Staying at Gaylord Texan, wanting to fish nearby
Posted by magnoliamarauder@reddit | askdfw | View on Reddit | 8 comments
Hello! I’ll be staying at the Gaylord Texan in a month and saw that it’s basically situated right on Grapevine Lake so I was wondering about the fishing there. I’m coming from Montana where trout fishing is king, so I’m really excited for the chance to try to catch some bass and crappie while I’m down south again. I was mostly hoping that someone could share whether there is decent public access, and if there’s anywhere nearby I could rent a kayak or something? I couldn’t figure out whether the Texan rents them out or not, but I’m sure I may need some kind of watercraft to get to where the fish are. Thank you so much!
NaturalNose5002@reddit
If you fish from shore, sandbass point is called that for a reason. If you see the gulls hitting the water, they’re feeding off the shad that the sandbass push up to feed on themselves. Seen it many a time from my jet ski. Meadowmere park used to rent kayaks, not sure if they still do?
25lighter@reddit
Walk over to horseshoe trail and from there you can rent a kayak and paddle boards. Fish away in that cove.
y6x@reddit
Here's a map with a chart in the top right-hand corner showing which of the parks have 'paddle sport' rentals. https://www.swf-wc.usace.army.mil/grapevine/maps/GRAPEVINE_LAKE_PUBLIC_MAP.pdf
Rockledge Park is one of them, and also apparently has a store that sells nightcrawlers, so may be promising. Details of kayak rentals are also on their page.
They offer the tip, "There is a Tire Reef located in front of the Grapevine spillway. It is located off of the center of the spillway about 100ft from the shoreline. " https://rockledgepark.com/fishing/
Two more pages from the Texas Department of Wildlife:
https://tpwd.texas.gov/boating/paddling-trails/prairies-and-lakes/grapevine-lake/
"Rocky shorelines and boathouses are also good spots for largemouth bass. The water intake near the dam has an air injection area that attracts white bass. Highly successful fishing spots around the trail are McPherson Slough and Lakeview Park."
https://tpwd.texas.gov/fishboat/fish/recreational/lakes/grapevine/
"Grapevine Lake has many dropoffs, underwater boulders, and rocky shorelines that hold largemouth, smallmouth, and spotted bass. The water intake near the dam has an aeration system that attracts white bass. Blue catfish are abundant and can be caught with fresh shad. Crappie can be caught near boat houses and flooded timber."
I found it amusing that you're not the only person that's doing this - See this thread here for someone doing exactly the same thing, (staying at the Gaylord): https://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/246740-grapevine-lake-tx/
Also see: https://www.omniafishing.com/w/grapevine-lake-fishing-reports/fishing-patterns?srsltid=AfmBOoo4P1ppZPSyiAHluCeXh_HfNZeGIurJzGD6f5YCkdOb2TaWINTo
magnoliamarauder@reddit (OP)
Incredibly helpful, thank you so much for all the links and help with research! That is pretty funny that someone else had the exact same question—right down to being there for a conference as well! Thank you again.
ERCOT_Prdatry_victum@reddit
Fishing guides will tahe you fishing and you can donate or release the fish you catch.
magnoliamarauder@reddit (OP)
I don’t think I can afford a charter or a guide this trip unfortunately, so hoping to find a way to do it DIY
KindaJaded@reddit
You’ll catch some crappie first and most.
magnoliamarauder@reddit (OP)
Completely fine with me, never caught crappie before haha