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FARM 13 / STICK MARSH FISHING REPORT
NOVEMBER 2002
When Richard Dunn first emailed me about a possible fishing trip, he told me he was just getting started in fishing. He had been in the computer field for many years with a big company, but was now retired from that and doing consulting work. He indicated that he wanted to get into fishing and thought hiring a guide would be a good way to learn. Plus, he would get to see, first-hand, the 'how-why-where-when-with what' that professional anglers use to find and catch fish. BUT, his big goal was that his wife have a positive experience fishing so he could get her to become involved, also.
In that neither Patty nor Richard had much artificial lure experience, we elected to teach a few shiners to swim and then catch some of those big Stick Marsh crappie. Richard also wanted to learn to fish a Texas rigged plastic worm, as well as see how other artificials were fished. That was a lot for one day, but we headed out from the ramp with high hopes.
We were not to be disappointed.
Going directly to the NW section of the Stick Marsh, I idled into a section of timber that had been holding bass. Wanting to save the shiners for later, I put one of the middle-sized Big O crank plugs on each of their new rods (brand new rods, reels, tackle boxes, lures, etc; Bass Pro Shops loved their visit the day before!!). Richard said he wanted me to fish, too. I reluctantly agreed to toss a plug until we were sure the bass were still in the area. As luck would have it: one cast and one bass. So, my rod went back in the boat. Sure enough, the bass were there and the Dunn' soon had caught a number of them. I kept expecting a big fish to jump on a Big O, but they stayed at 2-pounds or less.
Finally, I suggested we break out the shiners. I told the party that we now knew there were a lot of fish in the area and possibly the shiners would get us a big one. Patty said it was a good excuse to fix some sandwiches for lunch, too.
However, once the shiners hit the water, lunch did not happen for another two hours. There were too many fish pulling the bobbers down and chasing the hapless shiners to the top to be blasted. Richard never set the hook on a shiner bass. In every case, he directed that the rod be passed to Patty. I suspect she may have a sore back and shoulders this morning, as she spent a lot of time pulling those fish out of the stumps and brush. To Patty's credit, it only took her one fish to catch onto how to wait for a tight line and then cross the bass's eyes with the big shiner rod. After that initial fish, there was no problem at all. I believe she stuck every bass that grabbed a shiner. Her best was a shade over 5-pounds and was as big around as it was long. What we call a true 'football' bass.
While Patty was roughing up the shiner bass, we rigged Richard a Texas rig and gave him a few pointers. Then, he proceeded to work the worm around the backside of the boat. After awhile, I noticed he was just dragging the worm. So, I advised him to give it some small twitches and jerks - keep it in motion, while still moving slowly towards the boat. That worked and he caught his first plastic worm bass. Then, his second.
Since we had now done successfully on the bass with shiners, Patty had been initiated into bass fishing with a bang, and Richard had caught a bass on plastic worm, and we all had caught some on crank plugs, Richard asked to see how crappie fishing was done.
So, up with the anchors and off to Farm 13 we went.
It was a bit windy on the first crappie hole and Patty asked that we try and find calm water, in that she did not handle wave action well. The day before, a friend and I had been searching for fish to be sure that I had enough fish located to assure Patty and Richard a good day. We found a real trove of them in the sheltered basin of the SE floodgate. Imagine my surprise when we got there and there sat my supposedly 'good friend' right on top of the fish. And, he had even brought someone with him. My later choice words to this inconsiderate person are not printable. But, that is another story.
Back out in the Farm, I went to another location that was slightly sheltered and acceptable to Patty. The crappie were not too thick there, but we got a dozen, or so. Then, suddenly, the wind laid down.
Thank you, Lord, for little gifts like those. With the wind down to just a slight breeze, we sped back to that first crappie hole we had had to pass up. After getting positioned and the anchors down, Patty and Richard went to work like pros.
Richard, again, let Patty take on the choice water. She did not disappoint him and started catching the good-eating fish on the tandem jig rig. Then, she got one on that we all though to be a bass. It doubled Patty's rod over and dogged her hard. When she finally rolled the fish up by the boat, I almost broke a leg trying to get to the landing net. What Patty Dunn had on was one of the biggest crappie I have seen in a long while. The picture included here is not a distortion, or any type of photography trick. The crappie is just as big as it looks. Take a look at Patty's hand and thumb and you will see she could almost put her fist in that crappie's mouth. A trophy, for sure, in the game at 2.7 pounds!.
As the day waned, we decided to try one more spot in hopes of a really big bass. This ledge along the big divided canal between the Farm and Stick Marsh had been doing well recently, so we set up shiners out near the drop-line and Richard went back to practicing his newly-learned plastic worm skills. Patty opted for her crappie jig setup, even though the water was only six feet deep.
Well, the shiners struck out, producing only two chain pickerel. In their defense, the pickerel were pretty big for this part of the south. However, our new anglers showed they had learned some lesson during the day. Patty picked up three more nice crappie on her PERFECT jig set-up. Richard got two more nice bass on the worm and one on the Big O crank plug.
As we loaded out the boat, everyone agreed that all objectives of the day had been fully met and a great time had by all.
(But, I still had more fun that anyone!)
Be sure watch for our next update, when we get off the water long enough to write it up and download the pictures. David Pace called and said he had two sons, ages 7 and 9, who were turning into fishing fanatics. But, they always had to fish off the bank in some small lakes/ponds in the Orlando area near their home. David said he wanted the boys to have a good fishing experience.
How do 10 bass to 6 lbs. on shiners and 50+ on crank plugs sound? Yep, that's what the boys did and you can see the pictures and read how they did it right here soon.
November 28, 2002
I thought I might write up the guide parties for past few days, while waiting on all those good smells from the kitchen to get done. Thanksgiving is a great time of year, unless you happen to be on a diet or are squatting in a cave in Afghanistan with Bin Laden eating camel dung. We all have a lot to be thankful for. You and I live in the greatest place in the World, where we want for virtually nothing. Unfortunately, we sometimes forget and take it too much for granted. Even Bin Laden has something to give thanks for this day - the fact that his butt is apparently still in one piece. But, his day will come and that's most assuredly a promise from the USA.
A fishing guide parties go, there is something 'Forrest Gump and his box of chocolates' about them: 'you never know what you're going to get.' The client hopes he/she has made the right choice in the guide and that it will be an enjoyable and productive day. The guide has high hopes that he has accepted a day's work from a pleasant person who will be fun to share a boat with. His worst fear is that the client expects the guide to 'make' the fish jump in the boat for him.
I am possibly the luckiest guide around. Somehow, I always seem to get match with the most pleasant personalities and finest people. Because of that, I can truthfully say that I usually enjoy the fishing trip just as much, if not more so, than the client(s). I always ask beforehand what is the client's primary goal for the day. Sometimes, it is just to catch a bigger bass than they have caught before. The Stick Marsh is pretty good at producing those 'personal best' bass, too.
I also get answers like:
- "I want this to be a positive experience for my son/daughter, so they will learn to enjoy fishing and the outdoors".
- " This trip is for my wife; she has always worked and raised kids and has never been able to fish much. But, she always allowed me to go."
- "We just retired and want to find out what fishing is all about and learn to fish."
- "Joe and I have been fishing together for 40 years. This trip with you our gift to each other."
 This past Monday, it was the two long-time fishing buddies, Mike and Gordie. Yesterday, Richard Dunn said he wanted his wife to experience catching fish. Both were great trips.
Mike Saccone and Gordie Braun both winter in Florida now. Mike is from the Syracuse, NY, area and I assume Gordie was, too. I had met them at the ramp one afternoon as I was coming in. They were just looking the place over and asked me some questions. I gave them a little fact-sheet package on the Farm 13/Stick Marsh, plus a copy of our website map of the water. Mike called me a week later to set up a trip.
Their goal was to just have a great half-day of fishing together. The catch-22 for me was that their past fishing had generally been limited to live bait/bobbers and trolling for walleye and lake trout. Artificials and casting was not a long-practiced art. But, the door was open, they indicated, to bass, crappie, bluegills - whatever would bite. It was up to me.
I knew shiners would work for bass and that method would require little past experience with a rod and reel. But, the cost of shiners has become obscene and I now advise against them, when other options are reasonable. Since Mike and Gordie did not have a specific type fish to go after (i.e., bass), I recommended crappie to them. The Stick Marsh is having a boom in big crappie since the weather started to cool down and I was certain we could do well (plus, I am really an old 'perch-jerker' at heart).
We aimed the big STRATOS at the Farm 13 submerged canals and blasted off. Soon, we were looking over a section of underwater levee on one of the north/south canals in the north portion of the Farm. After finding the right general area, we dropped the trolling motor down, did a couple of loops to pinpoint the correct spot, and dropped anchor.
The next thing was for the guide to be sure the crappie were at home. Taking up my rod, I tied on two 1/16-oz. PERFECT crappie jigs about 8 inches apart. My first cast immediately brought a nice 'keeper' to the boat. Putting my rod down, I passed our duo ultralight spinning rods armed with the tandem PERFECT crappie jigs. There were only three items of guidance required for our pair of anglers: 1) Cast within a 90-degree arc (that I defined by using some grass beds for reference); 2) Let the jigs go all the way to the bottom; and, 3) Retrieve in a slow, steady and continuous manner - no jigging or other action.
The fishing buddies soon mastered that steady retrieve and adapted very quickly to the light 'bump' that signaled a crappie strike. Very soon, I was in constant motion taking fish off hooks and dropping them into the livewells. The photos speak for themselves.
I am not sure how many crappie the two of them caught, because a lot of small ones were tossed back, plus we started culling after three hours. Their 2-man 50-fish limit probably averaged a pound apiece, though, which is a heck of a crappie catch anywhere. Mike and Gordie had a great time and they were great guys to share a boat with.
But, I enjoyed it even more than they did!!!
Drop back by in a couple of days for the report and photos of Richard and Patty Dunn's great trip with us. And, see photos of Patty's gigantic crappie - the largest one I have seen come from the Stick Marsh in a long time!!!
November 19, 2002
 Had the pleasure of hosting John Leyczek for one of our half-day trips recently. John and his lovely wife, Diane, have been to the Stick Marsh a couple of times with their own boat, but have had some problems finding the fish consistently. I explained that was not a function of his skill or lack of skill as an angler; very few people will become proficient on new waters in only two trips. But, since he only lives a couple of hours away, John said 'show me'. So, we did.
The weather has been very changeable lately, as we finally see some good cold fronts move through Florida. Good rains make the fish active, but the sharply falling temperatures and skyrocketing barometer make them stop chasing the baitfish (and a lure) very hard. John and I went out 36 hours after the big front went through. We simply slowed it down and fooled them puppies!
We caught bass in every location we fished. Our only problem was size. The small bass just ate us up. That may have been partially due to the smaller lures (our small Big O crank plug) and the 4-inch worm. Whatever the case, our largest fish in 5 hours only weighed in at 4 pounds. And, she was caught on a PERFECT crappie jig!
Starting in the NW area of the Marsh side, John took a small bass on the FireTiger Big O on his second cast. Quickly, 2 more sucked the plug down. Then, things went dry for 20 minutes. Thinking maybe the cold weather had caused the fish to group up more tightly, we looped back to where the first 3 bass had come from. Over the next 2 hours, we took another 6 fish for a total of nine. Nearly all came from a circle about 50 yards across. We should now be able to count on finding bass and crappie more concentrated than during the summer, making for easier fishing.
THIS IS A SIGNIFICANT EVENT TO NOTE! As the weather cools significantly, nearly all school fish tend to bunch back up. You see it when bass schooling suddenly show up in the back of large coves busting shad in the Fall. You also see it when the crappie are again found in schools rather than loosely strung out in an area of cover. Possibly, this schooling is for feeding purposes (herding baitfish) or is something that precedes the coming spawn. It is hard to say without being able to ask the fish directly. But, it is the way things work. The loose schooling of the summer months gives way to tighter schooling as the weather and water get colder. Then, when the spawn period arrives, the fish move into an area as a group and gradually disperse within it to spawn.
Moving over to the Farm side, we made a pass on the center N/S canal with crank plugs and worms. Where the grass was thin, we used Traps. Where it was thick, we slid Texas rigged worms down into it. John took decent fish here on the worm. We got fooled by a 2-pound bass that got wrapped in the weeds, but kept struggling. The boils and turbulence he created made us think he was possible a 'big old good un'. But, alas, the big old good uns were not ours that day.
John asked to see how to catch crappie so he could teach his wife to do that later, plus make for some good fish fries. With the winds doing 10-15, we had some problems with line bow and feeling the strikes. But, we did manage to capture enough good ones to make that fish fry. Plus, that 4 pound old bass are the crappie lure, as well. In fact about 6 bass ate it on the spot. Gotta love that PERFECT jig!!
With an hour to go, John asked if we could fish a location for bass where we just anchored and did not have to move at all. In order to do something like that, we had to fish some piece of defined structure that bass should be moving off and on on a regular basis. Submerged canal structure was the most logical. We just had to hope the fish were using what we selected. So, we motored to a corner of a canal intersection, anchored against the wind as best we could and pointed to a downwind grass patch. I told John that the shallow SW corner of the intersection was to the left of the grass and to cast his worm up on that shallow flat. Then, just work it slow out to the canal drop and let it fall into the canal.
By the time it got close to dark, John had upper our total to 33 bass for the ½ day trip. Not a bad count, but it was somewhat poor in average size. But, what the heck, we had a well of big crappie to deck the dining room halls with!!
My wife, Dot, is probably as good an angler as I know. She can handle that equipment and the lures like a pro. Her only problem is fishing with me. Since I usually am on the water so much, I already know where the fish are (or should be). So, she has never really been required to FIND them for herself. We decided to reverse that.
On a recent afternoon out, I let Dot pick the fishing locations and test them for fish. She did pretty good, too. First, she went to a small rockpile that runs out from the east levee on the Farm side. It is not a big pile by any means and you will never hit it with your boat. It just runs across the canal that parallels the east levee and it only two feet off the bottom. But, it is a hard, clean place. Dot took her trusty worm and we never moved the anchored boat until she reached 17 bass to 3 pounds. Then, they just died and dried up. I suspect she caught and released them all, and they finally wised up and left that place.
A couple more locations she chose also held fish, but not as many. Then, I suggested crappie.
Now, that gal likes to catch bass. But, she really shines with a crappie jig. I think it has to do with women being able to concentrate more and pay more attention to detail than we hairy-legged old boys can. Whatever it is, she can talk a crappie into biting a jig, I do believe. She put us on a grass patch we had not fished before. It ran along that same east canal and levee wall in the Farm.
Because the wind was blowing and the water about 8 feet deep, we put two of the crappie jigs on our line to gain a better casting weight. Tied about 8 inches apart, the PERFECT jigs do not tangle within themselves too much. Again, Dot was right and the crappie were there. However, they were not on the grass, itself. Instead, they were in a school about 6-8 feet out from the grass. The winds had some current moving in the canal and I suspect that was why. These were really GOOD crappie, too!. And, to top it off, Dot rubbed it into me by catching 2 big slabs at the same time on her 2 jigs. You may have to look close at the accompanying photo, but there is a jig in EACH crappie's mouth. But, what the hey, I still get to eat them!
November 11, 2002
We went out alone for a few hours today, planing to search for new locations that were holding fish. I am glad to say that every place we wet a lure seemed to have bass, some small and some pretty good-sized. The south end of the Farm has some grass along the extreme back end. It makes most lures difficult to fish, but a good old soft jerk bait did well. We dragged it across the top and let it drop in holes with good success. But, the real fun was to just keep it in motion across the surface. They ran it down better than a buzz bait. (Remember, you cannot set the hook quickly when fishing this way. You should let the bass have the lure, let him turn and swim with it, and only set the hook when the line comes tight. You will rarely miss one, if you discipline yourself to do this.)
Any canal trace on the Farm side has fish. Just work along until you catch one and then work that area closely to locate the school. The best way to find these fish is always with a slow worm presentation. If they are not active, the fish may let a Trap go on by. But, the rarely let a slow and vulnerable worm get past. Personally, I use the Swimming Worm to find fish most times, if the grass and wood are not too thick. I know that sounds like advertising. But, if you have ever seen the action of the SW, you will know precisely why it is a great search tool. I assure you, no bass will let it go by him once he has seen it.
The Marsh side has a lot of fish in the shallow water of the NW corner. That is a rather large area, but here is a key bit of data to help you: stay just outside the main areas of trees and work what looks like open water. I assure you that there is still a forest down under all that open water. You just can't see it.  My best lures have been 2 in the NW corner: the middle sized Cordell Big O in FireTiger (it has a small square lip and runs around 3.5 feet if I hold the rod tip up; really bounces off stumps well) and a ¼ oz black jig. With the jig, I am swimming it and that appears to be the key to its success. I never let it stop moving and am actually fishing it like a slow spinnerbait. I am not using a trailer. The jig needs to have a good brush weedguard to come through and over all the wood. Don't worry about trying to detect a bump against a stump from a strike. The strike will take part of your arm off. The jig produces almost all good fish 3 pound and up.
For you crappie fans, they are thick as fleas at a dog convention. It is the 'where' that makes these fish easy to catch. I am fishing right down the middle of the canals on the Farm side. Where the bass are on and behind the levees, the crappie are in the deeper water of the canal. And, they are right down close to the bottom. I am using 2 of my little jigs, tied about 8 inches apart. That gives me a fast sink rate for the deeper water and helps casting if the wind is blowing. I let the jigs go to the bottom. Then, I hop them off the bottom with a good wrist snap and bring them back with a slow, steady retrieve. Try to keep the jigs within a couple of feet of the bottom. There are a zillion little crappie this year. But, just catch a hundred and you'll find you will have 20 big ones mixed it. Like the bass, if you hit a big crappie, work that area to see if there are not more of the same size in there.
The road is being maintained well, but is really dusty. Use a boat cover, if you can. At least, take the rods out of the boat if you have no boat cover. The dust will get all into the reels and stick on any lubricated point (level-wind worm gears are a prime example). The water is nearly normal pool, so you can run if you know the place OK.
Someone has put a few lights and reflective markers out in the impoundment, marking key logs, stumps and reference points. Please leave these alone and use them for navigation early and late. It was a private individual who incurred the costs for these aids, so honor his efforts.
November 9, 2002
Charlie Rutts said he wanted to do some dirty deeds to a few bass and selected an afternoon trip to do so. Everything cooperated by the camera, so I have no pictures for once. But Charlie did his 'deeds' and the bass went leaping and flying through the air.
This was a pretty simple trip and pattern. Charlie said bass and indicated quantity rather than quality. I assured him that was a GOOD approach, because when you catch a LOT of fish, the odds give you some good ones in the mix.
With Rat-L-Traps and Texas rigs, we assaulted the center canal in the Farm (coordinates D5-D7 on our interactive map). During the past couple of months, the bass have appeared to use the grass lines growing right on the levees of the canals. But, this time, Charlie found them better BEHIND the grass line and a few feet out into the Farm. Wherever the grass was sparse enough, the Trap ate them up well. When it got too thick, the Texas rig did best. With the worm, we just let it fall as far as it would down into the grass. Shaking it usually allowed the worm to work its way through. Most strikes came on the drop.
Because of the action with the worm, I tried a Senko-type lure (BPS Stik-O; a dead ringer for the Senko and just as effective, at 1/3 the price). I toss the lure to the other levee, so as not to interfere with Charlie's fun. Pretty soon, Charlie switched over and learned to fish the sinking plastic bait.
Moving to the NW corner of the Marsh side, we continued the Stik-O presentation, which was to just cast it out and let it sink to the bottom. Many strikes came right after the lure hit the water, which is common in shallow water with active fish. On this side of the impoundment, the size went up dramatically. Where we were doing 2 to 2-1/2 pound bass in the Farm (with the usual herd of small bank runners always horning their way in), the Marsh side fish ran 3 to 3-1/2. The biggie of the day came to a spinnerbait, checked it once with a nip, and then loaded on. 7.8 pounds on the digital and me with a bad camera!!
Today's Weather for
the Stick Marsh Area
Past Fishing Reports
Farm 13/Stick Marsh Information Guide
Email questions to jporter@jimporter.org.
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