Floating or wading this North Florida river is a panfishing paradise.
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On The Fly Freshwater
October 2024
Article and photos by Jimmy Jacobs.
The Santa Fe River is a jewel of a fishery, with a valley full of springs, cultural sites and history. The cypress and live oak trees on its fringe, bedecked in Spanish moss offer scenery beyond compare.
Rising near Gainesville from waters coming out of Santa Fe Lake, via its northern arm known as Little Santa Fe, the river flows in a westward arch to the north of the city. Along that way, just west of the village of La Crosse, the river disappears into a sinkhole at O’leno State Park to flow underground. At a spot called River Rise, 3 miles to the southwest, it reappears on the surface just north of the artist colony town of High Springs.
The river shoals at the U.S. 27 boat landing.
It is this lower portion of the river that holds the most interest for fly fishers. The dark tannic waters of the river are home in this region to Suwannee bass. As you move farther west toward the river mouth at its junction with the Suwannee River, largemouths become more prevalent. But throughout this lower part of the Santa Fe, panfish are abundant, though often overlooked.
In the past, the On The Fly South crew has tackled the fishing in the Santa Fe in a variety of manners. Those were composed of float fishing from canoes, targeting largemouths from a bass boat on extreme lower river and wade fishing in the vicinity of High Springs. While those ventures were mainly for bass, inevitably they produced numbers of panfish as well.
Our first venture involved launching canoes at the boat ramp under the U.S. Highway 27 bridge on the western outskirts of High Springs. This float covered 4 miles to the Rum Island boat ramp on the south shore. That take out gets its name from the moonshine operations that took place on the island in years past. Later we also did the 3-mile run from U.S. 41/441 to U.S. 27. Either of these floats can be done in half a day, or if you fish slowly hitting every fishy looking place, can fill a full day of floating.
Canoeing for the Santa Fe’s panfish.
These sections are part of the 26-mile-long Santa Fe Paddling Trail that starts at the boat ramp at the U.S. 41/441 bridge north of High Springs, ending at the ramp at the U.S. 129 bridge north of the village of Bell.
Along this part of the river it is a gentle flow, with a number of springs entering the river from either shore. There is a mild shoal area just below the boat ramp at U.S. 27. The banks are lined with a lot of bald cypress trees standing in the edge of the water. Each one looks like it should hold a fish or two hanging out around the spreading cypress knees. Casting to all of them will keep you busy. You will also want to paddle back into a couple of the springs that are big enough to be navigable in a paddle craft.
According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the Santa Fe is home to four major panfish species. Those are bluegill, redear sunfish (shellcrackers), redbreast sunfish (longear sunfish) and spotted sunfish. The bluegill and, especially the spotted sunfish, are the most prevalent.
A Santa Fe River bluegill.
Most of the bluegill will be in the 6- to 7-inch or smaller sizes. As for the abundant spotted sunfish, they top out at about 6 inches. On our floats, tossing a popping bug into any shaded area along the shore produced hits, particularly from the spotted sunfish. White or yellow are good colors to try. For sinking flies brown and burnt orange are good hues.
The spotted sunfish from the shoal area are generally lighter colored than the ones from deeper runs.
The second option that we found for targeting bream species is to wade fish in the shoal area at the U.S. 27 bridge. It is possible to wade right in at the boat landing, with a hard bottom running down stream for more than a quarter mile. Much of this run is less than knee deep at normal water levels, with deeper runs and pools interspersed.
Presenting your flies in the calmer water along the shores is best for the bream. Additionally, the washed-out holes beside the rubble and pilings of an old bridge in front of the boat ramp usually hold some fish.
At the lower limit of the wadable area, a sizable spring enters the river from the west side. The current entering the river from that spring run is another good place to concentrate your efforts.
Popping bugs in white are good options for casting. Using a larger size will cut down on the number small spotted sunfish that are ever ready to attack a floating insect. Don’t be surprised if some of the river’s Suwannee bass also take a swipe at that offering.
While we have never had a problem on the river, be aware it does hold some alligators. Keeping an eye open when wading is advisable.
Floating or wading the Santa Fe offers glimpse of what early Florida looked like, with some outstanding scenery. And when the fish are hungry, it gets even better.
