Lake Fork Day and Night Guide Service
Licensed Guide Clint Wright
Well, hello fellow fishermen and women. This report is for Lake Fork,
Texas July 12, 2006 until today July 16, 2006. The past few days of
fishing have truly been exciting. The daytime bite has been found in
25-30 foot of water. We have been starting off early in the morning at
these depths and the fish are biting when we show up. This has led me
to believe that the shallow water bite is just about done! The fish we
have caught are here one day and somewhere else the next. A good color
graph is a must. I am NOT catching any fish unless I mark them on my
graph first. These fish are fairly easy to catch. Drop shot, Carolina
Rig, Texas Rig, Jigs and Spoons have been my arsenal along with the
occasional DD-22 in a shad pattern. The plastics I am throwing are just
what ever I feel like grabbing out of the box. I know these bass are
feeding on Shad, but I have caught several lately that have nice size
yellow bass (sand bass) hanging out of their throat. These yellow bass
are as big as my hand!!! What they plan on doing with something as big
as a DD-22 with that fish in their throat blows my mind? As the evening
approaches I have been following these fish to areas that are still
deep but much closer to 10 and 12 foot w/ grass close by. But, these
fish are no longer committing to the shallow grass like they were in my
two previous reports; this tactic has proven useless for us. Drops,
ledges, humps etc. are the all time pattern now. (Look on your map and
find the areas where the contour lines come close together.) In the
evening, if not too much wind, keep a Zara Spook or some top water tied
on, the big fish are schooling. I am talking big fish too. Three to
Eight pound ranges have been caught on top by my clients in the last
couple of days, in 25 foot of water. Tonight was my first booked night
trip in a couple of days. Good job Louann on your 7lb. hawg. We fished
from 6p.m. until 10p.m. They must of caught 20 fish over 3 pounds. But,
the night bite proved to be tougher than usual. That’s why we call it
fishing not catching. If you have never fished at night for Bass at
Lake Fork, you are really missing out. I have been night fishing Lake
Fork for over 20 years and would like to show you this great lake after
the sun goes down. I really enjoy night fishing this time of year, not
as hot and most of the time better fishing. We don't have to fish as
deep at night either, most of the time. The best tip I can give today
is to upsize the weight on your drop shot to at least a ¾ ounce. This
allows the bait to stay in one place longer. Same with jigs, we had
best luck with 1 ounce jigs just twitching it. I have also started
using 1 ounce bullet weight on the Texas rig with a 5/0 hook. This
allows the bait to wonder farther into the brush piles. It also allows
you to cover water quickly. If you fish a spoon, try one that is big (7
inches in chrome). Let it fall straight down to the bottom and pull up,
repeat. Fish a spoon on light drag as you will not be fishing this in
brush (unless you just want to get rid of it). If you want to stock up
on Spoons, Plastics or terminal tackle see Don at Anglers Online in
Yantis, Texas. He is a super nice guy and has a large assortment of
tackle. Let him know Clint sent ya!
Oak Ridge Marina is
up and going again, after a complete remodel of the Kitchen. They offer
a wide variety of food, with all sorts of food specials. If you are
coming to Lake Fork and get hungry, let me tell you, the cooks there
are wonderful.
While I am in and out of the
Marina, I always have several people asking me for tips because they
were not catching as many fish as they would like. I don’t mind at all
telling them what to use, but this really don’t help. Location,
location, location. This is where guides are very helpful, whether you
hire me or any other of the great guides on the lake. This with out a
doubt is the most helpful tool anyone could have. There is so many what
we call good looking spots on this lake. But, being a guide allows us
to stay on a pattern at certain locations. Putting time in always
raises your chances of success. Also, most people’s goal when they fish
with me is to learn as much as possible. Then worry about catching all
their fish on their own with these new techniques. Not saying I won’t
try everything on this great earth to put a boat load of fish on your
line. I’m just saying that just because the fish aren’t biting back to
back; don’t think that you won’t be learning. I love to teach and try
to show you things you might not have thought of before. I always learn
something new from all my clients, even if its how to get a huge
backlash out!!!
By the way, Oak Ridge Marina and
Resort is where I guide out of. They are under new ownership and
everything there is going great. The new owners Bob, wife Lisa and
Rooster and son Chris are wonderful people and will go to great lengths
to make your stay with them enjoyable and fun. The entire staff treats
everyone wonderfully.
Folks, the Berkley and
McDonald’s tournaments are right around the corner, in September. Now
is the time to call and book your guide and any other accommodations
you will need. I know that my service, along with the rooms and camping
pads at Oak Ridge are booking quickly. We will do everything we can to
get you out on the water and on the hot spots! These tournaments are
worth fishing. Both of them are giving away a few boats and a bunch of
ca$h.
If you call me and I am booked on the day you want
to fish, no worries, there are a chosen few Guides I can call here on
the Lake that I trust completely to do just as good of a job as I would
do. We will get you out fishing!
If you find
yourself planning a trip to Lake Fork, give me a call at (903-342-3497
or 903-918-9469). I try not to answer my phone while out with clients,
so if I don’t answer please leave a message, I will call you back.
I would like to have the opportunity to fish with you and show you this
wonderful Lake. We will arrange the dates of your trip to fit as
perfect as we can. I just got my Triton TR-21 X Series with a 225
Mercury Optimax. This boat has the best Lowrance electronics and
Motorguide 82lb. trolling motor. Breelan at R&R Marine,
(903-855-8585) Pittsburg TX, is great. Also, my Nissan Titan is working
great. Louann at Peltier Nissan, (903-720-7786) Tyler Tx. is wonderful
also. Let them know I sent ya! Thanks to all my sponsors and clients
for this blessing of a job! If you ever see me at the Lake, please stop
by and say hello.
I welcome beginners, experts and
children. After this weekends catfish tournament turnout, wow! I have
decided to guide catfish trips again. There were thousands of people
out here. So if you are looking for some food for the table, let me
know and we will go fill up the freezer!
Good Luck and stay safe,
Clint Wright
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