Definitely a Suwannee bass, it's a special Florida species. Very similar to a smallmouth in my opinion. We do not have smallmouth in Florida. At least none that I am aware of.
Love the video has definitely given me some ideas for my 50 mile Suwannee kayak trip next year. watching your video and recognizing some of the same landmarks was definitely cool for me
Thank you so much, feel blessed to have this river so close by. Thanks for watching and commenting. Subscribe of you have not already, I'll have another video soon fishing this river.
Smart man being cautious with those treble hooks especially on something with the length of the whopper plopper. Had a bass kick right before I got to lip him inwas on shore and he was on the ground and he swung the back end that treble went right through my finger. Passed the barb. Now were attached. Finallyngotnhim home but didnt have the tools to cut the hook so had to drive about a half hour home with a whopper plopper hanging out of my finger.
Thanks for commenting, subscribing and stopping by. I have a lot more videos planned in the future, several on different spots of the Suwannee as well.
Definitely one of my biggest, it was an odd day for sure. I typically do not catch that many. Especially on top water,thanks for watching and commenting.
Fished this river my whole life so you have to get used to throwing in pockets, under limbs and in rock cracks. I rarely ever cast overhead due to all the trees.
Great video! We catch a lot of shoal bass here in Ga they are a lot like the Suwannee bass if your ever in Georgia try the flint river above Macon and the Ocmulgee river below Jackson lake. Good fishing!
I believe we have shoal bass here as well, not sure if I have ever caught any. Some of these species are very similar and hard to tell apart. Thanks for watching!
Something I have noticed about a lot of folks that run trolling motors while bassin is they are extremely impatient, probably losing more catch opportunities than their catches. Working the same areas right behind an impatient troller, using a paddle and a => crappie jig
Very true. I wish my trolling motor allowed me to troll at .15 mph. I’ve thought about buying another prop for the trolling motor and cutting half the blade off so it wouldn’t move as much water
I have fished the Suwannee River many many times and I have only ever caught one Suwannee Bass.I only Bass fish and most of my fishing has been from the town of Suwannee to back up the river 5 or 6 miles and in the small creeks that line the river. It is a beautiful fishery as is the Sante Fe which I have also fished several times and I have never caught even one Suwannee Bass there? I am a big time Spinnerbait fisherman and the one I have caught was on a worm as I recall.
I love fishing the lower Suwannee, it's a beautiful place and completely different from the middle and upper river. I believe the Suwannee bass prefer rocks and limestone areas not found so much on the lower Suwannee. They are still not a common catch in my area as well. I have a river I fish in NW Florida that is loaded with them. I plan on doing a video on the lower Suwannee at some point.
The majority of the success that I have had catching Suwannee bass are around rocks. Now that's not to say that the don't hang out in the cover and around cypress trees.
Dang! The hook on those Chatterbaits are too darn big! Started making my own for where there are smaller fish. Good video though. 👍 Looks like beautiful country.
If you look on Google maps just North East of a little town called Mayo you will see it. Hard to explain otherwise, in the middle of nowhere. And yes several miles above Branford. Thanks for watching and commenting.
I am familiar with that what I call the “upper” river where at normal level the river is quite treacherous to navigate due to the rocks. Your correct that the very hazards to boating the upper river creates some great low pressure fishing. Thank you for the reply.
Yes its quite dangerous, that section I'm fishing in this video has a rock shoal about every 1/2 mile. You better know exactly where you are going. Luckily for me I have fished here for over 30 years and I am very familiar with it. As you pointed out, hardly ever any boat traffic in this area. When the river gets low there is amazing fishing in all the eddies created by these rock shoals.
I bought two whooper plopper for $20 a piece and only used it a couple of times. Last time I used it. I threw it out and it flying off my line and haven’t used it since I got it back lol
Some buddies and I are heading down the Suwannee end of August on a canoe trip. Putting in around White Springs. Ant recommendations, or tips on what the fish are bitin on? Thanks man!
I have not fished it in a while. By far the best fishing on the river is for red breast sunfish. A good ol Johnsons beetle spin will catch you some bass and bream. Green pumpkin zoom trick worm weightless has caught me a lot of bass on that river too.
Yeah the hook is huge, still sticks out plenty even with a big trailer bait on it. I honestly can't remember the name, but pretty sure I bought them from academy outdoors. Thanks for watching and commenting.
Hey buddy, went home and checked for you. On the blade it says it's the original chatterbait. So I guess that's it, the one and only original. Hope that helps.
Yeah, the absolute best month of bass fishing around here, which is April, also happens to be turkey season. So most "sportsmen" take that month to hunt. More big spawning bass for me
I'm going to make one soon since I've had a few people ask. It's a 14ft wigeon duck boat with a 12hp copperhead mud motor. 55lb thrust motorguide on the front. Very small but stable boat, I use it for hunting and obviously fishing too. I'll work on a video soon. Thanks for watching and commenting.
grew up in DIXIE COUNTY love fishing that river also has some amazing pan fishing as well if u can get some BIG shinners go down around yellow jacket an hang on loved ur video gotta get me a whopper plug .
I don't know of any in my area, plenty of saltwater guides as everyone has went saltwater crazy here over the years. The lower Suwannee (which is beautiful) has a few guides I think.
Hey I appreciate it, just having fun on the river and trying to save what started out to be a bad morning for hunting. Thanks for watching and commenting.
Love it, goes anywhere I want it to. Gives me access to places others can't fish. You just have to get use to no neutral and reverse. It's not as bad as you think, especially on a smaller boat. Just use a paddle or trolling motor to reverse or to turn around in tight spots.
Definitely much more convenient than a long tail. Zero issues with the drive, however when I first bought it in 2016 the motor was acting up. Dealer could not get it adjusted right, so they put a brand new motor on it no questions asked. Excellent customer service! New motor has been flawless.
Thanks for info. Putting together river boat for down here in Hernando County on the Withlacoochee River. I’m gonna have to come up and check out that Wicassa River once my boat is done and I’ve always wanted to catch some Shoals bass in the Suwannee River. Great videos and I subscribed.
Funny thing is we have a withlachoochee river up here that runs into the Suwannee. You'll love the wacissa, these little boats are perfect for it. Thanks for subscribing!
Or I should have actually had my pliers ready to go 😁. This was a size 90, I see the 75 on my radar soon. I also have a double plopper, going to try to make a video on next week. It looks like I might actually be able to throw it around lily pads. Thanks for watching!
@@TKOutdoors I am looking at the 75s as well. I am way up in the GA mountains and we have mostly spots. Thanks for the reply. Going to try both sizes I believe.
We have some spotted bass the further west you go in North Florida. I honestly didn't even know the 75s existed until recently, looks like a perfect size for my small rivers. Love the GA mountains, especially the Helen area.
It’s a nice video, great sound too.... only thing in my opinion the retrieve is too fast. I fish the whopper half as fast and also with a few stops and is when they bite 😁❤️
The Kelley's Outdoors great man keep doing what has work for you 👍😁 is like me and my son fishing next to each other doing 2 different things and both of us catch or don’t catch, I guess is luck 👍
That was a tough day and we've all had them to be sure. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the video as well as your presentation and have subscribed. I'll fish the Suwannee someday and invite you to fish for some smallmouth with me up here in Minnesota when you can get away. Bring your Whopper Ploppers...I'm doing pretty well with them!
I would love to fish for some smallmouth, I think they are an amazing fish. I watch NDyakangler often and just love how aggressive those fish are. Ploppers seem to be a great bait for smallies. Thanks for watching and supporting the channel!
@@TKOutdoors I watch him as well...it's addicting isn't it!? He cranks out a lot of content and maintains the quality. I know of a couple of areas he fishes and look forward to a good spring. Thank you for taking time to write.
First off that is a real nice looking river! I'm a new subscriber, there is a group of us that are outdoor orientated and one member suggested we check you out. Good catching, looking forward to seeing more of your videos.
I appreciate someone suggesting our channel and your subscription/comments. I'll be sure to check your channel out. I have plenty more videos already in the works, fishing should heat up as the weather does.
Both are LEWS combos. Very affordable and I love the way they cast. One is the American series that academy outdoors has on sale right now for $ 59.99. That's as cheap as I have ever seen this combination. The other is the speed spool combo I bought several years ago from West marine. Have held up great for me over the years.
You did really well casting near shore without catching a tree! I'm not that good believe me! Not that lucky putting my thumbs that close to treble hooks! They hurt up until the doctor numbs it in the emergency room!😀
We don't actually have smallmouth here, those are Suwannee bass. However they sure look like a close relative to me, they must be in the same family. They fight so hard for their size, a treat to catch for sure. Thanks for commenting and subscribing.
ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-ZbgvcZqsJMU.html check that video out, I catch a few more in this river. They are only found in just a few rivers in Florida and South Georgia.
The Kelley's Outdoors only two places in the world to catch a Suwannee Bass.The Suwannee River and the Santa Fe River. It is as close as we get to a Smallmouth Bass in Florida along with a Redeye Bass.
@@1OFGODSOWN they are also in the St mark's, Aucilla and Wacissa rivers. I catch them all the time in those other rivers. Watch some of my other videos, I have several on film even though they are small.
Yes it is! It isn't about the catching as much as it it is the being outdoors and relaxing. It's about the experience, the same reason people spend thousands on vacations, expensive dinners ect. I have fish in the freezer, otherwise I would gladly take some home.
It's a 14ft wigeon duck boat built by Cody Reese on Lake Miccosoukee. Powered by a copperhead mud motor. I fish a lot of lakes with heavy vegetation, rivers with stumps, trees and rocks. These types of motors and little boats go over and through anything. Boat is very similar to a ghenooe and very stable.
I believe venom outdoors in Texas carries these boats also. Dont know if that is any closer for you. They are awesome duck hunting/little river fishing boats. I am actually considering moving up to a gator tail so we can carry extra people, but I sure do love this little boat. I have a video coming out Tuesday that will have a up close shot of the boat and motor.
I switched over to Lews a few years ago and have had great luck with them. The all black setup is a Lews speed spool and the black and blue setup is the Lews American series. Very affordable at academy outdoors.
Nope a special species called Suwannee bass, only historically found in two rivers in Florida. They are now in a few other North Florida rivers. Similar to a smallmouth in my opinion.
Never even knew suwannee bass existed before this video. I thought it was a largemouth and when he said the state record was 2 pounds I was thinking no way the florida state record largemouth is 2 pounds...probably closer to 20 pounds.
They are a very interesting bass and closely resemble smallmouth bass. The world record is 3.9 pounds if I remember correctly. They are only found in just a few rivers around here.
Suwannee does not run near Lake city, but it has its moments. Lower Suwanee near the coast is awesome, middle Suwanee is nice too, but you better learn the rock shoals.
@@TKOutdoors How do I learn the Rock Shoals? I want to go on a kayak and fish for bass obviously it would be cool if I could get a Suwanee bass and a chain pickerel
The Suwannee River is about the size of the ocean lol so it most certainly does not suck. Every river is different and the truth is they have to be practiced and learned way more than any lake.
