POWER PLANTS' LAKES
GENERATE CATFISH ACTION
by Tod Nafe for A.C.A.T.S. Catfish Now
Fishermen are always looking for an advantage. Whether looking to gain an edge over a competitor or simply trying to figure out a better way to outsmart fish, some of us will try almost anything.
One clear-cut advantage that all anglers can use is their knowledge of typical water temperatures of their fishing spots. Since fish are cold-blooded creatures, they simply don't have the get-up-and-go in colder waters that they do in warmer conditions. Consequently, fishermen will often have better luck fishing warmer waters.
There's no better place to find warm and stable water temperatures on a year-round basis than at Texas' numerous power plant lakes. These lakes are found throughout most areas of the Lone Star State and provide water sources for cooling electricity-generating plants. One of the by-products of electrical generation is a hot-water discharge, which keeps power plant lakes' water temperature warm even throughout the winter. These warm-water environments and their ample food supplies foster growth and reproduction of plants and fish. Fingerlings can grow to lengths upwards of 20 inches in a two year period in a power plant lake.
But the conditions that facilitate that kind of growth in fish also create their own set of problems. With an abundance of bait fish widely available across power plant lakes, trying to convince a catfish to take your particular offering can be tricky. "These fish have a lot of choices," guide Jeff Snyder of Southwest Fishing Charters in San Antonio said. "On any given day during the summer, I can run the entire length of Calaveras and I'll average a twelve-to-seventeen foot layer of bait fish covering the entire lake."
Because food is plentiful in power plant lakes, fish don't have to feed as aggressively as they do in other lakes. For example, you'll seldom find topwater action in power plant lakes because fish don't have to school up and run bait fish into a little ball at the surface. Snyder jokes that power plant catfish could close their eyes, open their mouths, take off swimming and they'd end up with a mouthful of food.
Wher To Fish - Currents and Topography
Snyder, who guides fishing trips on Braunig and Calaveras near San Antonio, says the big advantage of fishing power plant lakes is the moving currents created by the plants, which oxygenate the water and keep lakes from becoming murky. "The current moving across rocky points, dams and shorelines creates ideal environments for spawning catfish," Snyder said, "and unlike largemouth bass, there can be thousands of catfish trying to spawn in a relatively small area."
And there are other benefits to oxygen-rich warm currents coursing through a lake. The environment is just right for year-round breeding and the growth of plankton, bait fish and game fish "Just like in an aquarium," Snyder says, "if you unplug the aerator, just watch what happens to the water after a few days. Plug it back in and the water clears and the fish become more active."
Guide Johnny Procell of Cajun Guide Outdoors agrees, adding that the Fairfield plant keeps the current moving even when it's not generating electricity and warm water, which keeps algae from over whelming the lake.
