Sailfish City - Stuart Florida Community Site

City of Stuart, Florida Events for the month of April:

April 3rd, 2008
Art Council Gallery Nights
5:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Downtown Stuart
772-287-6676

April 6th, 2008
Riverwalk Jazz Series
Riverwalk Stage
Downtown Stuart
1:00 PM - 4:00 PM
772-370-4571

April 17th, 2008
Stuart Stroll
Downtown Stuart
6:00 PM - 9:00 PM

March 2008 - The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission released their list of recommended destinations for anglers looking for the thrill of catching freshwater bass.  According to the latest national statistics, there are more than 30 million anglers,10 million of whom specifically pursue freshwater bass.  Florida has four species of freshwater or black bass: largemouth, spotted, Suwannee and shoal.  Of the four, largemouth bass are by and large the most common bass in Florida, since they can be found in abundance in most of Florida’s 10,550 miles of rivers, streams and creeks or in its 7,000-plus lakes.

Based on various data along with the sites ability to handle the fishing pressure with adequate ramps and fishing access, the FWC compiles a list of top destinations.  Below is 2008’s list, in no particular order.

• Lake George is the second-largest lake in the state with 46,000 acres and located 18 miles northwest of Deland.
• Lake Tohopekaliga (18,810 acres), also known as Lake “Toho,” is adjacent to the City of Kissimmee in Central Florida.
• Lake Kissimmee (35,000 acres) is nationally renowned for consistently producing high-quality fishing.
• Rodman Reservoir, east of Gainesville and south of Palatka, covers 9,500 acres of prime largemouth bass habitat.
• Lake Tarpon (2,500 acres) is near Tampa/St. Petersburg in Pinellas County.
• Lake Weohyakapka, commonly known as Lake Walk-in-Water (7,500 acres), is south of Orlando and east of Lake Wales.
• Lake Istokpoga (28,000 acres) is situated in Highlands County between U.S. 27 and U.S. 98 south of Sebring.
• Deer Point Lake is a 5,000-acre impoundment north of Panama City and is fed by natural freshwater streams.
• The Suwannee River is a pristine, blackwater stream that flows 213 miles within Florida from a swampy region near the Georgia border to the Gulf of Mexico.
• The Everglades Water Conservation Areas are South Florida marshlands intersected with over 200 miles of canals.
• Crescent Lake is a 15,725-acre lake near Crescent City on the Putnam/Flagler county line.
• The 7,300-acre Tenoroc Fish Management Area near Lakeland provides a special opportunity to bass fish in Florida’s famous phosphate pits.
• Mosaic Fish Management Area (1,000 acres) includes 12 phosphate pits from 10 to 200 acres each, with depths down to 30 feet.

Notably missing from this list is ‘The Big O’.  Lake Okeechobee covers 450,000 acres and is often a top choice in the nation for largemouth bass fishing.  The aquatic plant life that makes Lake Okeechobee a prime habitat for largemouth bass has been severely damaged by prolonged high water levels, agricultural pollution runoff and the hurricanes of ‘04 and ‘05.  There are still bass to be caught in Lake O, but until the damage can be repaired, there are many other destinations anglers can choose from.

And remember what they say, ‘A bad day fishing is better than a good day working’.  Good luck and be safe!