Oklahoma Fishing Guides

Shore Lunch Offered by Thomas Guide Service

 Shore Lunch Offered by Thomas Guide Service

New for 2023! 

Shore Lunch Trips available on the Lower Illinois River, Lake Tenkiller, and Broken Bow Lake with Thomas Guide Service

 

Guided fishing trips leave at 6am and fish until noon followed by a freshly prepared Shore Lunch while on the river or lake!
 
Lunch will consist of your freshly caught fish, fried potatoes along with other delicious sides. Sit back and relax while your fresh and tasty meal is prepared.
 
This is the ultimate fishing trip experience!!

Oklahoma Trout Stocking Update

Extreme spring and summer weather conditions have prompted the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation to postpone regular trout stockings until water quality conditions improve. The area affected is the Lower Illinois River trout fishery located below Lake Tenkiller near Gore.

“Heavy spring rains and a period of extreme heating have combined to create unusually warm water in Tenkiller Reservoir,” said Jim Burroughs, east central region fisheries supervisor for the Wildlife Department. These waters are released through turbines used for hydropower generation and flow directly in to the Lower Illinois River trout stream.

“Water temperatures are approaching potentially lethal limits for trout. Regular stockings, as well as those temporarily postponed will begin as soon as conditions improve that will allow survival of the stocked trout,” Burroughs said.

According to biologists with the Wildlife Department, trout that were in the water before temperatures warmed to near lethal limits have a better chance of adapting to the temperatures and may find springs and other refuges where colder temperatures may exist.

Anglers are still having good success catching largemouth bass on topwater lures, and striped bass fishing is currently excellent on shad all along the river. Anglers are also catching channel catfish, walleye and saugeye.

The Lower Illinois River is one of the only two year-round trout fisheries in the state and is managed by the Wildlife Department. The other is the Lower Mountain Fork River in Beaver’s Bend State Park, below the Lake Broken Bow dam.

Tenkiller Bass Biting


Darris Smith sends us this report from Lake Tenkiller:

The water temp is rising and the bass are too! I went last weekend for a 3 day weekend. Thursday night a front moved in. Pretty much tough fishing on Friday, cold and windy. I did manage to catch a few and this Smallmouth on a clown colored rogue. I had another try to kill it 3 times but missed it. I couldn’t get it to hit at anything else.

Saturday turned off much nicer, still windy and cool, but warming in the afternoon. I caught some real nice large mouth. A few 2 pounders, lots of 13 inchers, and this one in the 5# range.

Sunday was another good day. I had caught at least 15 in the 1 to 2 pound range, mostly on jigs. The spinner bait bite turned on after things started warming up. They seemed to have been on the shallow, wind blown, muddy banks. When they hit, you knew it. It was like it was there only chance for a meal and they were taking it now! They would hit it like a truck rolling down hill the other direction. This one almost took my rod & reel with him!

I’m going again this weekend, well, at least Saturday before the front comes in on Sunday, should make for some great fishing.

Editor’s Note: Thanks for the report Darris! You should go Pro!