This is true. I have yet to catch one, but hope to change that tonight. I will let you know, and yes that is him in the pic. Have to talk to him about a charge, but from all the talk about there being none in the lake it could cost quite a bit of $$$$$$

Just because you can't catch them doesn't mean no one else can.

I have fished Belton for ~18 years. I never caught a smallmouth until 2 years ago. I don't know why, I just never did. I always heard the stories about what a great smallmouth fishery Belton was and saw them brought to the scales at tournaments all the time.
Now, I catch smallies on nearly every trip out there, even in the middle of summer.


So, if I didn't fish any tournaments before I started catching them, I guess I would have been justified in calling BS on anyone that said they caught them.......following your logic.



By the way, he never said anything about catching a legal limit. You should know that if you find smallies, you will almost always catch several quickly since they tend to stack up.





I never said I couldn't catch them. In the past my father and I caught more than our fair share. I am not making this up just based on my own experiences, we have fished or been at the weigh in for nearly every tourney on whitney over the last few years, and there has been slim to none weighed in as well, all our local friends attest to the dramatic decline to zero catches. Try to find a guide for lake whitney that will guaranty to put you on smallies. There use to be two dozen of in the late 80's early 90's, there just not enough smallies left for there to be a consistent producing pattern to follow. I can see where a guy could go out and catch one good one on a rare occasion. But to consistently produce quality smallies as suggested by drpeede on a day in day out basis and target them is not gonna fly. Lets do a LAKE WHITNEY SMALLIE Only TOURNEY. Every man put a $100 dollars and the man or team with the largest legal smallmouth bag wins, and if everyone zeros, I take the pot. I got my money anyone else?

i'm in i got $100,but i want a buy in option for that zero pot.the smart money is on the zero.i've caught a lot of nice smallies on whitney over the years but it's pretty slim lately.i don't think anybody could catch them regular these days.in the 90's we could target them a catch a limit regularly not now go to belton i rarely do not catch one there.....rick

I believe this was started by someone asking if anyone catches smallies on the lake, and it has turned into a pissing match for some reason that i acn not figure out. Don't know why some people have to piss on every other post made in this forum but maybe that is just the norm. If you read what i have posted you will not see anywhere there i stated he was targeting smallies only, I mearly stated a fact. We went out last evening and so it may make your point, we did not catch any smallies, large mouth, sandies, pikes or bait fish, only 6 stripers and not targeting those either. As to the challenge of a winner take all tourny, I will talk to him about that and it sounds like alot of fun to get together and meet some of the local fisherman around here. I think if we all met and shook hands just maybe we could all get along and have a good time and maybe some other trips together.

Fishing Report for WHITNEY
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Date Report
Oct 14, 2009 Water stained; 10.70' low. Black bass are good on yellow/white spinnerbaits and crankbaits, and on topwaters early. Striped bass are fair on live minnows and chartreuse striper jigs. White bass are fair on minnows and pet spoons. Crappie are very good on minnows and blue tube jigs. Catfish are fair on frozen shrimp, liver, and live bait. And Small Mouth Bass are great on the end of Brother-In-Laws pole.

guys I just had a tourney on Belton and man do they have some smallies. I did not know they had that many... We caught one but half the fish at weigh in were smallies.. As for Whitney they are some still there but just not like they use. You could fish for LM and catch smallies at the same time. I hope that Whitney starts to produce some more smallies. They are some awesom fish

this is an email I got back from Chris Shafer, which used to guide on Whitney for smallies. He guides now on the Brazos River, I asked him about smallies in Whitney. He actually has a couple on the list of smallies in Texas.

"Matt,

There are still plenty of smallmouth in whitney there just isnt anybody who guides for them anymore which is why you dont hear to many reports. They are a harder fish to catch than most other species so the average weekend fisherman doesnt snag to many!"

Why cant we all just get along. Load up your canoes, spinning rods and jig heads with chartruse curley tail grubs and go down to The Devils River above Amistad and I will GUARANTEE everyone will catch many smallies and some big-uns too(plus have the trip of a lifetime)! The point is go somewhere else if you want to TARGET CONSISTANT LIMITS of Smallmouth Bass. Whitney no longer fits THAT bill. 361V

Here it is, my first smallie on whitney and make the future look pretty good.

There are no more Smallies in Whitney, Go to Belton !!!

The brazos river below Whitney was stocked with smallies recently but if the report posted prior is correct then the last significant lake stocking was in 2000. Smallies have a real hard time reproducing in lakes this far south so their numbers will continue to dwindle unless TPWD steps back in and restocks.

http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/publications/pwdpubs/media/pwd_br_t3200_0191.pdf

I remember reading somewhere that because the numbers of the native Guadalupe bass were suffering and cross breeding with the smallies and spots that certain lakes were not going to be stocked with smallies anymore..

Wait till the water gets in the mid 50's, then its lights out!