FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

“SAVE OUR WATERS”

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The Wade Right Fishing Belt

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As I  prepare this I am really looking forward to giving the bass a go tomorrow.

This will be one long week until Saturday when I take off for the Chandeleur Island trip.  It has become my favorite trip for several reasons.  The location, the fishing, the food, and the folks I get the pleasure to fish with.  Of course I am almost ready to go and looking forward to doing some serious fish sacking.  It is one of the few times during the year when I participate in a down right meat haul and seeing that giant onboard cooler with a couple of hundred trout is an awesome sight.  And it usually only takes a morning or the first day before they tell you to quit keeping reds.  The fishing is that good. Hope the weather is calm so we can fish the surf, it is full of big fish.  And the encounters with the man in the grey suit a couple of years ago were entertaining to say the least.  Especially when one decided that Jason’s manhood looked like a place to hit with his nose.

And speaking of Louisiana just got this from Aaron.  Those of you who read this know he is one great all around fisherman, and he is up to his usual tricks.

Aaron with a big flattie from Lake Calcasuieu.

Weather

93/70.   Mostly sunny with 0% chance or rain.  Wind  E 9 – 15 mph.

Lake Level

Today  94.89 msl.   17 days ago  95.05 msl.

Solunar Times

Major  9:10 am to 11:10 am.  Minor  3:30 pm to 4:30 pm.

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The new Knockin Tail is available at the Waterloo Pro Shop in Victoria and a tackle store near you.  

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If it wasn’t for the show that Mother Nature put on a couple of times this morning the day would not have been the best on the water I have had in a while.  At daylight the water temp was 85 and the lake had a little color to it, more the farther up the river you go.  The wind was basically calm and it drizzled a time or two, going from cloudy to clear and back to cloudy several times.  It kept that up until heading back to the ramp at 1:30 when it poured and blew and I got soaked.  Left 5 minutes to late.  Which stills puzzles me when looking at the forecast.  (Of course when I got back from Colorado I cleaned the truck and put the rain suit in the Louisiana pile.  Normally it spends most of its life in the truck for days like this.)

A bunch like this, and not an inch bigger.

Funny how catching 20 plus is a bad thing, it wasn’t really a bad thing, but it sure did leave something to be desired.  As a perfect example, on one bank with either a beaver style bait or a stick worm, I  caught 9 and missed several.  Every single one looked exactly like the one above.  Before the morning was over 3 or 4 really small came on a buzzbait, the rest on the plastics.  I did throw a small square bill some and the swim jig with only one halfhearted bite on the swim jig.  Nothing over a couple of feet deep.

Almost all of them came on or near wood of some sort.  Deeper banks with wood were best, but even with the consistent bites I am not sure if I even missed or lost a good fish.  I fished up lake and down, and even hit a couple of really deep points with wood and could not get a bite on those type places.  It really was hard to figure out why there was not a bigger fish or two this morning, but it is what it is.  Most probably has more to do with me not fishing much the last 3 months on the lake.  As the old saying goes:  “The more I fish the luckier I get.”  And I probably am going to have to change my ways some if I want to get on the better fish.  So will just have to fish more.  And now to the highlights of the morning.

There is a place with a big bush/tree out over the water and as I fished by it a big bull gator roared.  It was freakin’ awesome.  He would get loud, then just kind of growl, and then roar.  Having only heard that once before it was one of those cool things that come with being on the water.  Rounding the tree there was about a 6 footer, who knows, maybe the girlfriend.  As that was the best catching area I re-fished it a couple of hours later and as I went by the tree he literally exploded in a huge boil.  It was just plain something.  And then it got better.

Going down the bank I could see a doe and a really small fawn.  They came to the water to drink and then momma went up in the brush.  The fawn on the other hand went nuts playing in the water.  Jumping in and splashing, then out on the bank and jumping back in.  Tossing water with his nose.  Laying down and then jumping, just like a puppy might do.  It was having the best time and since I was coming with the trolling motor I got real close before momma spied me, and off they went.  So the day was a success, there is always plenty of fish to be caught but seeing those 2 things back to back made the day.

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Bagley Baits has been sold to a large corporation.  It was so nice when the brought back the Bang O Lure and I appreciated the help they gave me.  Only time will tell how that works out, but often does not turn out to be a good thing.  No matter what the Bang O Lure is still the best minnow bait ever made.

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I was happy when we got back and the boat was finished at the shop, and it was all good when I picked it up Tuesday.  The next morning there was a little rewire job in the bilge, and it went downhill from there.  I was splitting a wire with a filet knife (Proper tool for the proper job?) when the end of the wire popped off and like a rocket hit me right in the eye.  That freakin’ hurt.  And to make matters worse it was covered in everything a dirty bilge has to offer, gas/oil/fish guts/bleach/beer, and God knows what else.  The good thing – no pucture.  The bad thing, a bruise and a chemical burn.  So the next 3 days were miserable and my fishing plans for the week were cancelled.  Nothing like feeling like something is in your eye for 3 days.

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With the boat hitched up I decided to gas it and truck in anticipation of a good week of fishing.  (The Boss will be gone most of it.)  And since I was out thought I would stop by and renew my Coleto annual pass.  Since the lake was closed for 3 months I had a delusional hope that they would credit us with some of that time considering it was 1/4 of the annual use.  No credit, to bad so sad.  I did not take it out on the nice lady, she has heard plenty since they went to $17 a day and now this.  But I did email most of the Board of Directors expressing my displeasure, one has responded.  After the canned and ridiculous response to my complaint about the daily raise for folks who might have a tough time paying that much I skipped sending this directly to GBRA.  My real complaint with the raise, and now this, is some folks can barely afford it, especially the retirees and retired military, the folks I see out there during the week.

One person commented that since they were ordered to close I should not expect a refund of any of it because their costs continued during the shutdown.  I look at it this way –  If I eat at my favorite place every Friday and they close down for 3 months under that theory I should continue to pay so they can keep operating.  My real problem with that opinion – We have been told for years to have 6 months of expenses in reserve to protect against things like this.  So why are corporations not held to the same standard?  No matter what they took my money and did not provide the service.

There was a couple of comments on the internet this weekend when folks loaded up and headed to the lake Saturday.  They have set some limits on the number of folks allowed in, and apparently a couple of boats loaded up and went to the lake, only to find it closed to more visitors.  Folks are definitely fishing.

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And here is quick report from our Fayette guru.

Glad your back but I know how hard it must have been to leave! Been fishing Fayette a lot and things have changed in the last couple weeks. Day break you can catch some nice fish on swim jigs for about an hour then it’s over. Move out to 18-25’ by the dam with Carolina rigs using Senkos in watermelon/ red glitter and you can catch some more until the sun cooks you to medium rare. Deep water is holding lots of fish if you can stand the heat.
Tight lines
Rusty

Thanks for the report, it mirrors what Joey, one of the Austin Boys, found fishing there last week.  Deep near the dam seems to be the ticket as the day heats up.  At least you are putting some good ones in the boat.  Welcome to Texas summer, out early to beat the heat.  Thanks for the report.

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Saturday morning the Boss and I went for a drive to POC to put some promotional Knockin Tail Lures out, love the doing that.  It turned out to be just as I told her about POC this time of year, only it was more spectacular than that.

The whole town was in a fishing frenzy, the Speedy Stop pumps were packed with tons of boats and the parking at Froggie’s was something.  Trucks and trailers went around the lot and all the way out to Main Street.  They had even started parking in the new steak house parking lot.  And with the tournament season coming to POC it will only get worse on the weekends.  Folks are just dying (Pun intended.) to get out.  So as far as the weekends down there, my plan, wait for hunting season.

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I needed a new stringer for the Louisiana trip, it is a meat haul, and I thought about a new net as my handle is held together with black tape, so we stopped at Academy by the house.  It was crazy busy and I have never seen one more depleted.  Much of the fishing stuff was gone, rods and reels way down, and the place was in total dissaray.  I did pick up a $2 stringer which I will be happy to donate to any shark that wants it when we fish the surf on the islands.  There was not a net to be had but my old one will work.  Last trip I lost a couple of big trout trying to use the Boga, and since we have a little pool going time to put them in the net.  Not sure what is going on with all that at Academy.

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Have now done over 1300 posts.  That is crazy.

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The Boss is leaving town so it will be back on the water Wednesday and hopefully 2 more days before heading to Louisiana.  The next few days will be long waiting to hit the road.  In my mind I can see a big red smoking a topwater, feeling the thump of a big trout on plastic, catching big trout after big trout in the surf, it really is a great trip.  So there is lots of fishing to come so keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines