April 2022
It was a refreshing month of action on Kit Lake, my home water, in central Florida’s largemouth bass country.
Operative Managers got busy creating lofty titles for themselves. But they didn’t claim those titles in certain introductions.
The natural life on Kit Lake was active too. Mockingbirds nested in a high and dry hibiscus in the northeast corner. And Mallards paired up in a little bay nearby, but Mrs. Bunch looked at the nest so much that we worried. The air was clear of pollen again and the Live Oaks in the distance looked like emerald spheres. Between the seasons of humid pollen and true heat, this April gave anglers reason for action.
Energetic bass burst out of their post spawn rest and bit flies of any description that we cast in the best areas. As that was the case, this was a time fly anglers had an advantage over hardware anglers. The edges near plants and drop-offs were important holding spots. And because the heat was gentle, moving water was more important than shade. So, we didn’t need to present our flies all the way back to the boat like the hardware guys. In these locations, woolly boogers, undecorated or with weight, drew strikes by imitating the young fish that were in all the shallows. Big yellow and green grasshoppers flited near the water, so gaudy deer hair poppers, presented at moderate speeds like grasshoppers drowning, got hit too.
With fish no longer distracted by each other April was a great time to cast flies. And to spot locations that will hold fish in the coming hotter months.
