Lake Okeechobee has provided first class fishing opportunities over many years and in angling circles is widely known for its great bass fishing. Many changes have occurred through the years that affect The Lake and its environment. In spite of human and governmental intervention, Mother Nature has allowed the fish population on the giant lake to flourish, providing what is arguably the best bass fishing Lake Okeechobee has ever experienced.
For those anglers who prefer to fish with artificial lures, the month of May offers myriad opportunities. To enjoy the purely visual aspect of bass fishing a top water plug can provide heart stopping strikes. Casting your favorite lure close to the Kissimmee grass lines that surround the lake can provide numerous strikes. Fishing a lure over the top of underwater hydrilla beds is another widely used technique, but heavy line is required to work a bass out of the thick cover. Lipless crank baits like a rattle trap can provide fast action when bass are chasing bait during a feeding frenzy. A weightless fluke has been a staple in the boat for many years and continues to catch fish; being weedless it can be worked through very thick cover areas without fear of getting hung-up. A Senko style bait rigged wacky style or Texas rigged can be fished very slowly to tempt bass that may be reluctant to bite faster moving bait. For those that can’t stand the ultra-slow approach rubber swim bait rigged weedless can be cast and retrieved as fast or slow as an angler or the fish desire. A live wild shiner is still the premier bait for catching large numbers of fish, or trophy bass.
May also brings shellcracker and bluegill into the fishing mix; both of these hard fighting and tasty fish are plentiful in the lake and can provide fast action. Red worms, crickets and grass shrimp all work, with grass shrimp being the best of the three, but also the hardest to find. Many or the guided trips this time of year will start with shiner fishing for bass early in the morning and then moving to the pursuit of panfish as the morning sun gets higher in the sky.
Recent guided trips have yielded 30 to 50 bass per 6 hour trip when using wild shiners. Bluegill and shellcracker fishing is just kicking off, on a recent trip we caught 75 large bluegill and shellcracker and we kept fifty of the largest ones for the table. If you have never visited our beautiful lake it’s a great time to visit and witness an environment that is unequaled anywhere else in the world.
FORECAST BY: Capt. Mike Shellen
Shellen Guide Service
Phone: (863) 357-0892
Email: sjmike7@aol.com
www.OkeechobeeBassFishing.com