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Lake Fork Fishing Report

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

A 27,264-acre Sabine River Authority reservoir near Quitman where TPWD manages largemouth bass under a 16-to-24-inch slot and stocks hundreds of thousands of fingerlings a year.

3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Lake level
398.07 ft -4.93 vs pool
Air / High
84 / 84 F
Wind
SSE 5 mph

Sources: USGS gauge 08018800, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Tap a marker for today's tip
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.

Lake Fork lines up a genuinely fishable day across the board. The gauge reads 398.07 ft, 4.93 ft below pool, easing 0.29 over the week. Today brings clear skies, wind SSE around 5 mph, steady pressure near 1019 hPa and a high of 84. Water sits around 74 F for the season (estimated). With the waxing gibbous, the solunar majors run 9:59 AM-11:59 AM and 10:26 PM-12:26 AM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

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.

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 85 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 Lake Fk Res nr Quitman, TX.

Water level, last 30 days

USGS gauge 08018800. Conservation pool is 403 ft.

398.93400.53402.14pool 403398.07 ft09/2310/0310/1310/23

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp84 F
High / Low84 / 49 F
WindSSE 5-8 mph
Pressure1018.5 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain0% cloud, 0%
Sunrise / Sunset07:32 / 18:39
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 Lake Fork this week

The best day on Lake Fork 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
9:59 AM-11:59 AM and 10:26 PM-12:26 AM
Minor period
4:21 AM-5:21 AM
Sun
07:32 to 18:39
Moon
Waxing Gibbous, 91% lit
Sky and wind
Partly cloudy, 6 mph
Rain chance
0%

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

Species guide

The species that matter on Lake Fork: 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.

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.

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.

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 Lake Fork 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 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 Lake Fork today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Oct 22

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Largemouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 85 F, wind to 6 mph.

Wed, Oct 21

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Largemouth bass led the card at good. High of 82 F, wind to 4 mph.

Tue, Oct 20

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Largemouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 79 F, wind to 6 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

TPWD rules for Lake Fork (read 2026-10-05): largemouth bass 16-24 inch slot, with fish 16 inches and less or 24 inches and greater retainable, only one 24 inches or greater per day, and 5 black bass a day in any combination. Crappie: 25 a day; 10-inch minimum March through November, and from December 1 through the last day of February there is no minimum and every crappie caught must be kept. Check TPWD before each trip.

Access

The Sabine River Authority, (903) 878-2262, operates four public boat ramps and a free day-use area; TPWD's access map also lists the Highway 515 East Ramp, the Highway 154 Ramp, the FM 17 Ramp and private marinas around the lake.

About this water

27,264 acres on the Sabine River system in Hopkins, Rains and Wood counties, impounded in 1980 and controlled by the Sabine River Authority; conservation pool 403 ft msl.

Fishing Lake Fork: the full guide

A reservoir managed for big bass

Lake Fork was impounded in 1980 and covers 27,264 acres in Hopkins, Rains and Wood counties, about five miles northwest of Quitman, with a maximum depth of 70 feet. TPWD credits restrictive harvest rules, Florida-strain stocking and abundant habitat for making it one of the country's premier trophy bass lakes, and its lake page says more than 65% of the Texas Top 50 largest bass, including the state record, and more than half of all Toyota ShareLunker entries came from here. That record, an 18.18-pound largemouth, was caught on January 24, 1992.

Stocking and cover

TPWD's stocking history lists 518,406 Lone Star largemouth fingerlings in 2026, along with 45,129 Florida largemouth and 15,095 ShareLunker largemouth fingerlings, after more than 500,000 Lone Star fingerlings in 2025. Submerged timber is a hazard away from the buoyed boat lanes. TPWD names hydrilla, boathouses and docks, and lake points as historically the best bass cover, and with the Lake Fork Sportsman's Association it has placed artificial habitat structures whose GPS coordinates are published in its Habitat Structure Viewer.

Seasons on the lake

TPWD rates spring, fall and winter as the most productive bass seasons, with shoreline spawning fish from mid-February to April and night fishing as a way through summer heat. Crappie anglers fish deep water near the dam in winter and the Highway 154, Highway 515, CR 2946 and CR 514 bridges in late spring and early fall. Channel catfish dominate the catfish population, white bass are increasing, and yellow bass show up in winter catches.

Common questions

Can I keep a big bass from Lake Fork?

Yes, within the TPWD rules: bass inside the 16-24 inch slot must go back, and one largemouth 24 inches or greater may be kept per day. ShareLunker's Legacy Class asks anglers who catch a 13-pound-plus bass from January through March to loan it for the selective breeding program.

What is the Lake Fork record bass?

TPWD's water-body records list an 18.18-pound, 25.5-inch largemouth caught on January 24, 1992. It is also the Texas state record.

Where do anglers fish for crappie?

TPWD names the deep water near the dam in winter and the Highway 154, Highway 515, CR 2946 and CR 514 bridges in late spring and early fall, with live minnows and crappie jigs.

Is fishing good at Lake Fork 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

Lake Tawakoni27 miLake Cypress Springs28 miLake Bob Sandlin33 miLake Palestine43 miLake Athens43 miLake Tyler47 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

River and reservoir readings
USGS 08018800 β€” Lake Fk Res nr Quitman, TX
Read from the USGS Water Data API (api.waterdata.usgs.gov). Latest value timestamped 2026-10-23 at 18:30 UTC.
Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 32.8043, -95.5394 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 5, 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 5, 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.