July Lake Toho fishing report

It’s the middle of the summer and we’re in what I believe is the secret best big bass time of year. While it is widely known that the best time to catch big bass in Florida is during the winter when things cool down. Nearly everyone I know who lives here has caught their BIGGEST during the summer, including myself. All between June-September. We catch a lot of 8-10 pound bass in the winter but it always seems like the heat of the summer is when the ones over 10 pounds are caught. All of the lakes 3 biggest bass that have been caught were caught at this time. The 17lb lake record, the 16lb that Ed Chancey caught, and the 15lb caught by Captain Jamie Jackson. I wanted to start with this because every year at this time, I get excited.

Now lets get into whats happening. The fish have been doing exactly what you expect them to be doing at this time of year, which is much the same as last months fishing report. The best bite has been in the morning. They condense most of their feeding into the morning hours at this time of year. The fishing has been fast early and then slowing to a steady bite after the first two hours.

After 11am the bite slows dramatically unless you have a cloudy day. Plus it starts getting hot by then so you’re done also. They’re in basically 4 different things. 1. Running water 2. Hydrilla 3. Shell beds 4. Brush piles.

Running water: The locks on all of the lakes are full open right now with all of the rain we’ve been getting, which means fish are stacked up in the cooler water flowing in these areas. You can catch them fast and quick early in the morning for basically the first two hours using crankbaits, topwaters (if they’re busting the top), jerkbaits, and weigthless flukes. The problem with these areas is that their are a lot of smaller fish. Don’t get me wrong you can pop off a 7 or 8 pounder randomly but the majority will all be around 2 pounds.
Hydrilla: Much of the fishing at this time of year is focused around the hydrilla. Any hydrilla outside of the Kissimmee grass lines will hold fish. It’s as simple as that. Whether it’s off-shore or near the grass lines their will be fish in it. It’s just a matter of how much and where they are in it. And the best way to find that out is by fishing. Speedworms, frogs(this is the best time of year to throw a frog), chatterbaits, and swimjigs have all been working.
Shell beds: Now shell beds can be tricky. They can be tough to find and they usually only bite for the first 2 hours in the morning and then they’re done so you’ve got a short window to catch them. But if you can find one you can really catch them right now. July is without a doubt the best month for shell bed fishing. Both numbers of fish and big fish will be in these areas. They can be caught off of soft plastic worms(or any finesse worm), rattletraps, or topwater if they’re busting the top.
Brush piles: Brush piles are like shell beds in the sense that they are hard to find. There are some that are marked with buoys but all of the best ones are unmarked. Once you find some though this is where your best late morning-mid day day bite is going to be. Worms, jigs, and crankbaits have all been working.
To sum it all up this is the time of year where you may just catch some of the biggest bass in the lake, and the hydrilla, shell beds, and brush piles are where you’ve got your best chance to catch one.

Bass wishes,

Capt. AJ