It has always been my understanding that those few fortunate enough to own lake front property with boat docks have a property line that ends at the lake and that if you are fishing from a boat you can fish under the dock as long as you stay in your boat.How ever if you are bank fishing you will be trespassing.My ???? is ,where is the boundary line of the property if there is no water in the lake and there is another lake front property on the opposite shore facing it? Allso,if there are drought conditions that expose the creek in the lakebed that was underneath the said lake when it was at normal level,will I be trespassing if I choose to bankfish the creek? ?Hypothetically speaking,Arn`t I still in the Lake Hypothetically speaking!! ?Does the Lake no longer exist for lack of h2o Straight N me out

Depends on where you are...
I have lakefront leaseback from the Sabine River Authority. I pay an annual lease and get land and water use of that leaseback property. You would be trespassing if you leave the back yards in the cove, toward the lake. Plus, you would be trampling my vegetable garden and that would make me a lot madder than you fishing my boat house...

The 5 lakes in wood county are owned by the county including a specified amount of land that the land owner can use for his lawn or what ever.
There is a $50 a year dock fee.

Aw come on yall! The Propert line and where does it end???You PROPERTY OWNERS should know this.Am I tresspassing or not

It might help if you told which lake you are referring to when you ask this question.

My bad.How about the Amry corp of eng lakes in TX? & thanks EZ!

I believe it depends on the lake and/or the authority that controls it.
Cedar Creek Lake is controlled by the Tarrant County Water District and it is my understanding (which could be completely wrong) that the shoreline of the entire lake is open to the public. So, if you come by boat, you can use the shoreline anytime you want. If you do not come by way of the water you do not have access through private property unless given permission by the landowner.

I do know the TCWD only allows property owners to build above the 325' elevation and the normal pool is at the 322' level. (Current level is 318' or 4' below normal pool.) However, property owners have permission to landscape and use the property all the way down to the shoreline and most of us do.

I also believe the Corp of Engineers rules are very different and I don't claim to know all the differences.

To specifically answer the question, I believe you have the right to fish the shoreline of the entire lake anytime you want. That doesn't mean you should trespass on my property, trash it up or do any harm to my property or anything on it.

I don't personally know of any property owners on CCL that have any problem with you fishing the waters under my dock or in front of my house. I just ask that you respect my property as if it were your own.
Just be respectful, courteous and friendly, it will get you the same in return.
Having said all this, stay off my crappie condos unless you pay your condo rent in advance!

I really suggest you contact the agency that controls the lake in question to be sure of the law and prevent yourself any potential headaches.

I have lake front property and the Corp has a map and the rules. Clear as can be. I am called an adjacent land owner. The land around the lake from the Corp marker to the other side of the lake corp marker is public land. Now the land from the corp marker towards my house is my property.

So if I put a dock out it is on public land no matter what. Not Corp controlled, beats me. ???



Here it is for Rayburn where I live:

Corp

By the way if you go to TPWD and click on the area and then the lake for a fishing report, they have a link to the corp, etc.

From the TPWD site
A: In Texas a stream is public if it is "navigable in fact,"or" navigable by statute." There is no precise test for whether a stream is navigable in fact. The term is based on the idea of public utility. One court has observed that "[w]aters, which in their natural state are useful to the public for a considerable portion of the year are navigable."1

A stream is navigable by statute if it retains an average width of 30 feet from the mouth up.2 It is important to understand that the entire stream bed is to be included in the width, not just the area covered by water on a given day. A navigable stream may be dry part of the year, but does not lose its character as a navigable stream.

A: A navigable stream does not lose its public character during periods of low water. A stream is navigable if the bed of the stream averages 30 feet wide from the mouth up, regardless of the actual water level on a given day.

I can't address all lakes because they all have different guidelines. At cedar creek lake the property line is by elevation, which here is 325'. If the lake is at normal pool 322' then 3 feet above normal water line is private property which in most cases here is the retaining wall. If the lake is 4' or 10' low our property line is still at 325'. Although some would argue the property line is the waters edge, very few know what the actual deed even says. Call the governing entity of the lake in question, I believe you'll find the answer to your question is no you wouldn't be trespassing.

interesting question .....
now ya got me wonderin ?

At Athens the property line is 440 but you lease back the property from there to the waters edge from the city. Also, you lease back the area covered by your dock, so much per square foot of deck. So my understanding is you are in control of all your property to the edge of the water, and all the area of your dock.