I hit the Ben Wheeler west lake yesterday morning from dawn until noon, and it was tough fishing indeed. In spite of the high water, the coontail was the thickest I’ve ever seen on that lake - much worse than last year. I ended up with 11 bass. Five were dinks, and 5 were over 2 lbs. Nothing big, but I did enjoy catching my biggest fish of the day - just under 4lbs - on an antique Rex spoon with 6” black pork eel.  The other nice fish all hit on the surface - on either Ribbit Frogs or Ribbit Top Toads.  The little fish hit wacky-rigged Senkos and a chartreuse/orange belly Rattletrap. Visibility was about 24-30", and the water temp was above 86°.  I was surprised to find a 3.5 to 4-foot alligator in the lake. On the way out, I noticed that the weeds on the east lake have rendered it almost unfishable - maybe OK from a kayak, but not with a trolling motor.

Posted By: Tom Dillon

Here's what the east lake looks like: