fishing are you interested in? any particular species you like? time of year is a big deal also, along with what sort of access you have to a boat and what kind of boat it is, or if you want shore/wade fishing.
A guide is obviously your most productive option. Id highly recommend one for at least one trip to learn the ropes of the area you're fishing along with the specific techniques and tackle used in that area for that time year.
Some of the major areas that i would recommend looking at as far as the west coast goes would be charlotte harbor, tampa bay, and the everglades. the pan handle area is also very productive and has some top notch offshore party boat trips that are relatively inexpensive, comfortable, and down right fun.
like i said though, any specificity as to when and what you want to fish for would be ideal. Florida is the sport fishing capitol of the world. pretty much everywhere in the state has excellent fishing for some species at some time in the year.
Re: fishing in flordia
well im used to freshwater, but i love saltwater fishing b/c you never know what you may catch. id really like to do some flats fishing; take out my fly rod and have some fun. no access to a boat for the time being (long story) but we would probably hire a guide and do an all inclusive thing. i really, really dont like using guides though. nothing against them, and its more fun to catch fish bc they have the gear and know the spots and all, i just like learning on my own. however, im only going to be visiting 3-4 times a year for fishing so i will get a guide to learn the ropes, like you said. im def. going to do an offshore trip though, id love to catch something large. once i get some current issues cleared up ill take my friends 24' key west down there and do some real fishing. thanks for your input!
well im used to freshwater, but i love saltwater fishing b/c you never know what you may catch. id really like to do some flats fishing; take out my fly rod and have some fun. no access to a boat for the time being (long story) but we would probably hire a guide and do an all inclusive thing. i really, really dont like using guides though. nothing against them, and its more fun to catch fish bc they have the gear and know the spots and all, i just like learning on my own. however, im only going to be visiting 3-4 times a year for fishing so i will get a guide to learn the ropes, like you said. im def. going to do an offshore trip though, id love to catch something large. once i get some current issues cleared up ill take my friends 24' key west down there and do some real fishing. thanks for your input!
Re: fishing in flordia
The Indian and Bannana River systems are right down the road from Orlando. Mosquito Lagoon and the North end of the Indian River are two of my favorite areas to fish. Most of the best wade/shore fishing is accessed by boat but you can find a few spots on the map in Eldora and the north end of the Indian river that can be good, having or being in a boat to go after fish is nice though.
My brother and I grew up in Orlando and fished inshore saltwater redfish tournaments for 8 years on the I.F.A and FLW tours. One of the coolest people and best guides to go sight fishing for reds and trout with in that area is Capt. Troy Perez, you should look him up for sure. He will have you throwing lures not live or dead bait which is a lot cooler than sitting in the sun bottom fishing. The people at Mosquito Lagoon Outfitters can hook you up with a new Ranger flats boat while you're there haha. Doc's bait and tackle is on the mainland right before you head over the bridge to Mosquito Lagoon. You can get all the Berkley Gulp and Exude soft plastics and gold spoons you need there. New penny and camo work great for sight fishing. Bass Assasin makes the Slurp brand soft plastics and last time we were down there the new penny minnow paddle tail on a 1/16 Oz Mission Fishin jighead was hard to beat. Rapala skitter walks and Mirro Lures top pup for topwaters... I suggest going with a guide to get a feel of what to look for, how to spot fish, what types of cover and water depth they generally like etc. It will save a lot of time and guesswork for you. The Lagoon has reds from 10 to 50 inches, from half a pound to 50 pounds, lots of good trout, some up to and over 12 pounds. Sometimes the reds get schooled up into the hundreds, crazy. Ocassional tarpon especially near the northern end. The Indian river has reds, trout, tarpon and snook.
Port Charlotte, Pine Island, Sarasota, Tampa, Fernandina Beach, Jacksonville etc all have great spots but Mosquito Lagoon and the Indian River are your closest. It can be really tough trying to learn good places blinidly fishing them on your own, a good guide will teach you so much in one day that it is worth it. Not so much to fish were they take you but to learn how to do it and what to look for, then go find your own stuff. Troy will teach you those things like how to scan the water for signs of fish, how to approach them, how far to lead them and why they are where they are.
The best wade fishing you can access by land will probably be in a no motor or no combustion motor zone. They are all over the state. The closest would be the Banana river no motor zone. A canoe or kayak will have you on fish with some work and general knowledge from trial and error.
Look for "potholes" of sand patches in submerged grass,deep holes mixed into a shallow flat or near mangroves, small cuts between flats. Fish with the wind at your back and drift flats and shorelines. Throw 1/4 to 1/2 oz gold Johnson's spoons and Mir-o-lures topwaters to find fish, they will either chase down and eat them or spook off enough for you to know you are on fish (this is in water no more than 3 feet deep) keep a rod close by rigged with about three feet of 15 pound test flourocarbon leader (to cast to fish you see or push) rigged with a lightly weighted soft plastic jerkbait (Exude fluke) or small paddle tail minnow (Bass Assasin Slurp) or shrimp imitation (Berkley Gulp).
You literally never know when a 40+ inch red might spool all your line off of your reel. It does happen.
If you look in the right places in Punta Gorda, Pine Island Sound, Port Charlotte, and Tampa you might hook up with a 40+ inch Snook that will take all of your line before he wears through your leader. I hear rumors that the last harsh winter hurt the snook but I know there are still some dinosaurs out there. It takes years to really start to figure it all out, but doesn't everything haha.
Big trout are fun (over 5 pounds) and if you get on a boat with a poling platform they can be sight fished like reds.
Wading and kayak fishing is fun but hunting big fish in shallow water from a poling platform is the best. Sightfishing and casing to a fish you spotted is about as good as it gets, especially if they are about 26" or better. Most of the time they have no where to go but away from you when hooked. Topwater fishing is probably a close second. A good spoon bite (usually in spring and fall or on slightly overcast days with a light chop on the water) can be crazy. Cover a lot of water with it and reel it fairly quickly, sometimes packs of reds will get after it.
I would not try to scout or blind cast with a fly rod, bring that once you know where a few places are that hold fish.
I miss living down the road from crystal clear water and sightfishing. Good luck, you will be hooked for life if you do it right.
Thanks for making me want to dust off the old boat too.
The Indian and Bannana River systems are right down the road from Orlando. Mosquito Lagoon and the North end of the Indian River are two of my favorite areas to fish. Most of the best wade/shore fishing is accessed by boat but you can find a few spots on the map in Eldora and the north end of the Indian river that can be good, having or being in a boat to go after fish is nice though.
My brother and I grew up in Orlando and fished inshore saltwater redfish tournaments for 8 years on the I.F.A and FLW tours. One of the coolest people and best guides to go sight fishing for reds and trout with in that area is Capt. Troy Perez, you should look him up for sure. He will have you throwing lures not live or dead bait which is a lot cooler than sitting in the sun bottom fishing. The people at Mosquito Lagoon Outfitters can hook you up with a new Ranger flats boat while you're there haha. Doc's bait and tackle is on the mainland right before you head over the bridge to Mosquito Lagoon. You can get all the Berkley Gulp and Exude soft plastics and gold spoons you need there. New penny and camo work great for sight fishing. Bass Assasin makes the Slurp brand soft plastics and last time we were down there the new penny minnow paddle tail on a 1/16 Oz Mission Fishin jighead was hard to beat. Rapala skitter walks and Mirro Lures top pup for topwaters... I suggest going with a guide to get a feel of what to look for, how to spot fish, what types of cover and water depth they generally like etc. It will save a lot of time and guesswork for you. The Lagoon has reds from 10 to 50 inches, from half a pound to 50 pounds, lots of good trout, some up to and over 12 pounds. Sometimes the reds get schooled up into the hundreds, crazy. Ocassional tarpon especially near the northern end. The Indian river has reds, trout, tarpon and snook.
Port Charlotte, Pine Island, Sarasota, Tampa, Fernandina Beach, Jacksonville etc all have great spots but Mosquito Lagoon and the Indian River are your closest. It can be really tough trying to learn good places blinidly fishing them on your own, a good guide will teach you so much in one day that it is worth it. Not so much to fish were they take you but to learn how to do it and what to look for, then go find your own stuff. Troy will teach you those things like how to scan the water for signs of fish, how to approach them, how far to lead them and why they are where they are.
The best wade fishing you can access by land will probably be in a no motor or no combustion motor zone. They are all over the state. The closest would be the Banana river no motor zone. A canoe or kayak will have you on fish with some work and general knowledge from trial and error.
Look for "potholes" of sand patches in submerged grass,deep holes mixed into a shallow flat or near mangroves, small cuts between flats. Fish with the wind at your back and drift flats and shorelines. Throw 1/4 to 1/2 oz gold Johnson's spoons and Mir-o-lures topwaters to find fish, they will either chase down and eat them or spook off enough for you to know you are on fish (this is in water no more than 3 feet deep) keep a rod close by rigged with about three feet of 15 pound test flourocarbon leader (to cast to fish you see or push) rigged with a lightly weighted soft plastic jerkbait (Exude fluke) or small paddle tail minnow (Bass Assasin Slurp) or shrimp imitation (Berkley Gulp).
You literally never know when a 40+ inch red might spool all your line off of your reel. It does happen.
If you look in the right places in Punta Gorda, Pine Island Sound, Port Charlotte, and Tampa you might hook up with a 40+ inch Snook that will take all of your line before he wears through your leader. I hear rumors that the last harsh winter hurt the snook but I know there are still some dinosaurs out there. It takes years to really start to figure it all out, but doesn't everything haha.
Big trout are fun (over 5 pounds) and if you get on a boat with a poling platform they can be sight fished like reds.
Wading and kayak fishing is fun but hunting big fish in shallow water from a poling platform is the best. Sightfishing and casing to a fish you spotted is about as good as it gets, especially if they are about 26" or better. Most of the time they have no where to go but away from you when hooked. Topwater fishing is probably a close second. A good spoon bite (usually in spring and fall or on slightly overcast days with a light chop on the water) can be crazy. Cover a lot of water with it and reel it fairly quickly, sometimes packs of reds will get after it.
I would not try to scout or blind cast with a fly rod, bring that once you know where a few places are that hold fish.
I miss living down the road from crystal clear water and sightfishing. Good luck, you will be hooked for life if you do it right.
Thanks for making me want to dust off the old boat too.
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