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.
Bluegill fishing can be slow this time of year. Try fishing live worms around cover in 3-6 feet of water. Hardee and Deer lakes are great places to start when targeting panfish. Crappie fishing should be heating up early in the year. Jigs and minnows dropped into thick vegetation and grass can produce a few fish. Most crappie will be found in sparse vegetation in 2-6 feet of water. Trolling small jigs and spinners or spider rigs are good methods to try and find fish along steep contour lines. Hardee and Firefly are the two best lakes to try for crappie. Catfish fishing in the park can be excellent year-round in all four lakes. Firefly and Gator lakes are particularly good for numbers of fish. Chicken liver, hotdogs, or stink baits are all good options for targeting catfish. Florida bass fishing can be good this time of year. Target vegetation in 2-6 feet of water with a Texas rigged soft plastic. Junebug or green pumpkin are good colors to try. A white and chartreuse spinner bait can also produce bites along the edges of vegetation and drop offs. Hardee and Deer lakes are your best bet to get on a good bass bite. Tight lines!
Be sure to check out at any of the fish attractor locations throughout the lake at our interactive Fish Attractor website.
Fish graphics by Duane Raver, Jr.
More species information is available for:
Florida/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