Lake Fork Guide David Vance Trophy Bass Fishing Report January 8th 2016




With all the rain we have been getting Lake Fork is full and in great shape going into the 2016 spawn. Pre spawn Bass will be the primary focus from now through February and even into early March. This is the time lake Fork will produce some of the bigger Bass of the year. Big females will be staging in key areas to feed up for their annual migration to the shallows to spawn. Finding main lake and secondary points or pockets that are closest to spawning flats that have any grass is ideal. Square Bill and Lipless Crank baits also Suspending Jerk Baits are my baits of choice during this time. Best colors are a variety of reds and oranges, chrome and blues, and crawfish colors. Different sizes and colors will produce better than others depending on weather conditions or depth of the grass and water clarity. I throw 1/2 oz. sizes in the shallower grass and opt for a bigger 3/4 oz. for the deeper grass, vary the retrieve of the bait and keep in contact with the top of the grass, letting the bait dip down in it then ripping it free is what will trigger a bite.

Water temperature is important during this time of year, finding areas that have warmer water than others will give you the best opportunity at catching fish, even if it is just a degree or two I rely on my temp gauge to give me a very accurate surface temperature. Right now the water temps are in the fifty's and is warm for this time of year, but it looks like we are going start getting some cold weather and water temps will dip into the forty's that's when I will throw a suspending jerk bait, jerking the bait down and then just letting it sit for several seconds, then twitching it again this bait can be deadly for a big bite in cold water.

Concentrating on creek channels leading to the spawning flats is a very productive pattern for these big pre-spawn bass. Good places that are great for producing some big bass and always do this time of year, Spring Branch, Board Tree Branch, Post Oak Branch, White Oak, Wolfe Creek, North West Bay, Long Branch. This is not the time of year to catch numbers but if you are looking to catch a Trophy Bass, Lake Fork is the best place to start putting your time in. The lake is full and in great shape going into this years spawn, I think the fishing is going to be some of the best we have seen in years! With all this new flooded cover it's almost like a new lake. If you would like to book a trip and get in on the pre-spawn and spawning action, now is the time to book your trip my spring days go fast so book early for best available dates Contact me at 903-629-5085 cell. Check out my Web Site At http://www.lakeforktexasbigbass.com

Happy New Year and Good Fishing,
David Vance




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Lake Fork Current Weather Alerts

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Lake Fork Weather Forecast

Thursday

Sunny

Hi: 70

Thursday Night

Clear

Lo: 52

Friday

Partly Sunny

Hi: 76

Friday Night

Mostly Cloudy

Lo: 58

Saturday

Mostly Cloudy

Hi: 79

Saturday Night

Mostly Cloudy

Lo: 62

Sunday

Mostly Cloudy

Hi: 80

Sunday Night

Mostly Cloudy

Lo: 66


Lake Fork Water Level (last 30 days)


Water Level on 3/29: 403.35 (+0.35)



Lake Fork

Fishing Report from TPWD (Mar. 27)

GOOD. Water Stained; 60 degrees; 0.28 feet below pool. Bass fishing has been slow due to the fluctuating weather patterns. The best bite has been on frogs behind the grass and Texas rigs in front of the grass. Yum dingers are good around flooded grass in 1-3 feet deadsticking rigged wacky worms. Report by Marc Mitchell, Lake Fork Guide Service. Bass have moved up and are nesting, small crawfish patterns will work well. Frog pattern top waters are excellent in the grass and brush. Crappie are shallow, small fish patterns like wooly buggers are a good bet. Bream are beginning to make themselves known in the shallows, wooly buggars and small poppers should bring a strike.Report by Guide Alex Guthrie, Fly Fish Fork Guide Service. Crappie fishing has been up and down and all over the place this past week. Patterns are not just changing weekly or daily but sometimes hourly. Fish can be in water deeper than 30 feet, or as shallow as 1 foot. Seeing fish around grass, around timber, under bridges, under docks and on ledges. There are very few fish on brush piles and lay downs. Finding fish all over the bridge in the morning then gone that afternoon. The cold fronts and winds have really made finding patterns that will hold up difficult. Not seeing very many fish spawned out yet, so we should have shallow fish for the next months. The bite when you do find fish, and they do not run, is good on small hand ties, minnows, soft plastics. The catfish bite continues to be red hot in 12-18 feet of water around trees that have birds roosting overnight. We should see fish showing back up around trees along creek channels in 18-25 feet of water as well. Bait the area with cattle cubes or sour grain to get the catfish loaded up. Any prepared catfish bait works great and we have been having great trips using punch bait. Report by Jacky Wiggins, Jacky Wiggins Guide Service.

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