Hey, Keith here.

A few months back I sent you twenty roadside spots, and ever since, I've been thinking about where bank anglers should look next.

Then it hit me.

Some of the most famous bass lakes in America have a state park built right on their shoreline.

These parks come with fishing piers, rock dikes, canals, and walking trails that put bank anglers on the same water the pros fish.

Today, I share seven state parks with legendary bass fishing and point you to the exact spot inside each one where I'd start casting.

When most bank anglers think about state parks, they picture campgrounds, swimming beaches, and kids on bicycles.

I've noticed very few of them think about the water.

That's a mistake because many state parks were purposely built next to the best fishing in their state.

Lake Guntersville, Kentucky Lake, Lake Dardanelle, Table Rock, and Lake Havasu all have state parks sitting on their banks, and those lakes host some of the biggest bass tournaments in the country.

On most big reservoirs, the shoreline is lined with private docks, private homes, and "No Trespassing" signs.

A state park is one of the few places on those lakes where the public owns the bank. 

Even better, the park has already done a lot of the work for you.

They've built fishing piers out over deeper water, laid riprap and rock dikes that hold bait, sunk fish attractors next to the piers, and cut trails that follow the shoreline for miles.

For me, that's the whole appeal. You pay a small entrance fee, park the truck, and you're standing on water that tournament anglers drive hundreds of miles to fish. 

I picked these seven parks because each one sits on a lake with a real bass fishing reputation, and each one gives a bank angler a specific place to stand and cast.

They stretch from Wellesley Island in New York to the desert shoreline of Arizona, so there's a good chance one of them is within a day's drive of you.

For every park, I've included the exact spot I'd fish first, as well as the lure I'd tie on when I got there. We'll start right here at home in Louisiana.

The spot: The South Landing fishing pier

Lake Chicot has a long history of giving up 8- to 10-pound bass. Artificial reefs and gravel beds were built right next to the southern pier, putting real structure within casting distance.

What to throw: The big profile of the Texas-rigged 10-inch hit worm appeals to the trophy fish Chicot is known for, and the Texas rig crawls over the reefs without hanging up.

The spot: The Town Creek bridges and the weed line in front of the park

Guntersville is one of the most famous grass lakes in the country. The bridges around Town Creek combine rock, current, and shade, and locals point to a weed line right in front of the park that holds bass.

What to throw: A 1/2-ounce Bill Lewis Rat-L-Trap is a Guntersville legend because you can rip it free of the grass, and that sudden escape triggers reaction strikes.

The spot: The two fishing piers below Kentucky Dam

Just below the dam, two piers stick out into the tailwater and create eddies. Bass move into that slack water to ambush shad being flushed through the dam.

What to throw: A Keitech Swing Impact FAT swimbait on a jighead looks just like the shad that wash through, and its tail keeps kicking even in heavy current.

The spot: The west fishing pier

Purtis Creek was built as an experimental big-bass lake and was catch-and-release only for decades. Today it runs a 16-inch maximum length limit, and unlike most Texas lakes, its best big-bass bite comes in late summer.

What to throw: A Zoom Brush Hog on a Carolina rig drags slowly along the bottom off the end of the pier, and its flapping appendages draw strikes from big, lazy bass.

The spot: The breakwater fishing dike at the Russellville unit

The park has hosted Bassmaster Elite Series events, and its Russellville unit has a rock breakwater dike built for bank anglers. That rock breaks the wind and holds crawfish throughout fall.

What to throw: Strike King KVD 1.5 Squarebill's square lip bounces off rock without snagging, and every deflection looks like a fleeing crawfish.

The spot: The shoreline around the launch ramps

Wellesley Island sits in the heart of the Thousand Islands, where St. Lawrence River smallmouth are the main attraction. Campers there report catching smallmouth right out from the launch ramp area, so you don’t need a boat to get in on the action.

What to throw: A Strike King Coffee Tube has been a St. Lawrence smallmouth staple for decades. It spirals on the fall and hops along the rocky bottom just like the gobies and crawfish these smallmouth feed on.

The spot: The shoreline along the Mohave Sunset Trail

Havasu is one of the best bass lakes in the West. The 1.5-mile Mohave Sunset Trail follows the shoreline, so you can walk it and fish the reeds and rocks as you go. Just remember there's no fishing from the park's boat docks.

What to throw: Try a Roboworm Straight Tail on a drop shot. In water this clear, its subtle action fools bass that would ignore anything bulkier.