Lake LBJ is Still Putting out Huge Fish!
Febrero 07, 2019 Lago Vista 1 foto

Trip Summary

Yesterday Ander and I hit Lake LBJ in his boat. We were trying to cover water and keep checking out the lake while its low. This is a great time to scout the lake and find brush and rock piles that normally would be underwater, that you would need electronics to see. The fish are definitely pre spawn, no doubt about that. We have had some warm weather this week and the lake is in a warming trend. I saw coves with water as warm as 65 degrees! Most of the main like in in the high 50's though. Fall through early spring is one of my favorite times to throw red and orange baits. Red traps, red or orange square bills, and red spinner baits are some of my favorite moving baits to throw. Yesterday we did most of our work with a red or orange 1.5 squarebill. One thing we noticed though was that the majority of fish were only hooked by the back hook. Typically this means the fish are not fully committing to the bait, otherwise you would catch more fish with the entire bait in their mouth or at least with both trebles stuck in their face. Typically there are two... kind of three, things I will do to help with this, change color is usually the first. Yesterday however I tried some other colors and I got more bites on the red and orange baits. Next thing I will do is switch size of baits, either up size or downsize... a 2.5 KVD or a larger 6th Sense crush is a great bait to up to. Lastly, the "kind of" third thing I do is switch out the back hook for a larger stronger treble hook. One size larger treble hook usually won't affect the baits action too much, but make a couple short practice casts and watch out the bait moves in the water. I'm a big fan of some sharp Gamakatsu hooks, but honestly anything other than the stock hooks is an upgrade. (At last for Strike King, their hooks are too thin in my opinion) This time of year you should be looking for pre spawn areas. Funnel points such as the two points that lead into a canal or cover are good. This is a great place to start, but keep an eye on water temp. This time of year fish are sensitive to water temperature and favor warmer water. Shallow spawning flats will always warm quicker than deep coves... think about it, there is so much more water to warm up. Look for really wide contour lines on your graph when looking for spots. Typically these kinds of coves will warm the fastest and attract fish. Experiment with moving baits and throw jigs at isolated cover you find. The next couple of months are my favorite time of year to fish. I absolutely hate the cold and am looking forward to some warm weather and the fish to start spawning! I know I always say this, but hit up my calendar now and find a date that works for you! Spring time is my busy season and if you want a Friday or weekend trip you'd be wise to book in advance. Lake Travis will also be picking up soon... once those water temps rise a few more degrees that lake is going to bust loose!
Tyler Torwick
Lago-vista, Texas, United States
Lake Travis Fishing Guide thumbnail
Capt. Tyler with Lake Travis Fishing Guide offers all inclusive guided fishing trips in the Austin area. In business since 2017, Capt. Tyler is a full time guide and tournament angler and spends 250+ days annually on the water. Trips are offered on Lake T...

Other reports from this captain

September 20, 2021 Lake Travis Fishing R
September 20, 2021 Lake Travis Fishing R
Septiembre 20, 2021
Torwick's Guiding Service Fishing Report September 20, 2021 The bite on Lake Travis has been decent lately. With hot weather and warm water temperatures, its pretty typical for the bite to slow a bit. Warm water holds less dissolved oxygen and slows the metabolism of largemouth bass. This doesn't mean that they won't bite, or that you can't have a good day on the water! What it does mean though, is that you have to work a little harder for the fish. During this time of year I tend to move around a lot and run and gun. I am the type of angler who rather move to find fish that will cooperate as opposed to trying a million different baits and colors to get them to bite. Currently Lake Travis is close to 17.5 feet low with water clarity around 8-10 feet on the lower end and 3-4 feet on the upper end. Water temps are around 84-86 degrees, however I did see it as low as 83 degrees the other day early in the morning before the sun came up. Why is that important? Well the end of September is always a transition period here on Lake Travis. This is usually the time of year when the fish start moving and the pattern changes. Those cooler evenings we've been experience are a sign of things to come and tell me that things are about to kick off! I even saw something on the weather channel about the possibility of a cold front next week! That gets me very excited. For this report let's start off with what I recommend fishing if you are getting out there this next week, then we'll talk about what I would have tied on once we start experience cooler fall weather. End of Summer Fishing We are on the verge of fall fishing, but are not quite there yet. Right now the water temps are still warm enough that fish are staying deep. Offshore spots such as secondary points and ledges are a prime place to look. I rely heavily on my graphs for this type of fishing. Schools of bass can still be found in these areas if you put in enough time graphing. I will look for these drop offs and bottom contours that are close to a creek channel. In the case of Lake Travis, being as deep as it is, you could be fishing a secondary point thats around 30 feet deep, but have you boat positioned in 80+ feet of water casting towards the point. Keep in mind places like this attract fish as it gives them the ability to move out to deeper water and suspend, or move up shallower if they want. Weather patterns such as small rain storms, fronts, and cloud cover can all make fish change their behavior on a whim. I keep an eye on the weather and barometric pressure a lot to help me make decisions of how to fish. Here is a helpful website I recommend y'all check out for lake information such as lake temps and the barometer. Lake Travis Test Station Downsizing baits and slowing way down with your presentation can be very effective right now. I have been throwing a lot of drop shots, ned rigs, and small paddle tail swimbaits. For the drop shot and ned rig, fish it slow and make sure you maintain that bottom contact. When the fish are close to the bottom I like these baits since I can keep them in the strike zone a long time and work them subtly to trigger bites from those more finicky fish. Early in the morning, late in the day, or when I find suspended schools of bass, I will throw a small swimbait. A 4" Keitech easy shiner in a shad color rigged on an underspin or a ball head jig retrieved very slowly has been working well. Turn your reel handle slower than you normally would to get more bites. I also like fishing these swimbaits on braid with a long fluorocarbon leader of 8 pound test. Since I am not near the bottom I can get away with the lighter line, and feel it helps get more bites. Just make sure you have your drag set loose enough! (A little tip for you, sometimes I will take scissors and cut off a 1/2 inch of the swimbait head to give it an even smaller profile.) As far as colors of baits go, when it comes to worms I have my staple colors that I rotate through. Green Pumpkin, Watermelon black seed, Red Bug, and Margarita Mutilator are all solid choices. At times I will change things up and experiment with other colors, but start with these if you are unsure what to throw. As for moving baits such as swimbaits, choose baits that resemble threadfin shad. Anything in silver or grey works sell. I use a lot of Keitech baits and they make a ton of great colors that work well. I am not the type of angler who feels you need a certain specific color to get bit. Fishing the Fall Transition As the weather cools and the water temps start to drop into the low 80's and especially the upper 70's, the bite will get good! Did I say good? I meant great! Fall fishing makes guiding a blast for me. Numbers go up, average size increases, its cooler out on the water, and the stupid wakeboard boats aren't out in numbers. If you're really bored, go back through my website and look at previous year's fishing reports from October and November and you'll
Continue reading