July is HOT, HOT, HOT, at Lake Fork! Not only is the weather warm this month, the fishing is also! If you can stand the heat you’ll find that the bass fishing is actually pretty good and in the summer months. The big fish can be found congregated out in deep water and condensed into very tight areas so once you find them, you’ll have a shot at some trophy bass with very little fishing pressure to compete with them. Catching these big bass at is a lot of fun in the summertime!

The water conditions at Lake Fork have been amazing for this time of year. We’ve had so much rain that the lake is still just below full pool sitting at 402.70, which is less than a half-foot from full. That means great things for summer fishing and the lake going into the second half of the year. The water surface temperatures have been running from 86-91 degree range and the clarity of the lake has been fair to slightly stained. With these temperatures setting in, we are starting to see a good solid thermocline set in and this will change the dimensions of the fishing for the better.

The shallower bite has been best early in the morning and late on top water lures like a walking bait or a popper in 2-8 feet of water. The bite is fairly short lived but its still a lot of fun. After that fades, the best bite for me has been cranking shallow to mid depth areas from 8-14 feet with a crankbait. I am targeting suspended fish in this depth so baits like the new Berkley Wild Thing and Digger have been great. If you haven’t had a chance to check out Berkley’s new line of hard baits, you’ll want to check them out! My favorite colors right now have been Gilly and Money. When the fish are not up there chasing much I am slowing down my presentation and fishing a 10” Berkley Powerworm on a Texas rig. The big bass really like the big worms right now. I ‘m rigging mine on a 3/8 oz weight and a 5/0 Berkley Fusion wide gap worm hook. Best colors have been blue fleck, plum, and watermelon red.

The deep bite is the deal in July though. Most of these big Lake Fork largemouth are sitting out in that 18-30 foot depth range but catching them can be tricky some days and easier the next. Pond dams, ridges, roadbeds, and points are all great places to get started. I like to use my new Garmin 7600 units to locate bass out deep. Once I have located with my graph the Carolina rig and Santone football head jig has been best when they are close to the bottom. I like to throw my Carolina rig on a 7’6” medium heavy Abu Garcia Villain 2.0 rod with a Revo reel spooled up with some 20 lb Trilene 100% fluorocarbon line and a 15-17 lb leader. I like to use a 1 oz Elite Tungsten weight and a 3/0 hook with about a 5 foot leader. I have been catching a number of fish on the Berkley Powerbait Rib Snake as well as the Berkley Havoc Backslide. The best colors have been blue fleck, watermelon, and green pumpkin and chartreuse pepper. If you want to catch the biggest one in the school out deep then you will want to break out the football jig too! Santone Lures 3/4 oz football head jig with a Berkley Havoc Pit Chunk trailer is a hard combination to beat. I am throwing this in the same areas as the Carolina rig and dragging it or hopping it through these deep schools of bass. Best colors right now are my JC’s Spicy Craw, PB&J, and my newest custom color that will be available this month. A lot of the fish are suspended and even schooling on shad in some areas. These fish are a little trickier to catch. You need something that you can work in the middle to upper part of the water column. The deep diving crank bait, swim bait, a flutter spoon, or one of my favorites… a big lightly weighted jerk bait like a Magnum fluke in any shad color counted down thru the school is a technique that many of us have employed for years to catch suspended trophy bass on Lake Fork. Just be sure to let the bass out deep tell you what they want right now because they are all over the place and they move around in the water column from day to day. Mixing it up and trying a variety of things on a school of fish will pay off. Having good electronics is a big advantage too! I really like my new Garmin GPS Map 7612 Touch screen. Knowing how to read the sonar and apply it to your fishing is the most important thing though. If you are weak in this area, now is the time to get out on the water and log some time in out deep.


I hope this report helps you on your next trip here to the lake. If you are headed to Lake Fork in pursuit of a trophy bass and are looking to book a guide, I would enjoy the opportunity to take you or your group fishing. I am a full-time guide on Lake Fork ONLY and guide here 250+ days a year. I still have a few summer dates available and am already taking fall reservations, which is an excellent time for fishing on Lake Fork as well. I also have gift certificates available for those of you that are interested in purchasing a friend or loved one a guided trip on Lake Fork. You can contact me to make your reservation at 903-736-9888 or send me an email at [email protected] You can also visit my website for more information about Lake Fork and my guide service at www.officiallakeforktrophybass.com You can find me on Facebook and follow my official Lake Fork Guide page at https://www.facebook.com/lakeforkfishingguides
Good luck to all the tournament anglers headed to the lake this month! Also, while you are here, be sure to stop by Diamond Sports Marine located on highway 154 just north of the bridge. They have all the new 2016 Ranger Boats in stock. You will not want to miss the opportunity to check out the new Z series bass boats as well as the all-new Ranger aluminum series. These boats have some amazing features are definitely eye catchers! Give Fred a call at 903-383-7829 to set up your personal demo ride in a Ranger Boat.

I would like to thank all of my current 2016 sponsors for supporting my FLW Series tournament fishing and my guide service on Lake Fork: Toyota, Carhartt, Ranger Boats, Mercury Outboards, I Am Second, Leer, Garmin, Berkley, Abu Garcia, Santone Lures, Costa Sunglasses, Power Pole, Rigid Industries, Road Armor, Fabtech Motorsports and Elite Tungsten.

Tight Lines & God Bless,
James Caldemeyer