In lakes like Fork, they are a little more hard to target as they are spread out more. It is better to fish for them in creeks. I used to fish for them all the time in Sandy Creek, (about 15 miles East of Lake Fork on Hwy 154). The will bite a variety of bait, but cut perch and shad have always been the best for me. They will also bite shrimp but the perch is better. I used to use 65 lb. braid on a 7'6" heavy rod. Tie on a 5/0 hook, no weight and put a peice of cut bait about the size of a half dollar on. Pitch it out there and just let it sit. The bite is slow, unlike catfish. They will not try to take the rod away from you like a big channel cat. They will usually just bite it and start easing off pretty slow. It is best to give them a little time to get the hook down good. If you set it right away, most times the hook will stick in the hard part of the mouth and you will almost never get them in before they throw the hook. Give them several seconds, set the hook hard and hang on for WW III.

A good day for me on the creek was usually 8-10 fish in 3-4 hrs.

One more thing, the hotter it gets in the summer, the better the fishing gets.

Thanks this was exactly the kind of info I was looking for. So do you think it would be beter to wait for summer or at least a month for it to get a bit hotter? I can catch some perch on my ultra light and try the cut bait you speak of as well. Thanks again.