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Fish Catching Travel
Sorry I have not posted in the last week but being gone to the beach, and then taking a day to recover, then all of a sudden it was Tuesday. So I spent today writing and downloading and editing the video, and now it is finally done. So I hope you enjoy this trip, I did.
I just had a really interesting weekend shark fishing on Padre Island. Chris and I headed out Thursday to spend 3 nights camping on the beach. It was great to be heading down the beach with someone who was not only prepared for almost any contingency, but in a vehicle able to navigate almost anything. As it was the endangered Kemp’s ridley sea turtle nesting season on the beach, we roared off at a blazing 15 mph. So with all the stuff, and several coolers of bait, we made our first stop somewhere around the 7 mile marker.
Home sweet home.
We stopped there as Michael and his friend Corey were going to meet us before we headed further down the beach. Our first night was fairly unproductive as we did not get a bite on the shark rigs. I was impressed, as this was my first trip and I was clueless, as Chris over the next couple of days paddled the baits out in his kayak. He got some of them so far out that I had to use binoculars to see when he dropped the bait so I could begin to tighten the line to pull the belly out.
Michael joined us late Friday afternoon, and then Corey got there a little after dark. We kept several long lines out, and again did not have any luck on Friday night. Though I thought the surf was rough, apparently it was not out of the ordinary for Padre Island. It was interesting that there was very little bird action along the surf. So we hunkered down for the night, with plans to head down the beach in the morning.
Saturday morning we packed up and headed down the beach. The tide was out after 10 a.m. so the driving was great as you could keep to the hard pack. Let me tell you folks, there were some areas that were really soft, and a good 4 wheel drive and some judicious driving decisions were necessary. Some of the areas the sand was so soft that you could get stuck no matter what you were driving.
We ended up stopping at around the 25 mile marker. It was clearly deeper closer to the beach as we headed down the island. We made our stand after watching the waves as they broke on the bars. Our decision was based on the fact that we noticed an area where there appeared to be a gut. We were able to make that based on the fact that the breaking waves seemed to not be breaking on a 25 yard stretch until the 3rd gut, and there was a huge shell pile. It just looked like it was a little deeper there, so we made camp and out went the lines.
Our first real bite came when Corey had a bite on his rod. I believe it came on a really small live whiting. When he got it to the bank it took us a little time to digest just what it was. What made it more unusual is I had just been telling the boys I had eaten skate in Las Vegas, and it was really good.
A skate. What a cool “fish”.
Other than the obvious difference in appearance, there are some other differences worth mentioning. Rays bear their young inside and have live births, skates lay eggs in a protective case called a mermaids purse. Rays have one or two stingers, skates have a spiny ridge down their back for protection. And the most obvious difference is the dorsal fins, which you can see on the one above, which rays do not have. The edible portion is the tail, though keeping with our general practice this one was CPR’d.
Not a few minutes later Corey had another bite.
Our first shark, a bonnethead.
Now don’t get me wrong, this was our first shark, just not quite what we were looking for. But after he just caught the skate, it appeared things were picking up. Though the bonnethead is a member of the hammerhead family, it was it’s bigger cousin we were after. So the hunt continued when all of a sudden Michael’s rod high on the rack had an obvious bite, and the fight was on.
Michael fights him from the beach as Corey looks on.
Chris drags him onshore for hook out and release.
Who is that happy masked man?
That little flurry of activity on Saturday afternoon as the tide was rushing out turned out to be it for the day. Now at this point Chris and I had been fishing for a couple of days, and we had not had a decent bite. We had soaked horse mullet, hunks of jack that weighed over 10 pounds, fresh cut whiting, huge cow nose rays, and anything else we could think of, all without success. We lost a couple of rigs, one possibly to a Spanish mackerel cutting the heavy white braid, one to a clip wearing on the mono, and another possibly to crossing another line and rubbing during the night.
But all of that is part of the learning curve, and as usual we all seem to have to learn the hard way. But as with all fishermen, hopes springs eternal, and we never give up. While sitting on the beach enjoying the sundown and the good company we indulged in a little ceviche made from assorted small fresh fish we caught while chasing sharks. Chris made it and boy was it good.
What a taste treat. Ceviche and an adult beverage on the beach, does it get any better than that?
We woke Sunday morning and our lines had not been touched during the night. Our plan was to wait until the tide dropped some to make our way back. First was a great breakfast of show pig and eggs on tortillas provided by Michael, then a slow packing of the stuff. As we sat and chatted with the last lines out, it was time to call it a day when there was a sharp bite on one of the rods we had soaked from sundown the night before. That whole bait sat in one place, I think in the last gut, for around 14 hours when it happened.
Hook out. That circle was buried and he was going nowhere but on the beach.
Chris with his blacktip. A quick nose up pic and back in the water he went. Finally success.
When I say this was a last minute fish, it was truly a last call. We were just getting ready to call it a trip after 3 days when it finally happened for us. Since it was my first time doing it from the beach, I have caught sharks in the Everglades freelining bait in shallow water, I did not know what to expect. Though Chris was getting somewhat frustrated, everything worked out fine. We got a couple of sharks, and added greatly to our knowledge, some of which was what not to do, but that is how we often learn when fishing.
After that we loaded the trucks and headed back for the long drive. On the way Corey, who had a 2 wheel drive truck, got stuck twice. But with Chris’s truck it was just a matter of strapping up and popping him out. When we got to the area from the 7 mile marker and up there was a lot more traffic and we came up on our first really stuck car. Now what in the heck these folks were doing driving in really soft sand I am not sure, but no matter, Chris would just jerk them out no problem. But it did not work that way.
When Chris went to pull them out for some reason the guy in the car left it in drive, and Chris was pulling him backwards, and that big high torque Ford buried up in a second. So as we made our plans to pull him out with Michael’s truck another guy stopped to help and it turned out it was a friend of Chris’s from his 4 wheeling days out of Waco. So that problem was solved quickly, and then Chris popped the car out and it was done.
What was interesting was other than a quick thanks, we heard her say, that was not as easy as when they pulled us out yesterday. Now Chris is a calm easy going fellow, I on the other hand do not give a rats, so for me I felt like saying was if you are that f’n stupid, get off the beach you knuckleheads. You have no business there taking advantage of the good folks who stop to help stuck folks out. That is the very thing that makes some guys just keep on driving instead of stopping to help. You are the problem you idiots. Sorry about the rant, but that is crap.
As we finally made the exit at the park, we came upon a Prius who managed to get stuck about 30 yards past the end of the blacktop. They were from Rogers Arkansas, my old stomping grounds, down here for a wedding and I do not think they had tried driving on the beach before. After we pulled them out they asked about the conditions down the beach, and Chris told them it was rough. So did they go on? Who knows, but hopefully they parked at the lot and walked in.
And as a fitting end to the trip, Chris was towed almost 15 miles one trip when his transmission line broke, and his rule is, if I am going or coming and you are stuck, I will help. He does not back track, but as long as you are on his way he will help. And he did that all the way back Sunday. A sound policy, and I think really fair, as we watched other big four wheel drive trucks pass those stuck folks. But as we were pulling out the Prius he said look at that van.
Back down the beach where we had already passed, there was a van stuck in deep soft sand, with about 4 or 5 folks pushing it out. Now I am not one to criticize fashion choices, just ask my wife, but there was something so wrong about the visual of those folks pushing that van. Guys, it is tough enough to look good in a Speedo when you are 20 years old and in good shape, but when you are in your 40’s, give serious thought to your choice of swim wear. The sight of a an old guy like me in a yellow Speedo pushing a van almost traumatized me, and I am still trying to get that image out of my mind!
So what a cool trip. I can see that we will be making another in the future. I am one of those fishermen that when it is tough or does not go fabulous on the first try, it just makes me want to do it again, and do it better. We learned some things that will definitely help in the future. For now it is back to the Gulf. Fishing reports are really spotty right now, high winds and high pressure are keeping some of the bays muddy, and the trout fishing tough.
Here is a picture I got from my friend Aaron. He was down in Hackberry LA fishing last weekend and caught some good trout. He said they also ran into a couple of acres of redfish. Nothing like a big fish to make the trip. He did admit he “cheated” by using shrimp. But hey, whatever works.
Now folks that is a big trout anywhere. Congrats to Aaron, the boy can fish.
So thanks for reading my stuff. Keep stopping in and I will keep fishing.
Good Luck and Tight Lines
