Moving South of San Antonio to the Pleasanton area.
Other then the coast, anyone have any good recommendations of where to fish… and is it worth finding a deer lease in this area, or should I just stay on my lease in east Texas?

Braunig and Calaveras lakes are not too far from you. Good redfish and catfish lakes. Some people fish for bass in them as well. Choke Canyon is really close to you. If you know what you are doing, can be great for Crappie, White Bass, and catfish. Three Rivers is known for largemouth bass fishing. Just upstream from Choke and downstream from Choke, the white bass run is great in January-February when the water is actually running.

There are pretty good deer leases in your area. I have not personally hunted there but have friends who do.

Lots of good lakes. They need lots of rain right now to put some water in them though. ….as they are all at historical lows.
Choke Canyon can be one of the premier largemouth bass lakes in Texas.
All the Highland Lake Chain of lakes is just couple of hours north.
Falcon and Amistad not that far south either…..both world class bass fishing.
You're close to some awfully good deer hunting as well…….south to brush country and south Texas deer and northwest is the hill country. Much better deer hunting either direction than east Texas…but I'm biased of course.

Good info here.

Note that Choke is only at what, 8 or 10 percent full at this point.

8 to 10… that's crazy. I know it's extremely dry here but I didn't realize it was that bad.

Joe Deertay said:

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8 to 10… that's crazy. I know it's extremely dry here but I didn't realize it was that bad.

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Between the drought and Corpus Christi water issues I think it's pretty much RIP to the good old bass fishing days at Choke Canyon.

In desperate need of rain. Haven't seen it this bad and I've been around these parts since 80. Need a good slow tropical storm.

You are also not terribly far from hill country areas with axis and other.

Good leases close to SA are really hard to come by. Depending on what you want

As of 3-5-2026 here are some current lake levels in areas around San Antonio:
Choke Canyon - 8.3% Full
Lake Corpus Christi - 9.9%
Falcon Lake - 20.4%
Lake Amistad - 31%
Medina Lake - 4.2%
Coleto Creek - 76.1%
Canyon Lake -60.1%
Braunig and Caleveras are power plant cooling lakes located south of SA. At one time about 25-30 years ago they were productive fisheries because they were new impoundments. As the reservoirs have aged
the fishing has declined due to increased water temps, (causing low oxygen levels) decline of baitfish and forage fish for bass and redfish, and fishing pressure.
Also, over the years, concerns of pollution have affected the fisheries as well due to very high levels of chromium being found as well as other chemical pollutants.
TPWD has some good data on the current status of those lakes.
Low water levels don't necessarily mean bad fishing as the fish are more concentrated but the issues is usually access as many boat ramps are closed or unusable.
A really great fisheries relatively close to Pleasanton is down Victoria way at Coleto Creek.
As I said in my original post, the Highland Lake Chain of lakes north of San Antonio… Buchanan, Inks,LBJ, Marble Falls, Travis have good water right now and are excellent fishing.
I am attaching a good link that has data for all the lakes statewide for your info.
https://www.waterdatafortexas.org/reservoirs/statewide

Brauning and Calaveras used to be stocked with orange mouth corvina. I fished them some in the early 90s and wanted to catch one but I never did. By then they had stopped stocking them but there were still some big ones getting pulled out on occasion.

I've got a pic of a big corvina I caught at Calaveras one night. Probably from around the late 1980s. If I can find it I'll post it here.

As you mentioned, Braunig and Calaveras are power plant cooling reservoirs which means that, fortunately for fishermen, they are held at constant levels. Both lakes receive a lot of pressure and since other area reservoirs have dried up, that pressure has only increased.

As far as fishing deteriorating over the years, late 70s/early 80s saw a great LMB fishery at both lakes thanks to the presence of hydrilla. With the introduction of tilapia the hydrilla went away as did the majority of the bass.

Presently though, and for a couple of decades now, both lakes offer tremendous redfish and catfish fisheries. As in real good.

What's the method for fishing for redfish in a lake like Brauninu? Same as fishing in the bays?

I grew up north of SA and fished them many times…..especially during the bass hay days in the 70's, 80's and early 90's. The trips I made there in 2019 before moving were lackluster to say the least…….but I wasn't fishing for catfish. TPWD doesn't seem to put out much effort in managing them as well as they used to as well.

Joe Deertay said:

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What's the method for fishing for redfish in a lake like Brauninu? Same as fishing in the bays?

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It's totally different. Live or dead bait fished from the bank (think long casts) or trolling, especially with downriggers in open water, are the most productive methods.

Is there no option to drive to the Corpus area and fish the coast? Or where you only wanting freshwater advice?

I hope you are not serious about getting on a South Texas (or even hill country) lease for hunting as opposed to driving hours to hunt "Behind the Pine Curtain." If there is a perfect reason to move to SA, it is close access to some of the best hunting in the state. So, yes. You should consider a lease in the area, although I would expect a cost bump from what you are used to.

As far as fishing, San Antonio treats Corpus and Rockport almost like a bedroom community for saltwater fishing access. You are within a 2.5 hour drive from miles of coastal access for inshore and offshore opportunities. Can't help you with the bass fishing.

Nice fish. I always thought that would be a cool fish to catch. I would see catches in the SA newspaper in the early 90s. I don't think there were a lot left by then but still some big ones roaming around. Cool catch! Thanks for posting.

That is awesome. Thanks for sharing!

SanAntoneAg said:

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docb said:

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Brauning and Calaveras used to be stocked with orange mouth corvina. I fished them some in the early 90s and wanted to catch one but I never did. By then they had stopped stocking them but there were still some big ones getting pulled out on occasion.

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Hey docb, came across that pic of the corvina I caught from Calaveras. Putting it at '91 or '92. Damn, 35 years ago. Time flies.

I had a live Rio Grande Perch, probably about 4" long, on a kahle hook fished on the bottom. Nighttime.

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You are welcome, I raised and stocked all the orange mouth corvina and corvina x sea trout hybrids stocked in Calaveras. You can thank Gary Matlock for the demise of that program.

rab79 said:

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SanAntoneAg said:

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docb said:

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Brauning and Calaveras used to be stocked with orange mouth corvina. I fished them some in the early 90s and wanted to catch one but I never did. By then they had stopped stocking them but there were still some big ones getting pulled out on occasion.

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Hey docb, came across that pic of the corvina I caught from Calaveras. Putting it at '91 or '92. Damn, 35 years ago. Time flies.

I had a live Rio Grande Perch, probably about 4" long, on a kahle hook fished on the bottom. Nighttime.

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You are welcome, I raised and stocked all the orange mouth corvina and corvina x sea trout hybrids stocked in Calaveras. You can thank Gary Matlock for the demise of that program.

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Damnit Gary Matlock!!!!

docb said:

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Joe Deertay said:

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8 to 10… that's crazy. I know it's extremely dry here but I didn't realize it was that bad.

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Between the drought and Corpus Christi water issues I think it's pretty much RIP to the good old bass fishing days at Choke Canyon.

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Those were the days my friend……

Yeah, choke was epic about 20 years ago

That's a great story! They were super aggressive fish. I remember reading that the orangemouths wouldn't reproduce in the lake, and the hybrid versions couldn't reproduce. But it was the "what if" factor, should they have made their way down Calaveras Creek, then the SA River and ultimately into the bay system. And potentially wreak havoc on our spotted seatrout. I'm guessing that was Matlock's reasoning for putting an end to them?

To add, I remember that time frame when they were being stocked. It was Wild West as far as inland fisheries goes. I think it was under Bob Kemp's directorship. Calaveras and Braunig received some odd stockings. I guess once they figured out redfish could survive in the warm, nutrient rich waters, those lakes got Nile perch, tarpon and flounder in addition to the corvina. Heck I'm probably forgetting a few. Around that same time is probably when smallmouth, stripers and hybrid stripers were being stocked all over the state.

Good times!

Kirby Golsen was the inland fisheries guy that was first in charge of the those initial lake projects I believe. I had worked for him initially out of school. Very good man.
There was also some initial thoughts of introducing fresh water shrimp as well.
What is the current situation with the heavy metals pollution and high chromium levels that was making news back a few years?

Oh no, I can definitely drive down to the coast. But, I'm asking these questions for times where I don't have time to do a full coast trip and need something quick.