What are the thoughts this yr. any water? I know they got a ton of rain in West Texas and the river was rolling out there.

I have not been to look. However, it has not caught water from the west texas rains. Lake Thomas gained about 40%, lake Colorado city didn't gain any, lake spence gained a very little, lake Ivie gained some from different rains, lake brownwood gained a very little from different rains. Those lakes are between the rain and Buchanan. Thomas was the only one to gain significantly. Shame I love fishing the Bend and badly want to take my children when there are whites running.

Has there been a legitimate spawning run like the old days through the Bend in a decade?

Whites will have to walk or crawl to get up the river unless we get some big rains between now and the 1st of the year.

2008 wa the last run I saw

Unless we get a turd floater and LCRA doesn't find it necessary to release it may happen. However I think LCRA is happy at the current lake levels and what we are seeing is the new norm. Until the LCRA is done away with don't expect many changes.

For a number of years I owned (recently sold) a property on the Colorado river a couple miles upstream from the town of Bend. For years we were getting letters from the LCRA regarding a proposed dam 12feet tall crossing the entire river a couple miles upstream from my place. For the sole benefit of the Leonard family pecan orchards-huge pecan orchards, thousands of trees. The information seemed like it was going to happen in the next year or two. I know if you have enough money you can get anything - including damming a major river. If/ when they build that thing you can kiss any substantial stream flow goodbye as long as it takes the "pecan pond" to fill. I hope they never build it but dumber things have happened.

Our ranch is just upstream of Leonard's. We have a 1.25 mile of river. The dam has been built and they drain the water.

BrandoA- what do you mean "they drain the water"? You mean they take most of it or ...?

City of Goldthwaite gets most of it's drinking water from the Colorado as well. Leonard's has had their dam for many years here in Mills county. It's a couple of miles down stream of Brandon's place. We are just upstream of Brandon and have about 2 plus miles of river front with mostly shoals. When Leonard's turn their pumps on and the river is not running it drops our water level 3" to 4" per day. The city pumps are just downstream of Leonard's and they empty the holes below Leonard's dam. Our place starts 1/2 mile downstream of the Pecan Bayou. That is where most of our water has come from since Ivie was finished in the early nineties.

My place( river frontage)was a couple miles below where the San Saba river dumps in. We kept fairly steady water levels but then a hay producer bought property across from me and builds a concrete landing and parks a pump bigger than a crew cab pick up on it with an 8 inch pipe sucking on the river. The water loss was frustrating but the never ending loud sound of his pump drove me to sell. If that is what it's down to they can have it. But back to the original thread - it'll take real flood for weeks to bring up a sandy run. There are Some small schools caught in the big pools but not what it had been.