November 2023

Finally…

Cooler Weather & Better Fishing!

STEVE HILLMAN

Reasons

(We Catch or Don’t)

Getting Started November 2023

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TIDE PREDICTIONS & SOLUNAR FEED TIMES INSIDE!

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ABOUT THE COVER Capt. David Garza is our cover angler. David was fishing a warming trend following a cold front last November, in preparation for a string of upcoming charters when he landed this great Lower Launa redfish near Port Mansfield. The big red found his KWigglers paddletail in Bart’s Sand Ninja to good to pass up. Kudos for letting her swim away, David.

NOVEMBER 2023 VOL 33 NO 7

CONTENTS

FEATURES

DEPARTMENTS

8 Reasons 12 Defining the Best: Part 1 16 Cooler Temps & Cooler Heads Lead to Bette...

20 Last of the Mohicans 46 San Antonio Bay Partnership “Doing It Right”...

26 Let’s Ask The Pro 30 Shallow Water Fishing 32 TSFMag Conservation News 36 TPWD Field Notes 38 Fishy Facts 40 Extreme Kayak Fishing & Sharks...

44 Mostly Sight-Fishing 49 Holiday Gift Guide 69 Science & the Sea

Steve Hillman Kevin Cochran Chuck Uzzle Joe Richard Catriona Glazebrook

20

32 WHAT OUR GUIDES HAVE TO SAY

64 The View from Matagorda 66 Mid-Coast Bays with the Grays 68 Hooked up with Rowsey 70 Wayne’s Port Mansfield Report 72 South Padre Fishing Scene

Bink Grimes Shellie Gray David Rowsey Wayne Davis Ernest Cisneros

66

4 | November 2023

REGULARS 6 Editorial 60 New Tackle & Gear 74 Fishing Reports and Forecasts 76 Catch of the Month 78 Gulf Coast Kitchen

78

Jay Watkins Dave Roberts CCA Texas Nicole Plowman Stephanie Boyd Eric Ozolins Jake Haddock UT Marine Science Institute

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EDITORIAL

COOLER WEATHER & FUTURE TROUT REGULATIONS

Cooler weather has finally arrived, and not a day too soon. Reduced water temperatures will not only bring better fishing, there is also likelihood that the threat of red tide in certain affected areas could soon diminish. Everybody is sick of the lingering summer heat and, if you’ve ever witnessed the devastation a full-blown red tide can wreak, then you understand my concern in that regard. So, from both prospectives, I am praying for some old-fashion November weather.

The TPWD Commission is once again considering management strategies for the Texas spotted seatrout fishery. It all goes back View The Video to the Freeze of February 2021 and the rate at Open Camera & hover which the fishery has recovered in middle and over QR Code. When lower coast bays. link appears, tap to open in YouTube.

Due to the manner in which emergency regulations to reduce bag limits and conserve November Issue spawning biomass were enacted in the Highlights aftermath of the freeze, effective this past September 1, the daily limit for trout reverted to the prior 5-per-day regulations. This pleased some but drew consternation from what seems a great majority of Texas anglers. What has become one of

6 | November 2023

the loudest complaints is the return to allowing anglers to retain five specks per day up to twenty-five inches, one of which could be longer.

So, here we go again. During their August meetings the commission directed Coastal Fisheries Division to conduct another round of scoping meetings to gauge public opinion as regards future regulations. This will occur next week. I mentioned it last month in this column in hope of encouraging participation. Another opportunity to provide comment is via the TPWD online portal. Either way, they want to hear from you on this topic.

Now, it takes two sides to have a debate and I’ve heard from lots of folks. Some argue that the fishery will recover even with the five-fish limit, because it always has in the past. Many more say it’s too soon; we want to see a quicker recovery, and more trophy fish.

Indeed, we must always base management decisions on science, and I’m sure the best available science will ultimately be included in all future fisheries regulations. But times have changed. Look at the world of bass fishing. Very heartening to me is the commission’s willingness to listen to what Texas anglers would like to see in their fishery.

The upshot of all this is that new trout regulations are likely soon.

If I could offer a guess after all I have heard and learned, it would be a return to the three fish bag limit for the middle and lower coast, possibly as soon as June 2024. And I can live with that.

Happy Thanksgiving…and take a kid fishing!

TSFMAG.com | 7

Everything came together during our small window before the front hit. It’s amazing how the trout sense a coming weather change and then start snapping!

REASONS STORY BY STEVE HILLMAN

I

t was a muggy morning last November when my three clients and I rolled out of the marina. The third real cool front of the fall was forecasted to hit our area around 11AM. I knew we wouldn’t have much of a window, but I also knew that this pretty good school of trout I’d been on would be snapping if Mother Nature would allow us to be there when they went off.

As I trolled towards the mouth of this deep bayou which opened into the bay the air was filled with the smell of trout. There was no wind so I couldn’t tell where the slicks were coming from but I had a pretty good idea based on the layout and where I’ve historically caught fish there under the same conditions. I quietly trolled the boat into position where we could cast along the ledges that had been carved out by the ebb and flow of the bayou over the years. The bottom landscape consisted of soft silty mud with scattered clusters of live oysters. We immediately started getting bites but very few hook-ups and the ones we did catch were small specks. I told my crew that there was no way those larger trout weren’t there. It had to be a timing thing. The tide was due to start going out around 9:30AM so I was hoping that would trigger a feed for the larger fish. The tail end of the major solunar feeding period was also around that time.

Todd Overmeyer with a solid trout he was able to trick by casting into a cut through a reef on a weak tide day.

The mid-morning minor provided us with steady action on Chartreuse Silver Glitter 5” Assassins worked along a ledge during a moderate incoming tide.

I always joke around with my clients about how many excuses I have for when the bite is off. James Plaag told me one time that we should make a list of excuses then shrink it down, laminate it and keep it in our wallets then just whip it out when the fishing gets tough. Well, it was almost 9 o’clock and if I actually did have a “guide’s list of excuses” I would have burned through about the first 15 excuses at this point. I looked at my weather radar and the front which was originally predicted to hit around eleven appeared to be ahead of schedule as the line of storms was now approaching North Houston. Our window was rapidly closing.

My patience was wearing thin when I noticed a small eddy beginning to form along the eastern edge of the bayou drain. The tide was finally starting to go out. Two small slicks popped up about 50 yards out in front of the bayou mouth. I trolled us into position and we caught 17 to 20 inch trout as fast as we could throw with a few 22 to 23 inch fish in the mix. We were anchored where all of the guys could cast their Lil Johns and Bass Assassins up current while letting them carry down the edge of the drop-off. Forty something trout later we were back at the dock by 10:45 and I got my boat on the trailer right as the sky opened up with sideways rain and gusty north winds. There’s always luck involved in having a successful outing but we can increase our “luck” by noting our reasons for success in an attempt to replicate the same outcome on the next trip. After a while all of those triggering mechanisms will become mentally programed into our daily game plan eventually becoming second nature.

So let’s go over a list of the reasons this trip ended up being a huge success.

• Predator fish instinctively gravitate toward bayou mouths, rivers and marsh drains during the fall, especially prior to and during the passage of cold fronts. They behave this way for several reasons.

Forage species such as shad, shrimp and mullet tend to migrate downstream and concentrate in these areas because salinities are typically lower than the open bay and there are various types of plankton present upon which they feed. Habitat such as live oysters, spartina and seagrass beds will sweeten the pot even more. In 10 | November 2023

Hadley Miner with her first-ever trout on lures!

addition, water temperatures in and around these areas tend to be a couple of degrees warmer than the open bay. Strong fronts typically bring stiff northerly winds that drop tides, which in turn flushes these forage species out and concentrating them, thus creating easy meals for trout, reds and flounder. Our predator fish are programmed to feed heavily with the passage of each front anyway as they instinctively sense the onset of winter when forage species will not be as readily available. Tons of food being shoved right into their faces sets up the perfect all-you-can-eat buffet situation.

• I talk about it a lot but the most influential factor here in Galveston Bay is not necessarily tidal movement but more specifically the tide change. During this particular trip the tide was peaked out when we arrived that morning. It was somewhat stagnant. When it began to trickle out around 9:15 our fish went crazy. They were there the entire time; they just needed something to spur them to feed. The fact that this occurred during a major feeding period didn’t hurt either.

• I’ve heard many folks talk about how fish like to feed about one day ahead of a cold front. I can’t completely disagree with that but I have noticed a more aggressive feed many times within just a few hours of a front’s arrival and sometimes even during. Such was the case on this particular trip. I believe the main triggering mechanism associated with fronts is the sudden change in barometric pressure. The effects of barometric pressure on fishing has been an ongoing debate for years but I truly believe it has an impact. I actually wrote an entire article about it in this fine magazine back in February of 2016. It’s called “Under Pressure.” Check it out for more insight.

It’s not only helpful to make mental notes (written if necessary) of the reasons our fishing trips were good but it’s just as helpful to know the reasons for them being less productive so we can make the proper adjustments. Here’s a little list of reasons that usually warrants a strategy change or relocating to other areas: Problem: No tide movement Possible Solution: If it’s within a reasonable time frame and you sense

the presence of fish (slicks, active bait, etc.) then wait for the next tide change. If time is not on your side then target areas near the Intracoastal Waterway and areas near cuts and passes where artificial tides are created by barges, ships, etc. You can also try downsizing to smaller soft plastics rigged on 1/8 ounce Bass Assassin Pro Elite jig heads.

The Assassin 4 inch Sea Shad is a perfect choice when the fish are in a negative feeding pattern, not only because of its smaller profile but also the vibration it creates with its paddle tail. The jig head style and this bait’s buoyant nature enables it to stay in the strike zone longer as well.

Problem: Dirty water Possible Solution: We must first determine if the water clarity is poor because of too much freshwater run-off or if it’s wind or current induced.

Many of our fronts this time of year bring torrential rainfall and salinity levels in certain areas can drop below a suitable level for trout. So what is “a suitable level?” I remember reading somewhere through some of my past research that spotted seatrout begin seeking other areas when salinity levels drop below 10 ppt (parts per thousand) and that adult trout have trouble surviving in water with salinities under 4 ppt. I know we’ve caught some trout around here in pretty darn fresh water in years past. No one needs or wants to carry a refractometer or a hydrometer around in their boat so I recommend the eye and taste test along with a little common sense. If it smells musty, tastes fresh and looks like my wife’s coffee (creamer with some coffee in it) then seek out higher salinity areas closer to passes or fish deeper pockets of water that may contain saltwater beneath the freshwater layer. If someone’s refrigerator floats past your boat then definitely move on. If that doesn’t cause you to relocate then sell your boat because you need to find another hobby.

If you’re fishing in an area that’s been holding fish and the salinity

View The Video

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Slack Tide Solutions

Craig knows that we gotta let them go if we want them to grow.

level is fine but the wind or current has caused it to become off-color then try chunking a high-pitched topwater such as a MirrOlure She Dog. When going subsurface switch over to dark-colored soft plastics such as a Morning Glory or Red Shad Bass Assassin. Another effective bait is the MirrOlure Lil John because of its impregnated scent.

Problem: No visible bait Solution: There are typically two reasons we do not see bait; 1. It’s present but staying down in the water column (not active) or 2. It’s simply not there. I’ve had trips where zero mullet were jumping but as I wade I’d see swirls. I’ve done the same thing as I use the trolling motor when drifting. When this is the case I fish down in the water column with soft plastics or MirrOlures while focusing on the most eccentric ledges and drop-offs I can find. When we have tide movement, good structure and we’re still not seeing any signs of bait (not even a swirl) then it’s time to try somewhere else.

We have many tools at our disposal these days. One great one is the Solunar Feed and Tide Prediction chart towards the back of this very magazine. There are detailed fishing maps such as the Hook-N-Line map which not only provides GPS coordinates but also the best time of year for those spots. And I could write an entire article about the state-ofthe-art electronics we use these days. Of course weather is always the one uncontrollable variable but between what we have between our ears and all of the tools available there’s no reason we shouldn’t be successful. Especially if we know the reasons.

STEVE HILLMAN

CONTACT

Craig Wilson tricked this 23-incher just as the tide started moving out.

Steve Hillman is a full-time fishing guide on his home waters of Galveston Bay. Steve fishes the entire Galveston Bay Complex, wading and drifting for trout, redfish, and flounder using artificial lures.

Phone 409-256-7937 Email captsteve@hillmanguideservice.com Web www.hillmanguideservice.com

TSFMAG.com | 11

Defining the Best Part 1

STORY BY KEVIN COCHRAN

I

dentifying the top performer(s) in any field requires analysis of the contenders’ key attributes and of the outcomes they produce. In many cases, comparing one field of endeavor to other similar ones creates clarity in the process. Making such comparisons demands recognition of the analogous elements which connect the fields.

Parallel structures connect many human endeavors. Numerous activities show similarities in the ways people approach them and the skills demonstrated by those who master them. Recently, I’ve come to recognize many similarities between driving a van to deliver magazines across much of the state and running wadefishing charters out of a boat on the coastal waterways. Superficially, these two activities seem wildly different, but in many ways, they are much the same.

Anglers like Jason King, shown here with one of many giant trout he’s caught in his day, deserve as much consideration as the state’s best angler as do most fishing guides.

In order to deliver magazines to retail outlets from Edinburg to Cedar Park to Humble, from the coast to the Edwards Plateau and many points in between, a driver must possess excellent knowledge of the details related to using the highways and back-roads of Texas. In many cases, one way of accessing a place proves far more convenient and useful than others. Knowing all the eccentricities of the access roads and parking lots leading to and surrounding the stores facilitates running a route safely and efficiently. Additionally, a driver needs to have an awareness of how timing can and will affect the running of the route.

In some places, notably urban settings with high traffic volume, attempting to visit a store during specific hours becomes far more time-consuming, tedious and even dangerous than at other times.

Sometimes, these facts render the endeavor pointless for a while.

Drivers who proceed with knowledge of how rush-hour or holiday traffic, or the timing of the starting and ending of school days will affect their work will operate far more efficiently than drivers who ignore this information.

Construction projects, accidents and weather phenomena can also necessitate changes to the preferred pathways for drivers attempting to service multiple locations spread out over long distances. High levels of knowledge and vigilance help drivers avoid getting lost or caught in traffic jams, allowing them to complete their work in a timely manner, without unnecessary stress. A driver who knows more about getting to all the places on the route considering the timing and the other variables in play is simply a better driver.

This knowledge of the roadways and the issues related to getting to all the places on the route safely and efficiently has many qualities which make it analogous to navigating the inland waterways in a boat. A captain running charters, like a driver distributing magazines, needs to have intimate knowledge of the running lanes in the areas in which they work. On the water, this knowledge involves not only an understanding of which pathways provide the safest and easiest ways to move around, but also how environmental conditions like changing 14 | November 2023

Sometimes, top trophy trout hunters like Ari Schwartz accidentally catch redfish while they’re trying to catch the trout of a lifetime.

tide levels, wind speed and direction, fog and high boat traffic affect using these pathways.

In essence, the most accomplished captains know multiple ways to approach all parts of the bays in which they operate, also when to avoid using some of the pathways to those places, because of temporary conditions which render them too dangerous and/or rough for use. A competent captain focused on wading also knows where to leave the boat to start an effort in a place, given the prevailing conditions, just as a capable delivery driver knows exactly where to park outside a store, to best facilitate entering and exiting the place.

Once a driver goes inside a store to replace old magazines with new ones, other issues arise, ones which require different types of knowledge and multiple skill sets.

Inside a retail outlet, a delivery driver must know the layout of the stores and where the racks holding the magazines should ideally be placed. If and when employees inside the stores move the racks, the driver must find them and return them to their prime locations. Doing so might require communication with people working in a store. If so, the driver’s knowledge of the hierarchy of employees in the store and the system by which they operate becomes useful.

Additionally, a distributor needs to keep track of sales over time and leave appropriate numbers of magazines in the stores each month.

Doing so means acknowledging how holidays and other events will affect sales. So, a magazine distributor needs to keep accurate data, make excellent predictions about how future events will affect the data and use functional people skills to best manage the sales of magazines at all the stores on the route.

The ability to combine voluminous knowledge and implement various skill sets is certainly an important attribute of a successful fishing guide, specifically one who runs charters in coastal waters targeting speckled trout by wading with artificial lures. The best captains use their intimate familiarity with the topography of the bays to identify productive sweet-spots, also how to direct their customers to those spots in ways which will enhance their chances for catching

fish, just as the distributor knows where best to place the racks in the stores. If and when the catching doesn’t go as planned, competent captains also know how to use their people skills to coach their customers toward higher catch-rates.

Accurate data related to the historical catch-rates at all these sites enhanced by a useful awareness of how prevailing conditions either elevate, diminish or even eliminate the potential for the data to repeat allows astute captains to make productive judgments about when, where and for how long to try the various spots lying within the bodies of water in which they ply their trade. This skill set closely resembles the one used by distributors to make decisions about adjustments to the numbers of magazines left in the stores each month, based on historical trends and the potential influences November weather provides ripe The ability to successfully catch the fish within reach is certainly of upcoming events. potential for catching big trout an important attribute of a successful angler. Chad Kelley on slow-sinking twitch baits. shows grace in finishing a fight and landing a trout here.

The structural similarities between these two activities appear subtle at first glance.

Upon closer examination, they are clearly present and relevant. Drivers These truths motivate people who run competitive fishing circuits delivering magazines to various retail outlets along a route and to require their participants to perform in waters spread across a captains running charters on the coastal waters need to have excellent large area. Testing competitors in more places proves more about navigation knowledge and skills, supreme familiarity with the places the anglers’ levels of skill. Fishing in places far removed from each in which they do their business, functional people-skills and an astute other, which also have disparate attributes, pushes anglers to adapt awareness of how environmental conditions and future events will and grow. Regardless of whether they run charters or formally likely influence the productivity of their efforts. Additionally, the cream compete against others, anglers who become proficient at fishing of the crop in both endeavors display this knowledge and use these productively in more places deserve higher status on the scale which skill sets over a far-reaching area. rates the best in the business.

The routes used by delivery drivers change when new roads are built, Captains and drivers who stand above the rest on the ladder of when retail owners alter and scrap operating systems, and in response excellence recognize the significance of the constant need to evolve. to the habits of fickle consumers. The best drivers always keep their They make every attempt to regularly increase their knowledge and minds and eyes open, looking for new places which have potential to skill sets and to expand the area in which they demonstrate high levels sell the products they deliver. Similarly, the best captains realize it’s of proficiency. Consequently, one might conclude the ideal way to impossible to know everything about all the bodies of water out there, define the best angler is to identify the individual who demonstrates but they constantly strive to learn more about the areas in which they the highest productivity level over the broadest area. Significantly, work and to add new spots to the catalog they use on a daily basis. the analysis in this piece limits its scope to consideration of delivery Becoming proficient at running a route which stretches for 100 drivers who distribute just one product and captains who target a miles and includes 10 or 20 retail outlets proves fairly easy, compared single species of fish. Part 2 of this pair of features, to appear in next with the task of mastering a route which stretches for 2,000 miles and month’s issue, will investigate whether or not such a narrow focus includes more than 100 stops. Similarly, mastering the art of fishing optimally facilitates identifying the state’s best angler. in one satellite bay takes far less time, effort and skills than mastering the art of fishing all the coastal waters lying within the boundaries of a state, especially a king-sized one like Texas. Drivers and captains showing high levels of skill and proficiency over the largest areas rank Kevin Cochran is a long-time fishing guide at Corpus Christi (Padre Island), TX. Kevin higher on the list of best in the business than those who operate in is a speckled trout fanatic and has created fewer places and smaller spaces.

View The Video

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The Captain describes details related to the biggest trout he’s caught to date at a famous rock formation in Baffin.

CONTACT

KEVIN COCHRAN

several books and dvds on the subject.

Kevin’s home waters stretch from Corpus Christi Bay to the Land Cut.

TROUT TRACKER GUIDE SERVICE Phone Email Web

361-688-3714 kevincochran404@yahoo.com www.captainkevblogs.com TSFMAG.com | 15

Redfish are currently one of the best programs available on Sabine Lake.

Cooler Temps Cooler Heads

&

Lead to Better Fishing STORY BY CHUCK UZZLE

T

he sun has just broken the horizon to reveal a relatively smooth lake, the temperatures are mild and the forecast is in the angler’s favor. A short boat ride into the expanse of Sabine Lake is halted so one of the anglers can glass the area ahead with binoculars in hope of finding a flock of working birds. The glassing pays off and the boat of hopeful anglers speed off in the direction of the birds with visions of speckled trout busting shrimp racing through their minds.

The boat driver pulls back on the throttle, kills the motor and steps to the bow to drop the trolling motor so the boat can be better positioned and everyone aboard can reach the fish. Just as our anglers gain the perfect distance from the flock, it happens. Familiar roars grow louder from several directions and the perfect scenario is about to go wrong in a big way. Within minutes our anglers are surrounded by boats on all sides, filled with zealous anglers.

Wakes from the boats rushing to the scene turn the calm surface into a rolling, unstable affair.

The birds and fish are now surrounded by an armada of lure chunking, boat banging, would-be fisherman who cannot understand why the fish and the birds suddenly disappear. This scenario will play out over and over again as the overly anxious anglers refuse to learn from their mistakes, turning what could have been a memorable day into one full of frustration and very few fish.

Now, if the truth were to be told, most anglers have been on both sides of that example – we’ve likely all been both victim and villain at one time or another. It’s tough for the average fisherman to have the patience to come into a situation like the one described and not get antsy or in a hurry. All it takes is one boat to start crowding the school or moving too fast, and before you know it the whole herd is in stampede mode.

“That guy isn’t going to beat me to the fish,” or “If we don’t get there we won’t get a shot at the fish,” are common remarks and mistakes that many fisherman make. But truth be known, that’s not the case at all. If anglers would come off plane earlier, use more trolling motor, approach from the upwind side, and work with other boats instead of against them, everybody would catch more fish.

If you ever want to see the look of surprise on somebody’s face, just watch another angler when you ease up to a school with birds hovering and ask if it’s alright to fish near them. Most people are floored that anyone would even offer to do that. I promise you if you ask politely and use common sense, on the next bunch of birds you encounter, that same angler you spoke to earlier will do the same for you. Courtesy is contagious.

TSFMAG.com | 17

Exceptional water clarity and cooler temps make fishing much more enjoyable.

Approaching birds feeding over schools of trout from the upwind direction and not running into the flock on the big motor are keys to success.

As good as the fishing is right now you can certainly expect increased traffic on the lake from both local and out-of-town anglers.

The last thing you ever want to have happen is to become involved in a confrontation with someone while you are on the water. I have witnessed some very heated moments on Sabine. There have even been some that led to altercations later at the boat ramp, if you can believe that. Simply put, there is no fish worth that kind of behavior.

Please remember a few simple rules while chasing the birds this fall – approach slowly, be mindful of your wake, be courteous, do everything possible to find your own school of fish, work with other fishermen, and by all means keep your cool. Follow these simple rules and you will be well on your way to a memorable day.

Jared Smith from Idaho had his hands full with this 45-inch 20-pounder that was running with schooling trout under the gulls.

If for some reason the idea of chasing birds isn’t your cup of tea there are plenty of other options available right now and none of them are bad. The folks pursuing big trout will be on the prowl along the shallow flats near the Intracoastal Waterway and the many drains that dot the Louisiana shoreline. It’s a safe bet to say that some of the biggest fish of the year will be caught this month, and I for one would love to see some quality trout make an appearance after several very disappointing years.

The flounder run will be in full swing as well but those fish will be catch and release only starting November 1 and remaining that way until December 14, so be mindful of the regulations. For those who have chosen to try and take advantage of the so-called Louisiana loophole, where they launch on the Louisiana side of Sabine for a shot at more liberal limits, especially flounder, you will again be out of luck as Louisiana will also close their flounder season during the same time period. It never ceases to amaze me the lengths some folks will go to in order to circumvent the law or take advantage of a situation.

As always the redfish will be prowling everywhere and eating everything that doesn’t eat them, and that will be a constant pattern right on through winter. So far this year we have been absolutely inundated with oversized redfish and they show no sign of leaving any time soon. In years past the sight of a 40” redfish inside the lake boundary, not the jetty, was a big deal. But so far this year that has not been the case as these big fish continue be more common.

If you are fortunate enough to run up on a Extreme drought this year brought extremely low water levels in school of oversize reds engaged in a feeding some coastal marshes. Same location – teal season 2022 versus 2023. frenzy, it’s truly a sight to behold and can only

18 | November 2023

View The Video

Open Camera and hover over QR Code. When link appears at top of screen tap to open in YouTube.

on Sabine I have never seen the water look this good for this long, it’s been amazing. The prospects for the coming weeks are outstanding and I genuinely look forward to what’s ahead.

On a personal note, I have to say as much as I look forward to this time of the year I am also reminded that this month marks two years since we lost our great friend, Capt. Dickie Colburn. There are very few days I am not reminded of him or something he said or did, especially when I’m on the water.

Dickie was a very important figure in my life, both personally and professionally, and to say I miss him greatly would be a huge understatement. I would love to hear his thoughts on the current state of Sabine Lake because he was the utmost authority on the subject, hands down. It’s hard to believe it’s been two years already, time sure flies. As Dickie always said…”Enjoy your time on the water and be sure to take a kid fishing.”

CHUCK UZZLE

CONTACT

be described as mass carnage. Don’t be surprised at all if some of these bigger fish don’t show up in the middle of a school of trout because they will not only be chasing the same bait that the trout are chasing, they will also readily eat smaller specks and sand trout. The redfish is easily the most predictable and accessible fish going during this time of year, so take advantage of them when you get the opportunity.

With all the various patterns available and a definite change in the weather, it’s no secret that this is probably my favorite time of the year.

For months we have endured a ridiculous amount of high southwest wind that rendered most of Sabine un-fishable. A huge high-pressure system just sat in the middle of the country and wouldn’t budge, so the weather report seemed to be the exact same every day for what seemed like eternity. That pressure ridge protected us during the hurricane season from tropical storms entering the gulf, but unfortunately it also produced severe drought conditions.

Coastal prairies went dry and muddy bottoms cracked open, forcing many folks, especially waterfowlers, to scramble in order to save their seasons. The lack of rain also produced some of the most gorgeous water we have ever seen on Sabine as freshwater runoff from up north was virtually non-existent. I can honestly say in my almost 40 years

Chuck fishes Sabine and Calcasieu Lakes from his home in Orange, TX. His specialties are light tackle and fly fishing for trout, reds, and flounder.

Phone Email Website

409-697-6111 wakesndrakes@yahoo.com wakesndrakes.com

TSFMAG.com | 19

Last of the

Mohicans STORY BY JOE RICHARD

T

wenty-six years ago, someone snuck into my garage and walked off with a handful of my bay tackle. Next day I called a Daiwa rep, mentioned some brands I’d seen in the big box stores, and he said, “You don’t want anything from there.” So, for the princely sum of $65 each ($123 in today’s dollars), he sent five matched IM-7 graphite rods to my doorstep. They seemed a little stiff at first, medium-heavy action seven-footers, but did they ever catch fish. They were great for setting the hook against mono stretch, since I don’t use braid. And really tough.

Back then our local fishing guides may have been envious of my matched set of rods poking up from the leaning post on my Mako boat. Their own rod racks sported all manner of mismatched outfits and let’s just say that Walmart was…wellrepresented there. Maybe the guys didn’t want more expensive tackle in the hands of newbies and strangers. Or something.

Spin tackle used on a nice trout in foggy weather.

Neighbors snagged and reeled in one of the Daiwa rods, after a redfish pulled it overboard.

Five gradual rod replacements. The Penn rod showed up on my birthday, to replace the number 5 Daiwa.

A sad day, the last of a set of five Daiwa rods dating back to 1997.

22 | November 2023

It took a full 26 years for the last of those five rods to come to some bad end. Incredibly, after hundreds of strangers handled them, all five mishaps were my own fault. They were lost one at a time, not by backing the truck over them, which happened to friends in Arlington this past July. Or driving the boat under a low bridge and snapping off all five, as I saw a pro kingfish boat do. Like the Mohicans, there was slow attrition. Each story offers a small snapshot at the tribulations of a fishing guide.

On that first day out in the Gulf, first drift, I handed out my shiny rods. A guy tried to cast one and simply threw it in the water. Looked at his hands, mystified. (Maybe he’d had a rough night; I never asked.) We were drifting for trout at a fair clip, casting downwind. With only seconds to spare, I dug deep underwater with my own rod and snagged it. Saved!

A few years came and went. Then I had a young couple in the boat, who caught only two redfish before the guy’s cell phone rang. It was his boss, ordering him to get back to the motel, get on his laptop; he’d screwed up somebody’s insurance claim. We headed for the dock, it must have been 10:30. The guy was on vacation with his girlfriend, and I advised him that maybe he should reconsider his job. The couple knew nothing about paying a guide, said they’d brought no money. I had to follow them 20 miles to the nearest ATM machine. (No Venmo, in those days.) In my haste to follow their car, I rolled up the windows and one of my Daiwas broke. Rod number 1.

Then I took a professor friend and his 14-year old son fishing. Soon anchored on a high-tide shoreline, the kid wanted to get out and walk, so I handed him a baited rod.

He trudged down the shoreline, stopping to examine black mangrove trees, even breaking off sample twigs. Not casting at all. However, next time we looked he was bowed up on something big that was finally dragged ashore, a 25-inch redfish, his first fish ever. He brought it back to the boat and his dad and I were pleased. I then climbed out with the castnet. Returning minutes later, there was a sudden splashing at the stern. Was it a fish? I climbed back in the boat and noticed my rod was missing. It had been torn out of the rod holder. The young angler said, “I kept hearing this zzzzzzzzing behind me, but didn’t know what it was, so I didn’t turn around.” Rod number two was gone. (I could mention here that it’s wise to “never get off the boat,” but I’ve covered that before.)

Years later another rod was torn from the boat, along with the PVC rod holder I’d been messing with back home, rigging it with an elbow for trolling in freshwater. Didn’t tighten the screws enough. That rod took off like a monster pickup truck had snagged it and the rod holder splashed 10 feet away.

There was no way we would get that rod back. However, friends in another boat were anchored close by. A few glum minutes passed before one of their lines tightened, they’d snagged something, it was the line on my lost rod. Handover-hand, they retrieved the rod and then fought something on the far end, maybe a monster. It was a mere 24-inch redfish. Saved again.

The next incident was a lesson in patience. It’s difficult to

without carrying fishing tackle.) In a hurry, I opened and slammed all five car doors, and of the five mixed rods inside, one of them slipped out the door when I opened and slammed it. Cutting it in half. The Daiwa, of course.

Gone, just gone. I knew those five rods so well, I could trick-cast behind me 30 yards and land close to my target. Well, nothing lasts forever. Friends say 26 years was a pretty good run, considering how much I fish, and maybe those were lucky rods. I’m now back to an assortment of brands I’ve acquired over time, good stuff kept rinsed and safe in my tackle room. With three tournaments to fish next month, I’m looking forward to slinging baits and artificials in cooler weather, following this cruel summer we’ve just had.

JOE RICHARD

Joe Richard has fished the Gulf since 1967, starting out of Port Arthur, but his adventures have taken him up and down the entire coast.

He was the editor of Tide magazine for eight years, and later Florida Sportsman’s book and assistant magazine editor. He began guiding out of Port O’Connor in 1994. His specialty is big kingfish, and his latest book is The Kingfish Bible, New Revelations. Available at Seafavorites.com

CONTACT

get older anglers of 80 years or so, to set the hook or get a deep bend in that rod when a fish hits. I tell them to bend the rod like a banana, but that only seems to work with younger people. One day I had these older gents, my friend Josh and his buddy Kay Eoff from Kingsville sitting in the boat, waiting for a hit on the bow rods. When a rod bent double, they’d clamber out of their seats after several attempts, pick up the rod and reel slowly. They didn’t bend their rods at all and lost 4-5 reds and big trout in a row. Frustrated, I finally climbed past them to the bow, picked up a rod, and bent it with both hands. “This is how far you want to bend it…” Crack! The rod broke in half. Kay wryly commented, “Maybe not that much.” Rod number 3 was gone.

On a hot, glassy trip one of my clients was hooked up to the day’s biggest trout and needed net assistance. Big ladyfish were thick that day. In a hurry to grab the net, I set my rod down with the gold spoon twinkling two feet down in the green depths, and a big ladyfish obliged. There was a splash and streak of bubbles angling away from the boat like we’d launched a torpedo. Rod number 4 was gone.

Then last week, the Grim Reaper showed up for Number 5. This last surviving rod had only one original gold-lined guide, having survived 26 years and a few trips to the tackle repair shop. The cork handle was getting thin, but in recent years it was always in the thick of the action with redfish, trout, mackerel, sharks. Even a big tarpon for an hour.

Once again, impatience got the best of me. After parking the car far from the boat ramp, it wouldn’t lock, one of my doors wasn’t entirely closed. Amy was 100 yards away holding our boat at a crowded dock, with passing jet skis throwing wakes. (After a long day on the coast we’d decided to rinse trailer, outboard motor and ourselves in a lake

TSFMAG.com | 23

24 | November 2023

TSFMAG.com | 25

J AY WAT K I N S

ASK THE PRO

THE VALUE OF KEEPING

A DETAILED FISHING LOG As summer gives way to fall I make a point to look back and review prior years weather and fishing patterns. I have over 40 years of daily data entries, which is a massive amount.

Luckily though, my webmaster has made it easy for me to search in multiple ways for similar patterns from previous seasons. I am always amazed at how predictable some areas can be year after year. I have also noticed that these are strongly related to weather, and when weather patterns are similar, the fishing patterns likewise become predictable.

Recording details of days fished in a personal logbook can greatly increase your own ability to predict future fishing patterns. This practice has certainly created confidence in my own decision-making process throughout my fishing career.

I tell my clients that the changes in weather patterns from summer to fall can often create changes that the fish are not comfortable with, which in turn creates some difficult times for us. I don’t make excuses as to why we will not be successful every day. That is a defeatist attitude and is only preparing the client for my failure as a guide. Understanding that change is occurring all the time, not just during the changing of seasons, helps me deal with only the things that are within my control.

The only person I know who dislikes the term transitional period more than me is Mike McBride, and only because he reminds me of it often. Understanding that fish movements and feeding patterns are constantly changing throughout the year is critical to you knowing where to find them and how to catch them.

I think the best anglers have terrific logs of past fishing experiences that include critical weather and water conditions data they refer to and compare with current conditions they are facing. I call this patterning and it continues to be a critical part of every day on the water for me.

As the fall pattern begins to emerge I continue to put great emphasis on identifying and following the food source. We still have some white shrimp migrating out of our back bays. I know this because on several occasions in the past, the first week of October brought

26 | November 2023

Plum Nasty Double D-XL did the trick! – CPR!

Great early fall trout for Alyson Donaldson – CPR!

Don Thrasher connected with a nice one – CPR!

us air temperatures that dropped into or right at freezing. When this happened it shocked the white shrimp that were in the process of leaving the back bays and left them stunned on the bottom. I have picked them up by hand. I have also noticed during strong early season cold fronts that many of the trout and redfish we catch will have the telltale long whiskers of white shrimp hanging out of their mouths. White shrimp have whiskers longer than their bodies. I posted on my Instagram account (official_jaywatkinssrfishing) a few weeks back a very large white shrimp moving along the bottom and made a comment on how long the whiskers of white shrimp are. I know I got off track, but paying attention to the conditions each day are super important. Like I said, I am focused on looking for the right bait for the right time.

I like finding an ample supply of bait around points: land masses jutting from shore or submerged reef points where current will pull bait to the trout and reds. These are my preferred areas if I can find them. Points where current and maybe a combination of current and wind has created a color change in the water can be big time producers. Typically, the larger trout and reds will be holding in the dirtier water. I had this happen just a few days ago on a falling tide that was moving against the wind around a reef point on a windward shoreline. That’s a mouthful of conditions, I know, but that was also the formula that day for our success. I don’t know how many 3-to-4-pound trout and nice slot reds we caught in an hour and a half window, but it was close to 25 or more. All the fish were set up right on the dirty side of the point and would just stop the lure as it drifted into the off-colored water. Bait activity and a small slick just down current of the point stopped us as we were idling towards the shoreline on this day. This pattern set the tone for the day as we continued to work underwater reef points that held any amount of bait. Every point produced some fish for us throughout the remainder of the day.

That’s patterning at it best and also in its most simple form.

For the next two to three days this pattern was not nearly as effective, why? Tides fell, wind direction changed, and water temperature warmed significantly, so as the conditions changed so did the pattern.

The next discernible pattern was drop-offs, where wind-driven current dirtied the waters covering scattered grassbeds. Larger trout love this pattern and for a few days this worked well for us. Then SE winds pumped water into the bay, tides bulled up and another pattern bit the dust. By now you get where I am going with this. Things are changing constantly, and we must be open to the changes and adapt accordingly.

Adapting takes some doing, though. We must pay attention to every detail about the day and logging it to memory. We have to pick an area based on what we are shown and then be prepared to give the area the time required to show its true potential. We must then test

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TSFMAG.com | 27

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28 | November 2023

and retest the pattern in other areas to confirm that the pattern really is a pattern. The only way one can gain confidence in establishing and predicting patterns is to put in the time on the water. For me, the best rewards come from the greatest of challenges. Constant change creates the greatest of challenges, for sure.

In the lure department, I will never be without soft plastics such as MirrOlure Lil John and Lil John XL series in all my favorite colors, colors which match conditions of the day. In early fall I begin to add a few more suspending lures. I carry a few year-round but I get more excited about the production of suspending lures as I begin noticing some cooling of air and water temperatures. My thoughts are that as the smaller baitfish begin migrating toward the gulf, forage of the critical 3-to-5-inch size becomes noticeably less plentiful, and that is when my suspending lures become more productive than during summer months. This by no means suggests that these same lures are not productive year-round. I do, however, have great confidence in seasonal patterns and science backs up my reasoning. By the way, I love the Texas Custom’s Double D Series in all the Custom Corky color patterns.

Our water stays mostly clear much of the year and it can be especially clear during the cooler to colder months. Suspending lures, whether they slowly sink or slowly rise in the water column, present the opportunity to place and keep the lure in the strike zone longer.

The MirrOdine and MirrOdine XL are personal favorites, and many other anglers I respect greatly in the industry. One of the other aspects that I like about suspending lures is the ability to slowly swim the bait at a specific depth within the water column. We can also bang them with vigorous rod tip motion at specific depths.

I am frequently asked, “When do you know to throw a suspending type of lure?” For me, it’s all about the setup and gut feeling. I am seldom that guy that gets stuck in a rut where I am trying to get fish to eat something that they don’t really want. Guiding pushes me to get lures in my guy’s hands that the fish will eat for the time frame that they are on the boat with me. If you think it’s still not about producing bites and landing fish, you’re only kidding yourself. People want to get bit, plain and simple, and I still want that out of each day as well.

Don’t be afraid to go back and forth from one style of lure to another until you determine what it is that the fish are wanting at the time. I have the luxury of going pretty much every day, so I have a good idea as to what I need to have in my small wading box all the time.

Most that have fished with me know that I am a minimalist when it comes to what I carry on a wade. I like traveling light. I know that day in day out, I can make them eat what I am throwing, and that’s all there is to it. Sounds cocky, I know, but its confidence in my abilities and the functions of the lures that I choose to throw that afford me that confidence.

With fall upon us and winter right behind, I want to stress to all of you the importance of continuing to practice catch and release, or maybe keeping only a few when it comes to our trout fishery. This is especially true in the San Antonio and Aransas Bay complexes.

May Your Fishing Always Be Catching! -Guide Jay Watkins

View The Video

C O N TA C T

Open Camera and hover over QR Code. When link appears at top of screen tap to open in YouTube.

The all-new Fenwick World Class series. 62 individual rods crafted to provide ultimate sensitivity for every species and your technique. Part of the 264 totally redesigned Fenwick family of rods.

Jay Watkins has been a full-time fishing guide at Rockport, TX, for more than 20 years. Jay specializes in wading yearround for trout and redfish with artificial lures. Jay covers the Texas coast from San Antonio Bay to Corpus Christi Bay. Telephone Email Website

361-729-9596 Jay@jaywatkins.com www.jaywatkins.com

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TSFMAG.com | 29

DAV E R O B E R T S

S H A L L O W W AT E R F I S H I N G

WHAT’S NOT TO LOVE? If you could contact every Texan that purchases a hunting and fishing license and made a survey, asking them “What month do you most look forward to?”, I am willing to bet that a majority would quickly answer November. From the hunters aspect, deer season is getting kicked off and the rut will fall somewhere during this month in many regions of the state. Also, duck and goose seasons begin for the diehards of wingshooting, who never quite get their fill during early teal and dove season. They should be excited and rightfully so, they wait all year for a short window to spend time outdoors and harvest their favorite species.

If you were to ask anglers the same question, I would be willing to bet the results would be scattered. There are a multitude of reasons as to “which month” and depends heavily on how you like to fish. Trophy trout anglers will have a completely different answer than say fly fisherman, who will also have a different answer than dedicated tournament anglers. However, when it comes down to allaround best fishing, November gets my vote.

I am sure by the time you are reading this we have experienced a few cold fronts; nothing too serious but certainly enough to drop the temperatures and get some things moving. The change of weather we get to experience during November just makes all things outdoors that much more enjoyable. The cooler temperatures make it so one will not fatigue as easily and lends to making all day trips a possibility. It is also a major driving factor of the mass migrations of shrimp and baitfish from the marshes to the Gulf. The cooler

30 | November 2023

weather is a signal that winter is near and that it is time to make their way out. As they begin to move, every gamefish is schooled up and waiting to take advantage of their departure.

When it comes to enjoying the little things of being an outdoorsman there are two things that come to mind. One of them is listening to the marsh light up in all directions from duck hunters at the exact minute shooting time arrives. The other is being on the south end of Sabine Lake at first light with you and a handful of other boats idling out, all looking for the same thing, birds working over migrating shrimp. Once it gets light enough and the first group becomes visible, the race will be on. Usually, whoever has the best eyes gets a good jump on the competition and you know they have spotted something when they suddenly take off full blast. By the time you make your way in that direction though, several other groups have popped up and there is no reason to start crowding. Those little moments, kind of the quiet before the storm, are what I truly love.

The good thing about this though, is that there are usually plenty of birds pointing you to exactly where the fish are. These scenarios really make for a fun day of fishing and are some of my fondest memories with my family and friends. Just a few tips that I have learned throughout the years when fishing the birds is to avoid topwaters and other lures rigged with treble hooks. I promise, I like watching a trout smack a topwater just like everyone else, but between the seagulls trying to snatch your plug and

everyone getting in a hurry, it’s a recipe for getting a hook in you, or someone else on the boat.

These fish are going to eat nearly anything you throw in front of them, and this is why I recommend lures with single hooks. Not only are they safer for you and your companions, they are less harmful to the fish and much easier to remove and get back to fishing.

When it comes to being back in the marsh, there is nothing quite like November. The redfish can be found in small groups or large schools; more than likely they won’t be alone. They tend to be gorging on the remaining shrimp that have yet to make their journey to deeper water, and by the way they act they don’t want any of them to make it. It really is an awesome sight to see them pushing in unison and working together to eat.

When it comes to catching them, just put a lure somewhere in front of their face and hang on!

I know that for some anglers, November meant it was time to head to the nearest pass and load an ice chest with flounder. However, with recent regulation changes we are no longer allowed to harvest them during this month. But that does not mean we cannot still target them.

Even though you can’t keep them, they are just as fun to target and catch. I have had better luck later in the month, on average, but when you get to an area where they have staged prior to migrating to the Gulf for spawning it can be a world of fun. Targeting marsh drains during a falling tide is a preferred technique that often yields great results. Anglers all have their own confidence lures, mine just happen to be a Chicken Boy or a small, green curly-tailed Gulp. My brother’s is the larger curly-tailed Gulp in Redfish Magic, jigged slowly on bottom. Don’t ask me where he came up with this but I can attest that it just flat out works.

Right now is the time that most outdoorsman have been looking forward to all year. Whether you are in a deer stand, duck blind, or fishing boat, there is definitely something to be happy about. You don’t get many days of the year where you can hear the screeching of gulls fighting over shrimp while having a group of pintails whistling overhead. Combine all of that with twenty redfish pushing down the bank right toward you. What’s not to love?

View The Video

Open Camera and hover over QR Code. When link appears at top of screen tap to open in YouTube.

C O N TA C T

Fall Fishing on Sabine

Dave Roberts is an avid kayak-fishing enthusiast fishing primarily the inshore Upper Coast region with occasional adventures to surf and nearshore Gulf of Mexico.

The all-new Fenwick HMG series. 77 individual rods crafted to provide ultimate sensitivity for every species and your technique. Part of the 264 totally redesigned Fenwick family of rods.

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Email: TexasKayakChronicles@yahoo.com Website: www.TexasKayakChronicles.com

TSFMAG.com | 31

By John Blaha

T S F M A G C O N S E R VAT I O N N E W S

CCA TEXAS HABITAT CREATION & RESTORATION SURPASSES $10 MILLION CCA Texas’ commitment to habitat creation and examples of grassroots efforts to get things done. Gary restoration has now surpassed $10 million in funding Glick, President of FRGVR, has led an effort not seen many to projects up and down the Texas coast. To date, CCA times before by a small group of volunteers. The 1,600 Texas and its habitat initiative, Habitat Today for Fish acre RGV Reef features many different types of reefing Tomorrow (HTFT), has been a partner in forty-seven materials including, pyramids, culverts, concrete railroad projects along the Texas coast. These projects have ties, small concrete blocks/bricks, concrete rubble, included oyster reef restoration and creation, marsh sunken vessels, and more. These materials have been restoration and shoreline protection, living shorelines, deployed in many different ways, which has ultimately nearshore reefing efforts out of every port in Texas, led to a “life cycle reef” that provides cover and habitat restoration of historic flows to Cedar Bayou into for many species of different ages. CCA Texas has been Mesquite Bay, and other habitat-based projects. committed to the RGV Reef since the early planning Habitat restoration and creation is a complex and stages and looks forward to seeing this latest round of expensive endeavor for any project. These projects funding result in new nearshore habitat. With this latest often have many partners that include government funding, CCA Texas has now committed $1,061,000 to agencies, academics, local grassroots groups, and local this long-term project. industry partners. Without these partners, many projects would never leave the conceptual stage, The RGV Reef offers habitat for many species and much less reach the construction phase. CCA age classes. Photo Courtesy of Gwyn Carmean.

Texas and Building Conservation Trust (BCT), CCA National’s habitat initiative, provide primary financial support to projects. There are however some projects that CCA Texas and BCT have executed with the support and oversight of governmental agencies, and other partners. Funding is, however, CCA Texas and BCT’s primary support to these efforts. CCA Texas and BCT also participates in the planning process of many projects. One example of this is CCA Texas’s participation in the longterm planning process for oyster restoration efforts along the Texas coast. CCA Texas has staff members that participate on the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) Oyster Restoration and Management/Regulations CCA Texas works closely with academic institutions, such are Harte committees. CCA Texas staff and volunteers Research Institute in Corpus Christi. HRI researchers will be conducting a also sit on several work groups focused on three-year bi-annual survey of oyster reefs in the Mesquite Bay system. restoration efforts along the coast. These work groups included those led by government agencies and academic institutions.

CCA Texas has approved $731,250 for five projects in 2023. The projects include some new and some that CCA Texas has earlier helped fund various phases of the projects. $200,000 – Nearshore Reefing by Friends of RGV Reef (Friends of RGV Reef) It’s been written many times and proven through years of volunteer efforts that Friends of RGV Reef (FRGVR) are one of the prime 32 | November 2023

CCA Texas is proud to support oyster restoration efforts such as the Big True Unit project in St. Charles Bay. CCA Texas’s commitment was further solidified by the $5 Million commitment to oyster restoration along the Texas coast.

$226,500 – St. Charles Bay Big Tree Unit Living Shoreline and Oyster Reef Creation (Harte Research Institute) CCA Texas has been a part of the St. Charles Bay Big Tree Unit Living Shoreline since its first phase in 2017. The 2023 funding of $226,250 included $50,000 from Tito’s Handmade Vodka, and finished reefing the site with an additional six new reef beds.

CCA Texas originally partnered with Harte Research Institute for this living shoreline project in St. Charles Bay along the Big Tree Unit of Goose Island State Park in August of 2017. CCA Texas and BCT originally funded $75,000 along with funds from TXGLO, USACE, NMFS and others.

Phase I resulted in seven reef beds constructed along the Big Tree Unit. The second phase of this restoration and creation effort took place in the spring of 2020. CCA Texas once again provided funding in the amount of $50,000. These funds were secured through the Harvey Relief Fund donation from Lone Star Breweries and were part of an effort that created an additional ten reef beds. In the spring of 2022, Phase III placed an additional twenty-one reef beds in the site. In Phase III CCA Texas contributed $360,000 to the project. This included $100,000 from Lone Star Breweries and $60,000 from Cheniere Energy. This additional funding allowed HRI to expand the Phase III effort by an additional six beds, from the fifteen originally planned. To date, CCA Texas has funded $711,250 to the St. Charles Bay Living Shoreline project. The funds have included those from the grassroots banquet fundraising efforts from across the state and supporters such as Tito’s Handmade Vodka, Lone Star Breweries, Cheniere Energy, and others. $225,000 - Mesquite Bay Oyster Reef Monitoring (Harte Research Institute) CCA Texas was very active in support of the TPWD Commission decision to permanently close the Mesquite Bay system for oyster harvest in November 2022. CCA Texas worked closely with TPWD, Harte Research Institute, and many other organizations to gather the support and data that ultimately brought the decision to close the Mesquite Bay system permanently. With this effort, comes the responsibility to see that a scientific approach is in place to measure the effects of a permanent closure.

The goal of this project is to monitor oyster reefs in the Mesquite Bay Complex to understand the effects of newly implemented harvest closures and upcoming reef restoration of oyster population recovery. Long‐term success of oyster reefs will depend on larval oyster settlement as well as survival and growth to larger size classes. Oyster sampling will occur in spring and fall annually, during periods of peak recruitment at six sites across the Mesquite Bay complex: (1) Carlos Reef Natural, (2) Carlos Reef Restored (TPWD planned restoration site), (3) Cedar Reef Natural, (4) Third Chain Natural, (5) Ayers Natural, and (6) Ayers Restored (HRI/CCA/FlatsWorthy priority restoration site). Site selection builds upon our 2022 monitoring of Mesquite reefs and incorporates stakeholder feedback from recent workshops focused on identifying and prioritizing areas for reef restoration within Mesquite Bay. CCA Texas is committed to a continuous recovery effort for oyster reefs across Texas and this funding along with the August 2023 commitment of $5 million will help the oyster resources in Texas for decades to come.

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USFWS staff and contractors survey prior marsh grass plantings in the San Bernard refuge. These types of projects will help repair and prevent further erosion along the GICW.

$30,000 Marsh Restoration - Brazoria & San Bernard Wildlife Refuge (USFWS) This project will use smooth cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora) plantings to protect coastal estuarine marsh from ongoing erosion at San Bernard National Wildlife Refuge and ensure continued protection of nearby communities from storm events. The refuge is a significant protective buffer from tropical storm damage. However, major storm events, heavy rains, and continuous wave action consumes roughly four feet of refuge marsh shoreline annually along the Gulf Intercoastal Waterway (GIWW). The refuge recently finished 1.4 miles of breakwater to minimize erosion by the town of Sargent and this was the final phase for a total of 5 miles completed. Sediment will accrete behind these breakwaters and support marsh establishment. Planting smooth cordgrass behind breakwaters initiates new marsh creation while also creating a strong living shoreline to protect against future storm events. CCA Texas has committed $91,000 to this effort to date in the San Bernard and Brazoria refuges. $50,000 Newcomb Bend Marsh Restoration (TPWD) The proposed project is Phase 1 of a project to protect approximately 2.5 miles of shoreline and 280 acres of estuarine marsh habitat at Newcomb Point and Newcomb Bend, collectively referred to as Newcomb Marsh, in Copano Bay. This will be a multi-phase project and CCA Texas funds are a part of community match dollars in order for the project to move forward. This contribution will allow TPWD to begin construction much earlier and help control future cost escalations if the project was delayed in the future due to funding cycles.

roysbaitandtackle.com 34 | November 2023

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By Nicole Plowman, Coastal Ecologist, Dickinson Marine Lab

FIELD NOTES

BECOMING AN OUTDOORS WOMAN

RETURNS TO THE TEXAS COAST “The other way! No, the other way! The other, OTHER way!” If you regularly use a boat ramp, you’ve witnessed this scenario at least once; a well-meaning partner with less than clear instructions can make backing a trailer a nightmare for a novice boater. Add the stress of spectators with the fear of jackknifing and a simple task (clockwise steering wheel rotation drives the trailer to the left and vice versa) may become daunting enough to keep some on the sidelines. Fortunately, Texas Parks & Wildlife Department (TPWD) has a solution for women who want to learn new outdoor skills in a low stress environment – Becoming an Outdoors Woman (BOW).

At the semi-annual, three-day workshop, participants choose four classes to attend out of the 30 to 40 offered.

Like BOW programs across the country, Texas BOW follows a standard 1/3 fishing, 1/3 hunting and 1/3 non-consumptive course model. This upcoming April, BOW will be hosted at Camp Aranzazu in Rockport.

By hosting the workshop in Rockport, BOW offers a unique experience by immersing participants in all things coastal, with opportunities to learn about the fish and invertebrates that inhabit our bays and, most importantly, how to catch and cook them! In addition to providing courses such as trailering, fishing and filleting, expert instructors spend the weekend sharing their

knowledge in fish biology, wetland ecology, and TPWD marine resource sampling methods.

One of the most popular classes, typically led by TPWD staff, is Fishing Basics. After learning about different types of equipment (rods and reels, tackle and bait) and how to decide which to use, it will be time to get casting! Under the guidance of seasoned anglers, the ladies will spend a few hours putting their new skills to the test by fishing Copano Bay. If participants are looking for something relaxing, they could opt to try out fly fishing, which is rapidly growing in popularity with anglers on the Texas coast. The women are offered two fly fishing courses, basic and advanced, and a full session dedicated solely to fly tying. Armed with their handmade flies and newfound confidence, the ladies will be ready to take on flyfishing in Copano Bay. Conversely, for some of the more daring participants, bowfishing is a popular choice. In a two-part course, instructor Marty McIntyre (a bowfishing guide with several decades of experience in Texas), walks women through TPWD bowfishing regulations, safety protocols, parts of a bow and an aiming tutorial. Participants practice on land using a pool and decoy gar floats before they are taken on a guided bay trip to put their new bowfishing skills into action.

Figure 1: Women in the trailering course learn the importance of communication, photo credit Nicole Plowman.

Figure 2: BOW flyfishing class in action, photo credit Sarah Medearis.

36 | November 2023

Figure 3: BOW flyfishing student shows off her catch, photo credit Sarah Medearis.

Figure 4: Bowfishing student practices aiming with instructor Marty McIntyre, photo credit Jill Gore.

Figure 5: Bowfishing student practices aiming with instructor Marty McIntyre, photo credit Nicole Plowman.

For a beginner angler, what comes after landing a fish may be just as intimidating as getting started with unfamiliar tackle; filleting a fish is a skill that takes much practice to hone. BOW regularly offers a course that covers how to prepare fish and popular shellfish species commonly harvested in Texas waters. The women are instructed in how to gut, fillet and skin fish, as well as prepare the fillets for transportation and storage. After some careful oyster shucking, it is time for the real fun to begin! The ladies’ hard work is rewarded with a seafood buffet!

Trailering Basics continues to be one of the first classes to fill up, with women searching for pressure-free training. TPWD staff guides women through the parts of a trailer, towing safety, and tips to make working with a partner (or by yourself ) easier before getting the ladies behind the wheel to practice backing a trailer down a boat ramp.

Close to half of all the participants are “repeat offenders”, as BOW coordinator Heidi Rao playfully calls them. With so many classes

Figure 6: BOW participants practice filleting redfish in the seafood preparation class, photo credit Nicole Plowman.

Figure 7: The trailering course familiarizes women with parts of a trailer, photo credit Sarah Medearis.

offered and just four sessions per workshop, it is easy to see why one would come back again and again. For 30 years, BOW has been giving women the confidence they need to try new activities and a way to connect with other women in their area who have similar interests. Texas Outdoor Women’s Network (TOWN) groups have formed in cities all over the state and serve as a way for women to learn about (and join!) planned events such as kayaking trips, hikes, and geocaching challenges.

If interested in attending a Texas Becoming an Outdoors Woman workshop, please visit the website https://tpwd.texas.gov/education/ bow or email BOW@TPWD.Texas.gov to join the mailing list so you can join us and learn all about fishing in Texas!

Check the TPWD Outdoor Annual, your local TPWD Law Enforcement office, or tpwd.texas.gov for more info.

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Captured in Bay of Bengal at Thotlakonda beach in Visakhapatnam, India. Photo by N. Aditya Madhav.

Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

STEPHANIE BOYD

F I S H Y FA C T S

BLUE BUTTONS As I sit down to write my final words for this magazine, my heart is filled with a myriad of emotions. It’s hard to believe that this journey, which started over a decade ago with a short filler article on oil spills, has now come to an end.

With each creature discovered and ecosystem mechanic explored, I hope you learned a little more about our amazing bays, as I did. To all of the readers, contributors, and supporters who reached out to me over the years, THANK YOU. Your enthusiasm has been the fuel that has driven me forward. Thank you for being a part of this journey. Until we meet again in the pages of a new story, be well, be inspired, and keep learning.

–––––––––––––––––––––––––––– Porpita porpita, commonly called the blue button, is a hydrozoan that is superficially similar to a jellyfish.

However, each apparent individual is actually another set of creatures altogether. Like other members of the class Hydrozoa, they are marine organisms composed of colonies of polyps, or zooids, each specializing in a different function, such as eating, defense, or reproduction. The most famous hydrozoan is probably 38 | November 2023

the Portuguese man o’ war, Physalia physalis. Luckily, the blue button is not nearly as treacherous as the man o’ war. Though they have a mild sting, they’re not particularly dangerous to humans. Blue buttons consist of two main parts: the float and the hydroid colony.

The float is a golden-brown circular disk filled with concentric air chambers and reaches up to 2 inches in diameter. This styrofoam-like organ is responsible for the button’s buoyancy and also contains pores that are able to communicate with other blue buttons. The hydroid colony, which can range from bright blue/turquoise to yellow, resembles jellyfish tentacles, ringing the central disk. Each “tentacle” branches out about halfway down its length, and each branch ends in a node of stinging cells (nematocysts). The mouth is located directly beneath the float and is used for both the intake of prey and the expulsion of waste. The mouth is surrounded by a ring of gonozooids (polyps in charge of developing reproductive structures called gonophores) and dactylozooids (polyps heavily armed with nematocysts, primarily concerned with defense). Tentacles are only found on the dactylozooids, which exist furthest away from the mouth, towards the outer part of the hydroid

colony. The air-filled disk keeps the button afloat on the ocean surface, where it spends most of its life, drifting, at the mercy of wind, tides, and currents.

Blue buttons are found in tropical and sub-tropical waters off Europe, New Zealand, in the Mediterranean Sea, the eastern part of the Arabian Sea, the Gulf of Mexico, and other parts of southern U.S. Though they live on the ocean surface, they are sometimes blown ashore in large numbers. North of Bob Hall Pier is one area they sometimes wash up in. The blue button is a part of the neustonic food web, which is comprised of organisms that inhabit the region on or near the surface of the ocean. They are carnivores and prey on many small organisms including copepods, crustacean larvae, plankton, and other small creatures that also float near the surface of the water.

While not particularly dangerous to humans, the blue button’s sting is venomous enough to keep the creature well-fed, despite being highly dependent on ocean currents and winds for bringing food to them. They are typically eaten by blue dragons, Glaucus atlanticus, and purple storm snails of the genus Janthina. Young Malabar trevally, Carangoides malabaricus, sometimes take shelter underneath the floats of blue buttons. These juveniles also appear to have preferences for particular buttons. When two pairs of buttons and trevally are separated by species, then returned to the same tank, each fish will return to its respective partner.

As hermaphrodites, each blue button has both male and female reproductive organs. Specialized polyps release eggs and sperm into the water where fertilization takes place. Fertilized eggs go through a larval stage before developing into adult polyps. New hydroid colonies form by the union of emerging polyps, which divide into new specialized polyps. A comprehensive count of living blue buttons isn’t known. However, a sudden and rapid increase in their numbers has been reported – possibly due to rising temperatures from climate change. Colonies have begun appearing in larger numbers along coastlines in Japan, as well as in the Ionian and Adriatic seas. The expansion of habitat and increase in population means increased competition with other organisms that consume the same food. A new balance in the neuston will have to be struck.

Where I learned about blue buttons, and you can too!

World Register of Marine Species www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=117831 Texas Marine Species txmarspecies.tamug.edu/invertdetails.cfm?scinameID=Porpita%20 porpita iNaturalist www.inaturalist.org/taxa/59683-Porpita-porpita www.inaturalist.org/guide_taxa/838520 LiveScience www.livescience.com/63751-blue-button-hurricane-florence.html Research Gate www.researchgate.net/publication/348141137_Occurrence_of_the_ Blue_Button_Porpita_porpita_Linnaeus_1758_in_the_Iskenderun_

Captured in course of “Islands in the Stream 2002: Exploring Underwater Oases.” Photo by Bruce Moravchik, NOAA.

Bay_Northeastern_Mediterranean_Coast_of_Turkey Springer Link link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12601-016-0025-9 My Animals myanimals.com/animals/wild-animals-animals/porpita-porpita-theblue-button-jellyfish/ ThoughtCo www.thoughtco.com/blue-button-jelly-porpita-porpita-2291819 Slightly Blue slightlyblue.com/culture/porpita-or-blue-buttons/ 30A 30a.com/blue-button-facts/ kidadl kidadl.com/facts/animals/blue-button-jellyfish-facts Go Science Girls gosciencegirls.com/porpita-porpita-blue-button-jellyfish/ Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Porpita_porpita

View The Video

Open Camera and hover over QR Code. When link appears at top of screen tap to open in YouTube.

Porpita Porpita At South Padre Island Texas

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Author’s new Viking kayak loaded and ready to launch for an offshore fishing adventure.

ERIC OZOLINS

E X T R E M E K AYA K F I S H I N G & S H A R K S F R O M T H E S A N D

BE A VIKING! Most people in the Texas saltwater fishing community know me simply as “Oz , The Shark Guy.” Sharks provided the genesis for my fishing persona; they always have been and always will be the most important fish in my life. The charters I run on Texas beaches provide me with so much joy, especially when I’m able to help someone experience a personal connection with a wild shark for the first time.

Most of my days in the great outdoors are spent on the beachfront, but certainly not all of them. I’m honored that so many people think of me as The Shark Guy, but I do also seriously participate in an entirely different coastal angling niche, one I helped kick-start about twenty years ago, and which stirs my angling passions to this day. I still find many thrills pursuing big, oceanic gamefish from the back of a kayak.

In the beginning, when ocean kayaks were first introduced in North America, the shark fishing community took notice. Sit-on-top kayaks truly changed the rules and procedures for land-based sharkers. In years prior to the kayak revolution, shark 40 | November 2023

enthusiasts resorted to an array of creative measures in order to place their baits far away from shore.

The eager (some might say crazy) ones would swim or paddle through the breakers on surfboards or inner tubes, carrying big bloody hunks of meat. A small number of more affluent ones could afford to employ jet-skis or small inflatable outboard boats to get the job done. But when the kayaks were introduced, the surf-fishing community recognized a cost-efficient and safer way to deploy large baits well away from the sand.

Like gasoline poured on a fire, this caused an explosion in the number of people interested in fishing for sharks from Texas beaches.

As soon as using kayaks became the norm in the sharking community, it felt like everyone on the beach had access to one. I bought my first ‘yak 22 years ago, specifically to use for running shark baits well away from the decks of local piers. As the years passed, and the hours spent paddling the plastic boat passed, I became one with the kayak and naturally adapted to handling it atop the swells of the open ocean. During

this same time, I also made a Oz and Glenn Madden with a nice haul transition from sharking on of red snapper from Texas state waters. the piers to concentrating my efforts in the surf. I quickly recognized my calling as spending time on isolated stretches of the beach, blasting big baits out for giant sharks.

Inadvertently, I also discovered a second passion, while using my kayak not only to deploy baits, but also to catch them. At that time, fishing well out beyond the breakers for magnum pelagic species was nothing short of taboo. Most people considered the endeavor frivolous, even dangerous, and no one had Chill Pod accessory for keeping the catch any experience doing anything fresh while fishing. like it. For most folks, the thought of hooking fish large enough to pull a small plastic ling, snapper and sharks offshore, finding a soul-satisfying retreat. I sled halfway to Cuba felt more than intimidating. wanted to experience it all as fully as I could; I won tournaments and I understood all that, but soon I felt like an explorer, discovering was fortunate enough to be the first angler to land a yellowfin tuna a whole new world of angling. Once I began landing jack crevalle, from a kayak in the Gulf of Mexico. During the winters, I focused my bonito, and sharks from the kayak, my friend T.J. Pilgrim and I began efforts on chasing speckled trout in the bays, eventually bringing a engaging in casual competition, to see who could land the biggest 31.5” trophy to hand, while riding the waves on my kayak. and most revered species from the back of a ‘yak. This friendly duel I got on a real roll back in those days, pushing the boundaries of later developed into the Kayak Wars Tournament, which I hosted for this new way of fishing. Then life happened, my children came along several years. While we competed in those events, my friends and I realized the world had changed, and we knew we stood on the edge and my priorities changed. Once the kids got out of diapers and I turned again to more selfish pursuits, I jumped right back into the of a new frontier. life of running charters targeting sharks in the surf, and succeeded For several years, I fished hard from the kayak, targeting kings,

A nice batch of sow red snapper.

Smoker king landed from the Viking kayak.

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42 | November 2023

this hull comfortably houses six built-in rod holders, along with multiple railblazer mounts. A large front storage hatch will hold several jackfish without throwing the boat out of balance. Among its design innovations, the most unique is the central, interchangeable pod layout. The main tackle pod serves as the heart of the kayak, providing a hub where users can mount the highest quality fishfinders on the market.

I was sold the first time I voyaged out in this kayak. Its speed, stability and optimized layout create a well-thought out fishing platform. I simply could not be more pleased with Viking Kayaks and what they have in store for the kayak fishing community. Easily accessorized to suit individual angler needs, Viking has models to suit every type of fishing from offshore to backwaters. Anyone interested in checking them out should contact me directly, and I will facilitate connection with the right retailer and a future full of smiles and adventures.

C O N TA C T

in catching one of the largest sharks ever landed on a beach on this continent, a 14’8” great hammerhead.

Soon enough, I craved a return to my second angling passion, and I once again began chasing big red snapper from the kayak.

Catching snapper from a yak is fun and depending on the circumstances, can also be somewhat easy, if regular-sized fish are the targets. However, finding and catching monster sows is much more challenging.

This year I began spending some time fishing with old friends again. Glenn Madden and Tod Johnson had stepped up and carried the kayak revolution admirably; both currently ranking among the top kayak fishermen in America. With their inputs I quickly learned the sport had evolved tremendously and I needed to catch up. Through my re-association with these two, a very cool thing occurred when I was contacted by the U.S. division of Viking Kayaks and invited to become part of their team.

Viking is a New Zealand-based company with an acute propensity for making useful innovations within the industry. Jenn Nolan, who oversees Viking’s operations in America, has a curious and determined mindset, and she trusts me to help push the company forward. The Viking Kayaks company has overcome some obstacles in recent years, which only served to make them stronger. They’re hyper-focused on their operations, and their modern kayaks are leaders in the industry.

Currently, I’m running the Profish Reload kayak, an amazing tribute to the powers of engineering. Ultra-fast, sure and stable, this craft caters perfectly to my style of angling. At just under 15 feet,

For the past decade Eric ‘Oz’ Ozolins has been promoting shark catch and release and assisting various shark research programs. Eric offers guided shark fishing on Padre Island National Seashore. Also renowned for extreme kayak big game fishing, Eric is the owner of Catch Sharks Tackle Company.

Email Websites

oz@oceanepics.com oceanepics.com | catchsharks.com

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Being without a boat is no excuse; there’s plenty of walk-in opportunity on our coast. (Photo credit Stephen Peters)

JAKE HADDOCK

M O S T LY S I G H T- F I S H I N G

GETTING STARTED SALTWATER FLY FISHING So, you want to give saltwater fly fishing a try? Well, if you’re reading this there’s a good chance you’re in the great state of Texas, and for that reason I say you’re in luck! There are tons of opportunities here for the coastal fly angler and it goes far beyond fly fishing for redfish from a poling skiff. Although, that is a pretty darn good way to get into the game.

Assuming you don’t yet own a fly rod for fishing the brine, your first step is going to be visiting a fly shop.

Don’t be intimidated to talk to the staff and explain your quest. Tell them what you are intending to target and they will help you get the right tool for the job.

Make sure to express that this is your first saltwater fly rod, so they can help you select a rod that will make casting much easier for you. While you’re there, inquire about casting lessons, as most fly shops offer them or know someone local who does. Don’t wait till you’re in front of fish to try and learn to cast a fly rod. Especially if you’re paying big money to charter a skiff guide such as myself. Taking casting lessons will shorten your learning curve tremendously and keep you from forming bad habits from the get-go.

After getting all set up at your local shop, you need to find somewhere to actually go fishing. Not owning a boat 44 | November 2023

is no excuse. Texas has miles and miles of beach front and jetty systems accessible by vehicle. Anywhere you walkin-wade with conventional gear is likely fly-fishable, but try to stick with your shallower, harder bottom spots. That way you can easily cover ground as quietly as possible to stalk fish. Another often overlooked scenario for landlocked fly anglers is lighted piers and docks. This is a great way to stretch a fly line and undisturbed redfish in a green light will readily take a wide variety of flies.

Let’s say you do have a boat, but it’s more of a traditional Texas wade-fishing boat. Not to worry, because wade fishing remote, shallow areas is a great way to fly fish in Texas. However, one issue you’ll have immediately is rod storage going from spot to spot, as these boats aren’t equipped with horizontal rod holders, as are poling skiffs. When I was getting started I would bring my rod on the boat unassembled, in 4-pieces inside its cloth case, stored in a hatch. Then once a good opportunity for fly fishing was discovered, I would assemble the rod and rig the reel. When I was done fishing the spot, the rod was disassembled and back it went. This was quite the pain as you can imagine. Later, I discovered that once the rod and reel were assembled, I could place the butt section of the rod under the console

Nice red for the author while wading a shallow backwater area. (Photo credit Stephen Peters)

Haddock3- Leader connections: Top is tied direct; bottom is loop-to-loop.

of casting a few days a week will rapidly increase your ability on your next trip. If possible, find somewhere to practice casting on water such as a pond at a nearby park. If no water is nearby, that’s OK. I have found casting a fly line on a freshly mowed lawn to be equally as good.

What you want to avoid however, is casting a fly line on pavement. This will quickly destroy the exterior coating making it rough and reduce your casting distance. If this is your only option, keep a “practice” line that is dedicated for this purpose, switching back to your “good” line for fishing. Also, another thing worth noting is that it’s important to practice casting with a leader of similar length that you will use when fishing. On the end of the leader, you can do one of two things; either knot a small piece of yarn, or tie on an old fly and remove the hook point. When practice casting, set out some targets. Start at short distances such as 20-30 feet and build confidence from there. It also helps to practice throwing into different wind directions.

If you’ve become slightly bored with the ease of catching fish while “blindly” throwing soft plastics, then this is the next step. Fly fishing will humble you very quickly, but damn it’s so much fun. From watching the loop of your fly line unfold into the wind, to watching the fly you crafted by hand get inhaled by a trophy gamefish; fly Fishing in saltwater is the epitome of sport fishing. Give it a try, I’m betting you’ll be glad you did.

C O N TA C T

and the top half could rest on the leaning post. This made it much easier to move between spots and stay in the game with the long rod.

Besides rod storage, one thing that you might struggle with upon making this gear transition is just that – the gear. You probably wade with entirely too much of it when conventional tackle fishing, and one of the first things you’ll learn is that fly line catches on EVERYTHING. So, less when wading with fly equipment is more. Ditch the bulky wading belt with your tackle bag, and absolutely leave the net behind.

All you want to wade with is a good pair of pliers on your hip, a couple extra flies hooked to the bill of your cap, and a spool of leader material (or bite tippet as it’s called in the fly world) in your pocket. This minimalist style of wading will keep you fishing more and untangling yourself less. You can thank me later.

Speaking of leaders, I would recommend when you’re first getting started to simply use the pre-made tapered leaders from the fly shop.

Try and buy some that are 8- to 9-feet length and 16 or 20-pound rated. With these leaders you will connect them in a loop-to-loop fashion directly to the factory loop on the fly line. You may come across articles or YouTube videos where experts talk about cutting off the factory loop for a more direct connection. And it’s true, when getting your line/leader setup dialed in to fight large gamefish and throw the tightest loops into the wind, its best to delete that factory loop and tie direct. However, for just starting out, it’s totally unnecessary, and you’re better off leaving it for the ability to quickly change the entire leader when you get multiple wind knots. In the last couple years, I have witnessed a large jackfish and a couple of black drum in the 30-pound class landed with factory loops. So don’t feel under-gunned by fishing with the factory loop for inshore species.

In between trips to the flats, I would recommend regular casting practice, as saltwater fly fishing is of the highest difficulty level and is not something you can master overnight. Fifteen to thirty minutes

Jake Haddock grew up in the back bays of Port O’ Connor where he developed a great passion for saltwater fishing. In his younger years he was a youth writer for this publication. In present day he enjoys guiding light tackle and fly clients in Galveston and occasionally Port O’ Connor.

Phone Email Website

713-261-4084 frigatebirdfishing@gmail.com www.frigatebirdfishing.com TSFMAG.com | 45

San Antonio Bay Partnership

“Doing It Right” to Protect Our Coast STORY BY CATRIONA GLAZEBROOK

S

altwater fish face a variety of hazards along the Texas coast. Over the past decade, weather events such as the freeze of February 2021, red tides, trash accumulation, and derelict crab traps have all taken a toll. Yet, a small but mighty organization is making positive waves.

San Antonio Bay Partnership (SABP) has never shied from tackling threats to a healthy coast. SABP is a stakeholder-based non-profit that works in partnership with coastal communities, businesses, academia, and other NGOs to protect, restore and enhance the natural resources of the San Antonio Bay System for the benefit of the ecosystem and its human users.

True to their partnership name, they work with many agencies

and organizations – San Antonio River Authority, GuadalupeBlanco River Authority, Mission-Aransas National Estuarine Research Reserve, Texas Parks and Wildlife, Port O’Connor Chamber of Commerce, City of Seadrift, Texas General Land Office, Harte Research Institute, and others.

Texas bays and estuaries provide vital habitat for many commercially and recreationally important species, feeding and resting places for migrating birds, and contribute billions of dollars to the Texas economy. In fact, 90-95% of all commercially and recreationally important species are found in our estuaries at some stage of their life cycle. With major weather events like droughts and storms, estuaries are also becoming appreciated for their role as “storm buffers” protecting residential areas from hurricanes.

Rusty Crane of Texas Master Naturalists Mid-Coast Chapter demonstrated that some remote areas are better accessed by kayak.

International Crane Foundation is another loyal supporter of SABP, returning to port with an impressive load of shoreline trash are; Carter Crouch, Payton Bower, Matti Bradshaw and Tyler Sanderson.

46 | November 2023

SABP focuses on the Texas Mid-Coast, at the terminus of the San Antonio River and the Guadalupe River watersheds and includes San Antonio Bay, along with neighboring Guadalupe Bay, Espiritu Santo Bay, Hynes Bay, Ayers Bay, Matagorda Bay and Aransas Bay. For thirteen years, SABP has addressed a variety of concerns – abandoned crab traps, plastics and other debris, sea turtle rescue, ensuring sufficient fresh water inflows, and degraded oyster reefs.

All of these factors have cumulative and negative impacts on the economy, recreation and tourism. For example, marine species can be fatally caught or entangled in abandoned crab traps and fishing nets. In addition, plastics leach harmful chemicals into coastal waters that have been found in the fat deposits of marine species, including sport fish. These chemicals have potential to affect the reproduction, growth, and behavior of fish.

Unfortunately, the Texas coast is littered with more debris than any other coastal state and ten times more plastic debris than the eastern Gulf of Mexico. This is probably not news to fishermen and boaters that have seen or even run into floating or submerged debris, or to tourists and vacationers strolling our beaches.

The good news is that there are organizations like SABP that are doing something about it. SABP is largely a volunteer-run organization that has had an impact. SABP volunteers have removed 8 tons of trash, more than 6000 derelict crab traps, and rescued over 100 sea turtles.

According to Allan Beger, the Chair of SABP, “Our strength is involving our stakeholders: community members, schools, businesses, other NGOs and agencies to work together to make the Mid-Coast more resilient. Just last year we had 183 volunteers manning 33 boats to remove 355 bags of trash, 4 tons! This was the equivalent of 537 manhours, cleaning over 70 miles of shoreline, and removing consumer plastics by foot, kayak, and boat.”

In addition to removing various debris and plastics along the coast, SABP further protects marine life with their involvement in the Abandoned Crab Trap Program. Texas blue crab populations have declined significantly during recent years. In fact, last year’s harvests were the lowest ever recorded – only 3.1 million pounds landed, 50% less than the historic average of 6.3 million pounds.

Blue crabs normally generate $12 million annually for coastal economies, but when landings decline not only do the crabbers suffer, so do restaurants and local economies.

Derelict crab traps are known to be a significant source of mortality for many species, some of which are both recreationally and/or commercially important. Traps continue to indiscriminately trap and kill fish and other organisms – a process known as “ghost fishing.” By continuing to capture fish, crabs, and other species that could have contributed to harvests or ensure next year’s populations, they are also having an impact on our coastal fisheries.

According to James Dodson, SABP co-founder and current project manager, “For the last three years SABP, with funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and aided by harvest closures enacted by TPWD, has coordinated Abandoned Crab Trap Removal Program activities on the midcoast to both remove derelict crab traps, and to collect data on the locations and contents of the traps to generate information on Best Management Practices to reduce the number of abandoned crab traps in the future.”

In order to gather detailed data about the types of species and

Professors from University of Houston-Victoria and Kelley Kowal – Upper Coast Regional Director TPW Coastal Fisheries, returning to Seadrift harbor with a boatload of trash from San Antonio Bay.

Charles Gremminger of SABP (captaining airboat), along with volunteers from Guadalupe-Blanco River Trust, leaving Seadrift harbor on a bay cleanup mission.

Cleanup volunteer showing off a giant, and most unusual fishing rod, that likely arrived on ocean currents from a distant shore.

Very crude fishing reel unlike anything we’ve ever seen.

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Young Flynn Franck put in a solid effort collecting derelict crab traps and other debris.

Bill Burge hard at work removing trash from a bay shoreline.

numbers of marine life caught in these traps, SABP led the charge to organize community volunteers to systematically search the bay to remove traps and record trap location data, content, and ownership.

SABP discovered that there was a large number of ghost-trapped species. Twenty-eight percent of traps held blue crabs; fifteen percent held stone crabs; and eight percent held finfish. Several diamondback terrapins were also recorded. The total number dead or released alive for the preliminary NOAA pilot study: 526 blue crabs, 316 stone crabs, and 89 fish. One windblown trap, found on the shoreline, even contained a clapper rail, alive and happy to be finally freed.

SABP is also planning for the future by providing estuary education annually to thousands of public school children. They partner with the Texas Floating Classroom to get youth out on

High tides deposit trash deep into shoreline vegetation…no problem for this dedicated volunteer!

48 | November 2023

Now that’s a full dumpster! Thanks to the efforts of many volunteers the contents no longer litter our shorelines.

the water to learn firsthand that estuaries are one of the most biologically diverse ecosystems in Texas and the world. In this way, the Texas coast and its estuaries serve as living laboratories of life, as well as provide opportunities for future generations to care about and learn about protecting them for our future.

While SABP has been conducting coastal clean-up and derelict crab trap recovery for years in response to long-existing problems, their organizational model is agile enough to respond to immediate needs. For example, the winter storm of 2021 left Texans shivering and sea turtles “cold-stunned” and helpless. A cold-stunned turtle is a turtle that is too cold to swim, and likely to perish from extreme temperature drops.

On Valentine’s Day 2021, while green sea turtles were feeding on seagrasses in shallow Texas waters, there was a rapid and extreme

Nature Conservancy has been a loyal supporter of the San Antonio Bay Foundation. Calan Coleman, Lauren Salazar and Kirk Feuerbacher participated in recent bay cleanup activities.

Continued on page 59...

TSFMAG.com | 49

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58 | November 2023

Continued from page 48... temperature drop into the 20s, which persisted all week. This led to the largest number of cold-stunned sea turtles in the United States, with 12,155 cold-stunned sea turtles recorded. (Fish can and do get cold-stunned as well but are not likely to survive a rescue.)

This catastrophic event provided the impetus to start the MidCoast Sea Turtle Rescue program, now fully incorporated into SABP. Since its inception the program has responded to three coldstunning events, mobilizing volunteer boats and crews to search the bays and ground teams to transport the turtles to rehab facilities.

SABP also responds to other turtle strandings through the Turtle Stranding & Salvage Network for Matagorda and San Antonio Bay Systems and their gulf beaches. The last two years have seen a marked increase in strandings of loggerhead turtles – for reasons that are currently unknown. To date a total of 125 cold-stunned and stranded sea turtles have been rescued.

In the future, SABP is interested in addressing the problem of insufficient fresh water in-flows to keep our bays and estuaries healthy. Without sufficient fresh inflows, and the sediments and nutrients they deliver, Texas estuaries cannot function as nursery grounds and protective cover for the fish and shellfish we like to catch and eat.

SABP has already begun to look at ways to “bank” available stream flows during wet periods, to be used to augment in-stream flows to bays and estuaries during droughts. This way, they can provide delivery of water to the right place at the right time.

“Estuaries cannot function ecologically without an adequate supply, seasonal inflow, and quality of fresh water. The recent drought years have taken a toll on our region and this directly affects wildlife and associated recreational and commercial users,” says Berger.

For example, whooping cranes that over-winter at Aransas National Wildlife Refuge, are not only one of the rarest species on the planet, they are also heavily dependent upon fresh water.

During the last drought, lack of freshwater led to some cranes dying.

While the problems facing the Texas coast are significant, the effectiveness of SABP as a working model stands out. It also presents Texans and recreational fisherman an opportunity to get involved. From their annual coastal clean-up events to their kayaking excursions to view wildlife, SABP provides an open invitation for the public to join and make a difference.

Ultimately though, we can all make a difference through our own actions. Berger reminds us that much of the debris they pick up includes fishing lines and plastics “thrown or blown” overboard by boaters and fishermen. Yet, we can all “Do It Right” by taking care not to pollute our coast, bays, and estuaries. In this way, we are helping Texas and Texans now and into the future.

To learn more about San Antonio Bay Partnership, or better yet, to lend a hand in cleaning up the Texas coast, go to: www.SABayPartnership.com.

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TSFMAG.com | 59

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Laguna Custom Rods The Laguna Texas Wader 1 is our favorite tool for anglers looking for an incredibly sensitive and light weight carbon fiber rod able to throw almost any lure in your box. Designed on the water around Corky fishing, you’ll find this rod is happiest with a suspending plug tied on your line while still throwing your favorite topwater, followed by a 1/8oz jig head with a soft plastic. Being reliable, light weight, and versatile while grinding all day wading for trophy fish is paramount, and the Texas Wader 1 fits the bill. Visit us online at Lagunarods.com to contact or visit one of our dealers if you’re interested in a Laguna Custom Rod. www.LagunaRods.com

Gen3 Bart’s Bay Armor Our customers asked and we delivered. Some folks asked for a more slip resistant sole and others suggested a shorter boot option. We did both.

The new Gen3 Bart’s Bay Armor protective wade fishing boots are made with an improved version of our patented, puncture-resistant material. They also have a new and more aggressive vulcanized sole for better traction in slippery mud. These Gen3 boots also come in two versions. The 14” Ambusher style tall boot and the new 10” Capitan short boot. Both are made with the same puncture-resistant material and are super lightweight.

These will become your favorite wade fishing boots as soon as you try them. www.Barts-Bay-Armor.com

60 | November 2023

P R O D U C T S

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The PENN Wrath II reel is built on an affordable platform without compromising durability. The lightweight design and user-friendly features make it ideal for anglers of all ages and skill levels. Corrosion-resistant body and precisionmachined, anodized aluminum spool provide impressive power to handle the toughest game fish. The 2+1 shielded stainless steel bearings and instant anti-reverse ensure a smooth and dependable gear system. The PENN Wrath II is available as a versatile combo, featuring a durable two-piece graphite composite rod that is both easy to travel with and store. From inshore waters to the waves of the surf, the Wrath II combo is fully equipped to take on various fishing challenges. MSRP: $69.99-119.99 www.PennFishing.com

MirrOlure New Pro-Series Colors MirrOlure is excited to announce the release of four new Pro-Series colors, now available in the MirrOdine and Heavy Dine (C17MR and C18MR). Colors handpicked by MirrOlure pro-staff, designed to match natural baitfish patterns.

Simply use by twitching your rod tip once or twice and pause frequently for strikes during the retrieve. The MirrOdine and Heavy Dine are ideal for catching redfish, flounder, bluefish, stripers, snook, trout and tarpon. www.ShopMirrolure.com

Grunden Paclite® Plus Gore-Tex® Charter Jacket Every angler has been caught off guard by unexpected changes in the weather and the new GORE-TEX PACLITE® PLUS Charter Jacket is the perfect solution. The Charter is the most breathable jacket we’ve ever built and combined with the GORE-TEX Guaranteed to Keep You Dry Promise, you’ll be prepared to experience nature in its most honest moments. Utilizing a 2-layer unlined construction, we’ve created a thin, lightweight, highly packable Jacket & Bib that feature an interior surface finish specifically designed to resist the toughest contaminants including oil and gas. Sizes: Small through 3XL Colors: Anchor and Camo Glacier www.Grundens.com

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PA I D A D V E R T O R I A L JEB BASHAW

FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT & PLANNING FOR TEXAS ANGLERS & OUTDOORS ENTHUSIASTS

Is It Fishing or Catching?

I love to watch Deadliest Catch. It’s a TV show about fishermen who work in the Chief Executive Officer Bering Sea and their primary pursuit James E Bashaw & Co. is Alaskan king crab. I’m not much of a Securities and advisory services king crab guy; I like blue crab caught right here in Texas bays. In fact, as a boy, offered through Independent Financial Group, LLC (IFG), a if we didn’t catch crabs ourselves on Registered Investment Advisor. our trips to Bolivar Peninsula, my mom Member FINRA/SIPC. Jeb & Co, would stop at JMH Grocery to buy a James E. Bashaw & Co. and IFG pound of beautifully-picked blue crab are unaffiliated entities. meat for $5.00 per pound. Today’s price for that same pound runs about $72.99.

Telephone Today, we live in a world that is 713-552-0505 Email going faster and faster. It’s also a jbashaw@ifgrr.com world that is largely becoming more Address self-directed. Did you know that you 5701 Woodway Dr Suite 330 can use a computer app called Favor Houston, TX 77057 Delivery Service and they will actually deliver Blue Bell ice cream to your front door pretty much any time of the day or night? It’s no wonder the general health of Americans is in a downward spiral!

You can learn almost anything on the internet or on YouTube.

Interestingly, folks don’t seem to know what to do with all this so-called knowledge. I’m sure someone right now is watching a “brain surgery at home” video and figuring out how to cut a hole in their own head.

In my mind, being able to do something doesn’t mean you ought to do it yourself. The same is true in fishing and investments. I’ve discussed in recent months my appreciation of what I call “real” professional fishing guides. In my business, there are a handful who refer to ourselves as “real” financial professionals. We are the folks that put the client’s interests first every time.

In fact, the SEC regulators have even codified the term; it’s called REG BI, which is short for “best interest.” This regulation establishes a best interest standard of conduct for brokers, dealers, and associated persons when they make a recommendation to a customer of any

62 | November 2023

securities transaction or investment strategy involving securities, including recommendations on types of accounts. Noted New York Times columnist, Carl Richards, puts it more succinctly, “A real financial professional is a guide in a changing landscape; not the defender of an outdated map.”

When you plan a fishing trip, all kinds of things can happen before you get in the boat; weather, tides, wind, and water temperature changes can all cause a real professional fisherman to change his plan for the day.

It’s largely the same in investing. Folks generally make a plan and set a goal. The only guarantee I can make is that the plan will change because the conditions change (they always do), but your personal financial goals should remain constant, not change to fit the new conditions. So, to quote Carl Richards again, here is the very unexciting, Four Step Plan to the Financial Life of Your Dreams.

Pay attention to your spending: Whatever your method – budget, yellow legal pad, index card in your front pocket, or whatever, just notice how you’re spending your money.

Find wasted money: Get the Rocket Money app at rocketmoney. com. This will track your spending for you. Wait until you see how much you spend on items you don’t really need. Another way is to learn if you have any money you forgot about; don’t laugh, it happens.

There is currently more than $4 billion unclaimed at the State of Texas treasury. Go to www.claimittexas.gov to discover whether any monies there may belong to you.

Automate your savings: When you find those items you were paying for and not using, re-orient those dollars to a savings account. You won’t miss it because you never had it.

Turn it into a game: Kind of like a treasure hunt; pull your credit card statements every month and carefully take notice of every charge, looking for wasted money, and then add it to your automated savings.

See how often you can move that number up. Over time, I promise these numbers will add up. They have to!

Tight Lines, Jeb.

Securities and advisory services offered through Independent Financial Group, LLC (IFG), a Registered Investment Advisor. Member FINRA/SIPC. Jeb & Co, James E. Bashaw & Co. and IFG are unaffiliated entities.

TSFMAG.com | 63

BINK GRIMES

THE VIEW FROM Matagorda

We all need something to hope for this fall after a severe drought and the hottest summertime temperatures I can remember. We need November to be November.

We need to put on hoodies; we M ata go r d a need to feel the chill on our earlobes; we need to savor the warmth of a cup of hot coffee on a blustery norther morning; and, we need a great fall Bink Grimes is a full-time fishing season of hunting and fishing in and hunting guide, freelance Matagorda. writer and photographer, and Duck season runs Nov.4-Nov.26 owner of Sunrise Lodge on Matagorda Bay. and Dec.9-Jan.28. We will hunt the mornings and fish the afternoons, most days. If you are not a waterfowler we Telephone 979-241-1705 have plenty of boats available to get Email you on the water at dawn. However, if binkgrimes@yahoo.com you like to point a shotgun and bend a Website rod in the same day, November is the matagordasunriselodge.com best opportunity.

Flocks of screeching gulls should work throughout the month over trout in East and West Matagorda, and Tres Palacios bays. Half-Moon Reef in West Bay is always good when the wind allows. This month, soft plastics and topwaters are a good bet and don’t be surprised to find birds working near the reef.

Bull redfish have been found all along the beachfront. All the jetties are players as well. The Matagorda jetties are holding lots of redfish on cracked blue crabs, mullet, and fresh table shrimp. As always, this time of year encourages slot-sized redfish to school in bunches of two dozen or more along the grass lines. Spots like Shell Island, Twin Island, Cut Off Flats and Zipperan Bayou in Matagorda are almost always good. Mud Lake and Crab Lake are players along the shorelines with live shrimp.

Spots like Boiler Bayou, Don’s Pipeline and Alice are holding good numbers of Gulf trout. Their white fillets are perfect when battered and fried in peanut oil, and help by taking the heat off speckled trout. We enjoyed an influx of sand trout in October and it really

took the pressure off our speckled trout population. Many captains have been encouraging clients to keep sand trout for table fare and let the specks swim.

The Freeze of February 2021 put a strain on our trout population.

It’s up to us to be conservation-minded and release more than we take. We are pushing for a return to conservative limits for the 2024 regulations. TPWD has been holding public scoping meetings and we hope you had opportunity to get out and preach catch and release and tighter restrictions on trout to get our populations back.

Good numbers of fish will be in the Diversion Channel this month.

It’s a lot like bass fishing – pitching lures to sunken logs from previous river rises. Don’t be afraid to toss a topwater along the bank. Solid trout hang on the edge in 5-8 feet of water and will bang a Super Spook, Skitter Walk, or She Pup. As with most November days, we will be duck or goose hunting the mornings and fishing the afternoons. Afternoon fishing is just as profitable and there is no better time to dupe a trout on a topwater than when the sun is dipping toward the horizon.

Again, please be mindful of our diminished trout population and consider catch and release. The fishery will eventually recover, but the rate of recovery is largely determined by the attitudes and practices of anglers.

Gone are the days of killing fish to post hero shots on social media.

It just ain’t cool.

We cannot take, take, take and expect our bays to give, give, give.

Please treat our bays like it is your private bass pond just a few steps out your back door. You wouldn’t keep all the bass you catch out of your own pond, would you?

Contact Sunrise Lodge and Properties for hunting, fishing, vacation rentals and real estate sales and/or advice.

View The Video

Open Camera and hover over QR Code. When link appears at top of screen tap to open in YouTube.

64 | November 2023

TSFMAG.com | 65

CAPT. SHELLIE GRAY

MID-COAST BAYS With the Grays

I, like so many, thought cooler fall weather would never get here. In my 22 years of guiding I cannot remember a summer season as hot and dry as this past one. Seemingly endless days of high atmospheric pressure and lower Port O'Connor than normal tides kept us on our toes.

Seadrift It was hard to pattern fish; just when we thought we had discovered the best locations and feeding times things Captain Shellie Gray was born in Port Lavaca and has would change from one day to the been guiding in the Seadrift/ next. Hardly the norm for summertime Port O’Connor area full time fishing. I’m not saying that the summer for the past 19 years. Shellie was a total wash, just that we had specializes in wading for to work a lot harder for our catches trout and redfish year round than we normally do. I’m not going with artificial lures. to lie, there were a few days when I questioned whether I should look for Telephone a different occupation. Don’t worry 361-785-6708 though, it was only a passing thought.

Email bayrats@tisd.net If you have followed my writings Website through the years then you are well www.bayrat.com aware that the fall season is by far my Facebook most favorite. The cooler temperatures @captsgaryandshelliegray coupled with higher than normal tides make for some fantastic fishing. The species I have the most fun with during this time is the drag pulling, rod bending, eager-to-eat redfish. No, I’m not talking about bull reds. While those can be fun in the own way, I much prefer to stalk and target redfish in the slot size of 20- to 28-inches.

I prefer to use light tackle, not just for myself, but also for my clients.

Waterloo’s 6’-7” HP Lite is my go-to rod for redfish and pretty much all my lure fishing in general. The HP Lite is built on a high-modulus, medium-light, fast action graphite blank, with light tip and moderate backbone. I would much rather play my catches out instead of strong arming them to me. Lighter tackle just makes catching more meaningful and challenging. Talk about a great fight; I get a thrill every time I hook up with one of the bronze beauties using light tackle.

With the seasonally cooler water temperatures many reds will be

Chelsy Williams sightcasted this “Big Ugly” on a soft plastic after seeing it tailing in shallow water.

66 | November 2023

moving off the sandy shorelines into the warmer and muddier back lakes in November. The thick grasses that inhabit our back lakes will begin to die off as the days grow shorter and water temperatures become cooler. This is good news due to the fact that in most back lakes the grass grows so thick in summer that it makes it hard to fish many backwater areas effectively. Many days I’m using a setup that includes a 5/0, 1/8-ounce weedless swimhook made by Bass Assassin.

This weedless rig allows me to present my soft plastics in grassy areas without constantly snagging a bunch of grass.

Back lakes such as Mule Slough, Pringle, Power, Contee, Cedar Lake and Pat’s Bay will all be good places to start your day in November.

I prefer to fish water that is slightly off-colored, not gin clear. Look for streaks of color in open water or slightly muddied windward shorelines inside the back lakes. Color change is noticed best through a good pair of Costa polarized sunglasses with amber or copper lenses. Bait is still important, keying in on the most active, for your best chances of catching.

With the seasonally higher water levels, don’t pass the opportunity to venture into some of the remote sloughs and ponds that cannot be accessed during lower water levels. You can bet the redfish will not ignore the opportunity to graze on the crabs and tiny shrimp that will be following those tides. When fishing in these tighter quarters I like to downsize my offerings. A good choice here would be Bass Assassin’s new 3.5-inch scented Lit’l P&V. Redfish found in smaller areas tend to spook easily, so downsizing your bait can be very helpful in gaining bites.

If you are fortunate enough to encounter tailing reds, remember to resist casting directly into the middle of a pod or school. Instead, place your lure to either side or just slightly in front. Hitting them with the lure or touching one with your line usually means an instant spook and game over. Most of the time, when tailing reds get spooked, they are hard to find again and reluctant to take the lure when you do.

Quick reminder on flounder regulations: November 1 through December 14 is closed season for retaining flounder by any method.

Texas Parks and Wildlife implemented the change in 2021 to promote escapement to gulf spawning grounds and enhance spawning potential. This doesn’t mean we cannot still enjoy catching and releasing; just remember to let ‘em go!

Glen Hollis enjoyed wading for backwater redfish.

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DAVID ROWSEY

HOOKED UP WITH Rowsey

Good morning from Baffin Bay. I hope this finds y’all enjoying all this great state has to offer this fall. I’ve been squeezing every drop of juice out of the turnip; lots of dove hunting, sitting in trees with a bow, campfires, and good food. It was good to hit the reset button, Upper but the water has been calling me home Laguna/ since a couple of fronts have arrived.

Baffin I’m writing this article from the boat as I watch my clients catch and release some solid trout to six pounds. I just happen to have a very talented crew of David Rowsey has 30 years sportsmen today and can just turn them in Baffin and Upper Laguna loose on the structure holding the fish.

Madre; trophy trout with In fact, I caught the first few trout, and artificial lures is his specialty. they sent me “to my corner.” Hope I’m David has a great passion for not jinxing it but looks like a glorious conservation and encourages catch and release of trophy fish. day is developing on Baffin.

As most of you are well aware, there is Telephone so much taking place in the future of our 361-960-0340 Texas trout fishery. Scoping meetings Website have just been conducted to obtain www.DavidRowsey.com Email public input on what the users want david.rowsey@yahoo.com from the fishery. Outside of the guiding community, the large majority of users @captdavidrowsey seem to want a change in bag limit and retention slot. I’ve been fighting for this for years, but the slow recovery from the February ‘21 freeze and number of users on the water seems to have opened some eyes to the fact that change needs to happen, or at least considered at this point.

Who knows where it will end up? I have every finger and toe crossed that permanent steps will be taken to ensure we have not only great numbers of trout back in the bay, but old school quality to go along with it. If you were fortunate enough to fish these waters from 1990 through 2015, then you clearly understand why I am so passionate about trying to get it back to where it used to be and break this monotonous mindset that everything is OK… when in fact it is surviving on a barely fuzzy image of its former self.

I’m so thankful that so many of the younger anglers have listened to the stories from their salty old mentors and want to do the right thing to get it back so they can live some of those days that we post50-year-olds got to experience. If present day users ever get a taste of that, I can see the catch and release mantra in the speckled trout fishery becoming as celebrated as the bass fishery. Wouldn’t it be magical if you could go out and catch thirty trout a day between 4- and 8-pounds? Used to be pretty commonplace.

Winter and spring of ‘22 showed great signs of what this year will be.

I certainly think you will hear of more trout over 8-pounds this season than you have in a long while. When the bag limit reverted to five trout on September 1, 2023, there were a lot of guides hanging them back on nails for social media exposure. As much as I hated to see it, there was an abundance of upper-slot trout displayed, which tells me a couple things.

First, we are definitely on the road to recovery and the bay has 68 | November 2023

some up-and-coming stud trout for the future (if they can survive the croaker gauntlet). Second, is that “guides” just aren’t the brightest apples in the barrel. Blows my mind that we are still very much in recovery from that freeze and guys making money from the fishery feel the need to kill the very thing that provides their livelihood.

Reminds me of the inefficiency in D.C. Pre-freeze, this same group was specializing in black drum during the summer months as the average trout size had gotten so small that it wasn’t worth buying croakers to catch them. How quickly we forget!

By the time y’all read this you will likely have begun donning Simms waders to work the grass and potholes of the Laguna Madre. It’s the beginning of a glorious time of year and this cooler season will turn some everyday fishermen into legends amongst their peers. I hope everyone reading this seizes that moment when it arises. My clients and I will be digging deep for the best big trout bites available down here to claim our moment of God’s daily blessings… whether it be a giant trout, a light bulb learning moment, or just making memories with best friends.

Remember the Buffalo! -Capt David Rowsey Josh johnson with a 7-pound-class trout on a brisk morning to be wading wet.

Double D was the ticket. Released!

Science and the

Sea

TM

An Octopus’s Garden It’s no longer just a popular Beatles song—off the coast of central California, nearly two miles under the sea, is a “garden” of at least 6,000, and possibly up to 20,000, purple octopuses known to scientists as Muusoctopus robustus. Scientists first discovered the site about five years ago but needed time to investigate what led so many octopuses to congregate around Davidson Seamount, an extinct underwater volcano about 80 miles southwest of Monterey, California.

Thousands of brooding octopuses have been found where warm water seeps out from the seafloor. The warmer temperatures accelerate the development of their offspring. Credit: Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI).

Made in USA

The spot, now named the Octopus Garden, has attracted a consortium of octopuses and they’re nearly all females that are guarding their egg clutches. The underwater volcano may be defunct, but warm water seeps out from the seafloor there, raising the ambient water temperature from about the 1.6° C (35° F) of the surrounding water to around 11° C (51° F).

That warmth speeds up octopus embryonic development, reducing the time necessary to brood the eggs from around 4.5 years for the typical deep-sea octopus to only about 1.8 years. The scientists speculate that the shortened brooding time may also improve the chances that baby octopuses survive, since the mothers and eggs spend less time vulnerable to predators.

Octopuses are usually loners that avoid other octopuses, but these moms are so focused on incubating their eggs that they ignore the thousands of incubating moms around them—and even the robotmounted cameras the researchers use to get up-close looks at the cephalopods. The researchers now wonder how many other warm, deep-water nurseries might exist near seamounts and hydrothermal vents. So far, they know of three other deep-sea octopus nurseries— another one off California’s coast and two off Costa Rica’s coast, but they’re looking for more.

C.A.L. 5” Swim Bait C.A.L. 4” Shad Tail C.A.L. 3” Shad Tail C.A.L. 4” Jerk Bait C.A.L. 5.5” Jerk Bait C.A.L. Paddle Tail C.A.L. Curl Tail The C.A.L. family of lures offer a wide variety of lure shapes for both freshwater and saltwater fishing. From small ponds to deep jigging ocean reefs, D.O.A. has you covered.

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© The University of Texas Marine Science Institute

Made from tough soft plastic, each lure is made to match up perfectly to D.O.A. short and long shank jig heads.

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TSFMAG.com | 69

10/5/22 2:34 PM

WAYNE DAVIS

WAYNE’S Mansfield Report

Greetings from Port Mansfield! I’m extremely pleased to see a cool front finally make it down our way. This was long overdue, given that this was likely Port one of the hottest and driest summers on record. That said, I try to take away Mansfield something from adverse situations and this summer was no exception.

Fish will adapt and adjust to just about any conditions (within reason) and we Captain Wayne Davis has will be able to discover patterns if we been fishing the Lower put in the time.

Laguna-Port Mansfield for over 20 years. He specializes I witnessed 95.4-degree water temps in wade fishing with lures. this summer. I was amazed watching mullet free jumping and doing the Telephone things they do, even in such extreme 210-287-3877 conditions. Sure, the action was slow, Email but if I stayed with it I could find a few captwayne@kwigglers.com bites. Most of the fish I caught in this extreme heat seemed healthy and strong. A great testament that fish are tough and resilient. I believe that since the summer got hot and stayed hot for an extended period, fish simply found a way to adapt.

Most of my fishing career I hadn’t been much of a “small” profile soft plastics guy, but this year made a believer out of me. I often found myself reaching for the KWigglers BTS and Wig-A-Lo juniors (coming soon) more often and for good reason. The fish flat out ate them despite the heat. From big trout, reds and flounder they all responded well to smaller baits.

I can tell you the fish seemed as eager as I recently to see water temperatures declining. Prior to the cool down you could tell fishing was getting ready to bust loose. Despite early morning boat traffic, we found good redfish and a few solid trout along the flats on a regular basis. It was interesting to see a brief period when reds would simply just wake up behind your topwater but never commit. But, throw a soft plastic in the same area they would slam it. This went on for about a week and interestingly enough, it was right at the peak of the full moon in late September. What this means, who really knows, but for me it was just another nugget of information I’ll store away for future reference.

With deer season approaching we should see greatly reduced boat traffic. Cool, crisp mornings, light boat traffic and big blowups will be in the forecast for the rest of the year. Fish will become more aggressive and active on the flats and in good numbers. We’ve seen quite a few smaller trout (12-16 inches) recently which is a good sign, but we still have a way to go as far as a full recovery with our trout. Now that we are back to 15 70 | November 2023

inches on the minimum length, many folks have begun bringing this class of trout to the cleaning tables. Noteworthy to me is how small they look after being “trained” on the 17” minimum length for three years.

On that note, we are having some good conversations with folks over in Austin regarding the future of trout regulations. Several fishermen have reported receiving surveys from TPWD on the topic and public scoping meetings should be wrapping up by the time this magazine hits the newsstands. More information should be making its way out to the public in the coming months, so stay tuned.

We just concluded our Texas Women Anglers Fish Camp and I believe it was one of the best we’ve had. We had great support from generous companies in the industry who recognize its importance and relevance and we can’t thank them enough. As seen in the photo below Rachel Kram is a long-time angler but this was her first time wading with topwaters and she had a blast. She now has the fundamentals to take her fishing game to the next level.

I along with many are looking forward to a stellar fall and early winter season. The flats will be alive, and bait will be active for the next month or two. Big trout and reds will be intermingled in and around bait concentrations. Finding yourself in this situation, I highly recommend working the bait from the outside edges. There is no reason to flop your lure right in the middle without first working it from the outside in.

I, along with CCA Advocacy Director Shane Bonnot, will be participating in a seminar hosted by CCA RGV in McAllen at University Draft House on November 16th starting at 5:30pm. Hope to see you there.

Until next time, remember fresh is better than frozen.

Rachel Kram participated in the TWA Fish Camp; first time wading with topwaters!

Retired Texas Ranger Rudy Jaramijo; 38-inch personal best redfish.

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CAPT. ERNEST CISNEROS

SOUTH PADRE Fishing Scene

Last month I introduced the topic of fish highways and this month I want to talk in greater detail about the signs I look for along those highways.

Arr o y o So, aside from weather conditions, C ol o ra d o let’s look at some signs that help me t o Po rt and could help you become more I sa bel consistent in your fishing.

Tides have great influence over the movement of baitfish and other forage A Brownsville-area native, species. Knowing when significant Capt. Ernest Cisneros fishes the Lower Laguna Madre from water movement will occur in the Port Mansfield to Port Isabel. area you’re fishing enables you to Ernest specializes in wading take advantage of bait movements, and poled skiff adventures for which correlate directly with the best snook, trout, and redfish. feeding periods of gamefish. Two tide days are better than four tide days, as Cell 956-266-6454 the flows tend to be stronger and last Website longer. Also, knowing whether the flow www.tightlinescharters.com is incoming or outgoing is of great importance as it tells you if the fish will be moving in or out of a particular body of water.

Bay waters will turn cooler this month and fish metabolism will reflect this as they will tend to lie inactive on bottom during nonfeeding periods. When we navigate the flats and spook fish, we notice them making small mud puffs when they take off. These tell me two things. First, it tells me they may not be feeding actively. Also, the number of mud puffs tells me how concentrated the fish are in the area. Now, I cannot immediately conclude they are in energyconserving mode by observing only a few mud puffs, but a dozen or more tells me soft plastics worked slowly on bottom might be the best bet to trigger a reaction strike.

Birds can also be of great help. From their vantage point aloft they can see bait, even when it’s not visible on the surface. Pay attention, whether they’re actively diving or perhaps just sitting on the water, waiting for an opportunity.

We sometimes see them resting on land, which is usually a sign that they (and fish) are in a nonactive period. Bottom line; when the birds are active your line should be in the water.

Another sign is an area chock-full of mullet that are only lollygagging, not especially active or acting nervous. This means two things; either there are no gamefish present or they are not feeding.

I have found the bite is usually off when piggy perch are chasing or nipping my plastics. If gamefish were on the prowl the piggys wouldn’t be so daring.

During winter, land masses retain warmth, and that warmth will radiate to the water, attracting fish during colder periods. Checking water temperature is meaningful to know what temperature the fish prefer. If your boat is not equipped with a water temperature gauge; you need one.

72 | November 2023

I have observed and learned all these signs over years on the water. They may not be 100% foolproof, but definitely lend a bit of an advantage in trying to pattern the finned creatures we spend so much time chasing.

Redfish numbers have been decent, but I expect an increase this month with more frequent cold fronts and declining water temps.

November is the month of feasting, and so it is with redfish, especially during warming periods between fronts. Mullet will be a staple in their diet, but if you’re in an area where blue crabs are plentiful, you can bet the reds will also be there. Our go-to lures will be Z-Man’s KickerCrabZ, StreakZ, PaddlerZ, and MinnowZ. Preferred colors have been Pearl, Space Guppy, Sexy Penny and Sexy Mullet. We rig these on 1/8-ounce Eye Strike or 1/4-ounce Texas Eye Finesse jigs.

Recent trout landings are giving me great optimism for the winter season ahead. The fishery has rebounded considerably since the devastating February ’21 freeze, aided greatly by the number of conservation-minded anglers practicing catch and release, along the conservative regulations enacted by TPWD. November is the month when trout begin to favor warmer shorelines, drop-offs along the ICW, and deeper potholes on the flats during warming periods. Go-to baits will be Paul Brown’s slow-sink/suspending lures, and a mix of Z-Man Diezel MinnowZ, PaddlerZ, and scented Jerk ShadZ in mostly natural baitfish colors. I’m looking for a banner year compared to those we have experienced since the freeze.

Right around Thanksgiving is when we find ourselves in waders pretty much every day. I may be biased but I believe I wear the best waders on the market – Simms! If your budget allows, the Simms G4Z is definitely the way to go. The zippered front seals the deal.

Keep a few to eat fresh and let the rest go!

Shari Leonard with a nice Texas snook.

Shane Schlemeyer tricked this snook on a Z Man StreakZ soft plastic in the Space Guppy color.

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FISHING REPORTS

Trinity Bay - East Bay - Galveston Bay | James Plaag Silver King Adventures - silverkingadventures.com - 409.935.7242 James has finally come off the Gulf after chasing silver kings throughout the summer and into the early part of the fall. He’s back to fishing in the bays now. “I like November. To me, September and October are kinda tough, transitional type months. The patterns don’t really get set like they do in November. This month, the fishing can be good in a bunch of different types of locations. Areas around drains on main bay shorelines produce well on falling tides. We usually have plenty of action under working birds, and the wading can be really good too, in coves and lakes and on flats with some deep water close by. We have good luck throwing topwaters this time of year on some days. I generally go back to the old Top Dog this time of year. Something about that low thumping sound, as opposed to the raspy ping of lures like the She Dog and She Pup seems to work better in cooler water. I’ve also been having good luck lately on a slender soft plastic made by Bass Assassin, the Saltwater Assassin Lit’l P&V. It works great for wading, but it’s best when thrown out of the boat, in a little deeper water.”

Jimmy West | Bolivar Guide Service - 409.996.3054 Jim predicts the fishing will be good in upper parts of all the Galveston Bays this fall, after a long, hot, dry summer. “Even with the big rains we just got the last couple days, there’s no runoff. The ground was just so dry. The water is salty all the way into the upper reaches of the bays right now. Once this strong front comes through and a few more follow, the fish will move shallow for good, and we’ll be able to catch ‘em wading more of the time. It’s a great time to fish shorelines close to drains and even in the bayous and back-lakes once that happens.

We’ll have excellent catching, and as long as the water stays salty in all parts of the bays, people will be spread out, which is a good thing. I’m also anticipating excellent duck hunting when the season starts in the South Zone the second weekend of the month. The opening weekend is always pretty good. We’ll have plenty of birds. If we get some cold weather soon after the season opens, the shooting should stay fast, but if we get a prolonged warm spell, the action can slow down.”

West Galveston - Bastrop - Christmas - Chocolate Bays Randall Groves | Groves Guide Service 979.849.7019 - 979.864.9323 Randall expects to be fishing out of the boat most days in November, which is a good thing, given that he has just taken delivery of a new one, built for him by JH Performance Marine. “This new boat is a beast!

It’s the BX253 model, powered by a 350 Suzuki TRP. I just love it. We should be casting at working flocks of birds most days in November.

It’s generally the peak of the shrimp migration in the area around San Luis Pass. When we’re targeting trout schooling under gulls, we throw soft plastics most of the time. Best ones seem to be Norton Sand Eel Juniors on relatively heavy jigheads, up to quarter-ounce. They’re like bullets, easy to cast long distances, which is definitely a plus around the birds. The natural colors like Tequila Gold work well when the water is pretty, but Salty Chicken works better if the water is a little murky.

We do throw topwaters when working this pattern some of the time.

On some days, doing so seems to allow us to cull some of the bigger trout out of the schools. I favor Skitter Walks with some gold and orange on them this time of year.”

74 | November 2023

ORECASTS F from Big Lake to Boca Chica

AND

Matagorda Bays | Capt. Glenn Ging Glenn’s Guide Service - 979.479.1460 www.glennsguideservice.com “Our fall fishing should continue to be productive throughout the month of November. I look for redfish action to remain steady, with schools of slot-sized fish prowling the open bay as well as in the backlakes and along shorelines with ample amounts of grass close to the bank. Trout fishing should continue to be good. We’ll have plenty of fish feeding under the birds, and we should also have good luck wading shell reefs and bay shorelines. On the days with strong winds, fishing in the river and diversion channel is best, barring any big influxes of freshwater runoff. In November, the fish are aggressive, so many options work well, in terms of which lures produce best. Soft plastic paddletails and jerkbaits on jigheads are deadly this month, as usual. Vudu Shrimp and Bass Assassin Lit’l P&Vs under Coastal Corks are also highly effective.

I like Root Beer, Bourbon, Tequila Gold and Pumpkinseed colors to mimic the shrimp that the fish are normally gorging on in the fall. Our topwater bite should be exceptional on the better days. Autumn is a great time for the floating lures. And, live bait will continue to work well, though it’s rarely needed this time of year.”

Palacios | Capt. Aaron Wollam www.palaciosguideservice.com - 979.240.8204 “We’re finally experiencing a good stretch of fishing in our local bays. We’ve finally had some big tides roll in, and lighter winds have allowed the catching to take off. Redfish have been all over the bays.

We’ve been catching plenty in the local rivers, trolling shorelines and throwing 3” Gulp! Shrimp under popping corks. Back-bay shorelines with plenty of shell reefs are holding solid numbers, too. In those locations, we’re fishing live shrimp about a foot under popping corks.

The marshes are loaded with reds when tides are high, and Norton Bull Minnows in Pearl/Pumpkinseed have been working best in there. Trout fishing has picked up in places with sandy, grassy bottoms, with lots of solid keepers coming to hand on green/chrome She Dogs and White Ice DSLs. Flounder fishing is getting better in drains on mud minnows and live shrimp. Strong falling tides have provided the best action for the flatfish. Bird activity should kick off soon, as we start to get cooler weather, East and South Bays, along with Turtle Bay, are for sure hot spots to fish in the fall when the shrimp migration cranks up in earnest.

We usually key on egrets and other wading birds to locate productive shorelines when that happens.“ Port O’Connor | Lynn Smith Back Bay Guide Service - 361.935.6833 Lynn expects to be fishing a bit differently in November than he has throughout the prolonged heat wave of 2023. “Usually, in November, I transition in my fishing strategies somewhat. With the cooling water temperatures, it makes more sense to me to alter the timing of the trips most days. Especially if we have lots of dry weather and clear skies, we get the cooler nights and warm afternoons. In such a scenario, I prefer to leave the dock late in the morning and fish well into the afternoons.

The bite is often best this time of year on shallow flats warmed up by a bright afternoon sun after a cold morning. We like to fish flats lying pretty close to deep water, where the fish retreat when temperatures plummet. Places with thick, dark grassbeds and a good mix of mud and shell seem best. We throw lots

of slow-sinking twitch baits like Paul Brown Lures and Catch 5s this time of year, topwaters when the bite really gets going. This is a great time of year to target some of the biggest trout in the Coastal Bend bays; so I look forward to the Thanksgiving month with that in mind.”

Rockport | Blake Muirhead Gator Trout Guide Service - 361.790.5203 or 361.441.3894 Blake loves this time of year as much as any other, with so many exciting outdoor options available to both anglers and hunters in the Coastal Bend. “I split my time between the marshes, the bays, and the fields this time of year. We have so much fun hunting ducks and doves and also fishing, of course. The cast-n-blast trips usually involve starting out in the back-lakes in a duck blind. We typically shoot until late in the morning, and then fish our way out. The marshes have been loaded with reds lately, and the catching is usually pretty fast and easy in some of the areas which are also good for duck hunting. We do catch some trout in the backwater areas too, but the trout fishing is normally a little better along main bay shorelines, often in close proximity to drains leading into the marshes, especially around reefs.

Seems that we do a bit better in places with more mud and shell on the bottom than sand and grass once water temperatures fall into the fifties a few times and stay there. Soft plastics work best when we’re fishing those kinds of areas this time of year.”

Upper Laguna Madre - Baffin Bay - Land Cut Robert Zapata | rz1528@grandecom.net - 361.563.1160 “The fishing continues to be good lately in the Baffin Bay area and in northern parts of the Upper Laguna Madre. With the hunting season about to start, the boat traffic will soon die down, so it will be quieter out on the water. Also, all the rain that we’ve had recently has helped perk things up in our part of the Laguna Madre. The water temperature cooling down will encourage the trout and redfish to remain in the shallows longer during the morning hours, giving us more time to fish for them in less than three feet of water. I’ll be using Bass Assassin Die Dappers in colors like Chicken on a Chain, Salt & Pepper/Chartreuse, and Opening Morning rigged on sixteenth-ounce SpringLock jigheads.

Natural colored MirrOlure Catch 5s and topwater lures will also work well much of the time, as long we don’t have too much suspended grass in the water. Look for the fish in two to three feet of water along grassy edges and in and around potholes with gravel bottoms.

Sight-casting will be producing many reds and black drum in less than twelve inches of water using shrimp-flavored Fish-Bites rigged on sixteenth-ounce jigheads.”

Corpus Christi | Joe Mendez - www.sightcast1.com - 361.877.1230 During the Thanksgiving month, several productive patterns usually emerge in the Corpus Christi area, particularly in the Upper Laguna Madre. “We usually have enough cool weather to force the trout to retreat into deeper water during November,” Joe says. “When this happens, catching trout in the ICW and in the smaller channels connecting to it can often be easy. Gulls hovering over jumping shrimp along the edges of the main ditch often lead anglers to stretches holding plenty of fish. In many years, this means in the stretch between Chubby’s Island and the JFK Causeway. When the trout are in deep channels, the best way to catch them is to keep the boat in the ditch with the trolling motor and cast toward the sand bars on the edges of the channels. Soft plastics usually work best when working this pattern, and matching the jighead size to the amount of wind and current becomes a key to getting more bites, meaning using heavier heads in more wind and current, lighter ones in lighter currents. We usually have some good fishing in the shallows for reds and bigger trout on the King Ranch Shoreline this month too, especially when conditions are on the warmer side.”

P.I.N.S. Fishing Forecast | Eric Ozolins 361.877.3583 - Oceanepics.com Much anticipated cool fronts are beginning to arrive. The mullet migration will be in full swing by the time this report hits the newsstands. Slot and bull reds will be available throughout the month. While tossing out mullet for reds, there is a chance a jack, mackerel, bluefish, or even a shark will pick up the bait. The farther south along the coast, the better the chance at a surf tarpon before they migrate out. Pompano should begin to show by midmonth. The first couple waves of pompano usually produce the largest specimens. Fish-Bites and shrimp are prime baits for pompano and drum. One of the most thrilling aspects of surf fishing this month will be jack crevalle storming the beach. While they will certainly take live mullet, the real fun is sight-casting for them with large spoons, topwaters, and swimbaits. They usually eat whatever they see. Pound for pound, jacks are among the strongest fighters we have in the surf.

Blacktip and bull sharks will also be available in good numbers. We can also expect some of the largest tiger sharks of the year. Tigers are suckers for a bloody jackfish bait. Keep a keen eye on weather forecasts for strong cold fronts.”

Port Mansfield | Ruben Garza Snookdudecharters.com - 832.385.1431 Getaway Adventures Lodge - 956.944.4000 “With the arrival of November, the weather will finally be cooling off. It’s not quite wader season yet, but it’ll be here before you know it. There might be a few mornings when we slip them on in late October, but not likely on a continuous basis. On light wind days, we will still be working the west shoreline or the spoil humps along the ICW, up north of port.

Those headed south should check the spoils north of Bennie’s Island and the area behind the cabins near The Saucer. Topwater action should still be good at times, but a KWiggler Ball-Tail Shad on an eighth-ounce jighead is always a sure bet. Colors such as Flomingo, Bone Diamond, Mansfield Margarita, or Lagunaflauge produce well. On windier days, I recommend heading toward the east side. Areas such as Weather Station, Butcher’s Island or the old game warden shack would be good areas to target. Working water depths from mid-thigh to waist deep, with potholes and some mullet or smaller baitfish flipping around is the key. West Bay has potential at all times too. In the wake of strong cold fronts, Gladys Hole and the mouth of Little Bay are best.”

Lower Laguna Madre - South Padre - Port Isabel Aaron Cisneros | tightlinescharters.com - 956.639.1941 “Fall fishing down on the Lower Laguna Madre has been good so far this fall. Tides being extremely high has made finding the fish difficult on some days, and our trout fishing can be a little spotty in light of this.

Spoil islands near the ICW have been the best places to find trout on a consistent basis. Early in the mornings, a bone Spook Junior rigged with single hooks has been productive. Once the wind stops blowing, our most reliable soft plastic has been ZMan MinnowZ in purple with chartreuse tail, rigged on eighth-ounce Trout-Eye jigheads. A fast retrieve mid-way thru the water column has worked best to scratch out some strikes when the bite gets slow. Redfish numbers have been steady in back-bays and also along main bay shorelines. We’re finding the redfish schooled up and easy to locate on most calm mornings.

We’ve been fishing shallow flats with grassy bottoms, using eighthounce Texas-Eye Finesse jigs rigged with ZMan Kicker Crabz in redbone.

These work great when we’re fishing areas with heavy grass. Finding heavy concentrations of bait is an important key, since the redfish are gorging this time of year. Look for fishing to continue to improve as weather and water temperatures continue to cool.”

TSFMAG.com | 75

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Analeigh Turner Matagorda Beach- spinner shark

Emma Turner with dad Matagorda Beach- first shark!

Kathryn Trotti San Luis Pass - 5’ bull shark CPR 76 | November 2023

Tylynne Souza Sabine Pass- redfish

Neida Ruth Grantland Arroyo City- 44” redfish

Jerry Hackett West Matagorda- 32.25”redfish

Ian Chavarria Port Mansfield- redfish

Samantha Souza Sabine Pass - 29” black drum

Temperance Souza first speckled trout!

Carlos Ybarra snook CPR

Anna Loeffelholz Aransas Bay- 19” trout

Joe Cress 30 miles out from Freeport- 63” 70 lb cobia

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Charlotte & Emma Matagorda Beach- first black tip!

Troy Souza Sabine Pass - black drum TSFMAG.com | 77

PAM JOHNSON

Gulf Coast

Got ideas, hints or recipes you’d like to share?

Email them to pam@tsfmag.com or send by fax: 361 792-4530

Shrimp Oreganata In all my recipes I highly recommend using Lakonia olive oil. I found them at the Houston Fishing Show last year and it is now my go-to for oils and olives.

INGREDIENTS

PREPARATION

2 pounds jumbo shrimp (about 20) 1/4 cup dry white wine (such as Pinot Grigio) 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil (Lakonia Malva 0.2 Premium) 1/4 tsp kosher salt 2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley, divided, plus more for garnish 2 Tbsp chopped garlic, divided 2 tsp lemon zest, divided 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper, divided 3 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted, divided 1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs 2 Tbsp freshly grated Parmesan cheese ¼ tsp dried oregano 1 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Cover a baking sheet with foil. If Air Frying, no pre heat is needed.

Peel shrimp, leaving tails intact. Use a paring knife to cut lengthwise down vein side of shrimp, cutting almost but not all the way through the shrimp. Remove the vein and gently press shrimp apart to butterfly it.

Combine shrimp, wine, olive oil, salt, 1 tablespoon parsley, 1 tablespoon garlic, 1 teaspoon lemon zest, and 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper in a bowl; toss to coat shrimp evenly. Let stand at room temperature for at least 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat a large pan to medium-low and melt 2 tablespoons butter, add 1 tablespoon garlic, sauté until fragrant (about 2 minutes). Add panko, Parmesan cheese, and the remaining 1 tablespoon parsley, 1 teaspoon lemon zest, and 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper and dried oregano. Stir until well blended. Remove from heat and set aside.

Remove shrimp from marinade and place, cut side up, about 2 inches apart on a baking sheet. Top each shrimp with about 2 teaspoons panko mixture, pressing lightly to adhere.

I prefer baking in an Air Fryer at 450 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes or you can bake in a preheated oven until shrimp are cooked through, 8 to 10 minutes. Without opening oven, switch oven to broil. Broil until the topping is golden brown and crispy, 1 to 2 minutes.

Transfer shrimp to a platter. Stir together lemon juice, remaining 1 tablespoon melted butter and any juices from the baking sheet in a small bowl, stir to combine: drizzle evenly over shrimp on platter and garnish with parsley.

I served it over pasta with fresh tomato sauce.

Yields – 4 Servings

78 | November 2023

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