Hey everyone,

Two of my buddies and I are coming down from Ohio (via car!) to fish the Fork this weekend. We've never been there, and chances are we won't have the time to come back in the next few years (we're all finishing up med school and starting intense residencies up North). Really, we all realized we had a few days off together and were sick of staring at ice up here so planned a spur-of-the-moment trip.

There's a ton of great information on youtube and other websites about the great lake ya'll have down there. As far as I've gathered, it's imperative for us to target pre-spawn bass with jigs, rattle traps (red, orange, chrome, gold), and slow-rolled spinnerbaits. If I understand it correctly, we should focus on primary and secondary points where a few of the go-to creeks dump into the main lake. As for cover, I've read to focus on standing timber (especially the trees closest to the creek beds) and any grass I can find.

Am I way off, or does that gameplan seem decent enough for us to bump into a few bass over our four days? I would really appreciate any and all advice people are willing to share. Private messages are great too if people don't want it all over the internet. I'll keep the intel to myself, and seeing as I'm stuck up in Ohio for the next half-decade I don't think you have to worry about me exploiting it personally (aside from a handful of weekday club tournaments, we are not competitive anglers). I don't have much to offer in return other than smallmouth bass advice for anyone considering a trip up to Lake Erie or Traverse City or a couple of cold beers at a bar near lake fork this weekend.

Tight lines,

Pete

Get a guide make yall trip even better

lake fork is a very hit or miss type lake. you can have the best days of your life or the worst. stay close to the boat lane buoys. i don't have much info on the current fishing there. stick to your strengths, and fish what you are confident in, the lake has just about every type of structure you could think of and thrives in both shallow and off shore fishing. i'd stick to steep drop offs and points leading up to shallow flats. start off with a fast presentation and slow down until you get bit. if you are looking for numbers and not trophy, take a look at lake Athens. the lake is oozing 2-6 pounders, its a smaller lake but a great fishery. last spring between my tournament partner, my dad, and i; we ended up with 123 bass in 2.5 days with the biggest around 8 pounds. Hope ol' fork treats you well! tightlines.

+1 on the guide, it's a long trip for it to be a bust. Fork out a little extra dough and maybe make it the trip of a lifetime,JMO!

Pete,

I have been up to your neck of the woods a few times visiting Erie.

With you all coming this far it will be a great investment to get a guide to make your trip that much more of a success

Please let me know if I can assist you on your trip

^^ one of the best guides to book with is Ole malone.

Hey Texas team,

Wow! Thanks for the quick, friendly, and helpful responses. You guys are a lot nicer than most fishing forums I've been on in the past!

I think we'll plan to fish the first day without a guide. If we struggle a lot and can't locate the fish we'll probably consider trying to set up a guided trip. I appreciate the offers from those of you who guide on the Fork--you'll be the first guys we call if we go that route.

If anyone is going to be on the water or in the area, shoot me a message. Would love to talk Texas and Great Lakes bass over a cold one.

Pete

SJ
I would get a guide the first day so the rest of the trip you can focus on expanding what you�ve learned. I�ll be down this weekend and will be happy to help if I can. Fork going to get real good in the next 3 weeks right now Its just a little early� There should be some big slot fish biting. PM me and if I find anything going on I�ll share.

If you hire a guide the first day the you will know how the fish are biting then after that you will have a game plan.

Yes get a guide the first day that way the other days you know the pattern plus you can book the guide early before they get all booked up and you can't get one.

Hope your trip is successful. Add a chatter bait to your arsenal. Definitely get a guide for your first day and develop a game plan for the balance of your trip from there. I'd book Justin Margraves for that time. Going to be high 70's this weekend, so Mother Fork should be on. I'll be there Saturday.

How long are you going to be down here for? Like many others, I would highly recommend getting a guide the first day you are here. Your "game plan" covers literally thousands of acres of water on Fork. A guide can point you to the areas that will be most productive. When you get here and look at the lake you will not know where to start.

I've fished Fork for 25 years and it still humbles me more often than I would like to admit.

bassboy 22 also had a good idea. Athens is much easier to fish than Fork. Easier to get around (very few trees) and lots of grass to fish. Bass love grass! Throw some Flukes or Senko's in the grass and hold on.


If fishing is slow you could always go to the Texas Fish Hatchery right next door to Athens. They have a great tour and by now have some 13+ pound fish there that are getting ready to spawn.

What kind of boat will you be bringing?

Two guys from ohio driving to fish fork for 2 days gonna be disappointed. Not exactly gonna just show up to fork with a little TFF advice and have a good trip. But you can always get lucky. I would get a guide

Stick with fork and im pretty sure you are one if your buddies will have a chance at a fish of a lifetime.