Local Fisherman & Boating Expert
Mike Jones is a passionate local fisherman in Central Florida with extensive knowledge of regional boat ramps, fishing conditions, and waterway access. His practical experience and insider tips help anglers and boaters make the most of their time on the water.
Early morning and late evening are prime time, but the real secret is understanding how tide, temperature, and light affect fish behavior at your local ramp.
Improper launching causes trailer damage, injuries, and delays. Here's how to launch like a pro at any Florida boat ramp.
Largemouth bass, bluegill, and catfish are staples. Here's where to find them and what baits and lures work best at Florida's most popular ramps.
Before launching in spring, prep your boat and gear. Here's what to check after winter storage to avoid mechanical surprises at the ramp.
Not all boat ramps are created equal. Learn what separates a smooth launch from a frustrating disaster—and how to pick the best ramp for your boat and target species.
Inlet ramps give access to redfish, snapper, and tarpon. But inlet fishing is high-tide, high-pressure hunting. Here's how to fish them productively.
Wisconsin's 15,000+ lakes and legendary musky water mean the ramp you pick matters as much as the lure you tie on. Here's how to choose the right launch for walleye, musky, and everything in between.
Minnesota has more public water access sites than almost any state in the country. Here's how to pick the right one for walleye, pike, and everything else swimming beneath the surface.
Michigan touches four of the five Great Lakes and holds thousands of inland lakes besides. Choosing the right ramp means knowing the difference between harbor launches and a quiet inland lake landing.
Texas built some of the biggest bass reservoirs in the country, and the ramp you launch from should match the lake—Lake Fork's timber, Sam Rayburn's flooded creek channels, and Toledo Bend's cross-border sprawl all fish differently.
California crams desert reservoirs, the tidal Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, and alpine mountain lakes into one state—three completely different kinds of boating, three completely different ramps.
Georgia's fishing splits cleanly into two worlds: the big Piedmont reservoirs like Lanier and Oconee built for largemouth and spotted bass, and the tidal marshes around Savannah and Brunswick built for redfish and trout.
North Carolina stretches from Appalachian trout streams to Piedmont bass reservoirs like Lake Norman to the sounds and marshes behind the Outer Banks—three regions, three completely different ramp strategies.
Virginia's boating splits between Chesapeake Bay striped bass runs and inland reservoirs like Smith Mountain Lake and Lake Anna—tidal saltwater on one hand, calm freshwater bass fishing on the other.
Tennessee's fishing runs almost entirely through the Tennessee Valley Authority's chain of reservoirs—Norris, Percy Priest, Chickamauga, Kentucky Lake—each with its own personality for bass, crappie, and catfish.
Kentucky Lake and Lake Barkley anchor Kentucky's fishing scene with some of the best crappie water in the country, while Lake Cumberland and smaller reservoirs across the Bluegrass State add bass and striper variety.
Alabama runs from Lake Guntersville's grass-lined bass water in the north to Mobile Bay's redfish and speckled trout in the south, with the Tennessee River reservoir system tying much of it together.
Mississippi's fishing runs from oxbow lakes and the Ross Barnett Reservoir in the interior to the Gulf Coast's redfish and speckled trout marshes near Biloxi and Gulfport—catfish, crappie, and coastal saltwater in one state.
Louisiana's water is unlike anywhere else in the country—the Atchafalaya Basin's flooded cypress swamp, thousands of miles of coastal marsh holding redfish and speckled trout, and Toledo Bend's reservoir bass fishing on the Texas line.
Bull Shoals, Beaver Lake, and Lake Ouachita anchor Arkansas's reputation for clear-water striped bass and smallmouth fishing in the Ozark and Ouachita Mountains, a different character from the state's Delta catfish waters further east.
South Carolina's Santee Cooper lakes made striped bass fishing history, while Lake Murray anchors the Midlands and the Lowcountry's tidal creeks near Charleston and Beaufort hold redfish and speckled trout in classic marsh country.
West Virginia's boating is built on two very different waters: deep, cold mountain reservoirs like Summersville Lake and clear, rocky rivers like the New River, where smallmouth bass fishing rivals anywhere in the East.
Ohio's Lake Erie shoreline holds one of the best walleye fisheries on the planet, while inland reservoirs and the Ohio River add largemouth bass, crappie, and catfish for boaters who never leave the interior of the state.
Indiana's boating centers on its southern reservoirs—Lake Monroe and Patoka Lake chief among them—plus the Ohio River along the state's southern edge for anglers after catfish and sauger in bigger water.
Illinois offers three distinct kinds of boating: Mississippi River backwaters for catfish and largemouth bass, downstate reservoirs like Rend Lake and Lake Shelbyville for crappie, and Lake Michigan salmon and trout fishing out of Chicago.
Iowa's boating splits between the Mississippi River's pool system along its eastern border, prized for walleye and sauger, and the natural glacial lakes of north-central Iowa around Clear Lake and Okoboji—known locally as the Great Lakes of Iowa.
Missouri's Ozark reservoirs—Lake of the Ozarks, Table Rock Lake, and Truman Reservoir—are among the most heavily boated lakes in the Midwest, each with a distinct character for bass, crappie, and striped bass fishing.
Kansas's fishing runs through its network of prairie reservoirs—Milford Lake, Cheney Reservoir, and clear-water Wilson Lake chief among them—built primarily for flood control but now the backbone of the state's walleye, white bass, and smallmouth fishing.
Nebraska's fishing centers on Lake McConaughy, the state's largest reservoir and best walleye and striped bass water, with the quieter, spring-fed Sandhills lakes offering a completely different kind of trip further north.
Lake Texoma, straddling the Oklahoma-Texas line, is one of the best inland striped bass fisheries in the country, while Grand Lake and Broken Bow add clear-water bass fishing in Oklahoma's Ozark foothills to the east.
Lake Sakakawea, one of the largest reservoirs in the country, anchors North Dakota's walleye fishing, while Devils Lake—a natural lake that has more than tripled in size over recent decades—has become one of the Midwest's most talked-about perch and walleye fisheries.
Lake Oahe and the chain of Missouri River reservoirs across central South Dakota hold some of the best walleye fishing in the country, while the Black Hills in the west offer an entirely different experience: clear mountain streams and small lakes for trout.
Colorado's boating happens almost entirely on high-altitude reservoirs like Blue Mesa and Dillon, where trout and kokanee salmon fishing come with a shorter season and thinner air than boaters from lower elevations may expect.
Wyoming's boating season is short but its water is exceptional—Flaming Gorge Reservoir straddles the Utah border with trophy lake trout, Jackson Lake sits beneath the Tetons, and Boysen Reservoir anchors the central part of the state.
Montana pairs two very different kinds of boating: massive eastern-plains reservoirs like Fort Peck holding trophy walleye and lake trout, and the blue-ribbon trout rivers and glacial lakes of the west, led by Flathead Lake.
Idaho's panhandle lakes are unusually deep and cold—Lake Pend Oreille has produced world-record kamloops rainbow trout—while the Snake River system anchors boating across the southern part of the state.
Utah's boating culture centers on Lake Powell's red-rock canyons and houseboat scene, but Bear Lake's unique turquoise water and cisco fishery, plus Utah Lake and Flaming Gorge, round out a surprisingly varied lineup.
Arizona's best boating water lines the Colorado River—Lake Powell, Lake Mead, and Lake Havasu—where striped bass and largemouth bass fishing is excellent, but desert heat makes timing your launch just as important as picking the right lake.
Nevada's boating water couldn't be more varied—the desert striped bass fishery of Lake Mead, the deep cold trout water of Lake Tahoe, and Pyramid Lake's famous Lahontan cutthroat trout fishery in the high desert north of Reno.
New Mexico's boating scene centers on high desert reservoirs—Elephant Butte Lake, the state's largest, along with Navajo Lake and Conchas Lake—each holding strong striped bass, white bass, or trout fisheries in otherwise arid country.
Washington's boating identity is built around salmon—chinook and coho runs in Puget Sound, seasonal Columbia River salmon and steelhead migrations, and inland lakes like Washington and Chelan rounding out a genuinely varied lineup.
Oregon's fishing calendar runs on salmon and steelhead—the Columbia River's massive runs, the Willamette closer to Portland, and coastal estuaries where ocean-going fish first enter fresh water each year.
Alaska's boating season is short and intense—massive salmon runs on rivers like the Kenai, halibut charters out of coastal harbors, and many lakes reachable only by float plane rather than a road-accessible ramp.
Hawaii is unlike every other state on Boatzia—there's essentially no freshwater lake fishing, so boating here means small-craft harbors on each island, launching into open ocean for mahi-mahi, ahi tuna, ono, and marlin.
New York's boating water is remarkably varied—Lake Erie and Lake Ontario's walleye and salmon fisheries, the Finger Lakes' deep trout water, the muskie-rich St. Lawrence River, and striped bass in the tidal Hudson.
New Jersey packs an unusual amount of boating variety into a small state—Barnegat Bay's inshore fishing along the shore, striped bass runs up the Delaware River, and inland lakes like Lake Hopatcong further north.
Pennsylvania's fishing spans Lake Erie's walleye and steelhead in the northwest corner, the Susquehanna River's smallmouth bass fishery cutting across the state, and inland reservoirs like Raystown Lake further south.
Maryland's boating identity is built around the Chesapeake Bay—rockfish (striped bass), blue crab, and a working-waterman culture—alongside inland reservoirs like Deep Creek Lake in the state's western mountains.
Delaware's small size means most boating is concentrated around Delaware Bay and a short stretch of Atlantic coastline, with striped bass, weakfish, and flounder as the primary targets.
Boating in the District centers on the tidal Potomac and Anacostia rivers, where striped bass, largemouth bass, and catfish fishing happens against the backdrop of the National Mall and Capitol.
Maine pairs excellent smallmouth bass and lake trout (togue) fishing across its thousands of inland lakes with a rugged, island-studded coastline that adds striped bass and groundfish to the mix.
New Hampshire's boating scene centers on Lake Winnipesaukee, the state's largest lake, with smallmouth bass and lake trout, while the small Great Bay estuary adds a distinct tidal option near the coast.
Vermont's boating scene is dominated by Lake Champlain, a large, bass-rich lake shared with New York, with the state's smaller inland lakes offering quieter alternatives.
Massachusetts pairs some of the best striped bass fishing on the East Coast around Cape Cod and the Islands with quieter inland lakes further west, giving boaters a genuinely different trip depending on which direction they head.
Connecticut's coastline along Long Island Sound offers striped bass and blackfish fishing in relatively protected water, while inland lakes and the Connecticut River add freshwater bass and shad fishing further from the coast.
Rhode Island earns its 'Ocean State' nickname on the water—Narragansett Bay dominates the state's boating scene, with striped bass, fluke, and scup drawing anglers to its many coves and channels.