Island Moon
July 15, 2011
A7
Island Grapes
Birds and Beach Bits
Islanders Tommy and Leslie Hallick have one of the more unusual gardens on The Island. They are growing grapes. Tommy says the vines were already in place when they bought their home five years ago but are pretty much taking over the garden now. Wine anyone? Photos by Jan Rankin
(aka On the Rocks) By Jay Gardener Bizzy turned his hat backwards and pushed the throttles down on the big twin black motors. We blew through the jetties at a high rate of speed on the Bu$y Livin (Jeffs new Donzi) and headed out south not too long after sunrise with the Superfishal and crew on our tail. We turned a little south and headed straight into the 2 foot waves, grinning from ear to ear. The Bu$y Livin handled the waves great and we did 25 knots dead into the teeth of the swells with no hard landings. We had a great tip from Capt. Peter Young that there was a rip that was holding some Sargassum (who knew you would have to look hard for that stuff offshore right now?) that also had some Mahi on it. Our goal was to get out and do some trolling and flipping and help Capt Peter and the TAMUCC HRI Fisheries and Ocean Health Lab tag some small Mahi for the migration and distribution study. Dirty Green Water The water was menacingly dirty green, and we hoped for a color change. Mile after mile, still greenish, dirty water. We passed a few rigs, and still dirty. Then, sure enough, we suddenly come across a rip that has cobalt blue water just on the other side of it. Sweet! Sure enough, it was a strong rip with Sargassum entrained in it, moving north. It didn’t take us 4 minutes to put out a small spread and begin the troll. We saw birds working, and fish getting blown up. It didn’t take more than a few minutes and the bird gets hit. Perfect chicken dolphin gets reeled up to the boat, pulled in, quickly tagged and released. Laura and Bizzy have turned into quite a well oiled tagging team. I’m just the hooker in the equation, LOL. So we start trolling again and 100 yards ahead, I’m standing on the gunnel looking down in the water and I see them; a thousand small mahi the size of two of your hands. Perfect. I yell “schoolies” like an excited 10 year old hopped up on Pop-Tarts and Dr. Pepper. Bizzy cuts the throttle, we pull up the trolling lines and the mahem starts. Drag Screaming Kingfish We get out the bay rods and start flipping. Mixed in with the little mahi are drag-screaming kingfish, bonita and blue runners. We spent the next few hours in “fish camp mode” with losing lures, releasing non-target species, and of course tagging and releasing mahi. Awesome! It was a picturesque scene, with smooth seas, mahi free-jumping as far as the eye could see, birds working, and the beautiful rip we were on. And unfortunately you’ll have to take my word for it; not one frame was snapped all day. We were too busy. Well some of us were busy with fish; I think Jeff spent more time re-rigging his gear, tying new leaders on, losing and replacing lures. He said he just came out to enjoy the day, LOL. After catching a few more fish, we decide we had enough and started to head in. One of the motors decides it has a sticky fuel injector, so we limp in on the 4th of July on one motor. Guess that’s why you have two of them on offshore boats! It just gave us time to enjoy the day. Funky Cold Medina The weekend actually started off with us heading up to the Medina River around Bandera. It was Johns birthday, and we decided to get out of town and let the tourists run the beaches for a couple days. I hadn’t been to the Median since I was like 12, and it was a nice treat. The Berrys took the kids and the Heistermans took the dogs and we had a blast soaking in the river and grilling all day Saturday. I managed to forget all my tackle, but Mickey had an old fly rod in his tool box. A quick trip to the hardware store for flies, and we were in business. I caught a few bluegill, and then handed the rod over and gave Road Kill Willie his first fly lesson. After a few casts he got the hang of it and reeled in his first fish on the fly; a perch. He was ecstatic. Road Kill says he’s only going to fish with a fly rod from now on. We’ll see about that one. The kids (and big kids) had a blast on the rope swing in the swimming hole. Good old fashioned
fun. Bandera had changed little since I had been there last and was a pleasant town. If you feel the urge to get out, head up on that way. Even with the drought, the river was still flowing some. Burn Boats One thing that has been occurring that is not good is the burn boats are back in the Laguna. A burn boat is a boat with a large tower on it used for spotting fish. Now, there’s nothing wrong with having a vantage point when you’re sight casting, I’m not picking on the boat. I myself stand on my console when I’m drifting to see the fish. However, some of the burn boat owners are being bad little monkeys. They gas up, start at the Causeway, and then run a grid pattern back and forth across the Laguna. Many punch in a spot on their GPS when they come across a school. This is a re-iteration of a tournament tactic that has played out before by a few, however this method is picking up steam with more and more folks. The issue is that they’re running grids over the entire Laguna, from the Causeway to Bird Island and even south. This method is very selfish; once fish are run over once, they become skittish and will not eat your lure or bait as readily; they’re spooked and get lock jaw. If you run over fish a couple of times, you’ll run them deep and off a flat. So the 14 guys that are out there that waited all week to fish and got out there quietly and early to their honey hole get “burned” by this activity. The person running the tower boat may give you a little cushion when they go by, but that’s not the point. The point is is that all the adjacent areas to you have now been run over and the fish spooked. Forget moving. So while this may not be the textbook definition of Harassing wildlife (which is against the law and hard enough to prove) it is to a degree harassing both the fish and the fellow fishermen. This is the case of a few bad apples ruining for everyone. I consider it rude, self-centered, and without honor. And I can say that too, not because I didn’t think of it and feel like someone is doing something new and gaining an advantage or anything. I can say that the practice should be stopped because I’ve done it before.
It was a big week over at Island Presbyterian Church as vacation bible school was a big hit with the kids. Some helpers came all the way from Dallas to help make it a success and the Snack Ladies keep everyone happy with tasty treats between classes.
Steer by Leaning Fifteen years ago when I got my most recent boat, I did it. I would go out on the flats during the week (college sure was fun) when no one was out there, and put the boat up on plane and then I would walk up to the front and watch for fish (dangerous as hell by the way). I learned how to steer by leaning and would watch for reds. When I spotted them, I would run to the back, do a quick turn, shut down, and drift immediately back through them. I learned that you would pick up a fish only every once in a while. The problem is that you spook the fish by driving over their heads, and only one in a few dozen would actually hit after that. Then you move on, and try to find another school. The problem is that those fish you just left behind no longer will eat the rest of the day. No matter what you throw at them. It’s like a destructive practice that trains fish not to bite when they hear a boat. It ruins them for anyone else that comes in behind you. The fish in the local area get wise to it, and you have to go in more areas, ever expanding the area you “burn”. I only did it long enough to figure that out, and immediately stopped. Does it work? Sure. But its irresponsible behavior that harasses fish, plain and simple. I learned to hone my techniques, and figured out stealth is the way to go. Don’t bang on anything, drift a target area from a long ways away, use the channels to travel, and stay off the flats unless you’re fishing. With the huge increase in people on our waters, especially now during the summer, its even more important to be considerate, or no one gets to catch a fish out there. Bad Monkey Behind the Wheel Enough soapbox. Those doing it know its’ wrong. You can tell because when they’re accused, the first thing out of their mouth is, “well, its’ not illegal or breaking any laws!” That’s right, and so were other activities, such as gill netting, that have resulted in laws. Maybe its time to change that. Its not like the tower boats themselves are the cause; it’s the bad monkey behind the wheel.
On the Banks of the Funky Cold Medina
Vacation Bible School
Well, I will see you folks at Schlitterbahn. Ha! Just kidding. We’re headed down on the seashore for Road Kill Willies 5th Annual 39th Birthday. Hope the trout are still biting. Y’all be good and have fun.
Serving: Padre Island, Flour Bluff, Port Aransas, Mustang Island and Rockport. 9 9 9 9 9 9
Landscape Design h Decks and Docks First Time Cleanups h Shade Structures/ Pergola Demolitions & Scraping h Outdoor Kitchens We install: Plants, Palms, Rock, h Boat Lifts Sod, Pavers and Outdoor Decor. h Fences & Gates Yard Maintenance h General D&D Repair Concrete Drives/Patio & Retaining Walls
We’re your full service outdoor solution! Give us a call today. Tim Arlitt - Decks & Docks Specialist 361.229.2530 Sami Wilson - Landscape Designer 361.949.2691
IslandLandscapingDecksAndDocks.com Quality & Insured.
Desire fresh food?
Real, Satisfying food prepared just for you from fresh ingredients Huge Vegetarian, Vegan & Gluten-Free Friendly Menu Fresh Non-veg stuff too.
Tango Tea Room
505 South Water Street 361-883-9123