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Bass respond to warmer temps

Posted Jan 19, 2012 by Tribune Sports

Updated Jan 19, 2012 at 07:32 PM

BY FRANK SARGEANT

Captain Mike Shellen and clients have been waxing the lunker bass on Okeechobee, mostly by fishing live, wild shiners on the north shore.

Shellen said the cold spell knocked the water temperature down 14 degrees over a couple of days and shut down the bite, but then the rapid warm up turned the fish on once again. A trip a week ago Monday morning turned up 35 bass, including three over 8 pounds! On another recent trip, Shellen and client Charles Rosen got a 7-2, a 9-1 and a 10-1, again on shiners.

Shellen says the big live baits are definitely best for the lunkers, but spinnerbaits, flukes and senkos are all effective on the outside weed edges, while flippin’ heavily-weighted creature baits inside the mats is also doing the job, often with larger fish. For details, visit http://www.okeechobeebassfishing.com.

The rest of the Kissimmee Chain is equally productive late January through February, with both pre-spawn and spawning bass in the shallows. The south and east shorelines of Brahma Island at Lake Kissimmee are good bets with weedless spoons, swimming worms or topwaters, while the southwest shore of Toho is a great area to connect with spinnerbaits or buzzbaits on warm afternoons.

Crappies are biting throughout the state now, with schools of big fish in water 8 to 10 feet deep at Crescent and in the Clermont Chain as well as in Lake George – slow-trolling a Hal-Fly or similar tiny jig a foot off bottom will find these fish. Spawners will move to shoreline weeds on the new and full moons from now through March, with Okeechobee one of the best spots in the nation.