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Braunig Lake Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Sep 4, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

San Antonio's power-plant oddity: redfish and hybrids in a Texas hill-country pond, biting hardest when winter makes everything else quit.

2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Water temp
~84 F est.
Air / High
98 / 98 F
Wind
SE 6 mph

Sources: Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Friday
4
September 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

2/5Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Braunig Lake serves up more heat: the productive hours are the dim ones. Today brings a mixed sky, wind SE around 6 mph, rising pressure near 1011 hPa and a high of 98. Water sits around 84 F for the season (estimated). With the last quarter, the solunar majors run 5:39 AM-7:39 AM and 5:39 PM-7:39 PM: plan around them and beat the heat.

The plan, species by species

Catfish (blue, channel)Good

Anchor on 20-30 ft baited holes with punch bait or cut shad. They keep biting through the heat when everything else quits.

Largemouth bassFair

Topwater at first light on points and seawalls, then slide out to 12-25 ft brush and points with a Carolina rig, deep crank or drop shot. The bite is dawn, dusk or deep.

White bassFair

Early schooling action over humps; slabs and small spinners under the birds.

CrappieSlow

Straight down on bridge pilings and deep brush at 15-25 ft. Minnows outfish jigs in hot water; move until the graph shows them stacked.

Tomorrow: Similar at 99 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Sep 5, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Water and weather

Live readings.

No live gauge on this water

Conditions here are modeled from weather, season and the nearest stations. Water readings appear when a USGS gauge is available.

5060708090JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~84 F now

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp98 F
High / Low98 / 77 F
WindSE 6-7 mph
Pressure1010.9 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain52% cloud, 9%
Sunrise / Sunset07:12 / 19:52
MoonLast Quarter, 50%
Water temp (seasonal)~84 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunset

Next 7 days

Tap a day for the detailed outlook.

Fri Sep 4 · Overcast, 98/77 F, wind 15 mph, rain 9%

Fair or better. A 15 mph breeze puts a working chop on the banks it hits: fish the wind-blown side.

Species guide

The species that matter on Braunig Lake: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Largemouth bass illustration

Largemouth bass

Best: spring and fall

The headline act on most American reservoirs. Relates to cover: docks, brush, grass edges and points. Topwater at first light on points and seawalls, then slide out to 12-25 ft brush and points with a Carolina rig, deep crank or drop shot. The bite is dawn, dusk or deep.

Crappie illustration

Crappie

Best: Nov-Mar

Brush piles, bridge pilings and standing timber. The fish fry favorite. Straight down on bridge pilings and deep brush at 15-25 ft. Minnows outfish jigs in hot water; move until the graph shows them stacked.

Catfish (blue, channel) illustration

Catfish (blue, channel)

Good year-round

The most reliable bite on most southern waters. Blues run big; channels fill the cooler. Anchor on 20-30 ft baited holes with punch bait or cut shad. They keep biting through the heat when everything else quits.

White bass illustration

White bass

Best: Mar-May run

River-run spawners and open-water schoolers. Fast limits when you find them. Early schooling action over humps; slabs and small spinners under the birds.

When to come: the Braunig Lake calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Largemouth bass
Crappie
Catfish (blue, channel)
White bass
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 84 F (estimated, not a reading).

5060708090JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~84 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Braunig Lake today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Sep 3

2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Catfish (blue, channel) led the card at good. High of 106 F, wind to 20 mph.

Wed, Sep 2

2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Catfish (blue, channel) led the card at good. High of 103 F, wind to 15 mph.

Tue, Sep 1

2/5 Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing. Catfish (blue, channel) led the card at good. High of 101 F, wind to 13 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
Only used to send you this water's report each week. No spam, ever.

Before you go

License

Texas requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

Texas license. Redfish: slot-and-tag rules mirror coastal: check TPWD inland red drum regs. Entrance fee (CPS park).

Access

Braunig Lake Park ramps, piers and bank access: rental jons at the park store.

About this water

1,350 acres of CPS Energy cooling water, Bexar County, TX. The freshwater redfish original (with Calaveras).

Fishing Braunig Lake: the full guide

The hot-water experiment

Braunig (with sister lake Calaveras) runs CPS Energy's cooling water into a fishery experiment that worked: stocked redfish grow past 30 lb on tilapia and shad, hybrids school the discharge, and winter: when the warm plume concentrates everything: becomes the best season. A saltwater species thriving in a bass-boat pond: only in Texas.

Redfish on crawlers

The lake's signature absurdity: bull-class redfish caught on crawler-harness rigs, spoons and cut tilapia from jon boats and banks. Work the discharge arm's warm seam in winter, the dam's deep edge in summer heat: the fight is pure salt: long runs in freshwater scenery. Tag rules echo the coast: check the oversize paperwork.

Hybrids and the discharge clock

Hybrid stripers stack where warm water meets cool: the discharge channel's edges at dawn, the deep holes midday. Live shad and slabs produce winter days of 20-fish quality while the rest of Texas freezes: the power-plant advantage is a season-inverting cheat code.

Bank-fishery democracy

Braunig is San Antonio's great equalizer: lighted fishing piers, rentable jons, and shoreline where families soak tilapia chunks for reds beside tournament sticks. Channel cats and largemouth fill the margins: the entrance fee is the only barrier: no boat required for a legitimate trophy shot.

Common questions

Why are there redfish in Braunig Lake?

TPWD stocking into power-plant warm water that mimics their thermal comfort: they cannot spawn but they grow enormous. It is the state's famous freshwater red drum program.

When is Braunig best?

Winter: the warm discharge concentrates reds, hybrids and bait while other lakes sleep. Summer flips the pattern deep: dawn and night beat the brutal middays.

Is fishing good at Braunig Lake right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Slow. Work for them. Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.

Nearby waters

Calaveras Lake4 miMedina Lake39 miGuadalupe River44 miCanyon Lake44 miChoke Canyon Reservoir53 miLady Bird Lake80 mi
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