Fishing Lake Falcon in Texas was a challenge

I've been back from my fishing trip to Lake Falcon for a few weeks now but I've been procrastinating on writing my blog. My eldest daughter who is my blog conscience and got me into doing this blog in the first place just sent me a stern reminder so I guess it's time.

 

As I explained to my daughter the primary reason for my delaying things is that I'm still pouting about not getting my double digit bucketmouth.

 

The primary reason we went at the beginning of March is that the water temperature has warmed to the requisite 62 to 65 degrees and the big girls are moving in shallow to spawn. You can drastically cut down the area you need to fish to target big fish and catching them in 2 to 5 feet of water is a blast !

 

Unfortunately when we arrived the water temperature was 57 degrees and the fish were scattered. To add to our woes the wind was consistently at 20 to 35 mph. We used a guide for the first 2 days and he constantly reminded us that they were usually fishing in shorts and T-shirts at this time of year instead of the hoodies, jackets and jeans that we donned, not to mention the gloves the guide wore. The midday sun warmed the air temp up to the low 70's but the water did not get over 58 degrees all week.

 

Now that I have layed on the required excuses let's get on to the fishing we did do. The only structure that was consistently holding fish were the trees that bracketed the creek channels that existed before the reservoir was there. Remember, Lake Falcon is a man made reservoir resulting from the damming of the Rio Grande River. On one side is Mexico and on the other the U.S. The tops of the trees were anywhere from a few inches to several feet above water.

 

The method of fishing was to throw large, soft plastic baits (6" to 7" Senkos, Lizards and Brush Hogs) texas rigged on 5/0 and 6/0 hooks and 3/8 oz to 1/2 oz tungsten weights. A heavy action flippin rod and either 25 lb flourocarbon or 65 lb braid was a must to get the fish quickly out of the trees. You tighten the drag on your baitcaster all the way down and you set hard and reel fast when a fish hits. If you can't  tell the difference between a fish and a limb you will be setting in tree limbs all day long and making the local tackle store owners very happy. I was frequenting them regularly. You did not move your offering. The cold water made the fish very lethargic so they would not chase.

 

Most days we struggled to get 10 fish each, including the guide and while we did score a couple of 7 pounders our average for the trip was probably closer to 5 lbs. As you might expect my big fish story is about the one I lost. I set on him hard and got him up through most of the tree limbs but the biggest limb was just under the surface and I ripped the hook out of him as he hit it. Thinking he was still hooked he jumped a few feet from the boat and I could have sworn I saw a small middle finger get extended. Who knew fish had them ! He might not have been my 10 pounder but it was close.

 

Unfortunately my buddy got a bug that kept him close to the plumbing for the last 2 days so combined with the howling wind we figured we would cut things a day and a half short. 

 

You might find it interesting to know that our guide told us he spends 5 to 6 days per week fishing, year round on Lake Falcon and last year, which he considered a good one he caught a total of 10, double digit fish, the biggest being 12.4 lbs. Not as easy as you might think, huh ?

 

WOULD I GO BACK ?

 

Lake Falcon is a fishing factory. It is surrounded by flat, brown grass, pastures. No picturesque Northern Ontatio landscapes here. Our motel had a least 35 Bass Boats in the parking lot as did every other Motel in Zapata. In fact, the parking lots in every service station, restaurant and convenience store in town were all full of Bass Boats. I certainly don't have a problem fishing hard and intense but there is something about being the only boat in sight on a beautiful, Ontario lake that appeals to me beyond all else. Maybe it's my advancing age but if I'm going to spend a week fishing I want the entire outdoor experience. I still love a day or two of tournament fishing but once a year I want to get next to nature in her full glory.

Comments

[S Willoughby]

Don't worry Dad, you'll catch the 12 pounder next time!

[G]

How about an Erie NY 7lber instead!