Canyon Whites

Caught limit of fat female white and a few nice stripers vertically jigging around the water well at Mystic Shores using large minnows and KT Spoons.

Thanks for the report. Are you referring to the artesian well just up from the mouth of the river?

I have heard some good reports about the fat females they should be moving up the river and to the back of the main lake coves very soon.

Early March!

YEEESSS! It's getting close to time for it. Can't wait to see you out there fellas.

I could be wrong, but I think he means the well close to mystic shores. There is one there also. I saw it when the level was lower. Can't tell you exactly where it is as I don't know myself.

Caught them last Thursday all the way from Potters Creek to the mouth of the river.All along
The main channel in 40 ft. Of water. It was very windy that day also.

Yeah it's starting early this year...

Nice catch!

Are y'all eating those? Isn't there a mercury advisory on canyon?

Yea. Don't eat to much of that striper if any at all.

Last time I was down the warden told me its like 4or 8 oz. a month. [censored] I can eat 16oz in a sitting. Best to let them go IMHO

Canyon Lake in Comal County

Chemical of Concern:
Mercury

For striped bass and longnose gar, adults and children 12 and older are advised to eat no more than two 8-ounce servings per month. Children under 12 should eat no more than two 4-ounce servings per month.
Pregnant women, women who could become pregnant and mothers who are breastfeeding are advised not to eat any striped bass or longnose gar from the lake.

Sounds about right that TPWD would continue to stock a fish in Canyon that you can't eat without this worry, and has never stocked Hybrid Stripers that doesn't have the same concerns of contamination. (do a search)
I know, I know it's about the pull on the line, but I've caught both and the stripers grow slow in Canyon's not so furtile waters, and hybrids fight pretty hard pound per pound and hold their own, and you can eat a hybrid and not worry.
Canyon has according to the stocking record never been stocked with hybrid striped bass.
http://tpwd.texas.gov/fishboat/fish/action/stock_bywater.php?WB_code=0143

I'll get off my soapbox now!

yeah those weren't too big. Anything much bigger gets tossed back. I caught some large ones years ago in the river and felt out of sorts for a few days after eating them.

Hybrids would be great. Powerful fighters, great to eat!

why DONT they put hybrids in Canyon? anyone heard if they will put any in Medina now that it is a lake again?

I've been asking that question for over a few decades and it makes no sense.
Canyon has a few stripers that have reached monster proportions but those are more than likely the one's that TPWD takes out of the river below the dam that terrorise the plentiful trout populations below the dam where they grow huge, happy, and fat, so they net them and dump them into the lake.
I've always thought that hybrids would do really well in Canyon and one hybrid probably wouldn't eat as much shad as one striper and even if it did at least you could eat the hybrid and not worry about the mercury warnings.

do you think a petition or something like that could get TPWD to stock canyon with hybrids? Seems like the mercury risk makes a good case for it! I hope they put them in Medina again too.

Residents around Lake Ray Hubbard I believe (don't quote me on that) got together and raised money and volunteers for stocking their lake with hybrids and it's been a great success.
I don't think TPWD would do anything on their own without local input which seems to be lacking.

Found this doing a search!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvv5UcS56bM

I nominate either Jimbo or Scott (Red White and Blue) as the president of the soon to be established Canyon Lake Sportsman Assoc.

There already are organizations that represent the lake community and I'm not familiar with what agenda's they have pursued.
It would take more than just one or two people to get something like that underway.
Just from my experience being in local bass clubs when they were popular back in the 70's and 80's, getting more than two people to agree to anything is darn near impossible.

Unfortunate but true about people agreeing.

Every striper I've caught or seen caught out of canyon in the past 10 years is a skinny thing. I'm not sure there is the forage base there for any more striper variants.

I wouldn't hesitate eating a smaller striper. Big ones I would slip back into the lake.

Any reports?

I fished the river yesterday for whites from Rebecca Creek ramp #11 all the way up past the big house to the rapids and caught 5 whites and one black bass and there was two guys that had spent the night and they said they only had 4 and that was as they were leaving and had enough.
I left about 11 am and there were no more boats up river. Only saw three boats total all morning.
I think they aren't up river yet, but this is a strange year in that it's the first year the lake has been full in several years.

Yeah that is weird they aren't up there yet. Wonder if they will even run up that way this year.

Just had a discussion via PM with another member about my thoughts on the run, and like I told him we may be seeing the results of several years of a lack of flow of the river and poor runs of the recent past runs.
This is the first year that we have a strong flow in the river in years. The whites were more than likely spawning in the backs of coves and main lake points during those low water years so the population of whites may be way down.
I will say that I've seen the run go past spring break in past years so I say give it a little longer before throwing in the towel.

I am pretty sure if they stocked Hybrids they would have mercury in them too. It has to do with lifespan and diet. A hybrid would be very similar to a striped bass in all areas and in my opinion still have mercury. The mercury comes from the environment/pollution and gets in the baitfish. The more baitfish eaten the more mercury accumulation. So hybrids will not solve that problem.

Its still a little early mid March they are waiting until daylight saving time......Lots of fat females still in deep water in the lake...

Everyone seems to start way to early....Mid march sometimes the first week in April.....

This ^^^

Is there any access for bank fishing for whites?

All the property around the launch is private except for a small area around the launch. Fishing around the launch is very limited and boat traffic can be a pain for both the boaters and yourself.

LOL, So another excuse to buy a boat? lol

Do it, and set your fishing free. (too bad the boat wont be free.)

Money can't buy happiness ....

But it can buy me a boat !

play this video --

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9FiestKESMI

.

Any reports

Because social networks are blowing up with reports mostly people catching those whites which are moving in waves into few sections of river and staging so everyone starts looking for them so early . Some of the good fishing at canyon has been end of march/april but looks like they are pretty much still around the main lakes my buddy found some nice ones right close to mouth of the river yesterday .

I've mentioned in another post that they can be caught all the way up to spring break and beyond which is coming up this week.
It depends a lot on the water levels and flow into the lake as well as the temperature and length of days since days are getting longer now and more hours of sun to heat up the water.
Water temperature is key and once the water gets up to 65* to 68* you can usually count on the fish being there.
I've caught whites on the Nueces in early January and all the way up to April at Canyon so there is no surprise there when I see the reports now and a lot of folks swear the run is over.

If the females are still about to pop. It has not happen. The ones I caught the other day in the
Upper part of the lake still look like they had room to fill out a little more.

Great success on the weekend ran upriver above Rebecca Creek and above the rapids ....there are plenty to go around....limited out on large minnows and KT Slabs....The minnows caught the majority

Fished the river Saturday with no success. Everyone I talked to was reporting similar results. Tried minnows, casting Mepps spinners and trolling Rapalas. Very suprised at the lack of success given the full moon just last Wednesday. So is the run over or was I just a victim of cooler weather. Water temp at 65.

I tried the rapids 3 different times over the last 2-3 weeks. Best I did was a 2 fish day. Most think there wasn't a "true" run due to too little water in the lake for too long.