Fresh Lago Vista Fishing Reports

Summertime bass fishing can be a grind. Searching the lake for deep water haunts on a lake that fluctuates can be challenging. This isn’t the case with beautiful Lake Travis! When the daytime temperatures are approaching 100 degrees and the water temperatures are in the lower to mid-80s, there are a few patterns, locations and techniques that are guaranteed to consistently catch fish. Marinas Largemouth bass and other fish species are being caught in good numbers in the mornings and evening around the deep-water, main-lake marinas. The water is significantly cooler under the large marinas that sit in 50+ FOW. Throwing topwater and swimbaits are loading the boat! Once the sun comes up, we continue to catch bass, catfish and some crappie by jigging down to the schools that are chasing shad between 35 and 50 feet deep. Offshore Grass The grass bite has slowed since the water temperature reached 80 degrees. We are still catching some solid 3 to 5 pound bass by dragging a large worm or jig at the grass edges in 20+ FOW. As the summer grinds on, these bass will get lots of pressure. The bait that caught 20 fish last week, may only catch a few the next. Be prepared to throw a few different baits each outing. It’s almost a guarantee that something will work. Remember, these bass are keying in one type of forage. Shad!! If a bladed swim jig isn’t working anymore, try a jerkbait or a flutter spoon. When the bass are chasing shad, they are in the mood to eat. Keep cycling though the imitation shad baits until you find the right bait for the day. Follow @fishingwiththefriz on Instagram and let us know if these tips help you have a successful trip on the water!

My clients caught five species of fish during the morning trip! The bass fishing on Lake Travis has been absolutely phenomenal for the past few months. When the water surface temperatures were in the low 70s and the shad were spawning, we were catching 30 to 40 bass in a four-hour half day trip. The largemouth bass and white bass could be easily found each morning fishing the grass flats off the Pointe Venture peninsula and other grass flats around the lake. This was just one of the many predictably patterns that we were fishing to catch fish from sunrise to sunset. Now that summer is “officially” here in Central Texas the water temperatures have soared to the low to mid-80s. Some of the fish have migrated to cooler shaded areas near deeper water. In the past week, we have added main lake, deep water, marinas to the rotation where we are consistently catching good numbers of bass. For a successful day on the lake, I would recommend starting at one of the main lake marinas at least 30 minutes before sunrise. The feeding frenzy is a sight to see as groups of bass breach the surface knocking shad into the air. A fast topwater bait on swimbait can get the attention of these more aggressive bass. Once the sun comes up and the schooling activity dies down, move to the outer edge of the grass flats. The water here will be around 15 to 20 feet deep. Fish the grass wall with swimbaits, flukes, jigs and other Texas rigged soft plastics. Craws and big worms are catching the better fish in these areas. When the sun is high in the sky, targeting shaded areas on the deep bluff walls of the channel swings. These areas tend to hold quality fish all year round. Follow @fishingwiththefriz on Instagram and let us know if these tips help you have a successful trip on the water!

You can't go wrong with a fishing trip anytime from February to June. Not to say you can't have great fishing in the summer, but the spring is a killer time to be on the water in Austin. Keep in mind in Central Texas, even in February the water is only in the upper 50's at its coldest. This means the fish spawn much earlier around here than they do in most of the US. As of this past week I have seen plenty of signs that bass are on pre-spawn patterns, with some fish even building nests in some spots! This past week I have had clients catch a bunch of fish. I had one trip on Lake Travis a couple days ago that caught well over 30 bass. The lake is super healthy this year with beautiful grass flats growing bass and clean clear water on the lower end of the lake. At the moment I've been catching a lot of fish fishing a little deeper throwing Carolina Rigs, Jigs, Dropshots, and Neko Rigs. We have also been targeting fish throwing jerkbaits and crankbaits when we come across fish working the deeper weed edges feeding on shad. As the water temps increase the patterns will start to change and more moving baits such as swimbaits, flukes, crankbaits and topwater lures will be on deck. The fun part about this time of year is that depending on the part of the lake you are in the fish can be on different patterns. This means you have a bunch of different ways to target them! Historically this is the time of year I have lots of trips that average 20+ fish... I'm not the kind of guide to over promise and bullshit you, but I've had a lot of trips in the springtime catch 50+ bass during their trip. If you can cast I can put you on fish! The other fun thing about getting out there on the water is that you never know what you're going to hook into! This past week the Buffalo carp seem to be following me around as I've had two BIG ones hit the net. If you are interested in getting out on the water, book your trip and we'll get on a phone call and discuss what you want to catch and what would be your ideal guided trip.

I've got a serious case of bass thumb right now! We've been tearing them up the past several weeks. This last week my half day trips have been averaging 20-40 fish! I had one trip catch 46 fish, and that's only the fish that hit the net, not the ones we hooked and lost... unlike some guides I don't fish very much when I guide and I certainly don't count any fish I catch towards the fish catch numbers I advertise. My focus when guiding is teaching you and doing everything to make sure you not only catch fish but have fun. As of the past week water temps are in the 64-66 degree range. There are fish on beds, but targeting those pre-spawn fish has been the most productive. The shad are also spawning, and you can catch a ton of fish targeting those wind blown banks. Jerkbaits, swimbaits, crankbaits, and spinnerbaits are all working well right now. There are quite a few ways you can catch them right now. If you book a trip in the next week or two you can count on a lot of action and a lot of hooksets! I can also promise that you will be fishing with higher end equipment and from a nicer/newer boat than any other guide listed on FishingBooker in Austin, TX!

The fishing couldn't be better! Every year I look forward to March and April. Current water temps are in the low 60's and the weather has been warm. This combination has the fish up shallow feeding before the spawn. There are fish on beds right now, but the best bite has been targeting pre-spawn fish. If you book a trip right now you can expect a variety of techniques. Small swimbaits and crankbaits have been very productive. Soft plastics such as drop shots, Texas rigs, and carolina rigs have also been catching a lot of fish. I would expect the topwater bite to be turning on very soon. Once the water temps get into the mid 60's is when I tie on a lot of topwater plugs. My most recent trip caught 24 bass, the day prior had 33... those were on half day trips with beginner anglers. We probably had half as many fish jump and spit the bait too! There is no better time than right now to be on the water!

As of about a week ago the bass have started making a transition and are post-spawn. This means that due to the warmer weather and us getting closer to Spring here in Central Texas, the bass are moving up more shallow. They'll pull out of their deep wintertime spots or out of the creek channels where they've been suspending and move to the bank. It'll be a few more weeks before the spawn is in full swing, but it's not far off. With the warmer weather the bite has been getting better and better. I was out a few days ago and ended with 31 fish. Small swimbaits, crankbaits, jerkbaits, and the drop shot have all been producing fish. If you book a trip there is a variety of patterns working that we can catch them on. I know everyone's favorite technique is topwater fishing. That will start to turn on here pretty soon. I would recommend booking now and picking a date anytime in March, April or May. Those months consistently produce good numbers, great size, and consistent topwater action, even mid day. Book your trip and let's get out on the water!