FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

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The Wade Right Fishing Belt and the new Madre Sling.

For all your wading needs.

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Weather

70/88.  Sunshine and some clouds with a 5% chance of rain.  Wind   ESE  9-20 mph.

Lake Level

Yesterday 96.29 msl.  Today   96.26 msl.  (Looks like it will be a slow steady decline.)

Bite Times

Minor         9:02 am to 10:02 am.

Conditions were almost the same this morning.  I went with the buzzbait until the sun peaked over the hills catching a couple.  Picked up the chartreuse crankbait and on my third or fourth cast absolute disaster struck.

One literally knocked over 2 foot of slack in it and took off for deep water.  She was on and it was big, real big.  At first I thought it was a catfish, but no slime ended up on the line.  It came all the way to the boat and there was no doubt it was a giant.  I did nothing wrong and then she just came off.  It made me sick to my stomach.  Really big fish come so rarely, and this was as big as I have seen in a while.  It took a minute to digest, and maybe just maybe I will get another shot someday, but it was right up there with the giant I lost on a Bang O Lure about 10 years ago on Coleto.  Oh well, you live to fight another day.

I think it was 5 or so like this, all on the crankbait.

Fishing was not as good today for some crazy reason.  Since it turned out I had enough fish for the fry I religiously stayed with the crankbait but just never did have a run.  One here, one there, but no real pattern today.  After losing Ms. Big I was hoping to get another good bite but as the morning wore on it really slowed down.  From about 11 until I quit at 1:30 not a bite.  And I made sure today to try new places, which absolutely did not work out.  So with it getting hot and with the bite seemingly over I called it a day.  But there is no doubt the memory of the big fish will be permanently burned in my brain; it really smacked me a good one.  They just do not come along that often.

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Just because you can does not mean you should.

This is an actual photo of Desert Bighorns taken in the Badlands.  Whoever took it manipulated the stuff out of it so turned it to black and white, the best view.  Too bad as the original must have been amazing.

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This buying a house thing is much more complicated in Colorado than it was in Arkansas or Texas.  Hell in Arkanasas you just said you wanted it and then you bought it.  The banker who was also a real estate agent in mulitple states said it gets more like California.  When they make something mandatory Colorado seems to follow.  Lots of forms and deadlines and other assorted busy work.  But it will be a labor of love and if all goes well we close January 5th.

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Have some house keeping matters to take care of the next few days.  A flu shot is top of the list as the Boss says it has arrived.  But I will be back on the water shortly.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

It Happened!

We have loved going to southeast Colorado to fish, hike, and chase animals.  And we have been looking.  Our requirements were pretty rigid and finding a place has been a several year project.  We had no specific time to buy, we will be in Victoria for a couple of more years, but when we found this it was a no brainer.  It is in a quiet neighborhood in South Fork, a couple of blocks from the rivers much less access to hundreds of thousands of acres of public lands, and the back yard is the national forest so only woods forever.  When we first looked turkeys were in the backyard, and the deer and bears are regular visitors.  So, we are off on another adventure.  I constantly say it is in the doing:  Well, we have done it now and we could not be more excited!

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The Wade Right Fishing Belt and the new Madre Sling.

For all your wading needs.

***************

Weather

65/88.  Plenty of sun with 0% chance of rain.  Wind   E 10-25 mph.

Lake Level

Today   96.29 msl     20 days ago    96.78 msl.

Bite Times

Minor 8:03 am to 9:03 am.

When I dropped in the water the wind was light out of the east.  The water temp was 83 at the ramp and the water color was nothing short of murky.  The farther up you go the worse it gets.  Today there was a mission, a fish fry.  A friend of ours was literally busted up when some on the phone turned in front of his motorcycle.  The end result he is unable to work for several months and has a troup of kids.  So a meal schedule was set up and when it is our turn it will be a fish fry.  So with that mission in mind I headed out.

It was a beautiful morning.

The lake is clearly dropping but like any fall day a buzzbait is always good to start with and since that is my go to it was the bait of choice the first 2 hours.  3 jumped on, 2 were keepers and one hopped off on the boat flip.  They all came early and when it was over they were flat done.  So I switched to a crankbait and caught several, including another keeper.

The best of the morning on buzzbait.

I was throwing the Six Sense chartreuse square bill, which has become my favorite color on Coleto.  It was consistent and I caught maybe a total of 5 or 5 and lost a keeper.  They were here and there but since I was on the meat hunt time to head down lake and do some trolling, maybe add a white bass or two and even a catfish.

The fish fry is shaping up.

The first was a big catfish, but the end result was 2 feet of slime on the line when he got off.  It was definitely a heavy fish, and it was surprise as they usually do not come off of a crankbait.  3 different shad colors that ran in the 10-foot range worked, and I kept the boat in the 10 – 20-foot range.  Before it was over besides several smalls 2 more bass made my limit and 3 white bass helped the take.  So, job well done, the plan is to finish off the fry, he has lots of kids tomorrow.

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Got some good news on the old skiff.  Larry and Rusty have replaced all fittings with stainless steel, built new lids for the live wells, filled and sanded all the dings out of it that I accumulated over the years and even moved the back deck forward to allow the motor to tilt higher.  They have done yeoman’s work on it, there really was a great boat in there.  Hope it serves him well.

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When I cleaned fish 2 of the bass had a big red crawdad in their belly.  The good decision was made when deciding to throw the crankbait.  The water color is just right and instead of trolling I believe it would have been a limit any way just cranking.  So tomorrow should be fun but you never know.  And while fall can be tricky at times there is always a way to catch them you just have to figure it out.  Which sounds so easy!  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

Since there are so many pictures this post will just be the rest of them.  It was a great trip and the pictures themselves will tell the story.

Beautiful.

Another great trip.  The first was just me fishing the Rio Gande out of South Fork as I attempted to expand my fly-fishing abilities.  The progress is slow but sure and a couple of good runs made the week.  Then the Boss and her sister Barb and bro-in-law Steve showed up and we headed to Pagosa.  We did our cruising in the mountains and some hiking.  Steve and I fished some including with a guide.  That part of the world never ceases to amaze and is just a plain old good time.

And please remember that the quality of the pics at times is not the best.  The ability of a 600mm lens to reach out and capture stuff at long range.  But the price is at times camera shake when handheld on wildlife who just refuse to cooperate.  But to be able to record stuff I could never reach is worth it.  So fuzzy as some may be they are memories.  Those of you who are regulars here know good or bad they are just part of our ongoing story.  Hope you like them.

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The Wade Right Fishing Belt and the new Madre Sling.

For all your wading needs.

***************

There are no words.

The first real snow on the mountain.  Headed up to 12,000+.  The only other tire tracks were an elk guide who had set up camp and I am sure was scouting for the up coming season.

The hike to Opal Lake.  The aspens were nothing short of spectacular this year.  Our timing could not have been better.

It was easy to see the turkeys had a good year.  We saw huge flocks on almost every drive the last week.

The mule deer bucks were on the prowl and the rut came to a big head while we were there.  We saw lathered up bucks chasing does and several fights.  It seems one of the differences between whitetails and mule deer is the muley bucks seem to hang out more during the rut.  Getting up and doing a little sparing then off for the does.

My bro-in-law and I had a day on the Rio Grande with a guide.  We basically jerked and stripped streamers to nice brown trout.  The tactic was keeping the boat close to the bank and making short fast casts and ripping it back.  A machine gun pattern to get as many casts as possible in the money spot.

The Lewis’s woodpecker was discovered on the Lewis and Clark expedition in 1805 and are known to hang out in family groups.  There were 4 in the tree and looked as big as a medium hawk until you notice the beak.  They are not big “drillers” but are big nut eaters.  Their diet is big on acorns and they are known to store them in a crotch in a tree.  Cool spot.

We did not see any elk early but after the first snow we saw a big bunch with a herd bull and several satellites with a bunch of cows.  Then we saw some one evening and the next morning more were on the move.  I am sure it is game on as I write this.

This is the house next door.  This guy beds there regularly and looks like a statue.  In all my trips out there this was the top for bucks.  They were on the mountains and next door in town.  Lots of chasing and fighting, just plain cool to see.

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On my efforts at fly fishing got this comment from Rusty, who is a real pro at fly tying.

Glad you are enjoying fly fishing, it is very challenging, but the reward I think is worth it. Certainly a lifelong pursuit
Fished Keller today with decent results. Very high tide this morning with 12-15 mph winds making it tough but worth it. Have fun in the high country!😎

Actually, catching some nice browns sure has helped spur me on, it is tougher than it looks.  But it is another area of fishing that I am happy to explore.  No one trick pony in my case, adding something new just increases the experience.   And really looking forward to fishing it this winter on the creek.  And congrats on Keller, the wind there can be a hassle, but often you can basically have it to yourself without all the Majeks running over you like POC.

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And Ross sent this comment along.

Sounds like you are having fun up there! Keep it up! I am headed back to the Chandeleurs with Capt Howie and the Southern Belle on Sunday….

Your trip has me thinking of a mountain trip next summer with the wife and kids. Haven’t looked at it hard yet, but Pagosa is on the list. Enjoy reading about all your different fishing trips. Have fun and keep up with the fly rod…that is some of the most fun fishing you can have.

Good luck in the Chandeliers and tell Capt. Howie I said hey.  We are headed that way in the middle of the month and as usual I am really looking forward to putting the hurt on them.  Plan to finally do some fly fishing on this trip, great place to experiment, there are plenty of reds.  My boat partner last trip is a serious fly fisherman and his last red was something.  It was time to end the trip and as I headed over to get him with the boat he hooked up on a red.  Then a giant black top exploded on his red.  A real “topwater” bite!

The great thing I love about Pagosa and South Fork is the massive area to explore with plenty of lakes and streams to fish.  In fact, in the next couple of days will be fishing some salmon eggs in one of the local lakes to put some stockers in the pan.  As I write this it is Saturday morning, and I am packing up the South Fork cabin and heading to Pagosa.  With a little time to kill before I can get in the house will be stopping at a couple of lakes on the way.  Then it will be another week of it.

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While watching college bass fishing one of the announcers was talking about fishing Bull Shoals and getting a hook stuck in him and having to go to the ER.  And they mentioned the board, the same one that has been there since the Boss and I worked there.  It has lots of baits and other things that get taken out of folks.  My favorite was the 2 guys who came in together.  Guy number 1 gets a hook in the ear, then guy number 2 trying to take it out gets hooked in the hand so they road to town hooked together.  Fun in the old ER,

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Of course, I have more pictures that I will share until it is time to move on.  And I will do a separate post on our day with the guide.  We learned a lot and Steve was able to experience a different river and technique.

And time to start thinking about the annual trek to the Chandelier Islands.  That trip is always a good time whether the fishing is so-so are off the chain like it was last year.  On the local fishing front will be off to the lake Monday to see what is going on there.  The bay is also on the schedule somewhere.  I really appreciate everyone who reads this drivel.  As it winds down it is what it is and has been a great ride the last 10+ years.  This is 1,570th time I have posted, which is amazing.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

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Day 4

The Rio Grande where I am fishing.  It is 7000 feet, not sure how high I was when I took this but it was up there.

After yesterday I was starting to get a little discouraged with my flyrod skills, so I went to the fly shop for some help.  In my favorite starting hole things were looking like same old same old.  I tried the suggestions and could not buy a bite.  The river is just big enough and deep enough that I could not reach where I was smacking them.  That place is consistent as can be.  The only time I ever caught a bunch in my life on flyrod was there, but the water was way down.  Plus, it just so happened that trip there was a major hatch which was sheer luck.  The lure fishing continues to be really good.  Minnow baits are drawing some big hits, and it was an easy 6 or 8, they just kept biting. But that is not why I am here.

A nice one of the 7 or 8 this morning from my favorite hole.

About 10:00 it was time for a big change, which included putting the spinning rod away and head to a completely new stretch of river.  That stretch is really shallow with big boulders and little slots.  The shop sold me a couple of nymphs and he said to make sure that it was ticking bottom.  So in the water I went for a big wade, and it worked.

Was starting to get a little discouraged when I finally got on them with the flyrod.

They were in shallow water and when I finally got serious it happened.

The last picture this morning as it started to pour so no more pictures, but they continued to bite.

I ended up catching 5 or 6 all on my 3wght with an indicator and the nymph approximately 3 feet below it.  It did take me a while to read the water correctly and then have the fly bumping just right.  But when they stopped it, the fight was on.  The one above was the smallest once I figured it out.  Unfortunately, it started to pour and cool off, and of course I have 2 raincoats at the cabin.   It really cools off here when it rains and once I was sopping wet it was time to call it a day and get in some dry clothes.

After drying off took a ride to Beaver Creek Resorvior to catch a few stockers and check out Beaver Creek, which is really small and isolated.  Having fished Beaver Lake before I new there were always stockers at the ramp (If there are trout and you are on a new lake always fish the ramp, just might be where they dump them in.) so I stopped there and caught 3 or 4 small stocker rainbows, before I got rained on again.  When the Boss and her crowd gets here that is a great  place to get a fish fry.  Just get some salmon eggs, a split shot, and a small wire hook.  They eat it up and is the quickest way to get a fry.  Colorado has a serious stocking program and they are there for the taking.  But it is not brown trout on the fly.

In the morning it will be back on the new to me place.  Today I actually felt like I had a clue.  My casting still leaves something to be desired but that is easly fixable.  I c ame down to listening to the dude at the fly shop.  Fly shops as a rule are totally different from many tackle stores, like they are really helpful.  You just have to listen and apply, and today it worked out.  It sure was fun and I am looking forward to tomorrow.  Might even take a raincoat.

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The Wade Right Fishing Belt and the new Madre Sling.

For all your wading needs.

***************

Just cannot get enough of the views in the high mountains.

A few from today.

I can only describe the Aspens as golden.

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Last South Fork Day

Needed to head over to the next town to get a headlight bulb as one was burnd out so did noot get on the water until later.  I even stopped at a local cafe and had one of those to dang big breakfasts, which was great.  (You know the place, with the big table full of the daily coffee guys.) The plan was not to fish to long today, my old body needs a little rest from wading, which is work.  But slowly but surely, I am getting a clue.  Fly fishing is just a different deal.

Nice one on a nymph.

This netting and picture taking while in the middle of the river is exciting at times.

It really is interesting as you work a stream, trout are finicky and it is not like tossing plastics for other fish.  But that is what I like about it.  I caught 5 today and was happy with the results.  And watching them jumpis a thing of beauty.

Fun on a 3 weight rod and 6X leader.

The Rio Grande has lots of browns and few rainbows, which if you catch one, I have only caught 2 this week, you have to throw them back.  Which is no problem, if you want fish go to any lake and catch them, they all have them.

This week my brother-in-law who is really a novice fisherman will be here.  He has the bug so we will catch them several ways, hopefully get him a few on the fly.  The weather looks wet in th afternoons this week so that should not be too much of a detriment.  And of course cruising the mountains eveyday, so much available so little time.

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Saturday it will be pack up and head to Pagosa Springs.  The Boss’s sister and her husband will be getting there late afternoon so after I check out will hit a couple of lakes on the way over the pass.  No wading tomorrow, I am getting tired, but have learned a lot.  And one thing that is readily apparent, the guys I have met and the fly shop where I stopped are a world apart from bay and bass fishermen.  Unlike those guys, there are no big secrets and folks are happy to help. It seems the love of the outdoors is a big factor with them, how many they caught is no big deal.  Where and how are traded freely and it is just a different fishing world, and it has been fun.  I have really enjoyed my time here and look forward to next week.  Back with you next week and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

One of the reasons I hump it all the way to an hour north of the Colorado border is that is about as far as I can make it by myself in one sitting.  But the real reason is by getting an hour north of the line and staying at the same cheesy motel I get an “extra” day waiting to check in.  The back road around La Veta has a ton of animals and if you are lucky some really cool stuff.  Get up and get out, that is when they are on the move and if you want to really see the wildlife you have to be there.

This was a nice mule deer.  As usual plenty in the La Veta area.

For some reason he wasn’t willing to sit and pose so off he went.  Cleared the fence no problem.

Love that long lens.  It get pictures that I could never reach.

This guy was a long way off, but with the built in 600mm lens you can reach out and touch them.  (Thanks for the advice Ro.  The Sony rep I met in Houston said it was their best outdoor camera, and I think it is.)  It is never easy getting wildlife to cooperate, and it takes effort to get pictures, but the more we do it the more we love chasing them.  A little tougher without the Boss and another set of eyes, and somebody to take the pics no matter which side of the truck they are on.

I saw more antelope today and yesterday than I have ever seen.  They were out and about.

Plenty of turkeys but they might be as hard to photo as any.  They do not like the truck no matter how far away.  But there are tons of them in Colorado.

I think there is some kind of saying about herding turkeys and getting them to stand still is never easy.  They are plenty spooky, ask any turkey hunter.  But between them and the grouse we usually see them every morning.

With an hour to kill until I could get in my cabin stopped at one of my favorite spots and caught 2 browns on my hand tied marabou jig and one on a Rooster Tail.  The fly fishing begins tomorrow.

After the morning drive in the mountains, I headed to the store to stock up.  Then with a couple of hours to kill stopped by my favorite trout hole to check the water level and color and both are perfect.  You never know when traveling here for sure what you will face but this time looks to good to be true.  And with 4 miles of state access on the Rio Grande there is plenty of water.  I have  barely touched it but with plenty of access roads to the river I will be giving it the old college try for a couple of days.  Then I intend to fish a really small creek in the mountains that has small trout and it will be interesting to do that in one great area.  Can’t wait to see what happens tomorrow.

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The Wade Right Fishing Belt and the new Madre Sling.

For all your wading needs.

***************

Day 2

It almost turned into buy a new truck day.  It was still dark when I headed out and 2 mule deer does darted out on the road.  Somehow, someway I missed them.  How close was it? They jumped out together and I actually went between them.  If I had braked at least one of them would have gotten smoked, same with the truck.  That is the second really close call I have had, might be time for a cow catcher.  But no harm no foul.

I could not resist the lure of heading to the mountains at daylight, hoping to see some animals, mainly Bighorn Sheep.  Unfortunately, I forgot the first rule this time of year in this area, hunters.  Pool Table road is about halfway between South Fork and Creede.  It is where I have seen not only the biggest Ram ever, but a nice herd on another trip.  As I headed up and up the scenery was stunning as the Aspen were turning big time.

Nothing fall and the Aspen turn, breathtaking.  Pool Table road at 10,000 feet.

One thing that happens in the heavy groves is the ground also gets littered with bright yellow leaves, and when combined with the trees it turns the forest a golden color.  We always hope to catch the turn and this trip it should be magnificent when we get to the high mountains that is the San Juans.  And as the Boss’s sister is coming, she is a retired photographer maybe she can do it justice.

I struggled with the buggy whip today.

The area I was in is a elk draw area and when getting near the top there started to be elk camps.  It is open until the 1st so the easy viewing will take a week to settle down when they all leave until later in the month.  So, after a long drive time to go fishing.  It was 34 degrees way up and 39 on the river when I got there.  Unfortunately, I was a little late.  And the wind was out of the north making casting a little bit of a hassle, but I ended up fishing 3 areas, and will fish another different 3 tomorrow.

But I did land a nice one.

The 3.25 Watermelon Red Knockin Tail put the best one in the net.

It was easy to see how rusty I was with the flyrod.  Only 2 made the net, and I missed several.  It was more a mechanical thing than anything else.  But it is still cool to catch them that way, it just isn’t easy.  While I was fishing my favorite spot, I wanted to catch one on the 3.25 Knockin Tail and it worked.  The best one slammed it and I should have caught another one.  But by that time I had worked that hole over so I moved and on the last hole I lost a nice rainbow on the Knockin Tail.

You can’t see me.  The praire dog village near the river.

Best I can remember it was 3 for 10, a result I expect to improve on tomorrow.  I will forgo the woods and head right to the water.  From there who knows but whatever it will be a good time.

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Day 3

Today was interesting.  Caught a bunch and lost what I assume is a real big brown trout for the Rio Grande.  But there was a problem, I could not catch one on a flyrod to save my soul.  Not sure what is up, but as soon as I got done, I headed to the fly shop for a little help, and tomorrow we will find out of their suggestions do the trick.  But otherwise, the fishing was a lot better today.

.They are one beautiful fish in the water.  On a hand tied 1/16oz white marabou jig.

It was a good day with this size.

I tried my flyrod off and on all day and just could not hookup.  Not sure but if I were guessing it was maybe 2 bites.  So out came the lures and catching began.

They cannot take much handling so lure out in the net, quick pic and back in they go.

Unfortunately, or fortunately depending on how you look at it, they were smoking cranked minnow baits.  So I took what I could get.  They are hard to get off when they are all wrapped up, but it was hard to not throw it.  And then minnie disaster struck.  One just slammed a Yozuri minnow bait, jumped and I could not believe my eyes, it was really big.  As in did not know there were any in the Rio Grande that big.  Unfortunately, it got cross in a heavy current and down river she went.  It was in a place I could not chase and the 4lb line parted and she was gone.  But what a great bite and one cool jump.

Brown trout are one aggressive fish, and it was a good bite today.

So as far as location I know where they are, time to implement the strategy the dude at the fly shop gave me.  There is no giving up on the fly rod and I just need to keep after it, but after a slow day yesterday it was time to catch a few. Tomorrow it is time to stick with the fly rod, part of the reason I am here.

About 3:00 a really cold wind came up and it started raining.  I stuck it out for a while then headed to the cabin.  Plenty of days left, no need to get burned out.  Tomorrow after giving the buggy whip a solid go will probably head to one of the many lakes I have fished close by, they can be good and offer some of the best scenery around.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines.

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Are you freakin’ kidding me?  I stopped in at Tackle Town the other day because who knows what you might need.  Well, there is one thing I definitely DO NOT need.  It was Mercury Opti oil.  Hey, I know prices are up, but while oil is coming down apparently some folks did not get the memo.  A gallon – $78!!!  There are no words.

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FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

Get them at the Waterloo Rod store in Victoria.

This would be my last time on the water in Texas.  My heart and mind is on Colorado, bugling elk. trout eating a hopper, and the Rockies.  Plus I am freaking tired of our heat.  I will break soon but I can get do it by heading to the mountains.  But I was out at daylight and before it was over I was kicking my own ass.

Weather

74/98.  Hot with plenty of sun; caution advised if outside for extended periods of time with no chance of rain.  Wind  NE  6 – 18 mph.

Lake Level

Today   96.78 msl.    Monday   96.84 msl.

Bite Times

Major   10:15 am   to   12:15 pm.

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The Wade Right Fishing Belt and the new Madre Sling.

For all your wading needs.

***************

Fish or not there is no better way to start the day!

As you can see it was just cracking daylight on the first cast.  The plan today was to not fish my areas that I know are holding fish but to fish some new places and see what happened.  On my third cast this one jumped on.  Little did I know only 3 more smalls would come over the side before I called it a day.

It was stunning when this one smoked it.

From this point on it was hunt and peck.  The swim jig and frog were a complete disappointment, as apparently was my bank selection.  But I soldiered on and the only bites I could get were smalls on the buzzbait.  It was frustrating and surprising that some of the places had no fish.  With a mile high sky and no wind, it was not surprising that the bite as slow.  So with it getting hot it was time for one more spot.

I decided to switch up completely and tie on the 5″ Pearl Knockin Tail on a 1/4oz swim bait hook.  It wallows through the trash just fine and actually produced a bite which I missed.  Then disaster struck.  A shad flipped in a slot in the trash and I made the perfect cast and a big one smoked it, and I mean a hoss.  Set the hook and she was on.  As I was fighting her my phone rang, which I rarely answer but with the Boss headed to work about then I stuck my head up my rear and walked back to the console while the fish was carrying on.  It was a spam call, and she jumped off.  What an idiot.  Could I do anything anymore stupid?

There was a time in my life many decades ago that I used to get mad when I lost a real one.  For the first time in a long time, I did get mad but at myself.  After struggling all morning that was just plain ignorant.  Anytime you throw a 5″ Knockin Tail you have a chance to catch a big fish, and I have caught my share this year since it came out.  So on that note I called it a morning at 11:00.  Guess my mind was not on my business so time to head home and start with the serious packing.

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A charter boat captain had a huge Blue Fin tuna confiscated from his boat for fishing in state waters where he was not licensed.  I have a suggestion – if you are a captain and intentionally break the law your license should be at a minimum suspended or completely permanently revoked depending on the level of offense.  Time to start cleaning up these scofflaws who are stealing our recourses.  And the same should apply to commercial fishermen.   You know better – you lose.

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And speaking of this type of behavior a Louisiana commercial fishing boat had over 900.000 (Yes 900K!) menhaden in their net and when they were not able to get the weight on board, they just cut the net and left the whole thing floating on the ocean.  You know how I continually rag on game and fish departments who seem to side with commercial interests?  Well, this is a perfect example.

 One fisheries manager for the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries pointed out that just 2% of the menhaden in the Gulf of Mexico are harvested each year and that such an event is “insignificant.”

OMG!  Ok dude, what in the world does the % of harvest have a thing to do with this behavior?  So a commercial boat in state waters can wantonly waste 900.000 fish, then leave the net and rotting fish floating and the event is “insignificant”?  Good thing I am not his Boss, he would be job hunting the next day.  The problem with ghost nets is real, and if you or I wasted a bass or trout and were caught what would happen to us?  His response should be that we categorically reject this behavior and waste of wildlife and will get to the bottom of it and take appropriate action whatever that might be.  Maybe there is nothing they can do but a serious response is required at a minimum.  So another commercial interest gets a break from a fish and game department.  I just do not get it.

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But on the opposite extreme is Wyoming, which does it right.  2 different hunters were accused of hunting elk out of season, including one knucklehead who just chopped the heads off of 2 and left them to rot.  Both had their hunting and fishing rights taken away for 5 years, one was fined $2000, the other $10,000.  Time to make game and fish violaions painful like this.  Long term suspension of the priviledge to hunt and fish is a tool that should be used and improved on.

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I definitely did not have my mind on my business this morning.  I feel just like a kid as 2 weeks in the mountains loom.  With that said the packing piles begin.  Planning and executing these trips is the fun part, and it only gets better in the doing.  It will now be Alaska, the Everglades, Colorado, and now back to Colorado in the last few months.  I was speaking with someone and when they learned I had driven over 6,000 miles already their response:  To much driving for me.  As I have repeatedly said about lots of things – How bad do you want it?  We all make our choices and this is my choice.  There is a great big world out there, and it is farther than 20 miles from home.  So stay tuned, it is going to be fun.  Keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

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Off Topic.  It Is About to Get Interesting

It is about to get ugly on the legal front.  Nothing worse than real indisputable facts, they are not “alternative facts”.  (How have we gotten to the point of alternative facts?  A fact is a fact.)  It is going to get uglier if that is possible, but for a legal lurker like me it sure is entertaining.  And on the comment by one of the attorneys:  But, but, but…… the other guys.  That is not a defense, in fact it borders on stupid.  Guess I missed “the other guys do it defense” in law school.  And since taking the 5th over 400 times can be used against you in a civil trial as evidence unlike a criminal trial that could leave a mark.  Wonder if that possibility was even discussed?  Hope the hourly rate is not too high, but you get what you pay for.  So, get out the popcorn it is going to be something.

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FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

I have a real dilemma, where to start in the morning.  Not a bad problem to have.  My milk run is a long way from the other couple of places I have caught them.  There is more places closer together, but the lure of “new” water is strong.  And when you add to the choices will it be frog or buzzbait?  It sure would be nice if the clouds would hang around some in the morning to go along with the major period, it could be something.  I will be at the ramp before daylight ready to lay the smack down on them.

One beautiful morning!

Weather

74/94.  Partly sunny and humid; with a 40% chance of a shower in the area in the afternoon.  E   8 – 24 mph.

Lake Level

Today    96.84 msl.   Friday     96.87 msl.  (Holding our own but a little more rain would not hurt.)

Bite Times

Major     8:36 am to 10:36 am.

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The Wade Right Fishing Belt and the new Madre Sling.

For all your wading needs.

***************

Conditions on the lake remain the same.  Temp in the mid to high 80’s with a little to a lot off color depending on where you are.  The wind was light and it was partly cloudy but when the clouds did come over they did not stay long.  I was expecting a good morning but it ended up being far from that.  Part of it turned out to be my fault.

The best I could manage this morning.  White swim jig and Bone Knockin Tail.

The plan was to quick fish a couple of the good spots with buzz bait and then spend time with the white swim jig with a Knockin Tail and the frog.  Too bad it did not exactly work out that way.  First up the bank that has been producing regularly only one jumped on.  Then another “good” spot just a couple of shorts.  So, at this point guess you would call it spun out.  I fished one more place up lake and caught the one above on swim jig along with a short.  I cranked it up and ran all the way up the plant arm to try a couple of new spots.  That did not go nearly as well as planned.

The rest looked like this.

3 made the most half hearted pass at the frog, I probably should have caught one of those but it was a swing and miss.  As I was moving, I saw a small flat point on the inside of a cove with nice cover, which has been part of the pattern.  The perfect cast and a real one absolutely smoked it.  Set the hook, a huge jump, and off she went.  Probably the biggest fish I have had on in a while.  Just did not get the rod down quick enough.  Too bad, it was a big fish.

Before I quit, I ended up catching 3 more all on buzzbait.  I just could not get the other baits to work.  Not sure what that was about.  But the pattern still holds.  The “sure” thing continues to be flatter points with cover, especially if you can find one on the inside edge of a big cove not that far back in.  There is rarely more than one but they are there.

I fished several places I have not fished in a while, one of them where the big girl was.  But most of the places I added did not produce a fish.  So give me the credit for that, they just did not either have any or I fished the wrong bait.  Probably should have stayed with the buzzbait all day.  And where I caught the bigger fish last trip not a bite.  But it is what makes fishing what it is.  Just about the time you get to thinking sure thing they remind you, we are fish, we have tails, and some days we just are not having it.

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There was a couple of other things that made the morning, at least on shore.  When I parked the truck after dropping in it was still dark and someone called my name.  It was Colton who was meeting a friend, who showed up while we were chatting.  Sorry I do not remember his name, my bad, but sure do like the baits he gave me.  They will get a workout.  And I had been meaning to ask Colton his preference on the soft jerk plug he throws on the bay which he filled me in on.  Thanks to both of you, appreciate the info and the baits.

And when I took out saw Johnnie one of the Coleto regulars in the bass club.  He reports he struggled the last 2 times out; it happens to the best of us.  But a big thanks for the venison jerk sausage, good stuff.  So between the baits and jerky I came home with more than I left with.  Love talking to folks at the ramp.  You never know what you might learn.

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The early 70’s was a period of change in fishing.  Bassmaster, boat and engines, progressing at a breakneck speed.  Shot gun madness starts at our tournaments.  New lures coming every day.  We thought we were all that when we got our reels to 5:1 by changing the bearings.  So, when I saw a picture of Lenny on the original Mercury Black Max ad from the early 70’s it brought back tons of old memories.  Our buddy Lenny, who the Boss and I later worked with on the ambulance, became the Black Max and thus the name of the iconic Mercury Motor.  Lenny owned a boat dock on Bull Shoals and was an excellent fisherman who would tear the smallmouth a new one every spring.  Those were the days.

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Today they were just off, but who knows I might have zigged when I should have zagged.  Until we have a big change in the weather or lake level it should stay like it has been.  With stuff to do tomorrow will start prepping to head to Colorado in a few days but will be back on the water somewhere.  Who knows, might even head to POC.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

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FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

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The lake has dropped just a little but there is plenty of cover still in the water with a nice color to it.  It was dead calm and would stay that way until I got rained out at 11:30. Like it has been get out early, but today they continued to bite as the front rolled in.  And the good thing, plenty of patterns will catch them and I specifically tried to add to what they will bite, and I found a couple.

Weather

76/91.  Humid with times of sun and clouds with a 40% chance of thunderstorm around in the afternoon.  SE   9 – 21 mph.

Lake Level

8 days ago    97.05 msl.   Today     96.87 msl.

Bite Times

Major     6:05 am to 8:05 am.

***************

The Wade Right Fishing Belt and the new Madre Sling.

For all your wading needs.

***************

I do mean early.  But there is another reason this one made the grade.

Of course I started with the buzzbait and will continue with that at daylight until they quit eating it.  The one above blasted it, I mean absolutely exploded on it and then jumped like crazy.  Great bite and fight, what bass fishing is all about.  As she came close I committed a major brain fart.  Went to boat flip her and broke one of my favorite rods.  Dang it!  What makes that doubly interesting, I just scored a brand new $180 casting reel yesterday for $30, best deal ever.  But as in all things fishing, get out your wallet.  But that was the last of that this morning.

Choking on the buzzbait.

Early they are shallow, and I mean in inches of water.  Like I noticed last week they are not really specifically related to a type of cover.  They are in that stuff on the chew.  But you still need the cover, and of course not all cover is good.  Points and inside bends near the mouth of coves seem to be the best.  After catching 6 or 7 up lake time to try out some other baits.  So I headed to the plant arm to fish some new cover, first with a white swim jig.  Seems to me if they are chasing bait shallow it should work.

White swim jig with a 4″ Pearl Knockin Tail Trailer.

Ended up boating 3 or so and had a bigger fish break my line.  The one above ended up being crazy fish #2 for the morning.  It went absolutely nuts but like a good boy I lipped her instead of boat flipping!  The water in the plant arm is clearer than the Coleto arm.  But like way up lake they were in the cover, but on the outside edge of the cover, which may have been more of a function of the later time in the morning.  A white swim jig with a Pearl Knockin Tail will catch fish from one end of the lake to the other.  There was one more bait I have been meaning to try which I should have been fishing all along.  The frog.

She just sucked it under.

This one came exactly like it should have, right on the edge of really heavy cover.  I fished it way back over stuff, but the bites came near the edge of the cover.  I managed to catch 2 and ended up missing a couple.  It takes just a little bit to remember, let them eat it and do not strike the minute they bite.  But once that worked, I cannot wait for next week.  Unfortunatey, it started to drizzle, and I could see it coming over the hill and at 11:30 I was sopping wet by time I got it on the trailer.

But another good morning on Coleto.  In my younger days I would have stayed but I did exactly what I wanted to this morning.  Nothing like adding a couple of more ways to catch them.  The only question now is the order they need to be fished.  But that is a problem I will gladly work on.

Last, the fishing on the lake has been on the upswing since this spring.  Not only is there plenty of shorts, but there is a year class or two that are represented by the ones above.  The future bodes well for bass fishing on the lake.  And do not forget the crappie.  The majority of folks I see during the week are crappie fishing and from what I see when I check the trash can at the cleaning table they are beating them up pretty good.  Things are really looking up.

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And got a good report on a couple of fronts from Rusty.

Well, the Skiff made it to its new home with Retired Larry yesterday. Today it was on the water “stretching some lips”. Ran like a charm. Bastrop bass have been schooling and lots of fun catching. Between the two boats easily 100+ bass. Small rattletraps, rubber Shad, even top water . Biggest probably 3lbs but on light tackle so much fun. Several caught on the fly rod. Safe trip to Colorado
Tight lines,
Rusty

Love the report on several fronts.  Your schooling bite continues on Bastrop and sounds like you whipped em pretty good.  And happy the skiff ran like it should.  Glad Larry got it and when he fixes all those little things it should last him.  Always make me nervous selling cars and boats as you never know.  Thanks for the report and I am working on the Colorado list as we speak.

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This is beyond a bad idea.  If you care one little bit for Texas deer read this.  As usual rich landowners are getting special consideration.  I just do not get it.

Texas Officials Are Taking A Big Risk To Fight A Devastating Deer Disease | HuffPost Impact

When I commented on this article the other day to a retired TPWD person he told me there was no way they would ever agree to the release of deer positive for CWD.  That is correct but what they are doing is releasing deer from a breeding population that had positive tests for CWD to see how it goes.  (Who cares if it is big high fence, just look at how that has worked out with everything from warthogs to Nigal.)  So maybe I am reading this incorrectly but looks like to me they made a deal with a rich guy instead of shutting them down the minute CWD was detected.  As far as I am concerned there is NO study or research that justifies the release of any deer from a high fence commercial hunt facility just to SEE if they become positive.

Reminds me when they gave our Share A Lunker fry to a rich guy until they got caught.  Don’t get me wrong, I only rag on TPWD when they just might need it.  But on a daily basis the wardens are great and without TPWD it would be a complete free for all.  Their response to the freeze on the bay was spot on.  So will just sit back and see how it works out.  They are the authorities not me.  But read the link and see what you think.

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A good week for sure.  Did not get to fish as much as I wanted to.  Tuesday was the doctor, with a clean bill of health.  (In spite of my best efforts.)  Then Wednesday was sell the boat day, the Boss was off Thursday and we did stuff, but today I rounded out the week.  Started with good reds and finished with good bass.  I love fall fishing and will keep after it.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

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Few Of Us Really Stand Up

For years I have been saying that guides and folks in the fishing industry do not do nearly enough for the outdoors.  (Trust me I was just as guilty as the next guy when I was guiding.)  Theirs (our) living is made from the waters and the land, and from the creatures that reside in it, but few actually return ANY real resources to the very earth that gives them a living.  But now a great man, one of the best to ever live who I have always respected has done something that others have not, he put his money where his mouth is.

Sept 14 (Reuters) – Yvon Chouinard, the billionaire founder of the outdoor apparel brand Patagonia, said on Wednesday he is giving away the company to a trust that will use its profit to fight the climate crisis.

Instead of selling the company or taking it public, Chouinard, who became famous for alpine climbs in Yosemite National Park and has a net worth of $1.2 billion, is transferring his family’s ownership of the company to a trust and a non-profit organization.

“Each year, the money we make after reinvesting in the business will be distributed as a dividend to help fight the crisis,” he wrote in an open letter on the company’s website on Wednesday. (https://www.patagonia.com/ownership/)

“Instead of extracting value from nature and transforming it into wealth for investors, we’ll use the wealth Patagonia creates to protect the source of all wealth.”

I stand in complete awe!  He is putting his money where his mouth is.  As more and more companies are gobbled up by holding companies (Example: Pure Fishing.) it is all about profit.  But here is the bottom line, money is and will be made, but when things start to fall apart, (Example: Colorado River, California firers to mention just a couple.) those who made the money will be sitting back enjoying their short-term gains at the expense of those to come.  I am not a scientist, and unless you are, your and my opinion on climate change is worth what we paid for it.  But Yvon is willing to step up and put many of us to shame.

This gesture is epic.  I have always respected him for so many reasons and now it has gone beyond that.  For any man to lay it on the line for our sport speaks volumes about his character and his dedication.  I am not saying the rest of the industry has to give it away, but when they are spending those bucks earned off the back of the environment it might serve them, us, and the planet to remember who gave us all this – The fish and the places they live.  God Bless Yvon Chouinard.

Here is the complete story.

Patagonia founder gives away company to help fight climate crisis (yahoo.com)

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The Wade Right Fishing Belt and the new Madre Sling.

For all your wading needs.

***************

The Carolina Skiff has gone to a new home.  It was a wistful moment as it headed out the driveway.  Other than the Boss and my daughter it is one of the longest consistencies in my life.  It was always there ready to go.  But the gentleman who bought it is the kind of guy who will, and can, fix the small stuff I ignored.  It served my purposes and hopefully the new owner will get years of enjoyment out of it like I did.  I keep telling myself it will be fine as long as the Mako holds together!

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I hate to rag on Texas A&M but after the fiasco Saturday the online sports writers have been giving them hell.  First the yell leaders trashing their opponent for being uneducated hillbillies saying they were unable to even read their own jersey.  At least they executed the game plan, who is the uneducated now.  Nothing like using a bad stereotypes that folks from the mountains do not appreciate, maybe a case of the pot calling the kettle black according to A&M’s reputation outside of Texas.  But the real biggie, remember when they rode Kevin Sumlin out of town on a rail for his record?  Well guess what?  $90 million dollars and their record under Jimbo is exactly the same as Sumlin.  Karma is a biotch and a little reflection is warranted.

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Not sure what is next, but I was compelled to put this out there today.  There are so many folks in this country who have money way beyond their needs, but they never do anything worth a hoot with it.  Easy to talk, hard to do.  It will be back to the fishing, if we have the rain/clouds coming like they say we do those bass are getting a whipping.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

FISH CATCHING TRAVEL

I got the skiff back from the shop and all is good.  Good compression, new plugs, and the only reason it was not circulating water was the seals and impellor had dried out from non-use.  So I did learn one thing from that, if it going to sit you need to seriously run it on the hose at least monthly.

Since it is hooked up think I will head to Keller Bay tomorrow.  It has been a while, a couple of years, and with the poor trout reports out of POC will actually be doing a little red fishing.  Slow rolling the Knockin Tail spinnerbait should do the trick.  The only way to know is go.

**************

The Wade Right Fishing Belt and the new Madre Sling.

For all your wading needs.

***************

Weather

71/94.  Mostly sunny and very warm with a 10% chance of rain.  Wind NNE 8 – 13mph.

Tides

High   4:27 am 0.86.   Low   11:26 am 0.4.   High   5:33 pm 1.02.

Bite Time

Minor   9:19 am to 10:19 am.  (Only applicable time and it was roughly correct.)

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There were 2 reasons it was Keller time.  The way the reports are coming it seemed the redfish were on the bite.  The second reason was it was my last voyage on the Carolina Skiff.  It is time for it to have a new owner and I wanted to make one more run just to be sure things were working.  Both of the reasons for Keller worked out just fine.

The water temp was 84 with a light northeast wind when I put in at 9:15, trying to just time the tide.  The color back in the bay was almost dirty.  If I was guessing it was fairly fresh to boot.  I have lots of history in Keller and had 2 places I wanted to fish, and both had fish.  The first place is shallow, so shallow that a long cast from the bank is necessary.  Basically fishing dirt, which you can do in the skiff.

A real hoss.  Fell for the 3 1/2″ Nuked Glow Knockin Tail.

With the color thought the Purple Demon was a good choice.  It was on a heavy 1/8th jig head on spinnerbait wire with a gold blade, my go to standard and it turned out to be the right choice.  The water was moving just a little and with the light wind it was easy to fish.  It probably took about an hour to catch the first one.  Then there was a definite flurry, a couple of rats, a flounder, and the 2 below.  Both of them knocked a bunch of slack when they ate, the cool classic spinnerbait bite.  There is plenty of mullet and bait in the back bay, it is about mullet run time.  After that flurry wanted to head across the bay to the other place on the schedule.

They were eating the spinnerbait with a 4″ Purple Demon Knockin Tail trailer.

The wind was just right to fish the next bank which is really a main bay high bank.  When the tide falls it can be a good spot and while I only got one bite it was big fish of the day.  It too was off color with the wind blowing on it.  After fishing about half of it with the spinnerbait time to move out and fish the drop and it was not long before the one above jumped on.  What made it interesting was the little jig on 8lb line made it a real battle.  The picture above does not do this girl justice, she was heavy, and it was all I could do to hold her up for the pic.  After that I wanted to fish my trout place and see if they were there, and they so were not there.  I gave it an hour without a bite and with a slack tide time to quit.  As it was starting to get hot, I called the day a success.

It has been a couple of years since I fished Keller.  Redfish are so easy in some respects.  Once you find them, they are usually easy to catch, and rarely is it just one when the bite is on.  Combine that with they like certain places at certain times, and those places rarely change.  Now ordering some up by size is another story, but in the end for me I could give a rat’s rear end how big or small they are, they are just fun to catch.  And it brought back tons of memories of the skiff.

From South Padre to Key West, Lake of the Ozarks, Bull Shoals, the Arkansas River, Pine Island, Boca Grande, Grand Isle La, Falcon, so many places.  And boy have some big fish come over the side.  Tarpon, stripers, blue cats, reds, trout, bass, snook, crappie, white bass, paddle fish, it is hard to remember them all, but I do.  Each one made a great memory, and the skiff got me there and back every single time.  It is on its third motor, who could guess how many trolling motors and locators.  Every dollar was worth it, great boat.  Like breaking up with a girlfriend.

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Now there are reports that warthogs are spreading throughout Texas.  WTH!  The place we stayed when on safari in Africa was big time fenced with electricity and they could not keep them out.  A real nuisance they could not get rid of.  According to this article TPWD has no say so in the importation of exotic wildlife that game operations import to sell for hunts on private land.  I call BS on TPWD having no say so, if they are hurting native wildlife, it seems ridiculous that they have no dog in that hunt.  But hey, we have a spreading CWD problem so might as well just have warthogs running wild and impacting native wildlife.  Ahh…… Texas.

It would seem if a casual observer like me knows the importation of non-native species has and does not always work out for the best then others smarter than me should know it.  It is time to stop all of it, there is no way to monitor or control what happens, so it does not take a rocket scientist to know it is a bad idea.

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Thanks Guys and Gals

And speaking of TPWD here is a condensed version of the holiday weekend results.  Click on the link for the whole story.

In addition to issuing 305 citations and 433 warnings for various boating safety law violations, wardens arrested three individuals for Boating While Intoxicated (BWI) and filed four other charges for Driving While Intoxicated (DWI). Additionally, they arrested 22 people for various other charges.

Texas Game Wardens also conducted multiple search and rescues over the holiday weekend and assisted with three reportable boating accidents on Texas lakes and rivers.

They helped one woman back onto her pontoon boat after she had been trying to pull herself out of the water for nearly an hour. Game wardens performed a search and rescue for a five-year-old boy who was found within 10 minutes.

In addition, game wardens recovered a stolen personal watercraft and vehicle reported stolen in April 2020. Game wardens also seized a rifle connected to a deadly conduct and tampering with evidence case in El Paso County.

So, a busy weekend for the wardens but at least nobody died.  Thanks for keeping us safe out there.  Plenty of folks just can’t act right, or at least get their stuff together.  Why I stay in the house and leave it to the rest of the folks during the holidays.  Our holiday weekends are the most dangerous time to be on the water.

News Release: Sept. 9, 2022: Texas Game Wardens Conclude Busy Labor Day Weekend on the Water – TPWD

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Great start to the week.  It will be a couple of days before I am back on the water but that is exactly where I will be.  With hunting season headed to full speed my favorite time on the water is now.  Can’t wait for our temps to drop and fall to come.  So keep stopping in and thanks for reading my stuff.

Good Luck and Tight Lines

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Off Topic Comments

We are sending tons of immigrants by bus to sanctuary cities to try to relieve that problem, or at least make a point.  They better look out, New York just might turn it around and help us by sending their homeless to Austin, which cannot even begin to solve their own homeless problem.  When you have a couple of knuckleheads like Abbott and Adams anything is possible.  The world is going insane

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