Calaveras Lake is a popular fishing destination in Texas known for its abundance of catfish, including blue, channel, and flathead. The lake also has largemouth bass, red drum, and hybrid striped bass. Nearby activities include camping, hiking, and bird watching. Fishing tips include using live bait or soft plastic lures and fishing near drop-offs or underwater structures. The best time to visit is in the spring and fall when temperatures average around 70-80°F. In the summer, the lake can get hot and crowded, and in the winter, the fish can be less active.

Featured Fish - Black Drum

The black drum is sluggish and does not strike quickly or with force, but when hooked, it puts up an exceedingly tough fight. Fishing methods include bottom fishing, casting from boats or shore, or slow trolling. Baits and lures include shrimp, clams, crabs, squid, cut fish, metal jigs, spoons, and weighted bucktails. Small drums of about 10-15 lb. (5-7 kg) are said to be good eating, though they are often infested with parasites. The following are fishing methods used to catch this fish: Drums are members of the croaker family which are comprised of 260 species including the weakfish, spotted seatrout, white seabass, Atlantic croaker, and California kingfish. The black drum is distinguished from similar species by the unusually large spine in the anal fin and numerous barbels on the chin. There are large pavement like teeth in the throat that are used to crush shellfish. Unlike the red drum, the black drum has no dark spot on the tail base. Juveniles have 4 or 5 broad, dark vertical bars on the body. They feed on mollusks and crustaceans that they locate in the sand with their sensitive chin barbels.