Was going through some old Polaroid photos from Lake Fork and found a stack from Cooper. Several guides left Fork during LMBV (guessing)- pics were from late 1997 until spring of 2002.

I don't remember what year it was but the powers to be over the water in the lake, drained to almost empty. I would say that killed the fishing. I use to fish it once a year back in the early 90s. i have no idea what it looks like today.

In the spring with all the rain would turn it into a mudhole.

All I know is the Sand Bass didn'nt help it. I had high hopes for it in the beginning taking some presure off of Fork. I never went up there when it was almost drained but I heard reports. Let's hope that Lake Bois D'arc is managed better!

I think a drought and DFW sucking it dry set it back. Have heard its good again people are just keeping quiet.

It ain’t good again. White bass fishing is very good. Largemouth fishing is tough. No vegetation. Maybe on the west end is good, but it’s not worth the run through the trees to me.

Several years ago it was 14 ft. low and about a month later it was 8 ft. high. Like it was said Bass fishing is tough. Sand bass is good. Very few people fish it anymore. It is what it is. I don't think TWPD stocks LMB anymore.

Went over there a couple of years ago and had 14 bass the first day and 12 bass the next trip over and all 2-4 lbs.

So it still has some bass but they are not easy like back in the good ole days.

It’s an odd coincidence that Cooper, Big Creek, Grand Saline, Kaufman City lakes, and Purtis Creek all got ruined in the same two year span.

20 years ago I woulda said folks won't remember Fork in 20 years because of Cooper! Man that didn't work out!

Pre GPS I used to put empty Miller Lite cans on tree limbs to mark my spots. Ol the good old days!

There were political reasons for not allowing Cooper to overshadow other lakes, specifically one other lake. Cooper has never been the state's pet lake. In the late 90s and early 2000s Cooper was an awesome fishery at a time when other lakes, particularly Fork, went into the toilet. How many businesses, restaurants, motels, and other businesses relied on Cooper for their livelihood?

I forget which TFFer said this but someone said that the TPWD shocked up all the big bass in cooper and took them to Fork to help ease the LMBV problem at Fork. I have no way to verify it, I'm just repeating what someone said here. I thought that was very interesting.

I need to go find that thread. I can't remember if it was a Fork or Cooper thread. It was brought up because I was talking about how good the fishing was at Fork from 2000-2008.

he posted on this thread