Lake Fork Texas

[Project Healing Waters]

Interesting opinions/experiences. I grew up on Lake Fork. I know many of the pros and guides who call Lake Fork "home." Whom, by the way, are some of the best in the world. (there's a reason for that)

As to techniques...it could not be MORE different than TRL! No wonder guys go and only catch a couple fish in a long weekend trip if they believe that. "If the only tool in your toolbox is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail." East TX lakes are what are called "dish-pan lakes." They are impounded SWAMPS fed by rivers most Midwesterns would call creeks and creeks most Midwesterners would call springs. They have alligators and such...although gator sightings are not "common." TRL is a very DEEP and very CLEAR lake by comparison. LF was BUILT by TPWD specifically to be a trophy largemouth bass lake. It is the ONLY one of it's kind in the world. Habitat was engineered and BUILT before the lake was filled. And it was all done by TPWD biologists. Furthermore, the lake is FULL of standing timber. The flats coming out of the feeder creek arms and such are often MILES long and wide and only 1-4 ft deep and stumpy as Hell. Many unskilled anglers boat up to the EDGES of these huge creek arms and fish the relatively open and deep water. That's OK in the winter. That's boring as heck in Spring/Summer/Fall. The bass in LF get on these flats to spawn in May and stay there until late June when the water gets too warm. These fish are laid up in 1-3' of water in heavy structure and vegetation. That's NOT how it works on TRL! In the dog days of summer, the fish head to deeper water...which in TX is 10-18'...most being 10-14'. LF is deeper than many ETX lakes, but that means the creek channels get to 20' or more. Most creek channels and river beds in ETX lakes are 6-12' deep. When the fish go "deep," they usually suspend until late Fall. During this part of the year, you fish jigs, spinners, and suspended crankbaits. During the spawning season, you fish Bang-o's, unweighted worms, shallow running crankbaits, buzz baits, and topwater stuff up in the shallows...often casting onto dry ground, structure, etc. and dragging the bait INTO the water (slight exaggeration to make a point...but it happens and works). When the fish go to the bottom in late Fall/early Winter, you go to TX-rigged worms and deep jigs and spinners fished vertically in the deep timber.

Fly fishing for bass on LF has become high sport thanks mostly to the pioneering efforts of one local pro. But I won't endorse any individual down there. Too many friends. Google will tell you what you need to know. This is especially productive during the spawning season. Take an 8-10 wt 9' rod, floating and sink-tip lines, and BIG poppers, streamers, etc. If you aren't used to this sort of fly fishing, take some Aleve for your shoulder and forearm pain. This is WORK! But it's a BLAST!

LF also has awesome crappie and sunfish fishing that can be a rip on a fly rod! It's also great fun on light spinning tackle.

The "area" has TONS of other stuff to do. But "area" in TX is a bigger notion than in most parts of the country. It's not uncommon for Texans to have a 30 minute drive to the grocery store and post office. Driving 2 hours to go shopping is COMMON for the women-folk. But LF is NOT TLR or LOZ. There isn't much nightlife or entertainment built up right on the lake. But surrounding towns of Mineola, Sulphur Springs, Canton, and even Tyler (30 minutes away) have PLENTY of other activities and attractions. But you won't see 40 million billboards on the highways telling you what they are. You also won't see huge racks of tourism brochures in the lobby or foyer of every motel, restaurant, etc. You ASK THE PEOPLE. Texans are VERY friendly and LOVE tourists. They are extremely polite. And, around there, everyone knows most everyone else. So they promote one another.

If you head to the nearest Wal-Mart, you'll be about 1/4 mile from my mother's house. Right across the intersection is Gary Yamamoto's HQ/lure shop. Definitely worth a pit stop. Mineola is one of the nation's most award-winning Main Street communities. So downtown Mineola has excellent small town tourist activities much like the "old" Branson did. Spending a day walking around downtown is well worth it. Art galleries, antique shops, great mom-n-pop restaurants, one of the coolest old-fashioned hardware stores on Earth, etc. And Mineola is also home to a fabulous folk music series of house-concerts that go on most weekends. Canton has First Monday Trade Days, the world's largest flea market. It is awesome! Don't think of it as a flea market. They sell EVERYTHING from RVs and motorcycles and sports cars to hunting dogs, chickens, horses, and exotic firearms. And it's a truly a buy-sell-trade swap meet. Top dealers and collectors from all over America come there every month on the weekend before the first Monday of the month. Rodeos are common in season in every town in the area. And there is dirt-track auto racing. Dallas is only about an hour away. Nothing to do but fish? That's funny.

LF also has decent big water duck hunting from Xmas to the end of January. It makes a great cast-n-blast trip that time of year.

[Quillback]

Thanks for the info, PH. I'll have to make it down there one of these years and spend a week fishing.

[ozarkgunner]

It sounds like I need to head down there after all! Thanks for the info!

[techo]

Oh my gosh! Now I want to go too. What happens to the fishing there in the deep hot summer months?

[Project Healing Waters]

The big bass go deep. That's from mid-June until mid-October. But...again..."deep" down there isn't like "deep" up here. And you can still catch the stray lunker and plenty of pan fish on top and in the shallows for the first hour or so of daylight and the hour of twilight in the evenings. There are a few other lakes in the area with cooler water (spring-fed) that offer good shallow water bass fishing during the dog dayz of summer.

Also...from mid-June through September, be prepared for 100 degree heat and high humidity. Aluminum boats will get so hot they'll burn you by mid-afternoon on sunny days. Drink tons of water and Gatorade. Lay off the sodas, tea, coffee, and SUGAR. Eat bananas or take a potassium supplement. And think: MOSQUITOS! I use a product calles Smartshield that is SPF 30 sunscreen and DEET-free insect repellant in one compound. Works great. They're out of Dallas. www.smartshield.com

If you camp, be aware that east Texas has brown scorpions and sand burs. Don't go barefoot in grass! And be careful handling wood for campfires and such. The scorps LUV old woodpiles and deadfalls. The only other real hazards are Cottommouths and Copperheads...maybe the occasional Rattlesnake in the dry, rocky areas. The best boats are flat-bottomed boats with a wide beam no longer than 18' bow-to-stern. Some of the best fishing is in pretty tight quarters. And...while the lake does get choppy in wind...flat-bottom boats are almost a necessity due to the standing timber, grass beds, and shallow depths.

[Tyler]

"Project Healing" - Is so correct it isn't even funny. It is so FAR From TRL you will be so lost if you try the same tactics. All i can say is go to the local tackle shop and talk to the creator of the spoons that Kelly Jordan uses. I was down at LF last year and spent several hours speaking with this man. He told us all about Kelly Jordan and how he was just a little kid coming in there to pick up the "hot" bait for the time. The spoons were a hit last year but i could imagine the fish know the lure by now. And boy they weren't the cheapest spoon i have ever purchased. About $10.00 each. I learned a few things fishing LF; Find Hydrilla and fish through it, Watch where you run your boat, and look for the flats out in the middle of the lake. There are a couple. But one in particular is fairly large and normally in about 5 ft of water and a ton of timber/standing trees. A buddy of mine picked up 3 really nice large mouths. Two of them close to 8lbs. And believe it or not we were throwing DD22's and ripping them through the shallow water. To the point you have to clean the bill of the CB off before every cast. It was a blast, but defiantly a challenge.

Good Luck.

[Trav]

I think right now, Falcon Lake is the hot spot in Texas. Even Toledo has grown as a better lake than Fork. Give Amistad a few years and it can out do all of them.

My 2-cents, Not to knock Fork, but if your in Texas...Think about it! You have options.

[flipper]

I fished fork on a weekend 8 years ago. potential for big bass but they were all spooked up from a tourney. great time tho.Saw some HUGE mounts at one of the local diners .Ray Roberts {north of Dallas} is another up and coming lake that they expect to surpass fork and t.bend. It's already known for huge crappie in large numbers.but hard to justify a 7 hr. drive when i am 15 min. or so from what is offered here.

[Project Healing Waters]

I grew up fishing the lakes of East Texas and those within striking distance of DFW. In my opinion, you have 4 types of lakes in Texas: big lakes, small lakes, poor lakes, and Caddo Lake. All but Caddo Lake are man-made impoundments. It is a very unique place, and offers an experience unlike anything else in the Lone Star State. Then you've got your big lakes like Fork, Toledo Bend, Sam Rayburn, Cedar Creek, etc. They all pretty much offer very similar fishing. There are big bass, big crappie, etc. in all of them. And there are miles and miles of water to explore. Small lakes by TX standards are those measuring less than 1,000 surface acres. Anything under 100 acres or so is a POND. The small lakes generally have excellent crappie, bream, and white bass (called sand bass in TX) fishing. But the true lunker largemouth bass of TX are (in my opinion) in farm ponds and lakes under 200 acres. And then there are the just plain bad lakes (for bass) like Palestine or Holbrook. Many of the non-tourist destination lakes actually offer a far better fishing experience than the big names do. Lake Hawkins, Lake Winsboro, Lake O The Pines, etc. There is one every few miles. And these are often the places you can have stellar days of bass or crappie fishing. These are lakes that tend to run in the 1,000 to 15,000 acre range.

So, while people sit and discuss which is the best tourist lake in Texas so they can go compete with all the pros and weekend warriors, I'll take almost any lake in the 1,000 to 15,000 acre size range in East Texas any day over the big ones.