Unless Bermitz knows the bass are tucked up in the shallower sections of the wood, he normally starts along the outer edge in deeper water. Slow-trolling shiners is one of his preferred techniques to locate which sections of the wood are holding fish. Once he finds a concentration, the shiners can be cork-fished in cuts, pockets and on wood points.

For those who favor lures, shallow-running, square-billed crankbaits can cover a lot of the outer edge quickly, as long as the water is relatively clear.

Topwater plugs are also a good choice early and late in the day under conditions of relatively clear water.

Should wind muddy things up a bit, shifting to a safety-pin-style spinnerbait and slow-rolling it through the wood can be deadly. Gold blades in the No. 4 or 5 range, combined with skirts in white-and-chartreuse, are often the most productive.

If that doesn’t produce, Bermitz is ready to move into the wood -- especially if spawning activity is going on. In this situation, Florida anglers seldom employ one of his favorite lures.

“Senkos and Texas-rigged plastic worms are good bets for the inside,” the guide claimed. “But I’ve found that a jig-and-pig is very often the best bet. I like a 3/8-ounce jig in a black-and-blue combination and then add a pork or plastic frog trailer to it. I just pitch it out in front of me and bang it slowly through the wood.

“It’s probably the best lure for this spot when the weather is on the cool side during the pre-spawn or early spawn cycles.”

Though Bermitz relies heavily on these two areas, anglers may want to consider some additional patterns at this time of year.

One is fishing the edges of ditches in Farm 13. During the summer of 2007, hydrilla was reported to be growing on some of them in the five- to seven-foot depth range.

Pre-spawn schools of female bass love to gather over submerged hydrilla before moving into the shallows to spawn -- and again when coming off the beds during the post spawn

Anglers who can find any of these submerged hydrilla clumps may have their own little gold mine. An excellent way to trigger a reaction strike is to run a large 3/4- to 1-ounce Rat-L-Trap over them at high speed.

If spawning activity is occurring, savvy anglers also check out the protected inside edges of whatever cattails they can find growing on the south end of Farm 13.

Anglers who find a couple of feet of water along the inside edge may have found the most protected spawning water on the lakes, and the females should be there.

Finally, don’t overlook any substantial fallen trees along the banks. With vegetation largely gone, the shallow ends of these trees become the best available spawning sites. This year, bassin’ on Stick Marsh won’t be like it was prior to 2004. Until hydrilla returns, anglers will have to shift their tactics. But the rewards can certainly be worth it.

“There’s still plenty of big bass out there,” Bermitz concluded. “They haven’t left, and anglers can’t take them out. This is still one of the best bets in the area to catch a trophy bass over 10 pounds. You just have to fish a bit differently for them.”

Find more about Floridafishing and hunting at FloridaGameandFish.com