St. Johns River FL Bass Fishing Reports

Started by Scott, January 28, 2005, 01:29:33 PM

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Scott

I would love to hear how people are doing over there. If you have fished it recently, post a report and let us know how the fishing is over there. I have heard a lot of good things about that place. Thanks in advance for the reports.

Swede

Hey Scott -

Haven't fished the river since Bassmaster Weekend Series Panhandle Division tourney in late January.  Prefished all the way south to Lake George and the salt springs which feed it.  Crowded in the springs since water 10 degrees warmer than lake and first place the bass spawn in spring.  Don't like fishing in a crowd so fished the river on tourney day.  Hooked 8 keepers in 20-25 minutes when the tide started going out, then nothing the rest of the day.  Only got 6 of 8 into the boat and weighed in 10lbs11ozs for 9th place overall out of 51 boaters.  Bandit 300 Tennessee Shad crankbait was the ticket.  Fished Lake Seminole weekend of 20 Feb.  Will list those results under Seminole.

Mike Cork

Swede, thanks for the info. I know what you mean about fishing crowds. I always love to find a pattern that I am the only one on. But have gone to the scales saying to myself, I guess there was a reason so many folks were there  ::) Again thanks for the info and thank you for taking the time to post. We would love to have you sign on as a member, it's free ;)

Fishing is more than just a hobby

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Swede

I hear ya.  Had to weigh the long run from Palatka south to Lake George to fish in crowd or stay a little closer and fish clean water not to mention fish longer.  If I did go south I was heading for the southern spring and it is where the bigger strings came from for the most part.  Hind sight 20/20.

Mike Cork

Hind sight 20/20 man I have said that a hundred times before ;) But mark the log book and press on. Looking forward to hearing more about your tournament finishes. Looks like you did awesome over on Toho ~c~

Fishing is more than just a hobby

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LEPRECHAUN

I will be fishing a tournament on the St. Johns River on April 15Th & 16Th.

I have never fished this river.  We are putting in at Corkie Bells .\

I hope to get up and fish on April 2 & April 8 Th.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

email me at  markadorne@msn.com

Have a blessed day.

Mark

SeminoleFan

As of last weekend, fish were still spawning up in the Ortega River which is north of Palatka. Some being caught on Crankbaits in Post and pre-spawn areas like points and such.  If you throw worms, Junebug Blue Tail (bass assassin), Red-Shad Green Flake (culprit). Rattle traps thru the grass are working well also. Paddle tail worms work good in the eel grass also. Hot color is black blue tail. (zeta-bait) Dont forget about Crankbaits in Baby bass and Craw.

Best of luck and let us know how you did..

Rick
Home of STEALTH SHADTM
Persuader Lures www.persuaderlures.com
Rick Bedford

Swede1

Fished the Florida Federation Qualifer (78 boats) last weekend.  Found a few keepers on Friday during practice in canals off Dunns Creek.  They disappeared on Saturday and I zeroed - a first for me in Federation event.  Big stringer was 20+ lbs the first day and 19+ second day caught by same person no less who won the tourney.  Fish came from north of Palatka - bedding.  Ran south to Lake George the second day - only landed one keeper the second day on worm.  Missed a couple limits of fish -they kept eating my tails off - even when I let em have the bait for a bit.  One of these was a good one going 5-8 lbs that I saw beside the boat.  Just one of those tournaments I'd like to forget about and look forward to the next.  Sorry - not much for information from others there - did hear swim worms and top waters were working for some.  Wish I could provide more for your readers - maybe next time.

Mike Cork

Thanks for the update, sounds like a typical tournament for me ;) Looks like some folks found them though.

Fishing is more than just a hobby

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Swede

Fished St Johns yesterday - Bassmaster Weekend Series tourney.  Had no time to pre-fish.  Drew partner from Gainesville.  Ran to Lake George and attempted to put together some type of pattern.  Got 2.5 lb fish on one of the first few casts into some pads on the east side of the lake so stayed in the dollar pads all day.  Got 4 fish in the boat on flukes and missed just as many.  Fish averaging 1.5 lbs - weighed 6 lbs.  Partner weighed nonboater limit of 3 = 4.5lbs.  Heard plenty of reports fish were schooling in the river on Saturday, but at weigh in Sunday there were many small bags.  16+ lbs won - my 6 lbs put me in at 17th of 34.
My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to,
Your dreams stay big, your worries stay small.
Rascal Flatts

Swede

Waited out Hurricane Dennis on the St Johns River.  Water temp 84 deg F.  Got in a couple days of fishing, but thunderstorms limited travel as I did not want to get stuck out too far away from the launch.  Fish schooling shad right now - caught some on buzz bait, some c-rigging a black grape V&M finesse worm, a couple on a war eagle spinnerbait in white-bronze wl blades, and a couple on bang-o-lure.  Fish were stacked up in certain locations, but shad and current had to be present.  Came back home to Destin to find my house in good shape - I wish all were as lucky.  Good luck and whack-em good.
My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to,
Your dreams stay big, your worries stay small.
Rascal Flatts

Mike Cork

Now that is a Huricane Party I can live with. Thanks for the update ~c~ Good to hear all was well at the home front when you got back

Fishing is more than just a hobby

Dobyns Rods - Monster Fishing Tackle
Cork's Reel Service

Swede

Florida State Federation Championship complete for this year.  Final standings may be found at

http://www.floridabassfederation.com/2005champ.php

I prefished Wed thru Friday.  Finally found what I was searching for on Friday.  Hooked up with about 17lbs of bass in an area of Lake George.  Left and came back Saturday morning with my partner for the day.  My 3 pounders had been replaced with 1-2 pounders.  Weighed 7+ pounds.  Blew my motor on the way back in Lake George.  11 others had similar problems during the day.  Luckily another boater stopped and picked up my partner and our fish - they got weighed.  Went as nonboater day 2 and went back to the same location.  Partner werighed limit and I ended the day with 4 bas at 6 + pounds.  44th place finish this year.  Thankful for the opportunity to fish day two after all the problems on day 1.  Over half of the state team for this year caught their fish in Cresent Lake.  This lake tunred on at the right time and produced some descent limits.  Two of the state team members are from the panhandle and should be congratulated for a job well done - Mr Allen Courtney and Mr Bobby Smith from Panama City.  Off to Tennessee they now go for the Southern Divisional in 2006.  Good Luck to everyone on Team Florida - and make it two wins at the Southern Divisional in a row.
My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to,
Your dreams stay big, your worries stay small.
Rascal Flatts

Mike Cork

Sorry to hear about your motor  :'( Seems like anytime we are truly on fish something happens :(

Congrats to the folks that get to advance ~c~ Swede thanks for the update ;)

Fishing is more than just a hobby

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TeamFATBOY

Cooler weather is finally here and the Bass in the St. Johns River are loving it!
On the north part of the river from Jacksonville down to Palatka the bass have been schooling and some really good fish have been taken. This part of the river is also full of shad which the bass are feeding heavily on. Look for the shad in the coves along the grass lines, The bass will stage in the grass to ambush the bait.
South of Palatka to Lake George the bass are still schooling on the points and drop along this section of the river. Search out these areas with a Carolina Rig or a crankbait but have a topwater bait ready incase the bass start chasig bait on the surface
In Lake George the bass are in the grass and feeding aggressivly. Fish the grass by swimming a rubber worm thrugh it or fishing a bait like the Horny Toad across the top. These fish are feeding and starting to get ready for their spawn which wont be long.
In Creasent Lake theres still some fish feeding on the points along the west side of the lake but with the high water theres some good fish relating to the wood cover on the east and south end of the lake.
Rodman Reseroir is starting to warm up with some good limits coming from the cuts in the spoil mounds along the barge canal where the old river and creek channels cross it. Also early and later in the day fish topwater baits and jerkbaits around the edges on the vegitation and continue to flip the thicker stuff when the sun gets up.
Untill Next Time, Good Luck! Fatboy

Mike Cork

Awesome update on local waters  :-* Thanks for the info.

How long do the bass continue to school in your area? Do you know what the water temps are running, we got upper 50's and low 60's here in Louisiana and they continue to ball up on the shad. Only early though once the sun breaks it's over :'(

Fishing is more than just a hobby

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TeamFATBOY

The bass on the St.Johns start schooling as early as mid June on the lower St.Johns (Sanford, Astor area) and progressively continue to move further north up river towards Palatka, Green Cove Springs and Jacksonville where there presently schooling now and will continue untill January depending on the temperatures although they wont get as much pressure from fishermen as they will start bedding around mid December down in Lake George and the fishermen will follow them!
The water temperature on Rodman was 63 today and 65 last Sunday, Don't know what it's been on the river and I'm sure this little cold front we just had effected it a little! ;)

Swede

Very good report - got down there last month for the Federation Championship.  Could have used your report prior to - caught mine on lake George, however, the bigger stringers came from Crescent.  It really is amazing how early the bass start spawning.  One of the pros was mentioning this same point during the Toho event.  He thought some bass were already on bed.  Keeep them reports coming - appreciate someone from your area reporting.  I know many of us appreciate it!!
My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to,
Your dreams stay big, your worries stay small.
Rascal Flatts

TeamFATBOY

#18
Sorry a little late!

December is here and it's a great time of the year for bass fishing on the St. John's River.  The bass are spawning and the ones that aren't a feeding up in preparations of the spawn. 
On the St. Johns, from Jacksonville, south to Palaka, the bass are still schooling and following the bait into the warmer coves where the bass are in the grass ambushing the bait.
You can catch these fish by fishing your favorite topwater bait, such as a devil's horse or a rapala type bait around the edges of the grass and over the grass during the high tides.  Another popular technique is swimming a rubber worm through the grass, like a paddletail, like a ding-a-ling or ultravive.  Don't forget to fish the docks when the sun gets up during the midday. 
On the river, from Palaka south to Lake George, the bass are still holding on points and bars along this section of river where they can be taken on Carolina rigs and crankbaits.  Some of the fish on the south end of the river are starting to relate to shallower area with grass bed where they can be taken the same ways as in the north part of the river.  In Lake George, the bass are in  pre-srawn and will start spawning in the middle of the month in the springs.  On the rest of Lake George, the bass are holding in the grass beds feeding in preparation for their spawn towards the end of the month. 
In Crescent Lake, there is bass still schooling some on the points along the west side of the lake but the majority of the fish are holding on wood cover along the east and south end of the lake where they can be taken with spinner baits and shallow running crank baits.
In Rodman Reservoir, the bass are still in the cuts along the barge canal where the old creeks and riverbed cross the canal.  Fish are also being caught flipping the mats of floating cabbage from Kenwood west towards Cypress Bayou.
Until next time, good luck! Fatboy

Swede

Great report as always......sounds like you will be busy over there for a while.
My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to,
Your dreams stay big, your worries stay small.
Rascal Flatts

TeamFATBOY


spetro


JayPea2006

My next BASS event will be on the St Johns in early May out of Palatka. I have never been on the river, what are the hazards I may need to look for when running, are there a lot of if any no wake zones, and is this part of the river affected by tides?

Thanks for any help.

Swede

Very tidal river - even well south of Palatka and it affects feeding times so I would definitely know what the tides are doing.  Hazards - booeys all up and down the river - if you stay in the booeys no problems.  Guys will cut inside booeys, but there are spots that if you do this bad things may happen.  Until you get familiar or following someone in the know - suggest not doing.  There are no "no wake zones" that I know of.  I have been north 4-5 miles and all the way down to the south end of Lake George.  I personally like hitting the lake, but have gotten a check by fishing the river south of town there.  I've only fished it 4-5 times myself and by no means an expert, but I do know the lay of the land which is a start.  FATBOY below is our expert in my book - he may be able to help more than I on the bite and what is currently happening.
My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to,
Your dreams stay big, your worries stay small.
Rascal Flatts

TeamFATBOY

Aprils already here and the news is that the bass are spawning up and down the St.Johns River from Jacksonville to Lake George with the chances of a trophy fish high!

From Jacksonville to Palatka check in the many coves along the river in the grass beds for the spawning fish. Look for open pockets in the eelgrass and cast your bait across the open pocket and slowly pull your bait back in to it then let it sit there for a little bit shaking the bait every once in a while, If there's a fish protecting the bed then it should hit your bait, If not then continue fishing untill you see another open spot in the grass and then repeat the procedure. Also bass will spawn in the many canals up and down the river, Here there is not as much grass in the canals so look for these bedding fish along the bulkheads. While loooking for these fish you may try throwing a Trickworm or a Repala to target some of the fish that have already spawned out and are protecting thr fry.

From Palatka south to Lake George there are not as many coves for the fish to spawn in but there are many canals for them to frequient, Look for these fish just as you would in the canals up north, These fish have been spawning longer than the fish up north so you may have a better chance of catching post spawn fish in the canals and around the mouth of these canals.

In little Lake George the fish are starting to spread out in the grassbeds on the east side and on the wood cover on the west side of the lake. There are still a few fish still spawning but their getting few and far between.

On Lake George the spawn has just about run it's course and the bass are starting to spread out in the grassbeds here also. As it continues to get warmer some of these fish will even move out deeper to the wood structure in the way of the many pilings around the lake.

In Dunn's Creek a popular place to find spawning fish is in the many canals that run off of Dunn's Creek, Here also the Trickworms and Repalas work well!

In Cresent Lake the bass are in the coves along the west side of the lake and will also spawn along the east shore too but the water in Cresent is normally dark and stained that finding the bedding fish hard to see, The best bets here are slowly fishing topwater baits and jerkbaits over the shallow areas.

In Rodman Reservoir the bass are moving out of the channels and canal into the flats, Many of the fish have already spawned out but a few are still bedding but harder to find. Try fishing jerkbaits and Rattle Traps on the flats and around the many stumps.

Until Next Time, Good Luck! Fatboy