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  1. #1
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    West Texas/Panhandle

    Morning,
    Ive been offered a job in plainview texas. Bass fishing will always play a role in where I'm located. any incite on lakes in the area, hour or so away? into upland and deer hunting as well

    any info would be appreciated

    thanks

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    #2
    I was born near there and have lots of family. They don't Bass fish as there really are not any lakes within an hour. Farm ponds yes but they are iffy due to the hot dry summers. Speaking of sand storms....lol...they get bad a bit to the south around Lubbock. Googlemaps doesn't show much at all....
    2017 Triton TRX Patriot w/250 ProXS Optimax

  3. Member
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    #3
    Quote Originally Posted by Squire View Post
    I was born near there and have lots of family. They don't Bass fish as there really are not any lakes within an hour. Farm ponds yes but they are iffy due to the hot dry summers. Speaking of sand storms....lol...they get bad a bit to the south around Lubbock. Googlemaps doesn't show much at all....
    More like close to 2 hours to anything decent.

  4. Member
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    #4
    Quote Originally Posted by marlin762 View Post
    Morning,
    Ive been offered a job in plainview texas. Bass fishing will always play a role in where I'm located. any incite on lakes in the area, hour or so away? into upland and deer hunting as well

    any info would be appreciated

    thanks
    No water close, no trees either and lots of dust and wind hence the name Plain View.

  5. Born on th Llano Estacado Tx Champ's Avatar
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    #5
    Grew up there & left in 96. Closest lake is about 45mi and is currently 87' low. There are others within 100mi, but all are in pretty bad shape. Alan Henry is just over 100 miles and is the closest good lake. Ute over in eastern NM is about 165mi and has both large and smallmouth bass and some walleye if you like tastey critters. As the old saying goes, you're right in the middle of good fishing ... only about 250mi in any direction . There was a bass club there when I left, don't know if there is still one or not. If you move, reach out and I'll give you a name or two to contact that were in the club back then. You can probably find some deer hunting available out east toward the caprock. Deer there are about the size of a large dog. There are also some Audad in the caprock. Most hunting is upland birds, pheasant & quail. Whatever you hunt, expect to pay.

    Plainview itself is not so bad. It's about 23K pops. And it's about a 40min drive to Lubbock and a little over an hour to Amarillo for more entertainment variety. Plainview is going through a bit of a business growth spurt right now, mostly eateries. Unfortunately the largest employer, XL Beef shut their plant down a few years back. Wal Mart has a distribution center there, there is a state prison and I believe there is a dairy. At least my brother-in-law sold his falmily farm to a dairy about the same time I left. Other than that, the town supports agriculture. At one time, Hale Co was the largest cotton producing county in the state. My brother, sister and I still have a farm just south of town. I still have a lot of friends there and was back for a class reunion in mid July. First time back in probably 4 years. I'd definitely go visit first and see if it suites you and your family.

  6. Member
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    #6
    Quote Originally Posted by Tx Champ View Post
    Grew up there & left in 96. Closest lake is about 45mi and is currently 87' low. There are others within 100mi, but all are in pretty bad shape. Alan Henry is just over 100 miles and is the closest good lake. Ute over in eastern NM is about 165mi and has both large and smallmouth bass and some walleye if you like tastey critters. As the old saying goes, you're right in the middle of good fishing ... only about 250mi in any direction . There was a bass club there when I left, don't know if there is still one or not. If you move, reach out and I'll give you a name or two to contact that were in the club back then. You can probably find some deer hunting available out east toward the caprock. Deer there are about the size of a large dog. There are also some Audad in the caprock. Most hunting is upland birds, pheasant & quail. Whatever you hunt, expect to pay.

    Plainview itself is not so bad. It's about 23K pops. And it's about a 40min drive to Lubbock and a little over an hour to Amarillo for more entertainment variety. Plainview is going through a bit of a business growth spurt right now, mostly eateries. Unfortunately the largest employer, XL Beef shut their plant down a few years back. Wal Mart has a distribution center there, there is a state prison and I believe there is a dairy. At least my brother-in-law sold his falmily farm to a dairy about the same time I left. Other than that, the town supports agriculture. At one time, Hale Co was the largest cotton producing county in the state. My brother, sister and I still have a farm just south of town. I still have a lot of friends there and was back for a class reunion in mid July. First time back in probably 4 years. I'd definitely go visit first and see if it suites you and your family.
    Thank you for the response and info

  7. Member SkeeterBob's Avatar
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    #7
    I hunt around Plainview every year. Pheasant populations have taken a hit from drought conditions. I’ve killed some pretty good mule deer and whitetail in Lamb and Hale counties. I’ll be back up for MD in November. Also great geese, duck and sandhill crane hunting

  8. Member WestTexasRanger's Avatar
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    #8
    Plainview is a great place to live.

    As far as bass fishing, head South to Justiceburg and fish Lake Alan Henry. It’s going to be a 110 mile drive (one way) but with the speed limit being 75mph and only one stop (Post) you’ll be there in no time. Beautiful lake, great ramp & slips and good fishing.

  9. Member fishnfireman's Avatar
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    #9
    Quote Originally Posted by WestTexasRanger View Post
    Plainview is a great place to live.

    As far as bass fishing, head South to Justiceburg and fish Lake Alan Henry. It’s going to be a 110 mile drive (one way) but with the speed limit being 75mph and only one stop (Post) you’ll be there in no time. Beautiful lake, great ramp & slips and good fishing.
    Unless things have changed for non Lubbock residence get ready to PAY to launch !!

  10. Born on th Llano Estacado Tx Champ's Avatar
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    #10
    Quote Originally Posted by WestTexasRanger View Post
    Plainview is a great place to live.

    As far as bass fishing, head South to Justiceburg and fish Lake Alan Henry. It’s going to be a 110 mile drive (one way) but with the speed limit being 75mph and only one stop (Post) you’ll be there in no time. Beautiful lake, great ramp & slips and good fishing.
    Quote Originally Posted by fishnfireman View Post
    Unless things have changed for non Lubbock residence get ready to PAY to launch !!
    Yes, last time I was on Alan Henry it was $8 a head and $8 per boat. So $24 to launch you and a buddy when most other lakes if they have a fee at all is about $5

  11. Member fishnfireman's Avatar
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    #11
    Quote Originally Posted by Tx Champ View Post
    Yes, last time I was on Alan Henry it was $8 a head and $8 per boat. So $24 to launch you and a buddy when most other lakes if they have a fee at all is about $5
    Last Time I went was for a two day tournament and we pre fished Friday.. best I recall it took a large chunk out of a $100.00 bill

  12. Member WestTexasRanger's Avatar
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    #12
    A non-resident “individual” annual vehicle & boat permit for Lake Alan Henry is $115.00. A “family permit” is $250.00. Of course, you save a few bucks if you live in Lubbock (like me ). Day passes may seem expensive but so is everything these days. I took our family of three to a matinee movie today and spent $32 for three tickets & a large popcorn (we snuck our drinks in). That’s pretty expensive for 2 hours of entertainment. Add another $10 if the movie is after 5:00.

    As far as the entry fees, it’s usually the guy in a $60K bass boat or a $100K wakeboard rig that’s complaining.

  13. Member fishnfireman's Avatar
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    #13
    One of several reasons I've not been to a movie in 15 years.
    With the old man discount I can fish Meredith and Amistad as many times as I want for 25 dollars a year. One of my favorites right now is Hubbard creek.. Doesn't cost anything to unload there. Also Ivey is only a few dollars.
    New Mexico annual day use permit is what ? about 50 dollars.
    Need to save all I can as my boat cost more that 60K

  14. Born on th Llano Estacado Tx Champ's Avatar
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    #14
    Mike, CRMWD has an annual (January - December) Sr pass (65 & older) for $12, good for JB Thomas, Spence and Ivie. Of course being in Abilene now, it's a no brainer for me over the $5 per day fee.

  15. Member fishnfireman's Avatar
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    #15
    Quote Originally Posted by Tx Champ View Post
    Mike, CRMWD has an annual (January - December) Sr pass (65 & older) for $12, good for JB Thomas, Spence and Ivie. Of course being in Abilene now, it's a no brainer for me over the $5 per day fee.
    Good to know... I can get that Annual Sr Pass for $12--- Amistad/Meredith Sr for $25 and New Mex. annual for about $50 = $87.00
    Hubbard creek and PK are free.. I'm good to go.

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    #16
    From Plainview you have, in order of distance, MacKenzie near Silverton, a small lake with some good bass in double digits and hybred stripers. Greenbelt near Clarendon has been suffering from lack of inflow for several years. Was pretty good in the spring this year but not so much since. White River is between Plainview and Alan Henry and is low but contains good fish. Both Greenbelt and White River don't have concrete ramps in water but I'm told launching off rocky points is doable. You already know about Alan Henry. JB Thomas is west of Snyder and caught 20 feet last year and may be a sleeper. I fished it during Labor Day for the first time and only caught two but one was 6 lbs. and the other was 9.75 so it has potential. It's on the Colorado River so an annual pass will get you on JB, Spence and OH Ivie. Spence and Ivie would be about 250 miles from Plainview. Meredith is north of Amarillo and is improving. TP&W is stocking MILLIONS of walleye and there is a growing population of both largemouth and smallmouth showing up. While most bass are still smaller, a friend caught and 8 1/2 last fall. Further East, Hubbard Creek and Possum Kingdom would be maybe 250 miles and both are fishing good and are free to launch. Both lakes are kicking out 25-30 pound limits in tournaments this year. New Mexico offers Ute and Conchas lakes near Tucumcari. Both have both largemouth and smallmouth, beautiful scenery and excellent camping facilities. Unfortunately, the Governor shut almost everything in NM down due to Covid and I haven't been over there in two years.

    So if you move to Plainview I have one bit of advice. Pay as much attention to your boat trailer as your boat in terms of maintenance because your going to be pulling it a lot more than our probably used to :). Good luck, 'spoon

  17. Member fishnfireman's Avatar
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    #17
    [QUOTE]So if you move to Plainview I have one bit of advice. Pay as much attention to your boat trailer as your boat in terms of maintenance because your going to be pulling it a lot more than our probably used to :). Good luck, 'spoon[/QUOTE]
    The curse of loving to fish but living in the panhandle...Only takes one midnight roadside breakdown to convince most.