FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

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There was one thing I knew for sure about today, if I did not do something responsible this morning that would be it, I would never get out of this recliner.  So I emptied the skiff and power washed it inside and out along with everything in it.  Amazing what you might find in the bilge.  Glad I did it, now I will probably fish out of it some this week.  But the reason I wanted to do something early is college football.  As I write this the Red River Showdown is on.  As a Hog fan it is hard to root for either one of them though I am leaning to Texas.  I like what Charlie Strong has done with character issues.  Then next it is A&M v. Tennessee, followed by Arkansas v. Alabama.  Our season either starts or ends today.  All roads lead through the Crimson Tide.  So with that lineup it will be a football day.  GO HOGS!!!

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I want to start with this comment I got from Jim this morning, who is down from the big city.

I like it ! We have a little cool front in Seadrift this morning

Thanks for that.  I was beginning to think that those words were never going to be spoken.  Love whipping across the water on a nippy morning, knowing the fish are going to bite!  If you catch any let us know.  Have a good weekend.

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I hadn’t heard from Chad The Mad Trout Fisherman in a while, but looks like he is back at it.  He knows how to share a report.

Kellar bay topwater action today. After not getting to fish last week. I was eager to get my saltwater fix. We lauched about 6:50 am and headed down the shoreline looking for bait. A four man crew and one of our guest hadn’t ever used lures. So we rigged him up with softplastic and gave a few pointers as we eased in the water. The bait looked to be tight to the grass with the tide being way up. After a few dinks and a rat on the topwater i had the beautiful explosion. When a 24″ red comes all the way out of the water to inhale the super spook jr. Man thats what its all about,after getting the bite down on how they wanted it . It was game on! Walk the dog, walk the dog , stop! Boom! After a good thunder storm rolled in it dumped on us. I switched to the hogies minnow in whisky/ chart. Plastic tail. We got off the grass and waded out to shirtpocket deep. And caught trout after trout. Not much size to them. But were able to cull through them and ended up with some that would box.  21″ was the big trout for the day. All in all a good day. The final count on the day was 19 trout 5 reds and 2 flounder. The guy who hasn’t ever caught a fish on lures, caught a texas slam today. So kudos to him. My buddy Todd had the hot stick today. Finding them as he has become quite the fisherman. We did see some flocks of ducks buzzing the marsh this am. Mostly teal a few mottled ducks. Thanks chad

Great report and sounds like a fun day with your crew.  My problem when it is like that I don’t put the topwater down when I should, but I am all about the explosion.  And your results were what I found last trip to Keller, plenty of small trout, but at least your crew figured it out and found some good keepers.  And nothing like a slam on your first real go at it, so congrats to your buddy.  It still makes me happy to box a slam.  I also saw a few ducks the other day off the island.  Nothing works a duck hunter up like the first bunch of teal moving down.  Fall is my favorite time of year, seeing ducks working, nice racks feeding in a field, fish exploding on topwater,  what could be better than that.  Thanks for the report, keep them coming.

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And I got this comment from Bobby after our trip to Coleto on Thursday.

Tell ya what if you want to catch fish go with Doug!!! He has got it going on. I had so much fun today It was just awesome. He can put you on fish . Every time we fish together we always catch fish. So Thank you very much Doug for a great day of fishing. Gonna get the trolling motor battery replaced . And soon we are going to Fayette Thanks for a great day!!!!!
you are the man…..
Bobby

I am not sure I deserve all that, but thanks.  We did have a great time.  I must admit I am spoiled and often forget that results are relative.  So the rest of you need to remember there is nothing better than sharing the boat with a buddy.  Plus, when they put them in the boat you will just be happy to be there sharing a little knowledge.  You are welcome to fish with me anytime Bobby.  Especially when it is out of your boat!

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I have learned several things about gluing my plastics to the jig heads the day before I go.  I try to glue about a dozen, 4 in 3 different colors, half paddle tails and half straight.  Then I let the fish decide.  And if they want a certain one I have plenty of spare bags in the tackle box.  First, I really like how if they do not bite the tail off you can catch a whole lot more fish on each bait.  Not only do they not stretch them out, you are not constantly sliding the plastic up on the jig head.  It is real irritating when there is nothing really wrong with one other than it won’t stay on the head.   I have caught so many trout on one plastic that it ends up shredded, and the fish don’t care.  No way it would have survived without being glued on the head.

Second, you do have to be responsible with your jig heads.  As much as they cost these days you want to take care of them, I easily go through 10 or so in a day.  So when I put a new bait on after the plastic is trashed I put the jig head back in the box, take it home, clean off the old glue, and glue on a new plastic.  It just takes a little effort to keep track of the jig heads.  And last, there is the time savings in messing around with glue on the boat or in the wade box.  The end result of gluing them in advance is it saves time and hassle when wading, and my plastic use has gone way down.  And  as side benefit of doing that is I look at the rest of the stuff over so I am plenty organized the next day.

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I met Colby at Academy a few years ago, and then fishing a few night tourneys on Coleto.  He and his dad are serious sticks in fresh and saltwater.  I have become friends with him on Facebook and found out he is now guiding in the POC area.  His pictures say it all.  So I will steal a few from him every so often, and who knows, maybe he will drop us a report or two.  If you are looking for a guide in this area, he is the man for the job.

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I am posting this today because the Tide post generated some great comments and information.  So much so that another post on the tide is already a long one, so I wanted to keep it separate from this other stuff.  And I wanted to get Chad’s report up as quick as possible.  There are definitely fish to be caught in Keller, they sure figured it out.  The fishing and the weather has me in full fishing mode.  What a great time of year.  Heck I am not sure I can wait until Monday.  So keep stopping in, comment anytime the spirit moves you, and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines