East Texas Fishing Report

Published 8:37 pm Thursday, December 22, 2022

Athens — GOOD. Water clear; 56-60 degrees; 0.81 feet below pool. If you can stand the frigid temperatures brought on by the Siberian Air cold front fishing will be good. Bass are slow and scattered throughout the lake. Target deeper brush piles out to 30 feet of water dragging Carolina rigs, or deep grass lines 10-12 feet of water with wacky rigged senkos, or jigs. Crappie bite is really good on deeper brush piles 25-30 feet deep with small jigs in a glitter shad color. Report by Jim Brack, Athens Guide Service.

Caddo — GOOD. Water stained; 53 degrees; 1.39 feet above pool. Fishing on Lake Caddo is going to slow after water temperatures plummet after the forecasted 15 degree mornings. Target bass in the river systems with Alabama Rigs, spoons, crankbaits and rattletraps. White bass and black bass should still be following the shad, so use your graphs to locate bait, the bass will be around them. As always it is still a blessing to come out and see this lake that God spoke into existence. Report provided by Vince Richards, Caddo Lake Fishing & Fellowship.

Cedar Creek — EXCELLENT. Water normal stain; 53-57 degrees; 3.08 feet below pool. The quantity of crappie catches has declined, but the quality of the fish has improved. Crappie are biting good with jigs or minnows on bridge pylons at 20 feet, brush piles at 15 feet, and docks at eight feet. Largemouth bass are good on brush piles in 5-10 feet of water, or in 3-5 feet of water on docks with brush using chartreuse and black or red squarebills. White bass and hybrid bass bite march under birds in 30-40 feet of water deadsticking. Catfish freshwater runoff at the mouths of creeks with live or cut shad. Report by Kyle Miers, Lake Country Outfitters.

Fork — FAIR. Water Stained; 54-57 degrees; 5.08 feet below pool. New rising water and cooler days has slowed the bass bite. Bass are on ditches and creeks in 10-15 feet of water suspending jerkbaits, and on points in 22-25 feet of water working Alabama rigs. Merry Christmas to all. Report by Lake Fork fishing guide Marc Mitchell, Lake Fork Pro. Bass fishing continues to be slow as fish retreat to their winter hibernation. Some small schools are in deep timber, in 15 feet, around creeks and drop-offs. Try Sculpin type patterns fished slowly in creek bends and deeper timber on humps and drop-offs. Crappie are moving towards wintertime schools currently in 20 feet or less on main lake points and creek ledges, beaded woolies fished with a 5 wt rod and sinking lines. Report by Guide Alex Guthrie, Fly Fish Fork Guide Service.

Hawkins — GOOD. 54-56 degrees. With this cold weather and declining water temperatures hypothermia can set in quickly. The present you can gift yourself is that of preparedness, so be sure to wear a PFD and pack a change of clothes in a dry bag. A small streamer fished around lily pads and above submerged vegetation are drawing strikes from small bass and chain pickerel. Chain pickerel will begin to spawn as the water cools, try small fish patterns around lilies and between boat houses. Look for crappie suspending in mid lake. Report by Guide Alex Guthrie, Fly Fish Fork Guide Service.

Jacksonville — GOOD. Water lightly stained; 54 degrees; 1.43 feet below pool. Bass are good on Texas rig worms in brush in 12-16 feet of water, and against any wood laydowns on the banks. Bigger fish are caught skipping jigs under boat docks in 10 feet or less.

Lake O’ the Pines — FAIR. Water stained; 50 degrees; 0.57 feet above pool. High winds and frosty weather will shut the bite off over the Christmas weekend. Crappie are good on 30-40 north of wats island feet deep on jigs or minnows. Catfish are fair 20 feet of water on baited holes. Bass are fair shallow crankbaits. Report by Marty Thomas, Lake O’ the Pines Crappie Fishing. 

Palestine — GOOD. Water lightly stained; 55 degrees; 1.50 feet below pool. Bass are biting Big O Crankbaits fished in front of boat houses, and tube jigs under boat houses. Crappie are good on brush or trees in the river channel and bridges, or in the cut cedar trees by the dam and river channel using jigs tipped with minnows. Hybrid bass are starting to move north, with a few catches with crankbaits near boat houses. Catfish are good on trotlines with gizzard shad or perch. Eater catfish are good and fun fishing for the entire family using nightcrawlers on baited holes. Report by Ricky Vandergriff, Ricky’s Guide Service.

Sam Rayburn — GOOD. Water stained; 56 degrees; 6.24 feet below pool. Bass are on the outer edge of grass deadsticking stick baits or rattletraps. Bass in deeper water, 20-25 feet, fish deep ledges and points with crankbaits, and Carolina rigs. Crappie and catfish are like Christmas tree ornaments concentrated on tree stumps in 20-25 feet of water in the river bends biting minnows and jigs. White bass moving up the creeks and river biting jigs and minnows. Be sure to pack your sleigh, or boat, with dry clothes in case you get wet, hypothermia is like receiving coal in your stocking and not a gift you can return. Report by Lynn Atkinson, Reel Um N Guide Service.

Toledo Bend — GOOD. Water stained; 50 degrees; 3.45 feet below pool. The water level is 168.3 with two generators running four hours during the day. Water temperature at the Dam is 50 degrees. The back feeder creeks are muddy and stained from another two inches of rain this week. The main lake remains clear. Shad are migrating to the mouths of the creeks and in the creeks. Bass are biting on chatterbaits in ¼ to ¾ ounces in white, chartreuse, and watermelon pepper skirts. Downsizing chatterbaits to ¼ ounce has been producing bass across shallow stump flats. To cover more water fishing out to eight feet deep use a shallow running squarebill crankbait, flat sided crankbait in ¼ ounce silver black back, silver blue back, or a smaller Rayburn red rattletrap. For deeper Bass, cast a Carolina rig with a worm or lizard in dark colors. Jigging spoons are still producing quality bass on long tapering points on ½ to one ounce silver spoons or a deep diving crankbait in citrus shad and Tennessee shad colors. The bass bite in the creeks has been very strong usingblack and blue, PB&J football jigs and structure jigs in ⅜ to ¾ ounces with a 3-inch matching color craw trailer, and a green pumpkin jig with a little blue tipped accent trailer. Also do not pass up that swim jig in a shad imitation white with a silver back ⅜ to ½ ounce in 2-5 feet of water next to vertical structure. Crappie bite is good in 16-20 feet on the edge of the river channels. Freeze warnings coming in for the weekend will heat the Crappie bite up in the chicken coop area North of the bridge. Start using your Crappie plastics in 1/16 and 3/32 ounce and your hand tied feathered Wager Baits, #46 Bluegrass, #3 Monkey Milk, #09 Electric Chicken, #10 Black and Chartreuse and small minnows depending on the cloud cover and wind. The temperature will be dropping down in the 20s this week, so keep and extra set of clothes and gloves in a dry bag stowed away on your vessel just in case you get caught in the rain, heavy winds, or dropping temperatures. Hypothermia happens quickly. Captain’s Rule: It’s wintertime, so it’s always better to play it safe by telling a loved one or friend the area you will be fishing, how many people are in your party and the expected return time. Good luck and keep casting forward! Report from Master Captain Steve (Scooby) Stubbe, Mudfish Adventures LLC, Orvis Endorsed Fly Fishing Guide, and Mudfish Custom Rod Shop.

Tyler — SLOW. Water lightly stained; 55 degrees; 2.43 feet below pool. Frigid weather and water temperature has the bite closed for the Christmas weekend with fish seeking deeper water for warmth. Catfish are slow on nightcrawlers and liver in brush piles in 10 feet of water. Bass are slow on crankbaits but should start hitting anything you throw while they follow the shad. Crappie are slow in deep water structure with live minnows. Bluegill are slow on red worms. Report by Paul Taylor, The Boulders at Lake Tyler.