Today, many veteran bassers are saying fishing is better now than even during the "good old days."

Many remember a time, beginning in the 1940s, when anglers from throughout the United States and several foreign countries trekked to the Sunshine State to realize a lifelong ambition to capture a sorcerous 10-pound largemouth.

Bass seekers started to notice a spiraling downward trend in the size of their catches in the mid- to late-1980s, culminating early in this decade when the average size of the largest fish being weighed-in during tournament competitions dipped to an all-time low of 3.99 pounds. Recognizing that a need for drastic action was at hand, Florida's Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) promptly embarked upon several initiatives to reverse this trend by lowering the daily bag limit from 10 to five fish, creating a minimum size limit of 12 or 14 inches (depending on location in the state), prescribing slot limits at many lakes, and countenancing a growing catch-and-release ethic among anglers. None of these measures were as meaningful, however, as FWC's continuing and gargantuan program of lake restorations which, among other things, include drawdowns, sediment and muck removal, shoreline restructuring, tussock and cattail purges, revegetation and/or enhancement of native plant communities, and the creation of "Habitat Islands" within lakes to create added fishery and wildlife sites while, at the same time, substantially lowering transport costs of sediment, muck, tussock and cattail removal during lake drawdowns.

It's interesting to note that in just six years, from 1992 through 1998, anglers are catching more and bigger bass, and the average size of the fish winning a tournament's big bass pot has risen from less than four pounds to a decade high of more than 7-1/2 pounds.

At the present rate of annual size increases, some are predicting this average will reach 8 pounds plus by the year 2001.

With continued cooperation from the Florida Legislature and other agencies including water management districts, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Department of Transportation, the Department of Environmental Protection, active fishing clubs throughout the state, and various local city and county commissions, FWC will continue on its ambitious course of creating the world's best bass fishery to 2010 and beyond.

For the remainder of this year and into next, here's but a partial listing of lake and fisheries augmentation projects on the Commission's Aquatic Resource Enhancement docket that are either underway or slated to begin soon:

Lake Griffin. In planning for a massive lake drawdown and muck removal project in 2000 and 2001, the Commission is acquiring permits;
Lake Tohopekaliga. Obtaining permits which will allow a drawdown and muck removal effort for the 2000/2001 fiscal year; Lake Panasoffkee. Getting permits in order to complete the Coleman Landing Project, the first phase of a massive $26-million six-step lake restoration;
Lake Istokpoga. Getting permits to begin the removal of at least 60 percent of tussocks and muck during a partial dewatering slated for the 2001/2002 fiscal year;
Lake Hancock. Drafting a fisheries plan for an eventual drawdown, muck removal and lake bottom re-contouring project, along with the construction of a 300 to 400-acre overflow marsh;
Lake Walk-In-Water. Tussock harvesting, cattail control and lake revegetation procedures are underway;
Lakes Newman and Lochloosa. Maximize areas of rooted littoral zones through aquatic transplanting;
Lakes Munson and Henrietta. Continuation of a multi-year project to renew both lakes through a variety of means including drawdowns, muck removal and the development of a new park and boat launching facility;
Lake Jesup. Now that revegetation work has been completed, the removal of an existing berm is needed;
Lake Seminole. Help in developing a Pinellas County plan for a drawdown, sediment removal, revegetation, rough fish removal and restocking program;
Lake Okeechobee. Remove cattail growth from two sites on the northwest shore and revegetate these areas with submersed and emergent plants;
East Lake Tohopekaliga. Tussock removal in order to re-open areas and maintain desirable densities of plants for extended time frames;
Lake Thonotosassa. Expand eelgrass vegetation through cattail removal in order to maximize fisheries habitat;
Kenansville Lake. Improve aquatic habitat through tussock harvesting and implementing a revegetation program;
Lake Parker. Developing a plan in cooperation with the City of Lakeland to implement a stormwater treatment design and conduct aquatic plant community enhancements.
Lake Trafford. Cooperating in a $16 million multi-agency dredging project to restore the lake bottom.

Despite a gargantuan population explosion and the associated problems incurred as a result, FWC will continue to strive for a quality angler-friendly environment through its lakes and rivers restoration and enhancement initiatives.

Now that the Sunshine State has regained its "Bass Capital of the World" chaplet, Florida's Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is determined that it not be lost again.