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The Bass Fishing Report

March 28, 2025 by john kumiski · Leave a Comment

The Bass Fishing Report

Thank you for reading this Bass Fishing Report. Lucky enough to get out three days this week- even a campout! And some bass were caught- largemouths, that is.

Subscribers without photos- go to https://www.spottedtail.com/blog/, please.

Tuesday morning I drove to the Rodman Campground, where there’s a boat ramp, and where I spent the night. I launched my kayak at the ramp and went paddling on quite a sizable lake. Looks like they used mass amounts of glyphosate– there were no aquatic plants other than water lilies. This was very disappointing, and made fishing more difficult. Where were the fish hiding, if there were no weed beds?

My average size Rodman bass.

My first fish was a dink bass, caught in water lilies near the shoreline of the canal, on a Senko-style worm. There was a spot with a lot of branches sticking out of the water, got four or five there, all pretty small.

Saw a green patch out in the lake, paddled out to it. It was a small floating patch of vegetation, dollarweed and some terrestrial plants. Pulled a decent fish out from under it.

Got my best fish next to a small patch of water lilies along a dropoff. A second fish followed the hooked one in, and then hung around until I released the it. Then they swam off together. Who knew??

The best one I got there, the fish whose partner waited for it.

Sunset over Rodman Reservoir.

My plan was to fish Rodman two days. After the first day I did not want to fish there again, so in the morning I drove to Farles Lake. I literally had the place to myself. The fish bit pretty steadily, but again, mostly small ones, and again, almost all on soft plastic worms of various shapes and colors. Got one dink on fly. Probably ended up with two dozen fish, but the biggest one was three or four pounds.

All in all it was a pleasant, productive trip, even if no monstahs were forthcoming.

Thursday I did something I’ve been wanting to do for a while- I went to the Econlockhatchee! This was a walking trip with the shortest spin rod I own, and it was goooood. Culprit worms and Senkos, the fish didn’t much care.

I even got several sunfish (redbellies and stumpknockers) on the rig. How a stumpknocker can get a 3/0 hook in that little mouth is beyond me, but they do, somehow. I got more bites, and the quality of the fish was better, than either day in Ocala Forest.

An Econ fish, one of many.

And, the irises are blooming.

That’s my Bass Fishing Report. As always, thanks for reading!

Every day is a blessing. Don’t waste it- Go fishing! Go paddling! Go bicycling! Stay active!

John Kumiski
www.johnkumiski.com
www.spottedtail.com
www.spottedtail.com/blog

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, © John Kumiski 2025. All rights are reserved.

Filed Under: central florida destinations, Fishing Reports, Paddle Fishing Florida · Tagged: bass fishing econlockhatchee, bass fishing ocala national forest, culprit worm, Econlockhatchee River, farles lake, rodman campground, rodman reservoir

Oklawaha River Report

March 15, 2025 by john kumiski · Leave a Comment

Oklawaha River Report

Thank you for reading this Oklawaha River Report. I wanted to leave Wednesday. Circumstances prevented that. So this report covers only Thursday and Friday.

Subscribers without photos- go to https://www.spottedtail.com/blog/, please.

Paul McInnis met me at the Eureka East ramp Thursday morning. I was talking to a local who suggested we leave our vehicle at the Eureka West ramp instead. We took his advice. From there we loaded almost all of our gear into Paul’s pickup, and drove to Ray Wayside Park. There I discovered I’d left my tent in the van. I had to go back and get it, setting us back an hour. Arrrggghhh.

After loading gear into the kayaks, a short canal put us into the Silver River. I wanted to see otters, got cormorants instead. Once we reached the Oklawaha, we had the river to ourselves, with the brief exception of some canoe racers who came tearing by. The weather was exceptionally nice.

The water was fairly clear. The river flows through bottomland woods- lots of beautiful cypress trees, red maples, ash trees, willows, sabal palms, and other plants I didn’t know. Poison ivy likes it there, a lot! It was all along the banks.

The current was surprisingly swift for a Florida river, and it was much deeper than I expected. The combination of current and depth, combined with plentiful downed trees, made it difficult to fish. If you tried to fish deep, you hung up. If you fished shallow, there weren’t a lot of bites.

spotted sunfish, a.k.a. stumpknocker

Using a tiny jig, Paul did well on the sunfish. My first fish was a bass, on a Culprit worm (red shad), that was all of 10 inches. It was quickly followed by a warmouth. Quite a while later, I got what turned out to be the best fish of the trip, a bass of 2-3 pounds, on the same worm.

After switching to a small fly rod, the bites started coming much more frequently. Of course, the fish were much smaller, too- redbellies, stumpknockers, and bluegills. The fly that produced the best was a black wooly bugger. Of course I lost it to a root. That’s OK, I’ll make more.

redbreast sunfish, a.k.a redbelly

We spent the night at Gores Landing, a small and mercifully quiet campground. The loudest thing there were the birds. Owls hooted all night, limpkins screamed, and at dawn the chorus of songbirds was a wild symphony of bird calls. All especially cool!

bluegill

Day two was largely a repeat of the first, except there were fewer fish. The water was browner, too. By about 1030 we’d stopped fishing and were just paddling, or peddling, in Paul’s case.

We were at Eureka West about 1430, at which point we loaded up, made the shuttle, and went our separate ways homeward.

In all it was a very pleasant if not particularly fish-filled trip.

That’s my Oklawaha River Report. As always, thanks for reading!

Every day is a blessing. Don’t waste it- Go fishing! Go paddling! Go bicycling! Stay active!

John Kumiski
www.johnkumiski.com
www.spottedtail.com
www.spottedtail.com/blog

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, © John Kumiski 2025. All rights are reserved.

Filed Under: central florida destinations, Fishing Reports, Paddle Fishing Florida · Tagged: eureka west boat ramp, gores landing, oklawaha river, ray wayside park

One Mosquito Lagoon Day Report

December 21, 2024 by john kumiski · Leave a Comment

One Mosquito Lagoon Day Report

Thank you for reading this One Mosquito Lagoon Day Report. Shaky weather and errands important and less so kept me off the water the rest of the week.

For all you pagans, Saturday 12/21 marks the solstice. Start partying! The days will get longer from now until June!

Subscribers without photos- go to https://www.spottedtail.com/blog/, please.

Rodney the Cover Boy.

The inadequate eulogy to Rodney was posted, but the photos are fun.

I had to get blood work done Monday, and ran errands a good part of the day afterwards, trying to get them all done. Did not succeed.

Tuesday I loaded up the kayak and drove to Mosquito Lagoon. It was a beautiful day, just a touch breezy. The first spot produced a fat, top-of-the-slot trout on the second cast with the spin rod, 3″ shad. Immediately switched to the fly pole, got two more trout and a red blind-casting with a red-over-white Clouser Minnow, which was the fly du jour. I was wading here and at all the other spots but one. Bite stopped- on to the next spot.

The next spot coughed up four equally nice trout, all on fly. Bite stopped- keep moving.

The next place was fished from the kayak with the spin rod. Five trout, all larger than their predecessors.

The next place did not produce a thing. But the one after that produced a flounder, a ladyfish, a solid redfish and a small puffer.

The final spot gave up a half-dozen trout. So far, the day is pretty awesome.

I tried sight-fishing from the kayak on the way back, saw five reds, did not come close to getting a shot at any of them. But had zero reason to complain. The boat was loaded up around 1530.

That’s the One Mosquito Lagoon Day Report. As always, thanks for reading!

Every day is a blessing. Don’t waste it- Go fishing! Go paddling! Go for a walk! Stay active!

John Kumiski
www.johnkumiski.com
www.spottedtail.com
www.spottedtail.com/blog

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, © John Kumiski 2024. All rights are reserved.

Filed Under: central florida destinations, Mosquito Lagoon Fishing Report, Paddle Fishing Florida · Tagged: fly fishing mosquito lagoon, kayak fishing mosquito lagoon, Rodney Smith

Two Econ Days Fishing Report

May 19, 2024 by john kumiski · Leave a Comment

Two Econ Days Fishing Report

Thank you for reading this Two Econ Days Fishing Report. This week we are in the Florida summer, including the lightning storms. Time to play Dodge the Lightning Bolts, always an exciting game!

Subscribers without photos- go to https://www.spottedtail.com/blog/, please.

Monday

This reporter floated the Econlockhatchee in his homemade canoe. The gauge was at 1.4 feet. I had to get out several times to drag over or around obstacles or low water. Fishing was, in spite of the algae bloom (which is still there but looks much better), pretty good.

Tuesday

There were 20 knot winds accompanied by a nice storm. I went to Tosahatchee and the Orlando Wetlands Park. No fishing was done, but there was a little photography.

Incoming!

Four-spotted skimmer male.

Whistling duck.

Take a guess!

Wednesday

It rained like it meant it for a good portion of the day. I stayed home and tied flies much of the day. Just what I needed- more flies! The Econ gauge currently reads (Thursday evening) 2.3 feet and the water is still rising. The rain has put the river up almost a foot, and it’s still going up. Is fly fishing there done for the year? Another week should tell.

Friday

Friends Dean and Phil Altenhofen, brothers from out west, came in for two days of fishing on Friday. We went to Mosquito Lagoon. The weather forecast could hardly have been more wrong. The sky had overcast, which got thicker and thicker until this happened-

Then it rained, of course, and the predicted 5 knot winds became 15. We bailed, with Phil having gotten a single puffer.

Saturday

With a 70 percent probability of thunderstorms, we floated the Econlockhatchee. It was a foot higher than it had been on Monday. Had the place to ourselves. We brought raincoats, so it didn’t rain. These guys don’t bass fish (Phil had never caught one), so it took them a little while to figure out where to put the gurglers and how to work them. But they did. We had a great time, and even saw a few alligators.

Dean.

Phil.

Phil again.

Thanks for coming, gentlemen! Let’s do it again!

That’s the Two Econ Days fishing report. Thanks again for reading!

This week’s cartoon!

Every day is a blessing. Don’t waste it- Go fishing! Go paddling! Go walking! Stay active!

John Kumiski
www.johnkumiski.com
www.spottedtail.com
www.spottedtail.com/blog

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, © John Kumiski 2024. All rights are reserved.

Filed Under: central florida destinations, central florida fishing report, Fishing Reports, Paddle Fishing Florida · Tagged: bass fishing econlockhatchee, fly fishing for bass, fly fishing mosquito lagoon, orlando wetlands park, tosahatchee wma

Bamboozled by Bass Fishing Report

March 1, 2024 by john kumiski · Leave a Comment

Bamboozled by Bass Fishing Report

Thank you for reading this Bamboozled by Bass Fishing Report. Expectations- one thing you should never bring on a fishing trip.

Subscribers without photos- go to https://www.spottedtail.com/blog/, please.

Sunday I went to Buck Lake. I brought no expectations there, haven’t ever since the FWC went on their wild herbicide spraying spree and ruined the fishing there. But I still feel compelled to check it once or twice a year to see if it’s recovered at all. It has not. I got three dink bass and what turned out to be the fish of the week for me, a bowfin of three pounds or so. It declined to be photographed, but I have a photo of my feeble attempt. At least the weather was awesome.

Attempting to corral a mudfish. Didn’t happen.

Monday morning I drove to Ocala National Forest, which is where I carried my expectations. Having visited twice before and done well, the assumption was that history would repeat itself. Caleb Vogl came up Tuesday to fish with me. Wednesday he caught the fish of the trip, a two-and-a-half-pound largemouth. He was happy!

Caleb on Alexander Springs Run.

In three days of fishing, I got two dink bass on fly and a number of other dink bass on soft plastics. To no one’s surprise, my expectations were not met. You would think after a lifetime of fishing, I would know better.

Caleb again, with the fish of the trip, 2.5 pounds on his scale.

The coolest thing that happened? A dragonfly naiad climbed onto my boat to emerge. I photographed the beast swelling its wings next to the exuvium. It sat there until it could fly; then, ZOOM! Off it went. I had always wanted to see that.

A freshly molted dragonfly, with the discarded exuvium. Sorry about the background, but my kayak is yellow.

The trip was certainly enjoyable. The weather was wonderful, the lakes gorgeous. Got to see some stars! And Caleb is pretty entertaining! Not discouraged, I’m already planning another trip there.

And that, folks, is the Bamboozled by Bass fishing report. Thanks again for reading!

Every day is a blessing. Don’t waste it- Go fishing! Go paddling! Go camping! Stay active!

John Kumiski
www.johnkumiski.com
www.spottedtail.com
www.spottedtail.com/blog

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, © John Kumiski 2024. All rights are reserved.

Filed Under: central florida destinations, Fishing Reports, Paddle Fishing Florida · Tagged: buck lake wma, florida bass fishing, kayak bass fishing, ocala national forest

No Fishing Report

February 23, 2024 by john kumiski · Leave a Comment

No Fishing Report

Thank you for reading this No Fishing Report. Small craft advisories, cold, and workmen at my house kept me off the water. On the bright side, I did tie, and test, some new flies.

Subscribers without photos- go to https://www.spottedtail.com/blog/, please.

I watched a video in which the narrator used an offset bass worm hook to tie a fly. I was, “Why haven’t I thought of that??” I got to work, making a few bunny strip eelworms, among other things.

A trip to the local retention pond to test the fly brought an immediate strike and a small bass to hand. Well, dang! This thing seems to work!

To make this fly, you need the hook, of course, and some magnum bunny strips, and some tying thread. After that, everything is an option.

I put the hook in the vise and started the thread. The hook I used didn’t have much of a neck, so the thread was wrapped around the bend. Then, I measured the bunny strip against the hook, and used an awl to poke a hole in the strip. The hook point was then inserted through that hole. The strip was cut at the tie-in point on the neck of the hook, and then tied in. Whip finish, finis! A true five-minute fly!

To some I added bead chain eyes, or a hackle collar. To one a rattle, to one a willow-leaf spinner. I haven’t tested the variants, but intend to next week.

A half-dozen bass gurglers got tied up, too. I already know how well those work!

Saturday, I joined the Oviedo Photo Club for a field trip to the Orlando Wetlands Park. It was good. I learned some stuff and met some nice new (to me) people. And I got some photos, too. See below.

As usually happens in places like this, you can get a severe case of lens envy.

Red-shouldered hawk.

Pied-billed grebe.

Great blue heron, roosting.

Dabbling ducks.

A poser!

This is what all those guys in the first shot were shooting, a sandhill crane and its chick.

And that, folks, is the no fishing report. I promise, there will be some fishing next week. Thanks again for reading!

Every day is a blessing. Don’t waste it- Go fishing! Go paddling! Go camping! Stay active!

John Kumiski
www.johnkumiski.com
www.spottedtail.com
www.spottedtail.com/blog

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, © John Kumiski 2024. All rights are reserved.

Filed Under: central florida destinations, Fishing Reports, Flies and Fly Tying · Tagged: flies for bass, fly tying

Boreas Still Here, No Fishing. And Merry Christmas!

December 23, 2023 by john kumiski · 2 Comments

Boreas Still Here, No Fishing. And Merry Christmas!

Last week I wrote about Boreas, god of winds. Boreas still here, and again, no fishing. The Econ gauge as I write this is just under 12 feet, the Haulover Canal gauge at 1.5 feet, so fishing would likely be a waste even if I were to brave the gale. I might be getting cabin fever…

Best wishes to everyone for a happy and healthy holiday season! Merry Christmas!

Subscribers without photos- go to https://www.spottedtail.com/blog/, please.

Great Blue Heron, Orlando Wetlands Park.

It was quite the week, though. A visit to the dermatologist to have pre-cancerous lesions frozen off my face. I remember all the fun in the sun I had for thirty years every time that happens. The winter solstice was Thursday. I love the pagan holidays! I disassembled the old camper build in my van and took halting steps towards building the new one. Rodney Smith and I took a walk at the Orlando Wetlands Park. Susan and I bought a new window install for our abode- cha-CHING! And, we had a guest blog by Julia Mitchell, enormously different than anything I might write.

Black vulture, Orlando Wetlands Park.

Purple aster, Orlando Wetlands Park.

American shad, St. Johns River.

Those of you who need fishing-related activity can take solace in the fact that the first shad to be caught in the St. Johns River will likely be caught between now and New Years Day. Dust off the shad tackle and get your flies and lures ready! Along with the shad, crappie, bluegills, a few largemouths, and if we’re lucky, those striper hybrids that Florida calls sunshine bass will be caught too!

Black crappie.

Largemouth bass, a very aggressive little one.

“Sunshine” bass, St. Johns River.

That’s the Boreas Still Here Report. Thanks for reading!

Every day is a blessing. Don’t waste it- Go fishing! Go paddling! Go on a walk! Stay active!

John Kumiski
www.johnkumiski.com
www.spottedtail.com
www.spottedtail.com/blog

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, © John Kumiski 2023. All rights are reserved.

Filed Under: central florida destinations, Uncategorized · Tagged: american shad fishing, birding orlando wetlands park, orlando wetlands park, St. Johns River, st. johns river shad

Looking for Tarpon Report

June 17, 2023 by john kumiski · Leave a Comment

Looking for Tarpon Report

Thanks for reading this Looking for Tarpon Report. Only two days this week were spent fishing, but I paddled one day, and walked another.

Happy father’s day to all the dads. The solstice is this week. Pagans, get ready to celebrate!

Subscribers without photos- go to https://www.spottedtail.com/blog/, please.

Monday I took the Bang-O-Craft (which had been very lonely) and launched at Port St. John, with intent to go looking for tarpon. It was a long shot, but I have found them around there in the past. When I went to put the trolling motor on the boat, I realized the battery was still in the garage, on the charger. At least it was fully charged! With more breeze than I expected, I did not find the tarpon this time, and didn’t find much else, either. There was nothing at the power station.

I pulled the boat and drove up to Titusville, where I launched it again. I poled a long way and did not see much, except at one spot, where I managed to get a nice red on a plastic shad, and two snooklets on fly. No skunk for me this day.

Tuesday morning Tom Van Horn picked me up, then drove to Port Canaveral and launched his boat. We went north up the beach, looking for tarpon. We found and netted menhaden, which was the highlight of the trip as far as fishing goes. Although we saw a handful of tarpon roll, we drove home reeking of skunk.

Wednesday morning I paddled my canoe around Lake Mills. The cypress trees are gorgeous, and I spend a couple minutes observing an otter. Didn’t see much rooted vegetation (other than trees) in the water, or any fish. Wasn’t expecting tarpon there, though.

Wasn’t expecting tarpon at the wetlands park either, where I went walking Saturday morning.

Green heron.

White ibis, adult and juvenile.

Anhinga.

Four-spotted pennant on pickerelweed.

Four-spotted pennant on arrowhead (Sagittaria).

That’s the looking for tarpon report. Thanks for reading!

Every day is a blessing. Don’t waste it- Go fishing! Go paddling! Take a walk! Stay active!

John Kumiski
www.johnkumiski.com
www.spottedtail.com
www.spottedtail.com/blog

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2023. All rights are reserved.

Filed Under: central florida destinations, central florida fishing report, Fishing Reports · Tagged: Indian River Lagoon, orlando wetlands park, Port Canaveral, tarpon fishing

Mosquito and Indian River Lagoons Report

May 26, 2023 by john kumiski · Leave a Comment

Mosquito and Indian River Lagoons Report

Thank you for reading this Mosquito and Indian River Lagoons Report. There was rain and lightning every day this week, making fishing more interesting. Nothing like playing hide-and-seek with giant sparks to make fishing seem less important! In spite of that, a few fish were caught.

It’s Memorial Day weekend. Spend a moment or two silently, thinking about how lucky you are that thousands and thousands of Americans died fighting for your liberty. They deserve that much, at the very least.

The week started with a walk at the Orlando Wetlands Park. Wildlife doesn’t come any more accessible than at this artificial wetlands, where there is no admission fee.

Bullfrog.

Cooter turtle.

Night heron.

Great blue heron.

Roseate spoonbill.

Four-spotted pennant, ♀︎.

Sandhill crane.

Scott Radloff joined me for a paddle day on Mosquito Lagoon. I was hoping for great things. It was not to be. Scott got a couple trout. I stank like a skunk all afternoon. Lightning drove us off the water. We took the opportunity to cruise Biolab Road, the first time I’ve seen the south end of the lagoon for a long time. The water was fairly clear, but we did not see any fish, or fishermen.

I went solo to the Indian River Lagoon one day. Since I was greeted by a rainbow, you could guess what the weather was like. A red on fly, another on spin, and jumped a small tarpon with a fly. Off the water by noon, more than slightly damp.

Met some folks crabbing while checking out some old fishing spots. They were having good luck!

Passionflower, Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge.

Who can tell me what this is?

That’s the Mosquito and Indian River Lagoons Report. Thanks for reading!

Every day is a blessing. Don’t waste it- Go fishing! Go paddling! Take a walk! Stay active!

John Kumiski
www.johnkumiski.com
www.spottedtail.com
www.spottedtail.com/blog

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2023. All rights are reserved.

Filed Under: central florida destinations, central florida fishing report, Fishing Reports · Tagged: Indian River Lagoon, kayak fishing, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, orlando wetlands park, wildlife photography

Fishing and Paddling Around Central Florida Report and Photo Essay

May 7, 2023 by john kumiski · Leave a Comment

Fishing and Paddling Around Central Florida Report and Photo Essay

Fortunately, I got out paddling and walking this week. The weather, so unpredictable last week, was splendid every day. And it’s officially tarpon season, not that I’ll be going. No boat 🙁

Subscribers- no photos? https://www.spottedtail.com/blog . Please bookmark the page!!!

Monday and Tuesday I went paddle fishing on Mosquito Lagoon. I could be verbose, but will let the photos do the work. The water was clean and the seagrass was thick!!!