Lake Okeechobee is serving up classic South Florida fall fishing this week, with action that’s got local rods buzzing. This is Artificial Lure with your Okeechobee report for Wednesday, November 5th, 2025.
Weather’s kicking off mild and breezy as a cold front just brushed us. According to current reports, we’re starting in the low 60s before climbing to the upper 70s by late afternoon. Winds out of the northeast at 10-15 mph are pushing a little chop onto the open lake, but the rim canal and backwaters are plenty fishable. Skies are mostly sunny, with sunrise at 6:38 a.m. and sunset set for 5:34 p.m. Quick reminder: we’re in a waning crescent moon post-Halloween, so tides are less pronounced on this freshwater lake but water levels are seasonally high.
The star this week, as always, is **largemouth bass**. The Florida Bass Nation State Championship just wrapped up on November 2nd, and lake-wide chatter says the bite was on fire, with some impressive bags weighed in and most competitive anglers fishing the outside grass lines and peppering the scattered hydrilla beds with Texas-rigged plastics and swim jigs. Locals are still catching solid bass in the 3-5lb range with a few bigger kicker fish mixed in. Afternoon bite is a little slower, but stick with it—these bigger fronts sometimes push a late-fall feed.
**Best performing baits:** Strike King Rage Space Monkey and Senko-style worms are still top producers, along with black-and-blue jigs if you’re working through the thicker mats. Early morning, try topwater—popping frogs and walking baits along the edges of the Kissimmee grass before the sun tops out. As the sun gets up, drifting a watermelon-red worm or flipping a sweet beaver-type creature bait into holes in the grass patches has been the steady pattern. Most guides have kept their clients on fish with these setups over the past few days.
If you want to finesse things when the bass get pressured, take a page from the pros and rig up a shaky head or Ned rig on lighter line—especially if you sneak into the rim canals and boat trails, where the bite can be more subtle but just as rewarding.
Crappie are getting more active too. Anglers drifting live minnows or casting small jigs near submerged brush or structure on the north end near Taylor Creek have found respectable slabs in the mix, marking the start of pre-spawn activity. Bluegill and shellcracker are scattered but bite best with red worms and crickets around the shady edges. Catfish are steady along the canal cuts—use chicken livers or stinkbait if you want a fish fry.
Looking for hot spots? Start at **Harney Pond** and work the outside grass all the way to the Monkey Box; both have yielded relentless bass action this week. Second, the **North Shore** near Eagle Bay is another solid bet, especially early in the morning or if the wind gets up—tuck behind the points for calmer water.
A few reminders: always check local regulations, carry a good set of polarized glasses, and practice responsible fish handling. Okeechobee’s trophy bass fishery relies on care and respect.
That’s the word on the water for today around Lake O. Thanks for tuning in to Artificial Lure’s fishing report—don’t forget to subscribe so you never miss the bite. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.
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