Moving to Texas, fishing advice needed...

[ggmiller]

I'll be moving to Wichita Falls, TX at the end of the month and was hoping some of you Texans could
give me some advice on fishing in that area and also maybe some of your favorite bookmarks for fly fishing
TX.

I've already looked on Google, there is a ton of info, but am looking for maybe one or two of your favorite links.

Moving from Northern Montana to Texas will require me to try and get used to the heat down there, but hopefully, it won't be too bad for me.

thanks,

George

[Redhook]

From one Northerner to another, you will never get use to the heat and tornados.

[SilverMallard]

Here's the thing...

Your area has a huge lake called Texoma that has some excellent striper and bass fishing. Nobody down there fly fishes for them, but you CAN.

That's your immediate vicinity.

Eastern OK, Northern AR, and Southern MO have EXCELLENT stream and lake fishing of all types and for almost all freshwater species other than salmon/steelhead. That's like a 5 hour drive to the state line of AR and MO...which is sort of the epicenter.

[BryanM]

Hey GGMiller,

I am down on the coast, but a good website for central/North/East Texas is the Texas Fly Report, just google it, the site should come up. Fly fishing on Texoma for stripers and bass seems to be decent. You are also close to some nice fishing up in Ok and AR. The heat is oppresive, but nothing like central America. You will love the winters. Best of luck.

[SilverMallard]

The biggest disadvantage is definitely the heat of summer. BUT...we fish yearround instead of between runoff and first snowfall. Our winter, spring, and fall fishing are very comfortable.

There are other lakes down that way for bass fishing. Some are quite good. NTX also has several relatively new pay-2-fish networks of large, managed farm ponds for trophy largemouth bass that are GREAT to fish on the fly from a tube or canoe. But bass, bream, and crappie are the primary targets of N and E TX fly anglers. But you're only a couple hours drive from the Ozarks. And that's where all the REAL fishing is (stream fishing).

[Tracy]

ggmiller,

The folks on the Red River Fly Fishers site can tell you about fy fishig Lake Texoma and its tailrace. They may also have information about the Red River just north of Wichita Falls.

You might also find information on the Texas Fishing Forum. It has a forum dedicated to Freshwater Fly Fishing. Someone mentioned the Texas Fly Report already. There are people from all over Texas on these two forums, and they are very active.

The Texas Parks and Wildlife site is important. It has information about fishing regulations, fishing licenses, trout stockings (Yes, they stock trout in Texas), lakes, rivers, and parks.

A little north of you on Hwy 44 is the Washita National Wildlife Refuge. Several small lakes that you can get to on a short hike.

And yep, it is hot here during the summer, but you have a nice long fishing season from fall through spring. If you wet wade in the summer or fish in the early morning, it can be tollerable.

Regards, and a big Texas welcome,
Tracy

[RexW]

Hello George, welcome to Texas.

You have already heard about the two best regional fly fishing boards for info on north Texas; http://www.texasflyreport.com and http://www.texasfishingforum.com . The best place for fishing information on Texoma is http://www.sixoldgeezers.com . This is not a fly fishing site, but it is dedicated specifically to Lake Texoma. Fly fishing info on Texas is hard to find, but there is a lot of Texas fishing information available, just take that info and convert it to fly fishing techniques and you'll catch a lot of fish.

Lake Texoma is about 80 miles east of Wichita Falls, which is close enough to be in the same football district, but it is not real convient for fishing regularly. There are several smaller lakes that will be closer to you than Texoma.

There is a LOT of warmwater fly fishing opportunities close to WF, but trout are few and far between. Bass are fun on a fly rod, so don't be afraid to try it and you'll be able to do it year round.

Someone mentioned the Red River Fly Fishers, http://www.rrff.org , we meet in the Sherman/Denison area, which is east of WF. We have a couple of fly fishing events every year on Texoma. A general fly fishing event in June and a fly tying event in January. Last year a group was trying to start a FF'ing club in WF. I'm sure if they got a group going or not, but maybe you'll be able to find some of them.

During the summer get up early and then take a break about lunch time and you can avoid most of the heat.

Good luck with the move!

Rex

[white43]

SilverMallard ? great post until this: "And that's where all the REAL fishing is (stream fishing)." My "REAL fishing" is in my cedarstrip canoe working shallows for LMB. REAL fishing is a state of mind, obviously, and we each have our own. Good luck on the move to Texas. The concept of fishing in all but the oppressive heat of summer sounds delightful. One day, maybe. From what I've seen on this site there are an incredible amount of fishing opportunities especially for warmwater species where you're moving. It will be a whole new world for you . . . in all ways. jgw

[old geezer]

Another site of interest http://beaudogflyfishing.myfreeforum.org/index.php

Best of luck on your move

Philip

[Jake L]

Howdy, and Welcome!
Some fishing for rainbows can be found on the Canyon Lake Tailrace down near Austin. These trout are stocked each year by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Dept., but the water coming out of the lake is cool enough for their survival. Access to the river is a bit restricted, but if you go to the website for the Guadelupe chapter of Trout Unlimited, you can find some info. Also try the Parks and Wildlife Department website. That will give you the stocking schedule.