Freshwater Weekly Fishing Report Week of April 17, 2024

Alan Henry

GOOD. Water clear; 61 degrees; 4.59 feet below pool. Crappie can be caught in spawn and pre-spawn patterns in 1-18 feet of water using jigs and minnow. Report by The Bait Shop, Post, Texas.

Amistad

GOOD. Water slightly stain; 74 degrees; 66.22 feet below pool. Black Bass are fair on main lake points, 10-20 feet of water using Ned rigs, shaky heads, and drop shot. The best colors are Watermelon red, Watermelon, Red Bug, and Green Pumpkin. White bass are good in 5-15 feet of water on shad colored crankbaits, blades and underspins. Stripers are slow. Tight lines. Report by Captain Raul Cordero, Far West Guide Service.

Arlington

SLOW. Water stained; 70 degrees; 0.12 feet below pool. Bass should be shallow on soft plastics. Catfish are shallow along the rocks with stink bait.

Arrowhead

GOOD. Water lightly stained; 64 degrees; 8.28 feet below pool. Fishing patterns are holding steady. Blue catfish are great in shallow water. Crappie are good at the state park and around the bridges. Report by Brandon Brown, Brown’s Guide Service.

Athens

GOOD. Water normal stain; 73 degrees; 0.75 feet above pool. Fishing patterns are holding steady. Bass are good in all stages of the spawn. Target spawning bass on beds with your favorite bed lure. To catch pre-spawn and post-spawn bass on brush piles, cast Carolina rigs and crankbaits, or on windblown points with white jerkbaits. Crappie are fair shallow moving back to brush piles in 25 feet of water with small jigs and minnows. Report by Jim Brack, Athens Guide Service.

Austin

GOOD. Water slight stain; 72 degrees; 0.70 feet below pool. Bass have been consistently shallow for the last couple of weeks. Fish can be caught on shaky head senkos, dropshots and small soft swimbaits. Cloudy days with a little bit of wind have been best for catching bigger fish shallow. Still seeing some fish on beds, and as the weather continues to warm another group of fish will be pushing up to spawn. Check the backs of pockets, around shallow docks and big flats for beds. If you can find grass, fish it because there are probably some fish. Lady Bird Lake is heavily stained on a majority of the lake below the MoPac Expressway. We are catching fish on a number of baits right now. Soft swimbaits over grass lines and around hardcover is good. Slow dragging light Texas rigged worms in the grass are also producing good fish right now. Some topwater can be found right now. Frogs, spooks and poppers. We are not getting a bunch of hits on topwater but quality seems to be consistent. The topwater bite will get improve in May. Report by Carson Conklin, ATX Fishing.

B.A. Steinhagen

GOOD. Water stain; 66 degrees; 1.34 feet below pool. Catfish are biting in the shallows on cut bait and prepared baits. Largemouth bass can be caught on Texas rigged worms and crankbaits.

Bastrop

GOOD. Water stained; 72 degrees. Water visibility is 2-4 feet of water. Bass have been great on weightless flukes and swim baits in perch colors. Creature and senko style plastics have been fair. Report by Jason Hernandez, Bass Institute of Bastrop.

Belton

GOOD. Water lightly stained; 66 degrees; 9.39 feet below pool.Thanks to flooding rains on April 9, Lake Belton rose 2.7 feet since last week and is now 75.4-percent full. The annual threadfin shad spawn has just now reached the main basin. My most successful white bass trips involved finding fish in 28-31 feet of water around mid-morning using side-imaging, spot-Locking atop these fish, then working white, 5/8 or 3/4 ounce Bladed Hazy Eye Slabs vertically with a smoking tactic in conjunction with LiveScope to gauge their response to retrieve speed until we found the sweet spot. Although the window is brief, perhaps 25 minutes or so, some aggressive shallow water action can be found fishing for many species chasing after spawning shad. White bass, hybrid striped bass, largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, drum, gar, and catfish are all getting in on this right now. That window is 6:30-6:55 A.M. right now. Throw an Original MAL with chartreuse tail to match the shape, size, and color of adult shad in their spawning colors. Report by Bob Maindelle, Holding the Line Guide Service. Catfishing is excellent. With the recent rains and steady water currents coming in from the Leon River anglers should target the mouths of these creeks with fresh shad. Anchoring or drifting at slow speeds with smaller baits is best. Flatheads have been caught heading up rivers around structures. Report by Brian Worley, B&S Catfishing.

Benbrook

GOOD. Water stained; 64 degrees; 0.47 feet below pool. Fishing patterns are holding steady. Bass are spawning shallow. Bass are hitting Texas rigs, jigs, spinnerbaits and wacky rigs. Crappie are biting minnows and jigs on brush piles or standing timber. Catfish are good. Report by Camron Wilkerson, Camron’s Quality Crappie Guiding.

Bob Sandlin

GOOD. Water stained; 63 degrees; 0.36 feet above pool. Crappie are good in 15-20 feet of water on brush piles on minnows or jigs. Catfish are good shallow on cut bait or worms. Sand bass are good at Blow Hole using chrome rattle traps. Report by Marty Thomas, Lake O the Pines Crappie Fishing. Bass are transitioning to the first breakline in 6-8 feet of water hitting Texas rig worms, crankbaits, chatterbaits, spinnerbaits. Report by Mike Stroman, R & R Marine. Look for black bass in feeding areas, boat docks, brush and grass. The topwater bite will be improving as the weather stabilizes, small poppers should be excellent. Look for crappie around brush and retaining walls shallow, small wooly buggers are excellent. Watch for the bream to start moving shallow. Report by Guide Alex Guthrie, Fly Fish Fork Guide Service.

Brady

FAIR. Water stained; 65 degrees; 13.26 feet below pool. Largemouth bass are very good up to 7 pounds on rocks with crankbaits, chatterbaits and senkos. Catfish are very good on live perch or cut shad on trotlines or jug lines. Crappie are good in the marina or around hardwood main lake or creek entrance. White bass are good schooling on small crankbaits, or spinnerbaits.

Braunig

GOOD. Water stained, 75 degrees. Redfish are good along the bank on crawfish and shrimp, or in 10-15 feet of water. Catfish are being caught around the rock lines on chicken liver and cheese bait. Largemouth bass catches in the weeds on plastics. Report by Harry Lamb, Alamo Texas Fishing.

Bridgeport

GOOD. Water stained; 64 degrees; 14.81 feet below pool. The Wise County Park and U.S. Route 380 low water ramps remain the best bet for launching. Water is slightly stained with temps in the low to mid 60s. Crappie have been hit-or-miss. There are reports of fish being caught around the marinas on the north and south ends, minnows and jigs are the best bet. Sand bass and hybrids are nearing the end of their spawn. They are slowly returning to the main lake and feeding heavily. Gulls and shorebirds may point the way to the fish. Slabs and swimbaits have been productive. Largemouth bass are also close to finishing their spawn. Some fish are still on beds with some post spawn fish starting to show up as well. Lizards, jigs, flat billed cranks and spinnerbaits have been putting fish in the boat. Blue catfish have been active around main lake humps and shallow cover. Cut Shad is the bait of choice. Report by Keith Bunch, Lake Bridgeport Guide Service.

Brownwood

GOOD. Water stained; 70 degrees; 8.89 feet below pool. Black bass to 5.21 pounds are excellent on jigs, spinnerbaits and crankbaits in 3-8 feet of water. Most bass are in a post spawn transition with the last wave coming next full moon. Crappie are excellent in the cove pocket suspended on black and chartreuse jigs and brush piles on minnows in 10-12 feet with some fish spawning or post spawn. White bass are good on crankbaits and small swimbaits in the lights. Catfish are good on cut or prepared bait around the flats.

Bryan

GOOD. Water stained; 70 degrees. Weather is improving, bringing out the anglers. Consistent fishing patterns for catfish, crappie and bass near the restaurant, off rocks and floating docks with small minnows, worms, and cut bait. Report by The Bait Barn. Bass are in a transition period switching to summer patterns. Fishing has been tough out on the water but you can catch some on brush piles. Water is stained. Report by The Aggie Anglers.

Buchanan

EXCELLENT. Water slightly stained; 69 degrees; 24.91 feet below pool. Water clarity is improving on the north end of the lake, and the mid to south end water remains clear. Striper fishing is excellent using live shad as bait in the 5-30 feet of water. The shad spawn is in full swing and the shallow water early morning bite is great. Focus on sandy shorelines twenty minutes before first light, the bite can continue throughout the day but is generally finished by 8 A.M. White bass continue to good early in the morning on topwaters, jigging spoons, live bait, or trolling crankbaits. Report by Travis Holland, TH Fishing. Crappie are good in 10-20 feet of water on chartreuse jigs. Report by Jess Rotherham, Texas Crappie Fishing Service.

Caddo

FAIR. Water stained; 61 degrees; 4.24 feet above pool. Caddo flooded this past week and there were many ramp closures, so check ramp status before heading out. Navigate with caution watching for floating logs and debris. Expect conditions to clear up in a few weeks, but the good news is all this water will help fishing in May and June with current coming in from Pines. Report provided by Vince Richards, Caddo Lake Fishing & Fellowship.

Calaveras

GOOD. Water slightly stained, 77 degrees. Redfish are being caught off the bank on crawfish, shrimp and shad, and near the dam area trolling 15-20 feet on plastics. Blue catfish are being caught in front of the crappie wall drifting or anchoring cheese bait, cut bait channel catfish on rock piles out on the lake. Report by Harry Lamb, Alamo Texas Fishing.

Canyon Lake

GOOD. Water normal stain; 70 degrees; 22.10 feet below pool. Bass are excellent on moving baits around grass, or with a neko rig on deeper grass. Report by Evan Coleman, Big Bassin Fishing.

Cedar Creek

EXCELLENT. Slightly stained; 70 degrees; 0.00 feet at pool. Hybrid striped bass and white bass have made a full recovery from the spawn and are now back in the main lake in droves and are on a feeding frenzy. Look for heavy bird activity throughout the lake on flats and near the Dam on edges of drop offs especially on cloudy and overcast days. The Hybrids and Whitebass have started schooling in water from 6-14 feet at the dam and any wind blown shallow point or seawall. Late evening schooling action is also happening in shallow coves and points throughout the lake. Reports of great catches using silver or white slabs and spinnerbaits and retrieving off the bottom at a very slow retrieve to catch these fish in depths of 8-16 feet of water. The crappie have also migrated back into the main lake. Look for them under bridge pylons or under docks where the depths are between 3-10 feet. Guides have been reporting exceptionally nice catches on sunny warmer days. Report by Brent Herbeck, Herbeck’s Lonestar Fishing Guide Service.

Choke Canyon

GOOD. Water stained; 73 degrees; 28.56 feet below pool. Bass are excellent on a swimbait or crankbait around shallow rock. As the sun rises, fish can be caught on main lake points with a Texas rig or Carolina rig. Report by Evan Coleman, Big Bassin Fishing. Bass are good in shallow water using shad or chartreuse colored running crankbaits, and watermelon or pumpkin colored soft plastics. Catfish are good on stink bait and shad in 10 feet of water. Crappie bite is fair to slow with fish transitioning to brush piles using minnows or grubs. Report by Scott Springer, Fish Choke Canyon Lake.

Cisco

GOOD. Water stained; 65 degrees; 11.70 feet below pool. Channel catfish and bass are good in 10-20 feet of water. Crappie are spawning biting jigs and minnows. Report by Lake Cisco Rentals.

Coleman

SLOW. Water stained; 63 degrees; 9.47 feet below pool. Crappie are good on jigs at the docks. Crappie shallow are good.

Comanche Creek

0.15 feet above pool. Closed.

Conroe

GOOD. Water stained; 70 degrees; 0.25 feet above pool. Catfish have been excellent! Lots of reports from the early bulkhead bite to deep water baited holes all catching great numbers and decent size on Catfish Bubblegum, liver, worms, shad, punch bait, and just about anything else that folks put together. Largemouth bass are good on soft plastics. Report by Brad Doyle with Bradley’s Guide Service. Hybrids are 10-15 feet of water in the morning, pushing to 15-25 feet as the day warms. Fish with swimbaits, minnows, or shad. Crappie are in 12-30 feet of water using plastics, hair or minnows. Still can be a tough bite. Always wear your life jacket. Report by Mike Cason, Fishical Therapy.

Cooper

GOOD. Water stained; 60 degrees: 1.00 feet below pool. Catfish are good on cut shad.

Corpus Christi Lake

FAIR. 67 degrees; 9.00 feet below pool. High winds and rain in the forecast. Lake levels are low, keep an eye out for newly exposed logs. Catfish are fair in 2-4 feet of water on worms, punch bait, and cut carp. Drum are slow. Crappie are slow. Alligator gar are good on cut carp in the river channel. Report provided by Captain Damian Hubbs, Top Gun Outfitters.

Cypress Springs

GOOD: Water stained; 63 degrees; 1.53 feet above pool. No report while lake levels are high. Report by Marty Thomas, Lake O the Pines Crappie Fishing. Bass are transitioning to the first breakline in 6-8 feet of water hitting Texas rig worms, crankbaits, chatterbaits, spinnerbaits. Report by Mike Stroman, R & R Marine.

Eagle Mountain

GOOD. Water normal stain; 64 degrees; 4.31 feet below pool. White bass are good on main lake structures with slabs and cohos. Crappie are good shallow and mid depths on jigs. Blue catfish and channel catfish are good on punch bait and shad. Report provided by Chad Ferguson of North Texas Catfish Guide Service. Report provided by Chad Ferguson of North Texas Catfish Guide Service.

Fairfield

Closed to the public.

Falcon

GOOD. Water stained; 76 degrees; 35.04 feet below pool. Bass are good on points, secondary points and in the creek channels. Some fish are pushing deeper for a post spawn pattern hitting crankbaits and spinnerbaits. Crappie are slow with many catches of undersized crappie 5-15 feet of water on vertical hardwoods. Bow fishing is good for gar and carp along the south side near the dam. Trophy catfish are hit-or-miss on cut bait as fish transition into a spawning pattern. Keeper blues and channel catfish are good 3-8 feet of water on shrimp and stink bait. Report by Ram Reyes, Ram Outdoors.

Fayette

GOOD. Water stained; 70 degrees. Bass are good in the reeds, timber and back of coves in 4-8 feet of water with flukes, Texas rigged worms, creature baits, and shallow crankbaits. Carolina rigs and deep crankbaits will land bites in the road beds, or with finesse baits and flukes near the dam. Report by Bryan Cotter, Texas Hawgs.

Fork

GOOD. Water Stained; 60 degrees; 0.20 feet above pool. Fork has been good with fish in just about every stage of the spawn. Lots of fish are shallow in 1-4 feet with Texas rigs, yum dingers, chatterbaits, flukes, and swim jigs. Offshore bass are good on humps and points in 5-7 feet of water with Carolina rigs with light weights, mid-running crankbaits, and shaky heads. Report by Marc Mitchell, Lake Fork Guide Service. Changing weather means changing bite. First phase bass spawners are now in a post spawn pattern and aggressive. Frog pattern topwaters are excellent in the grass and brush. Casting into the pockets and letting the frog sit for a few seconds is a good idea. Crappies are shallow, small fish patterns like wooly buggers are a good bet. Bream are beginning to make themselves known in the shallows, wooly buggers and small poppers should bring a strike. Report by Guide Alex Guthrie, Fly Fish Fork Guide Service. Crappie are great with some pre-spawn fish, some fish actively spawning and some post spawn. Fish can be found in a few feet of water to 30 feet of water. All crappie on Lake Fork do not go shallow to spawn and we catch fish in 18-20 feet that are spawning on timber. You can also find some fish on brush, lay downs, bridges and docks. It is a very versatile time to catch crappie with multiple patterns. Minnows will work great right now but any crappie baits will catch fish. Try small hand tied jigs and soft plastics. Catfishing is excellent right now on Lake Fork around timber in 12-20 feet. Still seeing loads of fish around roosting trees. Lots of birds in the shallow areas close to the bank in the early mornings chasing shad spawns. The catfish are also up there feeding on shad as well. Use any prepared catfish baits or cut shad on baited holes in the timber. Use a cork with anything a catfish will bite up shallow. Minnows and cut shad will work great on this shallow fish. Report by Jacky Wiggins, Jacky Wiggins Guide Service.

Ft. Phantom Hill

GOOD. Water stained; 63 degrees; 7.08 feet below pool. Bass are good hitting 7 inch curly tailed or straight worms, spinnerbaits and crankbaits in less than 10 feet of water. Crappie are good on jigs and minnows. Catfish can be caught drifting. Hybrids are good throwing umbrella rigs into schools. Report by Camron Wilkerson, Camron’s Quality Crappie Guiding. White bass are near the dam and along the bank and hybrids are near the dam.

Graham

GOOD. Water stained; 63 degrees; 6.02 feet below pool. Crappie are shallow in the creeks spawning. Bass are spawning in shallow water. Sand bass and hybrids are schooling out on main lake points.

Granbury

GOOD. Water clear; 70 degrees; 0.17 feet below pool. Granbury water temperatures are in the upper 60s and in the 70s in the back of the creeks on warmer afternoons. White bass are good to excellent on slabs and spinnerbaits fished near main lake flats from in town near the shores to the flats near Blue Water Shores. There are many smaller sand bass, but some as large as 2 pounds. Striped bass are slow to fair to 7 pounds on live shad and alabama rigs trolled. Best reports of striped bass continue to come from the lower ends between Decordova subdivision to Striper Alley. Crappie are reported as fair to good in the back of creeks on small minnows and or jigs worked under a cork. Crappie are being caught on many areas of the lake including most creeks from in town to Decordova Bend Estates. Black bass reports are fair to good in numbers with an occasional bigger fish to 7 pounds plus. Many are on the beds and soft plastics, jigs and crankbaits are several options.Catfish reports for those bigger blues and yellows have slowed some, but cut shad worked on the upper ends is your best choice. Report by Michael Acosta, Unfair Advantage Charters. Striped bass are slow using umbrella-rigs, swimbaits or fresh shad. Fish are scattered from Decordova to the way up to Farm-To-Market 51 bridge. Report by Kraig Sexton, Sexton's Guide Service LLC, Fishing Charter, Marine Electronics & Whitney. Crappie are fair on jigs and small minnows fished from the bank. Sand bass are fair hitting medium minnows. Largemouth bass are staying near cover, with some sizeable catches being reported. Catfish are good on cut bait and large minnows on bottom. Perch and bluegill are excellent close to shore on worms so bring the kids out for a memorable time. Report by Terry Hodges, local angler.

Granger

GOOD. Water lightly stained; 65 degrees; 1.36 feet above pool. Black bass are good on white spinnerbaits fished in very shallow water. Crappie are good in shallow coves and ditches all over the lake. White bass are fair up river with most fish moving back into the lake. Blue catfish are good in shallow water along wind blown banks. Yellow catfish are good on live bait. Report by Tommy Tidwell, Tommy Tidwell’s Granger Lake Guide Service.

Grapevine

SLOW. Water clear; 62 degrees; 1.22 feet above pool. Recent rains have muddied up the water and water is being released slowing the bite. Conditions are slow for all species until the water settles. Report by Omar Cotter, Luck O’the Irish Fishing Guide Service.

Greenbelt

SLOW. Water normal stain; 61 degrees; 45.83 feet below pool. Few anglers and reports.

Hawkins

SLOW. Water slightly stained. 60 degrees. Bait fish patterns above the grass should work for cruising bass and pickerel. Look for bedding bass in the grass and shallow brush. Small crayfish patterns are excellent. Small deceivers and streamers should work well. Report by Guide Alex Guthrie, Fly Fish Fork Guide Service.

Houston County

GOOD. Water clear; 67 degrees; 0.38 feet above pool. Shad spawn should continue for the next month. The second wave of spawning largemouth bass and crappie should begin soon. White bass are in 1-10 feet of water biting topwaters and beetle spins. Largemouth bass are spawning on beds. Largemouth bass are good in 1-7 feet of water with wacky worms, weightless Texas rigs, yum dingers or swim jigs. Crappie are in 10 feet or less using minnows on standing timber, brush, or deep docks. Report by Colan Gonzales, CG’s Just Fishing Guide Service.

Hubbard Creek

GOOD. Water Stained; 64 degrees; 12.16 feet below pool. Bass are still in a post-spawn in 5-10 feet of water hitting crankbaits, shaky heads spinnerbaits and Carolina rigs. Crappie are up the creeks on minnows or jigs. Catfish can be caught drifting shallow flats. Report by Camron Wilkerson, Camron’s Quality Crappie Guiding. Crappie are slow to fair.

Jacksonville

GOOD. Water slightly stained; 68 degrees; 0.28 feet above pool. The lake is very muddy due to the recent rains, visibility is bad. Soft plastics are working shallow and on brush. Some fish are being caught on Alabama rigs in deeper water.

Joe Pool

FAIR. Water stained; 65 degrees; 0.05 feet below pool. The shoreline at Lynn creek and the state park has great fishing if you can find the grass. Bass are great shallow in the grass with jerkbaits, Texas rigged soft plastics. Crappie are biting minnows and jigs. Report by Gilbert Miller, GTB Outdoors.

Lake O' the Pines

GOOD. Water stained; 63 degrees; 4.24 feet above pool. Crappie are fair scattered between shallow water and brush in 15 feet of water hitting minnows or jigs. Sand bass are fair in main creek channels on minnows or slabs. Catfish are good in shallow water on cut or worms. Report by Marty Thomas, Lake O’ the Pines Crappie Fishing. Expect the bass bite to be tough after the rains. Target flooded bushes with jigs or Texas rigged creature baits. Report by Mike Stroman, R & R Marine.

Lavon

GOOD. Water lightly stained; 55 degrees; 1.45 feet above pool. Fishing patterns are holding steady. Crappie are in 3-15 feet of water in the middle of the spawn. Prespawn fish are roaming on brush in 5-15 feet biting jigs and minnows. Fish minnows under a bobber 1-3 feet above rocks and boulders, or vertical jig by getting in the water with waders hit all the structure in knee-deep water, such as button willows, reeds, twigs, and timber. Fish any structure you can possibly see, don’t assume there is nothing on a piece of structure until you fish it. If you’re fishing, a cove with button willows, and you catch a fish at the base of the button, willow, tie a piece of cotton yarn to that tree on a little twig that you can see. So next time you come into the cove, you can hit all the threaded trees because a male Crappie will replace the one you caught in the previous day. So catching limits will be a lot faster so you are not fishing structure that never has a fish on it. Sandies are spawning on the North end, in the creeks. Use a 4 pound mono with spinnerbaits, 1/80-⅝ ounce jigs depending on current, minnows under a bobber, or minnows Carolina rigged with small split shot. When using lures you can bump it up to 6 pound mono in 2-20 feet. Thread thins are spawning early morning and late evening along the banks, which will draw the white bass very shallow. Throw paddle tail, swimbaits 3-4 inches up against the shorelines. Look for the birds on the bank and cast. After the spawn is over, drop back out to 15-20 feet and turn your thumper on and make a bunch of noise and they should show up. White 1 ounce RSR lures slabs working great. Hit the bottom and lift up really fast. Let it flutter back down. Tying a jig 18 inches above the slab will sometimes produce two fish per drop. Catfish are in 2-15 feet of water on cut bait and baited holes. Santee rig big chunks of cut shad or sunfish on rocks. Some pre-spawn black bass males are in 3-15 feet of water hitting 3-6 foot divers, Texas rig worms, and creature baits. Some bass are on brush piles biting swimbaits and smaller Alabama rigs. Report by Carey Thorn, White Bass Fishing Texas.

LBJ

FAIR. Water stained; 67 degrees; 0.29 feet below pool. Crappie are fair in 10-20 feet of water with orange and chartreuse jigs. Report by Jess Rotherham, Texas Crappie Fishing Service.

Lewisville

FAIR. Water stained; 69 degrees; 1.41 feet above pool. White bass are fair to good on ledges of humps and points in 15-35 feet of water. Smaller sized fish are abundant. Some sandies are up the creeks as well biting slabs, jigs, and live bait. Keeper sized hybrid stripers are fair in similar depths as the white bass. If you are keeping fish, please be aware that there are a lot of undersized hybrid stripers in the lake that look very similar to a white bass. Catfish are good drifting flats near the river channel and ledges of wind blown points in 12-30 feet of water. The shallow water catfish bite has been good as well with the water temperature warming. Fishing on anchor in 1-5 feet of water near wind blown points, timber, sticks, and creek and river mouths has been good. Crappie are slow to fair in the main lake and creeks in 4-25 feet of water on bridge columns, brush piles, rock piles, stumps, and laydowns with minnows and jigs. Standing timber near creek mouths and shallow coves has produced as well. Report by Wes Campbell, BendARod Fishing. Bass are good from the banks out to 12 feet on crankbaits and bladed jigs. Bluegill are spawning around vegetation and wooded cover. Crappie are transitioning to deeper main lake points and brush.

Limestone

GOOD. Water normal stain; 71 degrees; 0.13 feet above pool. The shad spawn is on and the bigger alpha shad have pulled up. White bass have started schooling. Expect male largemouth bass to enter protection mode as the fry are hatching. Largemouth bass are good on spawning beds in 1-4 feet of water in the creek channels using swim jigs, Texas rigs, spinnerbaits, and chatterbaits. Expect the topwater bite to begin soon. Crappie are good fishing minnows in brush, standing timber, and creek channels in 1-10 feet of water. White bass are in 1-10 feet of water biting topwaters and beetle spins. Bank anglers continue to have success at the Texas State Highway 164 bridge. Catfish moved into spawning areas this week hitting cut bait. Report by Colan Gonzales, CG’s Just Fishing Guide Service.

Livingston

SLOW. Slightly stained; 65 degrees; 1.00 feet above pool. Catfish are biting good in shallow water where the shad are spawning. Water is starting to clear a little bit. White bass fishing continues to be spotty. Report by Michael Richardson, Lake Livingston Adventures.

Martin Creek

GOOD. Water stained; 75 degrees; 0.02 feet above pool. Bass are slow catching a few along the hydrilla on spinnerbait and underspin swimbaits. Crappie are good in brush piles in 25 feet of water using minnows and larger jigs. Catfish are fair in 10-15 feet of water using with punch bait.

Medina

SLOW. Water lightly stained; 68 degrees; 91.24 feet below pool. Few reports and anglers on the water due to limited access and low water level.

Meredith

FAIR. Water stained; 60 degrees; 45.49 feet below pool. Bass are fair to good on minnows and artificials. Catfish are fair on crawlers, minnows, chicken liver and frozen shad. Crappie are fair on artificial baits and minnows. White bass are good on minnows, slabs, or any vertical presentations. Trout are fair on power baits, minnows, worms, small spinners, spoons and flies. Walleye are good on minnows, grubs, and other artificials. Please be safe out there, watch weather reports. Life vests saves lives. Report by Kenneth Wysong, SharKens Honey Hole.

Millers Creek

SLOW. Water stained; 63 degrees; 8.61 feet below pool. Due to low lake levels few anglers are on the water. Crappie and catfish are slow with a few bites near the dam.

Nacogdoches

GOOD. Water stained; 65 degrees; 0.68 feet above pool. Fishing patterns are holding steady. Largemouth bass are good with primarily male bass schooling offshore, but females will start to join post spawn. Offshore bass are hitting crankbaits and Carolina rigs. The shallow grass bite is on chatterbaits, or a senko. Crappie are fair in the grass with a beetle spin or rooster tail, any small jig. A few more weeks of warm weather will put fish back on stumps and brush. Report by Wyatt Frankens, Wyatt Frankens Guide Service.

Naconiche

GOOD. Water slightly stained; 68 degrees; full pool. Bass fishing is good with the first signs of post-spawn bass munching on shad. Junior sized jerkbaits and 3.5 inch soft plastic shad imitations are getting bit. Crappie population is good. Catfish are slow. Report by Eric Wolfe, NacoTack Fishing Services.

Nasworthy

FAIR. Water slightly stained; 70 degrees. 0.50 feet below pool. Fishing patterns are holding steady. Bass are good on red chatterbaits flipping soft plastics in the reeds in 1-3 feet of water. Look for spawning bass shallow. Crappie are good around boat docks on chartreuse jigs. Catfish are fair on cut bait and stink bait around the dam. Report provided by the Angelo State Fishing Team.

Navarro Mills

GOOD. Water slightly stained; 66 degrees; 1.88 feet above pool. White bass are fair on minnows and jigs in shallow water. Crappie are good on spawning beds in out to 2 feet of water with black and chartreuse jigs. Blue catfish are good on cut bait near wind blown shores. Channel catfish are good on punch bait. Largemouth bass are fair on Carolina rigged worms and lizards near spawning beds. Report by Clay Major, Major Guide Service.

O.C. Fisher

SLOW. Water stained; 55 degrees; 51.86 feet below pool. Few reports and anglers fishing due to low lake levels.

O.H. Ivie

GOOD. Water stained; 67 degrees; 31.64 feet below pool. Water clarity is stained on the upper end of the lake, and the lower end of the lake is clear to 6 feet. Largemouth bass are bass good with some catches up to 13 pounds. Swimbaits and 10 inch worms are best. Topwater baits are getting better. White bass are good with catches up to 2.5 pounds. Sandies are schooling on bait hitting rattle traps and spinnerbaits. Crappie are fair up rivers in shallow water around brush on minnows and red head jigs. Report by Wendell Ramsey, Ramsey Fishing.

Oak Creek

SLOW. Water lightly stained; 60 degrees; 16.58 feet below pool. Bass are steady on squarebill crankbaits and small swimbaits. Some anglers have had success using Texas rigged worms in purple and motor oil colors. Crappie and catfish are slow. Report by Bronte Guns and Tackle Pro Staff.

Palestine

GOOD. Water stained; 70 degrees; 1.78 feet above pool. All boat launches are now open. A lot of flooded shoreline grass and brush, and some low hanging branches in the water are good for bass. Weedless frogs, creatures, chatterbaits are good. Channel catfish are beginning to move into shoreline rocks in the water, blue catfish remain good in 4-22 feet on live minnows and cut bait. When the water temperature reaches 74 degrees look for the flathead catfish to spawn along the shorelines. As water drops and warms, expect shad spawn to begin also. Crappie are finishing the spawn and returning to deeper habitats. Report by Jim Beggerly, Jim’s Fishing.

Palo Pinto

GOOD. Water stained; 70 degrees; 8.76 feet below pool. Blue catfish are biting in shallow water on cut bait. Hybrids are starting to bite on cut bait. Crappie still great in shallow water minnows and jigs. Catching a lot of male crappie.

Pinkston

GOOD. normal stain; 65 degrees. Bass are shallow in the grass schooled up on bait. Cast chatterbaits, swim jigs, topwaters, spook and frogs. This should persist for the next few months. Shad are spawning on the docks, hard clay, trees and grass. Crappie are at the end of the spawn in shallow grass and suspended in trees along the edges and mouths creeks. Report by Captain Hank Harrison, Double H Precision Fishing.

Possum Kingdom

FAIR. Water clear; 67 degrees; 0.08 feet below pool. Striped bass are slow to fair with the most consistent bite with live bait, but some can be caught trolling. Look for fish in 30-50 feet of water. Good colors are white, chartreuse, and silver. Sand bass are fair to slow. Some fish are starting to show back up in the lake but you will definitely have to look for them. Fish in 10-20 feet of water with live shad or small slabs and jigs white, and silver are good colors. Catfish are good on cut shad in 2-10 feet of water or 40-60 feet of water. Water clarity is steady at 4-10 feet of visibility. Report by TJ Ranft, Ranft Guide Service.

Proctor

GOOD. Water normal stain; 65 degrees; 12.18 feet below pool. Catfish, hybrids and crappie are fair to good on the banks and near the dam. Catfish should be spawning in shallow water within the month. Largemouth bass can be caught on soft plastics. Ramps are closed, but it is possible to launch a boat from the gravel at Buffalo Springs. Fishing from a kayak is possible.

Raven

GOOD. Water stained; 69 degrees. Fishing reports are holding steady. Water clarity is declining due to recent rains. Crappie are excellent fishing jigs over grass in the lake, and with minnows suspended over brush piles and off the Prairie Branch fishing pier. Crappie spawn is in the early stages. Bass are excellent, anglers are reporting great catches on topwater frogs early in the morning. Anglers are also using red crawfish crankbaits, jerkbaits, and weedless worm rigs. Catfish are good on stink bait and worms at the bottom. Anglers on boats should try by the dam as there is excellent catfish habitat. Bluegills are excellent on hotdogs and worms off a bobber at the boathouse and both fishing piers. Water clarity is about one foot of visibility.

Ray Hubbard

GOOD. Water stained; 67 degrees; 0.04 feet above pool. White bass are good starting early morning on flats in 2-6 feet of water. Birds have been working also later in the morning and late afternoon using small spinnerbaits and 3 inch swimbaits on 1/2 ounce jig head. White bass are relating to humps and long points in 17-26 feet of water using 3/4 ounce Bovee slab with a jig 12 inches above. Crappie are fair and relating to brush 12-14 feet deep. Catfish have moved mid depth on long points and ridges in 14-24 feet of water cut shad. Report by John Varner, John Varner's Guide Service.

Ray Roberts

FAIR. Water slightly stained; 60 degrees; 0.82 feet above pool. Sand bass are good on slabs 25-35 feet of water. Should be seeing fish on the banks early mornings as the shad are beginning to spawn. Catfish are good, shallow 5-15 feet on cut bait. Crappie are starting to show up in brush piles decent on sunny days jigs or minnows. Report by Justin Wilson, Wilson Outdoor Connection.

Richland Chambers

FAIR. Water normal stain; 65 degrees; 0.52 feet above pool. White bass are good on main lake points and humps in 20-25 feet of water. Check out the Pelican Island and Old Hwy 287 Roadbed. Best baits are slabs for the bottom hugging fish and if you get some top water, just about any small and shiny bait. Hybrid stripers are fair on main lake points in 25-35 feet of water on live shad. Check out Windsock Point and the 309 Flats. Crappie spawn is ongoing in 2-4 feet of water biting minnows. Report by Royce Simmons, Gone Fishin' Guide Service.

Sam Rayburn

GOOD. Water slightly stained; 70 degrees; 5.19 feet below pool. Navigate with caution to avoid sandbars and stumps. Bass are on points and drains in shallow water spawning, and some are in a post spawn biting crankbaits and Carolina rigs. Some topwater along the grass edges. Crappie are fair in the shallows near stumps and fair on the brush piles. Some crappie are spawning near cypress trees, wade anglers can target these. White bass are schooling on main lake points but not surfacing yet. Catch some with jigs, minnows, crankbaits and jigging spoons. Catfish are slowly moving back to the points. Report by Captain Lynn Atkinson, Reel Um N Guide Service. Shad spawn is in full swing. Bass are good keying on hard clay points, grass edges and flooded timber with swim jigs, chatterbaits, topwater spooks or pop-r’s. Offshore bite is 10-20 feet on hard spots and flats, points and creek channel swings using crankbaits, Carolina rigs, shaky heads and dropshots. Crappie have finished spawning in 12-20 feet of water on brush piles and standing timber. Report by Captain Hank Harrison, Double H Precision Fishing.

Somerville

GOOD. Water stained; 68 degrees; 0.54 feet above pool. Catfish and crappie are fair, and bluegill are good on minnows, worms, and stink bait at Somerville Marina early morning. Black bass are fair in 5-8 feet of water hitting soft plastics and jerkbaits. Crappie are fair on the main lake brush piles in 10-15 feet of water and pilings biting minnows and very small jigs. Catfish are good in 4-8 feet of water. Larger catfish are being caught on jug lines baited with shad or cut bait. White bass are good in the lake trolling with Pet spoons and jigs, or anchored with ghost minnows or shad. Hybrids are fair, fishing schools, caught on cut bait and 2 ounce jigs. Hybrids continue to be caught from shore at the dam and Welch Park areas. Report by Weldon Kirk, Fish Tales Guide Service.

Spence

SLOW. Water stained; 64 degrees. 48.19 feet below pool. Bass have been caught using square bill crankbaits in shad patterns. The spinnerbait bite has been working later in the day when the wind starts picking up. Blue catfish are biting on fresh cut bait. Report by Bronte Guns and Tackle Pro Staff.

Stamford

SLOW. Water stained; 65 degrees; 3.16 feet below pool. More rain in the forecast heading into the weekend, White bass are slow to fair with fish scattered. Catfish are fair. Crappie are good off the crappie dock with minnows. Bass are fair and the spawn should kick off after a few consecutive days of warmer weather.

Stillhouse

GOOD. Water stained; 65 degrees; 14.70 feet below pool. Thanks to flooding rains on April 9, Stillhouse rose 2.35 feet since last week and is now 65.2-percent full. Largemouth bass fishing is excellent right now with numerous 7-8 pound bass being taken each week for the past several weeks in small, local tournaments. Dark, natural hues of soft plastics worked on the outside edge of the hydrilla, especially where that hydrilla growth coincides with topographic anomalies, is productive. The freshwater drum spawn is tapering off. Bare, stony points in 12-19 feet worked with a 3/8 or ⅝ ounce Bladed Hazy Eye Slab by banging the bottom, then lifting the lure about a foot and repeating this process will produce fish 12-26 inches. White bass will continue to be hard to come by as they make their way back down lake, typically congregating once again by June. Report by Bob Maindelle, Holding the Line Guide Service.

Tawakoni

GREAT. Water lightly stained; 66 degrees; 1.14 feet above pool. There has been a major shift in our hybrid striper and white bass action. Fish are moving shallow and staging up to spawn. Look for wind blown points and gulls giving away locations of feeding fish. Swimbaits are the ticket right now in 3-10 feet. The eating size catfish bite is red hot. Cut shad and buffalo have been putting limits of blue catfish in the boat. Target the wind blown points in 3 feet. Channel catfish are being caught over baited holes in 18-25 feet. These fish are also moving up shallow and can be caught in 2-5 feet under bobbers. These fish are being caught on prepared bait such as punch bait. Crappie are good. These fish are in their final stages of the spawn. We are still seeing fish shallow and being caught on jigs under bobbers. We are also starting to see post spawn fish setting up on shallow brush and bridge pylons in 8-14 feet. Largemouth bass bite is great. With the shad spawn starting, look for active bass on rip rap and shallow dock posts. Fish are being caught on shallow cranks and spinner baits. Report by Captain Michael Littlejohn, Lake Tawakoni Guide Service.

Texana

SLOW. Water stained; 59 degrees; 0.12 feet below pool. Crappie and catfish are slow. The bass bite is good north of the U.S. Route 59.

Texoma

GOOD. Water normal stain; 58 degrees; 1.53 feet below pool. Striped bass fishing is great drifting live shad around the islands or past the bridges near the rivers. Rain should finish off the spawn and look for bait on the banks with feeding fish near them. Top waters are working on sandy flats in 2-8 feet of water. Smallmouth bass are good on live shad along the bluffs on the banks in 2-4 feet of water. Also fair on spooks early and look for largemouth off the banks in 6-12 feet of water on main lake points near rocks. Catfish are fair on cut shad along the rocks in 30-45 feet of water. Drifting cut rough fish or gizzard shad in 5-10 feet of water near the river could produce a big fish after a rain with an inflow of dirty water. Crappie are good on brush piles in 12-18 feet of water on jigs using electronics to locate active fish working in and out of the brush. Look for spawners shallow with warmer temperatures in the forecast. Report by Jacob Orr, Guaranteed Guide Service Lake Texoma. Threadfin shad are spawning along the banks. Hybrid stripers are good on topwaters in the morning along rocky banks. Some days the egrets are working leading the way to fish. Some schooling activity under gulls. After the morning bite ends switch to swimbaits and Alabama rigs in 10-25 feet of water on the edges and dropoffs. This pattern should hold for the next 4-6 weeks while shad spawn near docks and banks. Report by John Blasingame, Adventure Texoma Outdoors.

Toledo Bend

GOOD. Water slightly stained; 64 degrees; 1.09 feet below pool. The water levels came up 3 feet after the recent rains, and the flood gates are open with more water coming down the river. Most of the creeks are muddy and stained. Bass are fair from the flooded bank out to 5 feet with frogs, chatterbaits and spinnerbaits. The mid range fish are hit-and-miss with Carolina rigs, Texas rigs and shallow running crankbaits. The deeper fish have gotten up off the bottom and they are swimming around, just hard to catch at this time due to the rising water. Navigate with caution watching for floating timber. Also with water being this high, lots of the boat lane buoys are almost underwater. More rain in the weekend forecast. Report by Stephen Johnston, Johnston Fishing.

Travis

GOOD. Water stain; 65 degrees; 50.24 feet below pool. Bass are good in the main lake in shallow water and coves off the main lake with swimbaits and craws. White bass are schooling midlake chasing the shad spawn. Report by Randal Frisbie, Central Texas Fishing Guide, LLC.

Twin Buttes

SLOW. Water stained. 72 degrees; 33.44 feet below pool. Channel catfish are very good on cheese bait in shallow water. Limits of white bass are good in the open lake with shad, or topwaters when there is surface action. Crappie are slow but should improve in heavy cover in 8-12 feet of water with jigs or live minnows. Largemouth bass are fair on soft plastics and some topwaters. Report by Captain Michael Peterson, 4 Reel Fun Guide Service.

Tyler

SLOW. Water stained; 65 degrees; 0.41 feet above pool. Bass are slow in 10 feet of water on crankbaits and trick worms. Crappie slow in 20 feet of water on brush piles with minnows and jigs. Bream are slow on red worms. Catfish are good biting everything as they gear up for an early spawn. Report by Paul Taylor, The Boulders at Lake Tyler.

Waco

GREAT. Water stained; 66 degrees; 0.29 feet above pool. The lake is stained to murky with recent runoff from rains. White bass are returning to the upper lake. Boaters will begin catching more white bass and hybrids on the lake while they migrate from the upper ends of the lake towards the dam over the next few weeks. Crappie bite is improving in shallow water on live minnows and artificial jigs fished around shoreline trees in the back of coves and marinas. This pattern will hold up for about one month. Largemouth bass are spawning and can still be caught on Texas rigs, small swimbaits, bladed jigs and creature baits in creeks and flats. Anglers are still catching channel catfish and blue catfish on live and cut bait on rod and reel and juglines. Yellow catfish will begin spawning later on as the water must warm up even more. They can mostly only be caught on live bait. Lake is murky due to runoff and high winds. Boaters should take caution by wearing their PFDs while on the lake due to unpredictable storms with high winds and waves. Navigate with caution watching for stumps and debris in the lake from runoff.

Walter E. Long

GREAT. Water stained; 71 degrees. Water is clearing after the recent rains. Bass are best with underspins on wind blown banks and yum dingers. Report by David Townsend, Austin Fishing Guide.

Weatherford

FAIR. Water heavily stained; 68 degrees; 5.11 feet below pool. Fishing patterns are holding steady. Some catches of smaller size crappie at the house or shallow on rocks with minnows or jigs. Bass are slow in shallow water and transitioning deeper in a post spawn using soft plastics. Catfish are fair on the main lake with cut bait.

Welsh

GOOD. Water normal stain. 70 degrees. Largemouth bass are good with Texas rigged worms, and chatterbaits.

White River

SLOW. Water normal stain; 63 degrees; 19.66 feet below pool. Crappie are slow using minnows. Catfish are being caught on cut bait, minnows and worms from the docks or banks. White bass can be caught trolling near the island with a crankbait.

Whitney

GOOD. Water stained; 65 degrees; 0.32 feet above pool. Catfish are fair using cut drum or shad under roosting birds. Striped bass are good trolling live bait and down rigging jigs. Crappie continue to be fair on small jigs and minnows fished near deeper structure. White bass are good up the creeks in shallow waters. Largemouth bass continue to be fair along structures and docks. Report by Captain Cory Vinson, Guaranteed Guide Service. Striped bass are slow with many smaller sized fish being caught on swimbaits, umbrella-rigs or live bait. Report by Kraig Sexton, Sexton's Guide Service LLC, Fishing Charter, Marine Electronics & Whitney.

Worth

FAIR. Water normal stained; 64 degrees; 3.00 feet below pool. White bass are good on main lake structures with slabs and cohos. Crappie are good shallow and mid depths on jigs. Blue catfish and channel catfish are good on punch bait and shad. Report provided by Chad Ferguson of North Texas Catfish Guide Service.

Wright Patman

GOOD. Water stained; 70 degrees; 3.97 feet above pool. Fish seem to be in the flood water. Catfish are being caught back in brush with the usual blood and cheese bait. Kelly Creek has been good for catfish. Crappie are on the bank spawning, and scarce in deeper water. Some crappie continue to spawn along the bank, but many fish have spawned out transitioning to deeper water near major creek mouths. Report by Jerry Gennings, local angler and guide.

Houston

GOOD. Water stained; 66 degrees; 0.49 feet above pool. Water stained but slight signs of clearing up on the south end of the lake. White bass have spawned out as they are being caught with firm, empty sacks being caught in swim baits and small spins imitating shad. Largemouth bass are holding tight to structure and docks being caught on worms and grubs. Gar are still plentiful in the creeks being caught on rattle traps and cut bait. Catfish are heating up with the presence of shad showing up at the bullheads heavily in the morning. Crappie are being caught in 8-14 feet of water on brush piles being caught with small plastics and hand tied jigs. Report by Captain Zackary Scott, Zack Attack Fishing.

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