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Fishing Lake Fork, Texas
Tom Redington
July 30, 2005
Lake Fork - Freshwater Fishing Report
Lake Fork Weekly Report
Fishing has been up and down for us the past week at Lake Fork, primarily due to a couple of changes to the fish’s environment. First, the thermocline has set in about 28’ deep. The presence of the thermocline, combined with a rare July cold front left a lot of big fish suspended. As of yesterday, 7/29, the heat was back on and we were marking many more schools relating to the bottom. While 2 to 5 lb fish dominated our catch last week, we did catch a few in the 7 to 8 lb range, just not near as many as we had been catching for most of June and July. For those seeking numbers of fish, finesse baits along the edge of the grass and drop shot rigs out deep produced well, but most of these fish were 3 lbs and less. Conversely, almost every big fish we caught was suspended in treetops or over structure in open water. With the heat returning and dark moon phases returning (new moon 8/5), I expect lots of big females will be caught during the day in the next two weeks.
Although the recent cold front produced a few nice cool days with clouds and north winds, Lake Fork didn’t receive a significant amount of rain. The water level has continued to slowly drop, currently sitting at 401.39’, about 1’7” below full pool. While the water remains clear, it now has a decidedly green tint, due to algae blooms. After falling into the mid-80s, water temps are now reaching the low 90s again in the afternoons.
The location pattern has stayed the same; however, as noted before, some of the big fish have been suspending instead of holding on the bottom. Many bass are still relating to humps, ridges and points outside spawning bays while others are camped on traditional summertime haunts that are well offshore and not anywhere close to spawning areas. With the thermocline effectively creating a deep boundary for the bass at about 28’, I’m concentrating on structure that is 15’ to 28’ deep. This time of year, my best spot usually changes daily and is determined by the presence of schooling bass. You’ve heard it a thousand times before but it is certainly true—graph deep structure and don’t fish an area unless you mark a school of bass there. Sure, you can certainly catch a few bass on those old reliable holes if you anchor up and methodically fish them or just wait there until the fish start feeding. However, you’ll find the fishing a lot more productive if you fish around those deep schools of bass.
Once I’ve found a school of fish on deep structure, lure selection has been dictated by the bass’ position in the water column. For fish relating to the bottom, a Carolina rig with a 1 oz weight and a 4’ leader has been our weapon of choice. Lake Fork Tackle’s Baby Creatures, Twitch Worms, Ring Frys & Trophy Worms have all produced fish this week. Top colors are shades of green for all of these soft plastics, like Killer Craw, Watermelon Red, Fork Secret, Watermelon Candy, and Green Pumpkin, while some days Merthiolate has been best. Trying different bait colors and shapes after catching several fish in a school has often resulted in a few bonus fish. For numbers of fish, using the same baits as noted above, often cut down a little to create a smaller bait, have been successful fished on a drop shot rig. Fished along the edge of grass points early or late or on deep spots during the day with the bait suspend about 3’ above the hook has worked best for me. Finally, crawling a deep diving crankbait through stumps and brush on points topping out in the 14’ to 18’ range has caught some nice fish. Think of them as the deep-water equivalent of the Rat-L-Trap. Shad colored cranks worked best on windy days, with most bites occurring right after deflecting off of wood or the bottom.
For schools of bass that are suspended, deep diving crankbaits and 4” swimbaits in shad colors are producing some big fish. Again, most crankbait bites are coming right after contact with wood. In open water, hop swimbaits way off the bottom with an overhand hook setting motion and let them fall on a taut line, or count down the baits to the level of the fish and swim it through the school. In brushy areas, white jigs can be hopped or swam through dense cover that you wouldn’t dare send a swimbait.
Here’s hoping you catch the lunker of your dreams. If I can be of assistance, please contact me at 214-683-9572 (days) or 972-635-6027 (evenings) or e-mail me through http://www.LakeForkGuideTrips.com where your satisfaction is guaranteed.
Good Fishing,
Tom
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