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Cedar Creek Lake Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Oct 23, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

Cedar Creek Reservoir: 32,623 acres west of Athens where TPWD rates catfish and white and hybrid striped bass excellent and hybrids are stocked every year.

3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Lake level
316.08 ft -5.92 vs pool
Air / High
81 / 82 F
Wind
SSW 1 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 08063010, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Friday
23
October 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.

3/5Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Cedar Creek Lake lines up a genuinely fishable day across the board. The gauge reads 316.08 ft, 5.92 ft below pool, easing 0.33 over the week. Today brings clear skies, wind SSW around 1 mph, steady pressure near 1019 hPa and a high of 82. Water sits around 74 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 10:02 AM-12:02 PM and 10:29 PM-12:29 AM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Striped bassExcellent

Use electronics to find shad schools in open water, and watch for birds working over bait.

Largemouth bassGood

The main feeding season after the spawn: work moving baits along weed edges, points and wood, and follow up with a soft plastic where a fish swirls.

Catfish (blue, channel)Good

Spawning season from late May into summer: Iowa DNR suggests drifting bait under a float along riprap and snags where males guard nests in cavities.

Hybrid striped bassFair

Look for shad on flats with timber near creek channels and on windblown points; cast jigs and swimbaits where fish break the surface.

CrappieFair

Early in this band crappie are spawning in protected coves; afterward they move to docks, brush piles and standing timber near deeper water.

White bassFair

Summer and early fall schooling season over open water; follow the shad, and try live bait on the bottom at night.

Tomorrow: Similar at 82 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Oct 24, 6:30 AMHow this report is made β†’

Before you go

Texas requires a fishing licence from age 17, from $30.00 for residents. What a Texas licence costs and where to buy it β†’

Chasing largemouth bass here? Check the size and bag limits with TPWD before you keep anything. The season dates for Texas, read off the agency, are on the Texas seasons page.

Water and weather

Live readings from Cedar Ck Res nr Trinidad, TX.

Water level, last 30 days

USGS gauge 08063010. Conservation pool is 322 ft.

316.91318.91320.92pool 322316.08 ft09/2310/0310/1310/23

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp81 F
High / Low82 / 53 F
WindSSW 1-6 mph
Pressure1018.5 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain0% cloud, 0%
Sunrise / Sunset07:34 / 18:42
MoonWaxing Gibbous, 91%
Water temp (seasonal)~74 F est.

Bite planner

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

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunsetPRIMEPRIME

Which day to fish Cedar Creek Lake this week

The best day on Cedar Creek Lake this week looks like Monday Oct 26, at 5 out of 5, against 3 today.

Best day this week: Monday, Oct 26 β€” excellent at 5/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.

Today, Oct 23 β€” Fair

A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Solunar majors
10:02 AM-12:02 PM and 10:29 PM-12:29 AM
Minor period
4:23 AM-5:23 AM
Sun
07:34 to 18:42
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Overcast, 6 mph
Rain chance
0%

Forecast-based scores, less reliable further out: how the score is built.

Species guide

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

Largemouth bass illustration

Largemouth bass

Best: the spring pre-spawn and the fall feed

A warm-water sunfish of lakes, reservoirs, ponds and slow river backwaters that holds tight to cover: weeds, logs, rock ledges and docks. In Texas, TPWD surveys rank it "by far" the freshwater fish anglers most want to catch. The main feeding season after the spawn: work moving baits along weed edges, points and wood, and follow up with a soft plastic where a fish swirls.

Hybrid striped bass illustration

Hybrid striped bass

Best: the spring shad spawn and fall; summer at dawn and dusk

A hatchery cross of striped bass and white bass, also called wiper or palmetto bass, stocked by state agencies into reservoirs and rivers as a sport fish that also eats gizzard shad. Schools roam open water after shad. Look for shad on flats with timber near creek channels and on windblown points; cast jigs and swimbaits where fish break the surface.

Catfish (blue, channel) illustration

Catfish (blue, channel)

Year-round, best at dusk and after dark

Three big catfish share most of the country's rivers and reservoirs: the channel catfish, the most widespread; the blue catfish, the largest; and the flathead, which hunts live fish. All feed mostly on or near the bottom. Spawning season from late May into summer: Iowa DNR suggests drifting bait under a float along riprap and snags where males guard nests in cavities.

Crappie illustration

Crappie

Best: the spring spawn; summer around docks, brush and the thermocline

Two slab-sided panfish, the white crappie and the black crappie, that gather around submerged timber, brush piles, docks and bridge pilings in lakes, reservoirs and slow river backwaters. Texas Parks and Wildlife counts crappie as the state's most popular panfish. Early in this band crappie are spawning in protected coves; afterward they move to docks, brush piles and standing timber near deeper water.

Striped bass illustration

Striped bass

Best: spring and fall inland; on the coast, during the seasonal migrations

The largest of the temperate basses, a sea-run fish of the Atlantic and Gulf coasts that now also lives in reservoirs across much of the country after hatchery stocking. Inland, it follows schools of shad and herring through open water. Use electronics to find shad schools in open water, and watch for birds working over bait.

White bass illustration

White bass

Best: the spring run up the tributaries, then summer surface schools

A silvery temperate bass of rivers and large reservoirs, also called sand bass, that schools in open water after shad and runs up tributaries to spawn in early spring. Summer and early fall schooling season over open water; follow the shad, and try live bait on the bottom at night.

When to come: the Cedar Creek 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
Hybrid striped bass
Catfish (blue, channel)
Crappie
Striped bass
White bass
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 74 F (estimated, not a reading).

5060708090JanMarMayJulSepNovOct, ~74 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 Cedar Creek Lake today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Oct 22

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Striped bass led the card at excellent. High of 84 F, wind to 5 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Striped bass led the card at excellent. High of 80 F, wind to 5 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Striped bass led the card at excellent. High of 78 F, wind to 5 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
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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 fishing license. Statewide TPWD limits apply (valid Sept. 1, 2026-Aug. 31, 2027): hybrid and striped bass 18-inch minimum, 5 a day; white bass 10-inch minimum, 25 a day; crappie 10-inch minimum, 25 a day; largemouth bass 14-inch minimum, 5 a day; blue and channel catfish 25 a day combined, only 10 of them 20 inches or longer; flathead catfish 18-inch minimum, 5 a day.

Access

TPWD lists two public ramps, Chamber Island (two lanes in the middle of the TX 334 causeway, parking for 75, donation requested) and a county ramp, and its map also shows Sandy Shores Marina, Lone Star Marina, Log Cabin and Fisherman's Wharf; TPWD warns that some private ramps are hard to use at low water.

About this water

32,623 acres about 15 miles west of Athens, Texas; impounded 1965; Tarrant Regional Water District. Lake level on this page comes from USGS gauge 08063010, Cedar Creek Reservoir near Trinidad.

Fishing Cedar Creek Lake: the full guide

Lake facts

TPWD lists Cedar Creek at 32,623 acres about 15 miles west of Athens, between US 175 and Texas 274, with a maximum depth of 53 feet. It was impounded in 1965 and is controlled by the Tarrant Regional Water District; the water runs moderately clear at the lower end and muddy at the upper end, and the level moves about 4 feet.

What TPWD says about the fishing

Largemouth bass fishing is best in the clearer lower end, in the weedy back ends of coves in the lower third of the lake. Catfish are abundant, with more blues than channels in the legal size range; use cut shad or live bait for blues. Hybrid striped bass are stocked every year, and anglers generally follow the birds to find schools of white bass and hybrids, with good action all year and especially in spring. TPWD also points to submerged islands across the lake from the confluence of Clear and Caney creeks.

Stocking and records

TPWD's stocking history shows sunshine (hybrid striped) bass released every year from 2021 through 2025, including 353,450 fingerlings in 2025. Lake records include a 14.65-pound largemouth bass (1993), a 13.19-pound hybrid striped bass (1999) and a 66.10-pound blue catfish (July 17, 2024).

Common questions

How do I find the hybrids on Cedar Creek?

TPWD says anglers generally follow the birds to schools of white bass and hybrids; action can be good all year and is best in spring.

Where is the largemouth fishing best?

In the lower end, where the water is clearer: TPWD points to the weedy back ends of coves in the lower third of the lake.

Is fishing good at Cedar Creek Lake right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Nearby waters

Richland-Chambers Reservoir23 miLake Athens23 miBardwell Lake30 miLake Palestine39 miLake Tawakoni41 miLake Ray Hubbard45 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

River and reservoir readings
USGS 08063010 β€” Cedar Ck Res nr Trinidad, TX
Read from the USGS Water Data API (api.waterdata.usgs.gov). Latest value timestamped 2026-10-23 at 19:30 UTC.
Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 32.2966, -96.1320 in this water's own timezone. A model, not an observation.
Moon and solunar windows
Calculated on this site
Astronomical calculation from these coordinates and the date, not a third-party feed. How much weight it deserves.
Pages checked
The facts in the written guide were checked against these pages, from the agencies and operators that manage the water, on October 8, 2026. Anything we could not verify was taken out.
The written guide on this page
Pablo Ruiz Quintero
How this page was made. The daily report is computed by our scoring engine from live readings; nobody types it. The written text was drafted with AI assistance from the official pages listed above, and its facts were checked against those pages by automated verification on October 8, 2026; anything that could not be verified was taken out. Pablo Ruiz Quintero sets every guideline, the data-verification system and the minimum standards a page must meet to be published, reviews page structure and approves what goes live; the responsibility is his, and the AI carries out the work. We work this way because it is how one person can keep every page current with named sources. Errors are published in the verification log; the full policy is in the editorial policy.

Readings refresh on a 30-minute window. The full method, with every figure and its source, is on how our reports are made. Something wrong here? Tell us and it goes in the log with the date.