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A month by month report of bass fishing on one of America's top bass fishing lakes This huge lake varies from north to south (a 70 miles long lake) to allow the bass fisherman all types of fishing. It is a great learning lake for fishermen as well as a challenge and reward for all fishermen.

January/February: Slow roll a spinnerbait especially in the Converse and San Patrico deeper grass areas. Your bait should travel just over the top and along the edge of the hydrilla grass. Bass are sluggish so wind your spinnerbait as slow as you can barely tipping the top of the grass. On warm winter days, bass sometime move into the back of coves and again a spinnerbait is productive. Remember the water temperature warms on the north end of the lake first. Winter fishing is good with a RinkyDink in the bends in the river or creek channels and deep humps. Many fishermen use a jigging spoon in January and February in water up to 30 feet deep.

March/April: Use bright colored spinnerbaits and 3/4 oz. Rattletraps on the flats and shallow ridges. Remember slow is better. Carolina rigged lizards works well in the same areas. You can catch jig fish in bushes all over the lake at this time if there is water in the bushes. Pitching jigs, Brush Hogs, lizards, and craw worms all will work this time of the year. Wacky worms or trick worms will start around mid-March and last throughout the Spring. Fish Rouges and jerk baits in the same areas you fish your wacky worm. Buzz baits will start sometime in April, depending on the water temperature.

May/June: The fish will suspend after the Spring spawn and will be harder to catch. To compensate for this slower bite, try backing off from the shallow water and fish the main lake points. A Carolina rig with a French fry. Downsize your spinnerbait and fish the color the water dictates: Chartreuse for muddy water and white for clear water. The fish are between patterns so make your presentation slower and smaller. Try fishing around pepper grass with a chug bug or Cyclone buzzbait early in the mornings.

July/August: The fish are well into their summertime pattern. Early top water fish can be caught with your favorite top water bait. When the sun gets straight up and the heat is turned on, the bass move in the grass to the bottom of the lake. They will bite a 10" plus worm with a 1/2 oz sinker or a 3/4 oz or 1 oz jig. Try Cyclone's big jig with a rattle and Kick n Bass scent. In the summertime, school fish are all over the lake and can be caught on a topwater bait or a worm with a light sinker. On the north end of the lake, use a crankbait on the river bends, sloughs and break lines. Most Toledo Bend fishermen find a l oz. mudbug, a 9-A Bomber, or a DD-22 works the best.

September/October: Until fronts start coming through, the fish will still be on a summer pattern. After a cool front, the top water bite will pick up more. Downsize a spinnerbait to a 1/4 oz , 3/8 oz or 1/2 oz usually with a silver back willowleaf blade. Fish will be feeding more than in the hot summer months. Toledo Bend has an excellent Fall fishing pattern.

November/December: For the fisherman that hunts, Toledo Bend has an excellent fall migration of ducks. For others, it is big fish time. Slow down your bait presentation and once again fish a big jig on the creek bends and edge of the river channel. As in January slow roll a big 3/4 oz & 1 oz spinnerbait with #6 & #7 willowleafblades. Remember, when you think you are fishing slow enough, slow it down! Good fishing and keep a tight line.

Any questions? Guide Association of Toledo Bend can answer your questions or take you fishing on our great lake. Check our web page at http://www.toledo-bend.com/gatb

Fishing Tips
And
Seasonal Patterns on Toledo Bend

Spring-March through May

The bass are in pre-spawn and spawning conditions. Main lake ridges and humps, shoreline buck brush and coves will be producing best. Northwest pockets will warm quicker and fish will move into these warmer pockets first. Spinner baits, stick baits, jigs & pig, soft plastics and jerk baits will all be productive. On cloudy days and stained muddy water use darker colors, on clear days use brighter colors. If you locate one fish, there will probably be more around. The males, will move into the shallows first making the beds and the females will come in later. Once the female drops her eggs the male will move back onto the bed and guard the nest.

The Whites will be moving back to the main lake out of the river proper from their annual spawning grounds. For Whites still remaining in the river above Circle Drive, concentrate on the bends and points of the river sandbars. Live crawfish usually work best but Road Runners in white or chartreuse are also productive. Tail spinners in the same colors work well. Once the Whites move back into the main lake, start on the north end and concentrate on the points and bends of the old river channel with slab spoons, tail spinners, small crank baits and silver traps. Use your electronics to locate the bait- fish and the Whites will be close by. The Whites will continue to migrate south following the old river channel.

The Crappie will be scattered along the grass lines close to deep water in the coves and creeks. They will also gang up on the edges of the creeks over brush tops either planted or natural. Follow the grass line and throw 1/32 oz jigs parallel to the line. Vertically fish the brush tops in the creeks with shiners or jigs. Follow the creeks using your electronics to spot brush tops and bait fish.

Late April and early May the Bream will start moving on their spawning beds in 3 to 8 ft of water. Depending on the lake level will determine our fishing pattern. If the lake is mid range (168 ft) we'll concentrate on the main lake ridges and humps in 6 to 8 ft of water. Crickets and worms usually work best fished with ultra lights or cane poles with corks or straight lined. If lake is below 168 ft we'll concentrate in the coves and pockets protected from the wind. Look for honey combed holes along the bottom of the shallow water to find the beds, not unusual to catch 700 to 1000 per day.

Concentrate in 12 to 15 ft of water in the creek channels, sloughs and old river channel. Stink bait, worms, cheese and commercial catfish bait products all work well. If we have a lot of water coming into the lake, concentrate at the mud line in the back of the creeks and where a strong current is present. Trot-lines and set hooks baited in the same areas will produce well. For Flat Heads always use live bait, either large shad or bream work best.

Summer-June through August

The first part of this quarter, the bass will be in a post spawn pattern and will be coming off the beds. The bite will be slow and the bass will be lethargic from the spawn. Start in 5 to 10 ft of water along the creek points closets to the spawning areas. The bass will hold in these areas to regain their strength before they move into deeper water and their summer patterns. Crank baits and soft plastics worked slow will produce best. As water continues to warm the bass will move into their deeper holes along the river channel, sloughs, creeks and grass beds. Deep diving crank baits in shad or bream colors, Carolina or Texas rigged soft plastics in green and reds will be producing best. When the grass starts showing up, jigs and large worms will work best. Early morning and late evening throw buzz baits and top water plugs over and next to the grass close to deep water.

The Whites will continue to work along the old river channel points and bends but they will start to move over main lake humps close to the river channel in 15 to 20 ft of water. Shallow diving crank baits, spoons, top water plugs and tail spinners will all be productive. Look for the bait- fish on your electronics to locate the Whites. Also watch for schooling activity along the river channel and road- beds.

Concentrate in the creek channels and sloughs in 10 to 15 ft of water. Natural and planted brush in these areas will hold the Crappie. Shiners and jigs fished vertically over the brush tops works best.

Concentrate on the points and bends in the creek channels with crickets or worms in 6 to 10 ft of water. Isolated patches of grass dropping off into deep water will also hold some bream.

Concentrate on main lake sandy points, ridges and flats in 8 to 10 ft of water. Worms, shiners, marshmallows, cheese and commercial catfish baits all work well. Sometimes the Catfish are feeding on clams and the marshmallows will be more productive. Trick is to spray some Catfish attractant on the bait. Use heavy weights to keep your bait on the bottom.

Fall-September through November

As the water temperature starts to drop and the days become shorter the shad will start moving into the coves and pockets. The bass will start moving from their summer haunts following the shad, feeding heavy in anticipation of winter. Work the points and bends in the creek channels with crank baits and soft plastics. Any brush along these areas will usually hold some fish. Look for schooling bass. Traps, shallow diving crank baits, top water plugs and Texas rigged plastics will all be productive. Also fish the edges of grass that drop off into deep water with jigs and large plastics.

Concentrate along the main lake river points and bends in 16 to 20 ft of water. Also look for schooling whites in the same areas. The Whites when located will usually be in a feeding frenzy. Spoons, tail spinners, traps and shallow diving cranks baits are all productive. When schooling, top water plugs, and shallow diving crank baits work best.

The Crappie will start moving from the deep water creeks to the main river channel and normally will be more productive on the very north end of the lake early in the season. As the water temperature continues to fall the Crappie will move south down the lake along the river channel. Concentrate in 12 to 20 ft of water with shiners or 1/32 jigs fished over brush tops on the ledges of the river channel. Early in the season the Crappie seem to hit shiners best and as the water gets colder and the fish get deeper the jigs become more productive.

As the water temperature starts to drop, the bream will start following the creeks out to the main lake into deeper water and become scattered. Follow the creeks and the grass edges dropping off into deep water, crickets, and worms are most productive.

Concentrate in 10 to 15 ft flats close to the river channel with shiners, worms and commercial attractants. Trot-lines and set hooks in the same areas with cut bait or live bait works best.

Winter-December through February

Early winter the bass will be holding along the river channel and along the points and bends in deep- water creeks. 3/4 to 1 oz. Pig and jig or 3/4 to 1 oz spinner baits slow rolled will be most productive. You need to fish very slow. The bass will be holding close to cover. Towards the end of January and into February, the larger bass will start going into a pre-spawn pattern. They will start staging off the points of the creeks leading into the spawning flats or start moving into the buck brush. Spinner baits, traps, cranks and soft plastics worked in the creek points will be most productive. Darker colors and colors imitating crawfish seem to work best. Jigs, tubes, brush hogs and plastics flipped and pitched into the buck brush will produce your better fish. This is the time of the year to catch a double- digit bass.

The White Bass will start migrating up the lake into the river proper. Concentrate on the lower end of the river in the first part of the season and work north as the fish move north. Work the sandbar points and bends along the river. Live Crawfish, Road Runners, spoons and tail spinners are all productive. As the Whites work their way back to the main lake, you can work the same points and bends. It's not unusual to have your limit of Whites in a couple of hours.

Concentrate in 15 to 25 ft of water along the ledges over brush tops in the old river channel. The Crappie will move further south along the river and move into deeper water as the temperature drops. 1/32 oz jigs seem to produce better than Shiners as they move deeper.

The Bream are scattered in deep water along the creeks and river channel. Bite is normally very slow this time of year.

Concentrate along the main river channel and deep creeks. Shiners, worms and commercial attractants work best. Trotlines and set hooks strung along the river channel, deep water sloughs and deep water creeks with cut bait and live bait works best.

Any questions? Toledo Bend Guide Service can answer your questions or take you fishing on our great lake. Phone: (409) 368-7151 or check our web page at http://www.toledo-bend.net/toledobend