Beta

GuidedFloats is in beta. The full site launches March 1, 2027. The mobile app follows.

Guides: claim before March 1, 2027 and your first full season of Premium is free. Claim your founding spot →

Log in List your guide serviceFor guides
Home › Waters › Texas › Bayou Lanana
Bayou · Nacogdoches County, an urban bayou running through the oldest town in Texas and into the Angelina River system in the East Texas pineywoods · Texas

Bayou Lanana Fishing Guides

An urban pineywoods bayou running through Nacogdoches to the Angelina system, gauged for discharge and stage and fishable within walking distance of town.

Cypress trunks and knees in the shallows of a Louisiana bayou
Gauge location. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Guides on the Bayou Lanana

Claimed profiles take booking requests. Unclaimed profiles are built from public records so the river is never empty; the guide can claim or remove one any time.

No guides listed yet

Guide or outfit this water? Create your profile. Listing is free, the commission is 10% or 7% with a premium profile, and premium profiles list first on this water.

About the Bayou Lanana

Bayou Lanana runs through the middle of Nacogdoches, the oldest town in Texas, and drains south into the Angelina River system and eventually Sam Rayburn Reservoir. It is a small blackwater bayou of the East Texas pineywoods sort: tannin stained, slow, overhung by loblolly pine and hardwood, with sand and clay banks and a great deal of woody structure in the channel. The bayou has been part of the town since the Spanish colonial period and the Lanana Creek Trail follows it for several miles, which makes this one of the more accessible small waters in the region.

The gauge reports discharge and stage. On a bayou of this size stage is the number that matters most, because the channel is narrow and heavily wooded and a modest rise changes the fishing completely. At low stage the bayou is a series of connected pools and the fish are concentrated in the deeper bends against the woody cover, which is when it is easiest to fish. After a rain the pineywoods shed water quickly, the bayou comes up fast and dirty, and the fish scatter into flooded timber along the margins. A day or two of falling stage after a rise is the best window this water offers.

Largemouth and spotted bass are the primary targets, with a good population of bluegill, redear and longear sunfish through the pools and crappie in the deeper holes near structure. Channel, flathead and blue catfish all use the bayou, and the catfishing at night in summer is genuinely productive. Bowfin and both spotted and longnose gar are common and worth targeting on their own terms. This is a wading and bank fishery rather than a boat one; a canoe works at higher stage but the deadfall makes it hard going. Stephen F. Austin State University land and the city trail provide most of the access.

This water needs a real photo

The photo at the top of this page is not Bayou Lanana.

It is a regional stand-in, honestly captioned but generic — we will not put a name to a river we cannot prove. Send us a photograph you took here and it replaces the stand-in, with your credit on it.

Add a photo of this water See the badges

Pioneer badgeUnclaimed

Add a photo of this water

Landscape, not fish — the water itself. Reviewed by hand before it appears. The first one published here earns the Pioneer badge.

Never published. It is how the badge is held for you until member accounts open.

Posting to Bayou Lanana.

JPG, PNG or WebP, up to 12 MB. Landscape orientation looks best at the top of the page. We resize it and strip the location data out of the file.

The name printed under the photo and on your badge. Leave blank to stay anonymous.

Reader photo license v1.0 — the short version:

  • You grant Guided Floats, LLC a non-exclusive, royalty-free license to publish, resize and crop your photo on guidedfloats.com and in GuidedFloats’ own social posts and apps. You keep the copyright and can use the photo anywhere else.
  • You confirm that you took the photo yourself, that publishing it does not infringe anyone else’s rights, and that anyone recognisable in it (or a parent or guardian, if they are under 18) is happy for it to appear here.
  • Credit is printed beside the photo wherever it appears on the site, using the credit name you give us. Leave it blank and we use your name; write “Anonymous” for no name. Your email address is never published.
  • Withdrawing is one email to hello@guidedfloats.com naming the photo. It comes off the site within 7 days.
Read the full license

Version 1.0, dated 6 September 2026. Applies to every photograph submitted to GuidedFloats through the contact form, a species page, or the community board.

1. What you give us

By ticking the box on the form you grant Guided Floats, LLC (“GuidedFloats”, “we”) a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to store, copy, resize, crop and display your photograph on guidedfloats.com, in GuidedFloats’ own social media accounts and mobile apps, and in material that promotes the site itself, in connection with the fish, water or community feature you sent it in for. The license lasts until you withdraw it (section 4).

You keep the copyright. The license is not exclusive, so you can use the photo anywhere else and license it to anyone else. We will not sell your photo, license it on to anyone else on its own, or use it in paid advertising for a third party.

2. What you confirm

You confirm that you took the photograph yourself (or otherwise own the rights to it), that you have the right to grant this license, and that publishing the photo does not infringe anyone else’s copyright, privacy or other rights.

If any person is recognisable in the photo, you confirm that they have agreed to its being published here, and that a parent or guardian has agreed on behalf of anyone under 18. Please do not send photographs of other people’s catches, screenshots, or pictures copied from other websites or social media.

3. Credit

We print the credit name you give us beside the photo wherever it appears on the site, and record it as the photo’s creator in the page’s structured data. If you leave the credit blank we use the name you gave us on the form. Write “Anonymous” if you prefer no name at all. Your email address, phone number and the exact spot the photo was taken are never published.

4. Withdrawing the license

You can withdraw the license at any time by emailing hello@guidedfloats.com, or by using the contact form, and telling us which photo you mean. We will remove the photo from guidedfloats.com within 7 days of receiving your message and stop using it in anything new. Copies that are already outside our control — search-engine caches, social posts that have already gone out, printed material already produced — may take longer to disappear or may not be recallable, and we are not responsible for those.

5. What we may do

We choose which photos to publish and may decline any submission without giving a reason. We may crop, resize, sharpen or colour-correct a photo for display, and we may remove a photo at any time. We will not alter a photo in a way that misrepresents the fish, the water or you.

6. Your details

We keep your name, email address, the credit name, the water and date you gave us, and the network address the submission came from, with the submission record, as our evidence of this license. We hold that record for as long as the photo is published and for the retention period described in our privacy policy. Location data that your camera or phone embedded in the file is removed before the photo is published.

7. Versions

The version of this license you accepted is stored with your submission and printed with the photo. A later version does not apply to a photo you have already sent unless you agree to it.

Fished this water? Add a photo

Reviewed by hand before it appears. Pick the water, not the spot — we never publish exact locations.

Never published. We use it only if we need to ask about the photo.

Posting to Bayou Lanana.

JPG, PNG or WebP, up to 12 MB. We resize it and strip the location data out of the file.

The name shown under the photo. Leave blank to stay anonymous.

Reader photo license v1.0 — the short version:

  • You grant Guided Floats, LLC a non-exclusive, royalty-free license to publish, resize and crop your photo on guidedfloats.com and in GuidedFloats’ own social posts and apps. You keep the copyright and can use the photo anywhere else.
  • You confirm that you took the photo yourself, that publishing it does not infringe anyone else’s rights, and that anyone recognisable in it (or a parent or guardian, if they are under 18) is happy for it to appear here.
  • Credit is printed beside the photo wherever it appears on the site, using the credit name you give us. Leave it blank and we use your name; write “Anonymous” for no name. Your email address is never published.
  • Withdrawing is one email to hello@guidedfloats.com naming the photo. It comes off the site within 7 days.
Read the full license

Version 1.0, dated 6 September 2026. Applies to every photograph submitted to GuidedFloats through the contact form, a species page, or the community board.

1. What you give us

By ticking the box on the form you grant Guided Floats, LLC (“GuidedFloats”, “we”) a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to store, copy, resize, crop and display your photograph on guidedfloats.com, in GuidedFloats’ own social media accounts and mobile apps, and in material that promotes the site itself, in connection with the fish, water or community feature you sent it in for. The license lasts until you withdraw it (section 4).

You keep the copyright. The license is not exclusive, so you can use the photo anywhere else and license it to anyone else. We will not sell your photo, license it on to anyone else on its own, or use it in paid advertising for a third party.

2. What you confirm

You confirm that you took the photograph yourself (or otherwise own the rights to it), that you have the right to grant this license, and that publishing the photo does not infringe anyone else’s copyright, privacy or other rights.

If any person is recognisable in the photo, you confirm that they have agreed to its being published here, and that a parent or guardian has agreed on behalf of anyone under 18. Please do not send photographs of other people’s catches, screenshots, or pictures copied from other websites or social media.

3. Credit

We print the credit name you give us beside the photo wherever it appears on the site, and record it as the photo’s creator in the page’s structured data. If you leave the credit blank we use the name you gave us on the form. Write “Anonymous” if you prefer no name at all. Your email address, phone number and the exact spot the photo was taken are never published.

4. Withdrawing the license

You can withdraw the license at any time by emailing hello@guidedfloats.com, or by using the contact form, and telling us which photo you mean. We will remove the photo from guidedfloats.com within 7 days of receiving your message and stop using it in anything new. Copies that are already outside our control — search-engine caches, social posts that have already gone out, printed material already produced — may take longer to disappear or may not be recallable, and we are not responsible for those.

5. What we may do

We choose which photos to publish and may decline any submission without giving a reason. We may crop, resize, sharpen or colour-correct a photo for display, and we may remove a photo at any time. We will not alter a photo in a way that misrepresents the fish, the water or you.

6. Your details

We keep your name, email address, the credit name, the water and date you gave us, and the network address the submission came from, with the submission record, as our evidence of this license. We hold that record for as long as the photo is published and for the retention period described in our privacy policy. Location data that your camera or phone embedded in the file is removed before the photo is published.

7. Versions

The version of this license you accepted is stored with your submission and printed with the photo. A later version does not apply to a photo you have already sent unless you agree to it.

Flow alert

Tell me when the Bayou Lanana cfs

Now: 0.5 cfs, read 4:45 pm CDT, Sun Oct 18, 2026 (USGS 08037050, Bayou Lanana at Nacogdoches, TX).

We never use this address for anything else and never share it. See the privacy policy.

Access

Nacogdoches - the town the bayou runs through, with full services, tackle, lodging and the gauge reference point.
Lanana Creek Trail - the city trail following the bayou for several miles, the main access on foot.
Stephen F. Austin State University - campus land along the bayou, including the gardens and arboretum.
Angelina River - the receiving river south, with launches and a much larger fishery.
Sam Rayburn Reservoir - the big impoundment downstream, the regional destination for bass and crappie.
Lake Nacogdoches - the city lake west of town, with a ramp and open water.
Lufkin - half an hour southwest, with further lodging, outfitting and guide services.

Seasons

Spring: the best of the year, with bass spawning in the pools and steady flow keeping the bayou clean.
Summer: hot and low, concentrating fish in the deep bends, with excellent night catfishing.
Fall: very good as the water cools and clears, and the easiest wading of the season.
Winter: cool and slow, though the deeper holes hold crappie and catfish through mild spells.

From the water

No logged trips yet. Be the first to put this water on your map.

Log this water

Fished it or cleaned it? Log in or create a free account to log a trip with photos and earn the waterway badge.

Questions

What is the current flow on the Bayou Lanana?

As of Oct 18, 4:45 pm, the USGS gauge Bayou Lanana at Nacogdoches, TX reads 1 cfs. Conditions update every 15 minutes.

What species can you catch on the Bayou Lanana?

Anglers target Black Crappie, Blue Catfish, Bluegill, Bowfin, Channel Catfish, Flathead Catfish, Freshwater Drum, Largemouth Bass, Longear Sunfish, Longnose Gar, Redear Sunfish, Spotted Bass, Spotted Gar, Warmouth, White Crappie on the Bayou Lanana in Texas.

Where can you access the Bayou Lanana?

Nacogdoches - the town the bayou runs through, with full services, tackle, lodging and the gauge reference point. Lanana Creek Trail - the city trail following the bayou for several miles, the main access on foot. Stephen F. Austin State University - campus land along the bayou, including the gardens and arboretum. Angelina River - the receiving river south, with launches and a much larger fishery. Sam Rayburn Reservoir - the big impoundment downstream, the regional destination for bass and crappie. Lake Nacogdoches - the city lake west of town, with a ramp and open water. Lufkin - half an hou...

When is the best time to fish the Bayou Lanana?

Spring: the best of the year, with bass spawning in the pools and steady flow keeping the bayou clean. Summer: hot and low, concentrating fish in the deep bends, with excellent night catfishing. Fall: very good as the water cools and clears, and the easiest wading of the season. Winter: cool and slow, though the deeper holes hold crappie and catfish through mild spells.

Where are the fishing regulations for the Bayou Lanana?

Regulations change by season and section. Read the current rules on the Texas agency site: https://tpwd.texas.gov/regulations/outdoor-annual/fishing