Lake Fork made 46 fly anglers work for every fish Saturday, me included.
I had the chance to participate in the Bass on the Fly tournament at Texas’ most famous bass-fishing lake, and ended up doing (surprisingly) well — I garnered the 2nd place spot in the kayak division for the competition. Three bass did the trick for a total of 33 inches, which was far from the most impressive take.
Storms rolled in early Saturday, sparking some anxiety from the competitors. But as the 6 a.m. deadline neared, the rain eased to a sprinkle and we hit the water. The fish responded to streamers along the weed beds at first, as well as some large poppers. My first fish, more of a minnow, was a 6-inch bass, but I quickly followed it up with a 16-inch fish in the shallow weeds at Mustang Cove.
It was hit-and-miss from there. For nearly four hours — and four or five missed fish — I came up empty handed. But, a large frog hopper in the last hour pulled in a small 12-incher, which was enough to get me into the second spot, not to mention a check for $180 (I’m not quitting my day job).
All in all, the tournament had enough action to keep all of us on our toes. Some of the fly fisherman, much more experience than I, had a fish count that was something to behold.
For more information on the Bass on the Fly Tournament, along with it’s background, check out the next issue of Lone Star Outdoor News, out June 13.
