Stick Marsh & Farm 13
Capt. George Welcome
December 24, 2003
Stick Marsh-Farm 13 - Freshwater Fishing Report
To all our many friends and clients, Scott and I want to wish you a great
Holiday season and a fantastic and healthy New Year.
December has proven to be a challenge for anyone fishing on the Marsh/Farm.
Cold fronts have been nailing one after another and the wind has become a
constant companion. Multiple days of 15 to 30 MPH winds have made most trips
opting for shiners and the spillway areas have afforded protection from the icy
blasts.
Steve Perrone was the 1st out of the box on the 1st of the month and the cold
front that descended put a bit of the whammy on the bite. However, Scott and
Steve made the best of a tough situation and still had a good day fishing. They
fished the exit gate and Pin Ball alley. Most fish came from the spillway with
the shiners free-lined and on floats with floats winning for the technique of
the day.
Sam Bass and his son came down from Boone, NC for a second trip to the Marsh.
Two days of artificial fishing proved tough by Marsh standards with another cold
front slamming into south Florida. The guys landed a "hard fought for" 31 bass
for this trip with most fish coming on dark colored Senkos. Hard jerk baits also
accounted for a few. Most fish came from the south end of the Farm out in the
scattered hydrilla.
Donovan Garrison, a local from Palm Bay arrived next to toss his hat in the
ring, and him and his friend opted to go with shiners. 10-dozen shiners
accompanied Scott and them to the spillway on the south end of the Farm and all
10-dozen were gone through. It was a cold, wet, and windy but the bass decided
that today was the day to bite and kept them warm throughout the day. Most of
the bass came out in the open and not under the hyacinth. A good amount of the
days catch were in the 3-5 pound range. Big fish was 6.25 pound.
Bruce Ense, his son Matt, and friend Wyndham Hewitt arrived next. Bruce and
Windham have been with us several times and are no strangers to the big fish of
the Marsh/Farm. Opting for shiners, Scott headed south to the Farm spillway and
anchored the boat to the depth marker. Fishing the shiners free-lined out
towards the east point they stayed put until 9AM. Moving from there to the exit
gate they finished using the 10-dozen shiners. Matt showed all that he could
quickly learn to handle the bass and shiners as he came on strong catching the
big fish for the day and his biggest bass to date.
George Short and his friend Dave arrived and fished a 1/2 day with Scott using
shiners. It was their plan to get a feel for what was going on and then fish the
rest of the day on their own boat. A cold front greeted them but the wind at
least stayed down and helped to keep the comfort level up a bit. 14 bass made it
to the boat at the exit gate and then it was back to the ramp. As Scott pulled
out he noticed a good water flow from the gates in the front corner and
suggested they put their boat over there and Carolina-rig the current. The
report from them the following morning was one of good success as they boated
another 20 bass through the afternoon.
I was out and in the opposite direction with many time client Doug Gossmann
and his son Zack. Doug and his friend Mark come down from Kentucky every year
and spend several days on the Marsh/Farm with us but work kept Mark at home. We
started in the south spillway with shiners and departed after catching 4 bass in
the area. Initially we were on the west shore throwing towards the hyacinth that
filled the spillway mouth but with pickerel being the biter we decided to move
north along the grass. The activity was slow so we departed for different waters
along the south end of the Farm. By Marsh standards it was a slow day but it
provided a solid learning day for Zack who was fishing with shiners for the
first time. Big fish of the day was caught by Doug but Zack proved his mettle
ending up with the most caught for the day.
Day two for Doug and Zack was spent with Scott at the exit spillway area.
Today would prove a bit better with the processing of 8-dozen shiners and lots
of bass making their way to the boat. Good size fish was the order of the day
with many fish in the 4-5 pound range. Big fish was 6 pounder. No Marsh lunker,
but a very respectable bass for sure. Doug and Zack headed off to celebrate Xmas
with family and friends with memories of 45 bass and a great time together
on the Marsh.
With lots of trips coming up with artificial baits I went out for a short
while throwing Senkos. Heading for the south end of the Farm I picked up 16 and
then headed home just in front of a rain storm. The weatherman said very little
chance of rain and winds of 10-15. He was wrong again.
Basically, considering the weather it has been a pretty good December with
the leader fish in our $2500.00 big fish contest still holding for Mark Richards
of NJ. However there are still several days left in December to break that lead
and remember that you have through April to book a trip and be the winner.
Presently the lead fish was caught on a Senko! If your looking to get some
fishing in while visiting the family down here over the holidays we do have some
openings so give us a call and book what could very well be the fishing trip of
a lifetime.
PS: Thanks to all that have called to make sure we were just fine. With the
final steps of the move taking most of my time I have been behind on reports and
many concerned have e-mailed or called. The move is complete.
Thanks for great 2003! See you on the water and say hi if you get the chance.
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