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Lake Texoma fishing conditions

Texas · Red River / Oklahoma border · 74,686 acres · max 100 ft

The striper lake that reproduces naturally

Sample dataUpdated October 19, 2026 — 2:04 AM
8.4out of 10

Current conditions

Excellent

Fishing score 84/100

How this score is calculated

Water temperature18.3 / 20

66°F and falling (-1°F / 3 days) against a 55–72°F active band.

Barometric pressure10.1 / 15

30.37 inHg and steady (-0.03 / 24 h).

Wind7.0 / 10

19 mph out of the N. Strong wind limits boat control and clean presentations.

Water clarity10.0 / 10

1.9 ft of visibility. Good working clarity for both reaction and finesse baits.

Water level8.5 / 10

+2.4 ft from normal pool and rising (+1.4 ft / 7 days).

Moon & solunar5.2 / 10

56% illumination. Quarter moon — weaker feeding periods, rely on light change.

Seasonal pattern10.0 / 10

Fall pattern is fully established, with light flow on a current-driven fishery.

Sky & rain15.0 / 15

45% cloud, 82°F air, 0 in of rain in 24 h.

What should I do today?

The single highest-percentage pattern for the conditions right now.

TargetStriped Bass
Depth10–35 ft
LocationOpen-water bait schools, river channels, dam tailraces and long points
TechniqueLive bait planer boards / vertical jigging
Lure1 oz flutter spoon or 5 in swimbait
ColorChrome / pearl white
RetrieveVertical lift-drop or steady mid-column pull
Best window6:16 AM – 9:01 AM
WhyWater temperature is holding near 66°F, so the fall pattern is stable.

Backup pattern

Suspended live bait over channel edges for catfish — Big blues follow the striper schools; drifting cut shad over 25–40 ft flats is the standard rig.

Right now

Current conditions

Water temp

66°F

▼ -1°F / 3 days

Air temp

82°F

45% cloud cover

Wind

19 mph

Out of the N

Pressure

30.37"

▬ Stable pressure

Water level

+2.4 ft

▲ +1.4 ft / 7 days

Clarity

1.9 ft

Light flow

Rain (24 h)

0"

No meaningful runoff

Moon

56%

First Quarter · solunar 12/100

Sunrise

6:41 AM

Low-light window opens 25 min earlier

Sunset

5:41 PM

Evening window runs the last 2 hours

Season

Fall

Pattern driving today's plan

Best window

6:16 AM

Through 9:01 AM

Timing

Today's fishing windows

12 AM6 AM12 PM6 PM11 PM
  • Solunar minor 212:38 AM – 1:38 AM
  • Solunar major 26:08 AM – 8:08 AM
  • Morning prime window6:16 AM – 9:01 AM
  • Sunrise6:41 AM
  • Solunar minor 112:38 PM – 1:38 PM
  • Evening window3:41 PM – 6:16 PM
  • Sunset5:41 PM
  • Solunar major 16:08 PM – 8:08 PM

Structure

Lake structure and depth zones

Today: 10–35 ft — Striped Bass0 ft25 ft50 ft75 ft100 ftShoreline / bankShallow flatDrop-offOffshore humpLedgeMain channelSecondary point
Typical structure profile for Lake Texoma: mid-lake humps and rock piles, red and washita river channels, long sand points, rip-rap at the dam. Average depth 37 ft, maximum 100 ft.
  • Mid-lake humps and rock piles
  • Red and Washita river channels
  • Long sand points
  • Rip-rap at the dam
  • Submerged creek beds in Little Mineral

Substrate

Bottom composition and why it matters

  • Sand 26%

    Clean bottom for bait schools and sight-feeding fish, but little cover — look for the edge where sand meets something else.

  • Rock 18%

    Holds heat in spring and crayfish year-round — the first place smallmouth and staging bass set up.

  • Clay 16%

    Holds hard bottom in stained water and dumps the most colour after rain. Crankbait banks.

  • Gravel 15%

    Primary spawning substrate. Fish stack on gravel transitions when water hits the 58–66°F band.

  • Mud 14%

    Warms fastest in late winter and holds wintering bait, but goes dead in the summer heat.

  • Timber 5%

    Vertical cover fish use to change depth without leaving structure — key on standing timber during frontal swings.

  • Vegetation 4%

    Oxygen, shade and ambush cover. The outside grass edge is the highest-percentage line on most lakes.

  • Brush / artificial 2%

    Man-made brush piles and docks concentrate crappie and bass, especially where they sit on a depth change.

Depth

Depth guide for today

Depth bands for today — adjusted for the fall pattern, current water temperature, cloud cover and wind.
SpeciesDepth todayActivityWhere they are here
Striped Bass10–35 ftHighLive shad on planer boards in 20–35 ft is the year-round producer; topwater schooling fish appear over humps at daybreak from July on.
Catfish12–30 ftHighBig blues follow the striper schools; drifting cut shad over 25–40 ft flats is the standard rig.
Smallmouth Bass10–25 ftHighRock bluffs and rip-rap on the Oklahoma side hold decent smallmouth in 8–18 ft.
Crappie10–20 ftHighBridge pilings and brush at 14–22 ft.

Targets

Target species at this water

Striped Bass

Live shad on planer boards in 20–35 ft is the year-round producer; topwater schooling fish appear over humps at daybreak from July on.

Active temp
55–72°F
Structure
Open-water bait schools, river channels, dam tailraces and long points
Technique
Live bait planer boards / vertical jigging
Bait
Live gizzard shad or herring
Lure
1 oz flutter spoon or 5 in swimbait (4"–7")
Color
Chrome / pearl white
Retrieve
Vertical lift-drop or steady mid-column pull
Best time
Dawn and the hour either side of dark

Runs up major tributaries in spring at 55–65°F, suspends over the thermocline through summer, and schools on the surface chasing shad once water falls under 70°F.

Catfish

Big blues follow the striper schools; drifting cut shad over 25–40 ft flats is the standard rig.

Active temp
60–85°F
Structure
River channels, holes below points, flats adjacent to deep water
Technique
Anchored cut bait / drifting flats
Bait
Cut shad, skipjack, chicken liver
Lure
Circle hook 6/0–8/0 on a Santee rig (Palm-size bait chunks)
Color
n/a — scent driven
Retrieve
Static or 0.5–0.8 mph controlled drift
Best time
Sunset to midnight; all day when water is stained

Pushes shallow to spawn in rock and bank holes at 70–78°F, then feeds on channel edges at night through summer and gorges on shad in the fall.

Smallmouth Bass

Rock bluffs and rip-rap on the Oklahoma side hold decent smallmouth in 8–18 ft.

Active temp
52–74°F
Structure
Rock transitions, gravel flats, current seams and offshore humps
Technique
Ned rig / drop shot
Bait
Crayfish, leeches
Lure
2.75 in Ned-rig finesse worm (2.5"–4")
Color
Green pumpkin / smoke purple
Retrieve
Drag and pause, 3–5 second pauses
Best time
Mid-morning on cold fronts, low light in summer

Holds deep rock until water hits 48°F, moves to gravel spawning flats at 58–64°F, then splits between shallow current and 20–30 ft humps through summer.

Crappie

Bridge pilings and brush at 14–22 ft.

Active temp
50–72°F
Structure
Brush piles, standing timber, bridge pilings and creek-channel bends
Technique
Vertical jigging / live-scope casting
Bait
Minnows under a slip float
Lure
1/16 oz hair or plastic jig (1.5"–2")
Color
Chartreuse / black-blue in stained water
Retrieve
Hold still above the fish, tiny shakes
Best time
Late afternoon and full dark under lights

Moves to shallow wood at 56–62°F to spawn, then relates to 12–20 ft brush all summer, and follows shad into creek arms in fall.

Patterns

Season-by-season patterns

Winter

46–54°F

Stripers pack into the river channels in 30–50 ft. Vertical jigging a 1 oz slab under the birds is deadly on calm days.

Spring

56–74°F

The run up the Red and Washita starts at 55–60°F; fish shallow rock and current seams with swimbaits.

Summer

82–86°F

Fish suspend over the 25–40 ft thermocline. Live bait early, then sinking topwater plugs over surfacing schools.

Fall

60–78°F

The best surface action of the year: gulls over shad balls on main-lake humps from late September to November.

Outlook

7-day fishing forecast

DayScoreWaterWindPressureLevelClarityBest speciesTechniqueBest window
Today84Excellent66°F19 mph N30.37"+2.4 ft1.9 ftStriped BassLive bait planer boards / vertical jigging6:16 AM – 9:01 AM
Tue78Very Good65°F2 mph SE29.68"-2.2 ft1.7 ftStriped BassLive bait planer boards / vertical jigging6:17 AM – 9:02 AM
Wed87Excellent67°F4 mph W30.27"-1.7 ft1.4 ftStriped BassLive bait planer boards / vertical jigging6:18 AM – 9:03 AM
Thu91Excellent65°F5 mph SE30.32"-0.1 ft1.8 ftStriped BassLive bait planer boards / vertical jigging6:19 AM – 9:04 AM
Fri79Very Good68°F15 mph N30.27"+1.7 ft2 ftStriped BassLive bait planer boards / vertical jigging6:20 AM – 9:05 AM
Sat88Excellent66°F19 mph S30.01"+1.7 ft1.4 ftStriped BassLive bait planer boards / vertical jigging6:21 AM – 9:06 AM
Sun87Excellent69°F6 mph SW29.85"-3.6 ft2.1 ftStriped BassLive bait planer boards / vertical jigging6:21 AM – 9:06 AM

The water

About Lake Texoma

Texoma is one of the few reservoirs where striped bass spawn successfully, which means a self-sustaining population and a liberal limit. The lake is wind-swept, stained and split between the Red River and Washita River arms, with big sand and shale flats and mid-lake humps that concentrate shad.

Surface area
74,686 acres
Max depth
100 ft
Average depth
37 ft
Elevation
617 ft
Typical clarity
2 ft
Annual level swing
12 ft
Coordinates
33.920, -96.660
Region
Red River / Oklahoma border

Local knowledge

Expert notes

  • Texoma's wind is a tool. A 12–18 mph south wind piling into a mid-lake hump stacks shad on the upwind edge and is worth more than any lure choice.
  • When generation starts at Denison Dam the current pulls bait through the channel; stripers feed hard for the first 90 minutes of flow.

Logistics

Access, ramps and boating

marina

Highport Marina

Full-service marina, fuel and live bait on the Texas side.

boat ramp

Little Mineral Ramp

Good multi-lane access to the mid-lake humps.

shore

Denison Dam tailrace

Excellent bank fishing for striper and catfish when generation is running — check release schedules first.

Rules

Regulations

  • A Texas or Oklahoma license with a Lake Texoma endorsement covers the whole lake.
  • Striped bass: 10 per day, no more than 2 over 20 in (verify current rule before the trip).
  • Live bait possession limits apply; check the current bait rules.
  • Running lines are regulated differently in each state's portion.

Always verify current regulations with the relevant state wildlife agency before fishing. Texas Parks & Wildlife Department

Transparency

Data sources

Where this data comes from

Conditions are modelled from each water's documented climate, structure and seasonal patterns. Modules marked “Live data integration pending” are not yet pulling from their API, so those values are clearly labelled as sample data rather than presented as real-time readings.

  • Weather API

    Pending

    NOAA / National Weather Service — Air temperature, wind, cloud cover, rainfall and barometric pressure with a 7-day forecast.

  • Water Level & Flow API

    Pending

    USGS Water Services — Reservoir stage, discharge and 7-day level trend from the nearest gauge.

  • Water Temperature

    Pending

    USGS / NOAA buoys — Surface water temperature and its multi-day trend.

  • Tide & Current API

    Pending

    NOAA CO-OPS — Tide predictions, current direction and speed for coastal zones.

  • Moon & Solunar

    Live

    Computed on-site — Moon phase, illumination and solunar major/minor periods are calculated from date and coordinates.

  • Water Clarity

    Pending

    Satellite imagery + angler reports — Visibility estimates by lake arm, refined by submitted fishing reports.

  • Fishing Regulations

    Pending

    State wildlife agencies — License, size and creel rules, linked to the official agency page for verification.

  • Map Data

    Pending

    Bathymetry + access point database — Depth zones, structure locations and boat ramps for the lake infographic.

Keep reading

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