Top Anglers File Fishing Reports for Catching Bass on Lake Palestine in Texas
TL;DR
- Lake Palestine is a 25,560 acre lake in northeast Texas, with a maximum depth of 58 feet.
- The lake is fed by the Kickappoo Creek and the Neches River, and has a dam at the south end that regulates water levels.
- Lake Palestine is known for its diverse fish population, including Spotted Bass, Largemouth Bass, Crappie, Sunfish, Channel Catfish, and Striped Bass, with largemouth bass being particularly popular.
- There is an abundance of structures in the lake, including timber, shallow vegetation, private docks, and the Highway 155 bridge, which attract fish.
- The lake is popular for fishing in all seasons, with different techniques and baits being effective at different times. During the spring, spinnerbaits and softbody swimbaits are commonly used, while in the summer, flipping docks and targeting deeper ledges is effective. Water clarity can be low at times, and storms can further reduce visibility, so using high contrast baits and increasing blade sizes on tackle can be helpful.
The best baits and techniques have been revealed to make fishing on Lake Palestine more successful.
Lake Palestine covers 25,560 acres in northeast Texas and is moderately deep for the area with a maximum depth of 58 feet. Palestine is fed by the Kickappoo Creek from the northwest side of the Lake and the Neches River on the northeast side of the Lake. Lake Palestine has a dam at the south end where water levels can be regulated.
Lake Palestine is a fantastic fishery for Spotted Bass, Largemouth Bass, Crappie, Sunfish, Channel Catfish, and Striped Bass with largemouth bass as a popular favorite all year long. Top anglers have reported what techniques and tackle hot baits have been creating success on the water throughout the spring (prespawn, spawn and postspawn), summer, fall and winter patterns.
There is an abundance of timber and shallow vegetation in Lake Palestine and private docks and the Highway 155 bridge that splits the lake between north and south sections, all create a lot of structures that hold fish. As the water warms, anglers commonly focus on flipping docks in the summer to find fish while also targeting deeper ledges where largemouth bass have retreated in search of cooler water. General visibility and water clarity can be low at times on Lake Palestine and storm activity can result in even further reduced water clarity. During these events it’s important to use high contrast baits like those found in black and blue colors while also increasing blade sizes on tackle like spinnerbaits for an extra bit of flash
Best Fishing Reports and Baits for Catching Largemouth Bass in the Spring
When breaking down the spring bite on Lake Palestine we consider the full spawn with both the prespawn and post spawn included. Anglers on Lake Palestine have recently reported the top fishing techniques to include Spinnerbaits and softbody swimbaits for the prespawn. Other anglers report shallow diving crankbaits, deep diving crankbaits, and even grass jigs in the post spawn as warmer temps support vegetation growth and transitional fish that have moved off beds into deeper water.
Kate Field reports that during the prespawn, when temps were in the high 40s, she was successful fishing largemouth on rip-rap using spinner baits (she recommended Bassman) on 16 pound Super FC Sniper line and a baitcaster.
Species
Largemouth BassSeason
Spring (Pre-Spawn)
Technique
Spinnerbaits
Structure
Rip Rap
After some cool weather storm activity water temps remained below breeding triggers and visibility became low, but she found success on softbody swimbaits like the Spark Shad from Megabass fed onto a Megabass Okoashira Screwhead 1/16 oz jig using 20 lb braid and a 10 lb flourocarbon leader. In this set up, she targeted laydowns and bright color soft plastics.
Species
Largemouth BassSeason
Spring (Pre-Spawn)
Technique
Soft Swimbaits (Sm/Md)
Structure
Laydowns
Recent cool weather had the water temps a bit low and has had a bit of an impact on growing vegetation. Bass are starting to move up shallow in spots. I had the most success using a spark shad swimbait on an okashira screwhead swimjig head around laydowns, stumps and edges of vegetation that were just starting to green up a bit. Water on north end where I fished is very muddy with about 8 inches of visibility max, so adjust your presentation and colors for this condition. As temps warm up, this lake is going to be on fire.
Best Fishing Reports and Baits for Catching Largemouth Bass in the Summer
Texas can be hot in the summer! That’s not news to anyone, but it’s a major consideration when trying to find largemouth bass in Lake Palestine. Clint Gordon, a sliver level ambassador on Omnia Fishing’s shop-by-lake website recommends fishing swim and structure jigs near docks where bass are trying to find shade and feeding on small bluegill. His recommended hotbait is the Strike King Denny Brauer Structure Jig in ¾ oz and Green Pumpkin
Species
Largemouth BassSeason
Summer
Technique
Swim Jigs
Structure
Docks
Forage
Bluegill
flipping swimming jigs around docks in bream colors
Bass that have moved to deeper spots on Lake Palestine as the water temperatures reach the 90s can be found on ledges and may respond to a dropshot presentation when you find them on your electronics. You may even find spotted bass hanging around the same locations.
Best Fishing Reports and Baits for Catching Largemouth Bass in the Fall
Docks become the favorite targeted structure for largemouth bass on Lake Palestine in the fall. Clint Gordon also recommends targeting docks in the fall using structure jigs. His top producing structure jig is the Strike King Denny Brauer ½ ounce in green pumpkin with the Strike King Rage Craw in the 4 inch green pumpkin variant.
Species
Largemouth BassSeason
Fall
Technique
Structure Jigs
Structure
Docks
Forage
Crawfish
Flip and pitch structure jigs with rage craw trailer around docks and shallow rock walls.
Best Fishing Reports and Baits for Catching Largemouth Bass in the Winter
We’ve received less reporting in the winter months on Lake Palestine but ambassadors have reported success on the Lake using Carolina Rigging techniques and fishing them slowly once water temperatures hit the 50s. Consider Carolina rigging a Zoom Baby Brush Hog in green pumpkin as you work Lake Palestine points and shallow rocky areas and be patient.
For more details about fishing Lake Palestine you can visit the Lake Palestine lake page where you can sort by season and other popular species in the Lake.
You can also get more ideas about popular lakes in the area and baits and techniques mentioned in similar lakes by visiting the Texas state page at Omnia Fishing.
