Did a search, but haven't found much on the forum regarding Hawkins. Was thinking about giving it a try this weekend, but wanted to throw it out there to see if anyone had any information on it.

way way too much recreational boating on way too small of a lake - best in the off season - great for chain pickeral in the winter.

no rec boating if you stay around the bridge, tons of timber. I am originally from Hawkins.

Thanks Alex. Never been on that lake so wasn't sure what the traffic would be like.

Cody, know anything about that area north of 2869. Considering I haven't been able to find a lot positive reports, I'm wondering if it's worth the drive. Looks like a pretty lake though.

Thats the bridge I'm talking about Mike. Not sure how the fishing is now, i havent been there since high school but there will be no boat traffic and there is tons of structure.

I've fished it 3-4 times... I have always put in at the 2869 bridge ( there's a small ramp right there ).... I've always fished it in like January and February because you can also catch the pickerel there easily at that time. During that time of year the water clarity is in the 5-7 foot range... Lots of hydrilla and stumps: it's the type of area where you can catch bass even in very low water temps like lower 40s. It's a good lake for the yak IMO, but I have no idea how productive that area is in the warmer months.. I can't imagine that fish wouldn't be there since it has pretty much everything you look for in bass water: grass, pads, good drop offs, some access to deeper water, some docks, timber, clear water. It's a neat lake and that area in particular is tailor made for the yak. I could be wrong but if you went I'd think a wacky senko in natural colors would be as good now as it is in the winter. Also a frog pitched around shady areas and vegetation would no doubt produce as well.

What a coincidence. I was about to post this same inquiry yesterday about this lake. Looks like there is a weekly Wednesday evening tournament held on this lake. Results are posted on TFF. Last week's winning weight totaled 9.06 lbs. Looks like there's lots of pads and structure. There are some videos and pics on the web. There's supposedly a great Italian restaurant there to eat at but also a horrible hotel to stay at!

Thanks for the info Gut. I'll give it a shot this weekend.

Let us know how it goes Mike, I might have to go back to my old stomping grounds

Ben, yeah I saw the Wednesday tourney post afterwards. I haven't had a chance to do extensive search on it yet. Thought I'd try here first since I trust the TFF.

Weekends are a rec boating zoo on the lower lake, plus lots of swimmers and campers and jet skiers around. The upper lake and the backs of the coves are a different story. I still try to avoid them on weekends, because the dozen or so fishermen on the lake all head to these spots to get away from the party. They usually end up bunched up around each other at the same few places. Memorial Day through Labor Day it gets pretty crowded. But here's the report, as I fish there often from a kayak:

The beds along the banks are FULL of aggressive, small Bream right now. That can be a hoot on a light fly rod or ultralight spinning rig. The big Bream are not on the beds. They're in a bit deeper water, along submerged weed lines and in deeper holes oriented to structure. Crappie were still SHALLOW there last Friday. I caught a few Black Crappie on a BASS POPPER in the Lily Pads in the shade.

LMB are gonna be found in shady areas in shallow water and in deeper holes NEAR Bream beds picking off little Bluegills. Outside edges of weed and pad lines have some medium to big LMB. Docks were unproductive, even in the shade.

The previous 411 you got was pretty accurate for the "big picture." This lake fishes best from a kayak on weekdays during Summer and when the kids are in school. Bass boats really can't go very far upstream of the bridge everyone's talking about. They tend to gaggle up right there around the bridge, but I often see 6 of them within shouting distance of each other in that area...and drive on to launch elsewhere.

I was thinking on Friday afternoon while I was out there that it's probably time to switch lakes until school starts again. Those folks really love to SHARE their music with the world and do donuts on their jet skis while towing tubers within casting distance of a fishing boat. So it's upper lake on weekdays for me from now until Labor Day if I go to Hawkins.

Flyguy, thanks for the in depth 411. A friend of mine is out there at Allaso Ranch and said I should check out Hawkins cause it looked "fishy". Sounds like it's pretty busy for a small lake during Summer. I do like the idea of catching Bream on the fly.

Cody, I'm riding the fence on whether to trek out there this weekend or head back to the Brazos. I'll let you know how it goes.

It is very similar to Lake Holbrook (W of Mineola between hwy's 80 and 69), but with more places to launch and a higher percentage of the lake is quality fish habitat. Both get VERY busy with rec users in Summer. Both are pretty good lakes for LMB if you learn how to fish them, and quite stingy if you don't adapt a bit. Both lakes also have Chain Pickerel, but the population in Hawkins is much healthier than Holbrook. ETX is chock full of these kinds of lakes between I-30 and I-20, from Tawakoni East to the LA state line. Most grow LMB as well as Fork, Rayburn, and Toledo Bend. Same environment. But they don't have the infrastructure for the big tournaments. So they don't get the reputation (or traffic). However, they're all heavily used by skiers in the Summer. So the key is to go where they won't. And I'll tell you this: on Hawkins, 12 lbs test is HEAVY line. So catching those big LMB on a fly rod takes some skillz.



This was a 25" Largemouth I caught on a Wool Head Muddler in the Lily Pads on Lake Hawkins in early May. One of many in the 4 to 10 lbs range I've pulled out of these 2 lakes on a fly rod.



Here's a "little guy" that went 4 lbs from Lake Hawkins, also this Spring. Caught that one on a green/white Clouser Deep Minnow on the outside edge of a submerged grass line.

I don't take many fish pics or talk much about what I catch. But I thought you might appreciate a little "nudge" based on your last post.

I think that just "nudged" me off the fence. Being in Dallas, I typically only venture out East as far as Fork, Athens or Purtis, but I'm looking for new waters. I'm gonna head to Hawkins and give it a try. Figure if I can dodge all the bass boats on Fork, I can probably cope with some skiers. Thanks again for all the information.

Good luck. If you come off that ramp at the bridge and turn LEFT you shouldn't have many visitors. Water's almost all shallow up that way. The main channel is only a few feet deep. There's a lot of shallow, mucky grass and algae up that way, so you may want to stick with topwater stuff. VERY sloppy! Good supply of LMB in the 3 to 8 lbs range up there, but I have caught several BIG bass down in the main lake. It's probably not the best time for that right now unless you can fish weekdays.

FYI, there's free tent camping on Fish Hawk Point, first come first serve. The main campground by the beach is cheap, too. For a motel, stay in Mineola and forget about Hawkins.