Fish Catching Travel

Fish Catching Travel

I will give the weatherman the real props he deserves today.  He said it was going to be cloudy, maybe a little drizzle, then the temperature was going to drop like a rock and it was going to blow like the dickens at 10:30 this morning.  He was absolutely correct.

With the norther coming this morning Voe and I headed to Coleto to hopefully catch the bite right before the front.  We were hoping the weatherman would miss it by a few hours and we might get most of the day, but that was not to be.  The first thing we noticed when we got to the lake was it had come up another couple of inches.  And once the boat was in the water it was 61 degrees at the ramp, up several degrees from the other day.  As we headed up lake the water temperature kept rising and it was 65 up lake.

We began the morning on a big flat way up lake and I started with the Strike King Swim Jig and started catching them right away.  I told Voe last trip that I really liked the Lunker Lure Buzzbait so he had picked one up at Bass Pro.  On probably his 3rd or 4th cast he had a good one blow up on it.  With three or four in the boat already on the Swimming Jig, and now a big blow up on buzzbait, I couldn’t take it so out came the spinnerbait.

The first nice one on spinnerbait.

The fish were very active and wanted the spinnerbait buzzed.  I was making a big wake with the big rear willow leaf blade, some were getting it right on the bank, others right beside the boat.  Nothing like a 3 pounder hitting it like he means it right beside the boat.  The first couple short struck it so I put on a trailer hook and they started sticking.

Here is number 2.  They were not really big, just good solid fish.

With the forecast I knew it was not going to last to long, or at least we weren’t, so we started covering lots of water.

Voe caught several on white chatterbait with a swim bait trailer.

It was clear they were on the chew and we fished as fast as we could.  We had bites on topwater, Swimming Jig, spinnerbait, and topwater.  But the spinnerbait was the ticket and when one would come for it they ate it.

Nice solid fish who were just stopping that spinnerbiat.

I try not to trash particular baits, but I have to say something about the Booyah spinnerbait.  I had several break last fall and they were kind enough to replace them.  So I have not thrown it much this winter but today I was tossing the one already tied on my rod.  About the 3rd or 4th one I set the hook and came back with the knot.  The wire broke right at the eye, where the others have been breaking.  Since I throw it on braid, and run it a 100 miles an hour, I guess when they stop it in its tracks and I put the road to them the wire just can’t take it.  So take that for what it is worth.

The bite is on, we will have to see how this weather affects things.

The bite was great the first hour, then  stayed fairly consistent for another hour, and then we caught one here and there but it was slowing down.  Initially the wind was blowing about 15 out of the south, then about 9 it went calm, and I knew it was coming.  We fished a couple of more places, putting another 2 or 3 in the boat but it was obvious the front was starting to affect them.

Last nice one of the day.

About 9:30 there was a little drizzle with a light north wind so we put on our rain gear and it was time to head down lake.  I could tell it was about to get ugly and there was a bank down there I wanted to fish so we headed down lake.  I also wanted to be closer to the ramp when it finally did come.  So we ran down lake, dropped the trolling motor in the water, made a couple of casts, and here it came.   The wind was howling towards us and it hit like a freight train, and so did the cold.  It was a rough ride back in the wind and rain, and when we got it on the trailer the temp had gone from 72 degrees to 48 in the matter of 2 minutes.  Now that is a front.

So I am real happy we did not try to squeeze in a couple of hours at the Gulf today.  It would have hardly been worth it, plus, it was nice to see the water temperature up at the lake, the fish biting, and there were Tilapia everywhere.  It will probably take a few days to recover after this front but the fishing is improving.  There is a tournament Sunday and there should be a bunch of fish caught.  If you are fishing it be ready to boat around 20lbs, at least.  It could be something.

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After I posted those big fish Aaron caught the other day I got this from Evan.

Wow! Those are some real pretty bass!  Glad to know someone is doing good on those!  I was checking a property I have access to.  Its a nice little lake that has been benefitting from the recent rains.  The water is up and I’m headed out with a friend next weekend to see what we can do.  Its pretty muddied up though.  My chrome rat’l trap went down not even a foot before I couldn’t see it anymore. Any suggestions as to catching a bass out of muddy water? We’re gonna give it a go no matter.  Hopefully the water will clear up in 6 days. (Happens to be the same place as my duck hunting honey hole…..  So I’ll be crying a little because its still loaded with ducks!) *I’ll let you know how the fishing goes…. and how much I complain about the number of ducks on a day I can’t hunt them.

TPWD is just another government program.  It has its own agenda and they sell it to us with beautiful phrases that keeps us doing what we do:  Voting them in place and bitching about it.  I’m not sure what to do to stop it.

Government and Trust are two words never used in the same sentence in our house.

Have a great week sir.  Catch some big ones!

Evan

First, if the water stays off colored consider a Chartreuse chatterbait or even a black jig and frog.  Either high contrast or so dark they can see it.  It took a long time to sink in to my pea brain, dark colors dark days, light colors bright days, and black at night.  Always seemed counter intuitive.  I appreciate your occasional comments, and if you think my buddy Aaron had some nice fish the other day, check below.

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Aaron and Strike King, a dangerous combination.

Aaron who sent me the pictures of some really nice fish I posted the other day dropped me this note, he is back at it again.

I also went back the next day and had another 38-40lb day of my biggest 5.

All I have to say about that is, look at these girls!

One………

Two…………

Three…………

Four……

#5 and we have a limit!  When was the last time you caught a limit like this?

All I know is those fish up there in East Texas better look out as long as he is fishing.  Once that boy gets on them he is like a bird dog on a covey of quail.

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I will be tossing the Down South on the next Gulf trip.

Voe was headed to Falcon in the morning,  Aaron wants me to come up there, and I have a job in a couple of days helping a friend.  Helping out a friend takes priority so I had to miss both offers.  So what is coming the next couple of days is up in the air and I am not sure where, or how, I will be fishing.  One of the little lessons I learned last week with the guide is the second or third day after this nasty front will really put the big trout on the feed.  So as soon as this all shakes out I will be heading to the Gulf for some trout action.  I really want to try the Shimano Waxwing, and after Voe bringing one this morning he used on the Pacific Coast on Yellowtail and seeing how it was torn up, I can’t wait to try it.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

If it swims there is something here to catch it with.

Plastics for all conditions.

Fish Catching Travel

Yesterday was a get a few things done day, today it is a job I have been putting off for quite a while.  Getting every, and I mean every, bait out of every box, and both boats, and putting hands on each one.  Then it is hook replacement, sanding rust and imperfections off topwaters, cleaning what dirty baits that can be cleaned, and just general maintenance.  And of course there are a few lures being retired.  Those guys are headed for the garage sale at some point.  Besides making sure it all works right it is nice to have a fresh idea of just what I have and where it is.

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My buddy Aaron from East Texas, who works down here off and on, is back home in East Texas until the oil economy settles down some.  Until that time he is fishing.  He is not only a great bass fisherman, he is just a good all around fisherman.  So when I was on the way home from North Padre I got 4 texts from him in a matter of 15 minutes.  And without further ado here they are.

 This may be the fattest 5.8 I have ever seen.  What a hoss!

And this 6.2 is no small one either.

7.2.  They are getting bigger.

And the big girl for the morning at 8.3.  One good fish.

All these fish were part of around 12 big ones he took off one bank in nothing flat.  All were caught on a chatter style bait out of a small East Texas power plant lake.  He didn’t mention which one, and I did not ask, keeping with my policy of not sharing anything you don’t want me to.  Aaron can catch those bass, not to mention most any other fish that swims.  Thanks for the pictures Aaron.  l hope to make it up to Fork in the near future.

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I happened to be watching the Zona show, which I like, and he was fishing Perlas Lake on a private South Texas ranch.  That is the sister lake to the one that the TPWD decided it was ok to give some of our Share A Lunker fry, paid for by you and me, to a private ranch where folks pay an astronomical fee to fish for the weekend.  After that came out then there was some sort of agreement that it would not be fished for something like 10 years, and only  TPWD could have access to the fish.  Apparently either party can cancel the contract at anytime and TPWD can have the fish back.  Which as a retired attorney I call bulls&$t, but that is another issue.

Watching the show, and listening to the owner, I do not question his motivation.  He wants to grow big fish.  In fact, he is thinking out of the box and I appreciate his efforts.  But folks this is an example of how the rich have it made.  No matter how you shake a stick at it, he got a deal you and I can not have.  And to add insult to injury, the fishing is so expensive that the majority of Texans can never afford to fish there.  And looking at the way the property was constructed, at the owner’s expense, there was no reason in this world he should have been given our fish.  He clearly has the wherewithal to purchase whatever fry he needs from where ever.  I do not fault the owner in any way, but I have a hard time with TPWD doing sweetheart deals with our property.  Yes, those fish belong to us, not TPWD.

I consider this a symptom of an underlying problem with the game and fish boards in most states.  Generally they are appointed by the governor.  And if you look at the make of up the boards they are generally well off, politically connected, individuals.  In fact, it would be interesting if someone did a study on how many members of state fish and game boards gave money to the governor’s campaign.   I know I should not be so skeptical, but I find it hard to trust the very people we pay to manage our resource when things like this come to light.

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More I learned on the Baffin Trip

1.  The Capt. was throwing braid with a 20lb. Big Game leader.  So much for my theory that a 10lb. fluorocarbon leader would get more strikes.                                                                     2.  We actually ended up fishing exactly where I fished 2 of the last 3 times I was there.     3.  Water quality plays a huge part of fish location in that area.  It seems like they tend to move in mass if conditions dictate, and just because it is Baffin and all those famous spots does not mean they are there all the time.                                                                                      4.  When it got slow for us on the guided trip it was the same as it is when not guided.  In other words, we are not doing that much wrong when the bite gets tough.                              5.  Like I said, he did not fish slow, but thoroughly.  Part of that was if the topwater bite was not happening the switch to twitch baits was pretty quick.  In both location and lure selection there is a fine line between flogging a dead horse and giving up to soon.               6.  Bait, bait, and bait.  We fished around bait, end of story.                                                        7.  A winter front is proceeded by  a strong SW wind.  See tomorrow prior to the big front on late Monday.                                                                                                                                     8.  2cnd day after a really big chill go fishing, big trout eat.

The one thing that really left a good taste in my mouth after the guide trip is that at least I am fishing the right structure with the right baits.  Be it bars, points, edges, hard mixed bottom, whatever, those locations are consistent everywhere.  As usual it is the little things that separate the great ones from the rest of us.  There is so much to learn.  I am sure I will remember another thing or two and will put it up when I do.

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I have been intrigued by the Suspending Waxwing by Shimano.  A hard bodied bait it has an unusual wing on the nose that is supposed to make it a great subsurface walk the dog bait.  Apparently you can just crank it along and it will wander back and forth.  So I am really looking forward to giving it a try on those trout, and it should be a tarpon killer.  And trust me, the day I spend $17.00 on a bait is the day I am pretty confident it has real potential.

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I hope you all have a good weekend, and if you fish let me know, we love fresh reports.  It is back on the water for me.  Not sure where, but chasing those big trout got my juices flowing, just have to do a little map study and think about what I have learned.  Big trout are different animals, and the next couple of months is the time to catch one.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

Fish Catching Travel

The Shoedog, Chris, and I just got home from a 2 day fishing trip with Capt. Kevin Cochran.  We fished the Upper Laguna Madre, out of Bird Island on Pine Island National Seashore.  We fished a full day on Wednesday and a half day on Thursday, and a really good time was had by all.  As usual when we all travel together on these fishing trips it is an adventure.

When Chris first mentioned fishing with Kevin I was all for it so we decided to split a 2 day trip.  Of course Shoedog was all in, so I rented a small condo on the island and  we meet up with Kevin at 5 a.m. Wednesday.  Seriously?  5 in the morning, in February?  As I have long said, guess it is my guiding  background, if you are going to hire a guide, especially to learn, then shut-up and fish.  Do what you are told, it is the only way you can give the guide a failing grade for the day if things go poorly.  Just kidding.  On a serious note, if you think you know more than he does why hire him?

Our whole purpose was to learn more about winter trout fishing, and a little more about Corky fishing,  Who knows, we might even get lucky and catch a big one.  So it was across the Upper Laguna in the dark.  After a short ride we headed in to the shoreline stopping in about 3 foot of water and hopped over the side.  The bottom was a nice mix of rock, sand, and grass.  Kevin initially recommended tossing a topwater, and when that was slow, it wasn’t long before he said switch to the Corky.  Shortly after that Chris smacked one, and after a good fight netted a nice red.

That redfish ate that Corky.

While it was a trip to learn some about catching big trout we are just happy as all get out with these guys.

Kevin then boated a red close to that size, and also caught a couple of trout.  Before daylight I caught 3 on Corky, and I believe Shoedog caught a couple on Skitterwalk topwater.  None of those were what we were looking for.  I believe Kevin was throwing a Fat Boy Corky when he got a good bite.

Kevin with what turned out to be the best for the day.  This one went a hair under 5.

Now what makes fishing with Kevin so interesting is the size above is just getting there as far as he is concerned.  And he derisively calls redfish carp.  He is so into it that it is probably a waste of time to catch a red when he could be trying to catch  another big trout.  And as a side note, he has caught hundreds, that would be hundreds and hundreds 4-6, and hundreds over 7.  He is a trout catching machine.

As it broke daylight it was clear, warm, and for a long time, dead calm.  Are you kidding me?  Dead calm on the Laguna while here I am wanting to fish bad winter weather.  It is 75 degrees and dead calm.  Not the winter trip I had envisioned.  The whole purpose was to learn more about fishing winter time trout, but oh well, if you have taken many fishing trips out of town you know the weather not cooperating happens on fishing trips.  Luckily the next day it would straighten up.

For the rest of the first day we spot hopped, fishing shallow to 3+ feet deep.  It was the back side of a spoil island, then the area where the grass ended further off the bank, and a couple of different bars and drains.  Though we picked one up here and there, the big bite was first thing.  So we found out real quick what the 5 a.m. start was all about.

I did manage to get in the act a little.

Basically as soon as the sun came out for real, it was plastics. In fact as we were wading right after the sun peaked over the horizon I asked Kevin when he went to plastics.  His response, right now.  One thing that Kevin re-inforced in me was neutral or natural colors in the super clear water, more colorful for off-colored water.

So my only complaint was the weather, it was way to nice.  Hard to schedule clouds, light breeze, and drizzle all day, except when you are headed to the beach.  So after 8 1/2 hours we called it day one.

When we got  back to the ramp Kevin was concerned about the weather forecast.  He wasn’t trying to crawdad on us, as he said, because he did not want to go, he actually was very concerned that we might not do well with the big North wind that was forecast.  Of course we still wanted to go, bad forecast or not.  So we agreed to call him later after the latest forecast, which we did that night, and it was on for at least a half day on day 2.

For day one we caught over 20, but just did not get the big fish.  All of us missed a few, so who knows, one of us may have had the big bite and just didn’t hook up.  But with the weather conditions it did not surprise me.  We learned a lot, which I will get to after the report, and had a good time.  In fact, we were laughing after Kevin left the ramp as we put our stuff in the truck because if we had brought the boat we would have headed right back out.

Day 2

Again it was 5 in the morning and down the Laguna in the dark.  While the spotlight he was using to run was nice to help you see, probably it’s most important feature was keeping you from being killed by the huge flocks of Redheads that were scared up as we crossed.  A nice fat Redhead in the face at 35 mph probably leaves a mark.

To make a long story short, and as you know I am not good at that, the weather went like this.  Forecast one for Thursday – front blowing thru late at night hard with the wind jumping up to possibly 25.  That is the one that Kevin was concerned about.  Forecast two – wind increasing steadily until reaching 25 as the day went on.  So of course forecast number two was the one that convinced him to fish, and forecast number one was the reality.  Here is a couple of pictures of the arrival.

Here it comes, and the wind with it.

Cool looking as it came, this is the weather I was hoping  for.

It did not take long to blow in.

When we hopped out of the boat the wind was around 10 – 15 out of the North.  We spread out from the bank to out into 3 plus feet.  Until daylight Kevin had 8 bites, Chris several, and me and the Shoedog not a one.  And while those 2 caught some fish, they just were not what we were looking for.  Then here it comes and the wind started to blow.  Kevin switched to topwater and had a few big blow ups that did not hook up.  I had one actually rip the rod out of my hands, no exaggeration, right out of my grip.  Luckily I caught it before it went in.  I guess when I lifted up on the plastic and had the rod pointed right at the bait the fish was going the other way.  That has not happened to me in almost 25 years, and it was the fancy 3 ounce rod Chris wrapped for me, so I got real lucky.

Then I caught 2 on  consecutive casts, and missed another.  Meanwhile Shoedog, who had not had a bite on anything, put his old faithful Skitterwalk on and headed to shallow water by the bank.  Now keep in mind folks it is blowing hard with a pretty good chop when he saw one miss it, and when the topwater slid in the trough one exploded on it.

 Out of the water she comes.  26″ of fat girl.  That is what I am talking about.

This is what we came for.  5 3/4 lbs.

The Shoedog is a Skitterwalk fishing fool, and it is one of his favorite baits.  This fish made the day, and when we get to what I learned from this trip you will know why.  We moved one more time as the wind really started to blow and the water was getting more off colored by the minute.  Shoedog caught one more on top, and we called it a day.

Guessing, it was around 12 – 14 for the morning.  We missed a few that might have cut the big fish mustard, but who knows.  The Shoedog catching a good one at the last minute was fitting as it was the biggest trout he has boated yet.  We learned a lot and enjoyed the company.  And as far as I am concerned one of us catching a 5, and then a 6, on consecutive days, is just fine by me.  In my case, while I did not land a big trout, I know how that goes and really appreciate what I learned.  So what did we learn?

1. Like all big fish, you have to fish where they are.  The chance to catch this size and bigger go up exponentially on the Laguna.                                                                                                   2.  Kevin Cochran is a trout nutcase.                                                                                                 3.  If you want a guide to be your momma, or be nice just cause, he is not your man.          4.  If you want to add to your knowledge, and have a legitimate shot at a real trout, he is the bomb.  And anything we learned can be applied to anywhere you fish for winter trout.                                                                                                                                                              5.   Just because it is winter and the wind is blowing, unless the water temp is significantly below 60 degrees, do not put the topwaters away.  I can honestly say it would have never occurred to me to throw it as rough as it was this morning.                                                       6.  As you use a Corky in the winter think horizontal.  That is the correct presentation to keep it out of the grass or off the bottom in really shallow areas.                                              7.  You can fish the Corky faster and more erratic than I ever thought.                                   8.  A good rule of thumb is turning the reel handle in a diamond pattern, 1-2-3, using it to only take up the slack.                                                                                                                         9.  The Fat Boy Corky was clearly better than the standard Corky or the soft Mirr-O-Dine.  10.  If you want to catch big trout you need to be there before daylight, miss it by a half hour and you may miss it all.                                                                                                             11.  Fish thoroughly, but not really slowly.  And when the front comes keep moving and tossing, you have just a little time to get it done, they are eating.                                      12.  And if you catch a big one stay put, there can easily be more that size there.                   13.  This is not a meat haul, and you actually save money be not keeping fish.  What could be better than that.

As far as Kevin goes, he is a really great fisherman who can only be described as an expert at what he does.  Not only is he is a well know columnist, having  written multiple books and articles on trout fishing and conservation, he is an avid birder.  If you choose to fish with him, and I could not recommend it more highly, listen closely. There is information to be gleaned from him, that is what you are paying for.  A former teacher, teaching you how to improve your trout fishing is his primary motivation.  And if, or when, you catch a big one while fishing with him it is a bonus.  How much you absorb, and how you use it, is up to you.  It is rare you have a chance to experience spending the day with a true expert in any field, and a day with Kevin is exactly that.

That about covers it, at least as well as I can after getting up at 3:30 this morning.  I am sure there will be some other things come to mind later, especially about things I learned and I will share them with you as they come to me.  One thing that gives me comfort, we do not have that far to go, we are on the right track.  Fishing is an ongoing learning process and I really do like what I learned the last couple of days.  I know one thing, the next cloudy, warm, and drizzling or foggy day following a serious cold front you will find me wading the bay.  There is more to tell you but that will do for now.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Thanks for this pic Chris.  Wading the Laguna Madre as the front rolls in, seriously, could it be any more awesome?  Sweet shot and what a great day to be alive!

Good Luck and Tight Lines

Learn More about Capt. Kevin:  https://www.facebook.com/TroutTrackerGuideService

 Fish Catching Travel

Sometimes a person can lose perspective.  In my case it happens when I fish Coleto and we only catch a dozen, and none of them big.  I get to thinking that it just wasn’t worth a crap.  And that is exactly what happened yesterday.  But it was all put in the proper perspective when Voe, on the way home, said today was the best day he has had fishing Coleto.  It’s back to the old glass half full or half empty?

We started out right after daylight, and there was not a breath of wind.  For the first couple of hours we fished from down lake to up lake.  Because this was the first time Voe fished the lake with me I wanted to catch a bunch, so it was my best spots one after the other, and until around 11 we had only caught a couple, all on Strike King Swimming Jig.

Standard size for the day.

The water temperature was 58 – 61 over most of the lake.  You could tell they have not been releasing any warm water as the 61 was in front of the outflow cove in the Coleto arm.  When the water temp was combined with no wind it was slow until later in the morning.  By time it was over we found as high as 68 up the lake and that is where we had our best luck.

The biggest that made it in the boat, sort of.

I put another one in the boat that was quite a bit better than this, but I lifted her in and she broke my line, hit the deck, and swam off with my Swimming Jig.  Voe lost what looked to be another pretty good one, and I broke my line on one, so it might have been a little better than it seemed as far as bites went.

The fish had no preference as far as color of swim jig or style of craw, but swim jig was clearly the bait.  I finally caught one on topwater, and I believe Voe caught one on a curly tail grub and broke one off on the grub.  One thing that is different this year is the amount of grass that died.  If a person wanted to swim a grub, throw a big swim bait, or even an umbrella rig, there would be no better time on Coleto.  The grass is just starting to emerge in some places so there are lots of clean banks right now.

And we did fish 3 or 4 coves, but they are just not quite there in mass yet.  But with the water temperature coming up with the great forecast it could break open at any minute.  I have had a little trouble getting on them big time, but it will come.  And there was the other big sign that spring is coming, the alligators.  These super warm afternoons always bring them out.

 This time of year you can get close to them, just stay in the boat, ok?

These 2 have been in the same cove for the last few years and I often see them together.

We ended the day a little early so I could get home and get stuff ready for Baffin.  It was a dozen or so, 7 or 8 for me, and 5 or 6 for Voe, and if we had got it done like was should have it would have been a lot better than that.  But some days they end up in the boat, other days the fish win.  I know I broke off a good one and dropped another good one in the lake with my Swimming Jig, both rookie mistakes.  But it happens.  I have enjoyed fishing with Voe the last couple of days, and we will be fishing together in the future.

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When I posted the picture of my buddy Clyde’s pickerel I didn’t have any background on it.  Clyde dropped me this comment and I just had to let you see it.

The story behind the pickerel picture:Maria picked up a Virgin Mary statue on our way fishing;she put it in the back of the van with our fishing rods,it won’t fall over!,first turn over it goes;It didn’t break anything honey!We stop at the house and put it in the yard;off we go to the Spring River,my first cast at the second place we stop I catch that pickerel;after photographing it I notice my TFO rod is broke 2 inches from the tip ;right where the Virgin Mary landed;I still haven’t had the heart to look at my fly rod;you gotta luv em don’t ya? You know  I do;she luvs to fish and that’s a hard one to find

Over the years my buddy Clyde has broken a thing or two, remember the trailer from hell story from Canada last year?  By the way if you haven’t, search it on the blog, great story.  But of all his stories this takes the cake.  The Virgin Mary broke his rod.  You sure you haven’t done somebody wrong bro?  You crack me up.

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I got this perfect lead in from Jaime:

Good luck in Baffin.  Is Peterek your guide? If so he is one of the best. Thanks for the reports.

He is not our guide, but you are the second reader to mention him.  But thanks for the comment.  Can’t wait to see how it all comes out.

When you fish a lot, whether the weather is your friend, or your enemy, it is always there.  The reason I was all about hiring the guide at this time of year was to learn how to find the bigger trout during cold weather.  You know, cold, cloudy, ugly, all that.  Of course it is going to be absolutely beautiful, the opposite of what we were expecting.  As warm as it’s going to be we might even get a good topwater bite.

So out the door I go.  Shoedog and I will pick up Chris and off to North Padre.  Of course a trip to Roy’s Bait and Tackle, and a seafood dinner or two, are also on tap.  We will be meeting the guide in the morning out of Bird Island Basin and we shall see.  If the internet is good where we are staying I will try to get a post up each day, one way or another.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

 A tough bait for tough days.

Fish Catching Travel

I finally felt good enough to give it a go so I picked up Voe and we headed to POC.  A fairly new transplant to Victoria he is just learning to fish the Texas salt, to bad I did not add much to his fishing knowledge today.  He has lots of experience offshore, but our flats fishing is new to him.

The wind was already getting a head of steam up when we launched about 7:15, and I was not surprised there was only a couple of boats in the parking lot at Froggie’s.  So we headed to Big Bayou.

The water temperature was 58 degrees and it had a little color to it.  We only fished a couple of places and other than a small trout and flounder it was slow.  The water was not moving yet so we headed up to the Oil Cut to get out of the wind and try to put some fish in the boat while waiting for the tide to move.  We fished quite a bit of it, and I did manage to put a keeper trout in the boat.  We also caught one more small trout in there, but just could not find them.

We were fishing the bank as we headed to the back of one of the dead end arms when a boat idled right past us, stopped in front of the drain right down the bank, and dropped anchor right in the middle of the finger.  But keeping with the pledge to myself to not let that stuff get to me we just pulled up the trolling motor and moved on, but they were a couple of inconsiderate pieces of crap.  That is one of the reasons I generally do not fish the weekend anywhere near POC.

The water finally started to drop so we headed back down to Big Bayou to throw the Redfish Magic.  Though what I caught earlier was all on the Down South plastics, the wind was blowing hard enough that it was difficult to fish plastics out of the boat.  So it was time to try and boat some reds.  The second place we stopped Voe finally hooked up with a redfish that would have measured.

This fish jumped it the minute that Redfish Magic hit the water.

               The Redfish Magic lives here.          

So we wrestled this one to the boat, took a quick pic, and then got the boat back to where he hooked that fish and I made a cast.

Love that Redfish Magic.

Now things are really starting to look up.  2 casts, 2 reds, looking good.  From that point on we got very few bites the rest of the day, which in this case ended up being about 2:30.  Even though both of these came on the Redfish Magic, the last few came on the Down South as we could not get any more bites on the spinnerbait.  With the wind blowing like it was it was just plain tough.

Around 1 the boats started coming back in on a regular basis, always a bad sign.  We kept after it for a while but it just was not happening for us.  I hit a few of my go to spots, and came up empty.  So with the day heading downhill fast I called it a day.

Our total was 1 flounder (small), 5 trout ( 1 keeper), 3 reds (2 keepers), and 1 stinking Sheepshead.  Plastics were better than the spinnerbait for bites and numbers, but today that was like saying a poke in the eye is a lot better than a punch in the gut.  I am sure I could have fished better, but it was one of those days that just was not happening, at least for me.  When we got back to the ramp there was a little more evidence it may not have been the day as the parking lot was emptying out quick.  It has been awhile since I saw that few trailers on a Sunday afternoon.

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This is totally random, so here it is.

Clyde and his first pickerel. 

All I got with this picture was “first pickerel, Spring River”.  That is one of the cool, small, spring fed rivers in North Arkansas.  It is a good place to fish and an even better place to canoe.  So I am not sure what he was doing there, or what he was fishing for, but it is cool as I did not know there were pickerel in Arkansas.  So thanks for the pic.

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Though the fishing left something to be desired we had a good time.  So with that in mind we will be heading to the lake in the morning for a shorter trip.  Then it will be home for me and getting ready for Baffin.  Looks like it is going to be warm and sunny.  What that will mean to the fishing I do not know, but I can’t wait to find out.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

Fish Catching Travel

Here I am, sitting in my chair watching fishing, not fishing.  Why?  Because after my wife kidnapped me for a day or two since I last posted I managed to get what appears to be a case of the flu.  I am one of those folks who got the flu shot, and it may have actually worked, to a point.  So I am sick, but not completely wrecked.  But tomorrow I am going fishing hell or high water.  I can only take so many days in the house, and this is enough.  I can not remember the last time I did not fish for a week.  If you have been stopping in for a report, sorry, I will get that remedied ASAP.

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I got a picture from a friend who shall remain nameless to protect the innocent.  What innocents?  These guys –

And he didn’t even get all of them in the picture.

I have seen a flock of turkeys or two in my outdoor life, but this takes the cake.  He said they have lots more than this on their ranch.  Who knows, I might even be able to kill one with that many turkeys out there.

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I got this note from Keith and thought I would share it with you.

Hope you have a great Baffin trip, I have had many good trips with Captn. Chad Paterek down there.  Most recent one was the day after last years super bowl.  Don’t think I ever want to be that miserable again.  Very cold and very windy that day but Chad made us get out and get’em.   looking forward to hearing about your Baffin adventure and also which guide you went with.
Keep up the good work.

Looks like our weather will be long way from that, with lows in the 50’s and highs in the 70’s.  Not often you will hear me complaining about that weather in the winter, but I actually hoped the weather would be a little more like you experienced.  The reason we set this for February was to help expand our winter trout fishing knowledge.  Now I can catch them in the winter, as they tend to gang up, and once you find them you are in business.  But those are not the fish we are after.  We hope to learn about big trout and how to target them in the winter.  Do not get me wrong, I hope we catch lots of big ones, but it is the knowledge we are after.  Thanks for the commen Keitht and nice to know you are out there and reading this stuff.

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Larry Dahlberg is one of the best all around fisherman in the world.  He fishes many places for most everything that swims.  He just said something that is so simple, yet can be one of the toughest things for most fisherman to digest.

Fish are where they are, not where you wish them to be.

That is so true.

In fact, Buck Perry, the father of structure fishing, simplified it even more 50 years ago with the following statement.

The fish are deep, shallow, or somewhere in between.

We often leave the ramp with a preconceived notion of where we will find them.  It may be where we caught them yesterday, or  it might be based on seasonal or current weather conditions.  The ability to be flexible, to change when things are not working out, to listen to the fish, is one of the basic secrets to success.  To bad something so simple can be so difficult at times.

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Tomorrow it is the Gulf, then maybe Monday again.  Then we leave Tuesday for Baffin to fish Wednesday and Thursday, so the reports should be coming hot and heavy.  I really appreciate all of you who kept stopping in, even though there has not been much lately, that will improve as I do, promise.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

Plastics that catch fish!

 Fish Catching Travel

Every once in a while things just conspire against me as far as the fishing goes, and the last few days have been exactly that.  It is still lightly drizzling as I write this Wednesday morning, though we got well over a half inch the last 2 days that we so desperately need, so no complaints.  And then the big thing, we are doing our taxes today.  Talk about a way to get your blood pressure up.

One of the things that drives me nuts is how much our real estate taxes have climbed in Victoria County.  My property taxes have gone up astronomically the 6 years I have been here.  During the election last year our new County Judge said early on that he would lower taxes.  He stated that in the primary, now lets see if he is a man of his word or just another blow hard.  I will believe it when I see it.  It really chaps my you know what when they reassess the value of property in our county without actually doing anything.  It is a money grab, plain and simple.  And with the potential for the oil cutbacks in our area, will they reassess my home as property values decline?

And one last word on taxes and politics.  As my wife is an independent business we pay quarterly taxes.  I love how on all the forms it is euphemistically called a contribution.  A contribution is something you make to your church or a charity.  What we pay would be more properly defined as a strong-arm robbery.  It is just hard to take when I want to be fishing but have to see the ugly truth.  There is no way I am getting my monies worth from what they took from us.  So sorry for the rant, I try to keep politics and other similar issues out of this, but seeing it in black and white is just plain ugly.

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 Oyster Leasing

The following is a quote from an article in the Victoria Advocate concerning an 23,000 acre oyster lease given out by a navigation district to one oyster fishing company in Galveston Bay.

An oyster wholesaler’s attempt to privatize 23,000 acres of Galveston Bay could change who owns the bottom of Texas bays.

This is the kind of crap that drives me nuts.  (Sorry, guess I am just having a bad government day.)  Who owns the bottom of Texas bays?  We do.  Not a navigation district, not TPWD, and definitely not some oyster company.  This is another example of a government agency doing whatever it pleases with no thought of the potential repercussions, or what we the citizens of this state might want.  Read my lips – we the people own it and you bureaucrats are simply stewards, it is not yours to do with as you please.  And what is next, no fishing over the leased area, keep out signs?  Not only do I have a problem with a government entity overstepping it bounds, but this also sounds like a sweetheart deal let out without bids that needs some looking into.

http://www.victoriaadvocate.com/news/2015/feb/03/legal-storm-brews-over-23000-acre-oyster-lease/

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Goblin Shark

This thing is just crazy looking.  We know a lot more about what is above the surface of the ocean than what is below.  And there is a world of funny looking things living down there that we know very little about.

http://www.grindtv.com/outdoor/nature/post/rare-goblin-shark-caught-australian-trawl-net/

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At least someone is fishing, and Terry in Nebraska is still sacking them up on the ice.

Another day on the ice! Waxies and teardrops. We were a little pickier on what we kept. We sorted thru 69 and kept our 30 fish limit. Justice (first picture) is the son of Jim Hardin who took over Shoedogs store in College Station. Justice manages or store in Kearney Nebraska. Today was his 24th Birthday. Nice way to celebrate don’t you think? Sunny and at least 45, bonus little or no wind. Keep the lines wet and tight!!!!

Happy Birthday!

Terry don’t need no stinkin’ coat, he is only ice fishing.

A nice limit of gills’ headed to a fish fry.

Nice job guys.  With the weather you have had the last week or so you should have ice a while longer.  Thanks for the report.

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Tomorrow it will be back on the water for a couple of days this week.  Then it is off to Baffin early next week for the big guide trip.  So fishcatchingtravel.com is getting back on track.  So thank for sticking with me.  Keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

     Home of the best bass fishermen on the planet.    

Fish Catching Travel

Hope you all enjoyed your Super Bowl Sunday.  It was a heck of a game with a surprising ending.  It sure will give all the Monday morning quarterbacks out there something to hash out.  I am sure I am not the only one who thought that they would hand it to Lynch 3 times from the 1 and it would be over.  But that is why they play the game.

On another football note, Johnny Football checked into rehab last week.  There is no word on what for, other than I am sure it is to cure the “Party Disease”, which I think he had a case of.  And if they can also treat the swollen head syndrome maybe, just maybe, Johnny can get it screwed on straight.   It would be sad if he joined the Vince Young, Jamarcus Russell, Ryan Leaf crowd, and was a wash out.  Sad when some folks waste what for the rest of us would be the chance of a lifetime.  So stayed tuned for the next chapter.

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After some great weather a fresh cold front reminds us it is still February.  So this morning it is clear, cool, and the north wind is blowing cold, in other words not real pleasant.  So I decided to not fish today, instead my buddy Chris and I are headed to the bay tomorrow, specifically the Cedar Lake area.  The plan is for some wading and he thinks he knows a couple of spots that should produce, so stayed tuned for that report tomorrow.  And of course right before I was going to post this the rain probability has risen from 30% the other day to 80% tomorrow, which sounds like rain.  Then 1 minute later Chris sends me a text and he is not feeling well.  So there you go, tomorrow is back to a we will see day.

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I did take yesterday before the game to do my occasional tackle go-through thing.  I got all the saltwater stuff out and checked it over, put line on a couple of the rods, and just basically made sure it was as organized as it could be.  Also made sure that all the wading stuff was organized too.  With the big Baffin trip a week away it is time to start thinking about that trip.  The one concession I am making as far as line goes is I will have fluorocarbon line on the rods I am taking.  If we are going to be fishing big trout with a big trout guide, I want to give myself every possible advantage.  I have hired a couple of guides in the US over the years, and most of those experiences have been disappointing, so lets see how this one goes.  If nothing else there will be a good story no matter what happens.

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Today I am trying to nail down our Florida trip.  Being lucky enough to take a couple of trips a year to cool places the thing I find the most stressful is making sure that the accommodations are what we need.  It has always amazed me when traveling most of Florida, lots of Texas, with a few other Coastal destinations thrown in, how hard it is to find a perfect place for those of us who trailer a boat.  Good electricity access, ability to park the boat without un-hitching, freshwater rinsing, access to ramps, it all matters.

We have had some issues over the years. but nothing tops the one place I would never set foot on again – Marco Island.  My Aunt Nancy (A lifetime Floridian.) always said Sanibel Island is where the people are rich and don’t want you to know, and Marco Island is home to folks who are sorta rich and want you to know it.  My favorite thing about Marco was there were condos where pickup trucks are not allowed in the parking lot, much less a boat.  Of all the places in Florida I have been it was by far the least fisherman friendly.  Basically an island full of jerks if I do say so myself.

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As I write this I am watching a fishing show and the guy just said he likes to fish the ramp areas where there have been tournaments and fish are released.  God are you kidding me?  That is your plan?  That is the depth of your fish locating prowess?  At least you had the fancy boat wrap and the cool clothes on.  I have always wondered how people like that get a TV show.

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You look at most lure packages now and almost none are made in America.  So when I started using the Down South it never occurred to me to read the package.  Once I finally did I was happy to see that they are made in Austin.  These plastics were developed by a guy who is a fisherman, and he developed them to catch fish.  As with all great baits it was made to catch fish, not fishermen.  Funny how when a bait is designed to catch fish, and it works, it ends up catching plenty of fishermen.  So if you have not tried some yet, do it.  You have my word, if you get it around fish it will catch them.  Period.

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I am looking for a couple of replacement locators, a small one for the trolling motor on the LTS, and a smaller GPS/locator combo for the Skiff.  In the last couple of years I have not had all that good a luck with electronics, and it seems like every 3 or 4 years I am replacing another one.  I like the new Hummingbird on the LTS, but at times it has a problem finding our location.  It happens often enough I called them and you know what the lady at Hummingbird told me?  It can take up to 20 minutes.  Huh!  That should be real helpful in the Everglades.

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Sorry for the rambling, I promise fishing reports are coming this week.  If not tomorrow, then the day after.  I will be having serious withdrawal by then.  And lets hope if it rains me out tomorrow it rains enough to make a dent.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

                  Check out the Swimming Jigs and Rage Craws.                     

Fish Catching Travel

It was really foggy this morning, and the boss wasn’t feeling to good, so after that all got straightened out it was time to hit the lake.  By time I dropped the boat in the water it was 10:30.  The water temp was 65 at the ramp, 76 at the mouth of the out flow cove, and as low as 64 degrees way up lake.  And the water has come up an inch or two, so maybe with a little luck we will get that rain this weekend and continue the upward trend.

As I write this I am watching Championship Match Fishing, which I really like.  I like the format, basically catch them as fast as you can until they tell you to quit.  So while big fish are great, catching them without stopping is the way to go.  Well today I wish I had been  fishing in that style of tournament.

Let the Strike King Swimming Jig bite begin.

I started in the cove right above the bridge throwing a topwater.  I had several hits near the point, but the cove itself was a bust, as most of them were today.  So up the lake I worked, including stopping at the point we whacked them on the last trip, and just could not got anything going on the topwater.  The water was off color the further up I went so I finally settled down to throwing the Swim Jig until I finally found some.

No real big ones today, but boy did they bite.

The fish were on long straight banks with grass on the bank.  It was a steady retrieve, and most of the fish came out of 3 foot of water.  Some of them smacked it, some knocked a bunch of slack in it, and others swam with it sideways.  But no matter how they hit it, they were eating it.  About half were like the ones in the pictures, the other half smaller.  I had one come off some rocks that I should have gotten the hook in, I am sure that was a big one.  But other than that it was like they all came out of the same mold.

And bite……………..

and bite.

Of the 3 coves I fished in only one did I catch a few fish.  And those I caught in the coves came on topwater, and were all small.  They are just not quite in the coves in mass yet.  It was clearly a Swim Jig on the main lake kinda of day, and once I stayed with that the bite was on for the rest of the afternoon.

They were choking on the Swim Jig.

Other than replacing a couple of craws I used the same Black/Blue 1/4 ounce Swimming Jig all day.  It was paired with a watermelon red Rage Craw, which is my favorite color in almost every plastic.  It swims best for me on 12lb. mono at a moderate retrieve.  And I can not stress enough how if you tip some grass, or anything else, speed it up, or drop it, but just do something different, that is what makes them eat it.

The big girls are not to far behind.

This was a chunk.

Most of my bites came on long straight banks with some deep water close by.  But the real hot spot was what we call the swings, where the channel swings away from the bank and it starts to flatten out.  The perfect spot was sitting in 6 foot of water and just able to reach the bank.  And of course that is where the fish are headed, to the flats, if they are not headed into a spawning cove.

All males turning out early for happy hour.  It is not quite Ladies’ Night.

It was one of those days were I didn’t bother to keep count, partially because once you got a bite you were sure to get another, or several in the same area.  They are so ready to make the big shallow move, and if it stays warm we should get a big migration to the bank on the next moon.  And I am starting to see a lot of Tilapia back in the pockets, so we are close.  Of course we are so weather dependent during this period, and while they could be knocked back by another big cold front, the urge to spawn is strong and the good bite is just around the corner.

Wish I had taken the big camera today, almost every cove protected from the wind with the sun shining in it was full of alligators and Tilapia.

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The 2015 Crab Trap Cleanup is set for February 21 thru March 2 when the season is closed and any trap is considered abandoned.  The big day is set for February 21st, but any trap you find during this period can be picked up and taken to the dumpsters that will be set up at major ramps.  So even if you don’t participate on the big day if you see a trap anytime during this period pick it up and trash it.

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Though a chef I’m not, I do enjoy cooking and do quite a bit of it.  So when the Boss brought me a Christmas present back from her trip, and it was a set of knives from her dad, I was all about it.  They are nice and sharp, one of my pet peeves.  And it will let me retire some that need it.  Nothing more frustrating than a cheap knife that will not take an edge.  So thanks Jack.

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I continue to hear, and read, spotty Gulf reports.  It seems the only thing that remains somewhat stable is the redfish bite.  Trout continue to be a hit or miss thing.  But with the water temp barely topping 60 degrees that is not particularly surprising.  So I am not sure what the plan will be as the Gulf is up next.  But I do know that my last trip left something to be desired in the size department.

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I have always been somewhat ambivalent about buying the extended warranty, but have done it on my last 3 engines.  And we have used it on all three of them.  I am picking up the Carolina Skiff today and it has saved me some money, which is always nice.

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There you have it for today.  Not that I would ever promote gambling, but we got our Super Bowl numbers in the big-bucks pool, and they really suck.  I can actually count on one finger the number of times we have won, and one win may be an exaggeration.  I am not sure why we continue to fund other folks in pools, and our luck with raffles is no better.  So enjoy the Super Bowl, even if like my lovely wife you really only watch it for the commercials.  Keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

               The Redfish Magic lives here.               

 A tough bait for tough days.

Fish Catching Travel

The Boss got back in town after visiting her family up North so we had breakfast together before I hit the road to the Gulf.  The forecast was for light winds and when I got to Froggie’s about 10:30 it was dead flat calm.  I haven’t seen it like that in a while.

The water temperature was 58 degrees and had a light tinge to it.   Since it was just a fish for fun day it was nothing more serious than my usual milk run.  And though that milk run has been good to me lately, today it left a little something to be desired.

This says it all about the day.

That was the first trout I caught today, he choked on that Down South.  Unfortunately  it did not get any better.  It was 5 trout in Big Bayou and 3 in the Oil Cut, all small, and not even a bite in the couple of other places I stopped.  And as far as reds went, they are still around the docks in Big Bayou depending on the tide, and are scattered in the Oil Cut.  But the 5 or 6 or so I caught were all really small, not even  close.

It was small ball all day long.

Thanks for the bite but where is your momma?

The tide was extremely low and not moving when I got there.  The water really did not start moving until after 4, and it was just really getting going when I quit at 5.  I figured as the water came up they should get on the Redfish Magic, but they were so not there or not interested.  I think the water temp only reaching 60 after a really warm day had a lot to do with the bite.

So basically it was a one here and one there, with no real pattern to it.  Probably the only consistent place to get a bite was in front of a drain where it had gotten so low there was no water coming out, if that makes sense.  I can not tell you how many I caught, somewhere in the 15 range or so, but I can tell you only one of the trout would have measured, and nothing else.  I did break one off in a dock that I never saw, and lost what looked like a pretty good trout.  Otherwise it was small and smaller.

What did I learn today?  Wish I knew.  I know one thing, the water being flat like it was did not help, and it really did not warm up like I thought it would.  But it won’t be long.  And days like today just make me more determined to figure it out.  But hey, I was fishing.

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I heard from Matt and it actually made me feel better.  Sunday was tough in Keller, plain and simple.

I was wondering if you went to Keller.  I was there Sunday morning too, mostly boat riding because everywhere I went was messed up by the wind.  I did manage 1 dink trout by the boat ramp in that fresh looking water while waiting on a boat to load up.

At least you caught one, I didn’t have a sniff.  Thanks for commenting and reading my stuff.

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As I was driving home, and seeing all the animals in the high fence areas around POC, it dawned on me, the state owns a good chunk of this now.  My point of that is I have a slight problem, not a huge one, with high fence.  So let me explain myself a little more.

If you own it, you have a right to do with it as you please.  As long as you are not harming others, if you want to high fence, help yourself.  And I have a real appreciation for the time, money, and effort, that goes into developing a property into a hunting paradise.

But I just feel a little funny about fencing animals in.  It seems somehow wrong to restrict the animals movements which are dictated by the various conditions that affect them.  And the mixing of the gene pool, as opposed to genetically altered bucks, is the way it has worked for all time, and it is a good system.

So with that, the State should open the fences in some places on the Powderhorn Ranch and let some of the stuff mingle.  I know this won’t happen, but I like the thought.  It will be interesting to see how the Ranch is administered and how the hunting is played out.  A great place for all the citizens of Texas, or one of those places the rich and connected hunt and the rest of us wonder how they do that.

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I am starting to get excited about our trip with the big shot guide.  Baffin in February with a real pro, it has potential.  And it will be interesting to learn how he gets it done. In a little less than 2 weeks it will be 2 days of hardcore wading in the big trout capital of the coast.  Can’t wait to see how that turns out.  Until then I will keep slugging it out and will be there when they start to really bite this spring.  Tough days just increase my resolve, so keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines