Looking for info on spring white bass run. I spend very little time in freshwater, but looking at chasing a few white bass this spring. I'm in central Texas and the north Bosque River off Lake Waco and the Brazos River on the north end of Lake Whitney are convenient spots to haul the boat. Anyone have experience/insight with either of these two spots?

TIA and GigEm !!

If you have a boat, launch at Flat Rock Park on Waco and go up the N Bosque as far as you can. Waco is full so it should be a good year.

Should I throw small jigs, rattle traps, mepps type spinners?

Any of those will work. But what I use is 1/8 or 1/16 oz jigs, roadrunners, rooster tails, sassy shad or other small swim bait types. 1/16 oz roadrunners are usually my go to lure for there.

Thanks

You're welcome. I know some folks that go to the Brazos above Whitney, but I've never fished there. It's a further trek from where I am. The N Bosque should be fire this year.

Grew up catching white bass by the hundreds on Whitney and the Brazos.
- Acme Kastmaster Spoon - for casting. I like plain silver.
- Heddon Tiny Torpedo - topwater. Clear. I've caught one on each treble hook plenty of times when they're schooling good.
- Bomber Slab Spoon - for jigging. I keep one of these on my key ring to remind me of my grandpa and family roots. No paint left on it.

You can go to Lake Belton during the shad spawn and catch all you want. Please keep them. There are way too many in there.

We making this the official 2024 WB thread?

Anyone fish village creek, Silsbee area?

Andrew Dufresne said:

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We making this the official 2024 WB thread?

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May as well.

If there's any info on the Nueces I would be most interested.

Either missed it or it didn't happen past two years. Not sure there is enough water for the 59 bridge or the county park south of Three Rivers.

Okay, when does the spawn happen and is this in the creeks and river going into the lake? Sorry, you have peaked my interest…

I do really well on Bomber model A crank baits as well. White, or the perch/shad color scheme ones. Otherwise it's a white roadrunner with spinner.

Yes, creeks and rivers that feed reservoirs. They spawn in the moving water. Which means that they will also spawn on windy points. It has started in the southern part of the state and starts later the further north you go.

Plus, the skinnier/smaller water you go (i.e. way up rivers/creeks), the more you'll need to downsize your baits. It's hard to beat a small white, smoke or chartreuse curly tailed grub on a tiny jighead or a Clouser when they get tight and skinny.

ecoag80 said:

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Okay, when does the spawn happen and is this in the creeks and river going into the lake? Sorry, you have peaked my interest…

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Late April and early May. They'll be on the shoreline of the main lake. Just look for a bunch of herons on the bank. They'll be there for the shad. There will be white bass, largemouth and smallmouth there looking for the easy meal. It happens for about the first hour of the day for several weeks. It's not just Belton this happens on. Although Belton is one of only a few lakes in the state with smallmouth.

Thank you

BurrOak said:

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If you have a boat, launch at Flat Rock Park on Waco and go up the N Bosque as far as you can. Waco is full so it should be a good year.

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that's exactly what I was going to say. go way way up and find a gravel bar and fish behind it in the eddy. or find a long hole and troll with some chartreuse jigs.

ecoag80 said:

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Okay, when does the spawn happen and is this in the creeks and river going into the lake? Sorry, you have peaked my interest…

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when i had my boat i fished the north bosque religiously in the spring. i never had much luck til the first week of march after a good rain.

Once the water temperature hits 72 and stays above 72 through the night the shad will spawn on the very next full moon. It will begin at night. In my experience it starts around midnight or a little after. It will pick up to its peak just before sunrise and can last almost until noon. However once the sun begins to get good and hot around 9:30 or so they will only spawn in areas that are shaded. They will repeat the process again the second night although about half as many. Usually by the third night with the exception of a few they are done.

The shad spawn by attaching their eggs to hard surfaces around the edges that are submerged. Rocks, docks, boat hulls, tree trunks, bridge pilings, buoys, you name it. You can't miss them because they disturb the surface a freight train of shad laying eggs and shooting fertilize with every predatory fish big enough to swallow one chasing them. It's pretty cool stuff.

Learn to use a cast net and catch live shad. Use live shad for bait. Take home lots of WB. Fill up freezer with White Bass fillets and not worry about only being able to keep only three speckled trout in the bay.

The shad spawn typically will last a month or so from what I have seen

SGOfishingAg04 said:

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The shad spawn by attaching their eggs to hard surfaces around the edges that are submerged. Rocks, docks, boat hulls, tree trunks, bridge pilings, buoys, you name it.

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Don't forget leg hairs and waders.

This is one throw. Crazy easy when they are on the bulkhead.

I white bass fished my first time in Livingston with a buddy this summer. We didn't catch any, but watched a boat about 50 yards from me destroy the white bass. Frustrating as hell....but made me laugh because I've been on the other side of that in my boat fishing saltwater LOL. We definitely don't know what we're doing white bass fishing....yet.

Crossed over the Nueces at Three Rivers this afternoon. It looked muddy but not high.

It is going to be a good year on the lake waco rivers. the water is rolling better than it has in a long time!

Yeah but you have to go to Waco....

76Ag said:

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Yeah but you have to go to Waco....

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lol! oh come on! hahaha.

Has anybody heard of them running anywhere close in the Austin area?

1staggie said:

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Has anybody heard of them running anywhere close in the Austin area?

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San Gabriel river. Google the Steps. Near Circleville. Go catch as many as you can. I hate white bass!

You're right. I guess I should have elaborated better. Not all the shad in the entire lake will spawn at once. It's not as spread out like largemouth, but it will go on for 2-4 weeks. It peaks substantially on that full moon. On larger impoundments there can be a good number of spawns. They'll all happen at different times. The water temp variation will play into the equation too. It's as if you divided the lake into different sections and each section has its own shad spawn. Of course we don't know these sections or, at least I don't think there's been enough serious research into shad to determine anything of the like. Threadfin shad being as pelagic as they are they likely change from season to season in any case.

Another note I forgot to mention is most of the lakes I fish and guide on in North Texas get two shad spawns. There will be another in the fall. I know most research says that the threadfin will be the only shad to spawn twice (3-4 if ideal conditions) I catch gizzard shad in early winter whose size says at least some gizzards spawn twice. Threadfin can reabsorb their eggs and develop them back in spring. I'm unsure if gizzards can. Again I think there is a ton still to be learned about shad we don't know. There are things I've come to know and rely on after 30+ years on the water, but even then I scratch my head some days.

Oh man one day we're gonna have to go fishing and I'll tell you the story of me and this girl I was dating. Our late night skinny dipping over around my hometown of Crockett and the shad spawn happened to coincide. . She was MORTIFIED! I thought longnose or a bowfin was gonna chomp my personal shad off before I could get us out onto the boat ramp.

Ok folks. It oughta be starting anytime. Any news on the Nueces?

Are they biting at the Steps yet? What about the Guadalupe?