BigBendFishing.Net

Good morning all! I have a 14' "V" hull fiberglass john boat with a 25 Evinrude. Would like to do some Trout/Red fishing somewhere that would be safe in this size boat. I normally put in at Bottoms Rd in Panacea and fish around there, but want to try some new places. Any other suggestions for an area to fish in a small boat like what I have and have some degree of success?

just make sure its not too windy and you can safely fish just about anywhere around this area. i normally fish out of a 14ft boat myself. i have fished just about every place you can put a boat in from keaton beach to lanark. i usually put in at the lighthouse. there are countless backwater "bays" and creeks for a small boat to find shelter within a few minutes of the launch. another place i would recomend would be hickory mounds.

My nephew and I bought a little 14' aluminum to use in the salt. Fish it all the time. Just gotta pick your days and not venture too far out. We have caught plenty of nice reds and trout in it. If it is windy or we want to fish three, we take the big boat. On nice days and 2 fisherman, we take the Crappie Jon.

what about all them bars in the mouth of the Ocklocknee? and besides, according to wevans Bottoms is the place to be.

I fished all over Econfina and Aucilla in a 1442 Jon Boat for years. Like everyone says, just watch the weather.

I have a 14' jon with a 15 hp Johnson. I have fished a lot of places around here and never really felt outgunned. Wind can definitely be a factor, and some rides will get a bit bumpy if there is wind, but I have never felt unsafe in my boat.

I commend all you 14-foot jon boat captains. You're either very brave, very skilled, or very careful (or all of the above) to take one of those to salt (a lot).

Fishin' is the mission.

My 14" Carolina Skiff gets me where I want to be. I put in at the lighthouse the majority of the time. As has been said, I watch the weather and the wind and pick my days. I have been able to get into some water that is less than a foot as well as some of the public reefs such as Dog Ballard, etc...(on very calm days)
If I had to do it all over again I would choose a drier riding boat, but overall I have had some very memorable fishing trips in it.

Try Alligator Harbor behind Aligator piont. There is a sand ramp on Mariners Circle drive that's down the road and across the bridge from you. There is some great fishing back there

Thanks for all of the replies! Look's like my excuse of not having a big enough boat is gone! Time to give these places a try.

Don't take it over to Dog Island......just sayin.

I have a 15/42 jon that I love to fish out of......in the pond, or lake, or creek. It's not the boat that gets in trouble it's the captain.

Be safe and have fun.

Hickory Mound Impoundment is a great place to launch that boat.

rockyg wrote:
I have a 15/42 jon.

And 15 other boats!

BACK IN 1970 I BOUGHT AN OLD ALUM. BOAT FOR A HUNDRED DOLLARS, ALL OF THE RIVETS LEAKED AND IT HAD A SLIT IN THE BOTTOM BACK AT THE TRANSOM. I CUT THE SPLIT OUT AND MADE THE BOAT A TUNNEL DRIVE, WIELDED THE TUNNEL DRIVE IN , USED AN OLD STATE ROAD DEPARTMENT SIGN TO MAKE THE TUNNEL, BOUGHT ME A 1 GAL. CAN OF BLACK DINAMITE LIKE WE USE TO USE TO WIELD UP HOLES IN THE TUG BOAT , PAINTED THE BOTTOM AND THE INSIDE AFTER I TORE OUT THE FLOOR BOARD. THAT LITTLE ALUM BOAT LASTED ME THE WHOLE TIME I WAS GOING TO COLLEGE AND 5 YRS. AFTER. IT HAD A 12 H.P. WIZZARD THAT WAS MADE BY MERCURY , BACK WHEN A MERCURY WAS A REAL ENGINE, I RAN THAT LITTLE STARCRAFT BOAT FOR 8 YEARS REALLY HARD, DO NOT KNOW HOW MANY SLITS I HAD TO PATCH UP DURING THAT TIME, IT WAS A SEMI V 14 FT. LONG. ONE NIGHT ON THE WAY HOME THE WINCH LINE PARTED AND MY LITTLE BOAT TOOK TO FLYING AND HIT A TELEPHONE POLE REAL HARD, WRAPPED IT AROUND THE POLE AND I COULD NOT BREAK IT LOOSE. I BACKED THE PICKUP UP TO THE POLE AND CLIMBED ON TOP OF THE CAB AND GOT MY LITTLE WIZZARD OUTBOARD OFF THE BOAT AND THE FUEL TANK. THAT WAS ABOUT ALL THERE WAS LEFT, COULD NOT FIND ANY OF MY RODS, REELS, OR TACKLE BOX AS WELL AS OTHER THINGS I ALWAYS CARRIED WITH ME. TO MAKE A LONG STORY SHORT I FOUND ME A 18 FT. STARCRAFT WITH A 85 EVINRUDE ON IT, WAS ABLE TO BUY IT FROM THE MONEY I GOT FROM MY INSURANCE AND HAVE HAD IT FOR THE LAST 20 YRS OR SO. THOSE LITTLE ALUM. BOATS WORK GREAT OUT ON THE FLATS AND IN THE RIVERS AND LAKES. FOR THE LAST 40 YEARS THAT IS ALL I HAVE USED OUT ON THE FLATS AND INSHORE FISHING WHEN THE WEATHER WAS RIGHT.
PA
SEMPER FI

Harmsway wrote:I commend all you 14-foot jon boat captains. You're either very brave No, very skilled Definitely No, or very careful Definitely yes (or all of the above) to take one of those to salt (a lot).

Fishin' is the mission.

It is a fine boat, but it has its limitations and one of them is waves. So we stick to the rivers and back bays on calm days, with excellent forecasts and don't venture far from safety. Just gotta be careful.