Guys - New to the site. Far too much to absorb but making my way through it.

I stumbled onto this site as I am planning my first Spring fishing trip to Texas.

I will have two friends in a separate boat and my dad and I in mine.


We all live in Kansas City, Ks and only fish pretty clear waters here for largemouth and smallmouth.

I am not asking anyone to do a lot of work here and not asking for a miracle, but maybe you are in a position to be a great help.

Obviously we hear East Texas is the place to be for big bass. Driving from KC I wouldn't want to go any further than Fork.

I have heard it is super pressured March and April and wanted to ask if there was a better idea than Fork if we didn't want to drive much further south.

Up for anything as I am just in the planning stages but likely need to plan lodging fairly soon as well.

Any help would be appreciated and returned if possible.

Ryan Surprise

I wouldn’t hesitate to fish Fork then. May be a little crowded but still manageable and lots of other great lakes with an hour of Fork too.

Plan your trip and make reservations at Fork. If you get here and don't like Fork or the pressure. There are several lakes close by that you can fish

Just to calibrate your expectations here... If you are coming down and fishing Fork by yourself for your first time in March you'll have a good chance of getting skunked and damaging your boat. By just about every report I've seen Fork is fishing tough right now and east Texas lakes are no joke for stumps. I'd highly recommend getting a guide for at least your first day. You'll learn what pattern is working and more importantly you'll learn how to keep yourself safe.

If you are from Kansas City and a Chiefs fan, then you may want to take the time to drive through Patrick Mahomes hometown in East Texas (Whitehouse). Not really much to see there, but at least when you go back you can tell all of your buds.

If you don't run willy-nilly around the lake, you shouldn't hurt your boat. I would suggest buying Boatlanes and loading it on your graph. This will make navigation much easier and then use your head when not in a boat lane. Fork is one of the easiest lakes to navigate in E.TX, despite the timber. Just don't go thinking it's wide open because you don't see anything poking above the water because it's not...……..
By March, if your struggling on Fork, there are a half dozen lakes within easy driving distance where you can get your line stretched and still have the possibility of catching a big one.
Fork is fishing tough right now but March is SEVERAL months away. Lurking around here is a good way to figure out who to PM when you get really close to your trip. They will usually happily help you out with a little direction and some tips.

Mid late March is prime on fork. You can't miss unless we get a crazy bad cold front. Chatterbait and swimbaits up shallow

I'd come on to Rayburn! Haha kidding. Kinda. Not really.

But very serious: if you guys have any boat trouble and are in this area, know you've got some guys to help ya out. Call anytime.

In March it would be hard to pass up Caddo Lake and probably would like the scenery. Senko is about all you will need and have a pretty good chance at a DD.

Despite the crowds, Fork can be awesome in March. Especially if you are here during a warming trend. There are a number of good lakes close if fork is fishing tough. You are welcome to pm me as it gets closer, I've lived at Fork for 25yrs and fish it regularly and would be glad to help.

The main difference you are going to deal with in Texas is shallower lakes with murkier water. My home lake used to be Tablerock until I got to Texas so believe it. In March, April and May fish will be shallower than you are used to and they spawn shallower. You can use heavier line and larger baits. You will want to due to the timber and the larger fish. Another difference as several have mentioned, there are a lot of lakes. If Fork is tough or you just want to try something different you can be to a number of smaller lakes in about 30 minutes and a bunch more within an hour.

Sent you a PM.

SE Kansas grass grower

Hi! Welcome to the site! Lot's of good people on here that are willing to help.

So many choices coming here in the spring!! Wright Patman, Lake O' the Pines, Caddo, Toledo Bend, Sam Rayburn, Fork are all great options. Then if you just want to fish different/multiple other lakes and also stay east of Fork - Tyler(east/west), Palestine, Bob Sandlin/Monticello/Cypress Springs, Welsh, Martin Creek, Perky Point, etc.

What kind of fishing do ya'll like to do? Some of these lakes have good deep water options if the normal spring patterns aren't working. Some are fairly shallow bodies of water(Caddo!) that your options are cypress trees or more cypress trees!! I would try to get lodging for Fork at Oak Ridge Marina as if the wind is bad you can stay up in that big arm and not be too bad. Rooms are nice and the food and tackle shop are great!!

Wow - Did not expect so many replies and certainly didn't expect the amount of help so quickly.

I will likely reply to some as we get closer to March.

Again - Thank YOU.

Hire a guide to show you around and put you on some fish the first day, then you’ll have a better grasp of what the lake is doing! Great time to be on Fork.