FISH AND FISHING. 



FISHING IN THE EKONLOCKHATCHEE. 



JOHN BEIDI.ER. 



From Big Cypress swamp a stream 

 flows through the Eastern part of Orange 

 county, Florida, to the St. Johns, which it 

 enters near Lake Harney. From its many 

 and sharp curves the Indians gave it the 

 title of Ekonlockhatchee, signifying crook- 

 ed river. The stream has usually an 

 average width of about 40 feet, but during 

 the summer, or rainy season it becomes, 

 in many places, a mile wide; it is, however, 

 during its normal state that angling is 

 the best. 



The stream nearly its entire length is 

 shaded by numerous huge gray old oaks, 

 gnarled and twisted and clothed with 

 heavy draperies of innumerable parasitic 

 plants. Tall cypress, ash, sweet gum, cab- 

 bage palmetto and many other species of 

 wood crowd together in a dense thicket, 

 which completely shuts in the stream. Wil- 

 lows trail their branches in the water, 

 their leaves often stirred by the movement 

 of an unseen fin below. 



Game is abundant in the jungle which 

 borders the stream; deer, wild cats, otters, 

 raccoons, squirrels, and wild turkeys hide 

 there, as do also moccasins and rattle- 

 snakes, while in the more open country 

 quails and rabbits abound. 



The channel of the stream is very diffi- 

 cult to navigate, even with a small boat, on 

 account of the logs and dead tree-tops 

 often found lying across it. These, with 

 roots and cypress knees, sometimes block 

 the passage, and necessitate dragging the 

 boat over or around the obstruction. The 

 water in many places is of considerable 

 depth, and in holes or eddies large, alliga- 

 tors lie basking in a streak of sunshine, or 

 silently watching for food. In such places, 

 too, the pike has its haunts, and bass, 

 bream, and cat-fish are found in abun- 

 dance, of large size. Pike and bass fishing, 

 in these pools and eddies, is excellent; but 

 on account of many logs and roots there 

 they must come out as soon as you can 

 lift them. You must, however, be careful 

 not to put your tackle's strength against 

 the strength of the fish until he is quite 

 exhausted in his efforts to break free, or 

 your tackle is sure to be broken. Four and 

 5 pound pike are often caught, and every 

 fisherman knows, a 5 pound pike is not the 

 easiest fish to handle. 



The Florida bass are of the large mouth 

 variety, and like the small mouth, are vo- 

 racious feeders and very gamy. They are 

 abundant in all waters in the State, and I 

 have heard of 20 pound fish being taken, 

 although I have never caught any over 14 



pounds in weight. But a 14 pound bass 

 has sufficient strength and activity to give 

 your tackle a good test, and yourself a 

 chance to display your skill as a fisher- 

 man. 



The live bait most in vogue here are 

 small sun-fish and " shiners," about 6 

 inches long. The latter is a small fish, 

 somewhat similar to a young shad, very 

 bright and shining, making an attractive 

 bait, but one not always obtainable as they 

 are shy and hard to catch. A lively shiner 

 will invariably tempt a large bass to bite, 

 and when he does, if you are not on your 

 guard, away will go your rod and line, and 

 you can hunt among the driftwood and 

 roots for the remnants. It is an exciting 

 moment when you hook one of these big 

 fellows. The rod bends almost double as 

 the terrified fish dives and plunges madly, 

 lashing the water furiously in his struggles 

 for freedom; often rising to the surface, he 

 bounds clear from the water some feet in 

 the air; then back again with a powerful 

 plunge and a rapid dart for some log or 

 root. It is then that you must show your 

 skill or lose your fish. 



The average size of the bass caught in 

 this stream, when you have good bait, is 

 from 3 to 5 pounds, and often a half dozen 

 may be taken from one pool. Large cat- 

 fish will sometimes annoy you; but as they 

 are usually too slow for the bass or pike, 

 you will only catch them when the other 

 fish are not biting freely. Soft shell turtles 

 are also numerous and can be readily 

 caught with a bright piece of bacon. 



One of the great pleasures to be enjoyed 

 while fishing in the Ekonlockhatchee, is 

 the scenery. It is grand, impressive, 

 strange, tropical, now gloomy and awe- 

 inspiring, now fairy-like and charming, 

 and again weird and wild. The forest trees 

 are all of large size, and interlocked with a 

 perfect network of vines, loaded with great 

 clusters of Spanish mosses. The stream 

 being narrow, in many places, the branches 

 of the trees interlock across the channel, 

 forming vast arched avenues, paved with a 

 floor of intensely dark water, roofed with 

 great fringes of moss. These covered pas- 

 sages are solemn and impressive at any 

 time; but in the night, when lighted up by 

 the blaze of a brilliant campfire the scene 

 is quite indescribable. The inky water, the 

 lights and shadows of the foliage, the dis- 

 turbed birds as they wheel gracefully out 

 of sight, all leave an impression never to be 

 forgotten. 



Anyone wanting fishing or hunting can 

 find them here, and I shall be glad to 

 answer all questions pertaining to the mat- 

 ter. 



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