Good evening to all,

I am fishing a tournament at Toledo Bend in March and trying to plan ahead. I have never been on the lake. Any recommendations for running it would be appreciated.

Thanks to all.

Kevin

Well they have what locals call the "interstate " that runs north and south and I think many of the coves are marked but not all. Ken Smith on here has video's of where to and not to run. I think I saw a post on here that Tommy Martin has a map card out for your Lowrance or Humminbird which would be real helpful. Lake levels are real important to know even with a map card. I know this from my times on the lake, just because a tree or stump isn't visible doesn't mean there isn't one there. Save your tracks on your graph and use them to get from point A to B.

We all used to run the lake with hardly any marked lanes, except the main border/ river channel that is red and green, and Texas and Louisiana sides both had single white... now there are buoys for cross-over lanes, and some lead into main creek arms all the way back, in addition to the afore mentioned main stuff. You need to look ahead for the next buoy, stay close to the markers, also the Lakemaster/Humminbird chip shows all the markers very well.

www.boatlanes.com--this site offers boatlanes marked with waypoints. Some are the major lanes marked with buoys others are minor or runs used by guides that are not marked at all. Still need to be aware of floaters and the weather. Toledo Bend is a very large lake and a good breeze can build up rough water. Check the weather forecast and watch the weather while you are fishing. Many of the tournaments will allow you to trailer your boat to a lauch site away from the weight in location because of the water hazard due to weather.

When you look at a map of Tbend, remember most of the creek arms are the size of other lakes. Makes for some long runs when the wind gets up. That boat lanes chip is very handy also. Especially when marker buoys have moved or are missing.

Thanks to everyone.

All my best,

Kevin