http://tpwd.texas.gov/publications/nonpw...igability.phtml

From reading this page, I would assume the creek in question is non-navigable. But that is only my deduction. I'm sure a game warden could give you a definitive answer.
Good Luck.
PS, if that is where I think it is, I've fished that lake. It is owned by a ranch in Midlothian. My friend knows the man that runs the ranch. It's not all that! LOL

Horace, I was referring to the lake you saw past the fence. If I'm not mistaken, these small lake are soil conservation control lakes. There are numerous ones like it around Midlothian. If you can ascertain it is indeed public, this is what TPWD has to say about it. And by the way I agree with you. There should be no fence! I'm thinking it is public and they know it, but don't want anyone floating past there. IMHO.

Q: Is it lawful to fence a stream?

A: That probably depends on whether the stream is public or private. Since the public has a general right to walk and boat in a public stream, a landowner has no right to erect or maintain a fence that interferes with those lawful activities.27 Additionally, it is a crime to restrict, obstruct, intefere with or limit public recreational use of a navigable stream.28 It is a more serious crime to obstruct a waterway to which the public has access so as to make passage impossible or unreasonably inconvenient or hazardous.29 It is easy to imagine situations where a fence in or across a public stream would do just that. But do these statutes prohibit a landowner from putting a fence in or across a private stream? That sounds unlikely, since the public has no lawful access to a private stream without the consent of the owner of the streambed. So it seems to be lawful for a landowner to erect a fence in a non-public streambed.

Yes, that's what I think. But it is not a battle worth fighting, to me. I'm to old, and life is to short now, to worry over that little bit of fishing water. My fighting days are through!

let me know what you find out.