Lake Arlington Boat Ramps

Two questions:

How is the daily launch fee paid on Lake Arlington?

What is the preferred boat ramp to use?

Thanks in advance.

I use the one off Arkansas. Fee is $5 paid at the office via envelope/tag.

How does Arlington compare to lake worth or EM? Never been there and wondering if it's worth the drive.

I went a month or so ago and the envelope was asking for a weekend fee of $10 I think and construction had you parking a mile away. Wasn't worth the trouble or fee for such a small lake.

Thanks, Dlrz71.

Is the lake office at the Arkansas ramp?

Yes, its to the left before you get to the ramps. I haven't been in a while but per the post above sounds like its a mess right now.

If you go and the parking is still messed up on Arkansas you might pay at the office and drive down to the south ramp and see if it is better. The only ramp that I have ever used is the Arkansas. I wish that I knew how to fish that lake better. It is only 15 minutes from my house but I've never figured it out.

Dbonz,

It is actually a pretty decent fishing lake . . . for those who know how to fish it. It seems to spit out some large bass now and again. In this way, it is a bit like Marine Creek.

But, I just can't imagine driving from the Azle area where you have access to EM, LW and MC, a few others, too.

Lake Arlington is embarrassingly nasty. The city ought to have more pride in it. Like most city lakes, it seems to have a lot less "nature" to take in, the water clarity is non-existent, with trashy banks like few other lakes in the area.

I've kayak fished it, just very unimpressed.

I think it is worth a trip, the things I mention might not be important to you, but it'd be interesting if you find it worth the effort to ever go back.

Brad

The Arlington side isn't nasty at all. The fort worth side is literally a dump. Each year they do an Arlington cleanup day and fill up a 30 yard dumpster.

Also the Bowman Springs Ramp is much easier to access right now because of all the construction at Richard Simpson Park.

Been one time, had to give my boat a tetnus shot afterword.

Some big bass in Arlington though...

There's been 29 lb sacks out there. My buddy had a 29 lb and a 24 lb bag in two different tournaments. Just have to know where to go. And yes, it's a cesspool of a lake. The west side is sketchy at best.

Some of the best shallow cover on Arlington is the pampers, milk jugs and Walmart bags! Flip em!

The water bottle pads will hold fish too but you may have to drop shot to get the lure through.

Its funny bc y’all are telling the truth.

Thanks for all the info guys. Very interesting info too!

Brad, I do fish EM, LW, and MC which are close by for me. But I do like to try out other lakes (I fish a lot). One of my favorites is Grapevine but traffic is a killer coming home pulling a boat (traffic on Northside of Fort Worth is terrible - (new road construction didn't fix it). I like Benbrook also (easy to get to traffic-wise) but lake level is severely dropping there. I would fish Lake Weatherford also but the Marina doesn't open the gate until 8am on weekdays (I prefer being on the late at sunrise so that kills that lake).

So that leaves me with some possibilities of Arlington, Granbury, Joe Pool, Bridgeport (I've fished the latter three, but never Arlington).

I'm going to drive by Lake Arlington on my way home one day from work and check out the ramps/construction (I work in Grand Prairie area). I will watch where I step (lol).

[quote=Dbonz]Thanks for all the info guys. Very interesting info too!

Brad, I do fish EM, LW, and MC which are close by for me. But I do like to try out other lakes (I fish a lot). One of my favorites is Grapevine but traffic is a killer coming home pulling a boat (traffic on Northside of Fort Worth is terrible - (new road construction didn't fix it).

When you fish Grapevine, take 114 West to Boyd then 730 to Azle it is 3 miles farther but it is faster.

There is a drop box for your ramp fee at the second ramp, the one south of the Arkansas ramp. It is a wide ramp with a dock to tie up to and a good area for parking your truck and trailer.

The dirty diaper pattern is hot right now on the Westside, one problem, try not to get robbed by dope heads or one of the numerous drunks.... It is very dangerous over there, never get out of your boat...
I started fishing there in 1979, it was better than you would believe back then.. 8-lb fish were plenty, and larger..
This time of year can be rough, but it's like that on most lakes right now.. Good luck, I've caught some monsters from there..

Ha! The dirty diaper pattern!

But, again, for sure try it at least once . . . I guess. No doubt about the occasional whopper or big bag pulled out of there.

Not enough nature for me, too much human nature I guess. I even think the lake is sort of stinky.

Did you guys see the video of a fairly well-known YouTube angler from up north somewhere who came down and fished the local spots? I had never seen him before but I can be heard "off camera" onn onw of his videos helping him photograph a large bass he caught on Lake Athens, his biggest ever at around 8 lbs. or so. So, this guy pals around with the Googan folks a bit, somehow gets advised to try Lake Arlington. He fishes it and the whole video is him not able to believe how nasty the banks are with clutter. He said he'd seen trash before, just not mattresses and fridges, stuff like that. So, he decides to leave and try another lake. He gets back to the ramp and ties his boat off (he thinks) to go get his trailer. The boat breaks loose and he sees it floating away so he starts running down the dock, gets there and has to make that split second decision: "Can I dive in and swim to it, or am I too late?" He dives in, starts swimming, realizes very fast that it is not going to happen AND he is pooped out and close to getting in trouble so he makes it to a buoy and holds on for dear life. Another boater sees him in distress, picks him up and also helps retrieve his boat that had by then floated way off. He said he was close to drowning, all energy gone. So, he gets back to the ramp, ties off again, successfully, goes to get his trailer . . . and someone had slashed his tire. So, toward the end of the video, a guy had taken to a nearby tire retailer, brought it back and was putting it on for him with a big thanks from the worn-out Googan buddy.

This was just this past spring. Lake Arlington almost claimed a Yankee diver.

Brad