Trinity River Fort Worth

I got home early from work yesterday afternoon,loaded up the kayak and headed for the closest body of water, the Trinity River west of University. I fished there area about two weeks ago but getting my kayak to the water was a pain. On my previous trip I launched from underneath the University bridge. To get to the launch point I had to drag my kayak about 75 yards, negotiate a 2 foot ledge on a decline towards the water's edge, and then I almost lost my shoes in some deep stinky mud. My kayak, a Feel Free Moken 10, has a "wheel in the keel" which is great when you're heading across a parking lot, but it's not intended for moving longer distances. Yesterday morning I bought a cheap cart from Academy and it made things much easier. Earlier in the week I scouted out another launch point that avoided mud or excessively steep banks but it required about 200 yards of walking to get to it. It was no problem with the cart.

I had a great time! The conditions were perfect and the fish were aggressive. I'll probably be heading out there again this weekend. If anybody is interested just send me a message.



This is the biggest crappie I've ever caught (I've been fishing for less than a year).






This was one mean bass! He thrashed around in the kayak and slapped the camera out of my hand. I almost didn't get a photo of him.

Good pics and report! You see any other fisherman on the Trinity?

nice! I hear there are some nice bass in the trinity

I rarely see anybody fishing out there. I have fished from the north bank with minimal success. all of the fish seem to be enjoying the shade on the south side of the river. I have never seen kayaks in this area.

You will be seeing me and my buddies there occassionally. Very good stretch of the river and there are bass on both sides just depends on the conditions that day. We usually launch underneath that smaller bridge in your first picture.

Unfortunatly I like to eat fish or I would since I'm on the west side of town. Probably will be chasing wipers at benbrook close to the dam.

Hello, I just moved to Ft. Worth and got my fishing license yesterday. I grew up fishing on the St. Lawrence river in Upstate New York, which is primarily Walleye, Small Mouth Bass, and Northern Pike territory. The kid I was talking with recommended "Wahoo" brand jig's in white... I am assuming I can use them without a worm or bait since it has a spinner and feathers, but I wasn't sure what all you had success with. I want to pull bass out of the Trinity, catch and release.

If you want to catch bass I would suggest using(or learning to use if you not sure how) Jigs, cranks, spinnerbaits, and soft plastic worms.

Very familiar, what I am curious about is if you use worm on your jigs down here.

Ah! The St. Lawrence River! Smallmouth Heaven! We would go to A-Bay every year in September for smallies. I love that place!

By worm do you mean trailers? I personally prefer Berkley's chigger craws but just about any crawdad imitation will work.

Yup Stiper, I am out of Grindstone Island, my family is all still up there. We have a Grady White to do all this fishing. Up there, literally we use a hairy jig with a real nightcrawler on it to fish Walleye and Northern Pike in about 20 feet of cold water.

Nice catch! I've seen some big fish pulled out of the trinity. I use to think the same way as far as fishing non eatable waters, but since I fish often and the freezer is usually stocked, I don't mind fishing non-eatable waters for the fun of it.

Just curious, why is the Trinity non-eatable?

The Trinity has come along way as far as cleanliness. My degree/backgound is engineering and I remember an acquaintance back in the early 90's who worked in environmental engineering noting that people were very concerned with several fish kills on the Trinity (at that time). He said however, that signified an improvement -the fact that there were actually now fish in the Trinity to be affected.

Rat Trap - Good job and couple of nice fish. WTG.

Very nice! I was eating at the Wood Shed BBQ a few weeks ago and saw the timber on the south bank of the river there, looked fishy to me!

I got excited when I saw a post on the Trinity River until I realized it was one of my old ones.

It would be kind of cool to get a few guys together to fish that section of the Trinity and then grab a drink at the Wood Shed afterwards. I like listening to the live music while I fish.

My buddy tore up the LMB out there a few weeks ago when the weather was warm after I tipped him off that they were biting good. He caught several in the 4-5lb range and even had one go over 6. Once this cold weather came back in though the bite dissapeared.

They really have cleaned the river up. Here's a list for ya http://www.dshs.state.tx.us/seafood/Survey.shtm#Bans

The wife and I had dinner there last Saturday night, and I was checking the banks of the trinity out. I have been wanting to hit that river but the smell keeps me from pulling the trigger every time..lol
But I'm game for a river run and stop for lunch or dinner. that would be cool.

Great feedback BR...

Yeah, I live right on 7th in Fort Worth, I moved to Texas in October. I run the trail past the woodshed all the time and I had seen people fishing it. I'd love to see how you all fish stuff around here, bait, etc. I just good searched and this was the first board that popped up about the Trinity. The fishing I did in Upstate New York was pretty much catch and release.

The wife and I had dinner there last Saturday night, and I was checking the banks of the trinity out. I have been wanting to hit that river but the smell keeps me from pulling the trigger every time..lol
But I'm game for a river run and stop for lunch or dinner. that would be cool.[/quote]

For sure stinks over there!

For sure stinks over there! [/quote]

Pfft. you think that section smells bad? try the section over by Gateway Park. Smells like straight raw sewage. lol

I go to TCU and have been fishing that section of the trinity for the last 3 years... it can be dynamite. if you take the time to learn it. I have had 20 fish days before

Could I launch my Bass buster on the Trinity?

What bait setup do you use?

Could I launch my Bass buster on the Trinity?

Had one of those days about 3 weeks ago with all that warm weather. They were on a pre spawn pattern. All this cold weather really slowed them down though.

I was just surfing the web and came across this post. A trip down to trinity would be nice and a bite afterwards sounds good too. I need to fish with some experienced anglers down here in Texas. I've been in Utah for a good while. Lmb are FUN. beat the hell outta rainbows and brookies any day

The Trinity is good for cats, bass and some long nose gar. You just have to look for them. The only ones that don't pay any attention are the koi fish that roam around trinity park. Even with some oat balls they don't go for it, lol!

basstastic29, launch away!

At this particualr spot it would be an absolute pain in the you know what to launch a bass buster. It's a pain to launch a kayak as well.

I got one of those Koi at Trinity park on the fly rod, what a fighter!!!

Trinity is great! PM me and I'll share some spots with you. I can be hard to tell where to go and where not to. I've fished for carp 3 times at the Woodshed and never had a nibble. Other nearby sections are a different story. Have seen a couple guys targeting gar by the Woodshed though.

Anybody know any good bass spots to bank fish the trinity, I've only had luck off of Bryant Irving road and Vickery? That spots been hit and miss and I'd rather have a few more options

Google maps is your friend. Also the spot that this whole thread is about is also a good choice.

I'm really interested in fishing the Trinity since parts of it are right up the road from my house. Does anyone know a good spot to launch, and if there are any level changes or spillways I should be aware of.

There is a nice ramp to launch by Belknap and Oakhurst Scenic drive down in Fort Worth. It is actually under 121. From there, you have a nice paddle northwest before getting to the next spillway.

There is some carp and cats around that section.

How dangerous is the spillway? I don't plan on getting close, but I also don't want to get sucked in.

I have never been close to them. I always keep my distance anchoring and cast around.

I'm fishing there this Saturday and don't intend to get near the spillways.

Yeah, thats definitely the approach I'll take as well. Might hit it on Sunday if nothing else works out.

The spillways arent a big deal guys. We have even portaged over a few. There usually isnt enough flow to do much of anything and sometimes some of the best fishing is right by the spillways. Kayak_and_Crossbones, we go out to the Trinity all the time you should join us sometime we almost always have a blast!

In fact you should come out to our tournament this Saturday. I guarantee the fishing will be great. It was pretty good last weekend and the weather is even better for this weekend! I can't wait!

Can I just come out and fish with everyone? I dont think im good enough for tournaments yet. Is it the one listed here on the board?


And I would love to meet up with you sometime!

ya its the one listed we have people of all skill levels and a good bunch of people that are willing to pass instructions to ya.

www.bassgrabberstrail.com and there is a thread in this section under bassgrabbers as well. You are welcome to come and fish with us but of course if you don't pay to fish the tournament you wont get any winnings but Im sure you understand that. You can come out and see what its about and if it is something you would like or not. We are a pretty laid back group of guys and we have all skill levels fishing.

Looks like Im going to take my brother out in the yaks. He had to put down a 4 legged family member he has had for 19 years. It'll do him some good to get out.

They dumped toxic waste in the trinty thats why you shouldnt eat the fish , its going to be in the soil for hundreds of years .There is a consumption ban ,i grew up here this is what ive been told.

But i didnt know that there are LMB in there . If thats the case i will catch them and fillet them for my in laws and if they dont get sick .Then the Consumption Ban is lifted and im eatin that shhit

I don't think it will be lifted but it is a good place for CPR.

And if im not mistaken they have lifted the bans in some certain areas. But yes all I do is CPR anyways so the Trinity is a great place for me!

I grew up fishing the trinity by the Navy Base and below Lake worth dam. There are some very nice wall hangers in the trinity. I only practice CPR now, but have eaten them in the past and I dont have a 3rd eye in my forehead. I dont have a Yak yet, and actually just joined the forum but have fished it tons of times in a inflatable boat as a kid.
As for the little dams, they are always my target to fish and it seems to be the best spot for LMB. Hope this helps and tight lines my friends.