This park offers more than a gateway to great fishing
Located at 2907 North Toledo Park Road about eight miles southwest of Zwolle, North Toledo Bend State Park offers a fantastic jumping off spot to fish one of the best bass lakes in the nation.
The park spreads across 911 acres of Sabine Parish on San Miguel Creek, a major creek on Toledo Bend Reservoir. The sprawling reservoir runs about 65 miles along the old Sabine River channel. Spanning the Louisiana-Texas line, the largest reservoir in the South covers 181,600 acres and drops to more than 100 feet deep in places.
“North Toledo Bend State Park provides a venue for a wide variety of water-related activities in a pleasant environment,” said Laura Wilson, the park manager. “Guests can rent kayaks, canoes and fishing boats. We have an event pavilion that people can rent to host weigh-ins for fishing tournaments or other events. We also have a meeting room for up to 60 people and a two-lane boat launch with a nice parking area. People can clean their fish at our cleaning station.”
Enjoy the outdoors
The lake produces bass exceeding 10 pounds every year. The lake record weighed 15.32 pounds. The best bass fishing occurs during late winter or early spring, but people can catch lunkers all year long. The lake also holds giant catfish, numerous crappie and various bream species.
“This park is a great place to enjoy the outdoors,” Wilson said. “Besides world-class fishing on Toledo Bend, we also have land-based activities at the park. People can picnic or just relax in the heart of nature. We have trails for hiking and a full-size swimming pool with restrooms.”
People can stay at the park to fish the lake or hunt the surrounding forests. Park visitors can rent log cabins that sleep up to six people. For larger events, the group camp can accommodate up to 150 people with a dining hall that includes an industrial kitchen.
“We have 63 campsites for campers or tents,” Wilson said. “Each site has water and both 30- and 50-amp plugs, as well as the standard 20 amp. There is also a fire ring, picnic table and tent pad at each site. In the campground, we have a bath house and showers. We have a laundry with all the conveniences for a long or short stay.”
During hunting season, sportsmen might want to visit Sabine Wildlife Management Area, located approximately five miles south of Zwolle. The habitat consists of rolling hills covered in pine forests divided by hardwood-lined creek bottoms. People might hunt white-tailed deer, squirrels, rabbits, quail, doves, woodcock, turkey or waterfowl.
More to do
Cyclists also like to use the trails. On some of the trails, people can see portions of the old logging trams that lumberjacks used to transport logs to the mills long before the lake or park ever existed. In the park, people might spot deer, raccoons, squirrels and a variety of birds. Look for the two bald eagle nests in the park. During the winter and early spring, the lake attracts many waterfowl species.
“We have a variety of things to do here besides fishing,” Wilson said. “People can play on two 18-hole disc golf courses. In the day-use area we have a playground, a sand volleyball court, a cornhole tournament area and a picnic area. People can enjoy the peaceful surroundings in the park. We have something for everyone here.”
The park stays open all year long. The park does not offer any food services, but people can buy food, fuel and other supplies in Zwolle or Many about 22 miles away.
For more information, call 318-645-4715 or 1-888-677-6400. Online, see www.lastateparks.com/parks-preserves/north-toledo-bend-state-park.
