Lake Austin Spring Bite: Slow Mornings, Hot Afternoons

This is Artificial Lure, checking in with your Lake Austin fishing report. We’ve got a mild early‑spring pattern on the lake. A cool, stable high‑pressure system is sitting over Central Texas, keeping skies mostly clear with light north to northeast breeze around 5–10 mph. Morning temps are starting cool in the upper 40s to low 50s, climbing into the upper 60s and low 70s by mid‑afternoon. Barometric pressure is slightly above 30.0 and steady, which usually means a slower morning bite that improves as the sun warms the water. Sunrise is right around 6:45 a.m., with sunset near 6:30 p.m. The most active windows today should bracket those low‑light periods—about an hour after sunrise and the last 90 minutes before dark. Lake Austin isn’t tidal, but downstream Colorado River gauges show a fairly steady flow; no big release swings expected, so current will be gentle, with a bit more movement around the dam. Water clarity on Lake Austin has been running from 3–5 feet on the main lake, a little more stained in the coves. Surface temps have been sitting in the upper 50s to low 60s. That’s classic pre‑spawn bass weather here. Local guides and marina chatter this week report solid numbers of largemouth in the 2–4 pound range, with a few fish pushing 6–7 pounds coming off mid‑lake grass and dock lines. Anglers are also picking up the occasional Guadalupe bass on rocky stretches and some chunky sunfish in the shallower pockets. Bass are sliding up during warm afternoons, staging on secondary points, deeper dock edges, and the outside edges of any remaining grass. In the mornings, they’re holding just off the breaks in 8–15 feet, then pushing shallower as the sun gets up. According to a couple of local sticks, the bite has leaned toward slow presentations—finesse plastics and jigs—early, then a decent reaction bite once the wind ruffles the surface. Best lure choices right now: - Soft plastics: Green pumpkin or watermelon red flukes, Senkos, and creature baits Texas‑rigged or on a shaky head. Work them painfully slow around dock posts, bridge pilings, and rock transitions. - Jigs: 3/8–1/2 oz football or casting jigs in green pumpkin or brown with a small craw trailer. Drag them down the breaks and along bluff edges. - Moving baits: White or shad‑patterned chatterbaits and spinnerbaits when the breeze picks up, especially around scattered grass and seawalls. Small shallow‑running crankbaits in shad or bluegill patterns are also producing along riprap. - Topwater: Not an all‑day deal yet, but a walking bait or small popper can get crushed during that first light window on calm mornings around marinas and shallow docks. For live bait, local anglers are doing well with medium shiners and small sunfish fished under slip bobbers or on a Carolina rig along deeper dock edges and channel swings. For panfish, worms and small crickets under a float near bulkheads and brush are hard to beat. A couple of current hot spots to focus on: 1. Under the 360 Bridge and