Prairies & Lakes Region Week of February 18, 2026

Dunlap

GOOD. Water stained; 67 degrees. Crappie are excellent on minnows. Catfish are good on cut bait on drop off ledges. Bass are fair on minnows and plastics. Mostly juvenile catches, with some 2-3 pound bass are being reported. Report by Lee Johnson and Kenneth Linder, local anglers.

Aquilla

GOOD. Water normal stain; 55 degrees; 0.84 feet below pool. Crappie are good on brush piles in 10-12 feet of water with minnows or jigs. Bass are fair on spinnerbaits in 10-20 feet of water. Catfish are good on shallow windy banks with prepared baits. Sand bass are starting to move out of the main lake into the creeks to spawn. Report by Captain Cory Vinson, Guaranteed Guide Service.

Arlington

GOOD. Water slightly stained; 57 degrees; 0.85 feet below pool. Bass are good with fish staging to spawn around shallow cover. Bass can be caught on weightless senkos, with crankbaits and spinnerbaits in shallow water, and with Alabama rigs and jigs in deeper water. Sand bass are running up the rivers and creeks. Crappie should be feeding heavily on shad prespawn as well. Catfish are spread across the reservoir feeding on shad in deep and shallow water. Report by Cade Rudiger, local angler.

Athens

FAIR. Water normal stain; 54 degrees; 0.52 feet above pool. There has been a decent concentration of fish out roaming in open water and on the deeper grass edges. Offshore bass can be found with livescope then have an umbrella rig and a minnow on a jig head ready to go. Some of the fish in the deeper grass will start moving shallow in the afternoons as water temperature peaks. The chatterbait and jerkbait are great options to cover water this time of year. Always a go to is the weightless 5 inch stickbait in shad and bluegill patterns around docks. Mix in a dropshot, Carolina rig, and Texas rig worm on the edge of the grass line. Crappie are schooled up roaming out in the main lake areas and some still on brush piles. Report by Captain Kirk Pasalich, Artifishable Fishing Guide Service.

Bastrop

SLOW. Water normal stain; 60 degrees. Bass will be biting at the hot water discharge, or schooled up on deep main lake humps and drop-offs. Fish slowly with Carolina rigs, Alabama rigs and jigging spoons. Any imitation shad bait will be good this time of year.

Belton

FAIR. Water normal stain; 61 degrees; 0.77 feet above pool. Water temperature is up to 61 degrees but the temperature steadily declines to around 50 degrees at 60 feet deep. White bass are in the midst of migrating into the Leon River and Cowhouse Creek. No observation of spawners reaching truly shallow waters yet, but plenty of migratory schools are making their way upcurrent using the main channels as their route. Side-imaging is certainly a great aid in finding such fish. Flatline trolling with crankbaits able to dive to 10-12 feet deep are excellent tools to gauge fish activity level. Once active fish are found, you can keep light on trolling in that area, or, better yet, begin casting to avoid running your outboard over fish and spooking them. Small Alabama rigs and MAL Originals with chartreuse tails have excelled for this work this past week. All but the most active fish are still using the bottom, so a sawtooth retrieve is very effective. Clear skies, bright sun, and calm winds are tough conditions to fish in, so consider deadsticking right over the river channel in areas where an abundance of shad are seen on sonar. Use a thumper to draw fish in, and forward facing sonar in downward mode to present bait directing in front of the travel path of fish swimming beneath the boat. Report by Bob Maindelle, Holding the Line Guide Service. Catfish fishing remains excellent in 25-45 feet of water. Slow drifting with suspended baits around points and river channels has worked best for blue catfish. Flatheads are slow, but have been caught near structure and rock piles with live perch or shad. Channel catfish are slow but have been caught around deeper timber using punch bait. Report by Brian Worley, B&S Catfishing.

Benbrook

FAIR. Water normal stain; 53 degrees; 2.93 feet below pool. Crappie are good next to structure on minnows in 20-30 feet. Catfish are fair on cut bait 18- 30 feet. Hybrids are fair on live bait in 20-40 feet. Report by Hundley's Guide Service.

Bois d'Arc

FAIR. Normal stain; 55 degrees; 2.28 below pool. Water temperatures are ranging from 51-60 degrees. Morning bass action is improving, but the best bite continues to be mid morning to afternoon. Spinnerbaits and chatterbaits are good slow rolling by bushes 3-5 feet of water. Flukes and soft plastic stickbaits are good around the same bushes 3-5 feet. Spawning flats behind the trees are producing good bites as well. Report by Marc Mitchell, Mitchell's Guide Service. The bite will improve as the fish adjust to the water temperature. Crappie are slow with fish clinging to the bottom. When you can find fish, vertically jig. Report by River Bottom Boys Guide Service.

Bridgeport

FAIR. Water clear; 54 degrees; 4.64 feet below pool. Crappie bite is fair with jigs or minnows on docks in 15-30 feet of water with some roaming in 20-30 feet. Largemouth bass are fair with Alabama rigs on main lake points, creek channels, or on banks in the late afternoons. Use crankbaits and chatterbaits on main lake rock and suspended on docks. Bass will be pushing shallower with this warm weather. Hybrids are fair deadsticking slabs and flukes on main lake humps and points. White bass are good in creeks. Catfish are good on cut shad and bluegill on main lake deep holes, deeper holes in coves, and in the river in creek channels drifting. Report by Jack Pellegrini, Lake Bridgeport Crappie Guide Service.

Cedar Creek

EXCELLENT. Water normal stain; 58 degrees; 3.78 feet below pool. The winter deadsticking bite is in full force. Target hybrid striped bass and white bass in 30–42 feet of water throughout the lake. Use a fish thumper and splasher to draw fish beneath the boat, as schools will often move through the water column at depths of 15-24 feet. Depending on wind conditions, use a ½–1 ounce jighead paired with a 3–4 inch soft plastic fluke. Be ready for subtle bites and set the hook quickly. Drift at speeds of 0.3–0.5 mph for best results. If you are not getting bites within 20–30 minutes, move to a new location. Key areas to target include sharp drop-offs, ledges, and mid-lake humps and points across the lake. Adjust jig and plastic colors based on cloud cover and sunlight, rotating between bright and shad-pattern colors for best results. A significant warm-up is in the extended forecast, along with periods of rain. This pattern will likely trigger the white bass spawning run, pushing fish into creek channels and sandy shallow points throughout the lake. White bass and hybrids will attempt to move up shallow creeks. However, without a solid 3–4 inches of rainfall they are expected to remain in the main lake, staging on shallow humps where water temperatures are warmer and conditions are calmer for their annual spawn. The crappie bite continues to improve. Target crappie with small jigs and minnows in 7-12 feet of water around bridge pylons, brush piles, and docks. Anglers are finding success by staying mobile, catching several fish per spot before moving on. Guides report improving conditions, with larger crappie showing up more consistently. Report by Brent Herbeck, Herbeck’s Lonestar Fishing Guide Service. Catfish patterns remain consistent with fish up to 45 pounds possible. Catfish are fair drifting deep flats in 24-40 feet of water with cut gizzard shad or carp. Some catfish are still being caught anchored in 3-10 feet fishing shad off the bottom. Report by Jason Barber, Kings Creek Adventures.

Comanche Creek

GOOD. 68 degrees; 0.71 feet above pool. Comanche Creek continues to be one of the best fishing lakes in the area due to the warm water from the power plant. Limits of channel catfish and largemouth bass are common. The Tilapia are abundant on this reservoir as well. Report by Michael Acosta, Unfair Advantage Charters.

Cooper

FAIR. Water stained; 56 degrees; 3.17 feet below pool. The bite will improve as the fish adjust to the water temperature. Crappie slow and vertically jigging will be the best tactic. Look in river channels further from the dam for crappie staging in spawning grounds. Report by River Bottom Boys Guide Service.

Cypress Springs

EXCELLENT. Water normal stain; 57 degrees; 0.49 feet below pool. The bite will improve as the fish adjust to the water temperature. Crappie are excellent as fish migrate shallow to spawning grounds. The fish will spook easily, so cast versus vertically jig. Report by River Bottom Boys Guide Service.

Eagle Mountain

FAIR. Water stained; 55 degrees; 2.33 feet below pool. The spring bite typically starts the last week of February. Crappie are fair in the boat slips. Black bass are slow. Blue catfish are transitioning from the winter pattern to the spring pattern. This bite is typically best from March to May with cut bait. Channel catfish are slow and scattered. Sand bass are slow with a few early spawners moving up the rivers biting small spinnerbaits. Perch fair around the docks. There was not a shad kill so the shad are abundant for the game fish to feast on. Big gizzard shad can be found on the bottom in 30-40 feet of water. Report by Captain Bobby Mann, Catch a Dream Guide Service.

Fayette

GOOD. Water slightly stained; 67 degrees; full pool. Bass are good with Carolina rigs in 5-9 feet of water, or squarebill crankbaits over the grass. Bass are in prespawn, with the first spawn push complete. Many small bass are running the banks biting rattle traps. Report by Mark Fransen, Fransen's Guide Service.

Graham

GOOD. Water stained; upper 56 degrees; 4.36 feet below pool. Crappie are good in 12-14 feet deep in brush with jigs. Sand bass and hybrids are good with jigs or spoons on main lake humps in 14-16 feet. Catfish are good with cut shad in 4-8 feet on flat banks. Bass are slow on main lake points with slow moving baits.

Granbury

FAIR. normal stain; 60 degrees; 0.12 feet below pool. Lake Granbury is at full pool and water temperatures are rising from the 50s toward the 60s. Low to moderate levels of golden alga have been confirmed on Granbury close to town. This fish kill seems to only impact baitfish so far. If you see any dead or dying fish, please report to the Texas Parks and Wildlife or the Brazos River Authority. Best fishing reports on Granbury are for crappie and catfish. Crappie limits are being taken on the upper portions of the lake. Blue catfish to 30 pounds are possible on cut shad. Largemouth bass are fair to good on soft plastics worked near deeper docks and structure with some fish near laydowns in the river above Granbury. Striped bass are slow to fair on live shad and swimbaits worked on the lower ends. Striped bass and some sandbass are being caught from the Peninsula to Hunter Park. The spring spawn for sandbass is upon us so look for fish moving upstream. Report by Michael Acosta, Unfair Advantage Charters.

Grapevine

GOOD. Water slightly stained; 55 degrees; 0.57 feet below pool. White bass are good in areas with baitfish and then utilize a thumper to bring fish to the boat. Fish near creek channels to locate fish in 45-50 feet of water suspended 37-30 feet down. The bite is very light, and use a very slow retrieve. Small males are moving in the creeks. Report by Omar Cotter, Luck O'the Irish Fishing Guide Service.

Hawkins

FAIR. Water slightly stained; 56 degrees. Small shiny bait fish patterns are a good bet for chain pickerel. Black bass are on the move around grass in shallow sunny banks. Use small white and red streamers with good success. Report by Guide Alex Guthrie, Fly Fish Fork Guide Service.

Jacksonville

SLOW. Water stained; 57 degrees; 0.12 feet above pool. Bass are moving shallow, and can be caught on the bank and around docks with jigs, chatterbaits, spinnerbaits, and rattle traps. Some fish are suspended out deeper and can be caught on minnow type baits, jerkbaits, and crankbaits.

Joe Pool

GOOD. Water normal stain; 53 degrees; 0.36 feet below pool. Bass are good with fish staging to spawn around shallow cover. Bass can be caught on weightless senkos, with crankbaits and spinnerbaits in shallow water, and with Alabama rigs and jigs in deeper water. Sand bass are running up the rivers and creeks. Crappie should be feeding heavily on shad prespawn as well. Catfish are spread across the reservoir feeding on shad in deep and shallow water. Report by Cade Rudiger, local angler. Bass fishing is picking up, water temperatures are starting to rise back up to what they should be this time of the year. Fish are moving up to mid range depths 5-10 feet, you can tell they have been deep with their white color. It will not be long until the big girls start to move up. Fish can be caught on Texas rigged soft plastics, shaky heads, and small swimbaits on main lake flats bordered by old creek channels or steep drops. Stay safe and wear your life jacket! Report by Gilbert L. Miller, GTB Outdoors LLC.

Lavon

FAIR. Water stained; 50 degrees; 1.19 feet below pool. White bass are fair to good as some fish migrate to the creek systems, and some are scattered across the main lake. Look for surface activity where fish are pushing baitfish, often indicated by diving birds. Target main lake humps and points in 15-25 feet. Effective tactics for surfacing fish include rattle traps or swimbaits. Then switch to slabs or vertical jigging when fish are holding in one area. Patterns shift every couple of days, some days on points and other days fish are holding 200 yards or more off the dam. Crappie are fair with many roaming north from the dam area, and scattered in shallow water away from the dam. Others are suspended 10-20 feet in the water column, often solitary. A scope helps locate these open-water fish. Some good groups are holding in brush piles at 15-20 feet. Focus on structure and suspended fish for best results with minnows or jigs. Catfish are good with monster-sized fish in 2-10 feet, while a school holds deep at 30-35 feet with some scattered in between. Cut shad has been very effective for both shallow and deep fish. Target ledges, flats, or structure across these depths. Tilapia are fair and improving. Fish are starting to show along shorelines, holding in 3-8 feet, best in 3-5 feet. Use light tackle: 4-pound line with a bobber, small split shot, and a small panfish hook baited with a piece of worm. Alternatives like one granola piece, sweet corn, or small dough balls also produce bites. Largemouth bass are fair with fewer suspended fish reported recently. Catch a few in 15 feet around rock piles and concrete structures. A 12 foot diver crankbait has been productive on most days. Focus on deeper cover as fish relate to structure. Report by Carey Thorn, White Bass Fishing Texas.

Lewisville

FAIR. Water normal stain; 55 degrees; 0.18 feet below pool. White bass are fair to good in 40-60 feet of water. Hybrid stripers are slow in that same depth. Check river channels and flats near the channels. Jigs, spinnerbaits, and swimbaits are working. 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. Blue catfish are fair on cut shad drifting or anchoring on points, ledges, and flats near the river channels and in river channels in 20-40 feet of water. The shallow water bite in 2-8 feet in the upper ends of the lake is fair as well. Crappie are slow to fair in 15-38 feet of water. Check brush piles, submerged timber, laydowns, bridge columns, and rock piles near a drop off ledge. The creeks are producing as well. Minnows and jigs are working. There are few pattern changes to anticipate in the coming weeks as we experience warmer temperatures and rains. The blue catfish bite should improve in shallow water, 1-5 feet, in the upper ends of the lake near creek mouths. The white bass spawn and hybrid striper mock spawn should begin very soon with the warmer temps as well. The creek fishing for the whites should pick up substantially over the next month. Report by Wes Campbell, BendARod Fishing.

Limestone

GOOD. Water clear; 58 degrees; 2.18 feet below pool. The main lake is 55-60 degrees, and the creeks are over 60 degrees. Bank fishing is excellent for crappie, largemouth bass and white bass. Catfish are in the creeks, but not all the way back. Numbers of crappie are being caught at the lake Limestone Marina and campground ground as well. Largemouth bass will move to 5 feet or less to spawning beds on Texas rigs, spinnerbaits, and chatterbaits. White bass will make the annual trip up the river and lay eggs. Cast minnows, beetle spins, and rooster tails. Some white bass will stay in the lake and spawn on mainlake flats closer to the middle or end of March. White bass will continue to be caught on silver super spoons. Report by Colan Gonzales, Lake Limestone Guide Service.

Navarro Mills

GOOD. 58 degrees; 0.23 full pool. Catfish are excellent with multiple catches 30-62 pound fish. Cut carp was the key off bank points and mid week. Crappie are fair in shallow water or on brush piles with blue jigs or minnows. The best bite is the afternoon and evening. White bass are mixed in with the crappie. Report by Navarro Mills Marina.

Palestine

GOOD. water stained; 60 degrees; 0.13 feet below pool. Crappie and bass are good with fish spawning along the banks. Crappie are good on minnows or jigs. biting rattletraps and spoons.

Palo Pinto

GOOD. normal stain; 54 degrees; 0.64 feet below pool. Crappie are good in 14 feet of water on minnows and jigs. As the water continues to warm, crappie will move to the banks to spawn. Sand bass and hybrids are improving to good around the Spillway. Blue catfish are good in shallow water with fresh cut, bait and whole shad. Report by Palo Pinto RV.

Ray Hubbard

GOOD. Water normal stain; 53 degrees; 1.03 feet below pool. The fishing patterns remain consistent as the water temperature is on the rise into the 50s. White bass are excellent on deep flats 32-38 feet of water. No reason to start at daylight as the mid-morning and afternoons have produced excellent catches. The south end of the lake is the most productive area. Locate schools of bait and fish those areas with the 2-3 jigs tied above a 1 ounce slab. Thumping the boat produces the best chances. The fish also were on the lower half of the water column. Afternoons will be better after the water starts warming back up. Crappie are fair and also moving out from brush and out of deeper water along flats and levees moving into feeder creeks on the warm sunny days. Big blue catfish bite picked up with the colder water. Drifting large baits in 38-42 feet of water is working best. Report by John Varner, John Varner's Guide Service.

Ray Roberts

GOOD. Water stained; 55 degrees; 0.00 feet below pool. Crappie are good with fish in a prespawn. Target fish in 12-15 feet of water near spawning flats with jigs or minnows. Catfish are slow as fish adjust to the warmer muddy water. Try drifting in 18-25 feet of water near main lake points and humps. Bass may be in 6-12 feet of water weedlines near secondary points. It is nearing spawning time for bass. Sand bass are beneath the birds with live bait or deadsticking slabs. Blue catfish and crappie are mixed in. Report by Daniel Koberna, Lt. Dan's Crappie Co.

Richland Chambers

GOOD. Water slightly stained; 58 degrees; 1.89 feet below pool. The birds are a good indicator of the location of the hybrids and white bass. Cast Alabama rigs, swimbaits, and or slowly drift using a dead stick fluke. The warming trend that may continue could send the White Bass to the creeks and the shallow points. The fishing will be amazing at this time. Swim baits and Rattle Traps are a great choice at this time. Black Bass will move to spawning coves as the water warms. Start with the coves on the north side of the lake, they will warm up faster. Look for rock, wood, or boat dock poles that will provide cover and retain warmth. If it continues to warm fish the dock walk ways and retaining walls. The Catfish Guides are still catching them good on cut bait drifting flats. Good Fishing, Terry Hawkins Guide Service Report by Terry Hawkins Guide Service.

Somerville

SLOW. Water stained; 53 degrees; 2.98 feet below pool. The nightbite has picked up this week. At the marina the crappie bite is good, and catfish are fair on minnows or punch bait. Bluegill are slow on crickets and worms. Black bass are starting to stage for spring spawn. Bass are fair on craw jigs and slow moving plastics baits in 6-14 feet of water. On the lake crappie are good with various jigs and minnows holding tight under brush in 8-16 feet of water or roaming. Catfish are good in 5-12 feet of water on drop-offs with cut shad, punch bait or using jug lines. Chumming areas helps. White bass are fair trolling with various spoons or anchored with shad and ghost minnows. Hybrids are fair with jigs or cut bait in deeper water. Below the dam all species are slow while water is not being discharged. Report by Weldon Kirk, Fish Tales Guide Service.

Stillhouse

FAIR. Water stained; 61 degrees; 1.72 feet above pool. Water temperature is up to 61 degrees but the temperature steadily declines to around 50 degrees at 60 feet deep. White bass are in the midst of migrating into the Lampasas River. No observation of spawners reaching truly shallow waters yet, but plenty of migratory schools are making their way upcurrent using the main channels as their route. Side-imaging is certainly a great aid in finding such fish. Flatline trolling with crankbaits able to dive to 10-12 feet deep are excellent tools to gauge fish activity level. Once active fish are found, you can keep light on trolling in that area, or, better yet, begin casting to avoid running your outboard over fish and spooking them. Small Alabama rigs and MAL Originals with chartreuse tails have excelled for this work this past week. All but the most active fish are still using the bottom, so a sawtooth retrieve is very effective. Clear skies, bright sun, and calm winds are tough conditions to fish in, so consider deadsticking right over the river channel in areas where an abundance of shad are seen on sonar. Use a thumper to draw fish in, and forward facing sonar in downward mode to present bait directing in front of the travel path of fish swimming beneath the boat. Report by Bob Maindelle, Holding the Line Guide Service. Bass are fair targeting nomadic fish roaming in open water with minnow-style soft plastics. Forward-facing sonar will play a key role in locating these schools. Large groups of bass, sometimes numbering dozens of fish, are following bait and can provide fast action once located. Alabama rigs will catch fish in submerged vegetation in 12–20 feet of water, where anglers can often catch multiple bass from the same area. Report by Ander Meine, Bassquatch Fishing,

Tawakoni

GOOD. Water lightly stained; 56 degrees; 1.27 feet below pool. Lake Tawakoni is really starting to climb out of its winter pattern and we are seeing signs of spring on the horizon. The main lake is still cold at 52 degrees, but the upper parts of the lake have reached 60 degrees.The hybrid striper and white bass bite is good. We were seeing big schools of fish on different parts of the lake that are feeding on huge schools of threadfin shad. Swimbaits and slabs are working best in 10-30 feet. The eating size catfish bite has been very reliable. Small pieces of cut bait have been working best in shallow water. Trophy sized catfish have been feeding well. We are seeing consistent catches of 40 pounds and up on most trips. Fresh cut bait in 3-25 feet is the ticket. Crappie have been decent on the 2 mile bridge in 15-20 feet on jigs. The largemouth bite has been better than average over the last two weeks. Good numbers of larger fish have been caught in shallow water on soft plastics. Key points here are coves and small flats near deep water. Report by Captain Michael Littlejohn, Lake Tawakoni Guide Service.

Texoma

FAIR. Water stained; 50 degrees; 0.26 feet above pool. Stripers are mostly suspended in deep water with the big wads of bait 50-70 feet of water. Glow and chartreuse Flukes or swimbaits are working on the right day, and live bait will start to produce as well. Fish are still on structure as well off man lake points and humps in 10-20 feet of water near the ends of the lake where the water is warmest. Catfish are cruising under the bait in deep water and starting to move up shallow in creeks and coves looking for warm water. Drifting with whole gizzard shad or cut rough fish in 30-50 feet of water. Crappie are moving up near creeks and on structures in 10-15 feet of water. Fish are scattered and in small bunches, the further west or north you go on the lake you’ll find dirtier and warmer water. Bass are moving to spawning areas and gorging on the large amount of bait in the lake. Main lake points with stumps or rocks in 8-12 feet of water. Report by Jacob Orr, Lake Texoma, Guaranteed Guide Service. Stripers are good on blue bird days, but excellent on cloudy days with wind. Some fish are on ledges and dropoffs in 15-25 feet, but bigger fish can be caught in deeper water beneath the birds. Deadstick flukes, shad or cast Alabama rigs. Report by John Blasingame, Adventure Texoma Outdoors.

Weatherford

SLOW. Water slightly stained; 55 degrees; 5.83 feet below pool. Crappie are good at the crappie house with minnows and jigs. Yellow bass are mixed in. Bass are slow in deep water with soft plastics. Catfish are slow in deep water with liver or stink bait. The water clarity is heavily stained with 6 inches of visibility.

Whitney

FAIR. Water normal stain; 51 degrees; 1.47 feet below pool. Catfish are good using cut bait in 15 feet of water on windy shallow banks. Striped bass are good on live bait and swimbaits in 25-35 feet of water. Crappie are moving up the creeks and rivers and are being caught in about 15 feet of water. White bass are good up the Brazos River and Nolan Rivers on ghost minnows and small jigs. Largemouth bass are fair using crankbaits on windy bank lines. Report by Captain Cory Vinson, Guaranteed Guide Service.

Worth

SLOW. Water normal; 56 degrees; 1.62 feet below pool. Bass are good, slowly bouncing jigs off the bottom. Crappie are good under bridge pylons with jigs and minnows. Sand bass are slow with a few being caught around large schools of shad on the north end of the lake. Catfish are good using shad or cut bait. Report by Michael James, local angler.

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