Freshwater: Bass remains your best bet but bluegills are biting too at some Polk lakes

Fish of the Week

Largemouth Bass – Water temperatures are still very hot, keeping bass in open, deeper water during the middle of the day. The bass bite is best in the mornings or evenings around the area.

Strike Zone, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13

Around Polk County

1 At Saddle Creek, bass are biting around the park on crankbaits in natural colors like baby bass and Carolina rigged plastic worms. Bluegill tilapia are biting on crickets around the park. Anglers are catching good numbers of catfish on chicken liver on the bottom. Around town, Lake Crago is producing good numbers of bluegill on crickets and red worms, reports Phillips Bait and Tackle (863-666-2248).

2 At Auburndale, Lake Juliana is producing good numbers of big bluegill on crickets and red worms along the shorelines. Plenty of catfish are also being caught there. Around the Lake Alfred area, lakes Haines and Rochelle are producing plenty of good size bluegill and shellcracker. Lake Rochelle has a good bite for bass up to 4 to 5 pounds and mostly on live shiners. Lake Alfred is producing some bluegill in the pads on the back side across from the boat ramp. For the bass, it’s mostly schoolie size bass biting there, reports Ron Schelfo at Ron’s Tackle Box (863-956-4990).

3 At Winter Haven, lakes Cannon and Hartridge have the best bass bite this week Rat-L-Traps, crankbaits and live shiners. A few bluegill are still biting around the mouths of the canals around the south chain, reports Schelfo.

4 At Lake Hamilton, the big lake is good for bass in and around the cattails and buggy whip lines on squarebill crankbaits and spinnerbaits. The edges of the grass are also producing bass on dark color, ribbon tail plastic worms. The middle lake is producing bluegill and shellcracker on crickets and red worms in the pads and buggy whips. The little lake is producing some specks while trolling minnows and chartreuse jigs over grass or cast under the docks, reports Kyle Brewer at Hoppy’s by Crossed Industries (863-439-7616).

5 At Lake Marion near Haines City, bass are biting black and blue swim jigs and chartreuse sqaurebill crankbaits in 3 to 6 feet of water around the pads and Kissimmee grass. A few bass are being caught on crankbaits offshore on hard bottom. Shellcracker and bluegill are being caught on crickets and red worms in the pads in 2 feet of water, reports Brewer.

6 At Lake Pierce, anglers are catching about 15 panfish, both bluegill and shellcracker an outing on crickets and red worm. The best bite has been at the south end and around Catfish Creek. Schoolie size bass are biting in the mornings on plastic worms along the grass lines and crankbaits out in deeper water, reports Chris Beasley at Jennings Resort (863-439-3811).

7 At Lake Hatchineha, good numbers of bluegill are still being caught on crickets and red worms on the shell bars between Marker 10 and 12. Bass are schooling in several spots around the lake. Start off with a shad colored lipless crankbait. Then switch over to a ½ oz. Shakey Head tipped with a Strike King Cut-R Worm, reports Charlie Wynperle at Bridgemaster Fishing Products (863-676-1009.

8 At Lake Toho, the outside the edges of the deeper water hydrilla are still producing the best bass bite. Live shiners, 10-inch plastic worms and speed worms are producing decent catches. The water temperature is still high, about 89 degrees and the bass are not real actives. The bluegill and shellcracker bite is picking up around the shell bars, reports Capt. John Leech of Bass Online (888-629-2277).

9 At Lake Kissimmee, bluegill and shellcracker are being caught on red worms in the pads in shallow water 1 foot deep. The best areas are Brahma Island, Lemon Point and North Cove. Bass are schooling at first light in the grass patches at Gobbler Ridge. Cast a white color swim jig along the edges for the best action, reports Wynperle.

10 At Lake Walk-in-the-Water, bluegill and shellcracker are being caught on red worms in the canals on the east side of the lake. The bass bite is good early in the day. Throw a bluegill colored swim jig along the outside edges early on for good action. Then later in the day, cast a watermelon red Zoom Mag II worm for good results, reports Wynperle.

11 At Crooked Lake at Babson Park, the deeper water brush piles are producing the best bite for bass. A few bass are also being caught early in the day on the U.S. 27 side. The catfish bite is also good at night, reports Cindy Ritchison at Bob's Landing (863-638-1912). The U.S. 27 side has a good early morning bass bite on swim baits and white color Flukes. The same baits and live shiners are also good for bass around the mouth of Little Crooked. The bluegill and shellcracker bite is good in 8 to 12 feet of water around Grassy Island. A few specks are biting while drifting minnows in water at 20 to 25 feet, reports Jim Childress of Big Bass Bait & Tackle (352-207-7520).

12 At Frostproof, at Lake Arbuckle has a good bass bite in moving water on big black and blue 10-inch re plastic worms and spinnerbaits. Bluegill are biting there on the edges of the pads on the bottom around the boat ramp. Crickets and red worms are getting the bite there and also around the Cypress trees at the south shore. At Lake Clinch, the bass bite is good offshore on Carolina rigged plastic worms and deep diving crankbaits. Bluegill and shellcracker are biting red worms on the bottom around 8 to 12 feet deep. A few specks are biting while drifting minnows in open water at 18 to 20 feet. At Lake Reedy, specks are biting during the day while drifting minnows. At night, some anglers are catching limits while anchored under the lights. Bluegill are biting good on crickets and red worms on the bottom at 6 feet. Bass are being caught Carolina rigged plastic worms and crankbaits, reports Childress.

13 In the phosphate pits near Mulberry, the best numbers of bass are biting early on bluegill or shad color jerkbaits out in open water 5 to 8 feet deep around the hydrilla pockets. Topwaters such as Bangolues and Devil’s Horses are also getting the bite early. Later on, black and blue Senkos with a slow presentation are getting the bite, reports Danny Hamm of Bull Bay Tackle Company. (863-937-3292).

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Freshwater: Bass remains your best bet in Polk County lakes