Lake Ida Fishing Charters 

Told Mike I was looking for peacock bass. He takes us up to a stop and says they should be here. He threw a line in and within 10 seconds had a peacock on. We stopped by a spot to catch a clown knife fish, I managed to get a bite but it slipped off before I could get it to the boat. We ended up crushing it, hitting a spot where me and my wife (has never caught a fish) pulled in 6 peacocks within minutes. Mike knows the water, he's very easy going and made it a blast. 10/10 would recommend! True local legend. Thanks again!

I rated my charter with Captain Mike 5 stars, only because the ratings don’t go any higher. I would HIGHLY recommend this charter to anyone looking to catch exotics. Mike met me in the morning and already had a boatload of bait. We were quickly at the first spot and catching Peacocks. Laughably we thought we would keep track of how many peacocks were landed. We lost track after (I think) 12 in the first hour. We ended the day with around 50 peacocks, 4 or 5 Mayan cichlid, a few largemouth, 1 gar and ended the day with about a 6 pound snakehead. We were literally on fish all day and as soon as the bite would start to slow Mike had another spot to go to that was just as good. I don”t think you’ll find someone who knows the water better or could put you on fish faster.

We set out in search of a good sized clown knife fish and Captain Mike knew where to go. He was knowledgeable, fun, smart and attentive. Made sure we were on the fish as quickly as possible and made sure we had a great time. As you can see by the pictures I got a couple of nice clowns but we also caught multiple peacocks, some stripers and some largemouth as well. It was a little slower than usual due to water conditions and wind conditions but Captain Mike still made sure we caught many fish. I would definitely recommend his charter. His boat was great also. We got where we wanted to get very quickly as we skimmed across the lake. Highly recommend!!! Thanks Mike! We will be back!

I booked Lake Ida fishing charters last minute the day before the trip. I’ve been visiting Florida from Ontario Canada for years and always wanted to catch some Peacock Bass. I booked this charter based on the reviews and my experience was 5 star just like previous reviews. Captain Mike took us right to one of his hot spots, not 5 minutes later my son had caught his first peacock bass. Not long after I was into one, we hauled in probably 25 fish at that spot before moving to another hot spot in search of a big Peacock. Mike knows that water system well and as expected we tied into a beautiful sized Peacock. My son also lost one there that was quite obviously larger than any we had managed to land. In 4 hours we caught likely somewhere in the neighborhood of 35 fish easy, including a crappie and the occasional Mayan cichlids. If we were content to keep catching the 1.5-2 lb peacocks we probably could have bagged 40. Not sure I could find a complaint about this trip if I tried. The boat is perfect, huge decks and smooth, bait was fresh and lively and to cap it all off, Mike is an interesting guy who was great to hang out with for a morning. I’d recommend this charter to anyone looking to experience fishing in the area.

Greetings! We were on a half day trip with Captain Mike of Lake Ida Fishing Charters on Thursday, January 5. We arrived just a few minutes before the agreed time and Mike was there with his boat, ready to go. He had already been out cast netting a good supply of shad for bait. He welcomed us aboard and within about 15 minutes we had negotiated the canal system to a bridge he wanted to try first and had lines in the water and were catching fish. Largemouth and peacock bass. We fished around the bridge and while we were all catching fish, they weren't very big. We tried another spot for a few minutes with no luck, then moved to another place and began catching much larger peacock bass and largemouth bass. My wife caught the trophy of the day...a good sized clown knife fish. We caught a couple of cichlids also. Really a good variety of fish. Captain Mike was very friendly, polite and accommodating. He knows his business and won't give up. He'll put you on the fish! His tackle was good quality and he doesn't waste time. When I broke off a leader, he just handed me another rod, rigged and baited. I was back to fishing while he rigged a new leader and hook. We can highly recommend Captain Mike and we WILL be returning in the future. Lake Ida was one of the fishing spots on "our list" to try, and we will be back! Thank you, Mike!

I asked Capt. Mike if we could target clown knifefish and we caught 7 as well as some Mayan cichlids and largemouth bass. A great day of fishing and he taught me a lot about south Florida fishing and catching bait with a cast net. A great guide and a terrific fishing trip.

After 9 years in Delray we finally Decided to try freshwater fishing. The experience w Capt Mike was awesome. We fished parts of the lake and canal system that I never expected to see and we caught peacock bass, large mouth bass and cichlids. We are hooked and can’t wait for our next trip. On a personal level, Capt Mike is patient, easy going, and the most relaxed Capt on the water, fresh or salt! The only bummer is he has a pretty full calendar😎 Thanks again for a great day.

We randomly booked a last minute afternoon charter with Mike. I don’t think I could have found a better guide even if I had done my due diligence. He was great with my 8 year old nephew and put us on fish despite tough conditions. Top notch! Do not hesitate to book a trip with him.

First time fishing with Captain Mike and won’t be the last. He put us on fish all morning and was a blast to be around. I highly recommend lake ida charters if it’s your first time fishing or if you’ve been wetting a hook for 30 years. 10 stars!

Captain Mike is very knowledgeable about the fish in Lake Ida. He is so patient with our child who is a beginner fisher women. The boat was clean and looked new. I would highly recommend this captain for your next adventure.