May has arrived and what a great month it is for trophy bass fishing on Lake Fork. The weather is warming, and early summer patterns are starting to take shape. You can catch fish just about any way you want to right now which gives many anglers the opportunity to catch fish using their favorite baits. Whether its shallow to deep, or anything in between, you can have a blast catching lots of Lake Fork bass right now. The Bassmaster Elite Series guys will be rolling into town this month and you can expect a great showing again like last year.
Lake Fork is still doing good right now despite the low water conditions. The lake is still about 6 feet low from the drawn down for repairs to the dam in January. We just haven’t received much precipitation this spring but are hopeful for a wet May. Water temperatures are in the low to mid 70’s as the month begins. Water clarity is stained up north without much vegetation but cleaner at the south end.
There are several different productive fishing patterns on Lake Fork right now. With the bass in mostly post-spawn patterns with a few spawners and a few late pre-spawn fish left there are a lot of different techniques that you can employ from shallow to deep water. I have been starting out most of my days with some top water action. The threadfin shad have begun spawning on windy banks all over the lake and the bass are close behind them. Top waters like a Berkley Bullet Pop, J-Walker, or shallow crank baits like a Berkley Square Bull have been great as well as a Berkley Stunna jerkbait. Big swim baits like the 3:16 Lure Rising Son and glide baits have still all been very good fished from 2-6 ft depths for the biggest bites. Anything shad colored with white on it or shad patterns is best in any of these baits. The action can be short in the morning, so you must get out early to take advantage of the action. Days with cloudy overcast skies can be outstanding all day long. After the morning action subsides or the sun gets up good it has been a little tougher. There are some fish starting to transition to deeper water but that has been better late in the day. In the meantime, there are still a few spawners you can target on the south end of the lake during the middle of the day. Weightless or Texas rigged Stick baits like a senko or Berkley General have been good or a small Carolina rigged Berkley Jerk, flukes, or lizards. Best colors have been Green pumpkin, watermelon candy, and watermelon magic.
As the bass continue through the month and more fish complete their spawning, they will start to congregate better out deep. Lake Fork is one of the best offshore structure fishing lakes in the country and post-spawn is when she really shows her stuff. I rely on my Garmin electronics now more than ever to tell me what these deep schools of fish are doing. If you haven’t seen the new Live Scope 34 forward facing sonar, you’ll want to check it out. It’s the latest transducer from Garmin and all I can say is, “Wow”! You can expect these schools of hungry bass to show up at the mouths of any of the major creeks, points, humps, roadbeds, pond dams, or any creek channel swings in 14-24 feet of water. The hard part about catching some of these schools is that many of the bass are suspended. Deep diving crank baits are extremely effective like a Berkley Dredger as well as a swim bait, flutter spoon, or an umbrella rig. If you find a group of fish on the bottom the Carolina rigged Berkley Powerbait Jerk or Lugworm are great choices. I also like to throw a Texas rigged 10” Berkley Powerworm as these post-spawn bass are looking for a big meal. For the biggest bass in these schools though, I opt for a football head jig. The Santone football jig is very effective at enticing the big bites. Most of the time I am throwing the 5/8-3/4 oz size and my favorite colors are Mexican Heather, Bass Candy, and of course my signature color “JC’s Spicy Craw”. You can catch a big bag in a hurry out deep if things are right!
Well, I hope this helps anyone that’s coming out this month to chase some big bass. If you would like to fish with me this year, I still have just a few dates available. My 2022 schedule filled fast though so contact me as soon as possible if you are just now beginning to plan your trip. I also have gift certificates available for those of you that are interested in purchasing a friend or loved one a guided trip on Lake Fork. You can contact me to make your reservation at 903-736-9888 or send me an email at lakeforktrophybass@yahoo.com You can also visit my website for more information about Lake Fork and my guide service at www.officiallakeforktrophybass.com You can find me on Facebook and follow my official Lake Fork Trophy Bass Guide page at https://www.facebook.com/lakeforktrophybassguide
I really enjoyed my first Bass Cat boat in 2021 and am now running my new 2022 Bass Cat Puma STS for this season. I couldn’t be happier to be serving my customers on Lake Fork as part of the Bass Cat Team and am looking forward to providing more great trips this year out of my new boat! If you’re interested in checking out any of the Bass Cat models, be sure to reach out to R & R Marine in Pittsburg, Texas. They even just got in the all-new Puma STS that everyone is raving about so go by and check it out! Steven Stroman and his crew have amazing sales and service as well as a complete tackle shop with just about anything you need. I would like to thank all my sponsors that are continuing to support me in 2022. I am looking forward to representing them again this year on the Bassmaster Opens Schedule. I appreciate all their support as I serve all my great guide clients on throughout the year on Lake Fork as well! Sponsors: Toyota, Carhartt, Bass Cat Boats, Mercury, I Am Second, Berkley, Abu Garcia, Garmin, Santone Lures, Costa Sunglasses, Power Pole, 3:16 Lure Company, Elite Tungsten, Johnson Communications, and Bass Boat Technologies.
James 1:17 - “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”
Tight Lines and God Bless,
James Caldemeyer
