Happy Sunday Spacefish,
This past week was spring break, I was really excited to do a lot of fishing, and well….the weather kind of sucked. BUT, I took advantage of the cooler weather and decided to go south, and do something I’ve been wanting to do for some time, go after Peacock Bass.
I am kicking myself a bit, for not doing this before now. I live in Melbourne, and the drive to Lake Ida West Park where I launched was roughly an hour and 45-50 minute drive. Certainly worth a day trip for anyone living on the Space Coast that wants to go catch an exotic, hard fighting game fish! So without further ado, let’s talk about catching Peacocks on Lake Ida!
Where to Launch: I launched my kayak from Lake Ida West Park located at 1455 Lake Ida Rd, Delray Beach, FL 33444. I parked in the first loop and launched right from the shoreline. Just a few feet from my truck. For those reading that have their own boat, there is a public boat ramp at the park as well. There are also public restrooms and picnic pavilions as well. Also, lots of iguanas. They were all over the place, it kind of freaked me out a little bit, speaking of freaked out, I had a great “welcome to south Florida” moment when I was in ankle deep water, about to step onto my kayak when a jet skier came flying by and completely soaked me, my kayak and all my gear with the wake. So if you’re hand launching a kayak or small boat from shore, keep your head on a swivel.
Where to get Live Shiners: Compared to the canal systems, and small neighborhood/apartment complex ponds, the reputation for Lake Ida Peacocks is they are less likely to eat artificial and live Shiners is the best way to guarantee a catch. I never use natural bait, but I decided to go in and get a dozen to make sure I caught what I came for. I am glad I did! I went to Sandy Hook Bait & Tackle located at 1191 N Federal Hwy #4, Delray Beach, FL 33483. The guy working there was great to talk to, he sold me a dozen of what he calls “Peacock” Shiners which are smaller baitfish in the 3-4 inch range, he told me smaller is the key to Peacocks when it comes to live bait or artificial offerings.
Where I Fished: I launched from the shoreline of the park, and went south and fished along the south canal and spent time at each bridge. Peacocks seem to prefer “hard” structures and they were caught in and around the bridges. Most of these bridges can also be fished from foot, so if you’re reading this and want to scratch Peacock off your bucket list, then check out google maps and you will see how you can get to these bridges on foot from the park. When I came back through I went on this small creek/canal that was loaded with lily pads and emergent vegetation and had a killer Bass bite the last two hours I fished. I ended up catching my biggest Largemouth of 2023 as well. I also caught two small Snakeheads back there as well.
A trip south to Lake Ida is not just about Peacock’s, it’s a great place to catch Largemouth too!
What Worked for Me: I caught 3 Peacocks on the Live Shiners, I do regret not getting a popping cork to rig the live bait set up. I used small size 1, Mutu Light Owner Circle Hooks, these were the perfect size for these small Shiners, I hooked them right through the nose. I freelined them, but due to their light weight, I couldn’t cast them as far as I would have liked, and I killed 2 or 3 by whipping them too hard out there. A Cajun Thunder popping cork would have been money, I could have casted them much better, and the popping sound would have been a great way to get the Peacock’s attention and ring the dinner bell. I caught 4 on artificial as well. I used a Gold Tilapia Bass Pro Shops brand lipless crankbait. The gold flash, and the vibration seemed to be the key, I also caught one on a Heddon Zara Puppy, downsized walk the dog style bait in Baby Bass. As far as the Largemouths go, I caught the most on a Junebug Red Zoom Ultravibe Speed Worm Texas rigged with a ⅛ oz tungsten weight, and caught a few more, including the biggest on a Heddon Super Spook Jr, in Florida Bass. The key with Peacock’s is to work your bait really, really fast. As fast as you literally can, and the key to the Largemouth were to slow it way down. When I caught the biggest Largemouth I casted the Spook just beyond a patch of lillies and walked it back super, duper slow.
What I Would Do Different Next Time: Try to find more wind protected areas. I was there on Friday, and the wind was blowing pretty good. These fish like hot weather, and I think it could have been better on a warmer day with calmer water. The baits I had that were the highest recommended to use, that I never really got to utilize due to the choppy water was a Heddon Tiny Torpedo and a 2-3 inch Surface Popper. I’d like to be able to go again and find better areas to use these. I also was told at the bait shop that the east-west canal north of the park is the best area to fish, but with the wind blowing like it was I wanted to go south first, and ended up running out of time to check the other canal out.
Conclusion: I had an absolute blast, this is something I definitely want to do more of in the future, looking on google maps there are so many places I want to go down there and fish beyond just Lake Ida, but I was so glad I went, and couldn’t recommend enough for those reading this to give it a try!
I hope everyone has a great week, and has a chance to go catch some fish. Until next time!
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