Grandpa Hooks a Toad

Last week Tom Gendreau loaded his son, Conner, and his Dad, Ray, into their vehicle and headed out from West Palm Beach to the Stick Marsh for a 6 hr. day of Bass fishing. Tom had contacted me about taking advantage of the summer shiner special, so we arranged to meet at the Bait Bucket at 6 am to load the bait and head out to the lake. Seven Year old Conner looked a bit sleepy but was anxious to check out the bait tanks and then get down to business.



The day looked promising as we positioned the boat at the spillway which was moving water rapidly. However we soon realized that the water supply that was coming in was of low quality and full of weedy debris that was surrounding the boat and making fishing difficult. After tangling with a couple large Gar and pulling in plenty of “salad” we decided to move out to the more open waters of Farm 13 in search of cleaner water and the thus far elusive bass.



We set up again just west of the pumphouse which was also moving water on this day. It was not long before little Conner had proudly reeled in a couple decent sized bass. In fact Conner was the man of the day as far as numbers goes as he proudly marked an x in the dust on my engine cover each time he landed a fish. By the end of their trip he had marked seven fish on his makeshift scoreboard. Conner did a great job on his own and could have marked a couple more had his luck held up.



Papa Ray, all the while had been quietly swimming his shiner and enjoying the show that Conner had been providing. Suddenly I saw his rod load up and the fight was on. After a couple of strong runs and a headshaking jump or two Ray calmly worked that fish to the side of the boat where we realized he had something really nice. The Massachusetts native had hooked the bass of his lifetime, a very nice 24” 9lb. bucket mouth.


Shortly after that, Tom hooked up with a couple nice fish in the 6 lb. range as well, showing that all these guys could fish. Three generations of Gendreau men set out for day on the water together and enjoyed every minute of it. Great job guys, I enjoyed it too!

Summer Shiner Special

Summer is here and the time is right for fishing in the heat. The inflow pipes have been open, moving water into the lake raising levels and making navigating much better. The fish remain very cooperative these days. We have had several very successful days of fishing lately. No true giants but plenty of action in the 3-5 lb. range with a few larger ones sprinkled in to keep it exciting. The rule of summer in my book is to get out there early to beat the heat and the thunderstorms. In the summer more often than not a half day is what people want, but 4 hours isn’t quite enough to thoroughly enjoy the experience. Keeping this in mind, I have gotten together with Sarah Savage of the Stick Marsh Bait Bucket to arrange for a 6 hour summertime wild shiner special. Sarah has been doing a great job making sure that she has all the quality bait & tackle that I have needed to ensure good fishing for my clients.






Here’s the deal, for $300 you and a friend (50 more if you have 2 friends) can meet me at the Bait Bucket at 6am where we will load the Velocity Bullet’s oxygenated livewell with 50 wild shiners and some ice for the drink filled cooler. Then we will head out to the lake and catch fish until 12 noon. After that you are on your own to relax in the AC somewhere and brag about the awesome fishing you just had.
Imagine the cool morning air rushing past your face as the boat hauls across the lake to a spot where the largemouths are awaiting their breakfast of shiners. The thrill of watching those balloon festooned wild shiners get nervous then devoured near the top by the hungry bass. The smile on your face posing for pictures on the www with the huge fish you just wrestled onto the boat. Not to mention the competitive juices that will flow when you angle for the bragging rights of the day by out fishing your fishing buddy. The best word to describe it is FUN. Best of all, you don’t have to be a pro to go out and catch some nice bass using this technique anyone can do it and I’ll supply everything you need.




Catch us if you can! Send me an e-mail, give me a call, or drop by the Bait Bucket and arrange for your trip today. It’s a great time to get out and enjoy the lake.