I have contacted the local state representative Stuempel, GBRA, Texas Parks and wildlife, and Bass. Tim Cook responded but since then has not answered my Emails. The others were acknowledgements only. The statement was made that they would no longer use taxpayer money to stock McQueeney but I doubt that includes blocking fish from going downstream during a flood. FEMA has been and will be called upon to help these folks in a time of flood which is taxpayer money, and eventually money will be sent to maintain the infrastructure which will involve taxpayer money. All fishermen and water enthusiast should be concerned that a public waterway is turned into to private use only with no concern from public entities.I am not certain what can be done but we need more voices to be heard.

It's basically the same situation with the trout stocking in the Guadalupe river below canyon dam. 99% of the access to the river is controlled by private interests who either make a living from your desire to fish the river or don't want you on "their" river at all.

exactly what hook line and sinker said. private outfitters control almost all fishing areas for trout, so they double their money.
with a trout stocking the river is gauranteed to flow to keep the cold water going. that also makes for great tube rentals.

You can still get on Mcqueeney!! Last time I was back in Texas (sept) I used a ramp that worked just fine for a 21ft boat. On 725 from the Seguin side take a right on ridge creek dr., Follow & it will dead end at ridgecliff dr., take a left. Follow all the way until it ends at ridgeroad dr., look straight ahead & there is a dirt road along a powerline going down to the river w/ a ramp. The ramp looks so-so but it IS usuable. On the right side the concrete is a little broken up but i didnt have a problem. It is pretty shallow there & the ramp is at a weird angle where when my trailer had the boat on it, I have a crossmember that sits low that dragged the concrete. With 4hi I had no problem though. I talked to the owner of the house next to the ramp & he said it was a neighborhood ramp but he said they do not have a problem with ANYBODY using it. I would recommend having 4x4 in case your trailer sits low like mine though!

;Is it feasible to tube fish or kayak during the colder months when the skiers go away or is the ramp too far away from the lake?

Might be something someone with deep pockets might want to invest in! A public ramp and restaurant, what an idea!

It was always a pain in the rear to fish that lake even in the winter, those skiers would be out that at the crack of dawn in their wet suits.

Can't say I miss that lake all that much, and I never fished it anymore during the warmer months after almost getting swamped by the continuous boat traffic, and having to put up with the muddy water from the waves crashing the shorelines.

I actually got seasick from the constant rocking of the boat!

They acted like a fisherman didn't belong on their lake and now they can have it!

This i interesting. i happen to know people on Lake Diversion and the public water rights issue is pretty big with them.

Basically, all that water is in fact public, and if you can get on it without trespassing, you are fine. that goes for McQueeney and Diversion.

Diversion is difficult because the club that owns the land around the lake granted an easement on the only road crossing the lake (on the shallow end) under the assurance that the county would erect a barricade on either side of the bridge making it all but impossible to launch a boat.

people do get yaks in there, but in another flex of their political power, the share holders of the club managed to get all the roads around that bridge close to parking.

this means that you can get a ticket for parking, and if you are on the lake you will probably find an officer waiting for you when you are trying to leave and watching to make sure you dont set one food on private land.

(oh and i have a friend who prefers to kayak directly into the lake by way of white watering over the spillway during floods) ha

but i digress.

If one of McQueenie's landowners has in fact cut off public access to fishermen that is a problem, but since the land around the lake is all separate plots and not a single cooperative like Diversion i can't see it staying that way for long. (i could be wrong on this point though, i will try to have a look at the registry for the county to see what the situation there is)

just a quick look at the map shows any number of individuals who could easily find themselves talked into building a boat ramp and charging a individuals to launch. it sure would be hard for me to pass up if i had one of those less desirable plots on the south side near the dam.

incidentally, my friends on Diversion pretty laugh at McQueenie folk because they have to deal with so many wakeboarders, and the lake is constantly covered in traffic. Lake Diversion (this is the one under Medina Lake) has got to be the most exclusive chunk of land in Texas. they are very protective of it and the proof is in the pudding. its got to be one of the nicest stretches of water in the state. if you have a yack, i recommend paddling it, lots of stiper hybrids, and plenty of medium sized bass. just don't park illegally and don't trespass while you are there. though they probably wont press charges anyway because they have no desire to see anything go before a judge that could force them to open it up to more of the public.

but from the standpoint of the people on Lake McQueenie i guarantee you that they would rather shut down that ski lodge and open the lake to fishing then have what they have now. fishermen tend to be quite, respectful, and good stewards of the lake. (tend to anyway) i can't imagine anybody being excited about ski boats hauling a## through their back yard all day long.

You can always join the ski lodge.

I bet that lake is hot, the fish have not seen any lures for a while!

I remember there used to be a place on the downstream end of the lake called Hotshots or something like that. Funky old bar, restuarant, bait shop, etc. It was great piece of Texana. I think the last big flood took it out for good.

How much would joining something like that cost?

Someone needs to get smart and open a bass lodge, and cater stricktly to the bass fisherman on that lake.

Give it time! That lake is an accident waiting to happen, and maybe then they'll finally impose speed limits on that lake, and it won't be so appealing to the skiers, and someone can then open a bass lodge!

We can always hope!

How about a fishing lodge, and cater to more than just bass fisherman?

That would work! Seems like a ski lodge would be more of a seasonal thing and fishing is year round. Stock some lunkers like brood bass, and hybrid bluegills, and catfish, and you could draw people from all over the nation.

Wish I had deep pockets, cause that's what I'd invest in if I had it to invest.

Those ski lodge people got it all wrong especially when you've got a big beautiful lake like Canyon just up the road.

I remember Hotshots from when I was a kid. They had fish fry's every Friday or Saturday night. It was great. I was sorry to see it gone when I came back in 2005. But Then I saw the boat ramp just north of it was still open at the time. Now that I'm back from Japan five years later I see that even that boat ramp doesn't exist anymore. What the hell is going on here?