Catfishing is good throughout Livingston, but especially productive are some old lakebeds that were inundated when the dam was built. Places such as Hickman Lake, Horseshoe Lake, Hardison Slough and Halls Lake are a few of the spots still producing excellent catfishing.

The Trinity River channel winds across the lakebed, with shallow flats and bars along the side. The upper lake in particular is full of old tree stickups, with some still standing farther down the lake near the Trinity River channel. These areas produce outstanding numbers of outsized cats. One favorite area for local catters is a spot of several hundred acres known as “the Jungle.” Aptly named for its dense, woody cover, this catfish honeyhole is in the lake’s upper end across from White Rock Creek.

Another spot favored by local catmen is the Highway 190 bridge. Almost two miles long, the causeway near Onalaska crosses Livingston close to its midsection. Concrete walkways lead to excellent bank-fishing areas where hundreds of people fish day and night year ‘round. Catfish congregate there to gorge on huge concentrations of shad.

Another hotspot for line-stretchers is the tailrace below the dam. Chances of hooking a trophy-class channel, blue or flathead in the roiling waters are excellent.

Information: Trinity River Authority, (936) 365-2292. Accommodations: Polk County Chamber of Commerce, (409) 327-4929. Guide service: Dave Cox’s Palmetto Guide Service, (936) 291-9602.

LAKE TAWAKONI
Just 28 miles east of Dallas, this 36,700-acre Sabine River Authority lake serves up excellent fishing for the big cat trio: flatheads, blues and channels.

One- to 3-pound channel cats are abundant; a three-hour fishing trip often results in 50 landings. Most fall for sponge baits, either commercial cheese products or homemade chicken-blood brews, fished in 12 to 14 feet of water around flooded bois d’arc trees near the lake’s north end.

The lake-record blue cat weighed just shy of 70 pounds, and locals contend that bigger blues swim there. Most aficionados drift-fish with cut shad along channel drops and adjacent flats, using special homemade sinkers constructed with 6-inch lengths of shoestring. Lead weights are inserted in each shoestring and the ends sealed using a soldering iron. This custom-made snagless sinker drags bottom as the boat drifts. A hook baited with shad chunks is placed on a leader line above the sinker at a depth where blue cats are likely to be holding. With 80 to 90 feet of line out, the angler drifts with the wind or uses a trolling motor for propulsion.

Tawakoni flatheads reach enormous sizes but remain almost untouched by rod-and-reel anglers. Trotlines baited with live sunfish or goldfish baits account for many 18- to 70-pounders each year, and have produced at least two 100-pound-plus fish -- a 108-pounder, the former lake record, and a 110-pounder that is said to be the heaviest legal flathead catch recorded in Texas. The lake’s upper reaches produce most of the big ones.

Tawakoni’s abundant channel cats average a pound or two apiece, but sometimes top 15 pounds.

Information: Sabine River Authority of Texas, (903) 598-2216. Accommodations: Lake Tawakoni Area Chamber of Commerce, (903) 447-3020. Guide service: Little D’s Guide Service, 1-800-269-7227.