Haines Creek

Historical and unique Haines Creek is a must-visit spot for all boaters.

Haines Creek is a six-mile-long natural waterway connecting Lake Eustis with Lake Griffin. There is an operating lock about halfway through the creek between the two lakes. 

The lock usually operates from 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM. Please consider that the lock operator takes lunch around noon and returns within the hour. 

About Haines Creek

The creek channel produces best from mid-April through June, and again in October and November as water temperatures cool. You can catch small catfish and panfish year-round, especially where there’s water flow.

Partitions of Haines Creek on the Eustis side of the lock are channelized, but the original creek’s oxbows remain. The main channel averages 5-8 feet deep and contains prime bass habitat. Grass, holes, drop-offs, a spillway, and numerous canals offer various bass fishing opportunities. The entire creek is a significant bedding bass area in the spring months.

Haines Creek Fishing

Haines Creek fishing species consist of Bullhead Catfish, Channel Catfish, Largemouth Bass, Bluegill, and Black Crappie.

The entire length of Haines Creek holds the bass in the Spring. In years of heavy rainfall, the authority sometimes drains water from the upper lakes and opens the spillway on Haines Creek. Heavy water flow generally creates a strong current in the creek, making fishing at the spillway pretty consistent on the lock’s Griffin side. 

From the lock to the first bend on the Eustis side, an idle zone makes for undisturbed fishing on weekends and slows traffic on busy boating days.

Fishing Patterns

The clarity of the water in Haines Creek is generally good, especially in the residential canals, which, at times, are very clean. Most of the bedding areas are in the backwater canal systems surrounded by mobile home parks and lakes. 

Another popular area is the local creek marina. It has a large, round basin with deep water and rocky shores. Tournament anglers use this as a sight-fishing basin, with numerous beds along the seawall. Many other small lakes in the area have dredge holes, lily pads, and grass surrounding them.

The “S” bend on the Eustis side of Haines Creek is overgrown with bulrushes and holds quality fish most of the year. Large cypress trees along the creek always keep a few fish in their base. The most productive way to locate bass in the channel is with pitch jigs and crawlers to the grass and tree bases. Occasionally, bass hold close to the creek’s bottom by circulating and casting using a worm; it betters your odds. No different than other fisheries; never pass up a stump or downed tree, especially in the winter. The Creek bass go-to wood in cold water and tend to congregate in these areas.

Significant bass bedding activity starts around the first full moon in January, but fishing in the creeks is best in pre-spawn and post-spawning months. There is an entrance to a flooded former vegetable farm on the Griffin side of the Haines Creek lock. Fishing the newly created marsh in high water is worth the drive and non-stop topwater action. Contact us at Ocala Bass Fishing for great fishing with a professional guide.

Planning on Fishing?

Planning on going fishing and need a fishing license? Here is all you will need to know about a Florida Fishing License. What options, fishing rules, limits, and regulations? Please remember that each local area has rules for Fish and Wildlife and is open to the public.

If planning to visit this area, consider Haine Creek RV Village, located on the Creek, just outside Leesburg. Now, let’s go out there and fish!

Haines Creek Map