20 Pound Bass ?

Do you believe Lake Fork has a 20 pound bass just waiting to be caught on FFS?

no

I did years ago but not now .

More than likely the ecosystem is not conducive to growing bass that large any longer

I like to think there are at least a few 20+ pounders swimming around in Texas waters

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If it makes ya feel good to think it, that’s great. Reality is rough though.

I believe there is one in Ivie. Probably Falcon and Amistad as well even as low as they are. Fork has just been beat to death. Maybe though.

You're asking the wrong people. Ask the crappie guys that fish there almost daily and they'll tell you just how big some if the bass are that steal their crappie. Pretty consistent experiences.

If yes, it suspends 25ft in the busiest boat lane all day and only feeds at night.

Wouldn't shock me if there was one somewhere suspended at Choke Canyon away from the gators.

NO !!

Nope

I'd love to be proven wrong, but, I think it's a hard no.

Now, its a no. Back in the good days, yes. I had some guide customers that rolled one up next to the boat that I know was 20 plus. Moron customer reeled right down to the fish all the while I was telling him to stop. I do mean right down to the hook. POW, no more fish.

Not today

agreed... there is soo much unfishable water in the trees, it'll die of old age and never see a lure...

I firmly think there is on several lakes. How many big deer are killed on very actively managed ranches that no one has even seem or been caught on a gamecam?

Someone already posted, lives in trees in a busy boat lane and only feeds at night. Or as the TPW guy proved lives in some deep water and spends lots of time on do nothing flats that no one fishes.

doubt it on fork when you have over 2000 anglers fishing an only get 2 overs that doesnt bode well for a lot of huge fish in there.

I would say no. In 2000 maybe at Fork but not today. If any lake in Texas has a chance to produce a 20 pounder it would be Ivie. Even that window is rapidly closing as the water level drops.

+1

Probably.

Haha, the reality is nobody will know until it happens. So for sure it feels better thinking there is one out there…

Would i invest my time in Texas if the only thing I was after was a 20 pound bass, no, but right now, I’m not sure where I would go. Maybe some secret private lake where I would have to spend $$$$$ for one.

I can tell you the people around Loch Ness do not like how sonar has evolved. How you going to sell a Nessie burger with no monster?

Probably not a 20# plus in Fork. If there is with FFS there are a lot less places to hide. I rode with Patrick Walters on day one when he won the BASS tournament there with FFS. He had to entice those fish to come out from suspended on those trees. Most bit 20ft or more away from the tree. They might follow the bait out a number of times before they bit. He only quit on a couple. They were on maybe 5% of the trees in a group, however that 5% was clustered when he found them. Zero chance he catches enough for even a check without FFS.

What happened to La Perla Ranch and their big bass program? I almost brought 2 days there at a Lone Survivor benefit. Quit at $2,000. Then one in the group I was in brought a weekend at their retreat for $5,000 that he had no intent on using to donate. I was ….”man we could have went in on the fishing together. I could have taken care of the going part. They were charging $4,000 per day person. I think it was 2 days for 2 people in the package.

I think La Perla had to scratch it all out and start over…..very difficult to control all the water mineral level variables and tiny eggs/small six month old bass that can be carried away and dropped by birds pond to pond.

We’ll never know until someone catches one

[quote=Fishspanker]

Until now, i never did take into consideration the affects off FFS on Locc Ness and the Nessie burger! Interesting. That was good.

Maybe Ivie, or possibly P.K. but Fork... Not anymore.

I never would have thought of that! They need to enclose the pond with a dome, make it indoor to protect it from things like that.

https://www.landbrokermls.com/property/1077240/jalisco-ranch-tecomate-la-perla

If only I could win the lotto.

Whoa! $5,600/ac. Not bad. I hope it ends up in good hands and lunker bass are able to grow to world record size. Less of those jumbo prawn/crawdad things they were giving them and more 10” rainbow trout, just feed those fish trout like they fish to shamu at sea world - as much as possible.

Yes, I think there might be a 20 lb bass on Fork. Not sure how or if it will ever be caught. With that being said, those using FFS on Fork will probably start catching more huge bass than average. But if I catch it, it will not be because I was using FFS. It will be with 2d and DI on a jig or Carolina rigged lizard.

I think there's a possibility on Fork, but a better chance on some other lakes. There's always the possibility, but it's unlikely, hope I'm wrong.

Seems Fork does not have the giants it had in the past. I know of a private power plant lake that is stocked with Florida bass and TPWD shocked it an took some to Fork to put in the brood ponds. It gets no pressure and I can only imagine what's in there.

NO WAY ! IMO

I watched an episode of Bass University last week where they hosted a company that does pond and small lake management and they created a hybrid species of Largemouth called a tiger bass which they stock in waters they manage. One of the guys stated that some of the ponds they'd cleaned out to restock that had previously been stocked with Florida strain bass the owners didn't think there were any or not very many bass left in them. He said not only do they find a population of fish a lot of times but they have found 10 pound bass as well. With these Florida strain they have a tendency to get tight lipped after being fished for heavily and cold weather has the same effect. The tiger bass is a creation that works against the grain. It is a Florida bass crossed with a very aggressive northern strain which is said to create a bass that's as big as any of the Florida variations but will bite no matter the conditions or exposure they've seen.
Is there 20 pounders lurking in our lakes? Watching that show really got me to wondering.

I learned in a pond management course I took that tiger bass and F1 strain bass in general revert back closer to northern strain with each generation. The original generation or 2 do grow extremely fast but eventually you're left with bass that more closely resemble just northern strain

Possibly, Maybe, why not

As long as I feel there's a chance, I'm going to try for it. Once I give up hope, it's not going to happen.


That's why I know my first DD will come from Ray Roberts. I know she's in there, waiting for me.

There are, without a doubt, several 20 lb bass at fork that are living in the very deep water near the dam that just feast on crappie, sandbass, and barfish all year long.

I certainly doubt it...

How many think that W/R from Georgia was truly what they claimed.How accurate were scales back then? were polygraph used.Stastically speaking the biggest have come from trout/ salmon stocked Lakes.

Always had my doubts.

Dottie from California and the Japanese bass are the only real world record fish caught. Unfortunately Dottie was considered “snagged”, therefore the Japanese bass is the real record fish. Perry’s fish was a con.

+1

Perry either knew somebody who worked at the post office or he loaded a barely teener with lead.
Georgia had not been stocked with Florida strain bass yet. There is zero chance a fat, lazy 20lb Florida bass would leave its warm cozy waters and swim hard upstream into colder water Georgia…..zero.

I met a guy at the Boat ramp named Robbie Rose and he had one that weighed 20lbs and was only 18" long. Alot of the people you meet around Fork will tell about the big one that got away and they are usually 20+ or close to it.

didn't they find a 20lber floating at fork back in the day

Wasnt the state record caught in a brush pile in like 50ft of water? How many people are bass fishing in that depth in Texas.....like ever? If fish that size live in that depth then who knows whats down there.

There is a argument that a bass could of grown that big if the body of water was fertile and rich with nutrients.I have talked with a bio on Dale Hallow Lake And he was explaining to me how another D/D Small mouth will never likely be caught there.As when the D/D fish were being caught there the lake was fairly new and rich with nutrients.Its hand to grasp that was the contributing factor,as the lake is plentifully with bait and has trophy slot limits.But it is what it is

That's only part of the equation when dealing with record sized black bass.
The other main ingredient is hybrid vigor when you cross the Florida strain with northern strain.

A little fun fact about the World record bass from GA and the largest Whitetail buck from GA......both came from the same Co.Makes you go hummmmm

Two were found floating dead at Fork. Tony Clark found one near the ramp at Val's and Brian Duplechian found the other in Big MUstang

The northern strain tops out at 16lbs (Massachusetts freakish state record)

Georgia was 100% northern strain at the time Perry caught his lmb.

There is zero chance it was any bigger than 16lbs.

Yes back in the day, but Fork is not like it was back in the day. They keep spraying the grass out there.

Just think how big that sucker would be now if it hadn’t died.

16 years ago I saw one sight fishing in Dale Creek. We use to catch 10s and 11s alot back then. Now we are lucky if we get a 9lber

They stocked some hybrid fingerlings in Grand a couple of years ago. I believe the goal was to produce a few big fish.

Currently I don’t see any public watershed in the US breaking the WR langemouth.There are some private places that are trying.My current interest is in the big Small mouth that are being caught.If this trend stays on the upward path,I can see someone breaking a SM record.

There’s quite a few #9s showing up from Idaho. Dworshak is on the right path having Kokanee in the lake. I never would’ve imagined I’d see a DD smallmouth in my lifetime but then the #10+ was caught out of Lake Erie last year. Erie probably has the best chance of any of the Great Lakes with it being shallower, warmer and a little further south than the rest

We have a 20acre lake we stocked with Camelots I guess 7-8 yrs ago. I would love to think we can grow one 20+. I lost one at the bank that was in the 14-15lb range. That was 2 yrs ago. Last year I hooked one and never could turn her before she wrapped me up in some deep trees. One thing I have learned about Pure Floridas the older they get the much harder they are to catch.

Best thing about the lakes with large water fluctuations is that all of the growth basically makes it like a new lake again when the water comes back. Look at Ivie, it was 5% full before the onslaught started. I’m going to go with yes

Jobie, I don't know where you get the 5 percent from but I don't remember Ivie being that low since it started filling.

Fork-no
Rest of lakes in Texas/public-maayybbeee…I would say NO but a 20lb fish was in Fork back in the day so it’s possible, but I think only in zone 7-8ish.
Hope to be proven wrong!
The pure Florida needs optimal conditions and that fish needs to live long enough to reach that size, AND that pure Florida needs to be a genetic freak among Floridas.
FFS will help figure it out though. We are now just better equipped to find and catch that 20-if it exists.

Bass after dark podcast just did a really informative episode regarding world record stats with Fl and TX fisheries personal

Yes, and I am going to catch her in one of the tournament I fish next year. 22 lb 8 oz

Everybody keeps talking about spraying the weeds. Does that make the bass say oh sh!t I am leaving here and going to a different lake? Or does it just move them to a different place that makes them harder to catch? I like to fish weeds too but if they aren’t there then I would look elsewhere. Maybe I don’t understand are the chemicals they are spraying killing the fish?

there were a couple back in the late 80's early 90's/ All died of old age.

Thick weed beds provide a large cavernous network for hundreds of thousands of little craws, bluegills and shads to reproduce over and over and over while being able to hide from big fat lazy bass.

Once the population of breeding like jack rabbits bluegills exceeds the biomass of the thick weed bed, they run out of places to hide, and become an easy big meal for Mr big fat lazy bass who will move in and take over the weed bed marking it as his own personal buffet that he can eat from at his leisure.

This provides a sustainable micro environment to grow big fat lazy bass that don’t have to spend energy to eat a lot of calories.

Spray the weed bed and the stealthy home with lots of hiding places for the bait goes away. Now Mr big bass has to spend energy to chase food and gets skinny.

I live most of time on Sandlin. Half the size of Fork but me n the neighbor fish for big fish. And have caught a few but both of us have stories of the biggest getting away. 15 lbs +