East Lake is a good artificial lake. Plastics such as trick worms, vibe, and skinny dipper are working great. Colors are water melon seed, June bug as your best bet. East Lake has a lot of open water Illinois pond weed. Crappie – fish open water; trolling, or at night with lights are your best bets. Panfish – look for open water shell beds and use live red worms fished on the bottom. Slow trolling with mylar jigs work great. Tip with a minnow for best results. Add a ¾ ounce weight about 12 inches above the jig to a couple poles and troll them deep in the water column while you are longlining. The water level is slowly rising here on the big O and fishing has been great for bass whether using live-bait or artificial lures. The month of October usually marks the time of year that I start looking for crappie beds in the shallows to follow their patterns. My go-to search bait to use when fishing for crappie in open water is the TTI-Blakemore Road Runner and Go-Go Runner tipped with a Slabalicious or Curly tail in colors chartreuse; June bug or pearl. If you’re wanting to do some crappie fishing this season and want to catch the big ones off the beds, now is the time to book your trip and learn new techniques. The “hot” time of year to catch crappie ranges from mid/ late November to mid/late April. This time frame also marks the “hot” time of year to catch big bass here on Okeechobee. I am always happy to answer questions about fishing techniques, lure selection, as well as share some local knowledge of the history of Lake Okeechobee.
What lures for bass are producing now: hard top water baits such as a Zara Spook or Devils Horse worked slowly; Frogs and Swim jigs in the grass and outer edges as well as swim baits, some rattle traps and flipping lures such as crawdads/jigs and worms. Colors are red shad, June bug, crawfish and shad colors. Areas to consider are parts of Kings bar; 2nd/3rd point, some areas around Indian Prairie, lots of areas scattered up/down Observation Shoal. On the East side try Hendry creek and some parts of J & S. On the Southend try Kreamer and Rita Islands (both sides); Football/East wall area, around Uncle Joe’s and the Blue hole area.
To book your day(s) on the water call 863-228-7263, I will take the time to answer any questions or concerns you may have so that you will be comfortable and reassured that you will experience a professional and fun day of fishing on Lake Okeechobee.
