Toledo Bend Reservoir

Toledo Bend Reservoir is a water reservoir at the Texas-Louisiana border, running through forests of pine and cypress. The shoreline stretches for several hundred miles with small coves, shallow inlets, and narrow channels cut by green water.

Authorities from both states started building the dam in 1966 and filled the basin over three years until it reached its final form in 1969. The project created jobs in rural areas and brought new settlements to the shores where only small villages stood before.

Anglers gather at small docks and public shoreline areas, exchanging tips about the best spots for bass. The tradition of fishing competitions brings new participants to different sections of the shore each month, where they refine their techniques over long weekends.

Boat ramps and campgrounds are scattered along both shores, with paved roads leading to the main access points. Buoys mark shallow areas and submerged obstacles, so carrying a navigation chart or following familiar routes is advisable.

A team of specialists spent several weeks in 2003 collecting debris from the shallow water and shoreline forests. The search focused on remote coves where currents swept objects to hidden spots reachable only by small boats.