Lakeland Fishing Charters & Guides

Lakeland Fishing Charters

Lakeland is aptly named. The area to the north, south and east are packed with lakes that offer excellent freshwater fishing opportunities. With just a short drive west, you can be parked at a marina on Tampa Bay to try your hand at saltwater fishing. Lakeland fishing charters make sure that your time spent on the water is an experience to remember. East of Tampa and southwest of Orlando, Lakeland offers fast access to the Gulf of Mexico, Disney, Universal Orlando and Legoland. Located just outside the metropolitan areas of Orlando and Tampa means accommodations for visitors are more reasonable than the resorts or the major cities. While you fish, the rest of the family can take in the sights. Or, take your group fishing and then go see the attractions. It’s a win-win.

Lakeland Largemouth Bass

While Florida is most known in the angling world for its saltwater fishing, remember the Sunshine State is also the native home of the Florida strain largemouth bass. The current world-record bass are from the Florida strain. Old Bucketmouth is one of the top gamefish in the world and landing a double-digit lunker is a bucket list fish. You can make that happen in Lakeland. Largemouth bass are aggressive fish and pretty easy to catch, at least when they are young and unlearned. After they put on a few years, and are caught and released a few times, they are harder to catch. The best way to connect with a largemouth bass is live bait. Big shad, or shiners, crayfish and salamanders, if you can find them, will make even the most lock-jawed bass change his mind. Spinnerbaits are a top producer all year long in Florida because the water rarely gets cold enough to slow the bass down a lot. Other artificial lures you need to have are plastic worms and lizards and crankbaits. The real trick is choosing the right color. Bass' choices change with the water. Lakeland fishing charters guides know their waters and know the lure and colors the fish want.

Lakeland Panfish

Panfish in Florida are the bream species and crappie. Sometimes called speckled or white perch, crappie (pronounced CROP-ee) are a schooling fish that love cover. Once you find one, more are definitely nearby. A lot of veteran anglers look forward to the two weeks after Christmas. They ride neighborhoods looking for Christmas trees which they drop in lakes. These trees provide cover for fry and minnows which in turn attract speckled perch. Long poles with a pencil-like cork and a minnow on the hook at the end of the line catch more crappie than anything else. Small jigs and spinnerbaits, with or without a minnow, are the next best producer. Tiny silver-body crankbaits also pull in their fair share of this fish. Expert crappie anglers line the boat with poles and rods and reels. This setup can be trolled or fished over one spot. Crappie are a lot like grouper in one respect. When they are holding on structure, you have to be right on them. One side of the boat is non-stop action and the other side gets nothing. Bream are just fun to catch and eat. With generous creel limits and non-stop action, bream are the perfect fish to start young anglers on their lifelong journey. Cane poles with crickets or worms as bait guarantee hours of fun. Pro tip, when cleaning bream for the table, remove the fins from the back. This makes a difference in how the fish tastes after cooking, especially in big bream.

Tenoroc

The Tenoroc Fish Management Area merits discussion for several reasons. 1) Phosphate. The area has 14 reclaimed phosphate mining pits turned into public fishing areas from 7 to 227 acres. The phosphate leaching into the water fertilizes the water and spurs fish growth like few other things can. The area is recognized by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission as one of the state's top 10 areas to catch lunker bass. 2) Limited access. Access to the Tenoroc fishing area is limited. Once each lake has a limit of anglers, that is it for the day. No Jet Skis or other recreational boaters to deal with, so you can have a peaceful day on the water. 3) No weekends. The area is open to fishing only Monday-Friday. That means no weekend crowds seeking relief from a 9-5 workday. Tenoroc is located just outside of Lakeland, northeast of the city.

Book A Lakeland Fishing Charter

Because of its location to some of the world's greatest theme parks, Lakeland is a destination for the whole family. Guides are on the nearby lakes pretty much every day of the year, weather depending. Find a local Lakeland guide that is ready to take your group for a day of great freshwater fishing.