Purtis Creek State Park

They call it "the best little fishing lake in Texas," and it's hard to argue with that claim. Nestled among the post oaks of Henderson County, Purtis Creek boasts great fishing and represents a new way of looking at managing bass ? big bass.

When Inland Fisheries Director Phil Durocher  was looking for a way to create a lake that wou

ld continue to produce trophy bass, the 350-acre reservoir to be built in Purtis Creek State Park was a perfect place to establish such a fishery. With its size not conducive to other water sports such as skiing or jet skiing, the lake would be managed for fishing.  "The theme of the lake is catch and release," Park Manager Bill Smart explained.

Click here for Google Map of Purtis Creek State Park

Anglers are not allowed to keep any bass caught in Purtis Creek. They can take a fish to the weigh station in the p

ark, but it must be released after being weighed.

In 1984 and 1985, Florida-strain hybrid largemouths were stocked, along with crappie, channel catfish and coppernose bluegill. The lake was scheduled to fill in 16 months, but spring rains filled Purtis Creek in four months. When the gates opened in 1988, there was a long line of vehicles and boat trailers, lining the farm road, waiting to sample the fishing.

"They say when it first opened, (anglers) were catchin' three- and four-pound crappie, and they were catchin' their limits of 25 every day," Smart said.

But it was the bass that would put this little lake on the map. In those earliest days, bass fishermen were catching large numbers of fish, but the size would come along later as the lake matured.

"Purtis Creek State Park has two lunkers in the ShareLunker program," Smart said. ìWe have also had two 13-pounders caught outside the program that we have weighed."

The current lake record is 13.8 pounds, caught by Lee Thomas.

Purtis Creek is a structure fisherman's delight. Smart says he knows of at least three stock tank dams and a flood-control levee in the lake. And there is one hump in particular that produces big time.

"You can go out to that hump, anchor, and catch 25 to 30 bass up to five pounds," Smart said. "If that's not a testament to catch and release, I don't know what is."

Smart says the fish are not as easy to catch as in the old days, "when you could throw a cigarette in the water and they would hit it."

"But the guys that know the lake can catch fish," he declared.

He talks about one "stupid bass" that is continually caught in the same place.

The purist might turn his nose up at one of the popular methods of catching big bass on Purtis Creek.

"Our number one bait for catching big bass is goldfish," Smart said. "The bait houses out there have to stay stocked in goldfish for us. Goldfish donít last long at Purtis Creek, even though we have one swimming around out there that weighs about two or three pounds.î

Though bass fishing is Purtis'  claim to fame, the fishing is good for all the species that were stocked. A 28.7-pound channel cat caught by Jeffrey Walker is the second largest on the state's books. And the state-record bluegill came from the waters of Purtis Creek. The 1.81-pounder, caught by James Sides, was 11 - inches long! It hangs on the wall at the park headquarters.
"We are one of the only lakes in the state that has a limit on bluegill and sunfish,î Smart explained. "They have to be 7-inches long and you can only keep 25."

Bluegill and sunfish may not be used as bait, to protect the bass. A bluegill pulled from the throat of a bass can injure and even kill the fish when its fins expand and puncture the inside of the bassí mouth.

And Smart said those big crappie are still around. He has seen a 19-inch crappie caught on the lake that the angler chose not to weigh.

"That is at least a 4-pound crappie," Smart declared. "He said, 'No big deal, itís just a big crappie.' He took it home, filleted it and ate it.'"

"If we have a 4- to 6-inch rain, water pours out of there and there will be a crowd below fishing for crappie and sand bass," Smart said. ìWeíre just about five miles from Cedar Creek."

The lake sits entirely in the1,580-acre state park. Restrictions include an idle-only speed for boat motors. Smart said the rule is as much because of the timber in the lake as the lakeís small size. There is a limit of 50 boats on the lake at any one time. In the early days it was carefully enforced, but Smart said anglers need not worry about getting on the lake these days. He sees 25 to 30 boats on a busy day.

"I really don't have to watch it too much unless we catch a big fish and word gets out," he said.

Purtis Creek has two lighted fishing piers, one of which is wheelchair accessible. The fishing can be excellent.

"In the spring and early summer, when the crappie are moving into shallow water, you can actually sit on the pier and catch a limit," Smart said.

But the park has a lot more to offer than fishing. A day-use area features a swimming area, 41 tables and a pavilion building that can accommodate groups as large as 100. Camping at Purtis Creek is among the best in the state park system.

"One of the drawing points to our park is the campsites," Smart said. "We allowed the growth between the campsites so that each campsite is pretty secluded. You can't see between campsite when the growth is up."

Gates to the park open at 7 a.m. and close at 10 p.m. Night fishing is permitted. Anglers pay an overnight activity fee and are given an access code to the gate.

More than big fish come out of most good fishing holes: good fish stories.

It seems these two guys (the names have been omitted to protect the guilty) who fished out of a 16-foot aluminum boat took a lot of flack from the guys in the $20,000 bass boats, so decided to play a trick. One was a talented carver, and whittled out a wooden bass a little larger than the world record: about 30 inches long. They took a picture against a boat cushion, and told the guys at the dock they released the fish. The guys at the dock saw the pictures, compared them to the cushion and were amazed.
Some time later, the picture shows up in an unmarked envelope, gets in the hands of outdoor writers and rumor spread. A little detective worked revealed the culprits.

"They weren't ying to profit from it, it was just a nice April fools joke," Smart offered.

Whether you want to catch a big bass, pull a gag on the local fishing world or just get away with the family to do a little camping, Purtis Creek is the hottest little lake in Texas.