March is typically an unpredictable month for stripers here on Lake Texoma. Some years the fishing is pretty good, and some, not so good. This is one of those not so good years, as fishing has been extremely hit and miss. One day we will put a good box of fish in the boat, maybe even a limit, and the next will be tough. There has been a bait bite develop for some guides way out west and a few scattered instances of good bait fishing in the main lake, normally under the birds. Ive been sticking with lures as it is what I do best this time of the year. With lures I feel confident when I mark fish that I can catch them. Right now, trying to bait fish seems to be like a [censored] shoot as you mark tons of bait and fish everywhere you go in the river channel. The only time I know that I can catch fish off of bait is if the birds are working, then I know they are feeding. On top of all of that, Im having to relocate fish on a daily basis, they just will not stay put and let me get into a pattern.
All of my fish are coming in on 5 glow sassys on a one and a half ounce head. The fish I have been catching on lures have been in 5-25 ft. of water. Fish being caught on bait have been in 27-50 ft. Sometimes Im casting towards the bank and sometimes Im casting against the wind and letting it sink and slow rolling it along the bottom. Bait has been working best while drifting and it is a good idea to have a dead stick out along side your bait rods, as they sometimes prefer that to the live bait. Inevitably it seems that all good days are followed by a bad day as the fish are just not feeding on a daily basis yet most likely due to the cold water temperatures and the abundance of bait in the lake. Most bad days consist of around 10 fish but I have had totals of 4 and 2 thrown in as well.
Thurs 3/10- I think she had more fun driving the boat than she did fishing.
Fri 3/11- 20 fish limit
Sat 3/12- 6 person trip with a total of 4 fish
Sun 3/13- Found these guys on T.I. Pont, only found 11 fish total
Mon 3/14 AM- I booked a double earlier in the year thinking the fishing was going to be good, I tried to cancel it but I ended up pulling it off with a 20 fish limit that morning and in by 10:30
Mon 3/14 PM- 23 fish
Tues 3/15- I had the same guys from Mon PM and we ended up with 8 or 10 fish
Wed 3/16- Giant buffalo caught on a sassy and 22 stripers
Thurs 3/17- I had one fisherman who wanted to scout for Saturdays tournament, I showed him where we had caught them the day before and we caught 2 fish there and left to go scout out new areas. It was very windy so that limited our scouting and we finished the day with those 2 fish.
I have been offering all of my trips the opportunity to cancel their trip due to the tough conditions. Some have taken me up on it but most have stuck it out with me which has paid off at times. I originally had a double scheduled today but they both canceled, I needed a day off to catch up on things and rest any way. The weather report is calling for temperatures in the 80s and lows in the 60s the next few days so Im hoping that it will get the water warmed up enough that the fish will start feeding on a daily basis. Any day it could break loose but most likely it will be right at a month from now before things really start turning on. My weekends for April and May are just about all gone, there are still several weekday slots still available but you will want to book your trip for spring fishing soon as that is the peak season and it fills up fast. Fishing during the week will be best as you will not have to compete with all the other boats on the water during the weekends. You can book your trip online at
www.stripersinc.com or you can give me a call at (903)815-1609 and Ill get you set up.
Good Luck to All,
Brian
