By Capt. Roan zumFelde
Well welcome to May fishing in SWFL. Red Hot and I mean the weather. Early mornings and late evenings are the key to the freshwater bite. Top waters in the mornings on all our waters should be the key. I like Zara Spook Jr’s or Rapala Skitterwalks this time of the year. Big bass should be on the feed early and late and the peacock bass and cichlids should be crashing everything else when the sun gets up a bit. New Vlog on the coastal website will be posted under Freshwater scene and we will try and keep weekly updates going from now on.
Lake O fishing should stay strong with a good shiner bite. Top waters in the deeper areas with scattered grass and some schooling fish should also be there, so keep scanning the waters while you are fishing. Water levels look to be low with a lack of rain and a drawdown for the summer rains. Hopefully everyone is very careful where they are going on the lake. Talked to Joe Lamana of Bass Pro Shops today and he said the Okeechobee bite was still excellent this week.
Trafford has been heating up lately with some big bass catches. Seems as if the bass have moved into the scattered pencil reeds and are hitting creature baits all of a sudden early in the morning. Eager beavers and horny toads seem to have been mentioned.
Canal Fishing has been super strong all month in April and should continue into May as long as water stays low and things do not heat up to the boiling point. Great top water bass bite and the peacocks are making a move. Cichlids took a hit this year, never seen so many people out there trying to catch them to take north. Not sure eating these things on a regular basis is a great idea, but good luck with that. Early fishing should be the key in May. Fly Fisherman Take Note: GRAVE DIGGERS it’s the BOMB for bass!
Like I said in the beginning, we are putting together a new YouTube Vlog and posting it on the Coastal Angler website along with our websites for Indian Pass Outfitters and Mike’s Bait House. We are trying to make it a weekly thing to give everyone more real time fishing reports, so please check them out and subscribe or check them out on the site.
Come visit Mike and me at Mike’s Bait house and Indian Pass Outfitters on Danford Street, next to Bayview Park in Naples and we can talk fishing. We carry a full line of tackle including: fly fishing needs and both saltwater and freshwater gear, food, drink, and bait. Thanks and good fishing. Roan z