Lake Tawakoni Fishing Guides
A big Sabine River reservoir an hour east of Dallas, known for enormous blue catfish and a hard-running hybrid striped bass fishery on open water.
Guides on the Lake Tawakoni
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About the Lake Tawakoni
Lake Tawakoni impounds the Sabine River behind Iron Bridge Dam across three counties northeast of Dallas, a broad open reservoir of better than thirty thousand acres with long shorelines, big main-lake flats and a handful of substantial creek arms. It was built as a water supply for Dallas, and its proximity to the metroplex means it gets steady pressure, but it is large enough and open enough that the fishing does not feel crowded once a boat is off the ramp. The character of the lake is open-water rather than cover-oriented, and that shapes what works here.
Blue catfish are what Tawakoni is famous for. The lake has produced fish of genuinely exceptional size over the years and supports a dedicated drift and anchor fishery that runs through the coldest months when most Texas lakes have gone quiet. Hybrid striped bass are the other signature species, schooling on the open flats and over the main-lake humps and providing the sort of hard, fast fishing that keeps guides busy from spring into autumn. White bass run up the Sabine arm in late winter in large numbers, largemouth bass hold in the creek arms and along the riprap and timber, and crappie, both white and black, stack on the bridge structure and the submerged brush. Bluegill fill the shallows.
The gauge reports precipitation, wind and reservoir elevation, with no water temperature. On a big open reservoir the wind reading is more useful than it sounds, because Tawakoni is exposed enough that a strong day makes the main lake unfishable in a small boat and pushes everyone into the creek arms. Elevation matters for ramp usability and for how much shoreline cover is flooded. Read both together before travelling, and treat a calm forecast as the single best predictor of a good day chasing hybrids. Spring and autumn are the strongest seasons.
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The photo at the top of this page is not Lake Tawakoni.
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.
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Pool right now
- 24 hours-0.02 ft → steady
- Storage772,600 acre-ft
- For the dateA little below normal for the date
Reading taken 50 min ago at USGS 08017400, Lk Tawakoni nr Wills Point, TX. Elevation is the surface of the lake above the survey datum, not depth. Source.
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Access
Wills Point - the gauge community southwest of the lake and the nearest town on the interstate side.
Iron Bridge Dam - the dam at the southwestern end and the reference point for the pool.
Lake Tawakoni State Park - the main public park, with camping and the most reliable boat launch.
Point - the small town on the northern shore, with launch access to the upper lake.
Sabine River arm - the upper end of the reservoir, where the white bass run concentrates.
Emory - the county seat north, with groceries, lodging and guide contacts.
Greenville - the larger town northwest, with the broadest services in the area.
Seasons
Spring: the strongest season, with the white bass run finishing in the river arm, hybrids schooling and crappie on the brush.
Summer: hot and windy, with hybrids and whites on the open-water humps early and catfish best after dark.
Fall: cooling water brings bait to the surface and hybrid fishing is at its most visible and most exciting.
Winter: the big blue catfish season, with the largest fish of the year taken drifting the main-lake flats in cold water.
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Questions
What species can you catch on the Lake Tawakoni?
Anglers target Black Crappie, Blue Catfish, Bluegill, Channel Catfish, Hybrid Striped Bass, Largemouth Bass, White Bass, White Crappie on the Lake Tawakoni in Texas.
Where can you access the Lake Tawakoni?
Wills Point - the gauge community southwest of the lake and the nearest town on the interstate side. Iron Bridge Dam - the dam at the southwestern end and the reference point for the pool. Lake Tawakoni State Park - the main public park, with camping and the most reliable boat launch. Point - the small town on the northern shore, with launch access to the upper lake. Sabine River arm - the upper end of the reservoir, where the white bass run concentrates. Emory - the county seat north, with groceries, lodging and guide contacts. Greenville - the larger town northwest, with the broadest service...
When is the best time to fish the Lake Tawakoni?
Spring: the strongest season, with the white bass run finishing in the river arm, hybrids schooling and crappie on the brush. Summer: hot and windy, with hybrids and whites on the open-water humps early and catfish best after dark. Fall: cooling water brings bait to the surface and hybrid fishing is at its most visible and most exciting. Winter: the big blue catfish season, with the largest fish of the year taken drifting the main-lake flats in cold water.
Where are the fishing regulations for the Lake Tawakoni?
Regulations change by season and section. Read the current rules on the Texas agency site: https://tpwd.texas.gov/regulations/outdoor-annual/fishing