Jeems Bayou

[B_Rod]

Posted on Lone Star Chronicles... Photo of the Day


Here’s a photo that gives us a peek at wintertime on the bayou as dozens of anglers converge on overgrown islands of hydrilla to stalk the schools of white perch below. The photo was taken by my son, Dan, a few weeks ago at Jeems Bayou, located just on the other side of the Texas/Louisiana border. The flotilla included all manner of jon boats, some motorized and some paddled; canoes, kayaks, and duck boats; and a few water craft which I couldn't categorized, but which struck me as homemade vessels, probably thought up in someone's shed, and odd looking but effective. Patiently, each angler paddled or motored over to a hole in the hydrilla and then sat there, quietly, without much movement or noise except for slight jerks of the hand as they jigged the bait into the gaps in the hydrilla. And their patience was rewarded; they pulled out one fish and then another, and another still, and on and on it went. We couldn’t stay long, but we watched a couple of boaters load out coolers full of the white perch, which by the way, are known as crappie here in North Texas.

The bayou sits high on the northernmost arm of Caddo Lake, which is known for it’s great fishing and scenic bayous with large populations of cypress trees. Caddo is also one of only two natural lakes in Texas, and there’s an old Texas legend that the lake was caused by an earthquake in 1812 although most geologist believe it was formed gradually. Jeems Bayou intersects Highway 2 between Gray, Texas and Vivian, Louisiana.

To see a larger version of the picture, go to: Lone Star Chronicles - Photo of the Day and click on the picture.

[Acuna]

Nice! I could use a cooler full of crappie.

[TDub]

Nice! I could use a cooler full of crappie.

Yes I could too. If anybody wants to go perch jerking on travis let me know, have a hankerin' for some fresh fish. Maybe after bass champs. Andy and I discovered a way to catch some king size white perches back in the day and I have been wanting to try to see if it still works.

[Fish Finder]

I'm down for that

[FearandLoathing]

Here are some of my boating pictures of Caddo. My favorite lake. Bree and I go 2 times a year to a hot rod boat gathering on the Red River and the group always does a Fri. Caddo ride.

WE DON'T CATCH MANY FISH BUT WE SCARE THE HELL OUT OF A LOT OF THEM

[Fish Finder]

I need to visit that lake. Those pics are awesome

[tmart]

Great picture and I love your site.

I'd always heard that Caddo was Texas' only natural lake. So when I read your statement I did some searching and found this: News flash: Texas has a second natural lake! « Millard Fillmore's Bathtub

I'd never heard of Big Lake before. I couldn't find any pictures of it either. Is this the second natural lake in Texas?

[CoastalBent]

I wouldn't call Big Lake a lake... I always thought Caddo was the only natural lake... unless you count Sabine lake, which is also natural, but I'd call it an estuary before I'd call it a lake.

[docb]

There are a few other small natural lakes in Texas. Anyone heard of Lake Charolette, Lake Miller, or Mud Lake. How about Lake Anahuac. If you know about these lakes then you most likely grew up not too far from where I did. Actually I used to catch quite a few bass out of the first two that I mentioned. Really neat places to fish. It will make you feel like Amos Moses.

[tmart]

I've always heard only one as well. It was always a very curious statistic to me since I grew up within 20 miles of 4 "named" lakes and probably another dozen unnamed smaller lakes not to mention two rivers (one of them the big one), numerous bayous, cut-offs, sloughs, swamps and borrow pits.

I had never heard of Lakes Charlotte or Miller but they look really cool. Welcome to Bayou Preservation Association

And then I starting thinking about the book Plugger that I just finished. It's about Rudy Grigar the legendary Texas fishing guide. In the first chapter he mentions fishing in several "natural" lakes as a kid. He first started fishing in an old natural unnamed oxbow along the Brazos. He later mentions several other "natural" lakes by name: Manor and Eagle Nest Lakes in West Columbia and Alcorn Lake in Sugarland. Alcorn Lake "was a good enough bass lake to require a full-time warden".