Having heard and read positive reports, I was excited to visit Hat & Star for the first time with my 13-year old son. It didn't disappoint. We stayed onsite and fished Thursday afternoon through Saturday morning. The property is well maintained and generally easy to navigate. The primary lake—there is a small secondary pond fronting the cabin—is fun to fish. The banks were mostly tightly mowed and could have been bank fished around maybe 1/3-½ the perimeter. It offers a variety of depth and structure. The lake appears full. Snot grass is pretty solid for 3’-10’ around most of the perimeter with some in the interior. We didn't encounter other aquatic vegetation, just trees and stumps. Watch out for the many slightly submerged stumps as you move around in the club boat—they put some licks on your trolling motor and prop. We ventured around the main lake in the club ‘s 12-foot jon boat (no electronics) extensively. We found little action in the bays where the water was rather still. The bites and fish were very few and far between in those areas as well as around the perimeter in general. The south end, opposite the main dam, was fairly productive but the channel through the middle running south to north produced the most fish. In total we were able to boat over 30 LMB and one bluegill. The largest LMB were 5.3 & 5.6 lbs. Congrats to my son for those “PBs” on successive days! I managed to land a few few 4+ lb’ers to save some face. All in, solid volume with a handful of nice fish and only 3 culls. The fish fought hard and were all healthy. As others have noted, there is an amazing amount of forage in this lake. The shad activity on top is amazing at times…but it didn't result in more fish when we chased it. Lipless cranks, running 3’-10’ were by far the most productive. Soft plastics t-rigged with mid weight (3/8 and ½ oz) were a very distant second.

For those considering lodging, be aware it's currently very basic—small, separate building nearby the sleeping quarters houses the only shower, sink and toilet. Linens, pillows, etc. are provided. It's plenty comfortable for a couple of guys intent on fishing if your expectations aren't too high. I spoke with the land owners a few times. They were very kind and shared some plans to invest in continued improvements to the property (e.g., improved boat ramp, lodging) which they recently inherited, I believe. Of course, I thanked them for providing PWFaccess to their fantastic property.