What’s the finest fishing lake within the state?

Grand Lake O’ the Cherokees in northeast Oklahoma would get a variety of votes, particularly from bass anglers. It is thought of the perfect bass fishing lake within the state by many and holds extra main bass tournaments than some other Oklahoma lake. 

However the crappie and sand bass fishing additionally is nice and it has turn into a significant vacation spot for anglers from around the globe to snag paddlefish. Trophy blue cats are caught within the winter. 

Within the southeastern nook of the state, an argument may very well be made for Damaged Bow Lake. It is a superb bass fishery and anglers can fish for trout year-round beneath the dam within the Decrease Mountain Fork River.

It’s also top-of-the-line locations to catch walleye in Oklahoma. An angler not too long ago despatched me a photograph of a purported 14-pound walleye that was caught beneath the re-regulation dam on the river. That will have been a state report walleye had state wildlife officers been contacted, however the angler wished to launch the fish and was nervous it could die.  

Within the center, between these two fishing holes is Lake Eufaula, the undisputed king of the crappie lakes in Oklahoma. Eufaula additionally could be a good bass fishing lake and is great for catfishing.

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A vote for Texoma

Nonetheless, my vote for the perfect fishing lake within the state goes to Lake Texoma. The striped bass fishing on Texoma is well-known, however the lake can be a fantastic bass fishery, particularly for smallmouth bass.Texoma has hosted its share of main bass tournaments. Anglers have been catching from the banks in current weeks because the fish have moved near shore to spawn. Many have moved out to deeper water however the fishing continues to be good round brush piles and boat docks.

The catfishing additionally may be nice, with channels, flatheads and blues, on Texoma.

“It is bought a fantastic catfish inhabitants,” stated Lake Texoma striper information John Pryor. “Good gravy, you possibly can simply catch the heck out of catfish. Beginning in Could and in June, notably, they’ll begin transferring so much shallower and serious about spawning.”

The larger catfish, although, are caught in the rivers, Pryor stated. The catfishing often will get higher in late Could because the fish transfer into shallow water.

This yr, Texoma additionally has one in every of its finest populations of sand bass in years, he stated.

“In in regards to the final three years I’ve seen an inflow of increasingly sandies,” stated Pryor, who has been guiding on the lake for greater than 40 years.  

And for non-game species, the Crimson River system on Texoma is the perfect place within the state to snag an alligator gar, though it is closed in the course of the month of Could to guard spawning areas.

As my late pal and outside tv host Don Wallace as soon as informed me, “You may at all times catch one thing on Texoma.” 

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The magical month of Could  

For all the nice fishing Texoma provides, the striped bass fishing overshadows all of it. Hundreds of anglers journey to Texoma every year to chase stripers.

Pryor’s prospects primarily come from Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas and Nebraska. He has teams from Kansas and Nebraska booked in the course of the subsequent two weeks.

Could and June are his two busiest months of the yr for information journeys.

Could is a magical time on Texoma. The shad are spawning and the highest water chew, essentially the most enjoyable option to catch stripers, activates.

Stripers will chase the faculties of shad on the floor, and catching stripers by casting with synthetic lures may be improbable, particularly early within the morning. 

“After they (shad) get into the spawning mode, it is a powerful sight to see when a college of spawning threadfin goes by,” stated Matt Mauck, south-central fisheries supervisor for the Oklahoma Division of Wildlife Conservation. 

Anglers will tie on swimbaits or different synthetic lures and ideally go to the windy facet of the lake and solid topwater lures across the faculties of shad when they’re spawning in shallow water.

“Lots of occasions stripers or sand bass are proper on their heels,” Mauck stated. 

Mentioned Pryor: “You get a variety of chasing occurring they usually simply blow up (on the floor).”

Now, many guides are fishing topwater early within the morning and utilizing reside bait later within the day because the stripers congregate round ledges, Mauck stated. Stripers have been very easy to catch proper now on bait, he stated.

Because the climate heats up in the summertime, the motion switches from the shore to the open water as stripers kind big faculties roaming the lake in search of shad.

“There are nice (fishing) alternatives all summer time lengthy,” Mauck stated. 

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‘Probably the greatest catching lakes’ 

Lake Texoma was created in 1944 by impounding the Crimson River. The lake reportedly attracts six million guests yearly. 

Striped bass had been first stocked in Lake Texoma by the Wildlife Division in 1965 and the fish discovered it to their liking, reproducing naturally. It was first documented in 1973 that stripers had been reproducing in Lake Texoma. It occurred once more in 1975 and yearly since. 

Texoma is one in every of about 10 reservoirs in the US the place stripers are capable of naturally reproduce. In April and Could they run up each the Crimson and the Washita in big numbers to spawn.

“It is a good time of yr for all species,” Mauck stated. “Whereas stripe bass is king as a result of that’s what the vast majority of folks go after, there are a variety of choices on the market. And all these choices are fairly good. You bought trophy blue cats, trophy smallmouth. The crappie inhabitants is basically good and fast-growing.

“I at all times say there are a variety of good fishing lakes on the market, however Lake Texoma is without doubt one of the finest catching lakes.”

Reporter Ed Godfrey appears to be like for tales that impression your life. Be it information, outside, sports activities — you title it, he desires to report it. Have a narrative thought? Contact him at egodfrey@oklahoman.com or on Twitter @EdGodfrey. Help his work and that of different Oklahoman journalists by buying a digital subscription immediately.