Pick a month and Texas has a fish and lake ready and waiting
Our state waters are the most diverse and amazing in the nation, featuring superb habitat for a variety of gamefish in fresh and saltwater. And while there's debate about the top places to fish throughout the year, here's a breakdown of half a year's worth of fishing that won't disappoint whether you're a die-hard who fishes three times a week or simply plans one or two big trips a year.
January
Largemouths at Choke Canyon
Choke produced its highest number of entries (six) into the ShareLunker program last season, and those fish averaged 14.21 pounds. Included in that haul was the lake record, a 15.45-pound largemouth caught Jan. 21 by an angler fishing a crankbait in 10 feet of water. Popular big-bass baits include lipless crankbaits, spinnerbaits, soft plastics and jerkbaits fished around staging areas such as humps and points. Texas-rigged worms, lizards and senkos work well around vegetation, and braided line could help you horse a big fish from cover without breaking off.
February
Crappie at Toledo Bend
This massive 181,000-acre reservoir that straddles the Texas-Louisiana border on the Sabine River is a crappie angler's dream with a variety of fish-holding structure. You can keep an aggregate of 50 white and black crappie and all crappie caught this month at T-Bend must be kept; there is no length limit. The "no-cull" rule deals with reducing mortality of schoolies brought up from the depths when their air bladder overinflates.
You can never go wrong by tying up to a stump or even dropping an anchor while dabbling minnows around vegetation, but if you're looking to have some fun, try working dark-colored small jigs on a lightweight spinning outfit.
March
Largemouths at Lake Fork
The numbers don't lie when it comes to this East Texas hot spot: Of the 50 biggest largemouths caught in Texas, 34 came from Fork, including the 18.18-pound state record caught in 1992 -- on a live minnow, interestingly enough.
A slot limit of 16 to 24 inches and phenomenal habitat have made Fork the trophy destination for anglers in the whole of the southern United States as big sow bass move into the shallows to spawn. The key to fishing shallow during March is simple in theory but difficult to pull off: Don't spook fish that are on full alert. If possible, position your boat so your shadow doesn't fall into the area you're casting to. Also, be careful when handling bigger bass. Always support them with two hands and get them back into water as soon as possible.
April
Blue Catfish at Lake Buchanan
Buchanan also boasts good numbers of channel cats and flatheads, but its blue cat population rivals that of Texoma's, a lake some anglers consider the state's best for blues. The eastern portion and area near the dam at Buchanan are more rocky than other spots, boasting thousands of aces of ledges and rock piles. The western portion features more flat areas with brush and vegetation when lake levels are normal to high.
Catfish in Buchanan are susceptible to any kind of stink bait and cut bait, which easily can be rigged up on any number of treble or circle hook and egg sinker combinations.
May
White Bass at Richland-Chambers
White bass fishing heats up this month as roving schools of shad get worked into a frenzy by baitfish from below and gulls and herons from above. One of the best ways to find schools of sand bass is to watch for bird activity near the surface.
Where there's bait, you'll often find hybrids along with the white bass, and some of the most exciting fishing is done with small topwater plugs. If you find white bass deeper, you should break out slabs and jigging spoons to catch their fancy.
June
Stripers at Lake Texoma
Texoma is the nation's premier lake for striped bass, and the massive body of water on the Texas-Oklahoma border northwest of Denison features a spawning population. The best aspect of summer fishing for Texoma stripers is that they will take a variety of baits including live gizzard shad, their preferred meal.
Anglers trolling crankbaits and other deep-running lures often can be as successful as those chunking live bait, and other lures that have caught untold numbers of fish are slabs and heavy jigs, which can be worked vertically. One spectacular way to catch stripers during cool summer mornings is with topwaters fished near shorelines, which also could produce a hefty smallmouth bass.
Check back soon for the rest of the fishing calendar and more information on the best the Lone Star State has to offer in the new year.
Will Leschper's e-mail address is wleschper@yahoo.com.
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