Fishing near Bartow, Florida

Bartow is one of the Polk County towns of Florida. Getting to a bank from here is a matter of minutes, not hours. Here is the order: South Bear Branch the better part of 3.2 miles to the west, Tice Lake the better part of 3.5 miles, Bonny Lake the better part of 4.9 miles to the west, Engle Lake the better part of 6.0 miles followed by Banana Lake the better part of 6.8 miles to the north-west. At Engle Lake the shallow end warms first, which matters in early spring. Nothing here goes hard in winter. An hour before dark beats the whole afternoon. Standing water is the local rule. Anything that breaks the bottom is worth a cast. The first on the list, South Bear Branch, measures about 35 acres. Public records for the area name blue tilapia, channel catfish and golden shiner among the fish present. South Bear Branch is the one most people from Bartow fish first....