Plenty of bass can be found in deeper, cooler spots and running water around Polk
1. Around Lakeland, at Saddle Creek, good numbers of bass are biting around the park on live shiners and green pumpkin color ribbon tail worms. Decent numbers of bluegill are biting on crickets. Around town, Lake Parker is producing good numbers of bass on Black Blue Laminate Yum Dinger plastic worms, reports Phillips Bait and Tackle (863-666-2248).
2. At Auburndale, Lake Juliana is producing decent numbers of bass in the 2- to 3-pound range. Good numbers of bluegill are biting on crickets and red worms around shoreline pads and reeds. Plenty of bowfin and gar are being caught there. Lake Ariana is good for a few bass on Rat-L-Traps and crankbaits. Around the Lake Alfred area, lakes Rochelle and Alfred are producing good numbers of bass up to 5-pounds, along with a 6-pounder at Rochelle this week. Lake Echo has also been good for bass up to 4 pounds early in the mornings. Lake Rochelle is also producing good numbers of shellcracker on red worms along the deeper ledges, reports Ron Schelfo at Ron’s Tackle Box (863-956-4990).
3. At Winter Haven, Lake Shipp is good for bass in the 2- to 3-pound range along the shoreline at the park. Lake Cannon is producing good numbers of bass and shellcracker. Around the south chain, running water and all the culverts are producing a good bite for bass and catfish. The interior of the canals is producing plenty of bass chasing the panfish, reports Schelfo.
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4. At Lake Hamilton, bass are biting at the big lake while flipping the buggywhips in 3 to 5 feet of water with black-blue stick baits and creature baits. Trolling minnows and white jigs is producing specks. Bluegill and shellcracker are biting crickets around any kind of vegetation in shallow water around 2 feet. The bite is the same at the middle lake. The little lake is being sprayed for aquatic vegetation, reports Kyle Brewer at Hoppy’s by Crossed Industries (863-439-7616).
5. At Lake Marion near Haines City, bass are being caught offshore on hard bottom with crankbaits and ribbon tail worms. Specks are biting on the brush piles on jigs and minnows in 7 to 12 feet of water. Bluegill and shellcracker are biting in the pads and Kissimmee grass on crickets and red worms in shallow water around 1 to 3 feet, reports Brewer.
What's Biting: Largemouth bass
The bass bite is good around the Polk County area. Look for deeper, cooler water and areas with running water for the best bite.
Strike Zones: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13
6. At Lake Pierce, bass up to 5 pounds have been caught mostly on plastic worms. The best numbers are biting early in the morning and then later on in the late afternoon and early evening. There’s a good shellcracker bite around the pads on crickets and red worms and a few bluegill are in the mix, reports Chris Beasley at Jennings Resort (863-439-3811).
7. At Lake Hatchineha, bluegill and shellcracker are biting in the pads around Port Hatchineha. A few specks are being caught while drifting minnows at night. The best bass bite is in the mornings around the Goal Post. A few bass are also still schooling at first light around Marker 12, reports Bridgemaster Fishing Products (863-676-1009).
8. At Lake Toho, the bass bite is good mostly on live shiners, but a few fish are biting on topwaters early and late in water about 5 to 7 feet deep. Plastic worms such as Zoom Ultra Vibe speed worms and 7-inch Bass Assassin Tapouts are also getting the bite. Open water at a depth of 8 feet is producing on crankbaits around patches of hydrilla. Bluegill and shellcracker are being caught on the shell bars off Mackinson Island, reports Capt. John Leech of Bass Online (888-629-2277).
9. At Lake Kissimmee, good numbers of bluegill and shellcracker are biting on crickets and red worms around Grassy Island, Bird Island and the A Frame. A few specks are being caught on jigs on the brush piles. The bass bite has been kind of slow, but a few fish are biting on the shell bars around Grassy Island, reports Bridgemaster.
10. At Lake Walk-in-the-Water, bluegill and shellcracker are biting near Nalcrest and Indian Lake Estates in the reeds on crickets. A few specks are biting while drifting minnows in 9 feet of water. A few bass are biting on the state-marked brush piles, reports Bridgemaster.
11. At Crooked Lake at Babson Park, bluegill and shellcracker are biting red worms on the bottom around 6 to 10 feet at Wirt’s Point and Grassy Island. Some specks are biting while drifting minnows in deeper water around 20 to 25 feet. The bass bite is good on the U.S. 27 side while drifting live shiners. Chatterbaits are also producing on the west side along the edges of the grass. The south shore and the mouth of Little Crooked has a good bass bite on freelined live shiners and red shad color, Carolina rigged plastic worms, reports Jim Childress of Big Bass Bait & Tackle (352-207-7520).
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12. At Frostproof, at Lake Reedy some specks are biting on minnows in 8 to 10 feet on the southeast side of the lake. Bluegill are biting good there on crickets in the pads and around incoming water at the creeks. The bass bite is good while drifting live shiners in deeper water along the south shore. Topwaters are producing early in the morning in the same area. Lake Arbuckle is good for bluegill on crickets and red worms in the pads and around incoming water. The cypress trees at the south shore are also still producing. Some bass are being caught there on 10-inch worms around the pads and incoming water. Lake Clinch is producing some specks while drifting minnows in deep water at a depth of 12 to 18 feet. Shellcracker and bluegill are biting red worms and crickets on the southwest side. The bass bite is good there while drifting shiners along the edges of the grass on the west side and around incoming water. Carolina-rigged plastic worms are also producing on the west side and around the brush piles, reports Childress.
13. In the phosphate pits near Mulberry, a 7-pound bass was caught this week on a black and blue Senko. Junebug red plastics and shad or firetiger color crankbaits, both lipped and lipless, are getting the bite. Open-water hydrilla at a depth of 5 to 10 feet is producing the best numbers. The topwater bite is also decent, both early and late in the day, on Heddon Zara Spook Jr. plugs around the hydrilla mats. Schoolie bass are feeding on small shad baits. Crankbaits in shad color at 8 to 10 feet are producing good numbers, reports Danny Hamm of Bull Bay Tackle Company. (863-937-3292).
This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Bass are biting in deeper spots and running water around Polk
