“March and April are really great on Amistad,” Hengst said. “It’s a great topwater and swimbait lake. Then in the summer time you can really do well flipping the mats or the deep grass. They can be ganged up in one scrape and you can have 35 to 40 pounds in five casts.”

“I don’t even know how to describe Falcon,” she continued. “Even though they’re sisters, it’s totally different, loaded with scrub brush, mesquites and cactus. The fish on that lake love a spinnerbait. Just run it through the brush and hold on.”

Those two lakes are both at full pool for the first time in years, she said, while Choke remains a few feet low. That’s good news any way you look at it -- the high water should provide exceptional spawns, while the drawn down conditions at Choke should concentrate on the available structure.

If you ever get tired of wrestling big largemouths out of the brush and grass, the ardent San Antonio angler will want to be sure to make a four-hour drive to the southeast, to Port Mansfield, where a one of a kind fishing lodge will give any versatile and skilled angler a run for his money. The Get-A-Way Adventure lodge, rated by Field and Stream magazine as on of the “Top Ten Hottest Fishing Destinations” gives anglers access to a wealth of species. You can chase monster speckled trout, drum and tarpon in the waters of Laguna Madre with light tackle one day, then with fly gear the next, before embarking on an incredible offshore trip thereafter.

With only two hours of driving, you can be in Kingsville, near Corpus Christi, where Baffin on the Rocks provides an experience every bit as multifaceted as Get-A-Way, even though the specifics are slightly different. The Baffin Bay vegetation serves as a magnet to dozens of species of birds, so if one member of your family wants to fish while another checks out the flora and fauna, there’s something for everyone to do. Baffin on the Rocks offers contacts with no fewer than nine experienced fishing guides who will take you directly to the trout, flounder and drum that inhabit the area. They and can also lead you on hunts for trophy deer, turkey, hogs and exotic on carefully managed south Texas ranches.  And when the action is over, they have comfortable accommodations if you’re too worn out to make the drive home.

Any of these spots can provide a quick weekend getaway or a full week’s vacation for San Antonio’s anglers, beginners and experts alike. Make sure you’re up to the test and bring your heart pills – there’s a new challenge and another strong-willed, bulldozing fish to battle you at every turn.