East Texas Lakes
East Texas is filled with beautiful lakes perfect for fishing, boating, camping, and living. Available fish include crappie, bass, catfish, bluegill, and sunfish. Lake sizes in the area range from 170 acres to 181,000 acres. The largest lakes include Lake Tyler, Lake Tyler East, Lake Jacksonville and Lake Palestine. If you have a desire to live on the lake, there are several different price ranges and community options. Most of them have boat ramps and boat storage.
Lake Palestine
Lake Palestine
Lake Palestine is located 12 miles south of Tyler, Texas, and is a 25,600-acre recreational destination on the Neches River. With a total length of 18 miles and 135 miles of shoreline, it is one of the largest lakes in the area. Being located in the Piney Woods of East Texas, it offers plenty of room for fishing, boating, skiing, golfing, sailing, and much more!
In fact, Lake Palestine is such a great location to fish that it has several sponsored annual fishing tournaments every year. One of these, the Largemouth Bass and Crappie, brings in anglers from around the country. Bass and catfish are popular for the lake and provide a great opportunity for fishing enthusiasts.
Lake Palestine has lots to do, and even hosts five different Christian Youth Camps. The most popular communities are Eagle’s Bluff, Emerald Bay, Cumberland Ridge, and The Villages, to name a few. This area is home to a big golfing community as well.
Lake Tyler
Lake Tyler
Lake Tyler and Lake Tyler East, situated adjacent to each other and connected via a canal, are located just east of Tyler, Texas. These are the largest lakes in the Tyler area, apart from Lake Palestine. The two lakes cover nearly 5,000 surface acres and serve as the primary water supply for the Tyler metro area. At their deepest, they have a depth of 40 feet.
The lakes have many beautiful homes and water lots and were even chosen as the location of HGTV’sTM 2005 Dream Home contest. There are a plethora of recreational activities including boating, water skiing, fishing, hiking, swimming, and camping. Tournaments are frequently hosted during the summer months along with multiple fundraising events for the East Texas area.
The 35-acre Lake Tyler Petroleum Club is an excellent venue for weddings, receptions, corporate events, and retreats. It includes a lakeside pool, cabins, the lake, and boat docks.
Lake Bellwood
Lake Bellwood
Lake Bellwood is located in West Tyler, just past Loop 323 near The Cascades development and All Saints Episcopal School. Lake Bellwood was named for the small, nearby community of Bellwood.
The dam was constructed in 1894 across Indian Creek to form Bellwood Lake, and the lake served as a source of water for Tyler. The crest of the spillway is 426 feet above sea level, and the lake has a capacity of 1,391 acre-feet.
In 1966, recreational facilities on the east shore of Lake Bellwood included a golf course and a picnic area. By 1981, the Bellwood Country Club had been added.
Today, the dam is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a historic structure.
Lake Jacksonville
Lake Jacksonville
Lake Jacksonville is located about three miles from downtown Jacksonville. It was created in 1957; the city expected it to take years to fill with water, but with an unusually rainy season, the lake reached full capacity in only a year.
The lake spans 1,325 acres of water. There are ten screened shelters, seven campsites with water and electricity, ten R.V. pads with water and electricity, three boat ramps on the lake, and two public swimming areas.
