KNIGHT: Fork fishermen get chance to air opinions at meeting in Emory

Published 11:01 pm Saturday, February 13, 2016

The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence. Well, maybe in this case it is the water that is always bluer in another lake.

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and the Lake Fork Sportman’s Association will host its semi-regular free-for-all also known as the Lake Fork State of the Lake public meeting Tuesday in Emory.

It can always be entertaining when fishermen, guides and property owners are given access on open mic night. At Lake Fork there are going to be those who are happy, and those who are never happy.

If you don’t have time to make it to Emory for the meeting let me guess at a few of the talking points that will pop up. And with keeping in the spirit of the elections I have ask guide David Vance to offer a rebuttal. Vance has been on the lake since Day 1. Actually, truth be told he has been on even longer than that.

We can’t catch fish so there must not be many there. Can the lake be stocked?

That is a common complaint on the lake. Has been for years now. Even with the pros weighing winning stringers of 110 and 87-12 in back-to-back Toyota Texas Bass Classics, some fishermen were on the bank complaining about the lack of quality or the difficulty in catch fish at Lake Fork.

Never shy, Vance said the problem isn’t so much the fishery as it is the fishermen.

“A guy goes out and doesn’t catch fish and he thinks there are no fish in the lake. I have been fishing this lake since it opened and there has been a lot of change. The timber is gone, there is grass and then no grass and the water level has been up and down,” Vance said.

“You can get in a rut. I know I do. You go out and not catch fish because you are doing the same thing in the same spot you always fished and you think there are no fish in the lake. You have to change because the patterns are changing and the fish are changing because whatever was holding the fish is not there anymore.”

Vance said for many years not only was the lake level constant, but so was the bass fishing. Each season fishermen knew they could return to a spot they fished the year before using the same bait, but that just isn’t the case on a lake that is now 36 years old.

The guide admits the lake has been tough the last year because of the rains the area received. After sitting in the middle of the driest part of East Texas for three or four years, Wood County suddenly was suddenly swamped last winter. He expects that to change, however.

“I think the lake, right now coming up like it has, is going to be on fire this spring. It needs some time to catch a breather. This lake has changed water three or four times in the last six months. By that I mean it has taken on some massive water. We have had some of the highest water conditions I have ever seen here,” Vance said.

At this point, Vance said the fish are scattered, but once the water warms and hits a stable level for an extended period it could be lights out fishing.

“It is going to be like on Falcon where when it refilled it was like a gold mine for several years,” he added.

Helping will be several good spawns in recent years, including last year when high water and a late winter made spawn bass fishing difficult.

White bass are ruining the lake. Can you get rid of them?

This one got a little chuckle out of Vance. Unlike fishermen who are not on the lake as much as a guide Vance doesn’t complain about the fish either because they provide some action for his clients or he that realizes there is nothing that can be done about them.

“There are some big sand bass in this lake, 1- and 2-pounders,” he said.

As far as ruining the lake, Vance said they are bound to compete with largemouth bass for threadfin shad, but then again the smaller white bass become prey for the largemouth bass.

The City of Dallas pump station is ruining the lake. What can be done to stop them from pumping water?

“That is what this lake was built for. If it weren’t for Dallas’ investment in Lake Fork we would be looking at pasture out here,” Vance said.

However, if pumping water is a concern maybe waterfront property owners need to stop pumping water out of the lake to water their lawns. My words, not Vance’s.

There is no grass on the lake. Why does Texas Parks and Wildlife Department spray the hydrilla?

Ok, this one bothers Vance just like any other fisherman, but the truth is other than water hyacinths the department has not sprayed the lake until this winter when it went after the recently discovered giant salvinia.

Rumors of Dallas spraying around its intake are also false.

Weather, such as cold temperatures and rain, or lack thereof, is more likely to cause the disappearance of hydrilla on Lake Fork and other lakes.

Seriously, Lake Fork is not perfect, but it is certainly better than say Lake Brownwood or a more even peer, Falcon Lake.

Fishermen who want to hear presentations about the condition of the lake or ask questions are invited to attend the meeting beginning at 6:30 p.m. at the Emory City Center, 735 North Texas Street.

Have a comment or opinion on this story? Contact outdoor writer Steve Knight by email at outdoor@tylerpaper.com. Follow Steve Knight on Facebook at Texas All Outdoors and on Twitter @txalloutdoors.