David,
we -wife and i- got hooked on bass fishin 3 years ago. i'm 60 shes a little younger.
we bought a place at fork and fish 30-40 weekends a year. we are strickly fun fishing novices, no tournaments. we decided to catch fish we needed to learn some good spots, and techniques, and to do that we'd go out with guides.
we have been out about 7-8 times, our best day was a 40 fish day, and our worse day was a zero fish morning,..zero. we called it a day after a few hours and rescheduled..the guide, one of the best on the lake said that they were locked down, and we'd be better off coming back another day...the rest of the trips were anywhere from 12 to 30 or so, with the biggest about 8/9 pounds..fishing by ourselves, in three years we have still never had a day where we caught more than 15 in one day, we have caught a lot of fish, but 5-8 a day is a good day for us.
these guides are really good, they know the lake, patterns from day to day, baits, patterns, and where the fish are...there are people that live on the lake that can also fish as good as a guide. they -guides and residents- know all the variables,..they can disect the lake, in a couple hours and be catching fish right next to your boat, and all you can do is watch...
so whats my point,..? bass fishing even at fork is hard-hard-hard, you need to be really fish-lake smart to trick these fish into chasing and eating a piece of plastic on a string. we are learning, slowly, but its a educating slow process.
my suggestions to you are to read-read-read,..find everything you can from tom redington and lance vick, they both have web sites and guide on fork. read forum entries marc mitchell, clint wright, and jason hoffman,..these guys all make a living on fork, and provide excellent fishing information,...ask some of the tackle shop guys what they suggest,..cameron at lfm and the guys at the bait shop will always take a minute if the can..
take a guided all day trip, during the week is best, less traffic,...after 3 years we feel like we are still just scratching the surface,..time on the water, knowing what you want to do, versatility, and knowing a couple good spots are keys to getting a few fish...jim

I call [censored] you don't catch 400 fish in a day that's damn
crazy...

We've been averaging 20+ fish per night in June (out of 17 trips so far). On a slow night, we may get a dozen. But on a good night, we may get 30+.
Once it gets into mid July, the 20+ trips will be hard to come by. So, if you plan to fish after dark, you shouldn't wait until the bite slows down.
I'm fishing 8:30PM until sunup. Last night, we got several before dark. Then, it slowed until the lake cleared of boats (around midnight). Then, they started biting good.
But you gotta put in your time. Sometimes, the bite is slow until dark, then it gets good until midnight, then slows down. The next day, it will be just the opposite. No rhyme or reason.