Texas Fish & Game July 2017

VOICE OF THE TEXAS OUTDOOR NATION Losing an Old Friend

July 2017 | $3.95

Bass Awakening The Most Exotic of Exotics Wild Gulf: Marine Mammals The Art of Crabbing

Stealth

Kayak Tactics

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Published by Texas Fish & Game Publishing Co., LLC. TEXAS FISH & GAME is the largest independent, family-owned outdoor publication in America. Owned

by Ron & Stephanie Ward and Roy & Ardia Neves.

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Table of

JULY 2017 Volume 34 • NO. 3

Contents FEATURES

BASS AWAKENING As good as Texas bass fishing is, the really sweet spots across the state have a tendency to ebb and flow, in a natural cycle of drought and floods. Fortunately, many Lone Star lakes are currently “in the flow.” Here is a rundown.

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by Matt Williams

COVER STORY: Stealth Kayak Tactics Designed for stealth thousands of years ago, kayaks have remained the ultimate weapon for stalking fish in shallow depths. Over the succeeding millenia, technology has made these skinny water vessels even more effective fishing machines.

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THE ART OF CRABBING With the most rudimentary of tackle—a few chicken legs and some string—you can set out on crabbing expediton that can yield delicious rewards and fond memories.

Story by Greg Berlocher Cover photo by Chester Moore

FISH GAME DIGITAL

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by Jeff Stewart THE MOST EXOTIC OF EXOTICS Exotic hunting pioneer Thompson Temple called the blackbuck antelope “the most exotic of exotics.” It’s hard to argue his point.

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by TF&G Staff

MAMMALS OF THE GULF Mobile Editions: iPad u Android u Phones u

u

Kindle

FREE to Subscribers. See your Device’s App Store, or visit:

Dolphins and other marine mammals thrive in Gulf waters along the Texas Coast. But they sometimes become trapped or stranded in bayous and rivers, requiring a helping hand from conservation-minded anglers and wildlife specialists.

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by Chester Moore |

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Inside FISH & GAME

Contents (continued) COLUMNS

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by ROY and ARDIA NEVES TF&G Owners

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by Joe Doggett

Pike on the Edge

by Doug Pike

TF&G Senior Contributing Editor

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by Ted Nugent

8 LETTERS 73 INDUSTRY 74

Commentary

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INSIDER FISH AND GAME GEAR TEXAS TASTED OUTDOOR DIRECTORY TF&G PHOTOS

by Kendal Hemphill

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Bare Bones Hunting

STATE SECTION

TF&G Political Commentator

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DEPARTMENTS

Nugent in the Wild 75 TF&G Editor At Large

by Lou Marullo

TF&G Hunting Editor

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Texas Freshwater

by Matt Williams

TF&G Freshwater Editor

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Texas Saltwater

by Calixto Gonzales

TF&G Saltwater Editor

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Texas Boating

by Lenny Rudow

TF&G Boating Editor

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Practical Angler

by Greg Berlocher

TF&G Contributing Editor

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Bass University

by Pete Robbins

Special Correspondent

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Texas Guns

by Steve LaMascus

44 MY OLD FRIEND 48 TF&G REPORT 48 TEXAS HOT SHOTS

50 TEXAS DEPT. OF DEFENSE

52 TEXAS DEPT. OF CONSERVATION

TF&G Firearms Editor

54 TEXAS COASTAL

Open Season

64 TEXAS FISHING

by Reavis Wortham

TF&G Humor Editor

FOCUS

HOTSPOTS

72 PRIME TIMES

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Email Roy and Ardia Neves at ContactUs@fishgame.com J U L Y

Doggett at Large TF&G Senior Contributing Editor

HETHER YOU BELIEVE THAT GLOBAL WARMING, OR Climate Change, is a real phenomenon or just a hoax cooked up in the back rooms of sinister New World Order conspiracy factories, there is one undeniable—if not entirely inconvenient—truth: without responsible stewardship, no environment can withstand the relentless onslaught of human growth and development. As populations increase, demand also rises for more buildings, roads, and the redirecting of natural resources to satisfy the yawing need to house, feed, water and entertain the expanding mass of humanity.

This growth pushes hard against the most formidable defenses that Nature can muster, and—setting aside the argument over man’s role in climate change—the past several centuries have shown that the innovative genius of humans has decisively gained an upper hand. No canyon, mountain, rainforest, barrier island, ocean, river or desert can stop a human initiative to conquer it. The only recourse Nature seems to have left is one of revenge: throwing tantrums in the form of earthquakes, hurricanes and floods, or, in its more passive-aggressive moods, the silent treatment of prolonged droughts.

In this battle for domination over the planet’s natural resources, people whose lives are enriched by outdoors experiences might appear to be faced with a dilemma. Hunters and anglers tend to be conservative by default, and with a pragmatic view of growth and development, many of them feel that progress is inevitable and that economic health is as important to human well being as spiritual health. But doesn’t progress also rob them of their beloved playgrounds?

Most sportsmen are keenly aware of the cost that must be paid in the service of progress.

Growth causes formerly untrampled lands, rich in old growth hardwoods and sparkling streams, teaming with deer, turkey and other wild game and native fish, to be bulldozed and paved over with concrete, steel, glass, sod and shingles. The opening of a new road, or subdivision, or shopping center, or hospital takes land away from the Habitat side of Nature’s ledger.

TEXAS FISH & GAME editor-in-chief Chester Moore has observed that there is more than a linguistic coincidence between the words “conservative” and “conservation.” In the true sense of the word, a “Conservative” is one who conserves, saves, preserves. “Conservation” is the accepted, often preferred, term for “environmentalism.” A “conservative” who is also blessed with a keen sense of what growth and development really cost, in terms of lost wilderness, is probably better positioned to also understand where to find relief and solutions to the vexing problems created as the toll of progress is exacted.

For this reason, we are firm in our belief that the best hope for a long term solution to the environmental challenges faced by this and future generations, to deal with the seemingly impossible balance of finite resources and infinite growth, lies with sportsmen, who have a vested, primal interest in keeping the balance.

Animal welfare organizations that focus on preventing animal cruelty are fine. Those willing to leverage their core missions for political reasons—or those promoting irresponsible wildlife management policies—are not. And then there are the fund raising organizations posing as “environmental stewards” that pay lavish administrative salaries and buy non-environmental clout with hefty contributions to partisan causes. They are not going to save anything.

The true heroes of conservation are going to be those who, in the end, understand how the balance of nature works. If you take something away, you must either put something else back or face the consequences of a world tilting out of control.

It is our continuing mission in these pages and on our digital platforms to support protection of the natural resources in our state and to keep Texas as wild as is humanly possible. So, our coverage of wildlife and habitat issues will keep expanding. To us, that is progress.

Today, when you drive through the Piney Woods and need your sunglasses on back roads that used to be tunnels of shade; or when you cruise Hill Country highways and look across fields of rooftops that were once hillsides of live oak, rock and cedar, you can see that this is a complex, ongoing struggle that is going to require fortitude, passion, smarts, and commitment.

Fortunately for Texas, and the world, those are qualities that define a true sportsman.

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by Chester Moore

TF&G Editor in Chief

A Sporting Chance

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Editor’s Notes

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LETTERS to the Editor More on the Hog Issue

sows have two litters of about 10 each twice a year, half of which are female – which will start breeding when they are six months old? Are enough of them going to continue to ingest the poison to make it an effective endeavor? Also, as much as I hate to admit it – these bastards are cunning; they might learn to not like your tainted oatmeal.

Ranching in the 1950s resulted in my spending more effort and time doctoring livestock for screwworm infestation than any other aspect of ranch work. One of the greatest things to ever happen to livestock and wildlife was the eradication through the process of sterilizing the screwworm flies. The fact is that almost all fawns born in Texas in the warm months prior to that time died.

Now we have as great an abundance of deer .I wonder what effort is being considered or made to effect the sterilization of these hog scavengers. Would it not be a plausible idea to explore and pursue?

My fear overall is that this proposed solution like so many government solutions could easily prove as bad or worse than the problem itself and no more effective than everyone involved just supporting and urging everyone that can to kill every hog they can.

FIRST, LET ME SAY THAT I APPREciate the fact that effort is being made to control or eliminate these scavengers.

I am over 80 years old; have hunted and fished for over 70 years; have ranched a modest spread in Central Texas, for over 60 years and am still doing so—at least to the extent that my strength and age will allow.

I have numerous trees, creek bottoms, stock ponds, two running creeks, and lots of hogs. A sanctioned helicopter flyover with two shooters about a month and a half ago across me and an adjoining neighbor’s netted over 200 hogs killed in one day. There are still plenty left.

I have numerous questions and concerns about the program you outline, which I’ll set forth: • What form is the bait and how are you going to make sure they get it and eat it? I have a Brittany that I let run out that can, and does, get to anywhere a pig can – and who (I’ve learned) will eat anything put before him.

• What about the buzzards and coyotes and bobcats that may very well feed on these dead pig carcasses? The first thing the buzzards are going to eat are poisoned entrails.

• How many of these dead or dying hogs are going to wind up dead and rotted in my running creeks or stock ponds? My spread is as beautifully maintained as I can afford to keep it – both for my enjoyment and my family and friends.

• What are you going to do about Hog hunters and trappers? I have eaten feral hog meat that I have killed and understand that there is a market for this pork. Also, for every one man who can afford a private deer lease for his teenage son or daughter to hunt on and learn the important lessons of being in the wild and enjoying what nature provides – there are 10 that can probably afford to take their kids – or even themselves – for weekend hog hunts.

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Richard L. Mewhinney Holland, TX. Editor: Thank you so much for your great letter on the subject. We have covered these points both in print and at fishgame.com. In fact in this issue we cover a few of them. Your points of concern are well taken and seem to very eloquently voice those of outdoor lovers around the state.

Marine Mammal Concerns CHESTER, AS I LISTENED IN ON you on the radio, I realized this was the first time tuning in. I appreciated your Gulf of Mexico topic; bringing to light information |

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to people that have not had the opportunity to witness nature in our back yard. I am a dive master in Lake Charles, and by your description, it appears you have scuba diver experience as well. Thanks for touching on the subject.

Also during your program, you mentioned the manatees and how they drift westerly. A couple of years back a manatee was seen in Calcasieu Lake.

I would like to reach out to someone that has the ability to capture and relocate this type of mammal. I am the operations manager of a renewable power plant that utilizes a 21-acre cooling pond. During the winter months, the warmer temperatures may have the ability to maintain environmental conditions until the open water temperatures increase for release.

If you know of such a group, please send me their contact information.

Carl Kiser Editor: Dear Mr. Kiser, thank you so much for your concern for the wonderful marine mammals of the Gulf of Mexico. There are several organizations including the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries that engage in marine mammal rescue.

The Coastal Wildlife Network (CWN), coordinated by Audubon Nature Institute, serves as the primary response partner for Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) for rehabilitating marine mammals (dolphins, whales, manatees) and sea turtles.

You can find them at audubonnatureinstitute. org. Another is The Institute for Marine Mammal Studies who operated in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.

You can get more information on them at www.imms.org.

Email your comments to: editor@fishgame.com

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EDITOR’S Notes

by CHESTER MOORE :: TF&G Editor-in-Chief

No Black Cougars, but How About a White One?

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IGHTINGS OF “BLACK PANthers” are common throughout Texas. Many hunters, fishermen, birdwatchers, hikers and people of all walks of life reporting seeing large long-tailed black cats they label as “black panthers.”

The problem there is no such species as a “black panther” anywhere in the world.

What about the large black cats seen in zoos and on television programs? Those are black leopards or black jaguars.

Melanism occurs when an excessive amount of black pigment dominates coloration of an animal. It happens in many animals ranging from squirrels to whitetail deer. Melanism is not uncommon in leopards in certain parts of their range. This is also true with jaguars. The black cats you see in zoos and on television are all melanistic leopards or jaguars.

The general assumption with “black panther” sightings in Texas is that these are black or melanistic cougars. The problem is there has never been a melanistic cougar observed by science either in a zoo, captive setting, killed by a hunter, mounted by a taxidermist or otherwise positively identified.

For melanistic cougars to be the answer to Texas’s “panther” question there would have to be many of them, and there is no proof of any of them.

Jaguars as previously mentioned however do throw melanistic offspring and are native to Texas.

They were allegedly wiped out more than 100 years ago, but our investigations show there are still isolated sightings of typical spotted jaguars in Texas. That is an important point because if jaguars were present, there might also be sightings of black specimens.

Recent research shows that melanism is a dominant trait in jaguars. In other words, if a male jaguar for example moves into an area and starts breeding females there is a good chance much of the offspring will be melanistic as well.

Could a remnant population of jaguars survive that has the dominant melanistic genes? That is not a

likely answer for the entire “black panther” phenomenon, but it is not out of the range of possibility for some of the sightings reported throughout the years.

Melanism is also present, albeit rare, in bobcats.

Melanistic bobcats have been killed and mounted in Texas. In fact, one by taxidermist Steve Moye was mounted leaping at a quail and hung in the Gander Mountain sporting goods store in Beaumont, Texas for the better part of a decade.

Our experience shows that many people cannot differentiate between a bobcat and a cougar. Many are surprised that bobcats have tails at all. In fact some have tails as long as eight inches. A black bobcat could easily be labeled a “black panther” by someone who is not aware of melanism in the species.

Besides people who don’t understand basic animal identification, the biggest problem in misidentifying cougars and bobcats is scale. A large bobcat seen at a distance with nothing to compare it to, looks much larger than it really is.

This is why feral house cats are often to blame for “black panther” sightings. Many are shocked to see house cats in the woods, but the fact is they are all over the place and have established populations in many wild areas of the state.

A large black house cat seen at a distance has been the cause of many “black panther” sightings this author has investigated. In fact the bulk of videos and photos attributed to these mysterious cats have turned out to be only house cats.

The jaguarundi is another prime candidate for “black anther” sightings. A large jaguarundi in the common dark gray or chocolate brown phase, crossing a road in front of a motorist or appearing before an unsuspecting hunter could easily be labeled a “black panther.”

Because very few people are aware of jaguarundis, it’s highly unlikely they would report seeing one.

Everyone can relate to a “black panther” and virtually no one has ever heard of a jaguarundi.

In our section on jaguarundis, we cited research that shows they live far away from their verified range.

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In fact, there is interest in jaguarundis as far east as Florida where sightings are reported frequently.

Is the jaguarundi responsible for all “black panther” reports in the United States? That’s not likely.

Are they the source of many sightings in the South and Southwest? There is no doubt in my mind.

Some suggest the “black panther” sightings are the result of a “circus train” crash where its animals got loose. This story has been repeated over and over in Texas, and locations change with the retelling.

We find no evidence of this.

If black leopards were to escape the chance of them surviving and producing offspring wide-ranging enough for a phenomenon like this to take place is beyond far-fetched. Additionally, why would only black leopards escape? Where are the lions and the monkeys and elephants?.

Isolated cases of exotic cats escaping have occurred, but in the author’s opinion they are not the source of many sightings in Texas or at any other location in North America.

And if you think a black panther is a stretch how about a white one?

In January 2016 an interesting story broke via KLTV out of Tyler. Landowner Mitchell Cox of Hughes Springs captured on video what he and many others think is a “white panther.”

“When I saw the white animal, the first thing I thought was, it was a dog,” said landowner Mitchell Cox in the KLTV story.

“The cat jumps across about a six-foot creek there’” investigator Hershel Stroman, of the Morris County Sheriff’s Office told KLTV officials. “My initial thought was that it was an edited video, but upon talking to people I believe it’s true. A white albino mountain lion.”

The video is interesting and the animal moves like a cougar, but without a closer video (this one was a short 50 yards away) it is difficult to tell.

In 2011 a white cougar was born at the Attica Zoological Park in Greece and was aptly named “Casper,” which shows there is one more white cougar than known black ones on the planet.

If you have game camera photos or videos of mysterious cats in Texas, email them to me at the address below.

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DOGGETT at Large

by JOE DOGGETT :: TF&G Contributing Editor

Like Mayberry

trout in ponds around Houston.

Rigged with the tiny payload of a 1/8-ounce spoon or spinner, the rod flexes deeply and waggles limply during each arcing lob. The action is excruciatingly slow.

To put it kindly, the old rig is marginal in performance.

This is a reminder of how far the casting/ spinning rod industry has progressed during the past 50 or 60 years. I do not presume to be an expert on rod construction, but I can offer some observations based on growing up in Texas during the glory years of fiberglass.

The spun fiberglass technology was cuttingedge stuff, a major advancement for the general market over bulk (opposed to custom) spilt bamboo rods. Fiberglass was durable and forgiving, impervious to heat and saltwater. And it was inexpensive, at least compared to the finer cane rods.

But, slow actions aside; the glass rods were heavy and bulky.

Most plug casting rods were short, usually 5 to 5 1/2 feet, and aimed at the bass fishing market. And most were of the one-handed “pistol grip” design. The reduced length helped stiffen the rod for casting typical 1/2- to 3/4-ounce payloads and snubbing fish from heavy cover.

Spinning rods were bit longer, maybe 5 1/2 to 7 feet, allowing more flex for lighter lines and smaller lures. The exceptions were the socalled “ultralight” spinning rods. Most dainty ultralight sticks were four to five feet in length and terrible casting instruments, but they were trendy and looked cute.

Most two-handed “popping rods” intended for inshore saltwater use were seven to eight feet. Many were soft and whippy, but the slow action worked well for opening the casting arc and lobbing a popping cork with a dangling live shrimp far across open bay water.

The long, fiberglass popping rods could handle heavy spoons and sub-surface plugs reasonably well, but they were poorly suited for the short, snappy cadence of jiving a dogwalker across the surface. This might explain the lack of popularity of topwater plugs for shallow specks and reds during the era.

Nor was the soft action of the extended

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HE ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW was a favorite of mine when I was a kid during the early ’60s.

I still recall the opening credits, when Sheriff Taylor and young Opie are walking along a road to a wooded lake. I remember watching the spinning rod held over the sheriff’s shoulder. The fiberglass blank seemed awfully soft, wobbling and bouncing as they walked.

Geez, Andy, I thought, decent looking rig but it needs a little more backbone.

The other day, on one of the cable networks, the old black-and-white show was introduced again. I watched the opening stroll, hoping that during the past 60 years maybe the sheriff had given the wet noodle rod to Barney and gotten a stick with a bit more starch.

Nope, same, lame, wobbling and bouncing.

But, in fairness, Sheriff Taylor probably didn’t have many options as to actions. The hollow glass blanks of yesteryear were much slower than today’s graphite blanks. Some would flex all the way into the handle.

I know this for a fact because I have an old Heddon Pal fiberglass-spinning rod. I bought it several years ago for pocket change at a garage sale, as a reminder of “the way we were.”

You tend to forget.

The two-piece rod is 6 1/2 feet in length and probably dates to the late ’50s or early ’60s.

I sanded the grime from the cork handle and cleaned the two sliding-band rings and had the guides rewrapped.

The rod is fitted with the Garcia Mitchell 308 spinning reel I proudly wielded as a boy.

The little reel is spooled with six-pound mono and still more-or-less works.

The setup is a faithful rendering of top-end tackle during the period. And, occasionally, when I am suffering from a case of the quaints, I use it for panfish or TPWD-stocked rainbow

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blank particularly desirable for jigging a soft plastic. Of course, since nobody back then knew what a shrimptail was, the shortcoming wasn’t a big issue.

Most glass casting and spinning rods were of one-piece construction. For practical purposes, breakdown rods (including fly rods) were available only in two-piece models. This is because the metal ferrules used at the time were heavy and dead. Not to mention unreliable. I recall more than once having to stuff a tiny strip of tissue into a wide ferrule mouth to help secure the connection.

During the end of the fiberglass reign, several manufacturers semi-perfected the use of integrated fiberglass ferrules. This was a significant advance that trimmed-down the blank and allowed a better transfer of energy during a robust “chunk.” Usually, when seated properly they held together.

By the mid ’70s, whiz-bang high-modulus graphite rods were hitting the shelves, and by the late ’70s glass was obsolete. Fast, trim, light graphite blanks revolutionized fishing, and few people bothered to look back.

A few fiberglass rods are still available. I mean new rods, not old “beaters” from granddad’s closet. In some specialized circles, the material is enjoying a bit of a rebirth.

For example, serious crankbait anglers often prefer long two-handed glass rods because the slow action allows a striking fish to get a firm grip on a fast-moving plug. The limber blank offers a measure of “drop back.”

On the subject of drop back, glass rods remain effective for heavy offshore trolling— less apt to blow up on a big marlin or tuna.

I am mainly concerned here with the evolution of light-tackle rods.

The peak days of fiberglass are long gone.

But, as Sheriff Taylor and young Opie surely would agree, the waggling sticks served their purpose. Regardless of cost or construction, the best endorsement for any fishing rod is when it points the way to a fun day on the water.

Email Joe Doggett at ContactUs@fishgame.com

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6/7/17 10:05 AM

PIKE on the Edge

by DOUG PIKE :: TF&G Senior Contributing Editor

Borders Mean Nothing to an Invasive Species (To avoid causing my head to explode, I’ve elected not to write this month about red snapper regulations and how utterly ridiculous they’ve become. Maybe next time—DP)

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T SEEMS A GOOD TIME TO change the term “invasive species” to “entrenched species.”

For the better part of 30 years, I’ve watched our Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and its equivalencies around the country fight battle after battle that’s no more winnable than the war on drugs. Some plant or animal from elsewhere shows up in our backyard, and great effort is expended to eradicate it.

Never works. Not with plants, and not with animals—probably never will. Once some “foreign” species gains a foothold in favorable habitat, full extermination becomes nearly impossible.

It’s worth noting about now, that we as a species, already are eyeballing other planets for potential human habitation not a whole lot of years from now. If we find the right planet, one that provides everything we need, what are the odds we’d just turn around and come home if some native species tried to run us off?

Someday when we find the right planet, figure out how to get there and determine who makes the trip, we’ll take up residence.

We’ll start using that place’s resources, and make ourselves at home.

Interplanetary habitation is “invasive species” on a grand scale. It’s not much different from what’s happened thousands of times in our own country with plants and animals of all sizes—and even with people.

According to my radio peers, I spend an inordinate amount of time outdoors, which means probably about the same as most

of you. We see things out there that we wouldn’t see anywhere else (which is a big part of why we go). And increasingly, we’re seeing things that weren’t there the previous time.

For example, there are parakeets, flocks of them, tweeting around Sugar Land, where I live. Eurasian collared doves are common now all over Texas, across the South back through Florida, and in the Bahamas, which they overran after being brought there by the pet trade.

Many of Houston’s bayou banks are pocked with the burrowing holes of armored catfish. Lake Conroe’s white amurs ate nearly all that lake’s vegetation, then survived on grass clippings. South Texas has monkeys.

Real-deal monkeys. And pigs. Countless, nasty pigs in every Texas county.

Most of these so-called invasive species didn’t invade at all. Instead, they were brought here deliberately for one well-meaning purpose or another. Others came on their own, sort of like half the population of Michigan during the 1970s and 1980s.

When they arrived, they liked what they found. (Who could blame them?) And so they stayed.

As have wide varieties of snakes, spiders and insects that hitched stowaway rides on modern transportation. As have many other species of reptiles and amphibians and small mammals that arrived first-class, by animal standards, as paid freight within the pet trade.

Some escaped into their new habitats on their own. Others were set free when they became too big or too loud or too burdensome on their owners.

How they got into our ecosystem, however, doesn’t matter. What matters is that they’re here and, more importantly, that we’re unlikely ever to fully rid ourselves of them.

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The notion of protecting any geographical region from “invasive” species of plants or animals these days is fantasy. Instead, focus should shift toward living alongside these newcomers.

The world is feeling smaller in a sense. You jump on a jet in Houston, fly to Asia or Africa or South America or anywhere else jets go these days, and you step off that aircraft into a totally different—for now—world.

Somebody sneezes, and the virus that caused the sneeze gets up your nose. A pair of little bugs crawl into your suitcase at some faraway hotel and hitch rides back here. A shipment of bananas or pineapples or any other consumable gets packaged for shipment, and something native to the farms from which those crops were harvested crawls or slithers or hops on board.

It could be as large as a snake or as small as a seed. And in the relative blink of an eye, it’s 10,000 miles from where it started.

Invasive species, by the way, aren’t unique to the United States. Our largemouth bass, for example, has made itsway into water bodies around Japan, where they were welcomed with roughly the same hospitality we show grass carp and feral hogs.

They’ve tried but failed to get rid of bass and been about as successful as we have with hogs. Ultimately, both countries will wind up working around those newcomers, not eradicating them.

Some people think we’re in charge of all things around us, that we somehow can repel unwanted visitors. Nature would beg to differ.

Those parakeets and collared doves used to annoy me. How dare they share air with Texas mourning doves, cardinals and blue jays, I’d grumble. Now, they’re just two more cool species I might see around the neighborhood, and I like counting birds.

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Email Doug Pike at ContactUs@fishgame.com

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6/7/17 10:06 AM

NUGENT in the Wild

by TED NUGENT :: TF&G Editor-at-Large

Varmint Control is a Conservation Duty

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OLITICAL CORRECTNESS and its inherent scourge of dishonesty and denial are bad and dangerous wherever you find them. When people living in Detroit can spew their comfortable disconnect and resultant ignorance about wolves and other predators to determine varmint control policies in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula wilderness, you know you are asking for trouble.

The only people that should have any say whatsoever about wolf hunting should only be those people living in wolf country.

The same goes for bears, lions and everything else.

I keep running into friends and acquaintances around the country that bellow constantly about their coyote problems. I find this rather crazy in a country where rugged individualism and handson utilitarian pragmatism was once the rule of the land, and thank God is still prevalent. I always respond with shock and dismay as I tell them I don’t have a coyote problem, but rather where I live, the coyotes have a serious Ted problem.

I diligently and aggressively kill every coyote, bobcat, fox, coon, skunk, possum, badger, porcupine, hog, feral cat, feral dog and crow that I see, all year nonstop. And every educated, honest person with an ounce of wildlife sense knows definitively that even the kill-crazy WhackMaster will never hurt any of those vermin populations, no matter how deadly, efficient and effective and relentless I may be.

Rather, my purposefully dedicated slaughter of varmints accomplishes nothing but win, win, win all around.

First and foremost, such year round varmint trapping and hunting is exciting, challenging and fun. And by doing so, I maintain a healthy balance on my lands, reducing and even eliminating risk of dangerous diseases while protecting a thriving small game, big game and non-game bio-diversity 12

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and productivity.

Then of course there is the ultimate reward of such wise use conservation in beautiful furs, skins, teeth and claws to provide great gifts to family and friends.

The only way you will ever have healthy populations of deer, turkey, rabbits, pheasant, quail, grouse, ducks and songbirds is to wage war on the varmint populations.

One of the most egregious crimes of political correctness was the foolish and irresponsible protection of hawks and owls so many years ago.

On a single 100-mile drive from Jackson Michigan to the Detroit airport a few years back we stopped counting at 100 hawks perched along I-94. It is also interesting to note that on that same drive we counted more than 100 dead deer carcasses. Remember, these numbers were observed traveling at highway speeds along a single, straight stretch of paved interstate. Can you imagine what numbers were hidden by fields and median grasses beyond our fast paced gaze?

Fifteen years ago when we purchased our amazing SpiritWild Ranch in Texas, the previous land manager exclaimed how they never had any meaningful recruitment of whitetails due to the annual predictable fawn slaughter by gangs of coyotes and bobcats and the occasional cougar.

The day I bought the place I cruised the perimeter fence to identify the numerous obvious breeches used by predators. Immediately setting snares and foothold traps I began the required and long overdue cleansing, catching many coyotes, fox, bobcat, porcupines and feral dogs and cats.

Since performing this perfect stewardship responsibility, we enjoy healthy populations of rabbits, turkey, squirrels, the occasional quail, songbirds galore and of course 100% fawn survival, all the while maintaining an unstoppable healthy population of all varmints as well.

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gently create protective brush-piles and teepees of dead branches and tangles to safeguard the smallgame from the insane overpopulation of hawks and owls.

So many states have so many absurd laws and regulations concerning all manner of wildlife, but really, really foolish and dangerously counterproductive politically correct laws concerning the sensible control of varmints and predators.

Scientifically speaking, no state should have any restrictions whatsoever on the killing of coyotes. This amazingly resilient, phenomenally clever species is literally un-stoppable and un-killable.

If your state wildlife agency is still strangled by the embarrassing self-inflicted scourge of political correctness with regards to varmint and predator control, you need to unite all sporters to make things right.

For example, in Texas, we can kill mountain lions and coyotes all year long with no bag limits or restrictions at all, yet the cougar and song-dog populations are thriving and healthy.

When bears, wolves, coyotes and lions are destroying game populations, it is up to those of us who know better to demand sensible, realworld regulations that accomplish the universally responsible goal of balance.

Nobody wants to or would allow predator populations to be wiped out or endangered. But right now just the opposite is true across the country in many instances where varmints and predators are overpopulated at the damaging cost of threatened game populations.

Just as the courageous real-world game managers of Alaska have now implemented the emergency policy of killing bears and wolves in their dens to save the hard hit moose and caribou herds, all states should wake up and get cracking on upgrading to science based responsible predator regulations.

All of us who actually spend time in the wild know damn well that balance is way out of whack in many states, and it will take a united We the people demanding voice from the licensed hunting families to get back on track.

Email Ted Nugent at tnugent@fishgame.com

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6/7/17 10:03 AM

TF&G COMMENTARY

by KENDAL HEMPHILL :: TF&G Political Editor

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ECOMING A FULL-TIME COLlege student after age 50 is probably not for everyone, but it has its perks. A few months ago, during my last semester as an undergrad, I enjoyed an opportunity available to few political commentary editors. I offended some snowflakes in one of my classes.

The comment I made was an affirmation of what one of the two professors in the class had just presented, but the snowflakes were not irritated in the least by his remarks. They probably would not have been offended by mine, either, but the way I presented them caused several girls in the class to decide I was being derogatory toward women. So they complained to the profs after the class, and some of them later went to the head of the department.

We live in a delicate society. A great many young people today seem to go around with their feelings on their sleeves, looking for a reason to take offense. It isn’t difficult to find something to complain about, if that’s your goal. Being offended takes very little effort.

One seldom even needs to leave home to do it. As a matter of fact, I’m offended just about every day, and I don’t even try.

So offending some delicate snowflakes, as abrupt and abrasive as I am, is no great feat. I probably shouldn’t enjoy it, but I have to admit it’s kind of fun. People often take offense at my politically incorrect comments, although I hasten to point out that the comment that damaged the snowflakes in my class was neither politically incorrect nor misogynistic. They just didn’t like it.

Later that day I received an email from one of the profs, asking me to drop by his office the

“ The truth is always offensive in a society steeped in lies.

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Sticks and Stones and Snowflakes

That was fine with me, but I told them I was not going to apologize to the snowflakes. I said, “We do these young people a disservice when we cater to their whims and apologize every time their feelings are hurt. They’re about to leave here and go out into the real world, which is full of offensive stuff. They need to grow up and learn to get over it.” The profs nodded.

I said, “I’m offended just about every day, and I ignore it and go on with my life. That’s what adults do. These kids need to learn to act like adults.”

My profs both agreed, and pointed out that they had no intention of asking me to apologize. One of them was going to do it. I think they figured I’d say something to make it worse. I think they were right.

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sions of opinion were perfectly acceptable in class, whether anyone agreed with them or not.

Still, the snowflakes needed an apology, or else they might never recover.

Now, academia is not the real world. It’s an artificial society that exists in a bubble, protected from real life. Those who inhabit the world of academia are subject to different rules from everyone else. That’s all fine and good, but a great many of those who live in academia, students and teachers alike, don’t realize these facts. They believe they live in the real world, and that normal people look at things the same way they do. This state of denial causes problems for everyone, most of all for graduates who leave college and enter the real world, expecting to be mollycoddled, the way they were at college.

Most of this problem has been caused by parents who haven’t taught their children that life is not always going to cater to them. They haven’t learned that when people say and do things they don’t like they should shrug and forget about it. Not all parents have so handicapped their children, but this is the case with far too many.

No one, anywhere, has a right not to be offended. When we grovel and capitulate every time someone’s feelings are hurt, we enable perpetual adolescence. We set a precedent that degrades free thought and individualism. We enslave ourselves to political correctness, and send a clear message to those who believe the world must conform to their every desire. The message we send is: ‘you’re right.’ And it’s a bogus message.

No doubt I’ve offended some delicate folks with this column. The truth is always offensive in a society steeped in lies. If your feelings have been hurt by this column, and you need an apology, my advice is to either grow up or become a college professor. You’re not ready for the real world.

next day for a chat with him and the other prof.

When I walked into the office and shook their hands, I asked what I had done wrong. They both said, “Oh, you didn’t do anything wrong, but since there have been some complaints we have to do something.” This is academia in a liberal society. Complaints, even those based on nothing more than feelings, must be addressed.

Since I have a great deal of respect for both profs, I apologized for causing trouble, but they assured me the issue was not my fault. The snowflakes, however, had to be mollified. The profs decided a blanket apology at the beginning of the next class period was in order.

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6/7/17 10:04 AM

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Y DESIGN, KAYAKS ARE STEALTHY VESSELS, BUT HUSHED operation isn’t a foregone conclusion; it requires knowledge and practice. Kayaks were invented by Inuits hunters longing to put more meat on the table. The original kayaks were made of whale bone, driftwood, and animal hides.

Inuit paddles were purposely crafted short so the unused blade wouldn’t ride high, and alert the seals they were hunting, while the other end of the paddle found purchase in Arctic waters.

Fast forward several millennia and coastal sharpshooters have learned to utilize kayaks in the pursuit of redfish and other shallow-water dwelling sport fish. Thousands of Texas kayakers now skim across flats that used to be considered too shallow to fish.

Times have definitely changed.

Skinny water is the ultimate end game for coastal sharpshooters. Not only can fish see you, their presence in water less than an honest ruler in depth puts them on a keen edge. Make the slightest noise and they are off like a greyhound to the safety of deeper water.

Let’s examine several key areas you can focus Jason Carter throws a on that will increase your stealthyness while afloattopwater for reds along especially in pursuit of the ever wary redfish. a shoreline. Note the Secure all gear – Every kayaker should lash or tie egret in the background.

Egrets are always an down every piece of gear they carry. Murphy is alive indicator for the presand well in the new millennium and unsecured gear ence of baitfish. will fall off at the absolutely worst time.

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6/8/17 5:24 PM

story by Greg Berlocher

PHOTO: CHESTER MOORE

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6/7/17 10:32 AM

AVOID BANGING NOISES: Water is roughly 700 times denser than air.

Consequently it conducts sound much better. A noise, seemingly small and innocuous to the human ear, is loud and booming underwater. Shallow water concentrates the cacophony. Sounds waves traveling through the water reflect up off the bottom at an angle and then down again off the water’s surface.

The shallower the water, the closer the wave form; hence, more sound waves impact a fish in a small area.

When paddling in shallow water, it is imperative that you avoid any banging noises on your hull – noises caused by dropped paddles, fishing rods, and tackle boxes.

Regardless of the source, errant noises scare fish. When you think about it, kayak hulls resemble a drum; drop something on the top and it makes a sharp sound which is transmitted into the water.

One of the best techniques to avoid noises is to force yourself to slow down. Measured, calculated movements are rarely loud and obnoxious. Take a few seconds to compose yourself and take stock of the situation. You will be glad you did.

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USE PADDLE HOLDERS: In addition to the security of a paddle lease, cradle an unused paddle in a holder. Paddle holders are simple appendages which you either rivet or bolt to the side of your craft. The U-shaped hangers hold your paddle silently in place.

SILENT ANCHORING: As noted earlier, water is much denser than air and transmits obnoxious noises efficiently. Heaving an anchor into place is a cardinal sin in shallow water. Anchors should be slipped overboard with the hands of a heart surgeon.

EGRESS AND INGRESS: Getting in and out of your kayak silently is critical if you are to enjoy success on the flats. A cloddish step or stumble quickly negates the time and effort you spent quietly navigating into casting range. The only real way to master this discipline is to practice.

Ray Chapa, a coastal bend guide who fishes exclusively from kayaks, has the drill down to a science. Upon spotting a tailing red, Chapa can holster his paddle, silently deploy the anchor, grab his rod, disembark his kayak,

and present a fly or lure within twelve seconds. Mastery of the subject necessitates that you spend time on the water practicing.

Skimming across a shin-deep layer of water blanketing a nasty mud flat is a great feeling, but empty stringers quickly quench the euphoria. Neophyte paddlers will ultimately discover they can’t rely entirely on their hulls for spotted silver and gold. To be effective flats fishermen, paddlers need to focus on stealthy operation.

And they need to understand the habits of a redfish.

Redfish have what groundbreaking outdoor writer the late Ed Holder called the “cone of vision”.

This is the zone that an angler should try to work around when sight-casting to reds. If a redfish’s head were a clock, its eyes would be at 2 and 10 o’clock according to Holder.

The fish can basically see to 4 o’clock on the right side and 8 o’clock on the left, but 5, 6 and 7 o’clock are blind spots.

An angler should always make a point to throw the bait directly in front of the fish or even with its head according to the theory. Its a pretty solid theory.

6/8/17 5:24 PM

PHOTO: CHESTER MOORE

Redfish have what can be called a “cone of vision”. Anglers who cast into that cone can usually score on them.

Something else to consider is your casts need to be as delicate as your approach with the kayak.

Throwing a topwater to a school of tailing reds you have relentlessly pursued by using the above strategies is only effective if the lure doesn’t land with a big splash.

Practice casting any type of lure with focus and control so that the lure stays as close to the water during the cast as possible

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as not to make a loud impact. Fly fishermen don’t have to worry about this but most kayakers are fishing with casting or spinning gear and can be a problem.

For those new to shallow water stealth fishing with kayaks all of this might seem a big extreme but for veterans it serves as a reminder that kayaks can be a precision tool that allows the angler to slow down and slip into spots otherwise off limits.

And the idea of stealth fishing is as much a mental attitude as it is practical tips and tactics.

Oh and it’s lots of fun too. We don’t want to forget that part.

Now, get out there and get into stealth fishing mode.

6/8/17 5:24 PM

story by Matt Williams

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N A SCALE OF ONE TO TEN, I’D HAVE TO RATE Texas bass fishing a rock-solid eleven.

I say that because a passel of top-notch lakes across the state have abundant bass populations, the fish are fat and sassy, and the fishing quality is way better—year-in and year-out—than what is found many other parts of the country.

Good as Texas bassin’ is, in the big scheme of things, the really sweet spots have a tendency to ebb and flow over time. It’s nothing out of the ordinary for a lake to be red hot and produce outstanding fishing for a few years, then cool off for a while. The cycle can be caused by several factors, the most common being drastic changes in water level that come as the result extreme drought or excessive rainfall.

We’ve talked about that here before. For those who may have missed it, here’s what happens: During extended periods of low water, large portions of the lake bed 18

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normally covered by water are exposed to direct sunlight.

Sunlight spurs the gradual growth of grasses, weeds, bushes, trees and other forms of terrestrial vegetation native to the landscape. The longer the lake remains low, the thicker and more widespread the newgrowth vegetation becomes.

Fishing quality can be good for a while during drought conditions because it reduces the size of the playing field and makes fish easier to find. However, things can go downhill during multi-year droughts because low water can wipe out submerged aquatic vegetation as much as grass carp and herbicides can, thus robbing sport and forage fish of the critical habitat they need to reproduce, recruit and ultimately flourish.

Big rains can reverse the process, pronto. When water levels rise, all the new-growth terrestrial vegetation that sprouted during the low water period, is flooded. This pumps in rich nutrients that act as liquid fertilizer to promote a boom in plankton and aquatic vegetation growth.

This benefits everything from forage fish populations to top end preda-

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tors such as bass, catfish and crappie.

The jungle of flooded cover also provides young-ofthe-year game fish and forage such as sunfish and shad good places to hide from predators. This usually results in extremely high recruitment among one or more year classes of fish and ultimately leads to banner fishing several years down the road as those fish mature.

Fisheries biologists sometimes refer to the phenomenon as “trophic upsurge” or the “new lake effect.”

It has been documented on a number of Texas reservoirs over the years, and several more are in line to bust loose with good fishing in the near future. Some are already there.

To learn more about those reservoirs and what’s in store for Texas anglers, we reached out to Spencer Dumont and Brian Van Zee, regional fisheries directors with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

The fisheries biologists provided a laundry list of the lakes where you can expect to find quality bass fishing in coming years:

Lake Fork Dumont says good year classes in 2015, 2016, and likely 2017 will hopefully result in much better fishing down the road for Lake Fork faithfuls. He pointed out that the extreme drought plaguing much of Texas several years ago had a huge impact on the aquatic vegetation at Fork, and it still hasn’t recovered. “The resurgence of aquatic vegetation may very well be the key to Fork’s future to put it back in the ‘superior’ category,” Dumont said.

Lake Buchanan Van Zee says Buchanan is best known for its five-star striper fishery, but the largemouth is making some serious waves as reflected by the results of local tournaments.

“The lake recently filled up after a prolonged drought, boosting the fish habitat and prey base,” Van Zee said.

“TPWD stocked numerous Florida bass fingerlings the past two years to help improve the genetic pool and growth potential in years to come. The new-lake effect is expected to allow the black bass fishery to thrive in coming years.”

Lake Somerville

Lake Travis

Dumont says the variation in water level has been drastic in recent years—extremely low in 2011 and through mid-2012 followed by very high water in 2015 and 2016. This resulted in limited access for anglers and reduced fishing pressure over the last six years. The biologist says there has been a drastic increase in spawning and juvenile fish over the last five years due to rising water that flooded new growth terrestrial vegetation between 2014 to 2016. Over the next few years, these factors together should lead to some strong year classes of largemouth bass and crappie that haven’t seen many fishing lures.

Van Zee says Travis recently filled up after a prolonged drought, boosting the fish habitat and prey base. That factor, combined with significant Florida bass stockings the past two years, should help improve the genetic pool and growth potential in years to come.

“The new-lake effect is expected to allow the black bass fishery to thrive in coming years,” Van Zee said. “The FLW tour anglers confirmed the upcoming boost this spring when they caught hundreds of plump fish. With high catch rates and excellent fish condition, this lake is expected to be a gem in the short future.”

Possum Kingdom

Dumont says the water level on Choke remains very low, but it has seen some moderate water level increases up to 10 feet over the last two years and spurred the re-emergence of hydrilla and other vegetation along with excellent year classes of bass.

“What many anglers don’t realize is when lakes get low, the bigger fish are still there, they move offshore, suspend, and generally become harder to find and catch,” Dumont said. “As water levels rise and habitat shows up, so do these bigger fish. Anglers aren’t too far behind. This scenario is in play all over west Texas right now. Choke is ripe to be the best lake in Texas if it can fill up in the next year or two. Just add water.”

After several years in a drought-related down cycle, PK is poised to make a strong comeback.

“PK refilled in 2015 inundating a great deal of vegetation that grew on the shoreline during the drought,” Van Zee said. “TPWD, two Friends of Reservoirs Chapters, and the Brazos River Authority partnered to conduct a great deal of fish habitat enhancement, including adding artificial reef structures, brush piles, and vegetation plantings. TPWD also stocked great numbers of fish annually to give that extra boost to natural reproduction.”

The biologist says largemouth bass numbers are up and many are nudging the restrictive 16-inch minimum length limit. There is also plenty of opportunity for trophy-class fish, as bass in the 9 to 10 pound range are not uncommon.

Sam Rayburn and Toledo Bend

E. V. Spence

Dumont says both East Texas giants have seen a bump in fishing success recently. In 2015 and 2016, Toledo Bend was hot. This year Rayburn is fishing off the charts. The biologist says both lakes saw bumps in year class strength in 2015 and 2016. “As the hydrilla comes back, you’ll continue to see superior fishing at both of these lakes as these 2015 and 2016 recruits grow to larger sizes,” he said.

Van Zee said the water level jumped six feet in 2016, and the largemouth population has responded to the much improved habitat with some quick growth rates. Anglers have reported many catches in the five- to eight-pound range, and it has been only four years since the reservoir was effectively dry. “If the reservoir can hold steady or even increase in water level, we could see additional growth in an already flourishing population,” he said.

Choke Canyon Res.

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Twin Buttes Twin Buttes saw a 10-foot rise in 2016, flooding an abundance of terrestrial vegetation and setting the stage for bass revival. Van Zee said an angler reportedly caught a 13-pounder here last spring, but opted to release it instead of donating it to the Toyota Sharelunker program.

“Twin Buttes’ bass population is not growing at the same rate as those in E. V. Spence, but there’s potential,” Van Zee said. “All the ingredients are there, we just need to get another wet year with an increase in water levels, and this reservoir would take off.”

ing growth rates with good numbers reaching legal size (14 inches) in only one year.

“The fish are obviously eating well,” he said. It normally takes two years to reach legal length. Because smallmouth bass are normally slower growing than largemouth bass, it may take more time to realize the full impact the higher lake levels have had on the smallmouth population. That said, the smallmouth population continues to get better and better, and lake records are being challenged.

Smallmouth from five to seven pounds are being weighed-in at tournaments, and five fish limits of smallmouths are winning a lot of tournaments.”

Lake Lavon

Belton

Van Zee said Lavon is feeling the love of the new lake effect after refilling in 2015 following a multi-year drought the caused it to drop as low as 12 feet below conservation pool.

“The lake has produced some bumper crops of young bass in the last two years,” Van Zee said. “The low lake levels resulted in abundant terrestrial vegetation such as buckbrush and willows, which are now inundated and providing good cover and forage for young bass. We will be taking advantage of this new habitat this spring with a stocking of Florida bass fingerlings to help promote the trophy potential of the reservoir.In spite of the low lake levels, we are still getting reports of bass as big as eight to ten pounds being caught.”

“Belton produced a 13.97pound ShareLunker last spring, and the new lake conditions that produced this fish are still present,” Van Zee said. “This reservoir is resistant to drought effects because fish habitat is available even when water levels drop 10 or more feet. The lake is currently full with abundant shoreline habitat. When you consider that the reservoir also has one of the best smallmouth bass populations in the state, it is an obvious choice for any bass angler. Just remember to clean, drain, and dry your boat though, as the reservoir contains zebra mussels.”

Waco

Van Zee said Waco is a sleeper for big fish with several unconfirmed reports of Sharelunker-sized fish being caught and released in recent times.

“Waco has always been known for numbers, but quality has markedly improved and the reservoir has remained right at full pool for the past year. While numerous flood events in 2015 and 2016 limited angler access to the reservoir, all of the inundated habitat improved fish numbers and growth.”

Ray Roberts

Same story, different lake.

Van Zee said Ray Roberts had an increase in flooded terrestrial vegetation and trees since spring 2015, and the bass have responded with a vengeance.

“We recently conducted a spring electrofishing survey at Ray Roberts and weighed several five- to eight-pound fish,” he said. “We also saw above average recruitment and growth of smaller bass. The bigger fish appear to be scattered, yet relating to the new habitat available to them in four to six feet of water.”

The biologist said the lake is on schedule for a Florida bass stocking to take advantage of the available habitat.

White River Van Zee says White River Reservoir is recovering well and is another West Texas sleeper lake worth a look. The 2,000-acre lake is currently about 50 percent full with lots of flooded terrestrial vegetation.

“Anglers have reported quite a bit of success for largemouth bass including fish up to eight pounds,” he said. “Historically, the reservoir produced a lot of quality bass, but the drought put it off for a while. Most fish are caught in the ‘stick-ups’ along the river arms.

Texoma Van Zee said Texoma year classes from 2015 and 2016 have seen some outstand-

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The reservoir also produces quality crappies, catfish and walleyes if anglers want some variety.”

Alan Henry Alan Henry didn’t catch much water in 2015-16, but saw significant rise four to five years ago that gave it a badly needed shot in the arm. “Alan Henry continues to be a really good bass fishery in west Texas, and it produced another Sharelunker in March that weighed 13.34,” Van Zee said.

Hubbard Creek After years of prolonged drought, Hubbard Creek is now full, and bass that live there are faring well amid the jungles of rich habitat.

“Hubbard Creek was stocked with Florida bass in 2016, plus there was a good year class of largemouth bass produced in 2015,” Van Zee said. “Abundant forage means that growth rates should continue to be good, and the fishery is expected to continue improving in the next year or two.”

Stamford Van Zee said the lake dropped to 18 percent capacity in the early 2000s and also suffered from repeated golden algae fish kills. However, Stamford is now full and there hasn’t been any golden algae-related fish kills in the past couple of years.

“We stocked Stamford with Florida bass in 2015 and 2016, and there is lots of available habitat and forage,” he said. “Anglers will definitely want to keep their eyes on this fishery in the next couple of years.”

Lewisville Van Zee said a significant rise in water level a few years ago resulted in bumper spawns in 2015 and 2016. Not surprisingly, the youngsters are faring well.

“In Fall 2015 we had an all-time record catch rate of 217.1 largemouth bass per hour in our electrofishing surveys,” he said. “The majority of these bass were eight inches or less in 2015, but given the average growth of fish at Lewisville these fish will be reaching keeper size and leading to some fast action in the coming years. Catches of bass eight pounds and larger were good last spring.”

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Grapevine Like most lakes in DFW, Grapevine was very low until spring of 2015. That’s when big rains came, refilled the lake and changed things seemingly overnight.

“Water levels remained high for nearly two full years which has also produced strong year classes of largemouth bass,” Van Zee said.

“Grapevine is a unique fishery because it also contains spotted bass and smallmouth bass.

Catches of good size smallmouth bass have been becoming more common.”

Amistad Fisheries biologist Randy Myers of San Antonio says Amistad saw record high and record low water levels a few years ago that essentially wiped out every stitch of vegetation in the lake. The lake has since come up some, but still remains about 35 feet below full pool.

“The good thing is it has remained fairly stable around that elevation,” Myers said.

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“That has allowed the grass to come back strong and the bass have responded extremely well. It took 18 pounds to get a check-in at the Bass Champs tournament there in April, and we’re seeing a lot of 20-pound sacks. It’s not where it was in its hey day in the early 2000s, but it could get there if we could get some more water in it. It’s in great shape and just getting better.”

Medina After years of prolonged drought that sucked the lake to roughly 4.3 percent capacity, Medina saw a huge rise in late spring and summer 2015 that raised it to 75 percent full within a period of three months.

The lake was at 91 percent full in May 2017, and Florida bass stocked in the lake two years ago have flourished. If you like to catch numbers, you need to put this 5,000-acre lake on your hit list.

“Medina is a really productive lake as far as quality goes,” Myers said. “You can go there today and catch 50 bass, but they’ll be 10-13 inches with a few 15-16 inches mixed in. It’s got a whole lot of bass, but we don’t know

how big they’ll get. It’s definitely not going to have the size structure of Amistad or Falcon, though. It’s a great lake for fun fishing. It’s as good as it has ever been for numbers.”

Falcon Myers says Falcon saw some good pulses of water in 2014 and 2015 that resulted in much improved fishing in 2016 after water levels began to fall somewhat, thus concentrating the fish to available terrestrial vegetation and structure. The biologist says the bass population is still looking good, but the lake is in need of some water to flood the jungles of mesquite and huisache that have grown thick on flats and along the shorelines.

“We need some water to flood that new terrestrial growth,” Myers said. “Otherwise, I don’t expect it to get much better than it is right now. Falcon isn’t really on the upswing, but that could change if we happen to get one of those Pacific monsoon events this summer.

That would be golden.”

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6/7/17 10:37 AM

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ROWING UP IN NORTHEAST Texas offered very few opportunities for crabbing. We enjoyed pulling monster crawfish from their holes with some bacon on a string, which I guess was a bit of little league practice for the big time of crabbing.

My wife Shari is a Bridge City native and talked fondly of places like Rob Bailey’s where she spent many hours as a child catching crabs with friends and family. Over the past 18 years we have visited Bridge City and caught crabs in the bar ditches along the highway right before the “Rainbow Bridge” and down Old Bailey’s Road.

We’ve enjoyed many hours watching our children chase crabs at Rollover Pass as well. It’s such a disappointment and a shame that we may never enjoy Rollover Pass again as a recent ruling by a Galveston judge granted the county the authority to close down the pass and fill in the cut. It seems a tragedy to this writer and a travesty to allow such an iconic landmark and vacation destination to be shut down and filled in.

With the literally thousands of dollars in fishing gear I have, some of our most enjoyable memories have come from the most rudimentary of tackle— string and a bit of chicken. All you need is to tie a chicken leg, thigh, wing etc. to a string of just about any kind toss it in the brackish or salty waters near the coast and wait.

Within minutes you can feel the unmistakable tug of a blue crab. Slowly pull in the line and net yourself a crab. Repeat this process over and over. Literally we have filled a 48-quart ice chest with crabs with nothing more than a $4 roll of cotton twine and a $3 package of leg quarters.

If you find the crabs are being picky, just leave your chicken in the sun a little while, the stinkier the better. I like to let my chicken legs ripen a bit in the sun a few hours before we go crabbin’.

Be sure to wear latex gloves or wash your hands regularly as handling raw, semi-bad chicken can infect you with salmonella. I have also had great results by using my cast net and catching a few bait fish. Tie them to the line and slice them open along the midsection. Most crabs cannot resist.

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I have seen folks catching crabs using bacon and even wieners. I don’t recommend wieners as they are not very tough and come off the string too easy.

I have used umbrella nets with great success down at Rollover Pass and other places with a dock or elevated position over the water. I have tied a chicken leg to the center of the trap and set it out.

Check it about every 20 minutes or less.

I have sometimes caught as many as six to eight crabs, with three or fewer being the norm. (NOTE: It is illegal to have any crab traps in the water from February 17 to 27).

Crabs taken using a recreational fishing license cannot be sold in any way shape or form, and you must have a valid fishing license to crab in Texas. If you use traps you can only fish six traps with a recreational license. You cannot run your traps at night, and you cannot have a hook on your crab line. You must tag all your traps with your name address and date set out, and your tag is good for only 10 days. These are but a few regulations. There are dozens more.

For a complete list of regulations pertaining to crabbing in Texas coastal waters, check

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the Texas Parks and Wildlife Annual or the on-line web site.

I once took a trip to the Guadalupe River and racked up on crabs. I rented a trap from a local bait shop for a few bucks a day, bait included. I set the trap and went about my day’s fishing. That evening I ran the trap and lo and behold it was full.

Over the next few days I racked up so many crabs that we ate fried, barbequed, boiled, and even just soaked in some lemon and lime juice. The trap was made of rubbercoated chicken wire with four throats, which allowed the crabs in but not out.

Since that day I have built dozens of these traps for not much money. You can find dozens of plans for trap designs on the Internet. On several video sites you can even find great tutorials that you can watch to help you build them. Once you have a few traps, you can catch plenty of crabs with little effort.

Bait and a place to put the trap are about the only problems a crab fisherman is faced with after that.

The art of catching crabs has a lot more to do with a place to do it than anything else. I have found that almost anywhere you find

water in close proximity to the coast or a saltwater marsh, you find crabs. Some waters are better than others, but I have caught crabs in ditches that were not even 10 feet across and two feet deep.

Crabbing in Texas coastal waters is about as much fun as a family can have for almost no cost. An entire vacation can be had for a couple of hundred bucks, and that includes gas and food. You can get as fancy or as basic as you want. It’s totally up to you.

The most important thing is bring your kids and family and start building memories. This way of life is quickly disappearing.

Rob Bailey’s is a mere shadow of its once glorious self, and Rollover is slated for being erased from existence by people more worried about it costing the county some funds.

Don’t wait until these places are but a memory and the years have slipped away to try to build great memories and family bonds. Texas is a treasure trove just waiting to be opened by you.

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This shot shows the classic spiraling horns of a mature blackbuck. Notice the section of horn that has been damaged. Blackbucks spend much of their time defending their territory and sometimes dozens of females from other males. They are in a “rut” state of mind year-round when it comes to females and space.

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XOTIC HUNTING PIONEER THOMPSON Temple once called the blackbuck antelope “the most exotic of exotics”.

It is hard to argue that point.

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The Jerusalem Biblical Zoo takes part in captive breeding of the endangered scimitar-horned oryx as do other zoos around the world. These animals are hunted on Texas ranches, where there are more in existence than even in their native Africa. Many believe this exotic has been saved from extinction by the efforts of hunting ranches in Texas.

With spiraling horns, gorgeous contrasting black and white coat on the mature males and a truly wild nature, the blackbuck is one of the most beautiful and challenging introduced animals hunters can pursue here in Texas.

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COMPOSITE ILLUSTRATION: TF&G

6/7/17 10:35 AM

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Africa’s larger antelope, gemsboks, are available to hunt on several Texas ranches. A free-ranging population exists on White Sands Missile Base in New Mexico and they have also ventured onto surrounding lands.

Hunters can draw for the highly coveted hunting permits.

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Some scholars believe the scimitar-horned oryx which can appear to have one horn when spotted from a distance is the species that gave birth to the unicorn legend.

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This vintage scientiďŹ c sketching of a blackbuck antelope shows not only the male and female but the phases between juvenile and mature adult.

Young bucks will have shorter horns than their mature counterparts and a light to dark brown coat. Truly mature males have black in place of brown and will also stand a little taller than even intermediate males with large horns.

However, other antelope species are every bit as exotic as the blackbuck and are now part of the exotic hunting culture not only in Texas but other states as well.

We are about to examine these animals and give you some T E X A S

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6/7/17 10:35 AM

Bare Bones HUNTING

by LOU MARULLO :: TF&G Hunting Editor

Hunting South Dakota Merriams, Continued

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S PROMISED, THE SAGA OF my incredible South Dakota hunt continues (see Part One, in the June issue). After an unforgettable morning of hunting Merriams with no luck, we headed back through the prairie fields toward our vehicle.

Once back in the truck, my guide gave me a little tour of the countryside and with it, a lesson on the Lakota Indian culture. I have to say, I found it absolutely fascinating.

These people do not take anything that is natural on the earth for granted. At one point, Calvin explained to me that they consider a tree a living thing and therefore during certain ceremonies, they feel their own life is enhanced from that living tree.

He showed me where Indian dances and singing usually took place and I could not help but notice all the different color strips of fabric that hung on the tree limbs. Calvin asked that I would please not take any pictures.Out of respect, I obeyed his request.

We tried a few other spots, but with no luck.

So, we chose to take a break and meet up again later that afternoon.

I asked Calvin whether we could go back to our morning spot. With all those tom turkeys that we saw earlier, surely a few would come back to roost in that same area that evening.

I thought we might be able to intercept them as they made their way to the roost site. Standing on a hillside, Calvin used his mouth and made a very convincing coyote howl that immediately was answered with a distant gobble. Once again, Calvin looked at me and smiled and nodded as if to say ”today is the day.”

We circled the open field along a ridge of pines, calling for turkeys every once in a while with no response. Suddenly, to our surprise, a loud gobble came from our right. It was the 28

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same tom that was our distant gobble earlier.

We headed for a pine tree and sat down, but once there, I turned to Calvin and told him that I had no shot from this position. The surrounding grass was too high and obscured my view of the field.

The turkey sounded off again; this time much louder and much closer.

Whispering, Calvin asked whether I could make it to another tree. We crawled toward that second tree as the bird in the field searched for the hen he heard earlier. I sat up and Calvin sat behind me with his binocular.

We were not there for 30 seconds when I heard “There he is, to your left.” The tom was all fanned out and stood there gobbling, still 70 yards out. Calvin assured me it was a mature bird.

My heart sank a little when the big Merriam started to walk away, but a quiet yelp from my mouth call turned him again. He was headed right for us. The gobbler scooted under a fence and came within 50 yards of us. Calvin told me to shoot, and I obeyed.

I am not sure what the bigger display was; the turkey flopping around in the field or me jumping up and down celebrating the end of my quest for a Merriam turkey. The celebrating was followed by picture taking and reliving the hunt as we drove back to the hotel.

After packing the fan and beard of the turkey, I donated the meat to the tribe and was looking forward to seeing some of the sights in South Dakota.

This area has so much history attached to it. Not far from where we were, is the burial ground for more than 200 Lakota Indians who lost their lives at Wounded Knee. Famous Indian chiefs Red Cloud and Crazy Horse are buried on the Pine Ridge reservation as well.

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where we saw herds of wild buffalo, rams, prairie dogs, whitetail deer and mule deer.

The natural beauty of the Badlands is hard to imagine. The many crevasses caused by wind erosion are as deep as the eye can see, and the different colors on the jagged hillsides are spectacular, especially at sunset.

We spent our next night at the Circle View Guest Ranch; a comfortable bed and breakfast that provided a beautiful view of the Badlands.

A delicious “home cooked” meal was enjoyed by all of the guests as well as the family who owned the ranch.

I would be remiss if I did not include our visit to the famous Wall Drug Store en route to the airport. There, we met the owner who was happy to tell us all about the history of this unique establishment.

Starting out advertising free ice water for travelers has now grown into a huge business.

Ice water is still free today. You can also still get a five-cent coffee. This is a “must see” spot if you are headed to the Badlands. While you are there, make sure you try one of their “world famous” cake donuts. We did.

It was time to fly home with our Merriam turkey treasures and tons of memories of a superb hunt. One of the things I treasure most of all are the many friendships that developed over just a few days including my fellow journalists Jon Stokes and Gayne Young.

A big thank you goes out to Winchester for supplying the ammunition. I also want to give a sincere thanks to the Oglala Lakota Nation and Ivan Sorbel of the Lakota Chamber of Commerce for everything he did to make this hunt so enjoyable.

Special thanks to my guide, Calvin Ferguson, whose knowledge of the Merriam turkey made this a successful hunt. And finally, I would like to thank our host, Katlyn Richter, of the South Dakota Department of Tourism, without whom my dream of taking a Merriam turkey would have never come true.

Email Lou Marullo at ContactUs@fishgame.com

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Texas FRESHWATER

by MATT WILLIAMS :: TF&G Freshwater Editor

The Smartest Trolling Motor Ever Made

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NE OF THE COOLEST PERKS of this business is I often get to check out some of the latest and greatest in fishing gear and boating accessories before they go main stream. I’ve field tested dozens of rods, reels, fishing lures, batteries, battery chargers other products over the years, but perhaps the most useful tool to ever show up on my door step since the shallow water anchor is Minn Kota’s all-new Ultrex.

The Ultrex is a game changing trolling motor that made its debut last July at the ICAST 2016 show in Orlando, Florida. I call it a game changer because that’s exactly what it is. In fact, I would venture to say it is the smartest cable steer trolling motor ever made.

I’m not the only one high on the Ultrex. The motor was voted ICAST Overall Best of Show in a New Product Showcase that included more than 1,000 other products that were entered by more than 240 companies.

Big On Benefits Designed with the toughness of its popular predecessor — the Fortrex —and the brain of Minn Kota’s high tech bow mount units — the Ultrex is a distinctive asset to any freshwater fishing rig that’s big enough to handle one.

That’s because it provides a host of benefits to anglers who take their fishing seriously and don’t mind spending the extra bucks keep themselves a step or two ahead of the competition. Whether you like to fish away the bank or near it, you’re at disadvantage without one of these babies bolted to the front deck.

There’s a lot to talk about here and not much space to do it in, so let’s get right to it:

Built-in GPS The Ultrex is built with an I-Pilot GPS system that is fully enclosed within the head unit PHOTO: MINN KOTA MOTORS

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fish, retie baits, take photos, grab a drink, etc., without the worry of drifting off the spot as the result of wind, current or wave action.

Spot Lock also can be handy when fishing over shallow flats or in instances when you want hold the boat still for one reason or another. Think of it like an automatic anchor that can be used in water as shallow as one foot to 1,000 feet and beyond.

and works independently from the GPS found in your fish finder using an external heading sensor. It can be operated using the foot pedal or a supplied wireless remote.

There are two versions available. The I-Pilot Link version integrates exclusively with compatible Humminbird fishfinders and enables you to utilize a handful of extra features.

Power Steering Another feature that sets the Ultrex aside from other cable drive units is the cable is driven by a small motor enclosed by the bow guard housing. The motor is activated whenever the trolling motor pedal moves up or down.

This promotes of the easy feel and quick responses of power steering while eliminating the annoying left to right torque often experienced with cable drives when operated at high speeds. The Ultrex is so responsive that you can actually steer it with the palm of your hand.

Spot Lock On The Ultrex can do all sorts of cool tricks — automatically — with the press of a button.

My guess is bass and crappie crowds are going to love the Spot Lock feature. I know I do, mainly because it has helped me step up my offshore game big time.

Spot Lock is an electronic GPS anchor that works at any water depth or location. Once activated, the GPS creates a reference point that automatically tells the trolling motor to maintain its current position until told to otherwise.

The feature is beneficial in offshore situations because it enables you position the boat downwind, upwind or to side of a designated waypoint and

Put It on AutoPilot When the AutoPilot function is activated the motor runs at a continuous speed while maintaining its course using a compass heading. This is can be useful when fishing along channel ledges or covering water along a shoreline, because it eliminates the need for turning the trolling motor on and off.

There are two AutoPilot modes. The Advanced mode, which must be activated using the remote control, actually programs the GPS so the trolling motor will compensate for wind, waves and current to stay it its course.

If you are in the market a new trolling motor the Ultrex is definitely worth a look. It is available in 80 and 112-pound thrust models and three shaft lengths — 45, 52 and 60 inches.

Is short, this is one smart cookie.

Check it out at minnkotamotors.com.

keep it there without ever touching the foot pedal.

This allows for fishing spots more effectively because it eliminates fighting with the trolling motor to maintain optimum boat position. Spot Lock does it all for you, automatically. This allows you remove T E X A S

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6/7/17 10:11 AM

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PHOTO: CANSTOCK

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HE DINGY WATERS OF COW BAYOU WIND through the southernmost reaches of the Piney Woods and empty into the coastal marsh near the mouth of Sabine Lake.

The upper reaches north of FM 105 are lined with hulking cypress trees and are a favorite destination for an occasional bass fisherman and locals running trotlines for channel cats. Yet somehow in 2014, a pair of bottlenose dolphins found their way into this area.

One was tragically killed by poachers and the other, a younger male, got disoriented and found itself unable to find its way back to more saline waters. Eventually too much exposure to fresh water will kill dolphins.

A crew from the Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network, Sea World San Antonio, Texas Parks & Wildlife Department, Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department and NOAA rescued that dolphin. After it was deemed releasable, the dolphin was brought to Sea Rim State Park and put into the surf.

“It’s an incredible feeling to get to release a dolphin like that,” said Chris Bellows VP of Zoological Operations at Sea World San Antonio. “Once the designation is given to us that an animal can be released, we are always relieved because that is certainly the option we desire.”

But some dolphins are not able to be released.

“When a dolphin or any marine mammal has been rescued by a federally authorized organization the first goal is to get that animal back out to the wild,” Bellows said.

“Sometimes that can’t happen. NOAA receives information from veterinarians and care givers, and if the recommendation is to provide long term care, NOAA makes that decision.

“Once the decision has been made to care for an animal for the rest of its life, the goal is to place it at a facility with like species. NOAA sends out a questionnaire to these facilities asking if they would be willing to care for the animal. They also check to make sure certain criteria are met. At SeaWorld San Antonio we currently have five dolphins that were placed with us by NOAA. Our goal is always to get the animals back out to the wild, but we will provide a home for those that can’t be returned.”

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What if I Find a Stranded Marine Mammal?

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f you find a stranded marine mammal, here is what you should, and should not, do:

• Call 1-800-9-MAMMAL • DO NOT return the animal to the sea.

• Follow instructions from TMMSN staff until the rescue team arrives.

• Keep people and pets away from the animal.

• Only one or two people are needed until expert help arrives.

• Do not leave the animal.

The Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network (TMMSN) is a non-profit organization

created in 1980 to further the understanding and conservation of marine mammals through rescue and rehabilitation, research and education.

The TMMSN consists of six regions along the Texas coast, which provide a coordinated response to all marine mammal strandings along the Texas coastline.

The TMMSN receives no state funding and receives only limited institutional support in the form of grants. TMMSN relies on the donations of time and funds from generous supporters to continue it’s mission dedicated to rescue, rehabilitation, research, and education. For more information go to tmmsn.org

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Of the six ESA-listed whales, only endangered sperm whales are considered to commonly occur. According to NOAA, a resident population of female sperm whales and whales with calves are sighted frequently in the Gulf of Mexico.

Cuvier’s beaked whales are elusive and rarely seen at the surface, which is why their population status is unknown. These whales vary in coloration from rusty-brown, dark gray, or tan. They prefer deep water, avoid shallow coastal areas, and are known to travel in groups of two to seven.

Bottlenose dolphins inhabit the Gulf of Mexico year-round. They are blue-gray with lighter sides and bellies and have a robust body and head. This species is the most commonly observed dolphin in near shore waters, and travel alone or in groups up to 20. These are the dolphins seen around ferries and in our bay systems.

Atlantic spotted dolphins prefer tropical to warm-temperate waters over the continental

My wife Lisa and I got to meet several of these amazing animals and were blown away by the level of care and attention given to them.

While visiting Sea World San Antonio we also learned of a manatee that ended up in a power plant canal in Trinity Bay. Coastal fishermen frequently see dolphins, but very few have seen manatees on the Texas coast, although they seem to be moving into the state with greater frequency.

The truth is that Gulf waters are rich in marine mammals. Although many of them are rarely seen by the public, their conservation is important to the overall health of the Gulf ecosystem.

According to NOAA, 28 different species of marine mammals are known to occur in the Gulf of Mexico. All 28 species are protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA), and six are also listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) (sperm, sei, fin, blue, humpback and North Atlantic right whales).

“Zip,” a dolphin rescued in South Texas is now being cared for at Sea World San Antonio. Sea World is heavily involved in not only marine mammal education but also rehabilitation.

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shelf, edge, and upper reaches of the slope.

These dolphins have variable spotting. They are very active at the surface and often breach while feeding. Group size is usually between five and fifteen.

Risso’s dolphins are typically found around the continental shelf edge and steep upper sections of the slope. They are light gray and often exhibit extensive scarring. These dolphins travel alone or in groups of up to 100 and may be observed with other species.

With this being the second article in our “Wild Gulf” series, the goal is to raise awareness to the presence of marine mammals and give anglers the opportunity to be a watchful eye, so to speak.

No one enters these animals’ domain more than fishermen. In many cases anglers have helped locate and monitor injured marine mammals.

Anglers have been at the forefront of the conservation world with groups such as the Coastal Conservation Association working heavy with sport fish and habitat, but have also been very interested in aiding all aquatic species.

Marine mammals are some of the most interesting creatures in the world. If we open our eyes and pay just a little more attention we might just come across a rarity or get a big surprise.

I will never forget the first time I saw a pink albino dolphin near Lake Calcasieu in Louisiana. Neither will I forget seeing a beaked whale while fishing 80 miles offshore in a party boat out of Galveston. It’s our duty to make sure these creatures can thrive in the waters that we know and love.

PHOTO: CHESTER MOORE

6/7/17 10:36 AM

Texas SALTWATER

by CALIXTO GONZALES :: TF&G Saltwater Editor

Black July

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ULY WAS USUALLY A SPECIAL month for me because I would attend ICAST and marvel at the different and vast examples of innovation that the fishing industry had to offer.

These days, my health prevents me from venturing too far from home (although I guarantee that I will be at ICAST next year, so save a seat for me at dinner, Ron Stallings). I have to now focus on other avenues for my innovation.

For example, this month I will look at colors.

Red was the primary color

summer and fall on the Texas Coast for years, with most offshore focus directed at the red snapper fishery. When the National Marine Fisheries began to tighten groundfish regulations and impose shorter and shorter seasons for the vermillion fish, many anglers up and down the coast took notice of the black and blue speedsters that swarmed warm Gulf waters.

When July rolls around, big blackfins become really thick offshore starting around 150 to 180 feet, You can pull up on a shrimper on the way out to troll and catch 15 to 20 very quickly.

These are larger than average fish, averaging a brawny 17 to 20 pounds and a few brutes pushing 25 to 30 pounds. Blackfin numbers become so thick that offshore party boat captains switch their attention from red snapper after Federal Season is closed and begin longrange and overnight trips for blackfin and yellowfin tuna.

PHOTO: PUBLIC DOMAIN

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blackfin tuna. Small reels like the Avet LX reel spooled with 60-pound monofilament and an 80 to 100-pound fluorocarbon leader work well. Spinning reels in the 6000 to 8000 size, spooled with 40-pound braid work well, too.

Spinning tackle also allows you to drop down to lighter leaders and smaller hooks if the blackfins get picky about things.

If the easy score is not available around the anchored shrimp boats, anglers can go long and spread the field for Lone Star blackfins.

The floating oil and NG rigs such as Boomvang and Perdido Spar that grace the Continental Shelf and offshore canyons are reasonably accessible to Texas offshore anglers and are crawling with blackfin tuna in summer.

Southern passes such as Aransas, Mansfield, and Brazos Santiago are close enough to the rigs for anglers to plan day trips. Fishermen headquartered farther on the Upper Gulf Coast, where the curve of the Gulf Coast makes a more north-northwestern turn and away from the Shelf and Canyon rigs, usually make overnight runs.

You can just get into the blackfins on those overnight trips that some party boats offer. The rigs are thick with them, with a lot of the bigger ones hanging off them. It isn’t uncommon to score over 100 a night around the floaters.

The most effective technique for night games with Texas footballs is fishing with Knife and Butterfly jigs. Blackfins as well as yellowfins blitz the frenetically worked pieces of metal as they dart through the black water. Effective colors are blue, green, and yellow (which also fluoresce after exposure to light). Diamond jigs are also effective, especially if tuna are down deep.

Texans loves their football, whether it is an early start before the day’s action begins, or a night game when the anglers can really light up the scoreboard. The price of admission is a big bag of chum, a collection of jigs, and a willingness for some hard contact.

Texas’s blackfin tuna fishery is a yeararound proposition, but the peak season is from July through fall, when they congregate to spawn. The Western Gulf Coast’s relatively close proximity to the Aluminos Canyons, where a variety of tuna and billfish species spawn, draws the fish; and the opening of the Gulf shrimping season means that flotillas of shrimp boats dumping bycatch provide structure and cover that concentrate these schools within accessible range for anglers.

They come in pretty close in July. If you find a shrimp boat in deep water (150 foot or more), you should find some blackfins around it. Even if the (shrimper) crew isn’t culling, the blackfins will usually stay around the boat.

Most captains and offshore anglers usually make a quick stop first thing in the morning at any shrimp boat anchored at the correct depth, especially if the boat is culling bycatch after a night’s trawl. It doesn’t take very long to see whether any predatory activity is taking place around the boat.

If no blackfins turn up in short order, or the sharks and schools of bonitos are too thick to negotiate, move on and look for another shrimp boat, or move further offshore to troll.

The playbook is straightforward and familiar to tuna anglers. Draw the fish by chunking diced baitfish into the current ,and once they are feeding, send out a chunk with a hook such as a 3/0 Mustad 39950.

Bury the hook in a chunk large enough to float in spite of the hook, and let the bait drift back as far out as possible until a fish grabs it, then put the reel in gear and start winding. The fish will hook itself in almost every case.

If you aren’t able to score blackfins around the shrimp boats early in the day, return to the boats later in the day when the action from other species settles down. The blackfins will hang around in the shade of the boat and will respond to chunking (only don’t wake the shrimpers that are sleeping below deck. They can be a salty lot if you aggravate them).

Fishing around the shrimp boats also means that anglers can use lighter tackle for T E X A S

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HERE IS A RULE IN WRITING: NEVER WRITE about dead friends or dead dogs. Well get ready, because I am going to break that rule right now, and I think you will enjoy the result, especially if you are a dog person. If not it will still be a catharsis for me.

Sweety and she was a yellow Labrador retriever. She was

REPORT: NEWS 38 u TF&G OF THE NATION

originally a gift from my daughter and son-in-law, to replace

Reported by TF&G Staff

I recently lost my friend of 15 years. She was called

HOT 38 u TEXAS SHOTS

a Brittany that had died.

I don’t remember where they got her, but I doubt that

Trophy Photos from TF&G Readers

her breeding was one of champions. I didn’t expect much out of her; I had been given “good dogs” before and mostly they were just pains in the neck. But I made happy noises at

DEPT. OF 40 u TEXAS DEFENSE

the gift and more out of boredom than expectation began

by Stan Skinner and Dustin Ellermann

her training.

42 u TEXAS DEPT. OF

When I got her she was just a long-legged, big-footed,

CONSERVATION

gangling, ball of happiness, wrapped in a blond shock of hair

by Will Leschper and TPWD

thick enough to stop bullets. Her approach to life was what

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gave her the name. She never met a person she didn’t like

FORECAST

and could be a real bother if someone deigned to scratch

by Eddie Hernandez, Mike Holmes, Mike Price, Chris Martin, Mac Gable, Tom Behrens, Sally Black and Cal Gonzales

her ears.

I taught her to sit, stay, come, heel, and fetch. She especially liked to fetch and would chase a dummy as long as you

54 u TEXAS FISHING

had arm left to throw it.

HOTSPOTS

She was just about nine months old when dove season

by Tom Behrens, Dustin Warncke and Dean Heffner

rolled around, and I took her along on the first day of the season. I thought it would be a good outing, but expected

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nothing from her, she was just a puppy after all.

I was sitting on a dirt bank over a tiny water hole. Sweety

Tides and SoLunar Data

was sitting, rolling in the dirt, scratching, sniffing at all the strange scents, and doing all the things puppies do, including, I thought, not paying attention.

When the first dove of the season came winging over, I managed to kill it stone dead. It fell about 25 yards away on open ground. I was about to go get it when I noticed Sweety was no longer rolling around in the dirt at my feet. Instead she was gone in a flash, and in less time than it takes to tell about it, she was headed back with the dove in her mouth.

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Sweety, begging to go hunting.

back porch and quietly died. It had been a fantastic day, with 25 or 30 coveys flushed, and I guess Charlie decided it was as good a time as any to go west. Thus, Sweety came into my life.

By the time quail season rolled around, I knew that Sweety was a good retriever, but had no idea how she would do on quail.

Still, she would be handy to have along for finding the birds we shot in dense cover and couldn’t find—and South Texas is almost all thick cover.

On the first trip of the season, we were trundling through the thick, thorny brush.

Sweety was instinctively working in front of us, but I knew she didn’t know what she was doing.

Soon, we flushed a covey of bobwhites.

We knocked down a couple and Sweety found and retrieved one of them. Then, apparently having figured out what we were doing, she began to really work back and forth, in front of me.

Suddenly her attitude changed. With her nose held high, instead of on the ground, it looked like she was following a scent trail

She brought it to me and gave it to my hand, just like she did the rubber dummy we played with. Then, all the puppy gone, she sat down and started watching the sky.

I was shocked, but ecstatic. We shot a few more doves, far less than a limit, but she retrieved every one, including one that fell into a nasty tangle of thorns. From there it only got better. As the season wore on, and other seasons after that, if a dove flew over that I thought was just out of range and refused to shoot it, she would look up at me with reproach.

A couple of years before Sweety came to us, a outfitter friend leased a ranch for deer hunting. Upon closer examination, he found that the place was absolutely stuffed with quail, both blues and bobwhites.

He asked me whether I would guide some quail hunters, and I agreed. My pay was to be able to hunt quail and deer when he didn’t have paying customers. I had a very good Brittany named Charlie and I hunted him regularly.

Then one day, Charlie came home from one of our hunting trips, lay down on the 36

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in the air. In a minute or two she flushed another covey. This time we killed three or four and she found all of them.

From then on it was Katy bar the door!

I just kept an eye on Sweety and told the hunters when to get ready for action. Even hunting the thick brush of South Texas we seldom lost a bird. Our best day, I believe, was 31 different wild coveys. Almost every dog man that hunted with me offered to buy Sweety, but she wasn’t for sale at any price.

I hunted Sweety steadily for more than 10 years. When she got too old to run after quail I would take her out a few times a year to retrieve doves. Finally she got too old to do even that, and I retired her to the house and yard.

Still, if I walked out the gate with a shotgun, she tried to follow me, and looked terribly dejected when I wouldn’t let her come along. She still had the desire, but just didn’t have the legs. Whereas in the past, she would leap into the back of the pickup, I now had to pick her up and put her in. I know how she felt, because I am getting to that age myself.

The other day I was expecting company PHOTOS: STEVE LAMASCUS

6/7/17 10:55 AM

when I heard a cacophony of noise in the front yard. I went to the door, and saw my two friends standing outside the fence, yelling and pointing. I looked where they were pointing and saw Sweety and my Jack Russell terrier, Max, dancing around a gigantic rattlesnake.

I tried to call them off but they were too intense. I ran in the house, grabbed the .410 shotgun I keep by the front door for such emergencies, and shot the snake.

While I was busy with that, Sweety ran into the house, went to the bedroom, and lay down on her bed, just like she always did when she was tired of being outside. I kenneled the terrier, threw the snake over the fence, and then checked the terrier for a bite. He seemed fine. Then I went to the bedroom and looked at Sweety. She, too, appeared okay.

I had my meeting with my friends, which took maybe 45 minutes, saw them to their vehicles, and went back into the house.

When I walked into the bedroom I could tell instantly that all was not right with Sweety.

She was no longer lying on her bed. Instead, she was standing up, trembling, and I could

Ready for action.

see blood on her foot. Looking more closely I saw that the snake had bitten her on the chest, right over her heart.

I immediately called a friend who is a veterinarian and rushed Sweety to him. He gave

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her several shots, and told me that was all he could do. I took her home, made her as comfortable as possible and waited, hoping she would be okay. She died about 11 that night.

I measured the snake at five feet, five inches, not stretched or pulled, but just lying on the ground. It was at least as big around as my not inconsiderable forearm.

It was the second biggest rattlesnake I have ever seen, and I have seen a lot of rattlesnakes. I accept there are a few six-foot rattlesnakes, but I have never seen one.

Well, my friend is gone, and now you know the story.

Just remember that the next time somebody gives you a free dog, it could well be the dog of a lifetime. I don’t think I will ever have another hunting dog. I am too old and too broken down to follow one through the brush, and I know that any dog I got could never measure up to Sweety.

I do know, however, that if dogs do go to heaven, Sweety will be there, smiling and panting and wagging her big rudder of a tail.

Maybe they will also have quail there. You never know.

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The NATIONAL

Isn’t This a Fine Pickerel

News of TEXAS

Wildlife Department (TPWD), chain pickerels are usually olive-green or yellowishbrown on the back and sides, shading to a creamy yellow underneath.

There is a distinctive pattern of interlocking dark bands on the back and sides that is reminiscent of a chain-link fence. During their first year, they may reach 12-14 inches in length.

Growth slows somewhat during the second year when they may attain lengths of 1.5 feet. In Texas they typically reach sizes of three to four pounds and about two feet in length.

The chain pickerel is distributed along the Atlantic coast of North America from New Brunswick and Nova Scotia south to Florida.

DID YOU KNOW THERE ARE PIKE right here in Texas?

Well, sort of.

The chain pickerel, a close cousin of both the northern pike and muskellunge (musky) can be found right here in local river and bayou systems, especially in the Sabine drainage.

Years ago my Dad caught one in a cast net and brought it home to show me before taking it back to the water to release.

As a little boy who constantly read Field & Stream and Outdoor Life, I was enamored with the idea we had a pike right here at home. It seemed like you could not pick up a copy of those magazines without seeing a huge pike or musky.

According to the Texas Parks &

The species is found in the Mississippi River drainage from the Gulf Coast as far north as Illinois and Indiana, and may be found in Gulf drainages as far west as the Sabine and Red rivers in Texas.

I have found them in Adams Bayou in Orange County, and they are extremely abundant in the shallow, bottomland areas around Deweyville although most are small.

This is on the south end of their range.

Virtually all of the river and lake systems in upper East Texas have then and in fact Lake O’ the Pines has what many consider to be a trophy chain pickerel fishery. Pat Mayse has some hefty fish as well and produced the state record in 1996.

It weighed 4.75 pounds, measured 23.75 inches and was caught by angler Robert Finch.

Another intrigu-

BASS

WHITETAIL

Lake Palestine

Brady

Guide Ricky Vandergriff shows off a fat post-spawn bass that was boated and released on Lake Palestine.

Thirteen-year-old Brady Smaistria took this 8-point, 161-pound buck at 100 yards with a Savage .243. He was hunting with his dad, Brian, and his Paw Paw on their ranch at Brady.

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Chain Pickerel

ing freshwater fish is the American eel, a species that occasionally surprises trotline fishermen. These eels have a fascinating life history.

According to TPWD, adult eels spend most of their lives in freshwater, although the amount of time may vary among individuals.

At some point, however, adults leave their freshwater habitat

SHARK Port O’Connor Eight-year-old Derrick Crumley caught this 34-inch shark while fishing with his Dad and Grandpa in Port O’Connor.

NEWS PHOTO: PUBLIC DOMAIN

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Study Recommends More Access to Outdoors

and move toward the Sargasso Sea. By the time American eels get close to the coast they are about six inches in length.

The species begins to develop coloration only when the young reach near-shore areas.

Once they reach freshwater, females continue to migrate deep inland as far up rivers and tributaries as they can. Males remain much closer to coastline areas. Eels tend to hide under rocks during the day, and venture out only at night to feed.”

The males and some young eels are caught at the jetties and at certain times of year in the surf. The biggest, however, are in the river systems. The state record is 6.45 pounds and measured 42 inches. The world record was 9.25 pounds.

When venturing into the Gulf of Mexico, we can also find moray eels, a species with large, sharp teeth that can grow up to eight feet in length. These are found around reefs and oil rigs and are rarely encountered by fishermen. Divers occasionally see them, especially around the Flower Gardens reef out of Galveston.

We talk in some form or fashion about reds, specks, flounder, crappie and bass in every issue of Texas Fish and Game. It is nice to be able to look at some of the lesserknown species that swim in our waterways.

Pike in Texas?

That is pretty cool.

THE NATURE OF AMERICANS National Report: Disconnection and Recommendations for Reconnection reveals important insights from a study of nearly 12,000 adults, 8- to 12-year-old children and provides actionable recommendations to open the outdoors for all.

In Texas, researchers interviewed more than 200 children, surveyed more than 2,000 adults and conducted six focus groups in Dallas, Houston and San Antonio, according to the report.

Here are some insights into the Texas data: • 37 percent of Texas children have more fun playing outdoors than indoors.

• 49 percent of children in Texas have the same amount of fun indoors as outdoors.

• Three-quarters of Texas adults rate nature as one of their more enjoyable interests.

• Almost all children interviewed in Texas like being outdoors exploring woods and trees.

Get more information on the study online at natureofamericans.org.

—by Chester Moore

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TEXAS Dept. of

:: Self Defense :: Tactical :: Training Tips

by DUSTIN ELLERMANN and STAN SKINNER

:: Gear

Testing CZ’s P-10C

Republic, is perhaps best known for the CZ-75 semi-auto pistol. The CZ-75 is a well-regarded, double-action pistol with a double-stack magazine and an ambidextrous, frame-mounted safety (which in my view, is greatly superior to the slide-mounted safety found on many modern double-action pistols).

CZ’s new pistol is the P-10C, chambered in 9mm Luger and .40 S&W. The “C” designates it as a compact sidearm, and it is, with an overall length of a hair over 7-1/4 inches and a width of 1 ¼ inches. Shipments to dealers began only a few weeks ago, and initial response seems to be enthusiastic.

Unlike other CZ semi-auto pistols, the P-10C is striker-fired, with no external hammer.

Three-dot front post and rear notch sights are dovetailed into the slide, and generous front and rear serrations make it easy to open the slide manually.

Metal parts have a durable nitride finish to withstand the wear associated with daily use.

The frame is described as “fiber-

EVERY YEAR, THE NRA ANNUAL Meeting (NRAAM) provides a showcase for hundreds of new guns and shooting accessories to whet the appetites of America’s gun enthusiasts.

In the coming months, I hope to try out some of these new toys, and I’ll let you know what I find out.

It is no secret that a major segment of the shooting industry is increasingly dominated by the tactical and self-defense market, especially concealed carry handguns and the AR-15 platform. One of the more eagerly anticipated new products is a striker-fired, polymer frame handgun by Ceska Zbrojovka Uhersky Brod, better known by its American wholly-owned subsidiary, CZ-USA. This company, which is based in the Czech

Dot Torture Training

gun skill level. Standard practiced distance is three yards for beginners, five yards for average shooters, and seven yards for experts.

The Dot Torture Drill is an easy When I was first intro50-round indicator of your fundamenduced to this drill I thought tal handgun skills best shot cold. it would be a breeze. Without a time limit I could easily shoot a one-hole group from humbled at seven yards. seven yards with a full-sized tactical pistol.

The Dot Torture drill begins with five However under the stress of a shot timer rounds slow fire. Easy enough. The next is with my compact carry pistol I’m frequently five single shots each fired from the draw testing your reaction and draw time.

Dots three and four require a draw and shot in each circle testing your transitions.

Dot five is a set of single-handed drawn and fired shots.

Targets six and seven require double taps and transitions. Dot eight will slow

HOW OFTEN SHOULD AN ARMED citizen train? What is a good measure of your handgun skills?

I found the Dot Torture drill to be a valuable indicator of fundamental handgun skills. It also can be quite humbling. You can download targets in a standard paper size bright orange targets with large text. These targets consist of 10 two inch circles and have instructions outlining each course of fire.

This is a 50 shot drill, and it is best practiced cold as an honest indication of hand-

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reinforced polymer,” which I do not doubt. I’ll take their word for it.

Ergonomics in general are well thought-out.

The P-10C has an ambidextrous slide release, magazine release and takedown lever. The magazine release and the takedown lever worked as advertised, but not so with the slide release. Try as I might, I could not release the slide unless I depressed both levers at the same time.

The P-10C comes with three interchangeable back strap inserts, so shooters can tailor the grip to their preferences. Both the fore strap and back strap have patterns of tiny (fairly sharp) projections to provide a firm grip surface. The side panels have similar, but less aggressive surfaces.

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PHOTOS: TOP RIGHT, STAN SKINNER; BOTTOM LEFT, DUSTIN ELLERMANN:

6/7/17 10:56 AM

The trigger guard is large enough for easy access even when the shooter wears heavy gloves. It is undercut at the rear to allow as high a grip as possible.

In front of the trigger guard, the underside of the frame is grooved for picatinny compatible accessories.

Without an external safety on the P-10C, the shooter’s trigger finger must depress a blade on the front of the trigger to fire the weapon.

An internal firing pin block provides additional security against accidental discharge.

I was fortunate enough to be among the first to receive a P-10C for test and evaluation (T&E) shortly after dealer shipments began.

Field stripping the P-10C was fairly easy according to instructions, after a couple of false starts. Field-stripped, the P-10C breaks down into four components: frame; slide; barrel; and recoil spring (with its internal guide rod)—no small parts to keep track of.

Reassembling the P-10C was equally easy.

I tried to get the trigger to operate without depressing the blade mentioned above, but no luck. Your finger must depress the blade on the front of the trigger, or the gun will simply not fire. This test gun has a two-stage trigger with about 3/8 inch of travel followed by a tiny hint of creep before let-off.

According to my trusty Lyman trigger pull gauge, trigger pull averaged just short of five

pounds for three shots.

With an empty magazine in place, the P-10C weighed an eyelash short of 26 ounces. A full load of Remington FMJ’s (15 in the magazine and one up the pipe) brought total weight to a half ounce over two pounds—not bad!

At the range, the P-10C performed flawlessly with FMJ ammo by MagTech and Remington as well as Cor®Bon +P 115-grain hollowpoints.

No stoppages of any kind occurred during my range session.

Accuracy was equally good with all three brands of ammo.

The P-10C was not intended to be a match

pistol, so I set the targets at seven yards. I chose this distance for two reasons. First, almost all situations that require the use of deadly force occur at this range or closer. Second, if an assailant is farther away than seven yards, it is hard to show in a court of law that you reasonably felt that your life was in imminent danger, and you had to shoot in self-defense.

Although I don’t get to practice much, my lefty version of a two-hand Weaver stance yielded several 15-shot groups you could cover with your hand. However, loading a 15-round magazine to full capacity is frustrating and slow.

Occasionally, I have seen magazines that have a way to depress the follower to make loading easier. I’d like to see that feature on the P-10C’s magazines.

Despite the fact I am a great believer in the .45 ACP, the P-10C chambered for 9mm Luger is a fine sidearm for concealed carry. However, there are a few improvements I would like to see.

The P-10C is a good buy with an MSRP just over $500.

—by Stan Skinner

you down as you fire five rounds with your weak hand. Then finally you practice not only drawing your firearm but speed reloads with Dots nine and ten.

I found that my cold gun fighting skills aren’t near as impressive with my compact Walther PPS when shot cold after a few weeks of not hitting the range. The honest truth is that from seven yards I couldn’t quite tell which hole was meant for which dot at the end of the my 50 round run. My next run with a full sized H&K VP9 from five yards showed a near perfect score.

From my latest Dot Torture training I’ve come up with a few suggestions: 1. TRAIN! Shooting is a perishable skill. I’ve heard other experts say that you CONTINUED ON PAGE

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TEXAS Dept. of :: Edited by WILL LESCHPER

Red Hot Snappers

E

VERYONE SEEMS TO BE seeing red over snappers in the Gulf of Mexico.

State fisheries officials claim that the majority of red snappers caught by recreational anglers come from federal waters while federal officials with fisheries oversight claim the exact opposite. Each side also has their own data to back up their assertions, for whatever that’s worth.

In the most stunning move they have ever made, NOAA Fisheries and the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council enacted a three-day season for private anglers targeting red snappers in Gulf waters in 2017.

That season ran last month—June 1 through 4—and was the shortest recreational snapper season in history. For comparison, the federally permitted for-hire component season will run 49 days in federal waters, continuing this month.

NOAA Fisheries, citing an overage of

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should expect your shooting skills to decline one percent per day. If you are only training quarterly, expect to begin from ground zero every time. And remember, you don’t have to have live range practice to keep your skills in check. Dryfire training is free and very beneficial. If you simply run the Dot Torture Drill dry before going live you will see a vast improvement, although it will not be an accurate indicator of your skills in a defensive situation.

more than 100,000 pounds of red snapper in last year’s recreational quota, pointed to numerous factors for its historic decision.

Among these were noting more efficient recreational anglers and highlighting state frameworks, including those in Texas, that aren’t compliant with federal regulations.

It should be noted that the bag limit in federal waters remains two fish that are at least 16 inches long, while the daily framework in Texas state waters — where fishing is allowed year-round — is four fish which must be at least 15 inches.

However, more than 95 percent of the red snappers landed in Texas come from federal waters, according to Texas Parks & Wildlife Department figures. Most of that catch—about 80 percent—comes from head boats, which take numerous paying clients offshore.

In Texas, federal waters begin nine nautical miles from the coast and extend to 200 nautical miles.

Mark Ray, chairman of CCA Texas, testified recently before a Congressional hearing on federal management of the red snapper fishery in the Gulf, calling it a “man-made fishery management disaster.”

“By any measure, the red snapper fishery

in the Gulf of Mexico should be held up as a shining example of proper management and good conservation,” Ray said. “But as this hearing demonstrates, that is not the case.

We aren’t here today to highlight a conservation success story.

“After decades under intense federal management, this is the best that anglers can hope for—a three-day season in federal waters in 2017. I don’t think anyone would declare the current situation a success. All we ask is for is a system that allows all stakeholders the best opportunity to enjoy and use those resources.”

Although fisheries officials and fisheries conservation groups continue to promote their own opinions, NOAA Fisheries also is promoting its enforcement of red snapper fishing regulations, and dropping the hammer on those found to be in violation of catch figures.

“Last year’s red snapper-focused enforcement activities resulted in NOAA Enforcement taking an enforcement action on more than 120 separate violations, with most occurring during a time when the federal season was closed,” according to an agency report. “In response, the NOAA Office of General Counsel has doubled the

of bringing full sized pistols to the range more often because they are easier to shoot.

Compact handguns carry easier, but require much more skill to shoot accurately. If you carry a small gun, train with that small gun. If you find your skills lacking with it you might want to upgrade your daily carry to something you will be more comfortable with in a pinch.

3. STRESS: Just as there is stress in a defensive situation, we must induce some sort or stress into our training time. The simplest way to do this is to shoot against a timer, or better yet alongside another shooter. If you wish to up the ante get your heart rate up with some quick exercises before each set.

Whatever you do, train well, pray hard, shoot straight, and stay safe.

—by Dustin Ellermann

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per fish—up to the first 20 fish—associated with each violation. For more serious violations involving a larger number of red snappers, where there is a history of past violations or other extenuating circumstances, penalties may be assessed at a much higher amount, according to the report.

There may be no long-term solution to red snapper fisheries management in the Gulf, but all groups involved are doing their best to promote their message. Let’s hope for the sake of one of the most important fisheries for Texas anglers, that those messages ultimately end up in some real teamwork for the sake of future conservation.

Here are the 2016 Gulf of Mexico recreational red snapper landings, by mode and state, according to the Gulf Council.

• Florida, Private Angling: 1,711,156 pounds; Federal For-Hire: 772,587 pounds • Alabama, Private Angling: 2,018,210 pounds; Federal For-Hire: 834,343 pounds • Mississippi, Private Angling: 351,753 pounds; Federal For-Hire: 147,319 pounds • Louisiana, Private Angling: 956,403 pounds; Federal For-Hire: 21,188 pounds • Texas, Private Angling: 150,379 pounds; Federal For-Hire: 358,567 pounds Source: NOAA Fisheries.

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penalty for red snapper violations in the commercial and recreational fisheries this season.”

For red snapper violations that involve fish caught in federal waters during a closed season, that are over the catch limit, under-

Email Will Leschper at WillLeschperOutdoors@gmail.com

sized or filleted at sea, the penalty now starts at $500 per violation, plus an additional $50 Giant salvinia hitching a ride on a trailer.

An Invastion of Giant Proportions IN NOVEMBER 2015, AN OBSERvant fishing guide reported the first outbreak of invasive giant salvinia on Lake Fork. Thanks to his keen eye and a rapid response from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department aquatic invasive species team, after just two years of treatment Lake Fork appears to be giant salvinia-freeBut many affected Texas lakes don’t have that happy ending. Due to its ability to rapidly reproduce, once giant salvinia gains a significant foothold in a lake “it’s a genie that can’t be put back in the bottle,” said TPWD inland fisheries biologist Kevin Storey.

“It’s important to realize that giant salvinia is not something that you can dismiss – it can potentially be in a system long-term,” Storey said. “Not only is it a danger to our ecosystems, giant salvinia management creates a lot of cost for us as a conservation agency.”

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Giant salvinia is currently found in 17 Texas lakes, with the most expansive infestations occurring at Caddo Lake, Toledo Bend Reservoir, Sam Rayburn Reservoir, Lake Striker and Lake Texana. Since 2015, TPWD and partners have treated 17,294 acres at these lakes with a combination of floating booms, mechanical removal, boat ramp closures, herbicide applications and the release of giant salvinia weevils, a natural biocontrol for the plant.

With cooperation from anglers and recreational boaters, this harmful plant can be prevented from spreading to new locations.

In addition to reporting sightings of the plant, boaters can make sure their equipment isn’t giving giant salvinia a free ride from lake to lake, as was the case with the Lake Fork outbreak.

“The giant salvinia at Lake Fork was likely introduced from a boat trailer carrying it

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from another infested lake,” Storey said.

“Someone was either unaware or unconcerned that it was on their boat trailer, and that inattention created a huge headache for others who use that resource.”

According to TPWD Boater Education Manager Tim Spice, stopping aquatic invasive species from spreading starts with properly cleaning, draining and drying equipment, boats and paddlecraft. Spice said this is an especially important precaution for boaters to take if they will be visiting different bodies of water during the same season.

“Cleaning and draining your boat before you leave the lake is easy, only takes a few minutes, and is very important for protecting lakes,” Spice said. “It could make a difference in preserving the opportunities our children and grandchildren will have on the lakes we love.”

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Coastal Focus: SABINE :: by Capt.

EDDIE HERNANDEZ

The Heat is On at the Rigs

rigs located just off the coast of Johnson Bayou, in southwest Louisiana. Within minutes of the boat cut at Sabine’s East Jetty lies some of the best summertime trout fishing worldwide.

The cost of a Louisiana fishing license, which is required, is a minimal investment when compared to the payoff that can come with fishing these rigs in July. To say that the fish can really stack up there in the summer months is truly an understatement.

Fishing the rigs, or “rig-hopping” begins to gain momentum in late spring/early summer and seems to peak around the end of July for specks, reds and an assortment of other species. It’s not uncommon to tangle with big ling, triple tail, Spanish mackerel and other types of serious line strippers, but it’s the speckled tout that keeps most folks coming back.

Once July rolls around, you can rest assured I will be either at, or in the very near vicinity of, the short rigs, weather permitting.

The only thing that can stand in my way, and only briefly, is if I happen to stumble upon a

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UMMER HAS ARRIVED IN full force here on Texas’s uppermost coast and the heat is definitely on.

The arrival of one of our hottest months here on Sabine means that if you haven’t already been fishing the short rigs, you should probably put that on your “to do” list for the very near future. The already good fishing there is only going to get better as we go through this month and the temperature continues to rise.

If speckled trout is on the menu tonight, you owe it to yourself to make the green water run to either the six- or twelve-mile

nice weed line on the way.

Several other local anglers share that same mentality, and for good reason. As good as the fishing can be at various points in the Sabine ecosystem, there’s just something about fishing the rigs on a hot July day. It’s as if this is where we’re meant to be.

One of the best things is that it’s relatively easy to fish the rigs sucessfully if the fish are present. Just like anywhere else, they’re either going to be deep, suspended, or near the surface. If you can’t find them at one rig, move on to the next one.

On good, calm days, your trolling motor will be all you need to stay on the fish. There are times, however when a rig hook or anchor will be your best bet, depending on the wind and current. Any soft plastics or other artficials that work for you at your favorite spots will work just fine here too, as will live baits like finger mullet, shad, croaker and live shrimp.

Most of the action is close to the legs of the rig, but it doesn’t hurt to keep an eye on your sonar for pods of bait or any unseen structure that may be just off the rig itself.

When the heat is on in July, give the short rigs a try if speckled trout is on the menu.

THE BANK BITE LOCATION: Surf, McFaddin Beach SPECIES: Speckled trout, redfish, and jacks BAITS/LURES: Spoons, soft plastics, live shrimp, and finger mullet BEST TIMES: Mornings and evenings especially with moving tides

Email Eddie Hernandez at ContactUs@fishgame.com

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6/7/17 10:56 AM

Coastal Focus: GALVESTON :: by Capt.

MIKE HOLMES

July Heats Up

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OASTAL FISHING IN JULY offers more action than any video game, and the Galveston area is as good a spot as any.

The current state record tarpon, for example, came from a Galveston beachfront pier.

Big fish in general are often available targets in mid-summer, with sharks and heavyweight sting rays also roaming close to shore.

A bit farther out, these fish will be mostly replaced by species big in sport and excite-

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ment, if not in sheer size. kings, jack crevalle, and ling will be found around rigs, over natural bottom structure and along weed lines and color changes.

The always eager to please little tunny— known almost universally as bonito—are as good a fighting fish for their size as any that lives. For those who can and will venture farther, wahoo, black fin and yellowfin tuna, plus marlin are more common than many realize along and past the 100 fathom curve.

In between these extremes, snappers— despite the tight limits and seasons, groupers, and amberjacks provide sport and excellent table quality.

The fishing opportunities of the Texas Gulf are NOT unlimited, however, with the most limiting factors being man-made.

Pending new regulations will require charter boats to “log in” by radio when they leave the dock. They will also be required to radio a notification when they return. In addition, they must purchase and maintain an electronic monitor that will allow them to be tracked the whole time they are on the water.

Catch restrictions will remove much of the enjoyment—no matter how much we profess to love the sport. Not so much in Texas, but elsewhere in the Gulf, it is not uncommon for charter boats to also have commercial fishing permits to help them try to make a living. Recently some charter boat operators locally have begun operating as commercial boats with a different wrinkle, charging customers to catch fish to be sold CONTINUED ON PAGE

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6/7/17 10:56 AM

Coastal Focus: MATAGORDA :: by Contributing Editor MIKE PRICE

Bring Your Snorkel Gear

marine organisms. Feeding on all this were yellow and blue wrasses; sergeant majors; strawberry groupers; queen and French angels; and damselfishes.

Will was fascinated by the larger fish life.

A school of 50 Atlantic spade fish parted when he took a breath and dived down to 15 feet, but they stayed close enough for him to touch. Several sinister looking barracuda kept their distance, while a group of six or eight jack crevalles made their way through the pilings.

A school of at least 300 mangrove snappers circled the outside of the rig, while 30 lookdown fish, with translucent almost seethrough skin cruised by. The water became cloudy at about 80 feet, where there was a thermocline.

Will saw a very large red snapper come out of that murk layer and swim up to 50 feet, then retreat back to the cover of cloudy water.

At one point we all snorkeled out of the rig, and five lings ranging in size from four to five feet came up to within five feet of us.

This was followed immediately by a six-foot hammerhead shark checking us out from a distance of about 20 feet.

I have been diving and snorkeling in the Gulf of Mexico since 1967 and have seen many sharks, but I don’t have a single first hand story about a shark harming a diver or snorkeler. Nevertheless, we swam back inside the rig’s structure. Sharks don’t like to swim inside rigs because of the slight electrical current that exists there.

While we were snorkeling, Brian caught some small blue fish using Spec Rigs. He put them on double hooks and dropped the bait about 20 feet below the boat. Soon one of the lings was hooked.

We watched from the surface inside the rig as Brian lifted the severely bent rod.

Then we ducked our heads underwater and saw the ling heading for the bottom. It was fascinating to see the ling pull down and dart sideways, then look at Brian trying to work the fish up to the side of the boat. After the

I

F YOU FISH OFFSHORE, YOU may want to consider adding snorkeling to your day’s activities. The underwater life off the Texas coast is every bit as prolific and colorful as anywhere in the world.

My son, Andy and his boys, Alex, 14, and Will, 16 recently joined me, Kathy Temple and Brian Tulloch aboard Brian’s boat, Gold Nugget in the Gulf of Mexico. Light winds from the north provided perfect conditions to go fishing and snorkeling.

Will and Alex had snorkeled in Hawaii, but not the Gulf of Mexico. They live a short walk from Barton Springs in Austin, often go snorkeling there and are very comfortable in the water with snorkeling equipment.

We attached the boat to Brazos rig A19, then Andy, Alex, Will and I went snorkeling while Brian and Kathy dropped weighted lines and floated other lines off the stern. The visibility was 100 feet, and at first there was so much to see that the boys were almost overwhelmed, but soon they started to focus.

Alex looked at the growth on the structure. Red, and yellow sponges were on display their colors enhanced by the sun shining through the water. He watched a barnacle project its tentacles in search of plankton.

An adjacent barnacle had been vacated by the original animal and now housed a twoinch-blue blenny with red dots and bulging red eyes.

The curious blenny poked its head out, but when Alex got too close it withdrew. A brilliant orange cup coral emerged from its home and opened up like a flower to filter feed.

Every inch of the structure was covered by 46

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Atlantic spade fish on an offshore rig that is covered with marine life.

fish sounded many times Brian and Kathy finally landed it.

I owned Houston Scuba Academy for many years and taught many people how to snorkel. My recommendations for safe, fun snorkeling in the Gulf of Mexico are to get the proper equipment at a specialty SCUBA store and take a snorkel class.

The equipment should include a properly fitted mask that you have tried in the water, a snorkel that is easy to clear, fins that fit properly, and an inflatable life vest. The life vest can be the type of inflatable vest that is worn for safety on boats, or an inflatable snorkeling vest.

After you have taken lessons, you should practice snorkeling in a pool, lake, or river.

When you go offshore, after attaching the boat to a rig, test the current. If it is really strong, do not go snorkeling.

If there is no current or it is very light, put a line with a buoy about 50 feet off the stern so that snorkelers who get pushed past the boat with a current can swim to the line and pull themselves in. Swimming with the fish and observing the abundant marine life off the Texas coast will add an exciting new dimension to your offshore adventures.

THE BANK BITE MATAGORDA BEACH SURF FISHING: On many July days, calm, clear, bait-filled water is on Matagorda Beach. You may want to sink a rod holder in the sand, put a fresh dead or live shrimp PHOTO: MIKE PRICE

6/7/17 10:56 AM

Focus: GALVESTON t CONTINUED FROM PAGE

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at a fish house at the end of the trip. If the customers want fish of their own, they must buy them.

The jury may still be out on the complete legality of this technique, but if they are fishing for Highly Migratory Species (HMS)— tuna, marlin, and shark, particularly—new regulations may soon require adherance to the same Coast Guard required equipment that must be carried by strictly commercial vessels.

This includes EPIRBs, survival suits, special safety flares and vessel inspections for those boats fishing for HMS species even if they fish strictly as charter boats. This will happen unless actions by groups such as the on one or two hooks above a four-ounce weight, cast to the second sand bar, and settle into a comfortable chair. Then you can enjoy your favorite beverage until your reel sings and your rod bends.

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National Charter Boat Operators Association (NACO) are able to separate those boats permitted as strictly recreational charter vessels from those wishing to fish commercially

THE BANK BITE LOCATION: The playing field in July is vast and varied. The surf teems with warm weather aquatic life, both bait and prey species. Inshore, the bays offer specks, reds, flounders and more, and salty tides move fish good distances up costal streams.

Beachfront piers and rock groins as well as jetty passes provide a means for anglers on foot to venture some distance offshore—much farther than even the best long distance cast could reach.

SPECIES: Reds and jacks, sharks and tarpon will be in the surf and passes enough to make fishing for

Or you may want to wade out to the second sand bar and cast artificial lures or live shrimp under a popping cork. Chances are you will have the thrill of catching fish using either approach.

them very worthwhile. King mackerel might also be within reach. Speckled trout and flounder fill out the summertime hit parade.

BAIT: Live small baitfish will catch just about anything and are especially effective when sized to the intended quarry. Live shrimp will be available most of the time, and there should be no shortage of fresh dead bait of all types—shrimp, squid, mullet, and other bait species.

BEST TIME: The big difference between night and day is the temperature. Early and late are only surpassed by fishing at night. Wading during the day can pay off in the right spots at the right tide, but heat and sun are not only uncomfortable, but can be dangerous.

Email Mike Holmes at ContactUs@fishgame.com

Email Mike Price at ContactUs@fishgame.com

6/7/17 10:56 AM

Coastal Focus: MID COAST :: by Capt.

CHRIS MARTIN

The Fish Get Hot, Too

choose to wade-fish, find it so very important that they leave the dock prior to dawn and be situated in their first “spot” of the day before the sun even thinks about peeking above the horizon. Some of this month’s best trout on record have come from such pre-dawn conditions right at first light. Many artificial enthusiasts know this part of the morning as the time just before your eyes are able to see your top water lure zigzag its way back to you as you retrieve it by what almost seems to be sheer instinct alone. It can be both the most relaxing and the most exciting time of the day, especially when you happen upon a strong trout bite atop the dark shallows that have been cooled over the course of the nighttime hours.

Shallow flats areas may get extremely warm under full-sun conditions of daylight hours, making them way too hot for most any game-fish, or for any fish for that matter!

But those same waters cool under the cover of darkness, making their temperature quite attractive to various species of baitfish that may be searching for a cool alternative to the summertime heat, and also for protection from the depths during nighttime hours. It is for this reason that wading anglers should always make it a point to begin their initial wade each morning in shallow, shallow water. More times than not, baitfish can be found accumulated in numbers in ankle to knee-deep water before sunrise. You won’t be able to see them due to the darkness, but you can often shine a bright light across the water’s surface and watch the madness begin as the schools of baitfish attempt to flee as if they had been discovered doing something wrong.

At this early hour of the day, anglers will want to try to match the natural pattern of the baitfish, so keep that in mind. There will be no light in the sky overhead, so everything will probably appear to you as being very, very dark, even the color of the water. This is a great opportunity for you to hook into a “big gal” roaming the shallows eating her mullet breakfast, so tie on a mullet-imitating top water the likes of a She Dog, or equiva-

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EPENDING ON THE WIND situation, the month of July along the coastline of Texas can be downright miserable. If the high temperatures don’t get you, the heat index will! The same goes for the fish - they get hot, too. That’s why July is one of those months when many anglers, especially those who

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lent, and toss it as far as you can in each direction until you get a reaction. It’s still dark at this point in the morning, so a darkcolored lure should produce results, as well as (believe it, or not) a bone or white-colored top water - the silhouette of both the black top water bait, and the white bait, will portray a vivid outline to the trout below. Keep throwing your top water baits until the sun has risen into the morning sky and is shining directly upon the water’s surface (you’ll know when to stop because you’ll probably stop getting hits on your surface walker).

Spend the rest of your morning following the bait. What does that mean? Well, as the sun continues to rise, the shallow water of the flats will only continue to get warmer.

Consequently, the baitfish will begin migrating to cooler surroundings, meaning deeper water. And, what follows the baitfish? That’s right, the trout and the redfish, naturally! So you, too, want to follow the baitfish. If you happen to be wading in “trout-green” water, tie-on a brilliant-colored plastic tail and toss it into deeper water. Cast the tail from a 9 o’clock to 3 o’clock pattern out in front of you as you zigzag from shallow-to-deep and then deep-to-shallow again. This allows you to thoroughly cover all of your current real estate. If you don’t find the bite, you may wish to make a slight move until you once again discover bait activity to be plentiful.

Whatever the reasons may be, this past spring and early summer have been much more productive over that of the past few years, so we should not anticipate the month of July being any different. Remember to apply plenty of sunscreen, wade early, hydrate often, and have as much fun as you possibly can while staying safe. Until next time, tight lines to all.

Contact Capt. Chris Martin at bayflatslodge@gmail.com or visit bayflatslodge.com

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6/7/17 10:56 AM

Coastal Focus: ROCKPORT :: by Capt.

MAC GABLE

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WAS HUNGRY FOR BREAKFAST and didn’t have a trip. My wife was out of town so I headed for a local restaurant.

The coffee was hot and migas sounded right up my alley. As is sometimes the case, someone recognized my truck as I parked (that’s how we identify people here via their trucks or if you’re a guide, via your boat). If you want to roll incognito just buy a new truck or boat and no one will know who you are.

Anyway, as I sat down, before having any life enriching caffeine, the couple across the way said “Captain Mac, we have a bone to pick with you!”

Millions of galaxies, hundreds of millions of stars, and I’m just a speck on one, not even a blink really, so what could I have done to these folks? The clients had been out with a guide and quickly relayed their displeasure.

It was 9:30 a.m., so I surmised they fished the previous day and something had happened. I was mistaken. They had fished this day and something was wrong.

My coffee showed up, and before I knew it I had guests at my table.

“You want me to just move you to his table?” the waitress asked them.

“Ugh,” I thought.

“Yes please,” said the lady.

Well I hate to eat alone, I thought, trying to be positive. “Fishing was slow I take it.”

“No, not all,” she said as they sat down.

“We caught our limit of trout, and then the guide took us back to the dock. We are now here early enough to have breakfast with you. We voiced our concern to him but his response was ‘I fish for trout nothing else.

When we limit out we are done.’”

“So,” she said, “ten fish, two hours max and 550 dollars. Would you like to know his name?”

“ Millions of galaxies, hundreds of millions of stars, and I’m just a speck on one.

“

The Specialist

not native to Rockport we do live here now and know there are more than trout in these waters.”

“Yes ma’am,” I replied.

She chimed in “After all that’s the beauty in fishing down here, at least for us. Is this normal for guides now days? They specialize in a certain species, and when that species limit is caught the day is over?”

“That ma’am is the question YOU need to be asking prior to booking a guide. The good thing here is you have some fresh trout to take home. It sounds like the guide knew right where the fish were and the bite came quick.”

“We didn’t want to just catch, we wanted to fish!” the couple responded. “Do you fish that way?”

“No ma’am, but I know some guides do.

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In their defense, some clients don’t have a problem fishing that way. It’s a matter of aligning the right guide with the right angler.

“Right or wrong that responsibility falls on the client because they are paying for the services,” I told them. “That said, I make it a point to describe a typical day of fishing when I get inquiries from new clients.

“Most of my clients are repeats so they are very familiar with my style of fishing. I try to give an eight-hour day which spans from the time we leave the dock until their fish is cleaned. I am old school so I target multiple species unless requested otherwise.

“Honestly at times I do envy guides like the one you went out with, but I could never fish like that unless my client asks me to.

“I hear statements all the time, like ‘I limited out and was done by 8 a.m.’ or ‘I had fish cleaned by 9:15 a.m.’ When I hear this, my immediate thought is I hope your clients were okay with that otherwise they may have been cheated out of a day on our beautiful waters.

“I guess they make statements like that to stroke their manhood / womanhood. It’s hard to know. It has very little to do with fishing prowess and more to do with luck where conditions, timing and their clients fishing experience is concerned.

“I know and have known some great fishermen and none of them would be willing to bet their livelihood that they could guarantee catching only a certain species of a certain size by a certain time on any given day. They need to tone down the self-promoting attitude and get a clue.

“Luck is what makes it fun, no one likes a braggart, NO ONE! A good fishing guide ups your percentage of catching fish and is damn thankful when luck shines his or her way.”

That was more than I had intended to say the whole day.

“Then you do find fault with these guides?” she asked.

“No I do not. I am sorry you had a bad experience, but the fault is yours for not vetting the guide properly. That doesn’t mean looking at their website. If you buy a product

“No ma’am, not especially.” I got it anyway.

Their food was getting cold as they continued, and I hadn’t ordered yet. “What questions had you asked the guide before booking him?” I asked.

“Just if he was having any luck, and he said ‘yes he’d been catching trout.’”

I quickly ran down my standard list of guide questions one of which is: When does a typical day’s fishing begin and end with you?

“Well,” the lady piped in, “while we are

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6/7/17 10:56 AM

Forecast: ROCKPORT decision is yours.” So my counseling ended.

The couple went away, not very happy, but definitely wiser.

Guide specialists are nothing new but over the past five years or so we are seeing it more and more. Why? because there is a market for it, or at least a perceived market.

Some guides specialize based on the time of year—when the reds are biting, they fish for reds, same for trout, black drum, flounder, etc. Other specialists simply don’t fish when their particular species is not in these waters or is not biting.

Seldom will the specialist go after multiple species in a single day; if it happens, great, but their focus is usually a particular species.

When it’s caught, they feel their job is done.

Further, many guides nowadays have other livelihoods and don’t have the time to be an expert on all species, which makes vetting even more important. The guide specialist usually is not a dishonest person, and they are not out to short change or mislead anyone. Their services are simply a product of the market. If the market is there, they and their services will be there too. It’s your nickel; spend it wisely.

that doesn’t live up to or fit your expectations DON’T buy it again and let others know about your experience for nowhere is word of mouth more alive and well than in the guiding industry.

“Every person and that includes every guide has a right to decide what their time and services are worth. Fair or not fair, the

• • • THE SUMMER IS ALIVE AND WELL here on the Texas coast. Hot Hot Hot! Dehydration and heat stroke are a real possibility especially for us mature folks.

Cuts and abrasions can get infected rapidly during the hot summer months. Waders and other confined clothing such as wading boots etc. can harbor some bad and lethal bacteria so clean thoroughly.

COPANO BAY: Croaker free-lined is a good choice on Lap Reef. Early morning is usually best. Copano Reef is a good spot for trout using free-lined live shrimp. Shellbank Reef is good for reds and black drum. Use finger mullet on a light Carolina rig for reds and fresh dead shrimp under a silent cork for black drum.

ARANSAS BAY: Find some keeper trout off Jay Bird Reef with a free-lined croaker being the best choice. Thompsons Toe Heads are a good spot for sheepshead using cut squid and very small Kahle hooks free50

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lined. Grass Island Reef is a good place for reds using cut mullet on a Carolina rig. Cast into the grass and resist reeling in until you get a hit.

ST. CHARLES BAY: Bird Point is a good place for reds using finger mullet on a light Carolina rig. Wades off Hail Point can produce some nice reds and trout using free-lined shrimp. Bartell Island is a good spot for black drum and flounders using mud minnows free-lined or on a light Carolina rig.

CARLOS BAY: Drifts across Carlos Lake using soft plastics in new penny and silver mud colors are good for trout and reds.

Cedar Reef is a good spot for reds using mud minnows or finger mullet free-lined. On high tide fish the tops of the reef. At low tid,e fish a few yards off the edges.

MESQUITE BAY: Wades close to Cedar Point using croaker are good for trout. There are a few sharks in this area and some gators, so keep stringers easily detached. Some reds are in Beldon Dugout area. Use cut menhaden on a medium Carolina rig. Wades on the east shoreline of Brays Cove are good for trout using Berkley Gulp Shrimp under a rattle cork.

AYERS BAY: The pocket just off Ayers Island is a good spot for reds in the early morning using cut mullet under a popping cork. Catch sheepshead on the north shoreline reefs with fresh dead shrimp free-lined; very small Kahle hooks are the best choice.

THE BANK BITE GOOSE ISLAND: Wades off the Goose Island State Park pier to the cut between Aransas and St. Charles Bay is a good spot for trout. A popping cork and shrimp work well here as well as does new penny Jerk Shad. Be respectful of boat traffic as this cut is the main egress between these two bay systems.

Contact Capt. Mac Gable at Mac Attack Guide Service, 512-809-2681, 361-790-9601 captmac@macattackguideservice.com

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6/7/17 10:56 AM

Coastal Focus: ARANSAS/CORPUS :: by Contributing Editor TOM BEHRENS

Flounder Gigging at Night

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OOKING FOR A WAY TO catch fish and beat the summer heat?

How about some flounder gigging?

While most people are home in bed, the die-hard flounder angler is just getting started. Captain James Parbst is a dedicated flounder gigging guide and fisherman. He is so good at it that when not guiding other anglers, he gigs commercially for Groomer’s Seafood in Corpus Christi.

“We always get a limit; sometimes it might take a little bit longer.”

My first experience with nighttime flounder gigging happened many years ago when my family and I were new to the Texas coast.

I had a fishing buddy who wanted to indoctrinate me into gigging.

We left the launch ramp in the San Antonio Bay area when the sun had already set on the horizon, and it was getting dark.

He said we were starting a little later than planned, but no problem. He knew where we were going.

He didn’t have any electronic guidance systems on board his boat. He was navigating on dead reckoning, and soon we found out we were lost. We did locate some islands where we decided to walk the shallow shoreline water.

I was in the water with lantern and gig, making sure to slide my feet on the bottom, looking for the outline of a flounder. What I remember most about our trip was the mosquitoes gigging me even with the strongest repellent spray applied over every inch of available open skin.

Captain Parbst said a dark July night can add up to a great flounder adventure along the banks of Aransas and Corpus Christi

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Flounder vs. Stingrays:

bays.

“Some nights we will work a bank and you won’t see anything for hours,” said Parbst.

“Then you’ll start seeing them. Go back to the exact same bank the following night, and they are there at sunset, just no specific pattern. They have their spots and locations where they will normally show up, but other than that, as far as time-wise, there is no pattern to them. They will show up sooner or later.”

Parbst’s normal floundering trips start about 9 p.m. “Normally we will have a three or four fish limit by midnight,” he said. “At times if we are missing fish, it can be two or three o’clock in the morning. My boat doesn’t come in until we have a limit, or the anglers say they’re tired, and want to come back in.”

One of his favorite spots in the winter months in Port A is the area around Mustang Point, but in July you need to get back along the flats, such as the Shamrock area and Wilson Cut. Fishing for flounder, there are two ways to do it. There’s the old way where you get out of the boat with a light and start shuffling along the banks, with gig ready—what I was doing—or Captain Parbst’s way.

“I have a custom rigged-out boat, looks like an oversized Jon boat with a bunch of bright lights on the front,” he said. On the front there’s a broad deck on which he stands and steers the boat. On the back is a big air motor with a giant prop.

“The reason for the big air motor on the back is because we will be in water that is real shallow, 4-5 inches of water,” he said. The air motor can take us places that are hard to or impossible to get to. When we see a flounder lit up on the bottom, we just lean over the rail and gig ’em. We cover a lot of ground.”

“You might get you a couple while walking, but you are not going to smoke out a limit on foot.”

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“If you’re walking the bank, don’t forget the stingray shuffle,” Parbst said.

The “stingray shuffle” for those who have never heard the term is simply shuffling your feet instead of making steps. Stepping on a stingray usually equals getting stuck.

Bumping one while shuffling typically scares them away.

Clear water is a must. If the water is dirty start looking for another location. Parbst said another popular place for floundering is up along Hwy. 361 between Aransas Pass and Port Aransas. It’s a good walking bottom.

“It’ll usually have sand, shell,” he said. “Leave the muddy bottoms alone. If you run into tall grass you might as well get out of there.

Flounder will not lie in tall grass.”

When you find a flounder, he is just going to be lying there waiting for you. “You can come within an 1/8 of an inch if you don’t touch him,” Parbst said. “When you get that gig placed perfectly above him, right behind the head, right behind the gill plate, you just thrust the gig. If you gig him in the tail section, eighty percent of the time he’s going to flop off the gig.”

Skeeters???—“I don’t see a lot of them when fishing from my boat because the propeller on the engine takes care of the mosquitoes I run into,” he said. “The only time I have trouble with mosquitoes is when I get back to the fish cleaning tables.”

Oh yeah, back to my flounder adventure.

When the sun finally came up, we found out we were exactly where my buddy wanted us to be, but we never found the flounder. I did break off a huge speckled trout while wading the banks in the morning, casting soft plastics for trout. My flounder trip wasn’t a complete bust. I did have a fish story to tell.

Email Tom Behrens at ContactUs@fishgame.com

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6/7/17 10:56 AM

Coastal Focus: BAFFIN BAY :: by Captains SALLY & AUBREY BLACK

A New Beginning

however, is that the bay has come full circle in its cycle of life. The conditions now remind me of the first time I fished on Baffin Bay, with crystal clear waters and beautiful grass meadows.

Welcome back, Baffin Bay. Because of all of the new grass holding crabs and shrimp, it appears that big redfish have taken over Baffin Bay. Whether fishing the back of the bay, the Cayo del Grullo, Laguna Salada, Alazan and all places in between, the unbelievable emergence of redfish everywhere has been a very welcome sight.

Even the “Ghosts of Baffin Bay” (our name for the really big reds from 40 to 60 inches that inhabit the deep waters of Baffin Bay), have been showing up frequently, giving anglers a super pull and a great picture. Dr. David McKee says that these monsters of the deep are 50 to 60 years old. That’s incredible to think about. These giant redfish have been lurking about in Baffin Bay for a long time.

Top water lures can produce some great action in the early mornings along shorelines filled with bait. Try the “One-Knocker Spook”, the “Skitterwalk” and the “Super Spook Jr.” in variations of white, pink, silver and chrome. A sure bet will also be a 4-inch Saltwater Assassin Sea Shad in light colors rigged on our signature, “Black’s Magic” 1/32 ounce jig head with a #1 hook.

You can find it on the Baffin Bay Rod and Gun website, Roy’s in Corpus Christi, or Tackle Town in Rockport and other tackle shops that cater to saltwater anglers.

Light colors have always been the key on Baffin, including white, and all variations, whether straight tail or paddle tail. The five- inch Saltwater Assassin “Die Dapper” in a color called “Snowstorm’ has been tearing up the big trout all year. The very light jig head lets the plastic work more naturally along the bottom, which in turn entices more strikes from big fish feeding there.

The well-known “Rocks of Baffin,” which in essence, act like a coral reef, are holding bait and all kinds of fish, including good, solid keeper trout, big reds and lots of black drum. Whether you drift the deeper rocks or wade the shallow ones, the Rocks of Baffin are a great place to start

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HIS SUMMER, BAFFIN BAY IS a shining jewel of trout-green water, crystal clear shorelines and grass growing in abundance.

This new beginning for Baffin Bay has been long awaited and highly anticipated. Baffin Bay has been living up to her reputation for producing some really big trout recently, and that trend will continue into the summer months.

Stalk shallow and early for some really nice Baffin Bay Big Girls! It seems that, with the lack of a winter, everything is running a month or so late. So, for that reason, it’s still “prime time” on Baffin Bay for the trophy trout seeker.

All summer long, bait is in real abundance.

With the emergence of the new grass on all of the shorelines, you will find lots of blue crabs, shrimp, glass minnows and pin perch too. It’s a veritable smorgasbord for all fish living in Baffin Bay. When I moved to Baffin Bay from Rockport in 2009, the entire bay was clear, even in the middle. All of the rocks were visible and there were meadows of grass, filled with fish. Then, there was a slight freeze in 2011, and a very windy spring. What followed changed everything, including our styles of fishing.

The drought began to set in, and it spawned a stubborn brown tide that lasted almost five years. Everyone evacuated Baffin Bay, but, Captain Black and I were totally invested there, so we worked very hard to discover the recipe for success under those conditions.

Our number one instinct was to look for active bait, but then after a lot of really hard fishing, we discovered that all of the really big fish were in knee-deep water, or even less. The results were incredible, with 2013 and 2014 being two of the best years we’ve ever had for big, trophy trout on Baffin Bay. The most exciting thing about this summer, 52

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for a fresh fish dinner.

Drift across them tossing a Cajun Thunder popping cork with an 18-inch leader under it, tied onto the 1/32-ounce jig head. Screw a 4-inch chartreuse Gulp “Swimming Minnow” on the hook and toss it down wind as far as possible. Pop that cork loud and get ready to set the hook quickly. Nothing on the rocks can resist this set up.

Summertime is a fly fishermen’s dream on the shorelines of Baffin, the Upper Laguna Madre, the Land Cut and the Nine-Mile Hole.

Stalk the super shallow edges for cruising or tailing redfish, black drum or a laid-up big trout lurking in the grass or sand pockets. These shallow water fish just can’t say no to a #4 Clouser in white or small white crabs tossed to the “dinner plate zone.”

One of the greatest seasons for fishing on Baffin Bay has begun. The bounty is large and diverse, so focus on shallow edges in the early mornings for big trout. Then, stalk super shallow shorelines or sand for redfish and black drum while sight casting with a fly rod or conventional tackle.

Wear a lot of sunscreen and drink a lot of water. When the fishing day is done, if you are staying with us at Baffin Bay Rod and Gun Lodge, you can grab a cold one and jump in the pool for the perfect end to the perfect day on the water.

The “new” Baffin Bay Rod and Gun Lodge is a great place to stay for your adventure of a lifetime. We have the best guides on Baffin Bay and a fantastic staff, including Chef Adam, who produces some very delicious food. BBR&G sleeps 20 people and we can’t wait to show you how beautiful everything is at “The Last Best Place on the Texas Coast.

Contact Capt. Sally Black at 361-205-0624 Email: Sally@CaptainSally.com Web: www.BaffinBayRodandGun.com Facebook: Baffin Bay Rod and Gun Twitter: @CaptainSally Instagram: baffin_bay_rod_and_gun

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6/7/17 10:57 AM

Coastal Focus: LOWER COAST :: by Saltwater Editor CALIXTO GONZALES

Dawn Patrol

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HERE IS A MONOTONY TO summer fishing in Texas. Trout and redfish have settled into their summer patterns and anglers can pretty much find them moving around among the same areas all through summer.

You have the usual suspects—the Drum Boat, the Color Change, Holly Beach, and south Bay. Maybe you’ll catch a black drum, or a sheepshead or mangrove snapper for a little variety.

Most anglers don’t complain that the fishing serves up the same dish day, day out.

Most are pretty glad they catch the fish they do. It sure beats coming home sun-burnt, stinky, and broke, with nothing in the cooler but melted ice, right?

Still, I hear from readers all the time who want to know whether there is something else to do on the Texas Coast.

If your desire is a bent rod and a screaming drag— and a cooler full of fillets is secondary, you might want to try Brazos Santiago Pass on a calm day for a little Dawn Patrol. A morning troll might just whet your appetite for something different.

No telling what you’ll run into. On some days, you might find some streaking kingfish prowling the clean water a series of calm days pushes close to the beach. Other days, it might be pods of arm-length Spanish mackerel blitzing schools of baitfish in the swells.

Jack crevalle are always roaming the shorelines in search of trouble. Anyone seeking a good brawl can appreciate these maulers. Sometimes you’ll find king-sized snook or tarpon out there.

Trolling the surf line doesn’t take very specialized equipment. A typical angler can get along quite nicely with typical bay tackle.

The typical seven-foot bay rod with a 2500-

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They tend to track high up in the water, even on the slowest of trolls.

Another lure with intriguing possibilities is the Shimano Waxwing, which was designed for fast retrieves. Its erratic darting action could prove to be strong medicine in a trolling application.

The key to trolling the Boca Chica surf line is going slow. Keep your boat around low no-wake speed as much as you can. Let your offering out 30 to 50 yards behind the boat and barely pop her into gear. If you are fishing more than two anglers on board—including the helmsman—it may be most practical to have only one or two lines out at any given time to avoid tangles from running fish.

Before heading out or back in, take a look around the Good Bye buoy. You never know when a big ling or a tripletail may be hanging around. The cobia will eat just about anything you offer them, whereas the tripletail may be a touch finicky.

For the latter, a Live Target shrimp—or the real thing—could be a good offering.

Keep your drags battened down, though. If one of these bruisers wraps you around the anchor chain, the fight could end quickly.

Safety should always be a priority. If the seas are too rough, or there is a promise of high winds in the forecast, it might be smarter to stay inside the pass and look for fish in all the regular spots.

Also, be mindful about how far south you troll; the Mexican authorities are nowhere near as diplomatic as Americans. If you should unintentionally cross into their territorial waters, you might lose your boat.

Make sure you fish far enough off the beach that your boat doesn’t get pushed into the surf, and never, NEVER shut your motor off. If your motor has been balky, don’t even consider coming through the pass.

Being different shouldn’t be dangerous.

sized spinning reel or casting reel is fine.

Make sure that your reels are fully loaded with quality line; you’d be amazed at how quickly a king or a big jack can dump a spool.

If you think you might run into kings, smacks, or even cero mackerel (that mingle with the Spanish), then you may want to pack some wire leaders. The coated, black braided wire leaders available almost everywhere are fine, but I prefer to make a short trace (three to four inches) of coffee-colored wire twisted straight onto my lure or hook. It’s the same rig I use casting from jetties, and I’ve found that it doesn’t seem to adversely affect how trout or other leader-shy species hit.

If you are fishing for smaller species, you’d be amazed how effective the same lead head jig/plastic tail combination works for trolling. On a very slow troll (no-wake speed), a lead head tracks straight and will sink in the water column.

Shad tails, paddle tails, and especially curly tail grubs have a lot of action on the troll. The much-maligned Alabama rig is ideal for this type of fishing, especially since its origins are in the larger Umbrella rigs that are popular in offshore trolling. Chartreuse patterns work well, but patterns with silver or gold metal flake or foil in them are especially effective.

Fishermen who want to focus on larger species such as kingfish, jacks, and even snook and tarpon, should turn their attention to swimming plugs or even large spoons.

Medium and large broken-back plugs such as the Cotton Cordell Jointed Redfisn, Jointed Bomber Long A, or Sebile Magic Swimmer are ideal for these applications.

I have long preferred the Strike King King Shad when trolling or casting around the Brazos Santiago jetties. There is no reason they shouldn’t work slow-trolled along the beach.

Large spoons in the ¾ ounce to one ounce range are also great. They provide tremendous flash and wobble when pulled behind a boat. You may need to use a one-ounce trolling or bell sinker in front of a spoon, though.

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FISHING HOTSPOTS Saltwater: n Upper Coast n Mid Coast n Lower Coast Freshwater: n Piney Woods

Freshwater: n Prairies & Lakes n Panhandle n Big Bend n Hill Country n South Texas

UPPER COAST

GPS COORDINATES are provided in two formats: “Decimal Degrees” (degrees.degrees) and “Degrees and Minutes” sometimes called “GPS Format” (degrees minutes.minutes).

Examples (for Downtown Austin): Decimal Degrees: N30.2777, W97.7379; Degrees and Minutes: N30 16.6662, W97 44.2739. Consult your manual for information specific to your GPS device.

Matagorda Surf is Up for Specks

by TOM BEHRENS

Capt. Williams LOCATION: Galveston Offshore HOTSPOT: OBST-01-08 GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Tarpon or Shark BEST BAITS: Natural bait CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-256-9260 fishing@pdq.net www.galvestontexasfishing.com TIPS: “Just about any natural bait will work…frozen or live.” Capt. Williams

LOCATION: East Matagorda Bay HOTSPOT: Boiler Bayou GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Down South soft plastics with either a 1/8 or 1/4 oz. jug head CONTACT: Capt. Kendall Kersh 979-248-1871 kendallkersh@gmail.com www.puresaltadventures.com TIPS: “I usually start off throwing pretty fast. If I can get them eating it, I will continue to work the bait fast. I can cover a lot of water that way. If I’m not getting a lot of bites, then I’ll slow it down to get bait closer to the bottom.” Capt. Kersh

LOCATION: Galveston Trinity Bay HOTSPOT: Channel Marker 72 GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-256-9260 fishing@pdq.net www.galvestontexasfishing.com TIPS: “Most of the fish will be out in the middle of the bay around the Houston Ship Channel, around the spoil banks from about Marker 50 to Marker 70.” Capt.

Williams

LOCATION: East Matagorda Bay HOTSPOT: Cleveland Reef GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Down South soft plastics with either a 1/8 or 1/4 oz. jug head CONTACT: Capt. Kendall Kersh 979-248-1871 kendallkersh@gmail.com www.puresaltadventures.com TIPS: “A lot of times it doesn’t seem to matter much on the speed of retrieve. Even if they are holding on the bottom, they will come up a foot or two to eat a bait. East Bay isn’t that deep.” Capt. Kersh

LOCATION: Galveston Trinity Bay HOTSPOT: Channel Marker 44 GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-256-9260 fishing@pdq.net www.galvestontexasfishing.com TIPS: Rigging and bait: Live shrimp, about four feet deep, under a popping cork

LOCATION: Galveston Offshore HOTSPOT: Barr’s Reef GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Tarpon or Shark BEST BAITS: Natural bait CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-256-9260 fishing@pdq.net www.galvestontexasfishing.com TIPS: “We move up and down along the beach. We may go 20 miles one way, and then 30 miles the other way, looking for shrimp boats culling their by-catch.”

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LOCATION: Galveston Trinity Bay HOTSPOT: Pasadena Reef 1 GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Speckled Trout

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BEST BAITS: Strolling croaker CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-256-9260 fishing@pdq.net www.galvestontexasfishing.com TIPS: “Troll a croaker behind the boat, rigged with a 1/4 to 1/8 oz. egg sinker above the swivel, with about 20 inches of leader line tied to a 2/0 croaker hook” Capt.

Williams LOCATION: Galveston West Bay HOTSPOT: San Luis Flats GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live Croaker CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-256-9260 fishing@pdq.net www.galvestontexasfishing.com TIPS: “The constant influx of moving tidal water through San Luis Pass makes this best location in West Bay.” Capt. Williams LOCATION: Galveston West Bay HOTSPOT: San Luis Pass GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-256-9260 fishing@pdq.net www.galvestontexasfishing.com TIPS: “The constant influx of moving tidal water through San Luis Pass makes this best location in West Bay.” Capt. Williams LOCATION: Matagorda HOTSPOT: Matagorda Surf GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Down South soft plastics or Berkley Gulp CONTACT: Capt. Kendall Kersh 979-248-1871 kendallkersh@gmail.com www.puresaltadventures.com TIPS: “We will be looking for the surf to be playing a bigger role than what it has been. Usually right at daylight will be the best bet. The wind is a little lighter.”

Capt. Kersh. He launches out of the Matagorda Harbor and goes either west or east of the jetties.

LOCATION: Matagorda HOTSPOT: North Matagorda Jetty GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760)

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6/9/17 4:08 PM

FISHING HOTSPOTS Saltwater: n Upper Coast n Mid Coast n Lower Coast Freshwater: n Piney Woods

Freshwater: n Prairies & Lakes n Panhandle n Big Bend n Hill Country n South Texas

UPPER COAST

GPS COORDINATES are provided in two formats: “Decimal Degrees” (degrees.degrees) and “Degrees and Minutes” sometimes called “GPS Format” (degrees minutes.minutes).

Examples (for Downtown Austin): Decimal Degrees: N30.2777, W97.7379; Degrees and Minutes: N30 16.6662, W97 44.2739. Consult your manual for information specific to your GPS device.

Matagorda Surf is Up for Specks

by TOM BEHRENS

bottom, they will come up a foot or two to eat a bait. East Bay isn’t that deep.” Capt. Kersh LOCATION: East Matagorda Bay HOTSPOT: Boiler Bayou GPS: N 28 38.685, W 95 54.067 (28.6448, -95.9011)

LOCATION: Galveston Offshore HOTSPOT: Barr’s Reef GPS: N 29 8.3385, W 94 42.0464 (29.1390, -94.7008)

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SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Down South soft plastics with either a 1/8 or 1/4 oz. jug head CONTACT: Capt. Kendall Kersh 979-248-1871 kendallkersh@gmail.com www.puresaltadventures.com TIPS: “I usually start off throwing pretty fast. If I can get them eating it, I will continue to work the bait fast. I can cover a lot of water that way. If I’m not getting a lot of bites, then I’ll slow it down to get bait closer to the bottom.” Capt. Kersh LOCATION: East Matagorda Bay HOTSPOT: Cleveland Reef GPS: N 28 39.983, W 95 51.982 (28.6664, -95.8664)

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SPECIES: Tarpon or Shark BEST BAITS: Natural bait CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-256-9260 fishing@pdq.net www.galvestontexasfishing.com TIPS: “We move up and down along the beach. We may go 20 miles one way, and then 30 miles the other way, looking for shrimp boats culling their by-catch.”

Capt. Williams LOCATION: Galveston Offshore HOTSPOT: OBST-01-08 GPS: N 29 3.686, W 94 48.792 (29.0614, -94.8132)

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HOTSPOT: Channel Marker 72 GPS: N 29 35.22, W 94 55.806 (29.5870, -94.9301)

SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-256-9260 fishing@pdq.net www.galvestontexasfishing.com TIPS: “Most of the fish will be out in the middle of the bay around the Houston Ship Channel, around the spoil banks from about Marker 50 to Marker 70.” Capt.

Williams LOCATION: Galveston Trinity Bay HOTSPOT: Channel Marker 44 GPS: N 29 27.814, W 94 50.615 (29.4636, -94.8436)

SPECIES: Tarpon or Shark BEST BAITS: Natural bait CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-256-9260 fishing@pdq.net www.galvestontexasfishing.com TIPS: “Just about any natural bait will work…frozen or live.” Capt. Williams

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SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-256-9260 fishing@pdq.net www.galvestontexasfishing.com TIPS: Rigging and bait: Live shrimp, about four feet deep, under a popping cork LOCATION: Galveston Trinity Bay HOTSPOT: Pasadena Reef 1 GPS: N 29 28.114, W 94 49.192 (29.4686, -94.8199)

SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Down South soft plastics with either a 1/8 or 1/4 oz. jug head CONTACT: Capt. Kendall Kersh 979-248-1871 kendallkersh@gmail.com www.puresaltadventures.com TIPS: “A lot of times it doesn’t seem to matter much on the speed of retrieve. Even if they are holding on the

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SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Strolling croaker CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams

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7/7/17 8:30 AM

FISHING HOTSPOTS SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp freelined or under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Kendall Kersh 979-248-1871 kendallkersh@gmail.com www.puresaltadventures.com TIPS: “The jetties can produce a lot of fish as long as the wind will allow.” Capt. Kersh LOCATION: Matagorda HOTSPOT: South Matagorda Jetty GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp freelined or under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Kendall Kersh 979-248-1871 kendallkersh@gmail.com www.puresaltadventures.com TIPS: “Even when the wind is blowing from the east or west, usually you can relocate to the other side to get out of the wind.” Capt. Kersh LOCATION: Sabine Lake HOTSPOT: Sabine Channel GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Soft Plastic tails with 1/4 oz. jig heads CONTACT: Capt. Bill Watkins 409-673-9211 4097862018@sbcglobal.net www.fishsabinelake.com TIPS: “The Ship Channel will have fish in it all the way up into the lake. The mouths of the Sabine and Neches Rivers should be real good in July. Deep channels drops should be real good, plus we should also have birds working showing where the trout are.” Capt. Watkins LOCATION: Sabine Lake HOTSPOT: Short Rigs GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Soft Plastic tails with 1/4 oz. jig heads CONTACT: Capt. Bill Watkins 409-673-9211 4097862018@sbcglobal.net www.fishsabinelake.com TIPS: “The fish will be hitting multiple patterns. July is one of our best fishing months. Weather is usually stable,” said Capt. Watkins. You should be fishing water 10 feet deep or more, near shallow water. Trout, redfish, and flounder can be found in this type of water.

LOCATION: West Matagorda Bay HOTSPOT: Round Reef GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Down South soft plastics with either a 1/8 or 1/4 oz. jug head CONTACT: Capt. Kendall Kersh 979-248-1871 kendallkersh@gmail.com www.puresaltadventures.com

TIPS: “A lot of time in July the fish are going to be in the deeper water guts, anywhere from 4-6 feet deep.”

Capt. Kersh LOCATION: West Matagorda Bay HOTSPOT: Green Island GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Down South soft plastics with either a 1/8 or 1/4 oz. jug head CONTACT: Capt. Kendall Kersh 979-248-1871 kendallkersh@gmail.com www.puresaltadventures.com TIPS: Jetty fishing: “Live shrimp, either free lining or under a popping cork. If you choose to free line, use no weight or a small split sinker and you won’t get hung up so much.” Capt. Kersh

LOCATION: Corpus Christi Bay HOTSPOT: Shamrock Channel GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Flounder BEST BAITS: Gigging CONTACT: Capt. James Parbst 361-222-6007 nocturnalassault@yahoo.com www.nocturnalassault.com TIPS: “Make sure to shuffle your boat as you walk to give sting rays a chance to move away.” Capt. Parbst

LOCATION: West Matagorda Bay HOTSPOT: Middle Ground GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Down South soft plastics with either a 1/8 or 1/4 oz. jug head CONTACT: Capt. Kendall Kersh 979-248-1871 kendallkersh@gmail.com www.puresaltadventures.com TIPS: Surf fishing: “When you have light winds, light swells out in the Gulf, the surf is absolutely crammed full of fish.” Capt. Kersh

LOCATION: Corpus Christi Bay HOTSPOT: Shamrock Cove GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Flounder BEST BAITS: Gigging CONTACT: Capt. James Parbst 361-222-6007 nocturnalassault@yahoo.com www.nocturnalassault.com TIPS: “Gig the flounder perfectly right behind the head, right behind the gill plate. If not he’s probably going to flip off the gig.” Capt. Parbst

MIDDLE COAST

Ride Mustang for Corpus Flounder

LOCATION: Port Aransas HOTSPOT: Aransas Channel GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Flounder BEST BAITS: Gigging CONTACT: Capt. James Parbst 361-222-6007 nocturnalassault@yahoo.com www.nocturnalassault.com TIPS: “In the spring and summer months, you need to concentrate your flounder gigging attention along the flats.” Capt. Parbst

by TOM BEHRENS LOCATION: Corpus Christi Bay HOTSPOT: Mustang Island Flats GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Flounder BEST BAITS: Gigging CONTACT: Capt. James Parbst 361-222-6007 nocturnalassault@yahoo.com www.nocturnalassault.com TIPS: “The flounder have their spots and locations where they will normally show up, but other than that, as far as time wise, there is no pattern to them. They will show up sooner or later.” Capt. Parbst

LOCATION: Port Aransas HOTSPOT: East Flounder Shoreline GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Flounder BEST BAITS: Gigging CONTACT: Capt. James Parbst 361-222-6007 nocturnalassault@yahoo.com www.nocturnalassault.com TIPS: “Clear water is a must. If the water is dirty, start looking for another location.” Capt. Parbst

LOCATION: Corpus Christi Bay HOTSPOT: Mustang Island GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760)

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SPECIES: Flounder BEST BAITS: Gigging CONTACT: Capt. James Parbst 361-222-6007 nocturnalassault@yahoo.com www.nocturnalassault.com TIPS: Parbst fishes from his custom built airboat. That will operate in water as shallow as 4 - 5 inches. A row of bright lights on the front lights up the bottom so he and his clients can see the flounder lying on the bottom.

“When we see a flounder lit up on the bottom, we’ll just lean over the rail and gig ‘em.”

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FISHING HOTSPOTS 713-256-9260 fishing@pdq.net www.galvestontexasfishing.com TIPS: “Troll a croaker behind the boat, rigged with a 1/4 to 1/8 oz. egg sinker above the swivel, with about 20 inches of leader line tied to a 2/0 croaker hook” Capt.

Williams LOCATION: Galveston West Bay HOTSPOT: San Luis Flats GPS: N 29 95.711, W 95 7.106 (30.5952, -95.1184)

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SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live Croaker CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-256-9260 fishing@pdq.net www.galvestontexasfishing.com TIPS: “The constant influx of moving tidal water through San Luis Pass makes this best location in West Bay.” Capt. Williams LOCATION: Galveston West Bay HOTSPOT: San Luis Pass GPS: N 29 4.851, W 95 6.776 (29.0809, -95.1129)

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SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-256-9260 fishing@pdq.net www.galvestontexasfishing.com TIPS: “The constant influx of moving tidal water through San Luis Pass makes this best location in West Bay.” Capt. Williams LOCATION: Matagorda HOTSPOT: Matagorda Surf GPS: N 28 35.569, W 95 59.268 (28.5928, -95.9878)

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CONTACT: Capt. Kendall Kersh 979-248-1871 kendallkersh@gmail.com www.puresaltadventures.com TIPS: “We will be looking for the surf to be playing a bigger role than what it has been. Usually right at daylight will be the best bet. The wind is a little lighter.”

Capt. Kersh. He launches out of the Matagorda Harbor and goes either west or east of the jetties.

LOCATION: Matagorda HOTSPOT: North Matagorda Jetty GPS: N 28 25.166, W 96 18.959 (28.4194, -96.3160)

SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Soft Plastic tails with 1/4 oz. jig heads CONTACT: Capt. Bill Watkins 409-673-9211 4097862018@sbcglobal.net www.fishsabinelake.com TIPS: “The Ship Channel will have fish in it all the way up into the lake. The mouths of the Sabine and Neches Rivers should be real good in July. Deep channels drops should be real good, plus we should also have birds working showing where the trout are.” Capt. Watkins LOCATION: Sabine Lake HOTSPOT: Short Rigs GPS: N 29 40.506, W 93 51.064 (29.6751, -93.8511)

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SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp freelined or under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Kendall Kersh 979-248-1871 kendallkersh@gmail.com www.puresaltadventures.com TIPS: “The jetties can produce a lot of fish as long as the wind will allow.” Capt. Kersh LOCATION: Matagorda HOTSPOT: South Matagorda Jetty GPS: N 28 25.053, W 96 19.38 (28.4176, -96.3230)

SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Soft Plastic tails with 1/4 oz. jig heads CONTACT: Capt. Bill Watkins 409-673-9211 4097862018@sbcglobal.net www.fishsabinelake.com TIPS: “The fish will be hitting multiple patterns. July is one of our best fishing months. Weather is usually stable,” said Capt. Watkins. You should be fishing water 10 feet deep or more, near shallow water. Trout, redfish, and flounder can be found in this type of water.

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LOCATION: West Matagorda Bay HOTSPOT: Round Reef GPS: N 28 36.432, W 96 7.433 (28.6072, -96.1239)

SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp freelined or under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Kendall Kersh 979-248-1871 kendallkersh@gmail.com www.puresaltadventures.com TIPS: “Even when the wind is blowing from the east or west, usually you can relocate to the other side to get out of the wind.” Capt. Kersh LOCATION: Sabine Lake HOTSPOT: Sabine Channel GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760)

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SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Down South soft plastics with either a 1/8 or 1/4 oz. jug head CONTACT: Capt. Kendall Kersh 979-248-1871 kendallkersh@gmail.com www.puresaltadventures.com TIPS: “A lot of time in July the fish are going to be in the deeper water guts, anywhere from 4-6 feet deep.”

Capt. Kersh

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LOCATION: West Matagorda Bay HOTSPOT: Green Island GPS: N 28 29.805, W 96 14.265 (28.4968, -96.2378)

SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Down South soft plastics or Berkley Gulp

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FISHING HOTSPOTS HOTSPOT: Hwy 361 GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Flounder BEST BAITS: Gigging CONTACT: Capt. James Parbst 361-222-6007 nocturnalassault@yahoo.com www.nocturnalassault.com TIPS: “A good spot is along Hwy 361 between Port Aransas Pass and Port Aransas… a good walking bottom... shell and sand.” Capt. Parbst

Mullet, Carolina rigged with a half-ounce weight.

LOWER COAST

Spoiled Specks at Mansfield

by CALIXTO GONZALES and TOM BEHRENS

LOCATION: Port Aransas HOTSPOT: Mustang Point/Ship Channel GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Flounder BEST BAITS: Gigging CONTACT: Capt. James Parbst 361-222-6007 nocturnalassault@yahoo.com www.nocturnalassault.com TIPS: “If you run into tall grass you might as well try another place. Flounder will not lay in tall grass.” Capt.

Parbst

LOCATION: Port Mansfield HOTSPOT: IntraCoastal Spoils GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Grady Deaton 956-455-2503 captaingrady@dosgringoes.com www.dosgringosfishing.com TIPS: “I will be fishing with either live bait or Gulp under a popping cork in a Root Beer/chartreuse tail.”

Capt. Deaton

LOCATION: Port Isabelle HOTSPOT: Brownsville Ship Channel GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Grady Deaton 956-455-2503 captaingrady@dosgringoes.com www.dosgringosfishing.com TIPS: “I will be fishing deeper water in the mornings for trout, along the edges of the ship channel.” Capt.

Deaton

LOCATION: Lower Laguna Madre HOTSPOT: Gas Well Flats GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Redfish BEST BAITS: Cut Skip Jack CONTACT: Capt. Grady Deaton 956-455-2503 captaingrady@dosgringoes.com www.dosgringosfishing.com TIPS: “Throw the cut Skip Jack under a popping cork in fairly shallow water up around the Gas Well Flats for redfish.” Capt. Deaton

LOCATION: Port Isabelle HOTSPOT: Three Islands GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp or Gulp under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Grady Deaton 956-455-2503 captaingrady@dosgringoes.com www.dosgringosfishing.com TIPS: The Brownsville Ship Channel is one of Capt.

Deaton prime spots in July. “Fish along the edges, free lining live shrimp up underneath the docks.”

LOCATION: Port Mansfield HOTSPOT: Port Mansfield Cut GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp or Gulp under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Grady Deaton 956-455-2503 captaingrady@dosgringoes.com www.dosgringosfishing.com TIPS: Skip Jack …”Don’t throw it back. Throw it in your ice chest, let it die, cut it into pieces, about an inch and a half in size…” Capt. Deaton

LOCATION: Upper Laguna Madre HOTSPOT: Boat Hole GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Redfish BEST BAITS: Cut Skip Jack or Finger Mullet CONTACT: Capt. Paul Braly 361-533-0982 captpaul@rocketmail.com fishfinderguideservice.com TIPS: Capt. Braly is fishing shallow grass flats that have sand holes mixed in, using cut Skip Jack or Finger

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LOCATION: Port Mansfield HOTSPOT: Mansfield Jetties GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Redfish BEST BAITS: Finger Mullet CONTACT: Capt. Grady Deaton 956-455-2503 captaingrady@dosgringoes.com

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www.dosgringosfishing.com TIPS: Capt. Deaton takes a 3 - 4 inches long mullet, hooks it up under the jaw and cuts the tail off so that the bait will pull right. “I fish it just like a lure…works real well for redfish.”

LOCATION: Port Mansfield HOTSPOT: Mansfield Channel GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Grady Deaton 956-455-2503 captaingrady@dosgringoes.com www.dosgringosfishing.com TIPS: “Drift along the edges. At times the summer wind will just be perfect for this type of fishing.” Capt. Deaton LOCATION: South Padre Island HOTSPOT: Lower End GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Grady Deaton 956-455-2503 captaingrady@dosgringoes.com www.dosgringosfishing.com TIPS: “If it’s real windy, stay up behind the south end of Padre Island instead of trying to fish the west side of the bay…more protection.” Capt. Deaton

PINEY WOODS

Toledo Bass in Black & White

by DUSTIN WARNCKE LOCATION: Toledo Bend HOTSPOT: Main Lake Points GPS: N 31 45.432, W 93 50.712 (31.7572, -93.8452) SPECIES: Black & white bass BEST BAITS: Numerous topwater, crankbaits, RatL-Traps, spoons and Texas and Carolina-rigged soft plastics CONTACT: Greg Crafts, Toledo Bend Guide Service and Lake Cottages 936-368-7151 gregcrafts@yahoo.com www.toledobendguide.com TIPS: In July the main lake points will be active with plenty of schooling activity for both the black and white bass. Typically early morning and late evening will be the prime feeding times. Work top water plugs, Rat-LTraps, shallow diving crank baits, slab spoons and Texas or Carolina rigged plastics. Start off shallow and back out to deeper water if need be with deep diving crank baits and soft plastics.

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FISHING HOTSPOTS u TAP FOR ONLINE MAP

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SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Down South soft plastics with either a 1/8 or 1/4 oz. jug head CONTACT: Capt. Kendall Kersh 979-248-1871 kendallkersh@gmail.com www.puresaltadventures.com TIPS: Jetty fishing: “Live shrimp, either free lining or under a popping cork. If you choose to free line, use no weight or a small split sinker and you won’t get hung up so much.” Capt. Kersh LOCATION: West Matagorda Bay HOTSPOT: Middle Ground GPS: N 28 30.692, W 96 13.611 (28.5115, -96.2269)

SPECIES: Flounder BEST BAITS: Gigging CONTACT: Capt. James Parbst 361-222-6007 nocturnalassault@yahoo.com www.nocturnalassault.com TIPS: “The flounder have their spots and locations where they will normally show up, but other than that, as far as time wise, there is no pattern to them. They will show up sooner or later.” Capt. Parbst LOCATION: Corpus Christi Bay HOTSPOT: Mustang Island GPS: N 27 41.755, W 97 11.309 (27.6959, -97.1885)

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SPECIES: Flounder BEST BAITS: Gigging CONTACT: Capt. James Parbst 361-222-6007 nocturnalassault@yahoo.com www.nocturnalassault.com TIPS: Parbst fishes from his custom built airboat. That will operate in water as shallow as 4 - 5 inches. A row of bright lights on the front lights up the bottom so he and his clients can see the flounder lying on the bottom.

“When we see a flounder lit up on the bottom, we’ll just lean over the rail and gig ‘em.”

SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Down South soft plastics with either a 1/8 or 1/4 oz. jug head CONTACT: Capt. Kendall Kersh 979-248-1871 kendallkersh@gmail.com www.puresaltadventures.com TIPS: Surf fishing: “When you have light winds, light swells out in the Gulf, the surf is absolutely crammed full of fish.” Capt. Kersh

LOCATION: Corpus Christi Bay HOTSPOT: Shamrock Channel GPS: N 27 44.017, W 97 9.747 (27.7336, -97.1625)

MIDDLE COAST

Ride Mustang for Corpus Flounder

SPECIES: Flounder BEST BAITS: Gigging CONTACT: Capt. James Parbst 361-222-6007 nocturnalassault@yahoo.com www.nocturnalassault.com TIPS: “Make sure to shuffle your boat as you walk to give sting rays a chance to move away.” Capt. Parbst LOCATION: Corpus Christi Bay

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SPECIES: Flounder BEST BAITS: Gigging CONTACT: Capt. James Parbst 361-222-6007 nocturnalassault@yahoo.com www.nocturnalassault.com TIPS: “Gig the flounder perfectly right behind the head, right behind the gill plate. If not he’s probably going to flip off the gig.” Capt. Parbst LOCATION: Port Aransas HOTSPOT: Aransas Channel GPS: N 27 44.017, W 97 9.747 (27.7336, -97.1625)

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SPECIES: Flounder BEST BAITS: Gigging CONTACT: Capt. James Parbst 361-222-6007 nocturnalassault@yahoo.com www.nocturnalassault.com TIPS: “In the spring and summer months, you need to concentrate your flounder gigging attention along the flats.” Capt. Parbst LOCATION: Port Aransas HOTSPOT: East Flounder Shoreline GPS: N 27 51.11, W 97 3.28 (27.8518, -97.0547)

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by TOM BEHRENS LOCATION: Corpus Christi Bay HOTSPOT: Mustang Island Flats GPS: N 27 41.516, W 97 11.437 (27.6919, -97.1906)

HOTSPOT: Shamrock Cove GPS: N 29 59.027, W 93 46.562 (29.9838, -93.7760)

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SPECIES: Flounder BEST BAITS: Gigging CONTACT: Capt. James Parbst 361-222-6007 nocturnalassault@yahoo.com www.nocturnalassault.com TIPS: “Clear water is a must. If the water is dirty, start looking for another location.” Capt. Parbst LOCATION: Port Aransas HOTSPOT: Hwy 361 GPS: N 27 52.562, W 97 5.882

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FISHING HOTSPOTS (27.8760, -97.0980)

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SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp or Gulp under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Grady Deaton 956-455-2503 captaingrady@dosgringoes.com www.dosgringosfishing.com TIPS: The Brownsville Ship Channel is one of Capt.

Deaton prime spots in July. “Fish along the edges, free lining live shrimp up underneath the docks.”

SPECIES: Flounder BEST BAITS: Gigging CONTACT: Capt. James Parbst 361-222-6007 nocturnalassault@yahoo.com www.nocturnalassault.com TIPS: “A good spot is along Hwy 361 between Port Aransas Pass and Port Aransas… a good walking bottom... shell and sand.” Capt. Parbst LOCATION: Port Aransas HOTSPOT: Mustang Point/Ship Channel GPS: N 27 51.007, W 97 3.772 (27.8501, -97.0629)

SPECIES: Flounder BEST BAITS: Gigging CONTACT: Capt. James Parbst 361-222-6007 nocturnalassault@yahoo.com www.nocturnalassault.com TIPS: “If you run into tall grass you might as well try another place. Flounder will not lay in tall grass.” Capt.

Parbst LOCATION: Port Isabelle HOTSPOT: Brownsville Ship Channel GPS: N 26 0.405, W 97 16.465 (26.0068, -97.2744)

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SPECIES: Redfish BEST BAITS: Cut Skip Jack or Finger Mullet CONTACT: Capt. Paul Braly 361-533-0982 captpaul@rocketmail.com fishfinderguideservice.com TIPS: Capt. Braly is fishing shallow grass flats that have sand holes mixed in, using cut Skip Jack or Finger Mullet, Carolina rigged with a half-ounce weight.

SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Grady Deaton 956-455-2503 captaingrady@dosgringoes.com www.dosgringosfishing.com TIPS: “I will be fishing with either live bait or Gulp under a popping cork in a Root Beer/chartreuse tail.”

Capt. Deaton LOCATION: Port Mansfield HOTSPOT: Port Mansfield Cut GPS: N 26 48.614, W 97 28.14 (26.8102, -97.4690)

LOWER COAST

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SPECIES: Redfish BEST BAITS: Cut Skip Jack CONTACT: Capt. Grady Deaton 956-455-2503 captaingrady@dosgringoes.com www.dosgringosfishing.com TIPS: “Throw the cut Skip Jack under a popping cork in fairly shallow water up around the Gas Well Flats for redfish.” Capt. Deaton LOCATION: Port Mansfield HOTSPOT: IntraCoastal Spoils GPS: N 26 36.398, W 97 24.102 (26.6066, -97.4017)

LOCATION: Upper Laguna Madre HOTSPOT: Boat Hole GPS: N 27 40.969, W 97 14.999 (27.6828, -97.2500)

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Spoiled Specks at Mansfield

by CALIXTO GONZALES and TOM BEHRENS

SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Grady Deaton 956-455-2503 captaingrady@dosgringoes.com www.dosgringosfishing.com TIPS: “I will be fishing deeper water in the mornings for trout, along the edges of the ship channel.” Capt.

Deaton

LOCATION: Lower Laguna Madre HOTSPOT: Gas Well Flats GPS: N 26 15.079, W 97 15.943 (26.2513, -97.2657)

LOCATION: Port Isabelle HOTSPOT: Three Islands GPS: N 26 16.621, W 97 17.732 (26.2770, -97.2955)

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SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp or Gulp under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Grady Deaton 956-455-2503 captaingrady@dosgringoes.com www.dosgringosfishing.com TIPS: Skip Jack …”Don’t throw it back. Throw it in your ice chest, let it die, cut it into pieces, about an inch and a half in size…” Capt. Deaton LOCATION: Port Mansfield HOTSPOT: Mansfield Jetties GPS: N 26 33.93, W 97 16.303

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FISHING HOTSPOTS (26.5655, -97.2717)

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SPECIES: Redfish BEST BAITS: Finger Mullet CONTACT: Capt. Grady Deaton 956-455-2503 captaingrady@dosgringoes.com www.dosgringosfishing.com TIPS: Capt. Deaton takes a 3 - 4 inches long mullet, hooks it up under the jaw and cuts the tail off so that the bait will pull right. “I fish it just like a lure…works real well for redfish.”

LOCATION: Port Mansfield HOTSPOT: Mansfield Channel GPS: N 26 33.761, W 97 17.79 (26.5627, -97.2965)

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SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Grady Deaton 956-455-2503 captaingrady@dosgringoes.com www.dosgringosfishing.com TIPS: “Drift along the edges. At times the summer wind will just be perfect for this type of fishing.” Capt. Deaton LOCATION: South Padre Island HOTSPOT: Lower End GPS: N 26 6.42, W 97 10.05 (26.1070, -97.1675)

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SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Grady Deaton 956-455-2503 captaingrady@dosgringoes.com www.dosgringosfishing.com TIPS: “If it’s real windy, stay up behind the south end of Padre Island instead of trying to fish the west side of the bay…more protection.” Capt. Deaton

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FISHING HOTSPOTS the prime feeding times. Work top water plugs, Rat-LTraps, shallow diving crank baits, slab spoons and Texas or Carolina rigged plastics. Start off shallow and back out to deeper water if need be with deep diving crank baits and soft plastics.

PINEY WOODS

Toledo Bass in Black & White

LOCATION: Caddo Lake HOTSPOT: Alligator Bayou GPS: N 32 43.1699, W 94 5.424 (32.7195, -94.0904)

by DUSTIN WARNCKE LOCATION: Toledo Bend HOTSPOT: Main Lake Points GPS: N 31 45.432, W 93 50.712 (31.7572, -93.8452)

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SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: 1/8 oz. Texas-rigged worms in junebug or black/red colors, frogs and 1oz. weighted punch baits in black or green CONTACT: Caddo Lake Guide Service/Paul Keith 318-455-3437 caddoguide1@att.net www.caddolakefishing.com TIPS: Fish the bayou edges with frogs and 1 oz. weighted punch baits in black or green colors. Watch for schooling or bunched fish in the creek bends. I like to throw 1/8 oz. Texas rigged worms in junebug or black/ red colors on the bunched fish.

SPECIES: Black & white bass BEST BAITS: Numerous topwater, crankbaits, RatL-Traps, spoons and Texas and Carolina-rigged soft plastics CONTACT: Greg Crafts, Toledo Bend Guide Service and Lake Cottages 936-368-7151 gregcrafts@yahoo.com www.toledobendguide.com TIPS: In July the main lake points will be active with plenty of schooling activity for both the black and white bass. Typically early morning and late evening will be

LOCATION: Lake Conroe HOTSPOT: Main Lake GPS: N 30 26.226, W 95 35.508 (30.4371, -95.5918)

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SPECIES: Catfish BEST BAITS: Shad and stink bait CONTACT: Richard Tatsch 936-661-7920 admin@fishdudetx.com www.fishdudetx.com TIPS: The catfish will start feeding in the 15 to 20 foot depth ranges and most days you will catch a lot of fish in the 1 1/2 pound to 3-pound range. I typically bait a spot or two using cattle cubes. Just dump some over on a spot close to a creek or river channel and give it about 30 minutes and start catching fish. I use a #6 treble hook with a sponge or mix some type of fiber like cotton in the bait to make it stay on a bare hook and an eighth ounce weight. Get a tub of Primos dipping bait and punch the sponge in until it absorbs the bait. Drop it to the bottom and wait until you feel either a good strike or any additional weight on the end of the line. Once you feel a connection, set the hook and try to pull their lips off. Usually the larger fish just feel like additional weight on the line. Good luck and good fishing!

LOCATION: Lake Fork HOTSPOT: Main Lake Points and Brush Piles GPS: N 32 49.5959, W 95 35.886 u TAP FOR (32.8266, -95.5981)

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SPECIES: Crappie BEST BAITS: Minnows and jigs in Blue Ice CONTACT: Doug Shampine 940-902-3855 doug@lakeforktrophybass.com www.lakeforktrophybass.com TIPS: July on Lake Fork still holds some outstanding crappie fishing. The crappie are now in the deeper brush piles and will be biting on jigs and minnows. Best color jig for me is the Blue Ice. You will find them in 22-26 feet depending on how warm the lake has gotten. What a better way to celebrate the 4th of July with a big mess of crappie for your fish fry. Look for brush piles along creek channels and main lake points where a creek will swing into the point. The kids are now out of school so this is also a good way to teach them how to fish on a crappie trip.

LOCATION: Lake Fork HOTSPOT: Main Lake Deep Points, Break Lines and Humps GPS: N 32 49.6201, W 95 35.5619 (32.8270, -95.5927)

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PRAIRIES & LAKES

Land Eagle Bass at the Dam SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Carolina-rigged or Texas-rigged Shakey Head worm and topwater lures (Zara Spook or Frog) CONTACT: Lance Vick (903) 312-0609 lance@lakeforkbass.com www.guideonlakefork.com TIPS: “It’s hotter than a firecracker in July and that means one thing: it’s time for worm fishing deep! This time of year deep points, break lines, and humps are the place to be. Fish 15 to 30 foot deep. The best time to be throwing a big worm is when the day is at its hottest.

Fish the area slow and thoroughly. Fluorocarbon line is best when worm fishing like this. Throw topwater lures (Zara spook, frog) early in the day around points and grass lines. You can get you bit while you are waiting for the sun to get up and hot. Drink lots of water and drag a giant bass from the bottom of lake fork with a big worm!

Good Fishin’!”

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by DUSTIN WARNCKE and DEAN HEFFNER LOCATION: Eagle Mountain Lake HOTSPOT: 300 Yards from Dam GPS: N 32 52.709, W 97 28.044 (32.8785, -97.4674)

817-597-6598 johnnystevens@1scom.net johnnysguideservice.com TIPS: This area just north of the dam is a series of humps and ridges. This area was created to supply dirt to build the dam. Use your electronics to check the slopes and humps. When you locate the fish, anchor on them and use a vertical jig method on them. If you prefer to cast to them, use a slab and jig combo and let it go to the bottom, then hop it back to the boat.

LOCATION: Bachman Lake HOTSPOT: Main Lake GPS: N 32 51.1859, W 96 52.014 (32.8531, -96.8669)

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SPECIES: White bass BEST BAITS: Slab with a fly 12 inches above slab CONTACT: Johnny Stevens

SPECIES: Largemouth Bass and Crappie BEST BAITS: Bass: spinnerbaits and Rat-L-Traps | Crappie: minnows and jigs CONTACT: Carey Thorn 469-528-0210 thorn_alex@yahoo.com

7/7/17 8:30 AM

FISHING HOTSPOTS TexasOklahomaFishingGuide.com TIPS: For bass, throw spinnerbaits and Rat-L-Traps along the weed line. Crappie are under the bridge this time of year. Minnows and jigs are your best bet right now.

LOCATION: Cedar Creek Lake HOTSPOT: Bridges and Shaded Pillars GPS: N 32 19.662, W 96 11.0406 (32.3277, -96.1840)

www.fishtales-guideservice.com TIPS: Deep water is close in to these rocks in this area.

Anchor and fish jigs or minnows near the rocks under corks.

LOCATION: Granger Lake HOTSPOT: Main Lake Out From Dam GPS: N 30 41.796, W 97 20.19 (30.6966, -97.3365)

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LOCATION: Lake Granbury HOTSPOT: DeCordova Subdivision GPS: N 32 25.269, W 97 41.402 (32.4212, -97.6900)

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SPECIES: White bass BEST BAITS: Small minnows, slabs and Mepps spinners CONTACT: Michael W. Acosta, Unfair Advantage Charters 817-578-0023 michael.acosta@att.net http://unfairadvantagecharters.com TIPS: Summer is in full force. The Texas heat is here and the majority of fishing continues to be reserved for early and late. White bass are located near structure and are feeding on shallow flats in 7 to 12 feet of water early and late. Later in the day they will move out deeper.

Spinners and slabs are good choices for these white bass. Look for nervous water or schooling fish. Bounce your slab or spoon off the bottom to draw a strike. Look for feeding cranes in relatively shallow water. If you see one crane circling the area, focus on that area.

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SPECIES: Crappie BEST BAITS: Minnows and jigs CONTACT: Weldon Kirk 979-229-3103 weldon_edna@hotmail.com

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SPECIES: White Bass BEST BAITS: Slab spoons CONTACT: Tommy Tidwell (512) 365-7761 crappie1@hotmail.com www.gotcrappie.com TIPS: “ Now is the best time to catch schooling white bass in the main lake. They will be on the shallow roadbed early in the morning and around 11:00 AM, they will move to the ridges and humps out from the dam near deep water. Find a hump and locate your boat over the hump. Drop a slab spoon and vertically jig it off the bottom. Only hop it a foot or two to get into the action.

When the whites start biting just keep jigging until one gets hooked. They will keep biting until you hook them. If you see them schooling on top out away from the hump, don’t leave the hump. They will come back and are much easier to catch on the shallower humps. Good luck and good fishing!”

SPECIES: Catfish BEST BAITS: CJ’s punch bait CONTACT: Weldon Kirk 979-229-3103 weldon_edna@hotmail.com www.fishtales-guideservice.com TIPS: The hump here is about 6 foot deep. Anchor on hump or nearer to shore and cast to hump. Fish come from deeper water to feed on this hump.

LOCATION: Gibbons Creek HOTSPOT: Dam Rocky Point GPS: N 30 36.684, W 96 3.9959 (30.6114, -96.0666)

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SPECIES: White Bass BEST BAITS: Crappie jigs and minnows CONTACT: Jason Barber (903) 603-2047 kingscreekadventures@yahoo.com www.kingscreekadventures.com TIPS: “Fish all bridges in 12’ to 25’ looking for suspended fish around shaded pillars. Fish are usually about half way down.”

LOCATION: Fayette County HOTSPOT: Deer Stand Hump GPS: N 29 55.944, W 96 43.7819 (29.9324, -96.7297)

LOCATION: Lake Lavon HOTSPOT: Hybrid Point GPS: N 33 3.186, W 96 27.312 (33.0531, -96.4552)

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SPECIES: White Bass BEST BAITS: Cohoes and slabs CONTACT: Carey Thorn 469-528-0210 thorn_alex@yahoo.com TexasOklahomaFishingGuide.com TIPS: Fish main lake points in 1-18 feet. The whites should be schooling on surface in the morning and then holding on structure like points with immediate deepwater access. Stay within 2 miles of the dam and hit all the points. Start at the island tip. Hybrid Point is directly east of the island tip. Great spot with a huge flat and drop offs on edges.

LOCATION: Lake Palestine HOTSPOT: Bowie’s Cove and Main Lake Points GPS: N 32 5.9939, W 95 25.998 u TAP FOR (32.0999, -95.4333)

ONLINE MAP

SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Bomber BD7 in white and Carolinarigged Baby Brush Hogs in watermelon color CONTACT: Ricky Vandergriff 903-561-7299 or 903-530-2201 ricky@rickysguideservice.com www. rickysguideservice.com TIPS: “In July you will have some very hot days so carry plenty of water and fish the hottest times of the day for your larger bass. When fishing for the big bass, don’t expect to catch big numbers, just large fish. Your numbers will come earlier in the day. Bass will be good on deep diving crankbaits like the Bomber BD7 in white and Carolina-rigged Baby Brush Hogs in watermelon color. Best areas will be points with 10 foot to 16-foot drops. Bowie’s Cove has small points in the cove and has stumps and other cover in it as well. Look for two big pine stumps as they will prove to be very good structure to fish.”

LOCATION: Lake Ray Roberts HOTSPOT: Culp Island GPS: N 33 21.509, W 97 4.719 (33.3585, -97.0787)

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FISHING HOTSPOTS u TAP FOR ONLINE MAP

SPECIES: White bass BEST BAITS: 3-inch swimbaits, small shad-colored topwaters CONTACT: Jim Walling 940-391-5534 jimwwalling@icloud.com TIPS: July normally brings a lot of schooling white bass. Look for fish feeding on the surface around Culp Island and the flats to the north of the island. Some times it is much easier to spot feeding birds to lead you to the fish. Throw about any small flashy or shad-colored lure you wish into the feeding schools. I prefer a single hook jig and a 3-inch paddle tail swimbait. It is much quicker to get the fish off of the single hook than a treble hook.

However, there is not anything more exciting than catching them on a topwater lure.

LOCATION: Lake Somerville HOTSPOT: North Schooling area GPS: N 30 19.638, W 96 32.064 (30.3273, -96.5344)

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SPECIES: White Bass BEST BAITS: Hell Bender-Pet jigs CONTACT: Weldon Kirk 979-229-3103 weldon_edna@hotmail.com www.fishtales-guideservice.com TIPS: Troll this area until you mark fish. Toss out a buoy and jig off the bottom. If bite slows, troll again until you find more fish.

LOCATION: Lake Texoma HOTSPOT: Alberta Creek GPS: N 33 57.5417, W 96 36.012 (33.9590, -96.6002)

several large schools will surface around the lake. These schools of fish can be a mile long and a half-mile wide.

Cast Pencil Popper Top water plugs for great action.

After surface action ends, locate the schools of fish with your electronics. Then vertically drop slabs and use a fast retrieve. The fish will try to pull the rod out of your hands! Bank Access: Washita Point and Platter Flats.”

LOCATION: Lake Whitney HOTSPOT: McCowan Flats GPS: N 31 56.862, W 97 24.1919 (31.9477, -97.4032)

PANHANDLE

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Major Creek Action on Henry

by DUSTIN WARNCKE and DEAN HEFFNER

SPECIES: Striped Bass BEST BAITS: Snake Worm rigged behind a 1/2 oz. buck tail jig CONTACT: Randy Routh 817-822-5539 teamredneck01@hotmail.com www.teamredneck.net TIPS: “The thermocline has set in and the stripers are hanging out on top of it. This time of year turns into a reaction type strike a lot of times. The fish will feed early, late or even at night when it’s cooler. Using down riggers, 1/2 oz. buck tail jigs with plastic trailers, troll the flats and ledges and edges anywhere from 13’ to 18’ down. Keep in mind the thermocline usually sets in at 22’ on Whitney so keep your baits above it. I ran across a new bait that is producing a lot of fish on the reaction strike and it is the Snake Worm from Striper Sniper (www.stripersniper.com). I’m rigging it behind a 1/2 oz. buck tail jig and pulling them behind my down riggers around 18’ to 20’ deep. These supposedly replicate an eel, which is a saltwater striper’s favorite food source. I guess it’s in their DNA because they work on fresh water stripers great. I ordered some and the fish have been absolutely wearing them out trolling. Now is the time to come fish Whitney! Hope to see ya on the water!”

LOCATION: Richland Chambers Lake HOTSPOT: Highway 309 Flats GPS: N 31 58.788, W 96 8.3405 (31.9798, -96.1390)

LOCATION: Lake Alan Henry HOTSPOT: Major Creeks GPS: N 33 2.0759, W 101 3.8759 (33.0346, -101.0646)

LOCATION: Lake Daniel HOTSPOT: Main Body GPS: N 32 38.8236, W 98 51.6674 (32.6471, -98.8611)

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SPECIES: White Bass BEST BAITS: Clear Tiny Torpedo or 1/4 oz. blue/ chrome Rat-L-Trap CONTACT: Royce Simmons 903-389-4117 simmonsroyce@hotmail.com www.gonefishin.biz TIPS: “July is the month that the white bass go full force into a topwater feeding frenzy that will last all sum-

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SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Jigging spoons, deep diving crank baits and drop shots CONTACT: Norman Clayton’s Guide Services 806-792-9220 nclayton42@sbcglobal.net www.lakealanhenry.com/norman_clayton.htm TIPS: “July will find the bass moving into deep water where you can use your electronics to find the schools of bass. Some of the best channels to find these schooling bass are Rocky, Little Grape, and Big Grape Creeks and the main channel of the Brazos River.”

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SPECIES: Striped Bass BEST BAITS: Top water lures and slabs CONTACT: Bill Carey 903-786-4477 bigfish@striperexpress.com www.striperexpress.com TIPS: “Top water fishing is at its best! Early morning,

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mer long! Check out the main lake south shoreline from Fisherman’s Point Marina to Ferguson Point and the Hwy 309 Flats on the north shoreline. Look for the terns and egrets picking up bait over large schools of whites.

Sometimes, the schooling fish will literally be chasing shad in 5 to 10 acre size schools. Tie on a Clear Tiny Torpedo or 1/4 oz. Blue/Chrome Rat-L-Trap and you’re in business. This is a thrill for kids and adults who think like kids!”

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SPECIES: Largemouth bass BEST BAITS: Worms, Senkos, spinnerbaits CONTACT: Michael D. Homer Jr., Texas Parks & Wildlife Department 325-692-0921 michael.homer@tpwd.texas.gov

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FISHING HOTSPOTS TIPS: Largemouth bass are a popular species to catch at Daniel. The reservoir has plenty of available habitat such as flooded vegetation, downed logs, and rocky areas that should produce a catch. Lures such as trick worms, Senkos, spinnerbaits should be in your arsenal.

Fishermen should also take a try at fishing Goat Island.

LOCATION: Possum Kingdom Res. HOTSPOT: Stump Patch GPS: N 32 52.516, W 98 29.427 (32.8753, -98.4905)

schooling fish throughout the day.

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HILL COUNTRY

Good Days at Black Rock

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by DUSTIN WARNCKE LOCATION: Lake Buchanan HOTSPOT: Black Rock, Flag island, Chism Cove and Striper Island GPS: N 30 46.026, W 98 26.6759 u TAP FOR (30.7671, -98.4446)

SPECIES: Largemouth & striped bass BEST BAITS: Topwaters, jigs, fresh shad CONTACT: Dean Heffner 940-329-0036 fav774@aceweb.com TIPS: It’s summer and the fish are liking the topwater baits. I will be honest, I never catch any fish at PK on topwaters with prop blades, but a Rebel or Pradco POP-R is dynamite. We have had 100-fish days on topwaters with the right cloud cover. It’s still hard to beat a tank of fresh shad, but this time of year unless you get lucky and catch fresh ones right as you hit the lake, they are hard to keep alive without spending a small fortune on tanks and chemicals, etc. You also can’t go wrong with a striper jig tipped with a Mister Twister curly tail

ONLINE MAP

SOUTH TEXAS

SPECIES: Stripers and White Bass BEST BAITS: Live shad and slabs in chartreuse and white CONTACT: Clancy Terrill 512-633-6742 centraltexasfishing@gmail.com www.centraltexasfishing.com TIPS: Concentrate on ridges at 30-40 feet deep. Fish live bait just off bottom. Jigging with lead slabs in chartreuse and white is also productive.

BIG BEND

Rough it for Amistad Bass

LOCATION: Canyon Lake HOTSPOT: Turkey Creek Point GPS: N 29 51.7079, W 98 12.948 (29.8618, -98.2158)

SPECIES: Striped Bass BEST BAITS: Sassy Shad in pearl color CONTACT: Capt. Steve Nixon, Fishhooks Adventures (210) 573-1230 capt.steve@sanantoniofishingguides.com www.sanantoniofishingguides.com TIPS: “Troll this area with downriggers. The West point seems to produce the best catches. Set the downriggers from 40 to 60 feet deep and look for schools of Striped Bass. When located, vary trolling speeds until the fish strike. Tight lines and Fish on!”

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SPECIES: largemouth bass BEST BAITS: Pop Rs, buzzbaits, Zara Spooks CONTACT: Stan Gerzsenyl, stan@amistadbass.com, 830-768-3648, amistadbass.com TIPS: Fish topwaters from the main lake grass beds to the backs of the creeks. Zara Spooks are my favorites but Pop Rs and buzzbaits also can be effective. Look for

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LOCATION: Lake Buchanan HOTSPOT: Main Lake Ridges and Humps GPS: N 30 49.4279, W 98 23.5919 (30.8238, -98.3932)

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Coleto Bass Action Heats Up

by DUSTIN WARNCKE LOCATION: Coleto Creek Lake HOTSPOT: Main Lake GPS: N 28 42.516, W 97 13.1219 (28.7086, -97.2187)

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by DUSTIN WARNCKE LOCATION: Amistad HOTSPOT: Rough Canyon GPS: N29 36.31098, W100 58.377 (29.605183, -100.972950)

SPECIES: Stripers and White Bass BEST BAITS: Live shad or bluegill, slabs and jigs CONTACT: Ken Milam 325-379-2051 kmilam@verizon.net www.striperfever.com.com TIPS: Stripers and hybrids will be around the dam area along the humps and ridges and also along the old tree lines along the river channel. White bass should be in the same areas.

SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Rat-L-Traps, buzz baits and other top water lures CONTACT: Rocky’s Guide Service 361-960-0566 TIPS: Here we are into the hottest months already! I always take extra water in case I find someone stranded without it. Early morning and late evening once again are your best fishing times. If you can take the heat, I’ve caught my best stringers right in the middle of the day.

However, that’s usually tournament fishing. When were pleasure fishing and have nothing at stake we can fish how we want to. Rat-L-Traps are a popular bait out in front of the hydrilla. Fish early morning in the back of the main creeks or at either end of the lake where it starts to get shallow. A buzzbait can be very effective along with most all topwater baits. A lot of bugs are flying this time of year, which seems to produce top water action. This time of year we get more pleasure boats, jet skies, and kayaks. Be careful, slow down and enjoy. God bless!

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Sportsman’s DAYBOOK JULY 2017

Tides and Prime Times

USING THE PRIME TIMES CALENDAR

The following pages contain TIDE and SOLUNAR predictions for Galveston Channel (29.3166° N, 94.88° W).

T12

T4

T11

T10 T9

TIDE PREDICTIONS are located in the upper white boxes on the Calendar Pages. Use the Correction Table below, which is keyed to 23 other tide stations, to adjust low and high tide times.

T8 T17

SOLUNAR ACTIVITY is shown in the lower color boxes of the Calendar pages. Use the SOLUNAR ADJUSTMENT SCALE below to adjust times for points East and West of Galveston Channel.

T15 T16

TIDE PREDICTIONS are shown in graph form, with High and Low tide predictions in text immediately below.

SOLUNAR ACTIVITY data is provided to indicate major and minor feeding periods for each day, as the daily phases of the moon have varying degrees of influence on many wildlife species.

T13 T6

T7

T3 T2 T1

T5

T14

AM & PM MINOR phases occur when the moon rises and sets. These phases last 1 to 2 hours.

T18

AM & PM MAJOR phases occur when the moon reaches its highest point overhead as well as when it is “underfoot” or at its highest point on the exact opposite side of the earth from your positoin (or literally under your feet). Most days have two Major Feeding Phases, each lasting about 2 hours.

T19

T20

PEAK DAYS: The closer the moon is to your location, the stronger the influence. FULL or NEW MOONS provide the strongest influnce of the month.

PEAK TIMES: When a Solunar Period falls within 30 minutes to an hour of sunrise or sunset, anticipate increased action. A moon rise or moon set during one of these periods will cause even greater action. If a FULL or NEW MOON occurs during a Solunar Period, expect the best action of the season.

T21

TIDE CORRECTION TABLE

Add or subtract the time shown at the rightof the Tide Stations on this table (and map) to determine the adjustment from the time shown for GALVESTON CHANNEL in the calendars.

KEY T1 T2 T3 T4 T5 T6

PLACE Sabine Bank Lighthouse Sabine Pass Jetty Sabine Pass Mesquite Pt, Sab. Pass Galveston Bay, S. Jetty Port Bolivar

HIGH -1:46 -1:26 -1:00 -0:04 -0:39 +0:14

LOW -1:31 -1:31 -1:15 -0:25 -1:05 -0:06

KEY PLACE HIGH Galveston Channel/Bays T7 Texas City Turning Basin +0:33 +3:54 T8 Eagle Point +6:05 T9 Clear Lake +10:21 T10 Morgans Point T11 Round Pt, Trinity Bay +10:39

LOW +0:41 +4:15 +6:40 +5:19 +5:15

KEY T12 T13 T14 T15 T16 T17

PLACE Pt Barrow, Trinity Bay Gilchrist, East Bay Jamaica Beach, W. Bay Alligator Point, W. Bay Christmas Pt Galveston Pleasure Pier

HIGH +5:48 +3:16 +2:38 +2:39 +2:32 -1:06

LOW +4:43 +4:18 +3:31 +2:33 +2:31 -1:06

KEY T18 T19 T20 T21 T22 T23

PLACE HIGH San Luis Pass -0.09 Freeport Harbor -0:44 Pass Cavallo 0:00 Aransas Pass -0:03 Padre Island (So. End) -0:24 Port Isabel +1:02

LOW -0.09 -1:02 -1:20 -1:31 -1:45 -0:42

SPORTSMAN’S DAYBOOK IS SPONSORED BY:

NOT TO BE USED FOR NAVIGATION T22 T23

READING THE GRAPH

= FALLING TIDE = RISING TIDE = DAYLIGHT HOURS = NIGHTTIME HOURS

Moon l Moon Overhead l Underfoot

Fishing Score Graph

Day’s Best Day’s 2nd Score Best Score

n

Best Day Overall

MOON PHASES

l = New Moon l = Full Moon = First Quarter º » = Last Quarter «= Good Day by Moon Phase 66

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JULY 2017

Tides and Prime Times MONDAY

26«

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: FEET

12:07AM 8:19AM 1:48PM 5:00PM

TUESDAY

27

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

-0.60 ft.

1.54 ft.

1.14 ft.

1.22 ft.

12:59AM 9:03AM 2:55PM 6:18PM

-0.43 ft.

1.45 ft.

1.01 ft.

1.09 ft.

WEDNESDAY

28

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

1:50AM 9:42AM 4:04PM 7:51PM

-0.20 ft.

1.36 ft.

0.84 ft.

0.97 ft.

THURSDAY

29

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

2:43AM 10:19AM 5:06PM 9:37PM

0.07 ft.

1.27 ft.

0.65 ft.

0.88 ft.

FRIDAY

30

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

3:38AM 10:51AM 5:58PM 11:28PM

0.34 ft.

1.20 ft.

0.46 ft.

0.87 ft.

SATURDAY

Jul 1 º

Low Tide: 4:41AM 0.59 ft.

High Tide: 11:19AM 1.14 ft.

Low Tide: 6:44PM 0.28 ft.

SUNDAY

2

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

1:17AM 6:05AM 11:43AM 7:23PM

0.95 ft.

0.80 ft.

1.11 ft.

0.12 ft.

FEET

+3.0

+3.0

+2.0

+2.0

+1.0

+1.0 0

0

12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

PRIME TIME

6a

12p

6p

PRIME TIME

12a

6a

12p

6p

PRIME TIME

12a

6a

12p

6p

PRIME TIME

12a

6a

12p

6p

PRIME TIME

12a

6a

12p

6p

PRIME TIME

12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

PRIME TIME

8:00 — 10:00 PM

4:00 — 6:00 PM

4:30 — 6:30 AM

5:30 — 7:30 AM

6:00 — 8:00 AM

7:00 — 9:00 AM

8:00 — 10:00 AM

Sunrise: 6:21a Set: 8:21p Moonrise: 9:10a Set: 10:50p AM Minor: 8:11a AM Major: 1:56a PM Minor: 8:40p PM Major: 2:25p Moon Overhead: 4:02p Moon Underfoot: 3:33a

Sunrise: 6:21a Set: 8:21p Moonrise: 10:14a Set: 11:36p AM Minor: 9:14a AM Major: 3:00a PM Minor: 9:41p PM Major: 3:28p Moon Overhead: 4:57p Moon Underfoot: 4:30a

Sunrise: 6:21a Set: 8:21p Moonrise: 11:16a Set: None AM Minor: 10:13a AM Major: 4:01a PM Minor: 10:39p PM Major: 4:26p Moon Overhead: 5:49p Moon Underfoot: 5:24a

Sunrise: 6:22a Set: 8:21p Moonrise: 12:14p Set: 12:17a AM Minor: 11:08a AM Major: 4:56a PM Minor: 11:32p PM Major: 5:20p Moon Overhead: 6:37p Moon Underfoot: 6:13a

Sunrise: 6:22a Set: 8:21p Moonrise: 1:10p Set: 12:54a AM Minor: 11:57a AM Major: 5:46a PM Minor: ----PM Major: 6:08p Moon Overhead: 7:22p Moon Underfoot: 7:00a

Sunrise: 6:22a Set: 8:21p Moonrise: 2:05p Set: 1:29a AM Minor: 12:20a AM Major: 6:31a PM Minor: 12:42p PM Major: 6:53p Moon Overhead: 8:06p Moon Underfoot: 7:45a

Sunrise: 6:23a Set: 8:21p Moonrise: 2:57p Set: 2:04a AM Minor: 1:02a AM Major: 7:13a PM Minor: 1:24p PM Major: 7:34p Moon Overhead: 8:50p Moon Underfoot: 8:28a

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Sportsman’s DAYBOOK MONDAY

3 FEET

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

2:52AM 7:49AM 12:05PM 7:59PM

TUESDAY

1.07 ft.

0.95 ft.

1.10 ft.

-0.00 ft.

4

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

4:00AM 9:19AM 12:25PM 8:32PM

WEDNESDAY

5

1.18 ft.

1.05 ft.

1.11 ft.

-0.10 ft.

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

4:48AM 10:27AM 12:45PM 9:04PM

THURSDAY

6

1.27 ft.

1.11 ft.

1.13 ft.

-0.16 ft.

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

5:24AM 11:16AM 1:07PM 9:35PM

FRIDAY

7«

1.32 ft.

1.15 ft.

1.16 ft.

-0.21 ft.

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

5:55AM 11:44AM 1:35PM 10:07PM

SATURDAY

8«

1.36 ft.

1.17 ft.

1.18 ft.

-0.23 ft.

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

6:25AM 11:57AM 2:07PM 10:38PM

SUNDAY

9

1.38 ft.

1.17 ft.

1.18 ft.

-0.24 ft.

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

6:56AM 12:11PM 2:39PM 11:10PM

1.39 ft.

1.16 ft.

1.18 ft.

-0.22 ft. FEET

+3.0

+3.0

+2.0

+2.0

+1.0

+1.0 0

0

12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

6a

PRIME TIME

12p

6p

12a

PRIME TIME

6a

12p

6p

12a

PRIME TIME

6a

12p

6p

12a

6a

PRIME TIME

12p

6p

12a

PRIME TIME

6a

12p

6p

12a

6a

PRIME TIME

12p

6p

12a

PRIME TIME

3:00 — 4:00 PM

4:00 — 6:00 PM

5:00 — 7:00 PM

5:30 — 7:30 PM

6:00 — 8:00 PM

6:30 — 8:30 PM

7:00 — 9:00 PM

Sunrise: 6:23a Set: 8:21p Moonrise: 3:50p Set: 2:38a AM Minor: 1:42a AM Major: 7:52a PM Minor: 2:03p PM Major: 8:14p Moon Overhead: 9:34p Moon Underfoot: 9:12a

Sunrise: 6:24a Set: 8:21p Moonrise: 4:42p Set: 3:14a AM Minor: 2:20a AM Major: 8:31a PM Minor: 2:43p PM Major: 8:54p Moon Overhead: 10:18p Moon Underfoot: 9:56a

Sunrise: 6:24a Set: 8:21p Moonrise: 5:33p Set: 3:52a AM Minor: 3:00a AM Major: 9:11a PM Minor: 3:22p PM Major: 9:34p Moon Overhead: 11:04p Moon Underfoot: 10:41a

Sunrise: 6:24a Set: 8:21p Moonrise: 6:24p Set: 4:32a AM Minor: 3:40a AM Major: 9:52a PM Minor: 4:04p PM Major: 10:15p Moon Overhead: 11:51p Moon Underfoot: 11:27a

Sunrise: 6:25a Set: 8:21p Moonrise: 7:14p Set: 5:16a AM Minor: 4:23a AM Major: 10:35a PM Minor: 4:47p PM Major: 10:59p Moon Overhead: None Moon Underfoot: 12:14p

Sunrise: 6:25a Set: 8:21p Moonrise: 8:02p Set: 6:03a AM Minor: 5:09a AM Major: 11:21a PM Minor: 5:33p PM Major: 11:45p Moon Overhead: 12:39a Moon Underfoot: 1:03p

Sunrise: 6:26a Set: 8:21p Moonrise: 8:48p Set: 6:53a AM Minor: 5:57a AM Major: ----PM Minor: 6:22p PM Major: 12:09p Moon Overhead: 1:27a Moon Underfoot: 1:51p

= FALLING TIDE = RISING TIDE = DAYLIGHT HOURS = NIGHTTIME HOURS Fishing Score Moon l Overhead l Moon Graph Underfoot

READING THE GRAPH

MONDAY

10«

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: FEET

7:27AM 12:37PM 3:12PM 11:44PM

TUESDAY

1.40 ft.

1.13 ft.

1.15 ft.

-0.18 ft.

11«

High Tide: 7:59AM Low Tide: 1:13PM High Tide: 3:50PM

1.39 ft.

1.09 ft.

1.11 ft.

MOON PHASES

Day’s Best Score

WEDNESDAY

12

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

12:17AM 8:30AM 1:54PM 4:43PM

-0.11 ft.

1.37 ft.

1.02 ft.

1.04 ft.

Day’s 2nd Best Score

THURSDAY

13

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

n

12:53AM 9:00AM 2:40PM 6:06PM

-0.01 ft.

1.33 ft.

0.91 ft.

0.96 ft.

l = New Moon l = Full Moon = First Quarter º » = Last Quarter « = Good Day by Moon Phase

Best Day Overall

FRIDAY

14

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

1:31AM 9:26AM 3:26PM 8:05PM

0.14 ft.

1.28 ft.

0.75 ft.

0.87 ft.

SATURDAY

15

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

2:12AM 9:48AM 4:15PM 10:13PM

0.34 ft.

1.23 ft.

0.55 ft.

0.86 ft.

SUNDAY

16 »

Low Tide: 3:00AM 0.56 ft.

High Tide: 10:07AM 1.19 ft.

Low Tide: 5:05PM 0.32 ft.

FEET

+3.0

+3.0

+2.0

+2.0

+1.0

+1.0 0

0

12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

6a

PRIME TIME

12p

6p

PRIME TIME

12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

PRIME TIME

6a

12p

6p

12a

PRIME TIME

6a

12p

6p

PRIME TIME

12a

6a

12p

6p

PRIME TIME

12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

PRIME TIME

7:30 — 9:30 PM

8:00 — 10:00 PM

9:00 — 11:00 PM

3:30 — 5:30 AM

4:30 — 6:30 AM

5:30 — 7:30 AM

6:00 — 8:00 AM

Sunrise: 6:26a Set: 8:20p Moonrise: 9:31p Set: 7:46a AM Minor: 6:48a AM Major: 12:35a PM Minor: 7:12p PM Major: 1:00p Moon Overhead: 2:16a Moon Underfoot: 2:40p

Sunrise: 6:27a Set: 8:20p Moonrise: 10:12p Set: 8:40a AM Minor: 7:40a AM Major: 1:28a PM Minor: 8:04p PM Major: 1:52p Moon Overhead: 3:04a Moon Underfoot: 3:28p

Sunrise: 6:27a Set: 8:20p Moonrise: 10:51p Set: 9:35a AM Minor: 8:32a AM Major: 2:20a PM Minor: 8:56p PM Major: 2:44p Moon Overhead: 3:52a Moon Underfoot: 4:16p

Sunrise: 6:28a Set: 8:20p Moonrise: 11:29p Set: 10:31a AM Minor: 9:25a AM Major: 3:13a PM Minor: 9:49p PM Major: 3:37p Moon Overhead: 4:39a Moon Underfoot: 5:03p

Sunrise: 6:28a Set: 8:19p Moonrise: None Set: 11:28a AM Minor: 10:17a AM Major: 4:06a PM Minor: 10:41p PM Major: 4:29p Moon Overhead: 5:26a Moon Underfoot: 5:50p

Sunrise: 6:29a Set: 8:19p Moonrise: 12:06a Set: 12:26p AM Minor: 11:09a AM Major: 4:57a PM Minor: 11:33p PM Major: 5:21p Moon Overhead: 6:14a Moon Underfoot: 6:38p

Sunrise: 6:29a Set: 8:19p Moonrise: 12:44a Set: 1:26p AM Minor: ----AM Major: 5:47a PM Minor: 12:00p PM Major: 6:12p Moon Overhead: 7:02a Moon Underfoot: 7:27p

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7/7/17 8:30 AM

Sportsman’s DAYBOOK MONDAY

17 FEET

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

12:11AM 3:57AM 10:25AM 5:57PM

TUESDAY

0.95 ft.

0.79 ft.

1.19 ft.

0.07 ft.

18

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

1:52AM 5:14AM 10:43AM 6:49PM

1.11 ft.

1.01 ft.

1.21 ft.

-0.18 ft.

WEDNESDAY

19

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

3:10AM 6:58AM 11:10AM 7:42PM

THURSDAY

20

1.29 ft.

1.17 ft.

1.26 ft.

-0.40 ft.

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

4:11AM 8:44AM 11:54AM 8:34PM

FRIDAY

21

1.43 ft.

1.26 ft.

1.30 ft.

-0.56 ft.

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

5:01AM 9:52AM 12:55PM 9:26PM

SATURDAY

22 «

1.51 ft.

1.28 ft.

1.34 ft.

-0.65 ft.

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

5:45AM 10:39AM 2:03PM 10:17PM

SUNDAY

23 l

1.54 ft.

1.26 ft.

1.35 ft.

-0.66 ft.

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

6:26AM 11:22AM 3:11PM 11:07PM

1.52 ft.

1.18 ft.

1.33 ft.

-0.58 ft. FEET

+3.0

+3.0

+2.0

+2.0

+1.0

+1.0 0

0

12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

6a

PRIME TIME

12p

6p

12a

PRIME TIME

6a

12p

6p

12a

6a

PRIME TIME

12p

6p

12a

6a

PRIME TIME

12p

6p

12a

PRIME TIME

6a

12p

6p

12a

6a

PRIME TIME

12p

6p

12a

PRIME TIME

7:00 — 9:00 AM

7:30 — 9:30 AM

8:30 — 10:30 AM

9:30 — 11:30 AM

10:30A — 12:30P

11:30A — 1:30P

12:30 — 2:30 PM

Sunrise: 6:30a Set: 8:18p Moonrise: 1:23a Set: 2:27p AM Minor: 12:24a AM Major: 6:37a PM Minor: 12:50p PM Major: 7:03p Moon Overhead: 7:52a Moon Underfoot: 8:19p

Sunrise: 6:30a Set: 8:18p Moonrise: 2:05a Set: 3:31p AM Minor: 1:13a AM Major: 7:26a PM Minor: 1:40p PM Major: 7:54p Moon Overhead: 8:46a Moon Underfoot: 9:13p

Sunrise: 6:31a Set: 8:18p Moonrise: 2:52a Set: 4:36p AM Minor: 2:02a AM Major: 8:17a PM Minor: 2:31p PM Major: 8:45p Moon Overhead: 9:42a Moon Underfoot: 10:11p

Sunrise: 6:31a Set: 8:17p Moonrise: 3:43a Set: 5:42p AM Minor: 2:53a AM Major: 9:09a PM Minor: 3:24p PM Major: 9:39p Moon Overhead: 10:41a Moon Underfoot: 11:11p

Sunrise: 6:32a Set: 8:17p Moonrise: 4:41a Set: 6:44p AM Minor: 3:48a AM Major: 10:03a PM Minor: 4:18p PM Major: 10:34p Moon Overhead: 11:42a Moon Underfoot: None

Sunrise: 6:32a Set: 8:16p Moonrise: 5:42a Set: 7:43p AM Minor: 4:45a AM Major: 11:00a PM Minor: 5:15p PM Major: 11:31p Moon Overhead: 12:44p Moon Underfoot: 12:13a

Sunrise: 6:33a Set: 8:16p Moonrise: 6:47a Set: 8:37p AM Minor: 5:44a AM Major: 11:59a PM Minor: 6:14p PM Major: 12:29p Moon Overhead: 1:44p Moon Underfoot: 1:14a

= FALLING TIDE = RISING TIDE = DAYLIGHT HOURS = NIGHTTIME HOURS Fishing Score Moon l Overhead l Moon Graph Underfoot

READING THE GRAPH

MONDAY

24«

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: FEET

7:03AM 12:07PM 4:18PM 11:55PM

TUESDAY

1.47 ft.

1.07 ft.

1.28 ft.

-0.42 ft.

25«

High Tide: 7:39AM 1.40 ft.

Low Tide: 12:55PM 0.94 ft.

High Tide: 5:28PM 1.19 ft.

MOON PHASES

Day’s Best Score

WEDNESDAY

26« Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

12:42AM 8:12AM 1:49PM 6:43PM

-0.20 ft.

1.32 ft.

0.79 ft.

1.09 ft.

Day’s 2nd Best Score

THURSDAY

27

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

n

1:27AM 8:42AM 2:46PM 8:06PM

0.05 ft.

1.25 ft.

0.64 ft.

1.00 ft.

l = New Moon l = Full Moon = First Quarter º » = Last Quarter « = Good Day by Moon Phase

Best Day Overall

FRIDAY

28

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

2:10AM 9:12AM 3:47PM 9:40PM

0.32 ft.

1.19 ft.

0.49 ft.

0.94 ft.

SATURDAY

29

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

2:54AM 9:38AM 4:47PM 11:28PM

0.59 ft.

1.14 ft.

0.35 ft.

0.96 ft.

SUNDAY

30

Low Tide: 3:41AM 0.82 ft.

High Tide: 10:03AM 1.12 ft.

Low Tide: 5:44PM 0.23 ft.

FEET

+3.0

+3.0

+2.0

+2.0

+1.0

+1.0 0

0

12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

6a

PRIME TIME

12p

6p

PRIME TIME

12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

PRIME TIME

6a

12p

6p

12a

PRIME TIME

6a

12p

6p

PRIME TIME

12a

6a

12p

6p

PRIME TIME

12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

PRIME TIME

1:30 — 3:30 PM

2:30 — 4:30 PM

3:30 — 5:30 PM

4:00 — 6:00 PM

4:30 — 6:30 AM

5:30 — 7:30 AM

2:00 — 4:00 PM

Sunrise: 6:34a Set: 8:15p Moonrise: 7:53a Set: 9:26p AM Minor: 6:45a AM Major: 12:30a PM Minor: 7:13p PM Major: 12:59p Moon Overhead: 2:42p Moon Underfoot: 2:13a

Sunrise: 6:34a Set: 8:15p Moonrise: 8:57a Set: 10:10p AM Minor: 7:45a AM Major: 1:31a PM Minor: 8:12p PM Major: 1:58p Moon Overhead: 3:36p Moon Underfoot: 3:10a

Sunrise: 6:35a Set: 8:14p Moonrise: 9:59a Set: 10:50p AM Minor: 8:43a AM Major: 2:31a PM Minor: 9:09p PM Major: 2:56p Moon Overhead: 4:27p Moon Underfoot: 4:02a

Sunrise: 6:35a Set: 8:14p Moonrise: 10:58a Set: 11:27p AM Minor: 9:39a AM Major: 3:27a PM Minor: 10:03p PM Major: 3:51p Moon Overhead: 5:15p Moon Underfoot: 4:51a

Sunrise: 6:36a Set: 8:13p Moonrise: 11:54a Set: None AM Minor: 10:31a AM Major: 4:20a PM Minor: 10:54p PM Major: 4:42p Moon Overhead: 6:01p Moon Underfoot: 5:38a

Sunrise: 6:36a Set: 8:12p Moonrise: 12:49p Set: 12:03a AM Minor: 11:20a AM Major: 5:08a PM Minor: 11:42p PM Major: 5:31p Moon Overhead: 6:46p Moon Underfoot: 6:23a

Sunrise: 6:37a Set: 8:12p Moonrise: 1:42p Set: 12:38a AM Minor: ----AM Major: 5:54a PM Minor: 12:05p PM Major: 6:16p Moon Overhead: 7:30p Moon Underfoot: 7:08a

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JULY 2017

Tides and Prime Times MONDAY

Jul 31º

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: FEET

1:27AM 5:06AM 10:25AM 6:35PM

1.04 ft.

1.01 ft.

1.12 ft.

0.12 ft.

TUESDAY

Aug 1 High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

3:17AM 8:24AM 10:46AM 7:21PM

WEDNESDAY

2

1.16 ft.

1.11 ft.

1.13 ft.

0.04 ft.

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

4:11AM 9:59AM 11:09AM 8:02PM

1.26 ft.

1.16 ft.

1.16 ft.

-0.02 ft.

THURSDAY

3

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

4:41AM 10:43AM 11:52AM 8:39PM

FRIDAY

4

1.32 ft.

1.19 ft.

1.19 ft.

-0.07 ft.

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

5:04AM 10:52AM 12:47PM 9:13PM

SATURDAY

5«

1.36 ft.

1.21 ft.

1.22 ft.

-0.09 ft.

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

5:26AM 10:49AM 1:40PM 9:46PM

SUNDAY

6«

1.39 ft.

1.21 ft.

1.25 ft.

-0.11 ft.

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

5:50AM 10:51AM 2:28PM 10:18PM

1.41 ft.

1.18 ft.

1.26 ft.

-0.10 ft. FEET

+3.0

+3.0

+2.0

+2.0

+1.0

+1.0 0

0

12a

6a

12p

6p

PRIME TIME

12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

PRIME TIME

6a

12p

6p

PRIME TIME

12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

PRIME TIME

6a

12p

6p

12a

PRIME TIME

6a

12p

6p

12a

PRIME TIME

6a

12p

6p

12a

PRIME TIME

7:00 — 9:00 AM

10:00P — 12:00A

3:00 — 5:00 PM

4:00 — 6:00 PM

5:00 — 7:00 PM

5:30 — 7:30 PM

11:00A — 1:00P

Sunrise: 6:38a Set: 8:11p Moonrise: 2:35p Set: 1:13a AM Minor: 12:27a AM Major: 6:38a PM Minor: 12:49p PM Major: 7:00p Moon Overhead: 8:14p Moon Underfoot: 7:52a

Sunrise: 6:38a Set: 8:10p Moonrise: 3:27p Set: 1:50a AM Minor: 1:08a AM Major: 7:20a PM Minor: 1:31p PM Major: 7:42p Moon Overhead: 8:59p Moon Underfoot: 8:37a

Sunrise: 6:39a Set: 8:10p Moonrise: 4:18p Set: 2:29a AM Minor: 1:50a AM Major: 8:01a PM Minor: 2:13p PM Major: 8:24p Moon Overhead: 9:46p Moon Underfoot: 9:22a

Sunrise: 6:39a Set: 8:09p Moonrise: 5:08p Set: 3:12a AM Minor: 2:31a AM Major: 8:43a PM Minor: 2:55p PM Major: 9:06p Moon Overhead: 10:33p Moon Underfoot: 10:09a

Sunrise: 6:40a Set: 8:08p Moonrise: 5:57p Set: 3:58a AM Minor: 3:13a AM Major: 9:25a PM Minor: 3:37p PM Major: 9:49p Moon Overhead: 11:22p Moon Underfoot: 10:57a

Sunrise: 6:41a Set: 8:07p Moonrise: 6:44p Set: 4:47a AM Minor: 3:57a AM Major: 10:09a PM Minor: 4:21p PM Major: 10:34p Moon Overhead: None Moon Underfoot: 11:46a

Sunrise: 6:41a Set: 8:07p Moonrise: 7:29p Set: 5:39a AM Minor: 4:42a AM Major: 10:55a PM Minor: 5:07p PM Major: 11:19p Moon Overhead: 12:11a Moon Underfoot: 12:35p

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Texas BOATING

by LENNY RUDOW :: TF&G Boating Editor

Five Boat Tricks

POPPING A PLANE Anglers who ply the shallows will sooner or later find themselves in a situation where there’s enough water under the keel to float and enough to run, but not enough to get the boat onto plane.

You’ve probably noticed that when power is applied to a boat, the stern digs in as the propeller digs a hole and the boat’s bow rises up over the water. In many boats, this increases draft by a good six or eight inches—and as soon as the prop digs into the bottom all thrust gets lost. Assuming you didn’t damage anything, you’re back to square one.

The solution?

Cut the wheel hard-over in one direction or the other, before applying power. When you do nail the throttle, the boat will immediately begin to bank into a turn, bringing the lower unit significantly higher than it would otherwise be.

As soon as the boat starts to plane, crank the wheel back to straight, and you’re home free.

CAUTION: before attempting this maneuver warn everyone aboard and secure all of your gear.

Otherwise, people and things will go flying, when you nail the throttle and go into an instant turn.

I

F YOU OWN A BOAT YOU’RE A bona fide captain—but not necessarily a good one. Although there’s truly no substitute for years of experience at the helm, a little bit of knowledge never hurts.

Combine the two?

That’s how a good captain becomes a great one.

So if you’re not already familiar with these five boathandling tricks and tactics, study up and then hit the water for the hands-on experience.

SPRINGING A LINE: Line-handling may be boring, but knowing how to spring out of a slip can really save your keister when a strong wind is holding your boat beam-to against the dock and you don’t have room fore and aft to maneuver.

The tactic is simple: run a line from a spring cleat (amidships or thereabouts, though in a pinch a bow or stern cleat can be used with a somewhat lessened effect) to a cleat that’s well aft, preferably all the way behind the boat, on the dock. With the line secured that cleat becomes a pivot-point.

Put the boat into forward gear with the wheel turned away from the dock, and the bow will turn out and away from the dock while the line prevents your boat from moving forward.

How much power you need to apply is a matter of overcoming the wind, but in any case, after applying enough juice to get the bow swung sufficiently far away from the dock you can slip the line free, and power forward.

In extremely tight quarters, or when you may not have dock cleats in the ideal positions, remember that as the bow swings out the stern will want to swing in. Whenever you spring a line it’s a good idea to post a deck or dock-hand nearby with a fender, ready to slide it between the pier and the boat.

Small boats that don’t always carry fenders can accomplish the same thing with an extra life jacket.

Springing a line can also be done in reverse (just run the line forward instead of aft), when this may be necessary to get your boat off the dock.

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SURFING A WAVE: When you’re trying to get a small boat in through an inlet with large waves, surfing is often the safest bet. Instead of overtaking the waves, which will cause you to then fall into a trough, you can ride a wave for quite a distance if you can match its speed.

This is just a matter of jockeying the throttle to maintain the proper speed, and is something you can only do by feel.

The real trick, however, is to transition from surfing one wave to surfing another. Quite often, waves merge, dissipate, and otherwise disappear from beneath your boat no matter how well you may be matching their speed.

When one does disappear, and you feel your boat sinking into a trough, accelerate.

It’s always better to overtake a wave than it is to be overtaken by a wave. The bow is much better at handling rising water than the stern.

Maintaining speed could allow a wave to catch up to you from astern. So as soon as you’re no longer up on a wave, accelerate to catch up to and begin surfing on the next one.

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OPPOSING THE POWERPLANTS: Naturally this one only applies to twin-engine boats.

If you do have twins, however, getting a feel for opposing the engines is incredibly important for slow-speed maneuvering.

You can control a boat far, far more easily with opposed engines than you can with the steering wheel. In fact, the biggest mistake most captains make when maneuvering a twin-screw boat is grabbing the wheel and turning the engines off-center.

Instead, force yourself not to touch the wheel.

Use the throttles only. You’ll find that after a little practice you can control your boat better than ever.

One caveat: the closer the engines are to each other the less effective opposing becomes, and the more power that will be necessary to turn the boat.

BOAT-TO-BOAT PASSENGER TRANSFERS: At times, it may be necessary to transfer passengers from one boat to another while in open waters—and few captains understand how to best perform this task.

Usually, one boat pulls up next to another and everyone tries to hold the boats close, as people step across. But try this in seas of any size, and you’ll learn that two things happen: First, the wind and waves turn the boats on their beam. Second, once the waves start hitting the boats on the beam, one rocks while the other rolls. One gunwale goes up, the other goes down, and you’d better pray that no hands or feet get in between them as people cross from one boat to the other.

A much better way to transfer passengers is to keep both boats moving forward at minimal speed, directly with or into the seas. Whether to head into them or go with them is a judgment call.

If the waves approach from the stern, going with the seas is better—so long as the waves aren’t large enough to be threatening.

Keeping both boats moving at the same speed in the same direction means that the waves hit them both at the same time, and have the same basic effect on both boats. Instead of the gunwales grinding in different directions they’ll stay more or less parallel, and your passengers can make a safe crossing.

Email Lenny Rudow at ContactUs@fishgame.com

G A M E ®

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The Practical ANGLER

by GREG BERLOCHER | TF&G Contributing Editor

Midnight Madness

that might approach you.

Although you are holding a rod and reel, their job is to protect the property in the harbor. Be polite and if they ask you to move along, don’t hesitate to follow their instructions.

J

Wade Fishing at Night Between Piers

ULY ON THE TEXAS COAST IS hectic, to say the least. Armadas of boats, towed by SUVs full of families converge on popular coastal destinations, and launching ramps.

Fishing spots are all jam packed. One simple approach to the ensuing chaos is to fish at night. No crowds, you don’t need sunscreen, and the fish are still hungry. If you have never fished at night before, think about some of these options.

Early one morning as my family was sleeping, I decided to get up at 5 a.m. and fish the hour before dawn. Just as I was setting foot on the pier, a wade fisherman came out of the water 20 feet away. Three speckled trout, all in the five- to six-pound range, dangled from his stringer. A conversation quickly ensued.

“

Lighted Piers Many hotels along the middle and lower coast feature lighted piers that guests can fish on at night. Generally, it takes about an hour for the lights to start attracting predators.

The sly angler waits until midnight before heading out to fish. By this time, the hard charger who has been fishing since dusk is often tired and ready to head back to a soft mattress.

In addition, most young children have gone to bed. Nothing shuts down the bite on a pier like an excited child running down the pier to show their parents their catch. Thump!

Thump! Thump!

Midnight to dawn is when fishing is best.

Having a pier all to yourself, or sharing it with a few other anglers is ideal. Jigs and tightlined live bait fished on 10- or 12-pound test mono are sure-fire options. Stand in the shadows and cast into the lighted areas.

If fish are active at another light, silently pad down the pier and snipe at the feeding fish from the darkness. Harvesting a few fish from each light tends to keep them biting.

The sly angler waits until midnight before heading out to fish.

“ Big speckled trout get that way because they are wary creatures and are risk averse. Rarely do they venture into the illuminated waters, preferring to hang in the shadows or darkness.

My new friend had a large, black topwater knotted onto his baitcasting outfit. He had purposely fished between 3 to 5 a.m. when noise from the adjacent pier would be at a minimum.

Although he couldn’t see the fish blasting his plug, his ears sensed the blasts, and he could feel the added weight on the line.

Large, noisy topwater baits are great options for night fishing. You can fish them slowly and allow them to pause periodically, just like a loitering baitfish. Slush baits, with props on

Lighted Harbors Many harbors have dockside lights that provide the same fish-attracting effect as lighted piers. One word of caution about fishing in a harbor: please have empathy for peace officers 78

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both ends, are one of my favorite plugs for night duty.

If you choose to wade at night, file a game plan with a loved one and avoid areas known for dangerous currents.

Packing a small net will minimize the chance of a thrashing trout plunging a treble hook deep into your hand during the landing process.

Fishing the Lights in a Canal Community Before I start, I would like to say a word about fishing in canal communities.

I have received a boatload of angry e-mail over the years whenever I mention this in a column. Let me stress, it is perfectly legal for anyone to fish in the canals from a boat.

Property owners have harangued me about this, stating that their property line extends to the middle of the canal. Four different Texas Attorneys General have ruled on this, and all have declared canals to be public waterways since they ebb and rise with the tides.

As long as you don’t anchor or tie up to anyone’s dock, or private property, you are perfectly legal.

I would encourage anyone fishing in a canal community at night to be polite, keep noise and stray lights to a minimum, and absolutely no music or unruly behavior.

This type of fishing requires a boat or kayak.

Slip quietly from light to light and snipe at the edges of the lights. If you hook a fish, pull them into the darkness where the struggle is out of view of their schoolmates.

By contrast, a thrashing fish hooked in the middle of the cone of light will shut down the bite for an extended period If you are tired of getting sunburned, are a night owl, or just wanting a little quiet time away from the family, check out the midnight madness.

Email Greg Berlocher at ContactUs@fishgame.com

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6/7/17 10:16 AM

The BASS University

by PETE ROBBINS :: for TF&G and Bass University

How ‘The Dean’ Revs Up School Spirit

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T’S A SITUATION MOST TEXAS anglers dream of during the postspawn, a school of bass so large that it blacks out your sonar screen with oversized arches.

In reality, though, the dream can quickly devolve into a nightmare as you scratch your head in the Lone Star heat, pondering why a school that looks fired up has gone ice cold.

Sure, you may have caught one or two early in your approach, but that tournament winning bag remains down below. Or maybe it’s worse than that—you can’t even get the first bite.

If you have encountered something like this—on lakes such as Rayburn, Toledo Bend or Fork—then Bass University founder and instructor Pete “The Dean” Gluszek has a lesson plan for getting your school back on track.

“That first strike is often the most difficult one to get, especially if they’re suspended,” he said. “One solution to that, if you’re on a lake where they pull current, is to know the generation schedule and to be on the premium habitat when they fire up the generators. You may be moving through different areas, but once they open it up, that’s when they’ll be the absolute easiest to trigger.”

If your lake doesn’t have heavy current, or you’re fishing at a time when they’re not generating enough to stimulate and catalyze the action, Gluszek said that his postspawn attack typically starts with a crankbait, but not a hardpulling, rattling beast. Instead, he likes the Rapala DT series, which “has a subtle presence and doesn’t intimidate or overpower them.”

He noted that when most anglers get that first bite, particularly if it’s a good one, they stop and celebrate, take a snapshot, maybe even post it to social PHOTO: BASS UNIVERSITY

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it on with a snap to facilitate quick bait changes.

If he pulls his lure through an active school two casts in a row without a bite, he’ll grab from the handful he lays at his feet and swap it out. It might be a gaudy color instead of a natural color, or a silent version instead of a rattling one, or vice versa, but the point is to re-trigger the bite.

That can be a tough call to make on the fly, because anglers tend to stick with the lure that produced most recently, but he said that the simple switch is often the ticket to keeping things going, and “you can’t hesitate,” or the school will lose their vigor.

When the school is still obviously bunched up beneath him, and appears to be in feeding mode, but the crankbait buffet no longer works, he’ll turn to a variety of other lures.

This includes “license plate spoons,” single swimbaits such as the 5.5-inch Storm 360, the “flying chicken” (i.e., a big hair jig), and where allowed, an Alabama Rig, specifically the Picasso School E Rig. He’s also a fan of a bulky football head “mop” jig, but instead of crawling and dragging it along the bottom, he’ll “stroke” it up off the bottom and into the schools in big leaping arcs.

If no simple bait change or progression seems to get the school back in a feeding mood, Gluszek will experiment with multiple angles of approach and different retrieve speeds. If that doesn’t work, and he suspects that he’s on the winning fish, he’ll do what he calls “jumping the fish.” What he means by that, is, he’ll drive the boat right over the school. It’s not a simple idle, either.

“I try to blow prop wash on them,” he explained. “They’re there for the baitfish, and I’m trying to disorient or stun the baitfish and get them activated. I’ll drive right through and then go through the whole process again.”

media in between high fives. That’s a mistake, because “the best time to catch a big fish is immediately after you catch a big fish,” he said.

“When a fish is hooked, its whole metabolism is accelerated, and it’s infectious to the school.

They’re like seagulls, all looking for the next french fry.”

If he’s not in a tournament, he’ll encourage his fishing partner to throw in directly behind his hooked fish, where another is probably on the prowl, looking to mop up the scraps. On a competition day, he’ll drop that fish in the livewell as quickly as possible and get back to casting.

Any hesitation can be a recipe for inaction.

The longer the school remains inactive, the harder it is to get them in feeding mode again.

When the fish are completely mesmerized by a crankbait, Gluszek will stay with that lure class as long as he can. It allows him to cover water and pick off active fish. He typically ties

Email Pete Robbins at ContactUs@fishgame.com

Pete Gluszek

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Texas GUNS

by STEVE LAMASCUS | TF&G Shooting Editor

Fire Forming

This is the simplest form of fire forming and works wonderfully well if the chambering job is done correctly. Sadly, not all gunsmiths have the knowledge, tools, and skills needed to perform such a chambering job.

If the chambering job is done correctly, the improved chamber will actually be a few thousandths of an inch shorter than the factory cartridge from head to the junction of shoulder and neck. This means that when you chamber a factory cartridge it should require some effort to close the bolt on the new cartridge. This prevents excess headspace on the fire-formed round, which could cause case head separation the next time the cartridge is reloaded and fired.

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NE OF THE FACTS ABOUT firearms and ammunition is that the cartridge case and the rifle chamber are never exactly the

same size.

If they were the same size, the rifle manufacturer and the cartridge companies would have zero allowable tolerances and ammunition and firearms would cost a larger fortune than they do now, if they could be made at all. Therefore, every time you fire your rifle, the cartridge is to some extent being reformed to the exact dimensions of that particular rifle’s chamber.

However, when a reloader and experimenter speaks of “fire-forming” he is talking about firing a cartridge that has a significantly different shape so chamber pressure will reshape it to conform to the rifle’s chamber.

This is what happens when I fire a .243 Winchester cartridge in my .243 Ackley Improved rifle. What allows me to do this without blowing up my rifle is that the “Ackley Improved” chamber and the original Winchester cartridge have the same headspace. That is, the distance from the point where the shoulder meets the cartridge neck to the rear face of the cartridge case is the same on both cartridges.

What happens when I fire a factory cartridge in my Ackley Improved chamber is that the walls of the cartridge are blown outward to have less taper from head to shoulder, and the shoulder angle is changed from 20 degrees to 40 degrees (See photo).

The result is that the cartridge is reformed (fire-formed) to have greater powder capacity; the straighter case walls stick to the sides of the chamber better, which lessens thrust against the bolt face; and the sharper shoulder angle prevents brass from flowing forward to lengthen the cartridge case, and decreases the need to trim the case neck as often, or at all. |

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There are ways to fire-form the case without danger to the shooter.

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If, however, your rifle is not perfectly headspaced, it is still not a lost cause. There are ways to fire-form the case without danger to the shooter.

I have a .222 Magnum Ackley Improved that has this problem, the chamber is just a couple of thousandths too long at the shoulder/neck junction. The solution is to load the factory .222 Remington Magnum case with a stiff, but not maximum, charge of powder, then seat the bullet in the case so that it is far enough out of the case to firmly engage the rifling.

This keeps the cartridge case firmly against the face of the bolt. When fired the cartridge expands to fit the chamber and the headspace |

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is perfect. I can then neck-size the cartridge and reload it.

Seating the bullet to engage the lands and grooves is often mandatory in a wildcat cartridge that moves the shoulder of the case forward to increase powder capacity, such as the old Gibbs line of cartridges. In these cartridges the parent case is the .30-06, but the shoulder is moved substantially forward to increase powder capacity.

In the smaller calibers such as the .240 and .25 Gibbs, necking the case down to the desired caliber forms a false shoulder at the correct place for proper headspacing. On the .30 Gibbs, however, it is necessary to seat the bullet out to engage the lands and grooves, keeping the cartridge firmly against the bolt face, or extreme headspace is likely.

Some hardy souls just shoot .30-06 cartridges in the .30 Gibbs chamber, but this is a very dangerous practice. I did this once before I knew better.

When I was a teenager an older friend asked me to fire-form a bunch of military .30-06 cartridges in his .30 Gibbs. Loving to shoot, I thought this would be a wonderful way to get some free practice, so I took it to the range and started shooting.

Every shot fired produced a ruptured case.

It didn’t take long for me to figure out that there were safer pastimes, so I took the rifle and ammo back to him and told him I thought he was doing something wrong.

What he should have done was pull the bullets and reseat them so they engaged the rifling.

It’s a miracle he didn’t get an ignorant teenager blown up. Now when you read “fire-forming” in one of the shooting magazines, you will know exactly what the writer is talking about.

Email Steve LaMascus at ContactUs@fishgame.com

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6/7/17 10:19 AM

Industry INSIDER Line Cutterz Sparks a Fishing Revolution ONE OF THE SMALLEST BUT MOST innovative products to enter the fishing industry realm recently is Line Cutterz.

The creator of this product, Vance Zahorski, started with the concept of a ring fishermen would wear that would have a cutting blade on both sides of the outer edges of the ring, making it a safe and easy alternative to fumbling with scissors, clippers or knives while fishing.

This is especially useful when you need to cut a fishing line on the fly. Let’s face it, we all have instances when a product like this would come in handy.

This product was so innovative, it even got Vance a spot on the hit ABC TV show Shark Tank after a series of auditions. In his initial pitch on the TV show panel, Vance told the story of how he was in a tight spot after catching a shark on the shore at a friend’s wedding but not having a way to cut the line and release the fish.

After taking this idea to the TV audience, Vance was awarded a $120,000 of investment money to seed his company’s start in trade for 33% ownership in his company.

The Line Cutterz ring has made cutting fishing line on the fly a breeze. This product doesn’t just have to stay on your finger either.

Some adaptations anglers have thought of is to put Line Cutterz on to base of a rod, the bottom, side or top rail of a boat or even on a kayak seat. The options are endless with a product this compact. The convenience factor of having a tool like this with you while you are fishing is amazing.

Vance left his high-income sales job

with an appliance company and even sold his boat and the dream home he lived in to pursue this dream. Zahorski made many sacrifices in launching Line Cutterz including moving into his parent’s home along with his wife and children. He even enlisted high school friends to help him fill orders, especially after the Shark Tank episode aired and his business started to take off.

Like many entrepreneurs, he came up with a prototype from humble beginnings, making it from welding putty and a dental floss cutter.

Who would have known that a few years later he would have the finished product in hundreds of fishing tackle and big box retail stores as well as eight different countries?

This dream of a convenient tool for fishermen has been a booming success and, at a retail price of $12 a ring, who wouldn’t want one? Line Cutterz also works for cutting thread and yarn which has made it a hit has sewing and quilting retail outlets in addition to the fishing world. What’s more is that this product has a patent on design and utility and even works well with braided fishing lines.

This company has grown leaps and bounds from an idea and a dream into reality and is a great example of the “American dream” coming true. Learn more about this company at www.linecutterz.com.

—by DUSTIN VAUGHN WARNCKE

The Correct Trailer for Any Boat “YOU CAN’T JUST TAKE ANY BOAT trailer and put any boat on it. We specifically customize trailers to specific boats,” says

Caption

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David Bice, who builds and designs the boat trailers at Lagoon Custom Trailers, 80 Conejo, Port O’ Connor, TX. Lagoon Custom Trailers works with boat dealers or directly with boat buyers. The first step is learning the specs of the boat: the width, the length, whether it’s a flat bottom, a modified V, an offshore boat, or whatever the design.

“We build the trailer to those specifications. If we need to, we will set the boat actually on the trailer to measure, make sure, everything is exactly where it needs to be,” said Bice.

If the trailer isn’t correct for the boat, if the bunks aren’t set right or set too low, the keel can hit the cross members, maybe punch a hole in the keel. Or the boat can sit crooked on the trailer producing extra stress on the hull.

“We strive to make sure the boat sits on the trailer exactly like it should,” Bice said.

“Before the bunk brackets are welded on the trailer, we block the boat on the trailer, set the height where the boat needs to sit.

“Next comes construction of the trailer parts, and then putting everything together.

“We make the bunk brackets, weld them into place, put the bunk boards and fender boards on, and then set the boat back on the trailer to verify again that everything is where it needs to be.”

Bice says he gives the customer a top quality trailer at a reasonable price. Lagoon Custom Trailers is located at 80 Conejo, Port O’Connor, TX 77982. Bice can be reached at 361-492-0985, or at dlbice74@gmail.com.

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6/7/17 11:09 AM

Fish and Game GEAR New Styles for Night Sights for Women from Costa Walther PPS/CCP COSTA’S NEW WOMEN’S STYLES, the Riverton, Gannet, and Kare were designed with the Beachcomber persona in mind, where, “sun and saltwater fuel your soul, shirts and shoes are always optional.”

The Riverton, Gannet, and Kare aim to appeal to all females drawn to the water while still providing premium clarity.

DXT SIGHTS BY XS® SIGHT SYStems are the finest sights made for fast sight acquisition in all light conditions, and they are now available for the Walther PPS/CCP sub-compact pistol. Day-Light, Half-Light, or Low-Light, just “dot the I”—fast, simple and effective.

This is the ultimate self-defense sight system. You can see DXT (Defense Express Tritium) sights around the clock. Most self-defense situations happen in low light levels, which is why every carry gun should be equipped with night sights.

Our Big Dot front sight paired with our V-notch rear helps you index the front sight and get rounds into the threat faster. The Big Dot with Trijicon® tritium insert stand out boldly in low light and the V-notch rear sight gives you a quick aiming reference for accurate shooting in a defensive situation where both the attacker and the defender are moving.

Costa Gannet

The Riverton and Kare are thin, lightweight and secure fitting. The Hydrolite technology on the nose and temples keeps the frames in place, even when you sweat.

The Gannet was inspired by the adventurous lives that Costa women live on and off the water. This upgraded design fits best on medium faces and has new lifestyle logo detailing.

All of the new styles are inspired by the beach and are brought to life with fun, vibrant, crystal colors all the way to the inside of the frame. They are all available with Costa’s signature 580 lens technology in either glass or polycarbonate and are scratch resistant and prescription ready. They feature integrated and embedded spring hinges, meaning they won’t get caught in hair and ensure all day comfort. Each of these frames are made from Bio-Resin, a reclaimed castor oil product that is petroleum-free and speaks to Costa’s mission to Kick Plastic.

It is critical to identify your target and shoot accurately, because you are legally responsible for

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every round that leaves the barrel. Big sights on a little gun make it easier to hit your mark when seconds count.

Grow Bigger Fish, Faster TEXAS HUNTER PRODUCTS HAS engineered and patented a large selection of high efficiency fish feeders with a dual motor system that delivers a consistent, metered flow of feed into a powerful, centrifugal air blower.

This specially-designed air blower system creates a high velocity air stream that projects fish feed into the water in a large wedge-shaped pattern up to 45 feet. The broad feed pattern spreads fish feed across the lake’s surface, which gives more fish a chance to eat the feed.

The premium digital timer, a Texas Hunter exclusive, synchronizes the fish feeder’s two motors, turning the feed flow on and off while the air blower system is still running.

This design prevents fish feed from dropping directly in front of the feeder, so it does not attract varmints or waste feed on the pond bank or dock.

Texas Hunter’s premium timer can be set to feed up to nine times per day and includes a five-year limited warranty. Two feed-level sight glasses make it easy to view your feed level from land or across the lake. An optional solar charger mounts on any side of the feeder and includes a mounting bracket designed at the perfect angle to capture and maximize the sun’s energy.

Texas Hunter Fish Feeders are available in three capacities: 70 pounds, 175 pounds, or 250 pounds. They are always in stock and available for same-day shipping. Visit online at TexasHunter.com TexasHunter.com.

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6/7/17 11:01 AM

Texas TASTED

by BRYAN SLAVEN :: The Texas Gourmet

Sweet Chipolte Glazed Salmon BLT Sliders

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RESH SALMON IS A FAVORITE fish of mine to prepare. I love BLTs, so I decided to incorporate some of our products into an easy to make, but delicious tasting slider. I hope you enjoy!

Serves 4 to 6.

Thin sliced roma tomatoes 1/3 cup mayonnaise Mix in 3 tablespoons of Texas Gourmet’s Lemon Rosemary Habanero Grilling Sauce until well combined and return to refrigerator until ready to make the sliders 4 slices Peppered bacon Cooked to done and cut into two-inch slices.

Ingredients: ½ lb. fresh salmon filet, tail section, skin removed 8 slider buns, toasted Fresh baby greens or chopped lettuce

Preparation: Spray olive oil spray, or brush onto salmon filet and liberally sprinkle enough Texas Gourmet’s Sweet Chipotle Season all over the filet to cover it well. Place the filet on a grill mat on a hot grill, or on a piece of parchment paper in a baking dish in the oven at 425 degrees until done (approx. 12 to 14 minutes).

Remove from grill or oven, and cover with a loose piece of foil for 5 to 7 minutes to rest the filet. Slice the filet into 1.5-inch squares. Spread a small amount of Aioli sauce on top and bottom buns.

Place a tomato slice on the bun, then the salmon piece, then the lettuce or greens, then two slices of the bacon criss-crossed.

Top with the bun top, place a toothpick through the slider to hold it together until ready to serve. Serve with pasta salad or your favorite sides.

Get more great recipes for wild game and other delicious meals, appetisers and desserts plus order seasonings and other great products by visiting the Texas Gourmet’s website, at www.TheTexasGourmet.com Bon Appetit!

Email Bryan Slaven at bryan@thetexasgourmet.com

PHOTO: BRYAN SLAVEN

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6/7/17 11:04 AM

Outdoor DIRECTORY ::

Guides & Outfitters

Lodging

::

Destinations

::

Real Estate :: Gear

TEXAS FRESHWATER

TEXAS FRESHWATER

TEXAS SALTWATER

LAKE AMISTAD

CEDAR CREEK LAKE

MID TEXAS COAST

LOWER TEXAS COAST

LOUISIANA LAKE TEXOMA

TEXAS SALTWATER UPPER TEXAS COAST

HUNTING SOUTH TEXAS

MID TEXAS COAST DFW METROPLEX NEW TF&G APPAREL IS HERE!

WWW.FISHGAME.COM

Have a Safe & Happy 4th!

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6/7/17 11:06 AM

Open SEASON

by REAVIS Z. WORTHAM :: TF&G Humor Editor

Interview

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OC WAS THE LAST TO JOIN the Hunting Club members gathered around the large corner table in Doreen’s 24 HR Eat Gas Now Café. “She here yet?”

“Nope,” Wrong Willie sipped at his coffee.

“But we need to have a plan. Delbert, you don’t get to talk at all.”

Delbert started to say something, but Woodrow put his hand out. “He said, ‘silent.’”

“Cap’n. No philosophizing.”

“Check.”

“Doc, no tangents.”

“Check.”

“Rev, no discussions about the good old days.”

I started to pout, then changed my mind when she pulled into the parking lot, as it shimmered in the July heat. “Check, and Willie, no history from you. We’re just going to make a good impression on this landowner and finally get us a deer lease for next year.”

Behind the counter, Doreen giggled hysterically. “You guys are going to mess up.”

“No we won’t,” Willie answered and shushed everyone when Mrs. Byrd stepped into the café.

We expected the rich lady to be driving a BMW and wearing furs, but she was dressed in a western shirt, jeans, scuffed work boots, and a sweatstained cowboy hat.

Her mere presence woke Jerry Wayne, who gave a start when he saw her. He quickly sipped at his coffee to pretend alertness, not realizing that Doreen had just topped us all off. He sprayed coffee all over the table, and on Doc and Willie.

“Good going,” I said. “First rattle out of the box and you’ve already…”

“I didn’t know this coffee was hot enough to scald hogs!”

“Howdy boys,” Mrs. Bryd said. The woman owned more land than most counties were made of, but she quickly pulled a handful of paper napkins out of the dispenser and threw them on the spill.

“Towel!

Shocked, Doreen flung a damp towel across

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“Sure…”

“I don’t mind you boys having a little fun out there,” she winked at us. “But I expect folks to be sober when me and Bill come around the fire at night. He likes bourbon, you guys ain’t teetotalers, are you?”

“Yessum.”

Her eyebrows raised.

I jumped in. “We’ll have a taste after the guns are put up at night.”

She smiled and the deep crowsfeet at the corners of her eyes kinda made me swoon. She got up, went back behind the counter and patted Doreen on the shoulder. Without a word, she opened the cooler, found some cream and brought it back to the table. I took it and added some to my coffee.

“I ain’t saying y’all are on there yet, but I like what I see.”

“Well…”

“Anyway, Bill has the final sayso, and he hasn’t really kicked those other creeps off yet. They won’t be gone until their lease runs out the first of August. If you boys are still interested, well, we’ll give you a good looking-over once you come out to the ranch.”

She gave us directions so fast I finally wrote them on my hand with the only thing in my pocket, a permanent marker.

“All right, we’ll see you boys. After I call, you might want to wash that permanent marker off before it soaks in too deep. Bill don’t much like tattoos. See ya.”

She was out the door before Jerry Wayne could finally sip his coffee. We stared at the woman as she stomped across the parking lot, jumped into a diesel dually, and sped away, with a horse trailer in tow.

“What just happened?” I asked.

“I think she wants a job here,” a rarely stunned Doreen said.

“I don’t care,” Doc said. “But even if they don’t let us on at her ranch, I want her to hunt with us from now on.”

the café and then realized in horror at what she’d just done to the rich lady. Mrs. Byrd caught the towel with a flourish and quickly wiped the table.

“This reminds me of when I was cooking for the boys over at the Bar Rail back in the sixties.

They were always fighting and spilling.”

“Howdy…” Willie said.

She interrupted him as if he hadn’t uttered a sound. “You know, we’ve owned our ranch since Great Granddaddy got back from a cattle drive with Mr. Goodnight, you guys know, of the Goodnight Loving trail…”

I started to answer, but Willie jabbed me in the ribs. It wouldn’t have made any difference, though, if I’d recited the Gettysburg Address.

Mrs. Byrd was on a roll.

“Well, Great Granddaddy made two trail drives and knew he didn’t want to work for another man all his life. So, he took what little money he made during those two years and bought the first piece of our little place not far from Ranger.”

“We heard…” Doc mumbled.

“The ranch grew from there,” she said, picking up an empty cup from the table and wiping it out. Without taking a break from her story, she walked behind Doreen’s counter and filled it from the pot.

“He bought section after section until he had everything he wanted. Then he just started raising cows and kids. That’s where I come from.”

“Yes ma’am,” the Cap’n said. “You know…”

“Anyway, we’re looking for some boys to take over on the lease because that bunch we had on there last year are liars and thieves.”

“Sorry to hear…”

“I don’t mind if y’all bring some friends out, but only one friend per person and they can’t stay for weeks at a time.”“We won’t…” I started.

“Y’all look old enough to know better. She squinted at Doc. “How old are you?”

Taken aback, he frowned. “Well, uh, on the backside of sixty.”

“More like seventy,” she said. “You’re closer to my age. How long y’all say you’ve been hunting together?”

“Some of us since we were kids,” Willie answered, proud that he’d completed a sentence.”

“Y’all know how to close fences and know the difference between a heifer and a deer?”

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6/7/17 10:29 AM

FERAL HOG Dayton Beth Potyok and her dad David shot this huge boar while hunting in Dayton.

REDFISH Lower Laguna Madre Pedro Gonzales caught and tagged this 45.5-inch red on live shrimp, while fishing in the Saucer area of the Lower Laguna Madre near Arroyo City.

REDFISH Port O’Connor

LONG NOSE GAR

Angler Cory Duck caught and released this 45-inch bull red while fishing near Port O’Connor.

San Saba Fifteen-year-old Jason Gandy caught this gar while fishing with his uncle near San Saba.

REDFISH Galveston After catching this bull red while fishing alone on the beach, Walter Colton realized he’d forgotten his camera tripod and, not wanting to miss the photo opportunity and intent on getting it back into the water as fast as possible, he took this quick “selfie.”

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SEND YOUR PHOTOS TO photos@FishGame.com For best results, send MED to HIGH quality JPEG digital files only, please.

Also Enter our PHOTO CONTEST: FishGame.com/texas-hotsots-upload No guarantee can be made as to when, or if, a submitted photo will be published.

BASS

BASS

Lake Austin

Lake Somerville

Rey Ruiz and Sean Kohlmeyer caught these three bass at the SH 360 Bridge on Lake Austin. The lunkers were on four-pound line, while it was raining and 30 degrees.

They were the only boat on the water.

Crazy? Maybe... or just Hooked!

Arthur Majors holds an eight-pound bass he caught on a homemade white spinnerbait while fishing at Lake Sommerville.

BASS Dennison Johnny Wayne Summers, Jr. and his son Johnny Wayne III, caught this 7.3-pound largemouth bass while fishing on Waterloo Lake at Dennison.

BROWN TROUT Colorado Keilan Kyle caught this winter brown trout while fly fishing at the Ruedi Dam on the Frying Pan River in Colorado.

WHITETAIL Johnson City Eleven-year-old Tommy Kincaid shot his first buck with a bow while hunting with his friend Wesley Wright at Johnson City.

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