Hardee County Lakes Park
Hardee County
Located off Ollie Roberts Road in Fort Green, Hardee County Lakes Park is a 1,200-acre park owned and operated by Hardee County. The park has a number of amenities including hiking, biking, and horse trails, campsites, picnic pavilions, a playground, and a small camp store. Emergent and submerged vegetation is plentiful in all of the lakes, including spike rush and bullrush that was planted by FWC to improve habitat.
The lakes in the park are reclaimed phosphate pits and offer a wide variety of angling opportunities. All four lakes have concrete boat ramps and shore access, though Hardee and Deer Lakes are the most accessible for bank fishing. Depths and contours vary by lake, with most reaching up to 20 foot. Fish attractors are present in Hardee, Deer, and Gator Lakes and are marked with buoys. The fish attractors on Hardee and Deer lakes can be accessed from the fishing piers, while the attractors on Gator Lake can be accessed by boat.
Hardee, and Deer lakes offers great opportunities to catch panfish. Live natural baits like worms and crickets are most likely to produce a bite. Try fishing them around vegetation edges and in the backs of coves. Artificial lures like rooster tails and beetle spins can also be productive.
If you are targeting catfish, lakes Firefly and Gator are your best bet. Catfish will readily strike cut bait, live baitfish or chicken livers fished on the bottom or under a cork near drop offs and on large flats.
Fish graphics by Duane Raver, Jr.
More species information is available for:
Largemouth bass, Bluegill, Redear sunfish, Sunshine bass, Channel catfish, Black crappie
TrophyCatch Tracker
TrophyCatch is FWC's citizen-science program that rewards anglers for documenting and releasing trophy bass 8 pounds or larger. The following TrophyCatch bass have been submitted from Hardee County Lakes Park:
Lunker Club (8 – 9.9 pounds): 1