January 12, 2024
Texas’ Largest Hunting and Fishing Newspaper Since 2004
Volume 20, Issue 10
Forty-year legacy ends
Aaron Standley shows a pair of bass he caught on an Alabama-rig while fishing deep open water on Sam Rayburn. Photo by Capt. Hank Harrison.
Winter bass action By Nate Skinner
For Lone Star Outdoor News Water temperatures have been dropping, scattering bass in some bodies of water, and triggering fish to concentrate in deeper water in others. Anglers and guides are still catching fish in varying water depths, although the most consistent action is taking place over offshore structure. Rick Cruz has been targeting bass on Lake Fork, where the fish are on the move. “One day the bass will be staging on rocks and bridges, and the next day they will have moved to areas with humps and ledges,” Cruz explained. “You can literally go back to a spot where you caught several fish the day before and not get a single bite.” Cruz said most of the bass he’s been catching have been in 18-22
Jeff Aycock, middle, and his son, Parker, right, with the youngster’s first solo buck harvest with Aycock’s father, Jeff Aycock Sr., left. Three generations celebrated a buck harvested in the same field that Jeff Jr. shot his first buck in at age 7, 28 years earlier on his dad’s birthday. Photo from Jeff Aycock.
By Nate Skinner
For Lone Star Outdoor News Jeff Aycock shared a memorable hunting trip with his son and his father on a property his family has leased for the last 40 years in Coryell County. Aycock harvested his first buck while hunting completely by himself on the property when he was 11 years old.
On this trip, his dad got a shot at a mature buck, and the deer expired in the same spot as his first solo buck did some 24 years prior. The next day, Aycock’s son, Parker, who just turned 12 but was 11 years old at the time, harvested his first solo buck while hunting by himself. The deer expired in the same spot where Aycock harvested his first buck at age 7, on
the same day, 28 years earlier. Aycock said this was going to be their last season on the property, as it had sold, resulting in his family losing their hunting lease. “My family started hunting the property before I was born, and we had many family members who hunted the place together over the years, some of which have since passed away,” he said.
“Perhaps all of this was a coincidence, but it sure felt like we had some divine intervention, if you will, in terms of how it all went down and where these bucks fell.” When Aycock harvested his first deer at age 7, he was hunting from a stand his family nicknamed the “Meadow,” on his dad’s 35th birthday. His grandfather was also there hunting the
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PRSRT STD US POSTAGE PAID DALLAS, TX PERMIT 3814
Mourning dove prevail during winter season By Craig Nyhus
Even though the hunter numbers are down during the late season, some are enjoying good shooting in the cooler weather. Bode Allen hunts near Big Wells, west of I-35 and south of Hwy 90. “The birds are flying really good now,” he said. “Three days ago we limited in an hour before dark, with mostly mourning dove and some whitewings.”
Allen said the birds had been feeding on grain and some corn. “We have some groups going out toward the end of the season,” he said. “We’ve had good hunting all fall.” Reports from areas around George West and other areas west of San Antonio have been slower. “The Pearsall to Batesville areas are doing better, but it’s all mourning dove,” said Bob Thornton, founder of the Texas Dove Hunters Association. “The whitewings have been Please turn to page 5
Freshwater Fishing Report . . Page 10 Game Warden Blotter . . . . . Page 12 Heroes . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 14 Sun, Moon & Tides . . . . . . Page 16 Saltwater Fishing Report . . . Page 21 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . . Page 22 Datebook . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 22
INSIDE
CONTENTS
Time Sensitive Material • Deliver ASAP
Lone Star Outdoor News
Late-season mourning dove have been hitting fields south of San Antonio, while other areas of the state are seeing fewer birds. Photo by Lone Star Outdoor News.
HUNTING
FISHING
Choosing dog names (P. 4)
Specks, reds over shell, mud (P. 8)
Popular and meaningful handles.
Galveston bays producing.
Conservation icon dies (P. 4)
Building back oysters (P. 13)
Bubba Wood passes at 83.
Hatcheries produce billions of larvae.