Winter Haven Chain of Lakes, Florida Fly Fishing Reports & Conditions
Fly Fishing Map of Winter Haven Chain of Lakes, FL
Bookmark and Share
Winter Haven Chain of Lakes, Florida Fly Fishing Reports & Conditions
My tips of the week
The topwater bite is good with olive and white being the top color picks. Reaction style lures are producing bigger bass with the hardware anglers, and fly anglers can imitate this technique. Deep is the key; we suggest Clouser Deep Minnows-White, Sexy Shad, Baby Bluegill and Chartreuse are good colors. For Larger bass-cast 10 to 30 feet out from the traditional structure. Then use a moderate retrieve to swim the clouser. Crayfish patterns in Blue/Black or Olive/Pumpkin should be fished be fished on the bottom with a slow crawl retrieve. Buck Bass are focused on grass lines and shoreline. Frogs are pushing about and laying eggs everywhere. Weedless popper and frog patterns can fish in these areas. Use a heavy leader with a fly w/weedguard to prevent getting hung. Our "Heavy Cover" leaders are ideal. The panfish will be found in shallow water, hanging around lily pads and cattails. Small foam spiders and Caddis dry flies are a good surface presentation. Small weighted black wooly buggers are always a good choice when the bluegill quit hitting topwater flies. Wilson's Bream Reaper has been catching a mess of Stink Eye Bluegill. A slow crawl works best giving the fly a chance to sit still. Even out of season, bluegill are munching on grass shrimp near the cattails. Scud patterns mimic these shrimp. Feeling hot and worn out but still want to fish? Popper/dropper tandem rig is relaxed fishing in the heat. Fish a rubber legged popper with a beaded pheasant tail or rainbow warrior-only a slow twitch. Your popper is the most sensitive indicator on the planet. Five minutes of extra slow retrieve is normal for this technique. It is easy fishing that will drive Bluegill nuts.
Fishing Conditions

Fly Fishing Winter Haven Chain of Lakes is currently Excellent

Orvis-Endorsed guides nearby:

Water flow:

Visibility: 28 inches

Water temperature at mid-day: 79 Degrees F

Water condition: Stained

Best time of day to fish: Mid Morning, Evening

Best stretch:

Best access point:

Fly fishing hatches in order of importance:

Mayflies (Hex), Dragonflies, Scuds (Grass Shrimp)

Fish species: Largemouth Bass, Panfish, Crappie, Gar, Grass Carp

Fishing season: Year Round

Nearest airport: Orlando International Airport

Winter Haven Chain of Lakes Description

The Winter Haven Chain of Lakes is a large group of around 60 different lakes located midway between Orlando and Tampa. A little less than an hours drive from either one of these metro areas you can find access via boat ramps on about a dozen of the lakes many of which are connected by a canal system allowing boaters into most all the lakes during higher water.

Most of the lakes are shallow ...

Techniques & Tips

Best techniques for the week include Technique 1) To fish Clousers deep, cast and count them down (5 to 10 seconds) then use a steady retrieve to generate a reaction strike. Try counting down 5 se, then 6 sec, them 7 sec... Add a sink tip to your line, and you can fish deeper and faster. Sink tip polyleaders can make a huge difference. Both techniques can double the depth of a clouser. If you have a Flurocarbon (Mirage) leaders, this will get the fly down compared to a mono leader. Sink Tip lines and full sinking lines take this to a new level, and are perfect on that old rod you never use anymore. Technique 2) White or olive poppers (with rubber legs,) fished slowly during low light conditions, and even during the day under shady over hang and around docks. Technique 3) Fish those big frog flies (w/weedguards) in the lily pads and grass. Use a heavy leader. This is a best bet at high noon cause they throw a huge silhouette, and bass are trying to keep cool underneath. Bass and lunch in the same place, what a concept. 4)Rubber legged spiders above or dragon/damsel fly nymphs below for Bluegill.

7-Day Forecast

Froggy mating season continues for another month. With continued heat and afternoon storms, we expect deep clouser methods to produce. Stick with scuds and dragonfly nymphs for bluegill fishing subsurface. Small foam spiders and dragonfly dries work will to tempt the bluegill and bass on the surface. Searching for areas close to deeper water will allow you to locate the fish easier. Rivers provide an excellent shelter on those windy or crowded days; however, storms have dramatically raised rivers, and we recommend shore casting only. At the time of this report: the Peace River is way above average (1093cfs, up from 80.0 CFS). Econ River near record high (900cfs from 37.7 CFS). Myakka River is way above average ( 890cfs up from 6 CFS). Hillsborough is way above average ( 285cfs up from 57CFS). Withlacoochee is above average(3 CFS). Kissimmee River near Frostproof is way above average (50cfs ups from 19.4 CFS).


Add Your Fishing Report