hey,

taking my pops out this weekend can't decide on bank fishing grasslands or renting a kayak to actually get out on grapevine. any suggestions?

I would stay off Grapevine lake in a Kayak this holiday weekend. Not a good idea.

Good news is some of the grasslands lakes and ponds went up due to the rain. Bad news, it turned the bite off. Fish are still a little shocked about new water levels. Dad and I fished out there Sunday. Went to sector 15 pond and had a couple bites. Then went to rhodes lake and I caught a 5 inch bluegill. Stopped by mesa pond and I caught a small bullhead. Lastly, went to a pond in sector 38. Dad caught a bass around two pounds and I hooked a channel that went 10+..would have been my record channel but the cat knew how to play and this pond has some dangerous timber in it. He made a run between the logs, zigzagging in and out of them. My 10 pound line didnt stand a chance. Broke off before I could make any leverage! If you go to the grasslands, let me know how it went.

If no more downpours are expected, bite should be back on this weekend though!

thanks,

good news, I was hoping the rain helped a little. I'll let ya know

No problem bud!

Sorry to hijack this thread, but what and where is this grasslands area?

It is the LBJ Grasslands. It is public land out northwest of Decatur. Pretty good fishing.

Yep! You can search for some of the threads for keywords. Likely bodies of water include the bigger lakes like black creek, cottonwood, clear, rhodes. Also home to some small named ponds like rucker, berkeley, hopwell, dan's (which according to a fellow tffer was all but dry about a week ago, I went out there today and am happy to report it is now totally full due to rain and I even saw fish jump), mesa, angel's view, 123. Also chicken lake and windmill lake are worth mentioning. Windmill is supposed to be designated for fly fishing. There are however, over 400 smaller unnamed ponds. They are referred to by what sector they are in by us locals. They range in size from 1/4 of an acre up to 10 acres. The bigger named ponds and lakes range from 5 acres up to 40 acres. Dont overlook the smaller ponds. They do have quality fish in them. In fact, due to pressure, I hardly ever fish the named bodies of water anymore. Mainly just the sector referred ponds now and am glad i made the switch. You can buy a map at the office located off 287 just north of Decatur. But many of the small ponds arent marked on it. Google maps has been my best friend for that. Also, i have done some scoping the past few days after the rain and every main lake or pond out there is up, even if just by a few inches. Most of the lesser known ponds are now brim full. Should be good fishing out there soon!

Oh just for anyone who ventures out to dan's pond, be careful. A tree apparently collapsed in the storm and is blocking the road. Hopefully they clean it up soon, if not I'm sure one of us regulars will cut it haha. There are already tire marks going off the road to get around it and I dont have a flat yet from going off the road so I think you'll be okay

I have lived in Decatur all my life. I have had really good luck at Chicken Lake and Rucker Pond but that was before the rain. Can you tell me where Mesa Pond and that pond in sector 38 are? I've been looking for off the beaten path ponds out there and those two sound like places I need to check out.

Sector 38 pond is down old decatur road, past the back entrance to black creek, and just before the turn that leads to hopewell church. There are actually about ten ponds in the sector, ranging from 1/4 of an acre to 2 acres. But the pond I love is just beyond the first pond. You can see the dam from the road of the first pond. Anyways, you walk across the dam and stay on the primitive trail. It leads right to the pond. Look for an island in the middle, thats how you know you found it.
Mesa Pond is further down old decatur road and will be on your left if your heading north. Its just beyond an S-curve. It is in a sector marked by a green gate so keep your eyes peeled. Its maybe 2 acres. Still a little low, but way up from two weeks ago. Full of bream, small bass, and mudcats. Might have a few channels in it too.

Chicken lake? Where is that

Chicken Lake is between Alvord and Chico. From Decatur take 1810 to 1655. Turn right and then take the first left past the green cemetery sign probably a mile or so. You will go down that road and turn left over the green cattle guard. The road is pretty grown over but the lake has produced some nice fish for me this spring.

Are you sure it's 38 and not 39? The area that I am drawn by your directions looks like sector 39.