Hill Country bass and crappie settle into the fall pattern

What's biting

What's next

Expect the creek and cove shad movement to build as nights keep cooling. The 70 to 72°F readings are right in the range where bass start following bait, so early morning and late afternoon should be the best windows for topwater and soft jerkbaits near the backs of creeks and coves. Midday is a good time to slide out to main-lake humps and ridges, where Texas Fish & Game Magazine says the larger fish tend to hold.

The moon is at First Quarter, so light is split between evening and night. Evening feeding periods around dusk deserve attention, and calm, overcast mornings usually fish better than bright, windy ones.

Flow at gauge 08155500 is only 20 cfs, while gauge 08158000 shows 533 cfs. Moving water below the lakes is worth checking if you want to fish current, but lake anglers should expect little change in clarity from inflow unless rain arrives. Look at a cove-by-cove basis for stained or clear water, and favor clearer water if you see debris or off-color patches.

Context

Mid-October is the heart of the shift from summer to fall patterns on Texas Hill Country reservoirs. Surface water is typically still warm early in the month and cools steadily through November, which pushes baitfish toward the backs of creeks and drags bass shallow behind them. This year's readings look on schedule for that transition, neither unusually early nor late. Fall also brings lighter boat traffic once the summer crowd thins out, which tends to make shallow fish less wary. Check current TPWD regulations before keeping any fish.