It takes a special fishery to get the Bassmaster Elite Series field worked up, but famed Lake Fork in northeast Texas is that kind of pond. This iconic reservoir has hosted five previous Elite Series tournaments scattered across the calendar from November, to March, to June, and every single one of them has delivered giant largemouth and heavyweight bags this body of water has become known for.
The 2025 Tackle Warehouse Bassmaster Elite is setting up to be another notable event, just ask top local fishing guide James Caldemeyer of Lake Fork Trophy Bass Guide Service. Few people have invested more time on Lake Fork than Caldemeyer, who spent approximately 280 days on the waters of Fork in the past year alone.
The longtime supporter of the Toyota Bonus Bucks program has helped clients boat hundreds of 10-plus-pound trophy bass over the years, and he believes Fork is primed to dish out another impressive tournament for Elite anglers and fishing fans alike.
Lake Fork is full and healthy
“Lake Fork is in excellent condition – she’s in the best shape that I’ve seen in over a decade,” Caldemeyer reported. “This year’s and last year’s spawns were incredible, and we’ve seen what had been dormant creeks or areas on the lake coming back to life. I think this is mainly to do with water level. Fork is currently at capacity, or maybe a little over, and it’s been stable for a while.”
Caldemeyer talks about Fork like he’s reminiscing on an old friend, and you could hear the excitement in his voice as he commended the status of the fishery. In general, the health of Fork should be a benefit to all 102-competitors, but this lake does throw its share of curveballs.
“Fork being above or at full capacity usually means current and current can be tricky here,” Caldemeyer explained. “There are still plenty of fish up shallow right now, and there will be guys who find a lot of fish shallow in practice, but shallow fish don’t always respond well to current here in my opinion. Whereas current can make offshore fish go crazy… they like it out there.
“Lake Fork is not river fed like so many other reservoirs in the country. Instead, Fork is fed by creeks, which usually makes things a little more stable, but it also makes planning for – or against – the presence of current really tough to do in a multiple-day event.”
Anglers can pick their poison; offshore gets Caldemeyer’s nod
According to Caldemeyer, there is still a solid percentage of fish holding shallow on Fork during the first week of May while the offshore bite improves by the day as groups of fish move from spawning flats to deeper-water haunts. Therefore, options will abound for Elite competitors.
“I’d say 35% of the bass are still shallow, somewhere around the spawning stage,” Caldemeyer said. “There should also be a strong shad spawn first thing in the morning. And, of course, the offshore bite is coming on strong. Whether you are using forward-facing sonar to target individual fish or searching for the first schools of offshore bass, guys will be able to pick their poison this week.”
Having so many possibilities available should spread competitors out and allow them to fish their strengths, showcasing Lake Fork’s full potential. While Caldemeyer thinks there will be a lot of big bass caught shallow bed fishing or on frogs, swim jigs and other power fishing techniques, he does believe it will be hard to keep up with weights tallied offshore.
Caldemeyer noted he would lean heavily on his Garmin LiveScope if he were competing this week – employing baits like a deep-diving Berkley Dredger crankbait, a magnum flutterspoon and a jighead minnow to key on suspended fish.
“A lot of fish are kind of in that postspawn funk right now,” Caldemeyer said. “They are starting to show up offshore, but they are often suspended and are not in the best mood quite yet. They will be there to be caught, but it won’t be easy. The guys who can figure those fish out will likely be your leaders.”
Caldemeyer suspects more than five anglers will eclipse 100-pounds of cumulative weight to earn a Century Club belt this week, and he eyes the 25-pound mark to be the daily goal weight of anyone who wants to hoist the trophy on Sunday.
“I don’t know if anyone will beat Trey’s 130 pounds from last March, but they absolutely have to have 25 pounds per day if they want a shot at winning,” Caldemeyer offered. “This isn’t a lake where you can catch 18 pounds and then recover, which says a lot about the fishery. If you want to win, you need to catch 25 pounds at minimum.”
When 5-pounders are merely par for the course, it’s easy to see why the excitement level of the Elite field is heightened as their practice comes to an end and they prep for competition to begin at sunrise tomorrow morning.
