# Lake Okeechobee



## jshbuckeye

Headed to lake O in early January. I like to throw the Rapala F-13 in gold for the most part and do fairly well on it. I have never took the time to try a top water bite any ideas on this at Lake O in early January.


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## jkeeney20

Headed down day after christmas for a few days. Will let you know, usually go for trophies and fish live shiners, but love throwing artificials as well!


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## FishinFool2B

2 words.... wild shiners.....been there done that


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## josh617

two words: super fluke. there is a reason the walmart in clewiston has an entire end cap of them. u only need one color and thats watermelon. also skinny dippers work really well too.


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## jshbuckeye

I read a lot about the flukes and the shiners and plan on them, father n law has a old ranger bass boat and jon boat ready for me to pick from he lives on the canal, and he just picked up a new generator to lite up his pontoon for some late night crappie fishing. Im getting more jacked about this as the days tick away no wife or kid to get me sidetracked from 8 strait days of fishing.


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## Lewzer

Josh has it right-super flukes. I like the pearl with a 1/32 or a 1/64 sliding bullet weight with braided to get into those tough Florida weeds where the big mommas are. 
Get the super flukes, not the flukes. Use the round bend offset hooks so you don't miss too many strikes.

Football jigs with a silicone skirt are also good for those round bottom featureless Florida lakes.


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## NewbreedFishing

Shallow cranks (square bills) and wake baits have been hot right now. 
Rico/Poppers, Frog and Buzzbait bite can heat up at any time. 
The big floating rapalas you mentioned are always good in shallow water.

Big spinnerbaits that can be waked at slow speeds.


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## wildman

Would give my left nut to go down in Jan/Feb... Would like to but I doubt it.


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## NewbreedFishing

talked to my buddy down there on the lake. 

fish are on isolated mats near points warming in the 56 degree water.
punching/flipping 1.5 oz sweet beavers. frog/popper bite is on at certain times. but for now he said they mostly are concentrated near overhead plants soaking up heat. 7lbr was had last nite :B


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## jkeeney20

Keep the info coming, will be down there this time next week. Will also be hitting lake Toho


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## jshbuckeye

From what I have been reading I should have a pretty good chance at hitting a 10 pounder or better, that is my objective I will have to do it more then likely in the canals with a cple shots in the lake itself. I have a 6 and an 8 out of the canals and have seen some bigger so I know it can be done.


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## NewbreedFishing

canal depressions are producing but the fish are moving/changing areas frequently with this stupid weather!


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## NewbreedFishing

http://www.bassmaster.com/matswithmorse


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## Lewzer

If you are going to big Toho and not the East Lake Toho in town lock through and head down the canal to where it enters Cypress Lake (about 3-4 miles). 
The weed area where the canal opens up to the lake can be good for bass.
Fish both sides of the channel dropoffs. Anywhere in Florida where you have a 6-12" change in depth is structure to them bass.I'll be down in March fishing Toho, Stick Marsh/Farm 13, Blue Cypress and probabaly Walk-In-Water.

Another good bait is 12" Culprit worms texas rigged with a 5/0-7/0 EWG hook.


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## 614-bass

Lewzer said:


> If you are going to big Toho and not the East Lake Toho in town lock through and head down the canal to where it enters Cypress Lake (about 3-4 miles).
> The weed area where the canal opens up to the lake can be good for bass.
> Fish both sides of the channel dropoffs. Anywhere in Florida where you have a 6-12" change in depth is structure to them bass.I'll be down in March fishing Toho, Stick Marsh/Farm 13, Blue Cypress and probabaly Walk-In-Water.
> 
> Another good bait is 12" Culprit worms texas rigged with a 5/0-7/0 EWG hook.


When in march are you going down? im heading down around the 20th for a week to meet my grandparents who stay in their rv down there for the winter.
taking a guide trip on the stick marsh and then renting a boat for a couple days on toho probably.


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## roger23

they have some big ass gators and snakes in the lake ,,I may still have some pictures in my old laptop,,we took a 44 mag,,and some M80's I have a friend that lives down there,, He had all the equipment ,,never caught anything over 5 lbs but it was fun


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## jshbuckeye

NewbreedFishing how did you do?


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## NewbreedFishing

i never said i was going to be in florida? my friend has been fishing it the past 4 weeks and doing very well. the males are on the move and prepairing to spawn. 



jshbuckeye said:


> NewbreedFishing how did you do?


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## NewbreedFishing

if you are still down on the big O they really whacked the females yesterday.
lots of 6-7lbs. swim-wakebaits-buzzbaits. they caught over 50 yesterday and none were under 2lbs.


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## NewbreedFishing

*they absolutely whacked the pigs yesterday...u could see schools of 5-8lb bass nesting all over the place. some anglers caught up to 80 fish. big bass was 9lbs and heaviest stringer was 34lbs. would kill to be down there right now!*

The EverStart Series is headed to Lake Okeechobee Jan. 6-8 for the first of four stops in the Southeast Division. As many as 300 pro and co-anglers will be competing for top awards up to $35,000 plus a Ranger boat with an Evinrude or Mercury outboard for the pro and a Ranger boat with an Evinrude or Mercury outboard plus $5,000 for the co-angler.

"The fishing is going to be unbelievable," said pro Koby Kreiger of Okeechobee, Fla., who has finished in the top-10 the last two years on Lake Okeechobee. "The cold front that was here last week will be gone so water temperatures should start warming up and fish should be very active, some should be spawning.

"The entire lake is fishing really well; clear water around the shoals and south has been the most consistent. The Reaction Innovations Skinny Dipper and the Ouzo Baits Riptail Minnow should work beautifully in this tournament. I think this is going to be the best tournament FLW has ever had on Lake Okeechobee."

Anglers will take off from C. Scott Driver Park located at 10100 W. Highway 78 in Okeechobee, Fla., at 7:30 each morning. Weigh-ins will be held at C. Scott Driver Park beginning at 3:30 p.m. Thur. and Fri. and the Walmart store located at 2101 S. Parrott Ave. in Okeechobee on Sat. Takeoffs and weigh-ins are free and open to the public.

"The lake is full of big fish," said pro Mike Surman of Boca Raton, Fla. "We have just been having a phenomenal season this year. The entire lake is fishing well and really the tournament can be won anywhere. You won't see the anglers bunching up in one or two areas the way they have in the past.

"The lake is a little low right now. We are at 12.5 feet, so the fish are going to be outside


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## jshbuckeye

I managed to land one bass a hair over 4 pounds and another just over 5 always next time to find that double digit fish, plenty of 2 and 3 pounders, good action all week long.


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## NewbreedFishing

more details please? what area of the O were you fishing and what were the 'hot' lures??


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## jshbuckeye

I ended up being stuck to the canals in BHR due to motor issues, all fish came out of the lily pads not the grass or cattails, 99 percent of the fish came on a gold rapala the biggiest one missed it the first time came back 20 minutes later nailed it on a chartreuse and orange willow blade spinner with skirt to match.


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## jshbuckeye

A 4.11 and a 3.9 the 5.3 was released before a camera was handy  [url='http://www.ohiogamefishing.com/photopost/data/500


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## jshbuckeye

I could here the take off of the pros boats from where I was staying brought back the newspapers from Buckhead ridge for the wife odds are it is wrote up in there about the tourney.


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## catmando

jshbuckeye said:


> Headed to lake O in early January. I like to throw the Rapala F-13 in gold for the most part and do fairly well on it. I have never took the time to try a top water bite any ideas on this at Lake O in early January.


Hey Jeff, If you like the top water bite then stock up on 3 hook smithwick devil horse, the large spook, or my go to bait is a 3 hook bango lure. I caught a 13lb. bucket mouth on a baby bass colored bango.


I just noticed that I'm too late with my info.


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## HappySnag

jshbuckeye
how you catch and locate crappie on Lake Okeechobee ?
snag


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## jshbuckeye

I didnt HS, go to http://www.crappie.com/crappie/ they have all the info good site, lots of help and info just didnt pan out for me.


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