2017 Lake Travis Preview
Jonestown, Texas
Feb. 16-19, 2017
Hosted by the City of Jonestown and the Austin Sports Commission
About the Fishery
Lake Travis is an impoundment of the Colorado River. At nearly 19,000 acres, Travis is by no means the biggest pond in Texas, but its fishing potential is much greater than its size. Travis is actually on the rebound since a severe drought left the lake substantially low for several seasons. Thankfully, rains during the last two springs have brought the lake back to normal levels, flooding new shoreline vegetation for both bass and baitfish to use as cover.
Since FLW hasn’t been to Travis all that much throughout the years, the best lake to compare it to would actually be Beaver Lake – minus the abundance of standing timber. Because it is a highland reservoir, Travis is a clear lake with plenty of rocky structure. And with the city of Austin in such close proximity, docks litter the shoreline around much of the lake and provide valuable fishable cover.
Catching bass in Travis isn’t hard, but finding big bites can be. Loads of largemouths make filling a limit fairly easy. While enticing a Texas-sized trophy into biting might be a little tougher to do than on other lakes in the Lone Star State, it certainly isn’t out of the question at Travis.
Last Time
You have to flip pretty far back in the history book to find the last time the Tour stopped at Lake Travis. It was in 2007, and Aaron Hastings won the event with a four-day weight of 40 pounds, 10 ounces. He was one of only two pros to weigh in a limit every day of competition – the tough fishing a result of a severe cold front paired with low water conditions.
The Maryland pro targeted contour breaks under floating docks in the back of Cypress Creek Marina. He kept a drop-shot rigged with 6-pound-test fluorocarbon and a 4-inch Roboworm in his hand throughout most of the event en route to his victory.
What to Expect this Time
The field will be able to spread out much more than last time and will be able to utilize the majority of the lake to catch limits. That includes thousands of acres worth of points, pockets and shoreline cover. It should be a prespawn tournament pending any wild weather patterns. Unlike last time, the plentiful docks on the lake shouldn’t be as much of a dominating factor this time around with the new shoreline cover in play.
Expect to see plenty of bags in the 10- to 13-pound range, with limits in the upper teens being strong. There aren’t a lot of anglers with experience on this lake, but its similarities to Beaver Lake should alleviate some angler uncertainty.
Baits and Techniques
Since the bulk of the fish should be in prespawn mode, expect to see jerkbaits, crankbaits and small swimbaits on almost every pro’s front deck. Jigs and shaky heads should be responsible for some decent catches as well.
Lake Travis is a fantastic pattern fishery, so don’t be surprised if pros run and gun with a few baits that fit their program.
3 Critical Factors
1. Winter weather – Mild or major, the conditions this winter could ultimately determine just how far into the prespawn the fish will be come Feb. 16. If the weather is horribly cold it might keep a lot of fish in their winter patterns longer and could make fishing more difficult. A normal to warm winter will push the lake closer to a hot prespawn bite that will show what Travis can offer.
2. Finding big bites – Catching bass bigger than 4 pounds will be a major factor in this tournament. Weights will be stacked tight, and it will take some better-than-average bites each day to make the cut. Dialing in exactly how to do that will be the $100,000 question.
3. More water – In 2007 the lake was low, forcing anglers to share water, and in turn putting more pressure on the fish. Now, the entire lake will offer fishable water, which will help to not only spread out the anglers, but also offer more water for the pros to pinpoint a productive pattern.
Fantasy Fishing Pick
Since there isn’t a ton of history to guide you, the best bet is to pick local anglers, and Clark Wendlandt of Leander lives just an hour away from Travis. He’s as good a pick as any. Pattern fishermen and guys who do well at Beaver Lake are good choices too. Think Andy Morgan or Bryan Thrift.