I am an old Dallas member that’s recently come back to the active roster.. I fished the Cody Ranch about 3 years ago, before it was leased by the club… It previously made a huge impression on me…. The fish were routinely 3-5 pounds, with a few 5+... the action had been nonstop on top water over the grass on Upper Hart. It was August and 105 degrees by 10AM…the water felt like power plant reservoir water…. Fast Forward to last Tuesday… I wanted to treat my buddy Jim, from Houston, to a memorable day of fishing in Oklahoma…  He was passing through on his way to Colorado and had stopped for a day to visit me in Stuart where I’m building a family retreat…Lucky us… The Cody Ranch was available and only 30 minutes away! We were encouraged to try Twin Lakes this time…GREAT CALL!!! We were somewhat lazy getting on the water and we missed the first 1-1/2 hours of daylight… But the fish waited for us!  As soon as we launched off the dam separating the two lakes we were pushed east by a gentle breeze toward a substantial lily pad shore. We cruised south towards the shaded timber and started working the pads with Dean Rojas Spro Bronzeye 65 frogs… It was worthy of TV!  Gorgeous targets to throw at, black clear water with timber, laydowns and pads mixed here and there… a creek and a wooded shady hillside backdrop…absolutely some of the prettiest fishing I’ve ever been a part of… The strikes were ferocious…our bellies are still bruised. The fish looked like fiberglass models!...thick across the shoulders, deep coloration, flawlessly healthy… We ran out of time on Lower Twin before we knew it…never even threw a lure in Upper Twin… I had reserved the Hart lakes for the afternoon… So after a 40 fish morning, a sandwich and a coke, off we went to Upper Hart, yes, Upper Hart… First real mistake of the day… We were supposed to start on lower Hart but got the info backwards…( both Hart lakes are quite mossy though)... Way too much filament moss for a 2 man johnboat and a breeze… I recommend a float tube, kayak with anchor, or a hovercraft…this lake is really subject to the breeze and you must have a weed strategy before fishing it… We didn’t and it was too much work poling around with an oar and an anchor, unable to fish with the trolling motor… After a dozen 15-18 inch bass and 9 harvested fish under 14” our patience and fishing appetites vanished… We got into deeper water along the dam and put the trolling motor in to go back to the launch point. Then, as I’m getting up to speed, Jim, throwing in pads at the north end of the dam promptly landed a good 4.5 pounder and then next cast, same spot, a 4 pounder…I wasn’t seduced, kept going back to the launch point. We got out and took the rest of the day off to savor our morning memories of Twin Lakes… Next time I’m gonna try Peach Tree and Crabgrass… I’ll bring my float tube and kayak (with anchor!) just in case the grass is too thick.

    If any of you go to Cody Ranch, you’ll be pleased with the fishing (...I’m letting the cat out of the bag talking so openly about Twin Lakes…but they are REALLY FUN to fish… Great fishing and pretty fishing are two different things. If you get a shot at having both, you should take advantage of the opportunity…try Twin Lakes!) By the way, if you plan to come up, give me a call, stop by and say hi. If you are fishing early and late one day, you could fish the morning, eat your lunch at my place, take a shower, get a 30 minute power nap and be back on the water by 3:00 then fish till dusk…

Tom Jones
214-493-9934