A World Class Trophy Bass Fishery

It piques my interest when “Jurassic” appears in a nickname. So is the case with Jurassic Lake, a 10,000 acre reservoir in Fellsmere, Florida, officially known has Headwaters Lake. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) had a goal to turn Headwaters into a world class trophy bass fishery. By all accounts, they succeeded.

Paul MacInnis with another Headwaters Lake dinosaur!

The Making of a Bass Fishing Mecca

Just a little over ten years ago, this bass fishing mecca was farm lands, cattle pastures and orange groves. The St. Johns River Water Management District (SJRWMD) purchased the lands from Sun-Ag to build a reservoir intended to provide a water supply for surrounding communities and flood control for the St Johns River. The FWC saw an opportunity and invested $1.35 million in bass fishing “enhancements.” Prior to the reservoirs flooding in 2015, the FWC constructed fish habitat in the form of winding channels, dredge holes, flats, islands and more with the goal of providing the optimum combination of structure, depth and spawning habitat. The FWC planted 15,000 bald cypress and red maple trees on the numerous islands, and they stocked over a million bass, brim and crappie. If there is a downside to Headwaters, it’s that there is so much awesome, fishy looking habitat that it can be a little overwhelming trying to figure out where to fish.

Since August 2020, when the Headwaters Lake boat ramp opened, 103 trophy bass (bass eight pounds or larger) have been registered into FWC’s Trophy Catch program from Headwaters. Who knows how many other giants were caught that were never entered into Trophy Catch. The biggest registered catch is a 13 pound, 1 ounce monster caught by kayak angler Mary Kelly on January 24th, 2022. That is pretty impressive results for a reservoir that is not even seven years old.

Another Headwaters Lake Trophy!

Don’t Just Take My Word for It…

Jim Fallon, the Godfather of Headwaters, has probably fished these waters more than anybody.

“I love this lake because of the design of the habitats, the natural beauty and all the great fishing,” says Fallon. You’ll find Fallon on the reservoir three to five times a week. He’s been fishing there since 2018, before the boat ramp opened, when he’d drag a kayak into the reservoir from the bank. Fallon says a competent bass angler should catch 15 to 40 bass on an average day with a decent shot at a trophy fish every trip. Fallon has caught almost 50 bass over eight pounds from Headwaters, including thirteen in the double digits, all on artificial baits.

The address for the Headwaters Lake boat ramp is 16245 Fellsmere Grade Road, Fellsmere, Florida. If you’re not a local, Headwaters is an hour and a half drive from Orlando making it a great diversion on a central Florida vacation. The nearby city of Palm Bay has convenient hotels, many with bass boat friendly parking lots.

Get in on this incredible bass fishery!