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FARM 13 / STICK MARSH FISHING REPORTS
MONTH OF FEBRUARY, 2006
February 28, 2006
 Doug Dupont fished with us back on 1 February, with his friend Mick. This time, he brought his Dad, Joe. This turned out to be one of our toughest days. The water was terrible and there was no activity. We still fished shiners a bit, with only a huge crappie to show for it. We decided to drag the shiners behind the boat and hope for a miracle. Almost immediately, a 5-6 lb. fish came up and blasted a shiner. I thought we were going to have a good trip after all. But, that was the one and only shiner that got hit on the drifting. We still fished for another 4 or 5 bass, but they were of no size.
Doug had our fishing oddity for this trip. He put his shiner out, got bit, and set the hook. He had the fish on for a few seconds and it came off. When he reeled in his hook, there was not one, but TWO, shiners on that hook. I’ve never seen that before!! We accused him of using a shiner to catch a shiner. But, I suspect the fish had the second shiner already in its mouth and Doug just hooked it. That is really the only possible explanation I can think of. I can tell you that there were three dumbfounded fishermen that saw the event happen!!
 Finally, we finished out the day with an hour in the Back 40, looking for just one big fish bite. Wouldn’t you know we got that bite! It was almost time to pull out, when a 6-lb. bass went on Joe’s shiner. Those last minute strokes of fisherman’s luck. So, seven fish, I think. But, two were really nice ones.
Remember, ‘never give up’.
February 26, 2006
I believe it would be correct to say that February is a ‘transition month’ for the Farm 13/Stick Marsh impoundment. The water has improved drastically and the strong winds of a cold front do not appear to do as much damage as before. Water clarity is actually at 2.5 feet, if you use something of a contrasting color to measure depth. The water ‘color’ is actually algae content, but that hardly affects the clarity too much. We have a major front with high winds coming in on us as I write this, so we’ll see what tomorrow brings. I have been delaying trips for the past few weeks when it appears that the conditions will be bad. Ted Felice and Doug Dupont are due in Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively, and I am sure they are hoping for decent conditions. I expect everything to be settled down and fine by then. They have the luckiest fisherman I know of as a guide and I’ll bet we catch some big bass!!
The crappie have faded from the open waters of Farm 13, as they move around in search of spawning locations. Vegetation, vegetation, vegetation – on, where is the vegetation?!? About all they will find is going to be some nut grass (Kissimmee grass to some) and a long-leafed water plant with large, coiled roots. Each stem of nut grass grows from the bottom and is too thick to get up into. So, that leaves the other plant. Those coiling roots are long and clog the water, preventing much fishing without continuous snags. Plus, they are really a bit large (finger sized, in most cases) to try and get the eggs strands to stick to them. The crappie will have it tough this spawn, for sure.
For about four days this past week, all the crappie in the World appeared to have crammed themselves into the SE spillway basin of the Farm. You could actually close your eyes and toss the PERFEFCT jig ANYWHERE in the basin and catch the big egg-laden females. Mike Arendes, Fred Fish, and I got to fish them last Monday (the 20th) and it was awesome. Every crappie diehard should get the chance to experience something like that once. It also happened last year, so I suspect it is a result of the lack of grass out in the main water. I suspect the fish can detect ( by chemical content of the water) that there is lots of grass up the canal and in Garcia reservoir behind that spillway. Then, as strange as it seems, 48 hours later, the fish were gone. I don’t know where they went. I had sent our local fisheries biologist an email suggesting they open the spillway gate and let the crappie go to the grass on the other side. Who knows, may he made that happen. Even with the hoards of crappie seemingly gone, I have fished the place long enough to know some locations within that basin where they seem to be a few all the time. So, we anchored off a place where those two types of vegetation combine and, sure enough, there was a decent group there. I went back yesterday afternoon and did it again, at the same spot. So, there are still some in the basin, if you work slowly until you find them.
February 19-23, 2006
 Mike Arendes and Fred Fish are from the St. Louis area. They wanted to get away from the cold weather and just fish awhile. The magnificent fishing of the Stick Marsh was something they kept hearing about. So, they wanted to see if that ‘fable’ had any substance. I think it safe to say, Mike and Fred are thoroughly convinced, beyond any doubt, that the Stick Marsh is the ‘best there is’!!
Our first day out was right after a frontal passage. The water was a bit murky, the winds blew and it was cold on my old bones. It was an ‘all-day jacket day’. We worked hard, found a few fish and, then, Fred got a big one to make the day.
Monday dawned much warmer, lots of sunshine and bass clustered on a levee-top shellbed. We free-lined the shiners across the shellbeds and caught some nice bass. Fred, again, got the bigger ones (must be that last name of his that does it). From there, we went to the Nursery area and found a fish here and there. As we had planned to catch a few crappie late in the day, Mike suggested we stop with the bass and go for the papermouths.
My, what a great idea Mike had. The giant crappie were so stacked in the SE spillway basin, you could walk on them and never get your feet wet. Everyone was catching them left and right. Fred got in the back of the boat with four long poles and minnows, while Mike used a couple of poles and the PERFECT jig. Since we had anchored and I would not be fishing in Mike and Fred’s areas, I started tossing the jig off the front of the boat. We fished for 1.5 hours (after we finally located our ‘sweet spot’), tossing back small crappie and keeping only the big ones. We keep the guy’s 50 fish limit and I promised to clean and freeze them that night. Once home, I placed the bulging shiner bag in a large net and weighed the crappie – 50 fish @ 69 lbs. Not too shabby.
The next day, I had a doctor’s visit. So, our good friend, Randy Camps, took Mike and Fred on something different – an excursion to beautiful Garcia Reservoir. Randy is THE premiere guide for that body of water (772-539-0180), knowing it better than anyone. There, amid all the grass and lily pads and cypress trees, Randy showed them topwater fishing in the grass with flukes and RIPPIN’ Sticks.
Wednesday, Mike, Fred and I got back together. Our first stop was on the west wall of the Farm, in an area I knew to have potential for bedding bass. We quickly hooked up with a small fish on a RIPPIN’ Stick. Then, Mike, tossed a double-bladed buzz bait up to the rocks and all heck broke loose. What a strike that huge bass made. It sounded like a concrete block had fallen from an airplane. Mike expertly played the giant bass down and she slipped into the net. There was the big bass of the trip, so far.
Later, we checked the Nursery. It was poor, too. So, we headed over to work on the spillway crappie for awhile and let the water warm up some more. To our total surprise, the crappie were gone. But, we did find one small spot and caught some for awhile.
By now, it was mid-afternoon and the surface water temperature was up to 71 degrees. We left the spillway basin and went out to the first submerged canal on the east side of the Farm. After very little activity, I saw Stan Daniel trolling shiners slowly out in the open water. After a quick check with Stan via cell phone, we decided to give that method a try. It turned out to be the thing to get the bass. They would blow the shiners up, or just grab them on the run. We only had the few shiners left from the previous Monday, so we did not get to fish this way for long. In between the 3-6 lb. fish, Mike got a giant on. It was a huge bass, the best we had seen so far. But, right at the boat, she busted the surface and threw the hook back into our faces. The shiners soon ran out. But, we knew full well what the next day would bring!!
Thursday was a great day. We experimented a bit before going to troll the shiners, but found little success. So, off to the south end of the Farm with great expectations we went. And, we were not disappointed! The bass took the trolled shiners with great abandon. It was about as exciting a period of bass fishing as one could hope for. 5 and 6 lb. bass were very common. In fact, we had one path of drift that continually gave up big bass, often two at a time.
That’s the way the Stick Marsh has always been and they way we hope it will be again.
February 17, 2006
Jim Berry said he wanted his son, Phil, to catch a big bass. The trip was to be a birthday present for Phil, so we planned to try hard. The water was still a bit cloudy and cold from the last cold front. So, we were not sure what to expect.
It was a slow day and we struggled to make something of it. Small bass came around, but none of the big old girls seemed to be in a feeding mood. To Phil’s credit, he stayed with it and worked as hard as anyone. I don’t think he ever took his eye off those bobbers.
Finally, it happened – Phil got his largest bass ever. It wasn’t a giant fish, but it was a darn good one that anyone would be proud of. Along with the others caught, it made for a decent fishing trip.
 
February 14-16, 2006
 Would you think three guys would get into a car and drive all the way from West Virginia overnight, just to fish the Stick Marsh?? Heck, you bet they would. A lot of anglers come further than that. But, most come a day early so as to rest some before going out. Not Leon, Lowell and David Nelson, though. They went out with us last year for three days and got literally blown away by the big Stick Marsh bass (see January 2005 fishing reports in the report diary)!!! These three knew what was going to happen!!
The first part of our multi-day fishing adventure started out in what I like to call ‘the famous mudfish hole’. It is a hole in the thick vegetation in the Back 40 area, behind the ramp. For all the World, it looks like only mudfish, catfish and snakes would venture into the area. But, I caught some big bass in on a two-boat trip with Stan Daniel. Then, Stan got in there and caught some good ones. He later refined the way to fish the hole and can almost catch bass everytime he stops there. Yep, it does have mudfish, catfish and snakes, too. Some rather large, at that. But, the bass are sometimes there and sometimes big. Lowell caught our first big bass in there that first morning, getting us started off right.
Over the course of the next three days, we alternated between the Nursery and some shellbeds on submerged levees. The bite seemed to be cyclic, in that it would be hot for awhile and then drop off with a dead space of 30 minutes, or more. But, we stayed with it.
Lots of fish were caught. But, the action was not the same as it was during our January 2005 trip. In 2005, we had fine water conditions and had the pre-spawn bass cornered in the north end of the Stick marsh, just off the north wall levee. This time, that Stick Marsh water was simply too dirty to produce anything (I had tried numerous times).
We continued to work hard and moved a lot, trying to find a ‘sweet spot’ for a hot shiner bite. Finally, we found a place in the Nursery that gave us some bass, including the giant of the trip. Lowell did the honors, again. But, after the dust had settled, both Leon and David had caught some big bass and nearly caught up with Lowell.
February 12, 2006
Boy, February is off to a great start! We have cancelled or re-scheduled four trips to work around the record cold and extremely high winds, but the six we have been out on all worked out well. Some were a bit slower than usual, as we had to jockey with murky, silted water and the wonderful wind. But, when the day was over, we had caught the big bass we set out for. I still think I am just plain lucky when it comes to the sport.
There was a major column in the FLORIDA TODAY newspaper the other day on the water condition problems we are facing in Florida. The hurricane damage, decayed vegetation, and heavy silting problem has affect many lakes all across the Sunshine State, not just the Stick Marsh/Farm 13 impoundment. But, the effects and issues appear to be the same. The Florida Wildlife Commission (FWC) held a big meeting recently to discuss the problems. Their bottom line was that the hurricane damage effect may last for a number of years and that the major effect may be a ‘poor reproduction rate’ (i.e., inability to spawn, or poor spawns). Their sampling programs already show a sharp decline in the numbers of small fish, indicating ineffective spawns. That really makes our Catch-and-release program for Largemouth Bass very important. You can read this article by going to this link:
www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060212/COLUMNISTS0308/602120339/1067
February 10, 2006
 Jim Marshall runs radio stations in Florida, while his Dad, Dave, still resides back in West Virginia. Is it any surprise that Dad comes south for a spell during the winter?? It’s COLD in ‘them thar hills’!! Our goal was ‘Dave catches his largest bass ever’. Well, he did. But, it was on the last shiner in the water as we prepared to leave at dark. Talk about last minute reprieves.
We had been catching a fish here and there, while staying on the move trying to find that ‘sweet spot’. It may be that we moved too danged much and just did not give a location time to develop. It is a fact that, when you get a few bites on the shiners, more bass will usually come to that spot. I don’t know how it works. Possibly, it is like seagulls – when you toss one a piece of bait, 20 more show up with a few seconds. How the bass communicate, or sense feeding going on, I don’t know. I just know it is fact. Plus, it usually works the same way with most other game fish, too.
Anyway, we made numerous moves within a 100-yard section of the Nursery, most of just a short distance. We’d catch a fish, wait awhile, and then move again. The last spot was near the small levee that runs along the submerged canal on the west edge of the Nursery. Trash fish poked at the shiners, but no bass. As we got ready to start packing it in, Jim caught a good, solid fish. It was getting close to dark, so I kept on stowing the gear. Dave’s shiner was the last one in the water. Suddenly, the bobber took off like it was tied to a jet fighter. Just that quick, there it was – the largest bass Dave had ever taken! Never, never give up!!
February 9, 2006
Tom Giordano called from down in the Hollywood, Florida, area and said he had a relative who was a member of a fishing club back in New York State. It seems Joey Day, Tom’s 1st cousin was coming down from the cold weather and wanted to fish. Plus, his fishing club kept records of the largest member catches of the various species of fish. The record for Largemouth Bass was 6 lbs. 6 oz. And Tom wanted us to help Joey set a new record. Since we usually get at least one fish in the 7-8 lb. range every trip, I was pretty sure we could help out. Just to be sure the weather didn’t get them, Tom scheduled two half-day trips. Joey would fish with us and Tom, and his buddy, Rich, would fish from another boat.
The first day, we got Joey going on the bass. Since the winds were pretty strong from the west, we opted for the Nursery and a windbreak location. A boat that watched us catch fish well two days earlier was camped on the spot I wanted to start with. But, there are plenty of places that hold fish. We joked that the boat had probably been there day and night to assure they didn’t lose the spot to someone else. (Actually, we never saw them catch a fish!). We moved on down to the location where Bill and Fay Wright had caught so many good bass with us a few weeks earlier. It is just a lot of submerged timber and stumps, like all the rest of the Nursery. But, for some reason, the bass like that spot. The shiners got bit pretty well and the 4-lb. bass were numerous. Then, we got one in the 5-lb. range. Joey was nailing them two-at-a-time, with bobbers going down all over the place and two bass in the net at the same time. A few more fish and then Joey nailed a good one. It scaled just over the 6 lbs. 6 oz. he needed for his record. Joey finally hooked a giant bass, as we had predicted. But, it blew up right beside the boat and threw the hook back at us. It was every bit of the 7-8 lbs. we had expected to catch.
The second half day out, I was already booked up. So, reliable Stan Daniel took Joey back to the Nursery. This time, Rich went along. My party and I were back there, too, and got to watch what went on. Stan jockeyed around for awhile, kind of like the old dog scratching at his bed to ‘get it just right’. Finally, they settled in. Sure enough, they caught fish. And, when all the shiner scales had settled, Joey’s record was up in the 7 lb.(+) range. Rich got into the act, too, with a giant 8 lb. 14 oz. gal. The Stick Marsh is a wonderful place!!
February 7, 2006
Norm Carlson and his old friend , Albert Bause, came to join us for a day. The day was to be split into both bass and crappie fishing. This was one of our slower days. We finally caught the bass pretty well, but never did get a giant fish. I don’t think we even had one on.
The crappie were slow, too, compared to our normal catch rates. We fished for a couple of hours and possibly got 15. Albert took one giant gal that was bursting with eggs. I suspect the crappie may be moving towards the shorelines looking for vegetated areas to spawn in, or towards the wood at the south end of the Farm. In fact, we had a huge female crappie actually eat a small shiner back in the wooded south end of the Farm. When that happened, I took the PERFECT Jig and managed to get two more tossing around the anchored boat. The papermouths usually start spawning in mid- to late- February, so time is getting close. I am not sure how well they will do with the lack of grass. I just hope they can use the submerged wood effectively.
 
February 6, 2006
Skip Harris and Kenny Jones booked us this beautiful sunny day. Kenny is British and I really enjoyed hearing someone speak with the pure accent again. When in the Army and then in the Defense Industry, I had the opportunity to work with the British Military and Government a good deal and made some fine friends.
An old shellbed on a levee was our first stop. The shiners were free-lined out across the shells and the bass ate them pretty well for awhile. Then, I guess we caught them all, for they stopped and we could get no more takers. Moving over to the Nursery, we set the Blazer up near our favorite old stump and sent the shiners hunting, again. It wasn’t long in happening, either. Everyone caught fish. Then, like the shellbed, it all stopped. We moved around a bit with no luck.
Then, we made a major move and went to the east side of the Farm. That got us a couple of pickerel for our trouble. We decided to go back to the Nursery. Our spot there had been taken by another boat that had been watching us catch bass earlier. So, we moved down to the south edge of the Nursery and set up shop. The bass were waiting for us, too. Skip and Ken both got big bass, with Ken getting two of them. Beautiful warm sunshine and light winds – a great Florida winter day to be on the water with two fine gentlemen.
February 2, 2006
Vernon Grizzard is one of our favorite clients. Not because he comes back so often, but because he is a nice gentleman and a great boat companion. He is also a pretty darn good fisherman, too!
Each time Vernon has fished with us, he has managed to get that giant fish. This trip was to be no exception. In fact, the first bass he caught on the first shiner in the water was over 8 lbs. That was a fine way to start off the afternoon.
After catching half a boatfull of bass, Vernon advised that he needed to leave a bit early so he could make a business meeting. So, we wrapped it up and made for the ramp. After Vernon had departed, and with a few hours of daylight left, I decided to check the crappie in the canal behind the ramp (the one on the north border of the Back 40). By golly, they were all along the edge of the north grass line, at about 6 feet. That will be a fine place to fish for them when the spawn starts later in February. They will be very aggressive and protective of their spawning locations.
February 1, 2006
 Doug DuPont and Mick Stalheim wanted to catch a Stick Marsh bass. Boy, they sure picked a beautiful day for it. Great sunshine and low winds. It was cool when we started, but we were in shirtsleeves by noon. It’s tough having to survive the Florida winters.
We worked three locations: a ‘mudfish hole’ in the Back 40 area, a shellbed on a submerged levee, and a good spot over the old timber in the Farm. All three gave us fish, with Mick getting a big gal in the ‘mudfish hole’ to start us out. The shellbed worked well, too, with only solid 3-5 pound bass coming off it. Moving to the south end of the Farm, we finished up the shiners with a flurry of good fish. There were no giant bass taken this trip, but there sure were quality bass!
Today's Weather for
the Stick Marsh Area
Past Stick Marsh Fishing Reports
Farm 13 / Stick Marsh Information Guide
Email questions to jporter@jimporter.org.
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