Pineywoods Region Week of July 24, 2024

B.A. Steinhagen

FAIR. Water stain; 85 degrees; 0.20 feet below pool. Bass are more active Bass are fair on soft plastics in the cuts, or with frogs over grass. Crappie are fair with jigs in flooded timber. Catfish are fair on juglines.

Bob Sandlin

GOOD. Water slightly stained; 86 degrees; 0.31 feet above pool. Summer fishing patterns are holding steady. Channel catfish are fair in 14 feet of water on baited holes with stink bait. A few catches of blue catfish in the same areas with cut bait. Crappie are good on brush piles and standing timber in 20-25 feet of water with black and green jigs or minnows. Crappie are good at night under the bridges with minnows. White bass slow. Report by Joey Crews, Lake Bob Sandlin Chubby Chaser Guide Service. Black bass are feeding early on shad patterns around grass and retaining walls. Main lake points are good for bass using clouser type patterns. Bream are plentiful with wooly buggers and small worm patterns. Report by Guide Alex Guthrie, Fly Fish Fork Guide Service. Bass are good on points in 18-22 feet of water using deep water baits like deep diving crankbaits, dropshots and Texas rigs. Night fishing has the best bite and is an escape from the heat and recreational boaters. Sand bass and black bass schooling together near the dam, and bridges. Report by Mike Stroman, R & R Marine.

Caddo

FAIR. Water stained; 80 degrees; 1.25 feet above pool. Another rain event is coming and that means more muddy water and more current coming down the river into Caddo. Work topwater baits early in the day around the grass and edge of lily pads all over the lake. When the sun rises, use a fluke or a frog bounced over the pads. Normally bass move into the river to deep cuts following bait, if this happens a shaky head, dropshot, or a light Texas rig. The lake is setting up beautifully with a lot to come at this time of year on this majestic lake that God spoke into existence. Report provided by Vince Richards, Caddo Lake Fishing & Fellowship.

Conroe

GOOD. Water slightly stained; 89 degrees; 0.24 feet above pool. Largemouth bass fishing is good fishing offshore structure with brush on it using Texas rigs, Carolina rigs, and crankbaits. Shallow fish are around docks and grass with some bluegill beds still nearby. Report by Roy Crush Fishing. Catfish spawn is over and the fishing is good but there are a lot of tiny fish out there. Baited hole and catfish bubblegum has been working great. Report by Brad Doyle with Bradley’s Guide Service. Hybrids and whites are schooling in 18-26 feet of water biting live shad and large minnows, or trolling with a deep diver with a pet spoon as a trailer. Some are scattered but also finding schools. Some anglers are jigging spoons too aggressively, get more hits with a calmer jigging motion, white or chartreuse slabs from MT Pockets has been working well.

Fork

GOOD. Water Stained; 81 degrees; 0.11 feet below pool. Bass are slow while the moon is fuller, and fish are more active at night. Early morning has been good for about an hour or so on frogs and flukes around grass in 2-4 feet. Switching to an offshore bite the rest of the day with Carolina rigs and Texas Rigs on points and humps in 15-20 feet with big worms or KO sticks. Deep crankbaits are good over drop offs in 22-27 feet. XD 6 and XD 8 chartreuse and blue back and landing bites. Report by Marc Mitchell, Lake Fork Guide Service. Cooling temperatures, light rain, and cloudy days have kicked the shallow bite into high gear in the middle of July! Bass are hitting topwaters and shallow streamers fished over flooded milfoil and hydrilla. Look for schooling bass in the open water and creeks as shad hatch is in full swing. Also, check out the brush piles as big bass are using them to feed on crappie. Bream are excellent in the shallows, wooly buggers and small poppers should bring a strike. Report by Guide Alex Guthrie, Fly Fish Fork Guide Service. The crappie fishing on Lake Fork continues to be excellent as we get deeper into the summer pattern. Fish are still stacked up on brush, trees and some lay downs. Best depths are 14-28 feet with a few fish a little shallower and a little deeper. The bite has been somewhat finicky lately. Minnows are a good choice to help overcome the slower bite. You can still catch fish on smaller hand tied baits or soft plastics. I've also noticed that rotating spots or finding new spots with less pressured fish has been important. The catfishing on Lake Fork is excellent like it seems to always be for eater sized channel cats. There are still tons of fish under roosting trees in 14-22 feet of water on the north ends of the lake. Bait a hole with cattle cubes or sour grains to get those fish concentrated. Then use any catfish bait of choice to load the boat. Report by Jacky Wiggins, Jacky Wiggins Guide Service.

Houston County

SLOW. Water stained; 85 degrees; 0.24 feet above pool. Fishing patterns are consistent. Sunfish are good. Crappie are slow on minnows and jigs. Bass are slow midday, with the best bite in the morning.

Lake O' the Pines

GOOD. Water stained; 90 degrees; 0.79 feet above pool. Solid summer pattern is holding steady for the bass. Bass are good with schooling activity starting to pick up. Follow the shad to find the bass. There is still some bass in the bushes along the banks pitching Texas rigged worms and jigs, or wacky rigs. Bass are good on brush piles on points on the south end of the lake in 15-25 feet of water with deep running crankbaits, jigs, wacky worms and Texas rigs. The north end of the lake is producing catches on the grass and bushes. Report by Mike Stroman, R & R Marine.

Livingston

GREAT. Stained; 88 degrees; 0.52 feet below pool. White bass bite is excellent in 10-20 feet of water with white and chartreuse Ducktracker slabs. Report by Michael Richardson, Lake Livingston Adventures.

Martin Creek

GOOD. Water normal stain; 92 degrees; 0.17 feet below pool. Bass are good on weightless senkos and shad colored lipless crankbaits over submerged hydrilla. The crappie are excellent fishing brush piles in 25 feet with minnows and Bobby Garland jigs. Large catfish are found near the brush piles as well using live bait on the bottom with rod and reel. Report by Hambone Guide service. Report by Hambone Guide Service.

Nacogdoches

EXCELLENT. Water stained; 87 degrees; 0.12 feet below pool. Largemouth bass are good for catches 2-5 pounds on deep diving crankbaits, Carolina rigs and dropshots. Crappie are good on brush piles with live minnows. Catfish are fair on cut bait and live minnows. Report by Cal Cameron, Cal’s ETX Guide Service.

Naconiche

FAIR. Water stained; 89 degrees; 0.50 feet above full pool. We have dried out and the heat is on. This should set up for the fish to be in full summer mode going forward. Keep an eye on the thermocline as this tells you the exact depth to present your offering. Even over deep water, do not go below this line. Quality fish holding tight to submerged timber with a Texas-rig Mag-worm, or a Tokyo-rig. If you catch them schooling, chunk an underspin, or a spook style topwater. Crappie population is good. Catfish are slow. Report by Eric Wolfe, NacoTack Fishing Services. Largemouth bass are excellent on big swimbaits and Carolina rigs. Crappie are good on brush piles with live minnows or jigs. Catfish are slow on cut bait and live minnows. Report by Cal Cameron, Cal’s ETX Guide Service.

Pinkston

GOOD. normal stain; 86 degrees. Largemouth bass are excellent on big worms Carolina rigged, or dropshot straight tail worms. Crappie are slow live minnows on standing timber. Catfish are fair on live minnows. Report by Cal Cameron, Cal’s ETX Guide Service.

Raven

SLOW. Water slightly stained; 83 degrees. Huntsville State Park has reopened after a brief closure due to storm damage from Hurricane Beryl. The lake has received over 8 inches of rain this week so conditions are not the best on the lake. Very high water levels, murky water and lots of debris in the lake for anglers to be on the alert for. Crappie are fair on minnows and artificial grubs. Bass are fair on soft plastic artificials. Catfish are fair on worms fished off the bottom. Bluegill are excellent at the boathouse dock on crappie bites and worms.

Sam Rayburn

GOOD. Water stained; 83 degrees; 3.58 feet above pool. The bite for all species seems to improve when the water is being generated. This stirs the water, breaking up the thermocline. Bass are slow in shallow water with many smaller fish being caught on frogs, and spinnerbaits. Deeper bass bite is fair with Carolina rigs. Crappie are slow in the morning, but improve midday. Catfish are all over the lake in 20 feet of water and in 12 feet of water in the creek channels. White bass are on points in the south end of the lake near the dam. Report by Captain Lynn Atkinson, Reel Um N Guide Service. As the lake continues to drop fish are going to be moving to traditional summer locations pending the thermocline depth. Bass are good early morning on shallow main lake points with medium or deep diving crankbaits, and topwaters. Main lake ledges with Carolina rig shaky head and spoons. Brush piles shallower than the thermocline with Texas rigs, jigs or Carolina rigs. The thermocline is actively fluctuating and will continue to do so while lake level changes. Navigate with caution watching for floating debris, trees, and stumps. Report by Hank Harrison, Double H Precision Fishing.

Toledo Bend

GOOD. Water slightly stained; 91 degrees; 1.80 feet below pool. Fishing is slow during the day but great at night. The forecast predicts 4-5 inches by the weekend, and the creeks are running strong. Water temperatures are back down in the high 80s, so when the weather finally settles the bass fishing should improve during the day with all the freshwater. Topwater baits, chatterbaits and spinnerbaits will be good in 1-5 feet around the bay grass and edge of flooded bushes. It will take a few days for the deeper fish to start to bite after all the rising water. Best baits will be mid range crankbaits and Texas rig, worm or baby’s brush hog. The best bite has been at night with catches up to 10 pounds with buzzbaits and spinnerbaits on main lake points then Texas rigs and Carolina rigs out in 10-16 feet. The crappie fishing has been slow but should improve. Best fishing has been deep brush and standing timber 12-18 feet with live bait. Report by Stephen Johnston, Johnston Fishing.

Tyler

GOOD. Water stained; 80 degrees; 0.24 feet above pool. Rain and cooler weather in the forecast for the weekend. Crappie are good using minnows and jigs on brush in 16 feet of water. Catfish are good in 12-16 feet of water nightcrawlers, shrimp, and liver. Bream are good on red worms off the barge and throughout the lake. Bass are good on crankbaits, plastic worms and topwater frogs. Carp are biting minnows, worms, and dough bait. Report by The Boulders at Lake Tyler.

Welsh

FAIR. Water stained. 106 degrees. Few reports from anglers.

Wright Patman

GOOD. Water stained; 83 degrees; 2.65 feet above pool. The lake level is high and water is being released. Be sure to check ramp status before heading out.

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