What a trip we are having.  Fishing with your best fishing buddies in a place as beautiful as this is as good as it gets.  I have lots of fish and stories to download, but I am just giving you the highlights.

Last night Clyde caught a tarpon, our first this trip.  We have jumped 4 or 5 and missed multiple shots so no complaint.

Clyde’s first ever tarpon.  Cool Battle.

We are drifting live sardines off a sand channel right on Sea Dream’s dock.  2 nights ago Clyde jumped 2 tarpon and had 2 other big fish all come off.  2 nights ago it was slow, but last night Jeff lost one on a topwater and then Clyde stuck this one.  He jumped a bunch and Clyde did great a great job bowing to the fish.  Then the tarpon let Clyde lead him all the way around the dock, and then he went nuts again, got under the dock and around a pole.  Clyde got him undone and had his tarpon.  He has now boated a tarpon, permit, and snook.  He needs to get a bone for his slam.  It may not have been in one day, but slam it is.

Yesterday when Jeff and I went with the guide the wind was blowing to beat the band.  It was tough and other than a couple of shots at tarpon we did not hook up on it was tough.  When Ken could not see any fish, you know it was tough.  We headed to a small creek mouth in an island and threw some topwater.  You can catch lots of different fish on top here.  Then  Jeff hollers look at the cobia on the back of the ray.  Ken went nuts, got a live sardine on the line, and I messed it up.  He was on and headed out but he pulled off when I set the hook.  Do not use the bass set on circles, it does not work.  It turned out to be the best thing that happened for Jeff.

Then Ken did what a great guide does, he watched that cobia as we baited up and headed after him.  Both Jeff and I tossed at him over a quarter mile from where I lost him.  Ken has some sharp eyes.  I went behind, bad redfishlaw, and Jeff went in front and long.  Ken said reel it in and when Jeff did that 20lb. plus cobia smoked it.  For the next hour Jeff fought that thing like a champ.  Ken finally got a shot at tailing it and he slipped away, then Jeff pulled him close . . . and the 10lb. line finally gave it up.  Stuff happens.

That was one big cobia on 10lb. line.

I actually got the fight and break off on tape and will be able to post it when I get home.  It was the kind of battle that you come here for.  Fishing here is not easy, but when it happens it is all worth it.

So after the big loss we headed back to the creek mouth and Jeff and his Skitterwalk got after it.  He has thrown that thing in multiple countries and for multiple things and it never really fails him, of course he throws the crap out of it.  So he tossed it past a mangrove point and like a rocket one comes and I mean annihilates it.

When a big caberra snapper like this one hits a topwater bait it is a thing of beauty.

Big teeth and the attitude to go with it, these things fight hard.  Jeff did a great job of keeping him out of the mangroves.  Right now he is on his way to Wish Willie’s and will be the guest of honor at supper.  Life here is good, so consequently I am signing off and headed out.  Where?  Don’t know, maybe a little bonefishing, some shopping, a cold one, who knows.  This place is awesome.

There is so much more to come with pics and videos and I can not wait to get home and do it right.  Keep stopping in, I will add some more soon.  But here is what it is all about.  3 old guys having a big time.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

]]> http://fishcatchingtravel.com/2013/05/20/caye-caulker-belize-52013/feed/ 0 http://fishcatchingtravel.com/2013/05/19/caye-caulker-belize-51913/ http://fishcatchingtravel.com/2013/05/19/caye-caulker-belize-51913/#comments Sun, 19 May 2013 13:05:44 +0000 Redfishlaw http://fishcatchingtravel.com/?p=4409 Continue reading →]]> Fish Catching Travel

Getting It Done The Hard Way

I thought when I got on the plane that I was leaving Texas behind.  Well I left, but of course the wind came with me.  It has blown every day, and right now it is 5:45 a.m. and I am writing this so I can at least show you a few pictures.  I always intend to post some when I am gone, and of course it is easier said than done.  All that aside, I managed to cross one of my bucket list.

Over time I have crossed of the muskie, tarpon, bonefish, and yesterday I put a permit in the boat.  Clyde and I spent the day with Ken, our guide.  The first stop was for tarpon, and Clyde and I really managed to mess that one up.  With the wind it is really hard to see the fish.  And once Ken spots them you have an instant to toss the bait, and it better be right.

When Clyde and Jeff went with him the first day they had problems getting it just right.  The cast has to be dead accurate, and you have a second to get it right. Once these fish see you it is over.  So we both tossed the sardine everywhere but on the fish.  So after messing up a few tarpon we moved on.  We ended up on a big point with mixed bottom and Ken spotted some permit.  To do it right you have to toss it in front of them, tighten your line and wait for the bite.  Clyde got it right.

        One of the most beautiful fish in the world, and one of the toughest.

When you are making 50 -70 foot casts, in high wind, to one of the world’s premier game fish who is afraid of his own shadow it takes precise casting and bait and line management.  And when it all comes together it is a thing of beauty.  For about 30 minutes Clyde fought this thing.  Long searing runs, then bulldog determination as they turn sideways and put the heavy muscle to you.  And after a titanic struggle, we had one in the boat.  I have some video and will get it posted when I get back, but I am in a hurry to get going so the vids will have to wait.

Next I saw one turn sideways about 60 feet away and Ken said throw so I did.  I missed the area by about 10 feet with the cast so he told me to reel in fast.  I did allowed for  windage on that cast, dropping the crab about 3 foot from where I wanted it.  Then all of a sudden my crab disappeared, and it was on.  Folks, I have caught marlin, amberjacks, bull reds and a host of other big fish, but nothing compares to a permit.

                                                      A dream realized!

Fish fight, but these permit are beyond anything I have ever caught.  The wide body and sickle tail allow them to make long blistering runs, and then turn sideways and use that wide body to bulldog you.  This one almost spooled a casting reel with 200 yards of 20lb test.  He got in a mangrove tree in the water and we had to untangle the line and let him work out.  After all that he was still ready to go and I never would have thought that it would take over 20 minutes to land one on pretty heavy stuff, but they fight like no bodies business.

With the wind tough like it is I have still managed to put 5 bonefish on the rod.  They are so fun, and on light line and light spinning rods are load of fun.  Here is one Jeff caught off the dock waiting for the guide the first day.

                                Clyde holding one of Jeff’s first bones.

So here we are, heading to breakfast and then Jeff and I are meeting Ken for another day on the water.  It will take me a lot more time than this to tell you everything, and as soon as I get back I will get to the whole story.  And I have lots of other pics to share so I will keep it coming.  But right now it is time to get after it.  This will be my second day with Ken and I am as excited as  I was yesterday.  It ain’t easy, but it is awesome.  So keep stopping by and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

When the captain of Team Nancy said what did I want for Christmas last year the answer was easy, to return to Belize.  Specifically to return to Sea Dreams on Caye Caulker.  Once that decision was made it did not take much to get my brother, Shoedog and one of my oldest friends, Clyde to come along.  My last trip I put 6 or 7 bones and Tarpon in the boat, most of them less than a block away from the resort.  What a place, a quick walk and you are in them.

Jeff and I made it without a problem, Clyde on the other hand was delayed for almost 3 hours and missed his connection with us.  It turned out they were waiting for some soldiers, so he had no complaint.  He handled it well, made the next connection to Belize City and then the last puddle jumper of the day to the island.

The island is great.  No cars, most of what we want is within a 5 minute walk.  The people are great and the food is wonderful.  We caught some supper, and then headed out to catch some fish.  We used a Sabiki rig to catch sardines and our intention was to drift the pass, which is right down the street and where I whacked most of my tarpon last time.  We were freelining them, but the wind was just to tough.  Oh well, tonite we will get them.  Before we quit we headed to their dock, which has a big population of wary bones and a few tarpon that migrate by at night.  Jeff ended up catching our first bone, and broke off a heavy weight.  Clyde and I both missed a tarpon and with that we called it a night.

I spoke with the guys who fished with Ken that day, our guide, and they caught 4 permit and had lots of shots.  The caught one well over 20lbs, what a beautiful fish.  When added to the 11lb. bonefish he caught earlier in the week you have one successful trip.  So the boys were excited when we all got up.  After a great breakfast which they make every morning, they were off to the dock to meet Ken.  While they were standing there Jeff caught his second bonefish.   So they loaded up and off they went.  I am really hoping at least one of them does something spectacular, and am looking forward to the pictures.

Clyde, Jeff, and Captain Ken.  Filled with anticipation.

Since the guide only takes 2, we are alternating, so I headed for the flat a half a block away, and they were there.  We are throwing a small 1/8th jig with a flats head.  They are made by Angler’s Ammo, and they work like a charm.  Add some 8 or 10 fluorocarbon and you are in business.

Here comes my first bonefish of the trip.  They are really fun to catch.

As soon as I got in the water a school swam right by me.  It was really windy and hard to see so I led them about 20 feet where I thought they were going, and he jumped it.  They fight so good, and when a good one runs it is a trip.  I continued to throw the jig and then caught another blind casting to an area I got them last year.

There number 2 gets a quick release.

Before I gave it up for the morning I got one more.  They are not big, though we are seeing some real honkers.  But boy are they fun.  For a Texas boy catching a bone is just something we don’t get to do, and I am thankful for every bite I get, no matter what the size.  It is just part of the whole experience and I can not wait to catch a tarpon tonight.

And here comes number three for the morning.

After I downloaded these pictures I went back out for an hour, but the tide was smoking with the wind making it really hard.  And the conditions hurt me when I lost the 2 I had on.  One was a real hooter and I did everything. right to keep him away from docks and poles, but guess I just did not get the hook set, same with the other one  But not to worry, we have only just begun to fish.

So keep stopping in.  I intend to post at least daily, and sometimes twice depending on how the guide fishing and the night fishing is.  What a place, and what an island.  If you ever get a chance Sea Dreams on Caye Caulker is worth the trip.  And to my lovely wife, wish you were here.  You know these boys, somebody has to take care of them!  Till later today.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

Sorry there has not been a post this week.  We took a couple of days off and went out of town, and the only fishing was 3 hours before the last big front on Coleto.  Nothing came of that, though I caught 8, it was slow, the fish were small, and it just did not peak my interest enough to post.  In fact, sometimes I guess I just need to take a little break.  But then a couple of things happen that remind me why I keep posting.

Yesterday I went to Keller to catch a few reds and see if the trout fishing was as good as I had it in POC last week.  Well I am not sure if the fishing is as good there, but the trout catching left a little something to be desired.  But as usual, the reds came through.

The tide was low when I got there about 7:30, and the water was fairly clear.  Of course the wind was blowing out of the NE right down the bay from the back end out.  I started on the bank past the docks with a spinnerbait.  It was a good thing I took the skiff as it was really shallow.  The water was completely out of the grass on the bank I like to fish.  I let the wind push me down the bank and ended up catching 3 on the first pass.

Here is the first one.  I usually take a picture of the first one in case there is not another.

Of the first 4 the one above was the only one that would have made it if I was keeping fish.  I did notice one thing on that first pass, they were on little oyster patches.  It was a matter of throwing to black spots and reeling it by and holding on.  Today it was the Redfish Magic in the electric chicken.  After I got to the end of that bank I stopped at the oyster reef at the mouth of the back bay across from the ramp, and put one more in the boat and missed another one.

Then it was off to trout fish.  My favorite trout bank is in the big bay on the north/east bank on the pasture past the last house.  I started on the sand point and let the wind blow me down the bank, which was not a problem, cause it was blowing.  The only thing that made it bearable was it was coming over the bank and the trolling motor kept me in position.  Though you had to fight  the wind, I ended up drifting that bank almost all the way to the very back end.

I threw plastics, topwater, and popping cork.  Topwater produced nothing, it was a little to windy with a cold edge to the morning.  Popping cork for some reason did squat, which surprised me.  The 5 trout I did catch all came on paddle tails, a couple on a grey with silver flake, and the others on electric chicken.  About 3 foot of water was the best, but when you only catch 5 it is hard to know if that was the depth.  One thing that was funny is I only missed one.  Why I had no more bites drifting that long bank I do not know.  I did catch one out of a slick, and one out of an area the gulls were diving, but that was the size of it.

Not a bad one, and of the 5 I put in the boat 4 were like this.  I really like how healthy they look this year.

Now I could have stayed on that bank and kept drifting down it and probably filled a limit, but it was just to slow for me, ADD you know.  About this time the tide started to move a little, and while it was no real monster by any means, the water did start to come up a little.  With that it was time to head back in the back bay and throw some more spinnerbait.  I figured they would be moving up with the tide.

I started on the grassy bank past the docks and let the wind blow me down the bank.  It was interesting how the water finally made the edge of the grass, but the fish did not.  They were still on the small isolated oyster patches off the bank.  That bank has small shell patches scattered on it, and most of the bites I had came off it.  On the next pass I ended up catching 7 more redfish to finish off the day.  As the tide did not amount to much, you had to keep the bait moving.  I was often in about a foot of water and could not reach the bank.  The nice thing about that is you could see some of them smoke it.

The best one of the day.

A nice representative of the size for the day.

I finished out the day catching 5 trout and 11 redfish.  It was one of those days where I could have waited until the tide was moving to go fishing.  Then the reds would have been biting when I got there, and I think I could have had some better luck on the trout later in the evening.  It cleared off and started to get warm about the time I quit.  But all in all a good day.

Now as to why when I get a little tired of keeping this thing up, something will happen that re-invigorates me.  As I slid down the bank in the back bay I met a nice gentleman who was netting mullet.  He has been catching some really big redfish back in the bay on the mullet, and with the clouds of mullet I am not surprised,  We had a nice chat and then he asked me if I was that guy.  I confessed and then he said a nice thing to me, keep the stories coming.  When something like that happens I am so appreciative.   And kind Sir, just so you know, I put 7 more redfish in the boat right after I spoke with you.

Also this week I got a really kind note from one of my readers.  He and his wife are new to the POC area as weekend residents.   He thanked me for the posts and turning him on to some potentially new areas.  There is nothing nicer than compliments on my writing.  I do it because I love to fish, and I want to share not only the stories, but also some real information.  Hopefully some of that real practical information might help someone put another fish in the boat.  So thanks to both these folks,  I am humbled.

So now it is time  -  Belize is right around the corner.  The spare bedroom floor is covered in rods, reels, and tackle.  The fishing clothes are laid out, and tomorrow the final pack job takes place.  I am excited and apprehensive.  I have had a couple of Belize dreams in the last week, and the thought of putting a couple of tarpon in the boat is really starting to get me excited.  And taking my brother and best friend, neither who have been on a trip like this, is making me a little apprehensive.  I so want them to both catch a tarpon and a bonefish, and who knows, we may even knock off a permit.  This has been a long wait for my Christmas present, but  what a present it is.

So thanks for reading my stuff.  It looks like I will top the 46,000 visits I had last year by the end of June this year.  Not bad for a blog that started of with 60 some visitors the first month we were here.  So keep on stopping in, and I will just have to keep fishing.  Sounds like a plan.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

]]> http://fishcatchingtravel.com/2013/05/13/keller-bay-51213/feed/ 0 http://fishcatchingtravel.com/2013/05/07/poc-5613/ http://fishcatchingtravel.com/2013/05/07/poc-5613/#comments Tue, 07 May 2013 02:14:44 +0000 Redfishlaw http://fishcatchingtravel.com/?p=4360 Continue reading →]]> Fish Catching Travel

If you read yesterday’s post you know I was excited about going today.  A nice warm day, high tide, little wind, and the day did not disappoint.  I have read some really good reports on nice size trout lately, and I was looking forward to getting down to POC.  All I have to say about today, is I hope this is a sign of things to come.

I had big plans to fish Big Bayou first and then head over to the Pringle area, but that did not happen.  The fishing was so good I never left the bayou all day.  I caught lots of reds, and some good ones, and some really nice trout.  I started on a deep bank near the last island and was throwing a MirrOLure paddle tail in the electric chicken on  1/8th ounce Strike King jig head.  I missed one that felt really heavy, and then this happened.

This picture does not do her justice.  She was over 29″ and heavy as a son of a gun!

Here is the only other picture I took, I wanted to get her back ASAP.  It is tough to get a big girl in the picture when you are by yourself.

I never felt her hit, in fact almost all the good trout I caught today were just there when I lifted up, you only had an instant to set the hook.  I took 2 quick pictures then let her rest until she got her wind back and swam out of my hand.  I love watching a big fish swim away no worse for the wear after some CPR.  I continued to work  all the deeper banks in the bayou and they were here or there.  But when you caught one, you usually caught another.  I also managed to catch some on the shallow side, it seemed the trout were up and biting.  And while this was the biggest, there were several good fish coming before I quit at 4.

     It caught about 10 like this today and it was really nice to release them.

I hit Mitchell’s Cut and they are in there also.  In fact, the hottest place I found was near the point going into the cut.  Most of the fish came from 3 – 6 feet deep using a Texas Two Step double hop and drop.  It seemed they wanted it hopped off the bottom, so on those deeper banks you had to be sure to let it fall down the drop.  I did notice that the smaller ones whacked it, but the good ones like the one above were just there.  Unfortunately I managed to mess up another pretty big fish.  I am not sure why she came off, but she was in the same class as the big one.  It was nice to catch a bunch of trout and it looks like it may be one of those years, only time will tell.

Here are the unlucky four that made the plate tonite, and boy were they good!  That is my 19″ board, look how fat they were.

Once I caught a bunch of trout it was time for some spinnerbaiting.  I am still throwing the Strike King Redfish Magic in the croaker.  I am convinced that the blue tail on the grub which mimics the lit up tail of a redfish turns them on.  Since I started throwing that color the last month they have just tore it up.  And today was no different.

It was simply a matter of fishing grass lines and shell banks.  Then a steady crank and hold on.  I put at least 6 in the boat and would have had a nice limit if I was keeping them.

They were smacking that thing!

I did have one break my line today.  It was a riot.  I reeled it out from under a dock and he knocked the crap out of it.  I set the hook, and the reel fell off the rod.  He came at me, the reel hit the deck, and I grabbed it trying to get it back on the rod.  While this was going on the breeze blew me into the dock, and when I finally got things together he was under the dock, out the other side, and I promptly broke him off.  Nice to be having the kind of day where something like that is nothing but a thing, and I was out there laughing my butt off.  As my old friend Tad would say, “With your superior skill you managed to screw it up.”

I did catch one small flounder today.  I was hoping to catch a keeper to round out a nice slam, but there is no sense looking a gift horse in the mouth.  The only thing that I wish was that I fished a few other areas, it would be nice to know if they were that active all over.  But no matter what the reports of some really good  strings of trout are true.  After not really catching to many the last couple of months, this was a welcome change.

I did throw a topwater some without any bites, and when I tried a couple of other colors in the plastics they were not having it.  It could be me, when you have confidence in something it is funny how you catch fish on it.

So what a day.  I am tired, hot, and a little sunburned, but I just may have to get up tomorrow and give it another go.  When the getting is good it is time to get them.  If I do I will hit somewhere else and see if the bite is the same there.  But either way it was deep banks or shell banks.  And if you could combine both, there were good fish on them.  This was the best day I have had in a while.  When you can put a limit of trout and reds in the boat and still quit at 4 the fishing is good.

So thanks for reading my stuff.  The countdown to Belize has begun.  I even dreamed about it last night.  I am not to excited.  So keep stopping in and I will try to keep the reports coming.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

]]> http://fishcatchingtravel.com/2013/05/07/poc-5613/feed/ 0 http://fishcatchingtravel.com/2013/05/06/random-thoughts-and-coleto-creek-5513/ http://fishcatchingtravel.com/2013/05/06/random-thoughts-and-coleto-creek-5513/#comments Mon, 06 May 2013 01:24:25 +0000 Redfishlaw http://fishcatchingtravel.com/?p=4346 Continue reading →]]> Fish Catching Travel

Sorry there has not been a post for a couple of days, but my lovely wife just finished a long stretch of work and was in some serious need of some R & R.  So we went to the art festival in Corpus for a couple of days.  We had some fun and frolic but it is back to work for her and for me.  If you can call what I do work.

The weather report is the kind I dream about for fishing the Gulf.  It is going to really warm up tomorrow, there is supposed to be little wind, and the tide will be high first thing and then start falling.  Sets up a set of perfect conditions for catching some trout early and then the redfish when it falls out of the drains and grass.  So it will be up early and gone tomorrow for a long day at POC.  I hope to get a shot or two at reds on the fly rod tomorrow, only time will tell.  But with a couple of days of stable weather I intend to get after it.

Coleto Creek  5/2/13.

I did get a chance to get out last week the day the big front blew through.  It was supposed to hit about noon, and it came at 11.  The wind picked up to gale force and it started to rain, and the day was over.  I really thought they were going to bite, but it was slower than I would have guessed.  I did manage to put about 10 in boat, but it was slow.

This is the only one worth a hoot Thursday morning.

The one above was the best of the lot.  All my bites came on the main lake or a point.  The coves are beginning to play out as the spawn ends.  Over the next month the bigger fish will be resting offshore and slower baits like worms and football jigs will start to be the bait of choice.  Of course if we get a couple of days of stable weather with clouds, you can still catch them on buzzbaits and topwater.

It has been a good spring on Coleto, and while I did not catch as many big fish as I did last year, the numbers were good.  The swim jig produced steady catches and should remain a good choice for the rest of this month.  But with summer on the way it is time to fish the Gulf, and I am so ready.

Arkansas

Arkansas’s good fishing is right now.  My friend Clyde has been sending me a few pictures now and then and I wanted to share a couple of them with you.  The Ozarks lakes, Bull Shoals and Norfork both have a good population of big white crappie, and when they are biting in that clear deep water it is a thing of beauty.

Now those are some nice Arkansas Crappies.

And sometime in the 60′s I believe Arkansas started stocking walleye in those lakes.  Over the time I was there, the late 70′s through the 90′s we caught them here or there fishing for other stuff.  No one really targeted those fish, but they were there.  In the early 2000′s there was an explosion of fish, and a professional walleye tournament was won with a better than 5 pound average.  Since then fishermen have targeted them with a good bit of success and it is a viable consistent fishery.

A great Arkansas walleye.

One thing about the highland lakes of the Ozarks, there is a variety of fishing.  Solid largemouth and smallmouth, good crappie, some serious striper fishing, rainbow and brown trout fishing on the White River, floating the Buffalo River for smallmouth, it is all there and more.  If you ever wanted to take a fishing vacation, the Ozarks is a fine choice.  There are still small nice resorts on the lakes and rivers with docks and there are plenty of good ramps.  While I love the salt, if I had to go back to just freshwater fishing it would be back to Arkansas in a minute.

I have been slowly getting things laid out for Belize.  I am sure I will be packed a week before, but it is hard to not get excited.  And having my brother and Clyde along for their first real out of the country fishing trip will be a blast.  But until then, Gulf here I come.  So thanks for reading my stuff and stop by soon for a couple of new reports.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

Making chicken salad out of ……. you know.

My friend Aaron, who is working in the Houston area right now, has wanted to fish Lake Texana for a while, so we made a date for this morning and met at the Mustang Wilderness ramp at daylight.  If you read about my last and only Lake Texana fishing trip you know I struck out.  If I had not caught a big blue cat on my second cast, I wouldn’t have even had a bite.

So with that thought in my head we started out throwing jigs around wood and hyacinth, with absolutely no luck.  I mean nada.  The day was turning out beautiful and Aaron finally could not take it.  He said he hated to waste the day, so at 9:30 we decided to take out and hit the Gulf.  We both brought some saltwater stuff, maybe that was a sign, who knows.  So we came up with a plan, let’s fish Palacios.

Now other than a short drive through there one day, the only thing I knew about Palacios was where it was, sorta of.  I really can’t even say I had a clue where to fish, or even where a ramp was, and since Aaron knew even less it was a wonderful plan.  We drove into town and there was a public boat ramp on the bay, so in the water we went.

When we left Texana the wind was not blowing, but of course it was blowing pretty cood right on the ramp from across the bay.  And with the skiff, and not the bay boat, we knew we would get a little wet, and we did.  So we headed straight across the bay to what I now know is Coon Island, which was out of the wind and we started on Oliver Point.  We ended up fishing the whole side all the way back to Pilkington Bayou.  And the fishing turned out to be pretty good.

My first Texas Pompano.

I started with a Hackberry Hustler, and Aaron threw a topwater and plastic some, as we headed down the bank.  I missed a light tap, and then a few casts later I felt one, set the hook and foul hooked a pompano.  Other than one jumping in the boat a couple of years ago that is the extent of my pompano experience.  But I heard they were good to eat, and they are.

We kept heading down the bank and hit a area of rip rap, and of course the Redfish Magic caught the first red.  Before we quit at 3:30 we easily put 12 – 14 in the boat.  They all came on the spinnerbait.

Aaron with the first of many reds he caught today.

I continued throw plastics and Aaron alternated with a topwater, but spinnerbait was the ticket.  We simply stayed a long cast off the bank and used the trolling motor to go down the bank.  We caught one here and there until we headed up the little creek in the back of Coon Island Bay.  The important thing was the tide was up and getting higher, and the reds were definitely moving.  Aaron had never really fished spinnerbait for reds in the middle of the day successfully but it really does not have anything to do with the time, it is simply a matter of the tides.  When the water is up and moving, and there is grass and shell, you have the perfect combination, and that whole shoreline has stretches of it.

Once we were in that small creek we probably put 6 or so in the boat, some were big, some small.  He caught a 15 spotter among others, and whether big or small, they were trying to jerk the rod out of our hands, it was an awesome bite.  As we kept heading down the bank on the main  bay, we would catch them off small oyster patches you could see by the bank.  There are also a couple of docks on that bank, and we caught a couple of fish off each one.

Another red on the Redfish Magic.  Take a look how far up the drain we were, about as far as that spinnerbait is down that reds throat.

As we got further down towards Pilkington there are some reefs in about 3 foot of water which had a few trout on them.  And while I caught 3 or 4 on plastics, they were all small.  But we put in a half hearted effort on the trout as the reds were biting to good.  One of the reefs had a popping cork on it, Aaron casted over it and it had a nice trout on it. In fact the only good trout other than that one of the day came off one of the docks on a Redfish Magic.  It was just one of those interesting trips.

The best of the few trout we managed.  Throwing the craoker color Redfish Magic had been the ticket the last couple of trips.

By about 3:00 we had worked that whole shoreline till we got to Pilkington Bayou.  The tide had quit running, and we never caught a redfish in there.  We did catch a couple close to the Bayou, but none inside it.  We took a little ride way back in the creek to just have a look, and then called it a day.

The last good red I caught.  We caught 4  or 5 this size.

So what started off as a bad bass fishing day turned into a really good day on the Gulf.  We joked all day that we were lost, or at least had no clue about the area, and managed to have a pretty good day.  Sometimes it is time to make a move, and we are lucky enough in south Texas to have somewhere else to go.  And one thing about the Gulf, there always seems to be a way to catch fish, you just have to figure it out.

We are looking forward to making a return trip, and a little map study sure won’t hurt things.  The view from the I phone is just not the same as having a good map and doing a little preparation before you go.  But sometimes it is just nice to go somewhere new and just play it by ear.  This time it worked.

The weather is supposed to go in the dumpster tomorrow.  What an interesting spring, it seems we have had a lot of cold fronts, and if it does make it down to the high 40′s tomorrow it will be a little something new for this guy.  I thought it was supposed to be hotter than the devil here in May.  But guess what?  No matter what I will be heading to the lake for a quick trip in the morning.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

Though I have a new post for the lake I will get to that when I tell you about today.  Since I had not been to the Gulf lately due to the wind, it looked promising, so I headed to the Powderhorn for some spinnerbait fishing.  The plan was to find them shallow back in the little back lake on the south side of the Powderhorn.  According to a guy I talked to on the water, it is called the Mailbox.

The wind was forecast at 10 – 15 out of the ESE but it seemed to be straight out of the east and was blowing at least that hard right down the Powderhorn.  When I got to the back lake it was pretty off colored, which I should have figured out with the rain we had last night.  So down went the trolling motor and as soon as I entered the lake, the bank on the left had a little pocket that was dead calm, and there were mullet everywhere.  I promptly caught this one .  As I have often said, the way a redfish hits a Redfish Magic is a thing of beauty.

This guy was a couple of inches over.

I was throwing the Redfish Magic in the croaker color.  The tail looks like a lit up redfish tail, and it was simply a matter of throwing to the grass and cranking it out.  One more small one came over the side there, then I just kept working the whole pocket.  I caught another small one in the back end, and another small one by the duck blind.  Before I headed out I re-fished where I caught the first couple, and this one jumped on.

This one knocked the snot out of it.  Notice the blue tail on that Redfish Magic, looks just like the tail of lit up redfish.

I then fished the bank on the south side of the Powderhorn from the shallow lakes on the left heading all the way back to the back lake .  I missed a couple which felt like flounder.  After having plenty of bites it is easy to tell when it is a flounder.  They grab it, but as you know they have a tendency to pull off.  If you get one on the spinnerbait just keep a nice steady retrieve and they just might stay on.  But I was sure they were flounder bites, and it turned out they were.  Nothing like fresh fried flounder.  To bad I know absolutely nothing about catching flounder.  I do know when the tide is high, and until it really begins to drop, the flounder love those grass edges with a little deeper water close.

16″ of delicious, and he was the guest of honor at supper right before I wrote this.

By now the wind had a head of steam and it was pretty choppy.  I stopped at a stake on that bank that marks an oyster bar and caught a 14″ trout off the end of it.  It was on a 1/8th ounce jig head with a electric chicken colored paddle tail.  That was the last trout I would see, in fact I am not sure I had another bite from a trout.  Later I did one drift, but the wind was just blowing that skiff  to quickly, and by then I had absolutely no confidence as far as the trout went.

I finished up the day catching another red which was exactly 20″, good thing that flounder was on ice or that red would have been toast, or maybe on toast.  So for the afternoon I caught 6 reds, 1 trout and 1 flounder.  It could have been a lot better, but I was happy with the reds, and it could have always been worse.  The tide was high and it just did not seem the water was moving.  The bites were just one here and one there.  But no matter what, there are always reds to be caught in the Powderhorn.  Today I could not fish the north side leading to the pocket before the bridge.  That is one of my favorite redfish banks in the Powderhorn.  But whether it is the Powderhorn, POC, Keller Bay, or any other bay on the coast, find some grass near the bank and a little deep water, and you can find the reds.  Today I was hoping the water would start falling out of the grass, but the it just did not happen.

I met a guy at the ramp told me a friend of his had 18 trout yesterday, but only 2 this morning.  Of course with the wind the way it was, fishing the open lake was not practical, and I saw few people fishing.  I did talk with a guy on the water who had been there 3 or 4 days and had only boated one 19″ red and no trout.  As usual it is just a matter of who you talk to.

Coleto   4/26/13.

Friday I had to do a little bunk work on the trailer, and since I did not want to trailer to far until it got done, I headed to Coleto.  I started in the first big cove in the Coleto arm, and with it fairly calm and cloudy, I decided to start with the buzzbait.  On my second cast this girl whacked it.

Not a bad start.

As I knew it was not going to be a long day, I decided to stay with the buzzbait.  And like we talked about last time, I tried to make the fish do what I wanted, which was to catch a big fish.  So I buzzed my butt off for 5 hours, and though I caught a bunch, none topped the one above.  But I did get the bite I was looking for, unfortunately she missed it by a mile.

The fish seemed to be a little more bunched up, if you caught one, you caught a couple.  The best bank was a lilly pad field up the lake.  As I neared the point a really great fish rolled on the buzzbait right next to the boat.  That was the bite I was looking for and though she just did not hook up, it was an awesome sight.

So even though I did not land the big one, it was not a bad way to spend the morning.  I did want to shoot a little video, so I decided as soon as I caught several in a row that I would put the camera on.  I stopped at a main lake flat with some shallow pockets above the bridge in the Coleto arm, and immediately caught 5 in short order.  So on went the camera, and for the next hour of the battery life I put exactly none on film.  In fact I only had one bite in that hour.  So that ended my short trip to Coleto.  While catching those bass the last few weeks has been fun, it was great to get back to the salt, and I intend to keep it up.

Random Thoughts

When I got to the ramp at Coleto I met Rusty, who I have communicated a little in the past on the blog.  He has been fishing Coleto some, but his home lake is Fayette.  He reported pretty good catches on the swim jig, including 16 the day before we chatted.  It was nice to hear his kind comments on the blog, puts a real face to those numbers.  So if you see me out there give me a shout out.

I also heard from Don who said reading my stuff, and then attending a seminar where the pro talked about the swim jig, got him to try them.  He gets around to several lakes and is catching fish on it, some of them pretty good fish.  And while he likes the Rage Craw, he has had good luck on the Yum Wooly Bullie.  I looked it up and it looks like a lot of the beaver style baits.  Not only would it be good on a swim jig, but also looks like a good pitching and flipping bait.  Being a sucker for tackle, next time I come across one at the store I will grab a bag and let you all know how it works.

Tomorrow I am headed to Texana in spite of my best interest.  My only trip there resulted in a catfish, and not another bite.  I can not remember the last time I went bass fishing and did not catch even one fish.  But Aaron is determined to show me how it is done, and hopefully he will.

It was nice to catch some reds yesterday.  Things have conspired to keep me at the lake a little more than normal, but feeling the thump of a good red on that spinnerbait reminded me why I love them so much.  And it can not be long before it warms and stays that way, which will surely get those trout in full swing.  For the love of god, this is South Texas, almost May 1, and it looks like we will have temps in the 40′s Thursday night.  Hopefully these next couple of fronts will bring more rain, we need it.

So thanks for reading my stuff.  After  Texana tomorrow, it will be POC before the end of the week.  I have a hankering for some fresh trout, who knows, I might even do a little wading.  But no matter what I will be on the water because someone once said that time on the water is not subtracted from your life.  If that is the case I might live to be 200 years old.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

After the commotion of a week with company it was nice to get on the water and do some serious fishing.  The forecast was for high winds from the north and a 40 degree temp drop, and they were right on.  With the wind blowing 30 out of the north on a huge cold front not many people were out, to bad.  This is a set of conditions to store in your memory.  I have found over the years that in the spring when this happens the fish seem to be off in the morning, but then midday they turn on, and it turned out to be exactly that.

I started off about  11:00 on the main lake flat behind the small island, and of course I threw the Strike King Swim Jig.  It is an excellent choice when you need to slow down.  They are still near the grass, and that includes the main lake and the coves.  Over the next couple of hours I caught one here and there, but the best places were still in the coves and pockets.  There are fish still on the beds and some are done spawning, which makes for multiple patterns right now.

My first bite.

Lots of this size can be caught right now on Coleto.

Another nice swim jig fish.

I started off with a slow retrieve and picked up the speed as they started biting better and better.  It is really important to throw it right on the bank right now as close to cover as you can get.  Most are coming in the first couple of feet.  It was interesting how during the day how they got more and more aggressive.  It still surprised me how fast you can reel that jig.

As they became more and more aggressive it reminded me of a friend who is gone now, Jim Wakenight who I guided with back in the 70′s and 80′s in Arkansas.  He always said to look at the cows on the way to the lake, if they are laying down the fishing will be slow.  That goes along with Rickie Clunn’s views on watching the wildlife activity level, the birds, and other signs, to help you make decisions on where and how to fish.  Today that view was spot on.

As the fish started smacking the swim jig hard, I noticed the birds were getting more active, the deer were feeding, and I saw 2 bunches of hogs on the lake shore.  At that point I was thinking about Jimmy and his theory, so I decided maybe the buzzbait would work, and boy did it.  When I caught the one below who tried to take my rod, it was the last swim jig I threw.

At this point the fish were trying to jerk the rod out of my hands.

Since I was finding the fish in the back of the coves with no wind and lots of grass, I headed back to the coves behind the big island and it was awesome.  I caught 5 in the first one, 4 or 5 in the second, and then headed to the long bank out of the wind in the Coleto arm.  For the next couple of hours they just ate it.  It was not one of those gee I wonder if I had a bite deal, it was all out blowing up on that thing!

I quit taking pictures after I caught this girl on a buzzbait.  When they started they were smashing it so it was camera down and game on.

I ended up quiting at 5, and lost track of how many I caught, but it was plenty.  It was one of those days a buzzbait fisherman lives for.  The few that did miss it you could toss back at them and almost every time I got another hit.  They really moved into the back ends and I was tossing it as far as I could over the matted grass.  The one above was the biggest I caught, but for me it is a matter of the bite.  They were explosive, and I just started covering as much ground as possible reeling it fairly fast.

So it was nice to have a day where the fish did exactly what I thought they would do.  The old saying the more I fish the luckier I get is so true.  What it really means is that nothing replaces time on the water.  And that experience can be translated to more fish by thinking about what you have done in the past, where you did it, and how the conditions work with those experiences.  Mechanically I am pretty good, I can cast, tie on baits, run the trolling motor, and everything else that comes with fishing.  But that is not what makes me a good fisherman.  It is not all the cool equipment, great boats, and all the lures anyone could ever want.  It is a matter of putting it all together.

Of course they will fool you.  Like when you change baits and catch one on the first cast and then don’t get another bite on it.  Or trying to make the fish do what you want.  Those traps can stymie any fisherman.  As I have said before, listen to the fish and they will tell you what you need to know.  So keep and open mind when you head to the lake.  Be flexible, everything works together, and like today, when you put it all together the fish gods will smile on you.

I still have not made it to the Gulf.  The fishing reports are really picking up and the redfish are hot right now.  From the local reports the trout fishing is still somewhat spotty and seems to be a matter of wading through lots of smaller fish to get a limit.  I have some trailer work to do so I will be heading to Coleto tomorrow so I can put the boat in and then do the work I need to do on the trailer.  But after tomorrow I will be headed to the Gulf as a steady diet.  I need my saltwater fix, and with Belize coming in 3 weeks I want to take the fly rod and try to put a redfish in the boat.  That should be something, but what that something is remains to be seen.

Thanks for reading my stuff.  By writing about my experience I have a chance to review the day and put it firmly in my memory.  And some day next spring when the wind blows and the front comes, who knows, maybe I can put it together and repeat today’s success.  Like all fisherman hope springs eternal.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

Sorry I have not posted in a few days, but with the family here there was no spare time.  Between Sea World, the Shiner Brewery, fish fry, and whatever else we were busy bunch.  There has been no real time for fishing, at least hard core fishing.  But I did get to take Alfie and Leigh for an afternoon, and they really had a good time fishing.

We got lucky when after a really late start we caught the end of the buzzbait bite.  The fish were shallow and biting when we got to my first place, which of course was up the river on a flat, grassy, bank.

Alfie’s best of the day.  Nothing better than to get someone who doesn’t fish a nice one who blows up on it.

Even Leigh got in on the act.  I do not think he has fished since he was 8 years old, and he stuck with it all afternoon.  And this fish, just like Alfie’s, smashed it.

A nice one on the buzzbait, and as you can see a big OKC fan.  Guess that comes with living in Oklahoma City. Thunder Up!

I even caught a keeper.  To bad it was the last bite we had for 3 hours.  Luckily I had a place for midday, and we managed to pull it out on the last bank.

Nothing to write home about buy I will take this size all day long.

When the slacked off they really quit.  We fished a lot of places from up the big arm, to the other arm by the power plant, and just did not get the bites.  By now with a high sky and no wind we were throwing a swim jig, but until after 5 they were not having it.

I will give Leigh a lot of credit for keeping fishing, he just could not get the hang of the setting the hook on the jig, and lost several right at the boat.  Alfie meanwhile got a taste of it the other day and managed to put several in the boat on the last bank we fished.

We finished the afternoon on the flat super shallow grass bank down by the dam and they were on it.  We probably put 8 or so in the boat, and it would have been more if Leigh could have got the hook in them.  While the swim jig is real easy to fish, it takes some practice.  We had the boat in 4 foot of water throwing at the grass and just cranking it along.  O course I had to catch another catfish.  I have lost count on how many that is this spring on lures, but it is the record for me by far.

They really like that Strike King Swim Jig.

I think the real difference is the Rage Craw.  If you look at the pincher’s you can see they have molded in edges which makes it move a bunch of water and vibrate better than most plastics.  The jig is balanced perfect, but for me it is the craw.  It has been such a consistent producer this spring that it has been hard to put it down.

We quit early so we could have a fish fry and headed to camp.  Everyone stuffed themselves and had a good time.  Another Texas experience for Alfie.  He had a great time catching a few fish, stabbing a hog, and hanging with the rednecks.  And it was nice to have the kids here for the week.  Lots of hustle and bustle, and I love them all, but a little alone time will be nice.

But I never forget the real reason for the season.  We went for boat rides, saw some gators, deer, and all the other great things out there.  And little Mia, who didn’t want to go that fast the first ride, was all about it on her second.  Hopefully there will be lots of rides to come, and who knows, maybe Leigh will do a little more fishing.  So thanks for reading my stuff.  I am posting this late after getting back from Coleto.  I really whacked them today, and will get that posted tomorrow.

From all of us to you -

Good Luck and Tight Lines