LAKE FORK

There are numerous reports, make sure you check them all!

Dave Vance
Lake Fork Texas Fishing Reports
Fishing Report
February 3, 2012

February is big Bass time here on Lake Fork. For all you fisherman that have been waiting for those big females to start moving to the shallows, now is the time. Lake Fork is about 6 feet low but still in great shape for another fantastic year of fishing in 2012. The fishing has been good for size the last few days. Numbers of quality Bass can be found starting to stage on the timbered secondary points and ditches, and creeks near spawning flats. Starting at the mouths of the creeks and working your way back is the best approach to locating pre spawn Bass this time of year. Dearing a cold front the Bass will be more active and concentrated on main lake and/or secondary points. On warmer days, you will find that the bite is better at the very back of the creeks. Once you locate a fish or two it is good to make another pass back through the area as there will usually be several more in that location and come back and hit it again later in the day. Fishing in depths of 4-10 feet has been good and will get better as the water temps rise.

The weather this time of year is always up and down, but don't let the cold nasty weather keep you off the water. Because this is the time of year your chances of catching a bass over ten pounds will be the best. I have been guiding on this lake a long time, and Most of the bass I have caught over ten pounds were on nasty cold weather days. Expect the bite to be shallow and more consistent as the month rolls along. Suspending Rouges, 3/4 oz Lipless crank baits in red/orange colors have been best also shallow divining crank baits in same colors. Chartreuse and white or white Spinner baits and Chatter Baits will also produce their share of Bass as well. I use a Stanley 1/2 oz or 3/4 oz Spinner bait with double willow leaf blades, Slow Rolling a 3/4oz Spinner bait on the outside edge of the timbered secondary points and flats will produce Big pre spawn bass this time of year.

Good areas for me right now have been White Oak Branch, Leafy Branch, Penson, and Wolfe Creek. These creeks have been producing some nice fish in the last few days. Brad Stevens from Kansas, fished with me yesterday and late in the day we had one over 6 and one that went 10 lbs 12oz in Leafy Branch, Brad caught this big bass on 3/4oz Spinner bait in 11 feet of water, this was the biggest bass he has ever caught he released her back to the lake and is having a replica made great job Brad!! I think this Spring is going to produce a lot of big Bass with the lake low it is going to concentrate the bass and make them easy to locate. February is one of the best months to catch a Trophy Bass on Lake Fork, the weather can be miserable but the rewards can be Big. My spring days are booking fast! So book early for best available dates.

If you would like to book a guide trip and get in on some pre spawn action, give a call on my cell 903-629-5085 or 903-629-7699 web site http;//www.lakeforktexasfishingreports.com

Good Fishing
David Vance

*********************************************************************

Lake Fork: 01/16/12
from JW Peterson
lakeforkproguides.com

Lake Fork : Earlier this past week we received some much needed rain across East Texas and Lake Fork has gained about one foot of water so far. The water temperature still is around 49-52 degrees depending on where you are. The Bass and Crappie fishing has slowed down a little this week due to the cold rain and rising water. We are expecting another front along with a couple of days of 25 mph winds and temperatures will be in the 30's by Tuesday. It should warm up by late week and the fishing should pick up again. With Lake Fork being so low and with warmer weather just ahead, the Spring fishing will be good. We don't have a lot of  grass right now so most of the Bass when they start to spawn will hold tight to just about any timber or structure that they can find in shallow water. Right now that is the same exact situation at El Salto and we are catching a ton of Bass in all sizes. Lake Fork has already produced the first ShareLunker Bass of the year and there have been several other Bass caught form 10-12 lbs. If you are interested in Bass fishing with us in 2012, now is a good time to set up guides and motel rooms. We will also be Crappie fishing until late February and then we will be mostly Bass fishing for the Spring months. You can reach us at 214.236.3320 or email me at jjguides@hotmail.com or jjguides@lakeforkproguides.com.
 
El Salto: I have just returned from El Salto with 22 fishermen and the fishing was awesome ! Thank You everyone that went with me on this fishing trip. The lake level is about 55% and the water temp was in the lower 70's. Night time temperatures were 45 degrees and in the mid to upper 70"s during the day. We moved all over the area from Mazatlan to the lake and back and did not have any problems anywhere and we did not hear of any problems. We caught Bass on just about everything we fished and we caught a ton of fish. We averaged about 1300 Bass per day as a group and ended up with right at 5300 Bass in four days of fishing. We saw one 10 lber, caught 7-9 lbers, caught some 7 and 8's and a lot of Bass from 3-6 lbs. My best bait was a Zoom Fluke fished on a 1/8 oz Shaky Head Jig and a Watermelon Zoom Mag Lizard on a Carolina Rig. From checking most of the shoreline, we could see a couple of places where the Bass had tried to spawn. The Big spawn is just about to happen and should last until sometime in March. In my boat, our best day was 183 Bass up to 8 lbs. Right now is when you need to go to Salto !
 
I will be returning to Salto with three other groups starting February 6th-18th.  Most of the trips are full but I do have 8 spots open for a 3 day fishing trip February 10th-14th. I do have other spots available at different times until the end of June. I will be glad to furnish numbers of other fishermen that were on this trip to check this out for yourself upon request. Right now for the next two moths is a great time to fish at El Salto. Call 214.236.3320 for information on how get on one of these fantastic Bass fishing trips.
 
Good Luck and Great Fishing !
JW

*********************************************************************