FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

Weather

Thursday 50 % Precip. / 0.18 in   Mixed clouds and sun with scattered thunderstorms. A few storms may be severe. High 81F. Winds ESE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.

Tides

Th  21     High   8:28 AM  0.8   Low  11:54 PM  0.3   (At least it is supposed to fall some)

Solunar Times

• Best Times     10:40A – 12:40P  (Should be around the time the water is really moving)
•                          4:30A – 6:30A
• Good Time     4:51P – 6:51P

Check out the KnockerB.  If you like a one knocker you will like this as much as the trout do!

EMERGENCY NOTICE

I got this from Rusty who is the resident Fayette guru……..Pass It On!

Doug, thought I would let you and your blog followers know that Fayette Lake was closed today indefinitely.
I went to fish this afternoon and they were chaining off the boat ramps due to high water and many floating large logs. The water level is crazy high, all the docks are submerged a good foot or more. I was told they want the water to come down 3-4′ before re opening and most of the logs back close to shore.
I will try to keep you up to date when it re opens. There are going to be a lot of unhappy fisherman who get up early to drive to the lake from Austin and Houston this weekend to find it closed!
Tight lines, Rusty

Wow.  Thanks so much.  If you all know anybody who fishes there regularly let them know.  Spread the word…Imagine driving and hour or two and the lake is closed.  Thanks again Rusty.

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The plan was to head out first thing and hit the bay, but when I turned on the radar you could see it coming.  Now here I sit in the house getting extremely tired of our current weather pattern.  We are stuck in what seems to be a long period of higher winds and lots of rain.  The ditch in my yard is overflowing so we must have gotten at least a couple of inches in the last couple of hours, and it is thundering as I type this.  Sorry for the whining but I really wanted to fish today.

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Since Cocoons was kind enough to send me a selection of fit over sunglasses I have really had a chance to fish the several lens in a variety of conditions.  And I have come to several conclusions.  My all around choice for all conditions if I had to choose just one would be the amber.  They provide great contrast in low light and are great in bright sun.  But the biggest advantage of Cocoons is not only how great they work, but in their cost.  And that is not because they are cheap, they are not.  They provide more bang and options for your buck.  They have proper tool for the job.

I have a $400 pair of prescription polarized sunglasses in the standard grey and they are ok, but they are not wrap around which I consider to be critical in fishing glasses.  And of course the other disadvantage, it is one pair, clearly not suitable for all occasions, especially low light.  And when your prescription changes you are out big $$$.  And when was the last time you got a lifetime frame warranty?  With Cocoons you can have multiple pairs for all conditions, and have enough $$$ left over to buy a nice rod and reel.

For me there are 3 lens that cover all conditions most of us will face.  First I love the yellow for low light cloudy conditions.  And one thing I have noticed is they also help quite a bit when the water has that light brown tinge to it.  Not only do they help with spotting cover, when you fish lots of topwater like I do you see fish that otherwise you would not see.

Next I really like the mirrors, either in the smoke or the amber.  It really helps when the sun is blazing down.  The biggest advantage besides the obvious, which is seeing deep in the water, is the reduction in eye strain when you spend a long day in bright sunlight.  Cocoons fit overs let 40% less light get to your eye, important for a multitude of reasons. You do not notice how bright it is wearing them until you take them off, then you get a real appreciation for how much light they block without affecting your in-water vision.  I like the blue mirrors for super clear bay water and the smoke for lake fishing.  Wading one day this fall the mullet were streaming down the bank and I was actually able to see the speckled trout trailing them.  Sight casting to fish is probably one of the most exciting ways to catch fish, and watching those trout eat my plastic was a thing of beauty.

And last is the plain ambers.  I love those things.  In fact my fancy prescription pair has remained in the case and I honestly can say I wear my ambers daily.  The amber has become my go to pair for all conditions and are the best all around pair for any time and any water.  They provide great contrast, which in fishing is critical, especially for spotting those bits of cover that hold whatever fish you are after.

Since I started this blog I have strived to not feed you a line of stuff, either about the fishing, the baits, or any other products I use.  And those of you who have read this stuff the last 5 years know that I am not beholden to any particular company.  Both Shoedog and I have been wearing Cocoons long before they were kind enough to provide me with some.  I have always liked the fact that they come in 7 sizes to fit over my glasses no matter what size of frame I was wearing at the time.  If clip on is your thing they have a line of those too and I have some in the truck for an emergency.  And they are not just fit overs, they look fine whether you wear glasses or not.  So go to their website and check them out.  So if you wear glasses, or even if you don’t, try some you won’t be sorry.

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I think he had a bite!

If I can’t go fishing at least I can show you a fish.  And I mean a fish!

Talk about a prehistoric monster.

I have to admit I am embarrassed that I can not remember the guys name who fixed the AC at the house but he caught this 82″ 120 lb alligator gar on 20lb test out of the San Antonio River.  One this size is on my bucket list.  Congratulations, that is a dam fish.

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Red on Yellow!

And this next picture actually has a connection to fishing.  My buddy Jeffish and a couple of friends were cleaning up the back yard and turned over the old Lone Star boat and…….

Red on yellow kill a fellow, red on black venom lack.

That is the easiest way to tell the difference between a Coral Snake (above) and a King Snake.  This one was actually smaller than 6″ as most of them are.  Like everywhere in South Texas remember not to reach in or under anything in the yard before you turn it over, you never now what kind of creature is lurking there!

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A little bird told me that he had a couple of friends who put a boat load in the boat on Coleto the other day.  Watermelon red lizards and spinnerbaits.  Sound familiar?  They both worked for me the other day and is what makes Coleto so good right now.  Pick your poison and throw it.  He let me know that when he wondered what tournament was this weekend.  My bad, the big one was last weekend.  So thanks for letting me know.

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That is all I have today.  It is hard to believe that we are only a month away from our annual Canada trip.  I am really having to keep myself under control and not start piling stuff up already.  One thing about going early is you never know how far along or not the fish will be.  Looks like an early ice out so they may be all out when we get there.  Not sure when I will fish again but it will be soon, it is making me crazy.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines