Will Bois D’Arc be the next Fork, or Cooper?

Just seeing how you guys think the fishing will be, I live about 15-20 minutes away and I think it’s going to do well. Some say it will be a mud hole from being sucked dry, some say it will be the next Fork. Either way I’m marking some dang waypoints soon! I hope it’s grassy!

I live 5 min away . I think it will be a stained lake with the potential to be great ,only time will tell how good the fishing will really be . They already stocked a few big ponds with Florida’s so the potential will definitely be there !

At least we won’t have to travel far lol

My understanding is the entire lake is being stocked with share lunker fingerlings, so pure strain Florida bass. That’s awesome for big fish, but all you have to do is say the word cold front out loud and they’ll get lock jaw. First 5 years will be excellent IMO, it’ll be the next 5 that determines how good the lake will really be. IMO.

I am sure it will get stocked with Smallmouth by the Texoma fishermen a little at a time

I've heard that the lake will be a water supply even as far as Flower Mound. Is that correct? If so, you guys don't be peeing off the side of the boat, please....

Is it infected with Zebra Mussels yet?

I’ll have low expectations so I won’t be disappointed

Lots of different variables. I hope people have learned from past grass carp and spraying fiascos

It’s actually going to be good from open to about 10 years. Even the fishery biologists admit there is no way of knowing after that. Almost the same as Cooper. It’s probably not going to have grass. They will start it off with an 18 inch size limit on bass just like they did Cooper. It’s all going to come down to drought and how low they suck it down. Coopers down fall was after it got low all the fish were trapped in a bowl. Then the Hybrids were so abundant and so big the literally devoured everything. Almost wiped out the crappie too. Which are slowly coming back. But just like every new lake this one will be good, then after that it’s anybody’s guess. They admit so far Fork has been a one time freak of nature.

It will be better than Cooper good but not nearly Fork good - certainly looking forward to it.

I think, after the initial flurry, it'll settle in to be like other lakes that drain from the same soil type. Decent, but not spectacular. Probably like Bonham, Roberts, Richland, etc. Certainly no Rayburn, Falcon, etc.

Between Bonham and Honey Grove must be in a transitional zone
I can think of four areas in that watershed with very clear water and abundant aquatic vegetation
There’s also plenty of muddy lakes in that region

I think it will be good for 10 years or so like everyone said. I dont think it will be anything like Fork. I still think all the dairy farms around the Fork watershed is what helped that lake become what it was. The runoff and grass disappeared so did the number of big fish. People I know that have outstanding small lakes fertilize those lakes. This is what was happening to Fork just on a larger scale.

TPWD stocks Lake Fork like no other lake.

Since 1995 up till latest reports in 2018 they have stocked the lake each year with largemouth bass, Anywhere from 700K to 300K fingerling yearly. I would say average is about 500K per year.

That is why Fork is what it is.

I'm no fisheries biologist so I'm gonna wait till its impounded for a few years before I make any ooinions on the fishing. I just feel like there are far too many variables for me to make an opinion.

That is why Fork is what it is but not what is was. They stock all those fingerlings but the sharelunker fish number keeps going down.

I live about ten minutes away so hope it is like cooper when it first opened. They had a bunch of big brush piles off both sides of 1396 They said they were going to anchor bunch of them down but ending up burning them. I love fishing timber but man it is wide open for miles Got a buddy that flies over it a lot and sends me the picts

I think there is potential for greatness. They are not stocking whites!!!! They removed all natives from the ponds, that's not good in my opinion. They did start some native grasses already, that's good. As to the water level. They still have Cooper, and it will not be a direct line to the treatment plant, that's Lavon. I think it will e fairly stable as long as we don't see an extended drought!

The pipeline and water treatment plant in Leanord is almost complete chomping at the bits to get to pumping water out per a guy that works on the controls that operate the pumps .

I hope I'm wrong but I'm guessing it will more of a Lavon than Fork. They'll drain it to keep Lavon full so they can pull from it to keep Ray Hubbard full. That way the Dallas area will have water. It will end up being a shallow mud hole.

I think there will be one major difference from when this lake opens up and when Fork opened up. The anglers. There are thousands more anglers these days and with their knowledge and technology there will be no fish that will not be fished for. I would go into areas and fish all day without seeing hardly anyone and seemed like years before guys started really fishing offshore areas. We were relying on flashers and just really learning to fish from a select few really good anglers at that time. There are high school kids with more knowledge and equipment than we ever thought about and this lake will be covered up from day one and the fish will be pressured like no Fork bass had seen for years.

It will supply ntmwd area. Flower mound is trd. The next lake (Ralph hall) will supply flower mound.

I dont think it will be.
This lake is being constructed and done by North Texas Municipal Water District. Not Texas Parks and Wildlife. Its priority is water for the North Texas area not fishing.
Like I said before though. It will be in prime duck hunting area!

I don't think it will be another Fork. But I do believe it will be a great lake for several years. I've heard they are only clearing the main lake from the bridge to the dam and leaving the timber in the coves. The lakes close to it tend to have grass and reeds and pads around the shore. If we can just keep the grass spraying off this one it should be good.

+1

Similar to naconiche, it'll be outstanding for a few years then just another cyclical lake.

Tp&w don't build lakes you knucklehead. All lakes are built for water consumption or flood control. Even if built for flood control they are used for water consumption. Hints the pump stations on lake fork.

I thought Fork was built specifically to raise big fish originally. Kind of TPW's project. I didnt think the pump station was built til just a few years back. I think around 2008 or 9. I cant remember.
This lake is being built for a sole purpose of water consumption. From what I understand.

Lake fork was built by Sabine River authority. They own the water rights and sold it to Dallas water utilities. Texas Parks and wildlife had nothing to do with it.

Is the golf course south of 82 in its path, looks close? I see a couple of houses and a cemetery that looks pretty dang close too...interesting stuff looking a satellite view.

https://lakeforkchamber.org/About/Lake-Fork

Yes it is gonna back up the golf course on 82. Bet when we get one of them good ol floods that sucker be under water like never before. Still dont think they understand how much water goes down Biis darc creek when it rains like that. Think they would since few years ago they were told to get the equipment outa the bottoms when they said we were going to get a lot of rain. They say it wont be that bad. Couple days later they found out when it all flooded and a Bunch of equipment was under water. LOL

Get back to work JW! 😂

No

I think it will be way better than Fork and everyone in DFW should by a camp there!!!

I contend TPWD did with Fork because they thought it was going to be a cooling lake for a Nuclear Power Plant. They were thinking of the Monticello success with Florida strain on steroids. The lack of a generating station is probably in the best interest of the lake in the long term.

The cities of Longview and Dallas were in on Fork from the start.