Bass fishing in Panama City, Florida, is so ideal that the local Bassmasters Club sponsors monthly tournaments and gives an Angler of the Year award. Panama City's Deerpoint Lake was listed by the Florida Wildlife Commission as one of the state's top spots for black bass fishing in 2010.
Freshwater vs. Saltwater Bass
Panama City is surrounded by St. Andrews Bay, an unusual Florida estuary because it is fed by freshwater from nearby creeks and bayous, but also dominated by the saltwater of the Gulf of Mexico as it passes through and around Shell Island. Most bass anglers in Panama City seek the "lunker," the region's famous large-mouth bass and a freshwater fish of the black bass species that inhabits lakes and ponds. The only saltwater bass in Florida waters is the striper, the striped bass of the Gulf shore.
Sunshine Bass
Florida's own "sunshine bass" is a hybrid of white bass and striped bass, spawned artificially by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and stocked by the millions in Florida lakes. The Commission is determined that Florida wins the title of Bass Fishing Capitol of the World over California and Texas. If you want to catch sunshine bass in the Panama City area, try the Apalachicola River below Woodard Dam. Be ready for a fight. According to the Stripers 247 Club, "A 6-lb. sunshine fights like a 10-lb. large-mouth."
Panama City Fishing Piers
Try your hand at bass fishing off the piers at St. Andrews State Park in Panama City, but be forewarned that you may just as likely catch a red fish or a flounder as a bass. Because of the brackish water of St. Andrews Bay, a mixture of freshwater and saltwater, the stripers might show up. Florida striped bass tend to spawn in freshwater and stay there to mature, so if you catch one off a pier in Panama City, it should be a big one.
Fish Bass Lakes Around Panama City
Use Panama City's greatest bass-fishing resource, the Bassmasters Club, to find prime fishing spots for large-mouth bass. Bassmasters often holds tournaments at nearby Lake Wimico, at Highpoint Landing on Deerpoint Lake and at Seminole Lodge Landing on Lake Seminole. If you get really good at bass fishing, consider joining the Florida Bass Bounty Tournament, an online contest awarding cash prizes for prize catches. "Reel Fishing, Reel Money" is their slogan, all for a good cause. Your entry fees help to preserve Florida fish habitats. All you need to enter is a rod and camera.
Follow the Lunkers to the Source
The ultimate source for bass fishing in Panama City is the Apalachicola River. The Bassmasters Club knows all the tributaries loaded with bass, and that's where they hold their tournaments. Find prime fishing spots with names like "End of the Road" and "Howard Creek" by following the directions given on the Bassmasters' website, leaving from the Panama City Mall. Just avoid fishing there on tournament days, which is always the Saturday after the first Monday of the month. The rest of the month, Panama City's bass fishing is all yours.
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