September 2024
It was a month of desire to visit, on Kit Lake my home water in central Florida's largemouth bass country. Our friends changed, situations changed on and around our lake, and we wanted to visit both.
At the start of the month, heavy rains continued to fill and clear our lake, creating more hunting spots for bluegill in one to eight feet of water. The heavy rains spread lily pad fields, pickerelweed, and cattails. Bluegill were around these deeper spots, but the most success was found in grassy areas newly covered with water.
Temperatures moderated. Pre-sunrise temperatures became near comfortable. So, the early risers found success. Also, moderate temperatures allowed those with open calendars to keep fishing through the afternoon. Fish turned on as rain and shade came and went during the day and could be caught on smaller subsurface flies like hare’s ear nymphs, and even grass shrimp imitations down to size 14. In the evening, something approaching coolness made Golden Hour fishing pleasant. Our resident philosopher found success casting poppers until dark.
Bass, in their summer dark phase, were less active but present offshore. Some anglers found them with light colored baitfish flies like whistlers or OB’s unicorn Clouser.
Our month ended with Hurricane Helene. This historic storm impacted central Florida lightly, putting the fish down for a few days. But it has caused great damage from west Florida to the Appalachians. As we all wait for news from friends in the path Helene, let’s look for ways to support those communities in need.
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