FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

The only reason I am going fishing in the morning (Monday.) is because that is what I do.  But it is hard to deal with the forecast, come on you can’t mean 46 mph?  This is starting to get ridiculous, and the forecast for the rest of the week is in this range.  Not too many years I have been in Texas have I wished for summer, but if that will make the wind quit bring it on.   Of course you can catch fish, but it so often turns into a grind.  So after that bit of whining cannot wait to hit the lake in the morning.

So I get up early and it is raining and blowing with thunder and lightning.  Looking at the radar it will be out of here a little later.  It means it will clear off and might just mess up the bite, it is an early bite for the good fish.  So I called it off for Monday and will give it a go on Tuesday morning.

Weather

76/89.  Warm with times of clouds and sun and a 25% chance of rain.  Wind SSE  14 – 32 mph.  (That 30mph just won’t go away!)

Lake Level

 Today   96.36 msl.    5 Days Ago,  96.38 msl.  (The decline continues.)

Bite Times

Minor 8:30 am to 9:30 am.   (The major is late afternoon.)

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Just in Time.

It was just cracking daylight when I made my first cast on one of my favorite big bass spots.  And I got a bite, and missed.  It happened several more times and I finally managed to hook up.  No wonder I was having trouble getting the hook in them.  So I moved on.

I could not figure out what was missing me.

The wind was blowing but not insane, and from that point on the bite was on.  It only took about an hour to figure out they definitely wanted the buzzbait.  I am throwing a smaller 1/4 ounce with a ‘white/chartreuse skirt.  They wanted it at a moderate speed and several hit it off the bank.  And today they wanted just a touch of wind, but it was not mandatory.  It was one of those days when they were on the chew and waiting until today paid off big time.

The kind of bite I live for.  She creamed it!

Can you say points?  Add some cover and a little wind and they were there.  This one absolutely killed it by flushing it in a huge boil.  That was a theme today, half of them just pulled it under, but the better ones blasted it.  Right after I caught the one above the Boss called and so I had the phone between my cheek and ear and of course got another big bite.  Unfortunately that one made an escape.  I lost several today, which comes with the territory at times.

One on the 5″ Smoke Shad Knockin Tail.  And one on the spinnerbait.

With the wind the way it was and the fish cooperating on the buzzbait it was about the only thing I fished.  No reason to look a gift fish in the mouth.  But I did get the one on the left next to a big stick up off the bank on the Knockin Tail.  That has been a pattern since the bite started in January and is worth a throw with the KTL whenever you come to one.  The other one came on a spinnerbait on a real windy bank.  And like many of the buzzbait bites it came way off the bank which was cool as I saw it coming.

A nice average size today.  They just kept eating the buzzbait.

But as you can see there was no reason to throw anything else.  Coleto has always been a good buzzbait lake.  When you get the kind of weather we have had lately it is a no brainer with a spinnerbait and buzzbait.  If we could only get this cloudy weather with a dead calm day it would be a Bang O Lure beatdown.  And on that note I did throw a Zara Spook on one bank and missed a couple, but I just kept coming back to the buzzbait.  It is catching them and I will keep feeding it to them until they change their mind.

One thing I have noticed on the lake this year is there is a big increase in folks fishing with bay boats.  The lake has been a savior when the wind is blowing and the bay would be nothing but a hassle.  This is the best bite the lake has had in several years and bodes well for the future.  This day was definitely an A.  It was a constant bite with the occasional flurry.  They are still on the flatter stuff with points being the prime location.  I basically put the trolling motor down and cover the sweet spot on most places.  Can’t wait to go again.

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Monday turned into getting the truck serviced in anticipation of the Florida and Everglades trip.  And on that front really good news, as far as the wallet is concerned, a comped place to stay for the week!  The Boss has a connection who has lived there for years and has a cabin I can use for the week.  What a score.  And with a discount on hotels in Orlando for ICAST this is shaping up as a cheaper than normal trip.  Of course that might just offset the cost of gas for the tow.  One thing definitely on the list is fishing the canals a day on the east coast.  It is not all that far from the glades and I hope to knock off two bucket list fish, the peacock and the clownfish.  Add that to several days in glades on my own and a guide trip with Michael this is looking like one good trip.

And speaking of trips the countdown is on for Alaska.  It is hard to not to get too excited this early because it is definitely a bucket list trip and now barely a month away.  We will be weighing stuff to be sure we are good to get on the seaplane for the bear chasing part of the trip.  Good thing camera weight is not considered because definitely taking a quality backup.  Salmon, trout, halibut, and anything else that decides to get on, a real chance to add multiple species to the caught list.  Fishing has always been in the doing for me, and while maybe the quality of travel has gone up, the desire to catch different fish in different places has always been the goal.  From the first time I put the canoe on top of the Gremlin in the early 70’s and drove all night to the Boundry Waters, to the next trip, it is always the same.  Put on your big boy pants and make it happen.

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Deja Vu all over again

Funny how that works.  Last week the dude acted a fool cutting a couple of us off and got busted and dang if it did not happen again.  I was following 2 Mustangs for miles coming back from Wimberly when a white SUV cut me off at the end of a passing lane.  Guess in a big hurry but a perfect example of aggressive highway behavior.  Then as we came into the next town a trooper was pulling them over.  Karma can be a biotch and that was the second time in a week that has happened.  Weird.

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So that will do it  for today.  I will definitely be back on the water, it is just down to a wind decision.  Take tomorrow as an example it is forecast to blow up to 41mph.  That is just a little out of my comfort zone as far as the bay goes.  But it won’t be long, it can’t blow forever, can it?  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines