Two things anglers know about Lake Ray Roberts: This Texas reservoir holds lots of big bass and it holds lots of wood.
March marks the second time Ray Roberts hosts the Bassmaster Classic and, while options are many, seasonal patterns will likely make the lake’s abundant wood a major player.
Not fishing the Classic? You’re not alone. Only 56 anglers qualified to fish the sport’s grandest event. The good news — wood in its natural form appears in countless lakes throughout many of the nation’s reservoirs.
For clarity, when we mention wood, that could include stumps, laydowns, logs and various bottom debris from fallen branches, etc. But keeping this most relevant to the 2025 Classic venue, we’ll focus on standing timber.
For starters, consider how this habitat benefits bass.
Shelter/Protection: Hardwoods like oaks and cedars that were left intact when a reservoir was first created quickly lost their foliage and died, but their skeletal remains stand like ghostly forests. Depending on tree height and depth, emergent sections range from a couple feet to several yards.
Largemouth bass and Florida bass (at home and in nationwide stockings) instinctively park near structure for the heat-holding coziness during winter and early spring, as well as ambush feeding opportunities and an overall sense of safety.
Standing timber offers ideal habitat because fish can vertically rise or descend to find comfortable water temperatures without giving up their safe space. By comparison, bass utilizing more lateral cover like submersed grass or lily pads may need to move shallower or deeper to find their comfort zone.
This plays a key role during the prespawn when fish stage outside spawning bays. During his 2023 rookie season, Joey Cifuentes demonstrated this pattern as he targeted standing timber in a bay off Spring Creek to win his first of two Bassmaster Elite titles at Lake Seminole. (He also won at Lake St. Clair that year.)
Shade: Shadows cast by standing timber create cooler areas and block direct sunlight. This is particularly important on post-frontal days, as a passing cold front typically brings what we call “bluebird” days — no clouds, no wind and intense sunlight.
Shadows may come from the vertical form of a tree’s trunk and/or the more horizontal lines of branches. Both will attract bass seeking comfort and the concealment of dimmer water.
Also, keep in mind that these shadows will change throughout the day. For one thing, the lower sun angles of morning and afternoon create longer shadows, while late morning through early afternoon find the overhead sun angles shortening those shadows.
Furthermore, you’ll want to monitor how those shadows shift with the sun’s path (aka “day arc”). Just like a dock or a bridge, adjust with the day’s progression and you’ll stay on the fish.
Pick Your Target
When surveying a field of standing timber, it may all look the same, but spend a little time picking out the differences. In many cases, bigger is better, as the true giants are highly territorial and they’ll claim the most prominent structure.
Just don’t overlook a skinny, modest tree with no branches standing apart from the others. Sometimes, isolation is what a big fish wants.
As far as positioning, consider the general migration routes from deep wintering grounds, up to the shallow spawning bays and flats. Standing timber positioned along a point, or a drain holds high potential; basically right along the parade route.
Digging deeper, two trees in close proximity create an enticing casting lane between them. And when you find a tree with it’s upper portion snapped off and leaning into the water, tha creates a diagonal piece to complement the main vertical structure. Something different — it’s the perennial bass attractor.
Other promising details include hard bottom spots like shell bars, rocks and clean sand spots. In the shallower areas, bass may chose to spawn on these spots, but during prespawn and postspawn staging times, these can be popular parking areas.
Baits & Tactics
Depending on season and weather, standing timber welcomes a range of presentations from flipping and pitching Texas- or wacky-rigged plastics, to casting reaction lures like crankbaits, swimbaits and jerkbaits. The slower, targeted flipping/pitching stuff is pretty straightforward, but blind casting into standing timber can be a risky deal, as snags are many.
Modern forward facing sonar removes the risk by showing you the playing field. It also shows you where the baitfish and bass are located, so the term game-changing is fully justified.
Bassmaster Elite standout Patrick Walters unleashed this technology’s astounding potential when he claimed his record-setting victory in the 2020 Toyota Bassmaster Texas Fest at Lake Fork. One of the early pioneers in these realtime sonar views, Walters demonstrated the advantages of not only spotting his targets, but also monitoring their position changes — particularly in response to bait presentations and retrieves.
Sometimes the splash of a large bait attracts aggressive ones, but other times the commotion sends them fleeing. Maybe they want the bait moving faster, or perhaps a slower cadence better suits the day’s complexion.
The biggest takeaway here is that now we know when a fish turns away and when it follows. In the latter case, adjusting speed and activity level often turns lookers into biters.
And don’t assume this illuminating technology is only for professional anglers. In fact, 2024 saw Lowrance introduce its Eagle Eye 9-inch fish finder with a technology package including live sonar for $999.
Tackle Tip: Braided line has its place on wood-heavy lakes, but when it comes to flipping and pitching, experienced anglers tend to favor stout fluorocarbon. That’s because braid of equal strength is considerably thinner and, while that certainly helps with casting distance in other techniques, the slender form more easily wedges into the tight squeezed often found in wood cover.
Rough Neighborhood
Even before finding fish, your top priority when fishing standing timber must be impact avoidance. Advanced mapping is more accessible now than ever before, so make sure you study those bottom contours and the relevant depth changes so you know where the trouble spots are hiding.
Electronics units allow you to set your shading to identify the minimal depth in which you feel comfortable running. With the trolling motor do, forward facing sonar and encompassing views like Humminbird 360 help you spot casting targets and avoid the things that go “thump!”
On the broader scale, timber-strewn lakes such as Ray Roberts, Fork, and Toledo Bend contain clearly marked boat lanes that’ll help newcomers avoid the motor-munchers. If you want to leave these navigational corridors, do so at idle speed, or on the trolling motor.
If you feel the need to test fate by taking a shortcut outside the marked lanes, shut down, raise/tilt your motor, remove the prop and toss it into the water. It’ll be less painful that way.
(Worth noting, bald cypress trees and tupelos thrive in lake/swamp scenarios. These living trees play similar roles as standing timber, but often in shallower scenarios, so adjust accordingly.)
