The one thing that sets Lake Okeechobee apart from all of the truly great bass fishing lakes across the country is the fact that it is always changing. In my thirty-plus years of fishing the Big ‘O‘ I can’t remember any time that the fishing and the quality of the water remained the same for very long. That is why you can never get bored fishing here on the greatest bass lake in the world.
Right now we are experiencing high water levels from some really unusual winter rains. There is still a lot of water north of the lake that has yet to reach the lake, but with a lot of water being released from the lake, lake levels have been fairly stable at 16.30 feet above sea level. Lake Okeechobee has always done well when water levels rise and fall in one season, but sustained periods of high water have a detrimental effect on the natural grasses such as the bulrushes and reeds that line the outside of the lake. I’m already seeing the effect of the high water. The outside grasses that act as a buffer for larger areas of vegetation that usually stay very clear are going away which is allowing the main lake’s dingy water to filter in which it turn limits the growth of the fish. Big bass need clean water go grow. Anyone who has ever fished Lake Okeechobee knows how important it is for there to be this outside buffer that filters the lake and keeps our water clear so healthy vegetation like eel grass and pepper grass can grow.
To control lake levels the US Army Corps releases water from the lake but there is a lot of opposition from both coasts when all that freshwater is drained from the lake. Man has really gotten in the way of south Florida as far as keeping her natural resources in a natural state. Many people don’t know that when the lake was natural the Caloosahatchee River was not connected to Lake Okeechobee, it ran as a tidal river from Fort Myers to Labelle with no locks and all brackish tidal water. But with ‘progress’ came the Intercoastal Waterway and the dike the surrounds the lake and the mess that we have now. But with all that being said, without all this water management, millions of Florida residents would not be enjoying all that south Florida has to offer today. From time to time Mother Nature throws us a new challenge that we all have to deal with and we all hope that everything being done by water management authorities is in our best interest. In the coming months you are going to hear all these politicians grab the microphone and give their speech on “if elected what I will do to fix all these problems”, but in my opinion we have heard this all before. It is my hope that Mother Nature will give us a break and the Big ‘O’ will get back to normal so anglers like me can continue to enjoy one of the most fascinating places to fish anywhere in the world.
Getting back to the water conditions. For the short term, there will still be a lot of new water coming into the lake from the north and this is not necessarily a bad thing, it’s just a new challenge. The lake from Clewiston south to Rita Island has lost a lot of the outside grasses and with all the north and east wind so far this winter, the water quality has been a little off and hard to fish. But farther south toward South Bay the water has been as good as I have ever seen. Water 5 to 6 feet deep and clear enough to see the bottom. The South Bay area is known as one of the best spawning areas on Lake Okeechobee. The last few weeks I have been able to maneuver my boat into places I haven’t seen in many years and the fishing has been great. Fish of all species have been able to spawn in places that aren’t reachable by most anglers and that is great for our fishing. I haven’t seen as many bass in the Big ‘O’ in my thirty years here, and with the spawns we are having right now it can only get better. With all that being said, the state of the lake even with all the high water is in great shape.
For more information on the fishing, catch “HOOKED UP WITH STEVE & DEB”, the voice of Okeechobee fishing starting every Friday 1:am EST on the web at www.RenoViolaOutdoors.com or on the radio every Saturday at 5-7:am on WOKC.com 100.9fm and Sundays at 5-7:am on WAFCAMFM.com, 100.5fm. For more information or to go fishing with Steve, visit us at www. OkeechobeeProSteveDaniel.com.
