Share your catch

Inks Lake Fishing Report

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

The Highland Lakes’ steady one: Inks never draws down, so its granite shores and stripers-in-miniature never miss a season.

2/5
Slow. Work for them.Conditions favor short windows and patient fishing.
Water temp
~84 F est.
Air / High
94 / 96 F
Wind
SSE 7 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.

Inks Lake stays in its summer rhythm: early magic, midday siesta, evening reprieve. Today brings clear skies, wind SSE around 7 mph, rising pressure near 1012 hPa and a high of 96. 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 97 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 temp94 F
High / Low96 / 78 F
WindSSE 7-8 mph
Pressure1011.6 hPa, rising
Sky / Rain3% cloud, 40%
Sunrise / Sunset07:11 / 19:53
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 · Showers, 96/78 F, wind 16 mph, rain 40%

Fair or better. A 16 mph breeze puts a working chop on the banks it hits: fish the wind-blown side.

Species guide

The species that matter on Inks 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 Inks 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 Inks 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 101 F, wind to 15 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 100 F, wind to 10 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 100 F, wind to 11 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 (state-park bank anglers fish license-free inside the park). Standard statewide limits: check TPWD.

Access

Inks Lake State Park ramps and shoreline; county ramp off Park Road 4 near the dam.

About this water

An 803-acre constant-level Colorado River reservoir between Buchanan and LBJ, Burnet County, Texas: Highland Lakes chain.

Fishing Inks Lake: the full guide

Constant level, constant fishing

Inks is the smallest of the Highland Lakes: 800 acres of Colorado River water pinched between Buchanan and LBJ: and the only one that holds constant level year-round. That stability makes it the chain’s most dependable fishery: hydrilla beds and granite outcrops hold largemouth all year, white bass and the odd striper wash in from Buchanan’s dam, crappie stack the boathouse pilings, and the state park shoreline gives bank anglers real water.

Granite-and-grass bass

Work the hydrilla edges and pockets with soft plastics and frogs through the warm months, and the pink-granite points with jigs and cranks when fish slide deeper: the Devils Waterhole arm, with its boulder walls and creek inflow, is the lake’s signature spot spring and fall. Docks line the west shore: skipping season never closes. The lake fishes small: an electric-motor day covers it all.

The river-lake bonus

When Buchanan generates, current pulls through and the fishing sharpens: white bass and stripers stack the upper narrows below Buchanan Dam (fish the seams with slabs and swimbaits), and catfish feed on every point. Winter trout stockings in the Devils Waterhole area add a December-February shore fishery unique in the chain.

Park-first access

Inks Lake State Park covers the east shore: ramps, 200 campsites, cabins and the swimming-hole crowds at Devils Waterhole in summer: fish it early. A public ramp near the dam serves the west side. Burnet is fifteen minutes for supplies. Constant level means every dock, ramp and grass bed works every month: rare luxury in Texas.

Common questions

Why fish Inks over Buchanan or LBJ?

Stability and intimacy: no drawdown surprises, every habitat wet year-round, and small enough to actually learn in a weekend.

Do stripers really show up?

Buchanan escapees ride generation current into the upper lake: not a target fishery, but the surprise forty-minute fight happens every season.

Is bank fishing worthwhile?

Among the best in the Hill Country: park shoreline, granite points and the Devils Waterhole area all reach fish, license-free inside the park.

Is fishing good at Inks 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

Lake Buchanan6 miLake LBJ12 miLake Marble Falls13 miLake Travis28 miLake Austin44 miStillhouse Hollow Lake51 mi
Share your catch