April 27, 2017 - Lone Star Outdoor News - Fishing & Hunting

Largest Hunting and Fishing Newspaper in Texas

April 28, 2017

Volume 13, Issue 17

Get your Offshore opportunities mojo back

By Darlene McCormick Sanchez Lone Star Outdoor News

For those angling for a change, offshore captains say plenty of red snapper and a fair number of mackerel, cobia and jacks are showing up off the Texas coast.

“State-water red snapper —it’s been good fishing,” said Capt.

Chad Kinney, who runs Bamm bamm Charters out of Port Mansfield. “Yesterday we caught a limit of red snapper.”

His charter clients have been catching up to 20-pounders on squid, croaker and fresh shrimp about 9 miles offshore.

Billfish and yellow tuna catches have also been reported this Please turn to page 19

KINGFISH ACTION: Charter captains report kingfish are biting in state waters, along with red snapper and other species.

Photo by Lone Star Outdoor News.

Gobblers hot and cold SLUMP: Anglers on a streak of bad luck should trust their instincts and not overanalyze their lack of success. Photo

by Seigo Saito, B.A.S.S.

By Mark England

Lone Star Outdoor News If largemouths are giving you the slip, take heart. Professional bass anglers like Todd Faircloth of Jasper feel your pain.

“A couple of years ago, I had a really bad year,” said Faircloth, who has won more than $2 million at Bassmaster tournaments.

“I think in other sports, you see athletes get by on talent alone.

In fishing, a lot of decisions are made in the course of a day.

When I’ve gotten in a slump, I start to doubt myself, doubt my decisions.”

Please turn to page 23

CONTENTS Freshwater Fishing Report . Page 10 Saltwater Fishing Report . . Page 11 Game Warden Blotter . . . . Page 12 Heroes . . . . . . . . . . . Page 16 Sun, Moon & Tides . . . . . Page 18 Crossword . . . . . . . . . Page 20

SUCCESS: Brent Vogler celebrates with friend Waylan Owens after Vogler bagged his three-bearded tom in Northwest Texas. Turkey are responding to calls for some, but others are reporting difficulty due to ample numbers of juvenile hens. Photo by David J. Sams, Lone Star Outdoor News.

Classifieds . . . . . . . . . Page 24

By Craig Nyhus

Lone Star Outdoor News

Products . . . . . . . . . . Page 25 Outdoor Datebook . . . . . Page 26

Cooper Lamb’s first turkey hunt will be tough to match even though he is only 8 years old. Hunting with his dad, Phil,

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on the WayBack Ranch in Coryell County on April 22, the skies cleared after a cloudy morning.

“Despite the windy conditions, we had a large group of turkey respond to our calls around 5:30 p.m.,” Phil Lamb said. “A group

of three came into the decoys ahead of a dozen more. Cooper took his time and pulled the trigger at 12 yards with his singleshot 20-gauge and dropped two of them.”

Not all hunters shared Cooper’s

success.

“There are a lot of juvenile hens,” said Texas Parks and Wildlife Department turkey leader Jason Hardin. “The hens go to the males, so it makes it more difficult to call in the birds.”

PRSRT STD US POSTAGE PAID PLANO, TX PERMIT 210

Please turn to page 6

The Brazil Nut Effect Smaller particles come out first

Lone Star Outdoor News The deer hunter decided to mix feed in his road feeder, adding sunflowers on top of the usual corn in the halffull 50-pound feeder.

The second time the button was pushed to broadcast the feed, he was surprised to see that all that came out of the feeder was sunflowers.

Simple physics explains why.

Studies call it the Brazil

Nut Effect, and physicists call it granular convection.

Based on observations of cans of mixed nuts, the Brazil nuts, often the least desirable, always were at the top of the can. The same observations occurred in cereal Please turn to page 21

INSIDE

Time Sensitive Material • Deliver ASAP

By Craig Nyhus

HUNTING

Waterfowl guide

Predator study

Major Benge reaches 50-year milestone.

Page 4

Fox and coyote data in Texas regions collected. Page 4

MIXTURE: It doesn’t matter how you load it, the smallest seeds will come out of the feeder first. Photo by David J. Sams, Lone Star Outdoor News.

FISHING

Rollover Pass farewell?

Small fry

Land grab could close fishing spot.

Page 8

Stocking strategies move beyond fingerlings.

Page 9

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April 28, 2017

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HUNTING

Half-century of guiding

By Craig Nyhus

Lone Star Outdoor News Bill Minyard and his friends have made trips to Eagle Lake for goose hunts for the past 30 years. For the past 20, they have had the same guide, Major Benge.

“Next year will be my 50th year guiding,” Benge said. “I turn 80 next year, so that will be it for me.”

Benge grew up in Tivoli, where his passion for hunting and fishing grew.

“There were a lot of geese there back then, I shot a lot of them off my back porch,” he said. “I also did commercial floundering.”

In 1965, he moved to Eagle Lake to become an elementary school principal.

“I had permission to hunt on a lady’s property, but I started to see a lot of land getting leased up,” Benge said. “I went to Marvin Tyler’s Blue Goose Club in Altair and told them I hunted a lot. The next day, I went out with Marvin’s son, Clifton. The day after that, I had a group of

HEYDAY: Goose hunting was at its finest in the late 1960s, according to longtime guide Major Benge.

The Eagle Lake guide and former elementary school principal began taking hunters in 1968.

Photo by David J. Sams, Lone Star Outdoor News.

Below photo by Bill Minyard.

hunters.”

The Blue Goose Club eventually closed, and Benge moved to the Pintail Hunting Club in Garwood. Now at 79, he’s slowed down his guiding the last few years.

“I’m starting to phase out,” he said. “The wet rice fields are getting tough on my legs — I’ve only guided three or four days the last few years.”

Two of those days were spend with Minyard and his group in January.

“We latched onto him as our guide,” Minyard said. “When he moved, we moved with him.”

The January hunt was a memorable one.

“We got 28 geese the first day and limits of ducks the second day,” Benge said.

The longtime guide said hunting was at its peak when he started guiding in 1968, then started tapering off in the mid-’70s.

“By the ’80s, we weren’t seeing the stupidity in the geese,” Benge said. “They got smart. Then rice-farming practices changed. The duck hunting held on pretty good, though.”

Although the hunting isn’t what it once was, Benge still enjoys taking people out.

“It’s really been fun,” he said. “I enjoyed it more than life itself. The consistency isn’t like it was — at my other hunt last season, nine guys got six geese.”

Benge kept himself in shape for guiding by running.

“I had to quit jogging 7 or 8 years ago, that made it hard to get around those wet rice fields,” he said. “I still enjoy it, but I’m tired.”

He doesn’t know if he’s the longest tenured goose guide in Texas.

“Some of the guides from Blue Goose have hunted more days than me, but not more years,” he said.

Benge began guiding without a dog, until a doctor loaned him his dog, Rusty. Since then, Benge has trained four dogs, three of which lived at least 13 years.

“I had to put the last one down in July,” he said. “Jenn was 14; she was a great dog — I was depressed for two months.”

Minyard’s group hunted with Jenn on her last Please turn to page 6

Odds of a bird best in South Texas

Student studies age of predators

By Julia Bunch

For Lone Star Outdoor News

SOUTHERN EDGE: Data collected on turkey hunting last year show that hunters in the South Texas region may benefit from an earlier opener.

Photo by James Richards.

By Darlene McCormick Sanchez Lone Star Outdoor News

Hunters may assume that their chances of getting a turkey are greater in the Edwards Plateau region, which holds a large population of the state’s turkey.

But statistically speaking, hunters have a better chance of bagging one in the South Texas region.

Figures for the 2015-2016 small game harvest study pub-

lished by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department show that not only is the success rate greater overall in the southern region, but it is also greater in the spring season when turkey are specifically targeted.

The vast majority of the state’s turkey are hunted in the Edwards Plateau, Cross Timbers, Rolling Plains and South Texas regions. Statistics show that Edwards Plateau ranked first in the number of birds harvested at 8,752. Cross Timbers was second at 4,639 with Please turn to page 25

With the help of research from a graduate student, Texans may soon have the ability to age coyote and gray fox in the wild, helping individual landowners and wildlife management organizations better manage predator populations.

Cassie Kirk, a second-year graduate student earning a master’s in science and biology at West Texas A&M University in Canyon, will complete her master’s thesis on the age structures of coyote and gray fox in a manner that has not been researched in nearly four decades.

“We don’t know a lot about coyotes and foxes, other than that they’re hunted,” Kirk said. “I’m looking at the high plains, Rolling Plains, Edwards Plateau and Trans-Pecos regions of Texas to see how long they are surviving in the wild.”

Kirk’s research would serve as the first step in live aging these predators. By studying and photographing predator canines, Kirk’s research would display how to determine the age of a coyote or gray fox, much like hunters can do with deer.

“Once we can learn how long they’re living, we have a better idea of their population structure,” Kirk said. “We could determine if they are overpopulated or have an aging population, for example.”

Kirk is collecting coyote and fox carcasses to extract one lower canine. To get the tooth, Kirk and a team of volunteers decapitate the animal and remove skin, hair and flesh. From there, Kirk uses two methods to get the skull. The water maceration

AGE STRUCTURE: Graduate student Cassie Kirk is compiling data on the age structure of coyote and gray fox in hopes of understanding Texas predator populations. Photo from Cassie Kirk.

method takes one to two weeks, depending on the weather, but 30 or more skulls can be processed at a time.

The second method uses beetle farms and takes one or two days for two coyote or four fox heads.

When Kirk has bare skulls, she extracts one lower canine to send off to Matson’s Laboratory in Manhattan, Montana. Using cementum annuli age analysis, Matson’s analyzes the rings of a tooth, similar to Please turn to page 19

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Controversial hog product withdrawn Scimetrics Ltd. Corp. has withdrawn its registration of Kaput Feral Hog Bait in Texas.

“We have received tremendous support from farmers and ranchers in the State of Texas, and have empathy for the environmental devastation, endangered species predation, and crop damage being inflicted there by a non-native animal,” Colorado-based Scimetrics said in a press release on April 24.

“However, under the threat of many lawsuits, our family owned company cannot at this time risk the disruption of our business and

continue to compete with special interests in Texas that have larger resources to sustain a lengthy legal battle.”

The use of Kaput to control feral hogs was opposed by groups including the Texas Wildlife Association and the Texas Hog Hunters Association.

The Texas Farm Bureau supported the use of the warfarin-based product to control feral hogs.

—Staff report

Harveson receives distinguished faculty award Dr. Louis Harveson will receive the President’s Distinguished Faculty Achievement Award at Sul Ross State University on May 12.

Harveson, professor of Natural Resource Management and the Dan Allen Hughes Jr. Endowed Director of the Borderlands Research Institute, joins Dr. Sarah Roche, professor of Education at Rio Grande College, as the initial recipients of this recognition.

Harveson joined the Sul Ross faculty in January 1998 as an assistant professor in Natural Resource Management. He later served as department chair and was named BRI director at its formation in 2008. During his tenure, he has received Sul Ross’ Outstanding Teaching Award, has been honored as Student Organization Adviser of the Year, and received the Quality Enhancement Innovation Award.

Harveson also received the Educator of the

Year award from the Texas Chapter of the Wildlife Society, Texas Wildlife Association’s Sam Beasom Conservation Leader Award and was named a Texas Tech University Outstanding Alumnus.

Harveson said his efforts have been Louis Harveson energized by interaction with students, and called the Natural Resource Management program “small, nimble and efficient, but one of the top two or three programs among the 15 in the state.”

—Sul Ross State University

Horned Frog tops Olympian

Rachel Garner

Rachel Garner, a sophomore at Texas Christian University, won the Women’s Three-Position Rifle competition Sunday at the National Junior Olympic Shooting Championships at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Garner, of Celina, fired back-to-back qualifying scores of 587 and 585, her 1,172 cumulative score was dominant enough to earn her the victory and render the final meaningless for the top podium spot.

Olympic gold medalist Ginny Thrasher, of West Virginia University, finished second.

Top-two Junior Olympic finishers automatically earn a spot on the Junior World Championship team that will compete later this summer in Suhl, Germany.

Kristen Hemphill, of Lohn, won the J2 (ages 15-17) championship, while Noelle Christensen, of Fredericksburg, finished third.

—USA Shooting

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LAST GUIDE: Bill Minyard and friends had a good hunt with guide Major Benge this past season. Benge said he will retire after next season when he turns 80. Photo from Bill Minyard.

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hunt in 2014.

“We had the best goose hunt we had in years,” Minyard said.

Benge tried to get his three daughters into hunting, with little luck.

“I took all of them with me one morning and set them on a levee,” he said. “It was 35 degrees with the wind blowing at 30. They didn’t want to hunt anymore. I did get them out to fish a few times, but I didn’t have luck making outdoorsmen out of them.”

With nearly 50 years of guiding, Benge does have some stories to tell.

“There were a lot of crazy things over the years,” he said. “One foggy morning, I counted the guys in the truck, and we headed out. When we got to the field, we were one guy short. One guy had been in the toilet, but a dog was sitting up in the truck, and I counted the dog as a person. We went off and left the guy.”

Benge said he’ll miss the guiding after next year — a little bit.

“There’s a time when you have to pull the plug,” he said.

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Continued from page 1

Some hunters reported a lack of the often-irritating jakes arriving first after a few calls are made.

“We had jakes coming in,” Hardin said. “But there are a lot of 2- and 3-yearold birds this year. If you are putting out a big gobbler decoy they may come toward it but are likely to hit the brakes.”

Other hunters noticed large numbers of juvenile hens, keeping some of the toms and jakes busy.

“They can be frus- DOUBLE: Cooper Lamb’s first turkey hunt resulted in two birds with one shot with trating,” Hardin said. a 20-gauge on April 22. Cooper is 8. Photo by Phil Lamb.

“About half of them will try to nest, but “We don’t sell any, but I told him we give they aren’t very good at it. If their first nest a few to charity,” Ford said. is unsuccessful, they tend to give up and McCombs bought the hunt at a Texas not try again.”

Deer Association event in February.

The eastern turkey season began April 15 “We have more turkey than we’ve had in in 15 East Texas counties, and, so far, 134 the past,” Ford said. “The first day of his birds have been reported under the manhunt, the weather was bad, but the next datory reporting requirements, with 106 of day, four birds came in. One came from the birds being easterns. behind and he didn’t get a chance at him.

Hardin said the population of eastern He was disappointed, but then three more turkey is holding steady, but not expandcame in. They wouldn’t come all they way ing significantly. into the decoys, and they started mov“If you had them last year, you probably ing away from him. He was shooting a have them again,” he said. “If you didn’t 10-gauge Browning with a scope, and dehave them last year, you probably still cided to take the shot. He dropped him at don’t.”

69 yards.”

Terrell McCombs from San Antonio conThe season in the South Zone ends April tacted Mike Ford of Rio Rancho Rojo in Red 30. The North Zone and eastern turkey seaRiver County seeking an eastern hunt. sons end May 14.

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FISHING

Final days for Rollover Pass?

Lone Star Outdoor News

CLOSING NEAR? A court order may allow Galveston County to seize the land at Rollover Pass to build a park and fishing pier. Photo by Erich Schlegel, for Lone Star Outdoor News.

Rollover Pass, where many Houston and Galveston-area residents caught their first fish, may be nearing its closure after a long legal battle.

On April 21, Galveston County Judge Barbara Roberts of County Court at Law No. 2 granted a summary judgment in favor of Galveston County seizing 15.87 acres of land surrounding Rollover Pass on the Bolivar Peninsula.

The county sought to seize the land through eminent domain after the Texas Legislature gave the

General Land Office permission to close the pass.

Galveston County then moved to seize the land through eminent domain, as the GLO does not have the authority to do so.

The GLO sought permission to close the pass following Hurricane Ike, citing constant beach erosion, imbalances in the salt to freshwater ratio in the bays and steep annual maintenance costs.

The land around the pass is owned by the Gulf Coast Rod, Reel and Gun Club, which bought the property in the 1950s. The club fought the seizure, claiming

it provides an accessible and inexpensive fishing opportunity for residents and creates a healthy environment for the bays. The club’s attorneys are investigating whether they will appeal the order.

The pass will remain open for fishing until the amount of payment to the landowner is determined.

Galveston County plans to build a park and fishing pier on the land.

Opponents of the closure have been and are conducting protests at the pass.

Iconic bait stand keeps patrons afloat

By Mark England

Lone Star Outdoor News One indication things are done a little differently at the Quik Stop in Port Isabel comes from looking at directions to the store on its Facebook page.

Besides an address, there’s the latitude and longitude. A rambling peach-colored building, Quik Stop sits off Highway 100. Neon lights and a marquee touting the available seafood beckon you. But the real lure is the dock behind the store, where shrimp boats chug along the Port Isabel Channel.

A white flag signals the arrival of fresh bait.

“We started out as a convenience store in 1983,” said Sandra Byrd, who runs the store with her husband, Calvin, and their daughter, Ashley. “Then we added bait and tackle, a seafood market, apparel and a gift shop. They all complement each other. But we don’t forget our bread and butter: bait and tackle. That’s what we’re known for.”

Or, at least, it used to be.

At Ashley’s urging, her parents put the store on Facebook.

The page received little notice, though, until Sandra took an interest in it last August. Her first posting was a video of surf fishing at South Padre.

“I kept going to the beach and posting and we developed a following,” Sandra said.

“Some of them are fishermen.

Some are beach lovers. Some are bird people. And some are shell people. It’s a lot of yada yada really. Just a basic, simple view of a beautiful island.”

Her modest vision has attracted a ton of devotees. More than 10,000 people follow the Port Isabel Quik Stop’s Facebook page. There are even foreign fans, including some in Saudi Arabia and India.

“That’s my mother’s thing now,” Ashley said. “She’s out there on the beach almost every morning, collecting shells and doing her beach report.”

Quik Stop rarely uses its Facebook page as a billboard.

Instead, followers get daily

videos and photos. One day it might be a video of anglers traipsing the jetties. Another day it could be a photo of sea shells artfully arranged on the beach. Or it could be a video of a shrimp boat hanging a 180 in order to dock behind the Quik Stop.

For sure, you’re guaranteed to see a lot of videos of the sun

BAIT, TACKLE AND MORE: Quik Stop started out as a convenience store, but has taken on an island personality with the addition of a gift shop and seafood market. The store is getting some online attention thanks to videos posted on Facebook, but the shop’s bread and butter is its bait and tackle business. Photos

by Erich Schlegel, for Lone Star Outdoor News.

Please turn to page 17

Remote fishing at Village Creek

West Texas lake, park get second chance

By Darlene McCormick Sanchez Lone Star Outdoor News

HIDDEN JEWEL: Village Creek has ample bass numbers and very little fishing pressure. A 100-bass day is not unusual, according to Ken Simmons. Photo by Robert Sloan, for Lone Star Outdoor News.

By Robert Sloan

For Lone Star Outdoor News Village Creek is a hidden jewel that offers 40 miles of nonstop fishing, camping and kayaking for adventurous folks who are looking to get off the grid. The hub of the creek is located in Lumberton, a small town just north of Beaumont.

Mike Platt lives down the road from this creek, and has been fishing it for more than 40 years.

“All of my fishing is done on isolated creeks here in East Texas,” Platt said. “On some of them, I’ll hike in and wade along the shallows while fishing small lures for bass. Village Creek is at the top of my list. It gets very little fishing pressure, and is full of bass.”

Platt also fly-fishes for perch and may set out a few limb lines for catfish.

“You might be surprised at what you’ll be frying over a campfire that evening,” he said.

How good is the bass fishing?

Ken Simmons has been fishing Village Creek for years and said a 100bass day is not that unusual.

Please turn to page 21

A Colorado City family with experience flipping historic buildings has taken on the ultimate flip — the renovation of a West Texas park and lake.

Ty and Amie Wood decided to step in seven months ago when the city-run Fisher Park and Champion Creek Reservoir was on the brink of closing down permanently due to complaints from citizens concerning dumping and vandalism.

The Woods formed a privatepublic partnership with the city and closed the park temporarily during renovations. The city provided labor and equipment, while the Woods provided thousands of dollars of their own money and manpower to save the park and lake.

Map by Google

With improvements such as a sandy beach, new dock and bait house completed, the venture is planning a reopening celebration April 28 with free barbecue, Please turn to page 11

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April 28, 2017

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Landing big trout Good things in small packages with a Fat Boy

By Darlene McCormick Sanchez Lone Star Outdoor News

CORKY: Big trout can be had fishing with the popular lures, but they are not the easiest lures to fish. Photo

by Robert Sloan for Lone Star Outdoor News.

By Robert Sloan

For Lone Star Outdoor News Many anglers shy away from fishing the Corky — it can be difficult to fish. East Galveston Bay guide Jim West isn’t one of them.

“This is where the big ones hang out,” West said. “We’ve caught them up to about 10 pounds here. One morning a few years ago we caught about 25 trout from 5 to 9 pounds along this reef on an outgoing tide. All of them were caught on Corky Fat Boys.”

In mid-April, West was anchoring his boat and tying on bone and chartreuse-colored Fat Boys. He was talking good and bad news. The good being the possibility of catching big trout.

The bad was fishing Corky Fat Boys — not the easiest lure to fish.

The morning turned out well, with the guide and angler landing nine solid trout, the heaviest being a 7-pounder that was released.

The Corky Fat Boy and the Corky original are well-known for catching big trout. The late Jim Wallace proved that with his 1996 state-record trout that he caught on Baffin Bay with a Corky. That speck was 33-1/8 inches long and weighed 13 pounds, 11 ounces.

“There is no doubt that a Corky will catch big trout,” West said. “But it also helps to fish them where big trout like to feed.

What we’ve got here is a shell reef with a sharp drop along the

sary to stock far more than fingerlings. But because of their small size, they can be handled easily in a 2-gallon bag.

Their survival rate is about 40 percent of a fingerling’s survival, Tibbs said. However, at Lake Belton, where fry have been stocked for the past 10 years, they have made a solid contribution to the success of the fishery at a fraction of the cost.

“These are fish that are very easy to obtain,” Tibbs said of the fry.

Finglerlings may cost around 10 cents each to produce, where fry are less than 1 cent. That could translate into tens of thousands of dollars saved while providing good fishing, Tibbs said.

Recent samplings of fish populations show that the fish on several Central Texas lakes are nearly two times the number of fish this year compared to recent years.

“The fishing is fantastic right now. It’s better than it’s been since the ’90s,” Tibbs said.

On Lake Whitney for example, the last sample had seven striper large enough to keep, compared to the average of three in the recent past, he said.

Several lakes around Texas are getting help from the small fries.

Brian Van Zee, fish stocking coordinator and West Texas regional director of the Inland Fisheries Division of Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, said several Texas lake managers have requested fry stockings or benefitted from excess fry at the state’s hatcheries.

While these babies are at least 3 years away from being the minimum 18-inches long keepers, they are proving important to several lakes.

Van Zee said both striped and hybrid bass fry were released this month into 10 lakes. Fingerlings, which are more mature, will be released in the later part of May at approximately 25 lakes, he said.

A higher number of fry have to be released into lakes because the survival rate is far lower than those of fingerlings. However, Van Zee said some of the fry released are basically freebies because they are excess fish that couldn’t be supported in the fisheries.

John Tibbs, district supervisor for the Waco Inland Fisheries Division of TPWD, said striped and hybrid bass fry Stocked with striped were stocked into bass fry in April: reservoirs at BelPossum Kingdom ton, Whitney Tawakoni and Pat Cleburne Whitney within his district.

Tibbs said fry have been doing well on Belton and other lakes, though it’s neces-

Of course, Mother Nature has contributed to the angler’s cause.

“The rains in 2015 and 2016 really helped out our reservoirs,” said Van Zee. “For the vast majority of the state, things are looking really good.”

STOCKING: Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s Inland Fishery worker David Vicars stocks fry at an area lake. Photo from TPWD.

Stocked with hybrid bass fry in April: 574,000 1,900,000 680,000

Belton Benbrook Cooper Miller’s Creek Pat Cleburne Proctor Tawakoni

1,000,000 764,000 1,900,000 250,000 100,000 151,000 2,500,000

—TPWD

Please turn to page 11

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TEXAS FRESHWATER FISHING REPORT ALAN HENRY: Water clear on the main lake, stained up the river; 63–68 degrees; 2.04’ low.

Black bass are good on 7-inch worms, spoons, swim jigs and medium crankbaits. Crappie and bass are fair on minnows in the back of the creeks. Catfish are good on cut bait and punch bait on baited holes.

AMISTAD: Water murky; 73–77 degrees; 25.35’ low. Black bass are good on green tubes, stick baits and spinner baits in 20–40 feet. Striped bass are good on top-waters. White bass are slow.

Crappie are good on minnows and trolling crankbaits. Catfish are slow.

ARROWHEAD: Water fairly clear; 55–61 degrees; 0.52’ low.

Black bass are fair to good on Texas rigs, stick baits and lipless crankbaits. Crappie are fair to good on jigs and minnows in the shallows. Catfish are fair to good on nightcrawlers.

ATHENS: Water lightly stained; 68–72 degrees; 0.34’ high.

Black bass are fair on Texasrigged creature baits, weightless flukes and top-waters. Crappie are fair on minnows. Catfish are fair on trotlines and cut shad.

BASTROP: Water stained; 69–73 degrees. Black bass are good on watermelon crankbaits, spinner baits and soft plastic worms and lizards. Crappie are slow. Channel and blue catfish are good on shrimp and stink bait.

BELTON: Water stained; 70–74 degrees; 6.79’ high. All species are slow.

BOB SANDLIN: Water lightly stained; 67–71 degrees; 0.67’ high. Black bass are fair on Texas-rigged craws, black buzzbaits and hollow-body frogs.

Crappie are slow. White bass are good on slabs. Catfish are fair on trotlines.

BONHAM: Water lightly stained; 68–72 degrees; 2.57’ low.

Black bass are good on lipless crankbaits, spinner baits and bladed jigs. Crappie are good on minnows and jigs. Catfish are good drifting cut bait.

BRAUNIG: Water murky. Black bass are slow. Striped bass are fair on liver and perch near Dead Tree Point, and down-rigging spoons near the dam and jetty.

Redfish are slow. Channel and blue catfish are good on shrimp, cheese bait, cut bait and liver.

Blue catfish are good on shrimp and stink bait.

BRIDGEPORT: Water lightly stained, 68–71 degrees: 0.59’ high. Black bass are good on square-billed crankbaits, Texasrigged craws and spinner baits.

Crappie are good on minnows.

White bass are fair on slabs.

Hybrid striper are good on slabs.

Catfish are fair on trotlines.

BROWNWOOD: Water stained; 69–73 degrees; 0.27’ high.

Black bass are good on redbug and green pumpkin soft plastics, crankbaits and spinner baits around docks. Hybrid striper are slow. White bass are excellent on minnows and jigs in 15–25 feet. Crappie are excellent on minnows and watermelon tube jigs over brush piles in 5-18 feet. Channel catfish are slow.

Blue catfish are good on trotlines baited with live bait in 5-10 feet.

BUCHANAN: Water stained; 71–75 degrees; 2.04’ low.

Black bass are good on lipless

crankbaits, white spinner baits and weightless wacky-rigged green pumpkin stick baits along break lines of flats in 6-18 feet.

Striped bass are fair trolling bucktail jigs and drifting live bait from Shaw to Flag Island.

Crappie are fair on minnows and white tube jigs. Channel catfish are good on live bait and cut bait. Yellow and blue catfish are good on juglines and trotlines baited with live bait.

CADDO: Water stained; 69–73 degrees; 1.15’ high. Black bass are fair on Texas-rigged craws, black buzzbaits and top-waters in white python. Crappie are good on minnows. Catfish are good on trotlines and cut shad.

CALAVERAS: Water murky.

Black bass are slow. Striped bass are fair on silver spoons and striper jigs near the dam.

Redfish are slow. Channel catfish are good on liver, shrimp, cheese bait and shad. Blue catfish are good on cut bait and liver near 181 cove.

CANYON LAKE: Water stained; 70–74 degrees; 0.33’ high.

Black bass are fair on root beer/ green flake creature baits along break lines and deep flats in bays, and on top-waters and flukes in feeder creeks.

Striped bass are slow. White bass are good on Road Runners upriver in 5–15 feet. Crappie are fair on blue tube jigs and live minnows over brush piles. Channel catfish are fair in the upper end of the lake.

CEDAR CREEK: Water lightly stained; 67–70 degrees; 0.01’ high. Black bass are good on square-billed crankbaits, Texasrigged craws and weightless flukes in watermelon. White bass are fair on slabs and minnows.

Hybrid striper are slow on slabs.

Crappie are fair on minnows.

Catfish are good on trotlines and cut shad.

CHOKE CANYON: Water stained; 69–73 degrees; 20.31’ low. Black bass are good on watermelon spinner baits, Texasrigged lizards and large worms.

White bass are slow. Crappie are good on minnow-tipped jigs.

Channel and blue catfish are fair on punch bait and nightcrawlers.

COLEMAN: Water stained; 71–75 degrees; 0.23’ low. Black bass are fair on soft plastic lizards, crankbaits, jerkbaits and electric blue worms. Hybrid striper are slow. Crappie are slow. Channel catfish are slow.

COLETO CREEK: Water murky; 86 degrees at the hot water discharge, 78 degrees in main lake; 0.47’ low. Black bass are good on watermelon crankbaits and spinner baits in 6–8 feet.

White bass are fair on minnows and spoons. Crappie are fair on minnows and blue tube jigs near Coletoville Bridge in 8-10 feet.

Channel and blue catfish are good on live perch and shad in 8-10 feet.

CONROE: Water stained; 70– 74 degrees; 0.04 high. Black bass are good on watermelon Carolina- and Texas-rigged soft plastics, spinner baits and lipless crankbaits. Striped bass are fair on silver/blue striper jigs.

Crappie are fair on minnows and chartreuse tube jigs. Catfish are good on stink bait, liver, and cheese bait.

FALCON: Water murky; 72–76 degrees; 31.09’ low. Black bass are fair on watermelon and green pumpkin soft plastics, spinner baits and deep-running crankbaits. Striped bass are slow. Crappie are slow. Channel and blue catfish are excellent on frozen shrimp, stink bait, nightcrawlers and cut bait under cormorants.

FAYETTE: Water murky. Black bass are good on shallowrunning shad-colored crankbaits over grass and on watermelon and watermelon seed Carolinarigged soft plastic worms along the outside edges of grass.

Channel and blue catfish are slow.

FORK: Water lightly stained; 68–72 degrees; 0.11’ high.

Black bass are good on Texasrigged craws on docks, white buzzbaits and hollow-body frogs.

White and yellow bass are good on slabs. Crappie are good on minnows. Catfish are fair on trotlines.

FT. PHANTOM HILL: Water murky; 57–62 degrees; 0.02’ high.

Black bass are fair on jigs, Texas rigs and buzzbaits. Crappie are fair to good on jigs and minnows.

Catfish are fair to good on nightcrawlers.

GIBBONS CREEK: Water stained. Black bass are fair on watermelon and green pumpkin soft plastics, spinner baits and crankbaits. Crappie are good on minnows and chartreuse tube jigs. Catfish are fair on stink bait and liver.

GRANBURY: Water stained; 69–73 degrees; 0.12’ low. Black bass are fair on watermelon soft plastics and spinner baits.

Striped bass are fair on white striper jigs. White bass are good on minnows and chartreuse spinner baits. Crappie are good on minnows. Catfish are good on stink bait, nightcrawlers and liver.

GRANGER: Water stained; 68–72 degrees; 0.78’ high.

Black bass are fair on spinner baits near the mouth of the river.

White bass are fair in shallow areas upriver. Crappie are good on chartreuse jigs in coves and sloughs. Blue catfish are good on prepared bait and shad in 4-15 feet. Yellow catfish are good on trotlines baited with live bait upriver.

GRAPEVINE: Water lightly stained; 67–70 degrees; 0.29’ high. Black bass are good on square-billed crankbaits and top-waters in bone color. White bass and hybrid bass are good on slabs. Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs. Catfish are good on trotlines and prepared bait.

GREENBELT: 30.61’ low. Black bass are fair on Texas rigs, jigs and stick baits. Crappie are fair on live minnows.

HOUSTON COUNTY: Water stained; 72–76 degrees; 0.21’ high. Black bass are fair on black/blue craw worms and wa-

termelon red swim baits. White bass are slow. Crappie are good on minnows around brush piles.

Bream are good on live worms.

Channel and blue catfish are good on stink bait.

HUBBARD CREEK: Water offcolor; 56–62 degrees; 0.32’ low.

Black bass are fair on split-shot rigged flukes, Texas rigs and finesse jigs. Crappie are fair to good on jigs and minnows around shallow cover. Catfish are good on nightcrawlers and cut bait.

JOE POOL: Water lightly stained; 67–71 degrees; 0.51’ high. Black bass are fair on Texas-rigged craws, spinner baits and buzzbaits. White bass are good on slabs. Crappie are fair on minnows. Catfish are fair on trotlines.

LAKE O’ THE PINES: Water stained; 68–72 degrees: 4.71’ high. Black bass are slow. White bass are slow. Crappie are fair on minnows and white jigs.

Catfish are good on trotlines.

LAVON: Water stained; 68–71 degrees: 1.15’ low. Black bass are good on square-billed crankbaits, buzzbaits and bladed jigs.

White bass are good on slabs and minnows. Crappie are fair on minnows. Catfish are fair on trotlines.

LBJ: Water stained; 70–74 degrees; 0.71’ low. Black bass are good on chartreuse top-waters, watermelon flukes, and green pumpkin tubes along break lines of flats. White bass are fair trolling small crankbiats. Crappie are good on minnows and chartreuse/white tube jigs over brush piles. Channel catfish are good on live bait and stink bait.

Yellow and blue catfish are good on trotlines baited with live bait.

LEWISVILLE: Water lightly stained; 67–70 degrees; 0.30’ high. Black bass are good on Texas-rigged craws, flipping jigs and shallow crankbaits. White bass are good on slabs. Crappie are fair on minnows. Catfish are good on trotlines and prepared bait.

LIVINGSTON: Water stained; 70–74 degrees; 0.33’ high.

Black bass are fair on crankbaits, spinner baits, and soft plastics. Striped bass are slow. White bass are fair on lipless crankbaits and slabs.

Crappie are fair on minnows. Blue catfish are good on shad.

MACKENZIE: 74.19’ low. Catfish are fair to good on nightcrawlers.

MARTIN CREEK: Water lightly stained; 72–77 degrees; 0.28’ low. Black bass are good on topwaters, hollow-body frogs and Texas-rigged craws. Crappie are good on minnows. White bass are good on minnows. Catfish are fair on trotlines.

MEREDITH: 59.81’ low. Bream and channel catfish are being caught in good numbers.

MONTICELLO: Water stained; 72–76 degrees; 0.10’ high.

Black bass are good on small plastic swimbaits, buzzbaits and Texas-rigged creature baits.

Crappie are good on minnows.

Catfish are good on trotlines.

NASWORTHY: 57–63 degrees; 1.67’ low. Black bass are fair to good on chatterbaits, jigs and Texas-rigged lizards. No reports

on crappie. Catfish are fair to good on nightcrawlers and cut bait.

O.H. IVIE: Water stained; 59–65 degrees; 32.71’ low.

Black bass are good on jigs, Texas-rigged creature baits and stick baits. Crappie are fair to good on minnows and jigs in the shallows. Catfish are fair to good on cut bait and nightcrawlers.

OAK CREEK: Water stained; 56–62 degrees; 7.73’ low. Black bass are good on Texas rigs, stick baits and jigs. Crappie are fair to good on minnows and jigs. Catfish are fair on chartreuse nightcrawlers.

PALESTINE: Water lightly stained; 68–71 degrees; 0.10’ high. Black bass are fair on Texas-rigged craws, buzzbaits and weightless flukes. Crappie are good on minnows. Hybrid striper are fair on slabs. White bass are fair on slabs. Catfish are good on trotlines and cut shad.

POSSUM KINGDOM: Water offcolor; 63–68 degrees; 0.1’ low.

Black bass are fair to good on Texas rigs, jigs, shaky heads and chatterbaits. Crappie are fair on live minnows. White bass are fair to good on slabs. Striped bass are fair on live shad. Catfish are good on nightcrawlers.

PROCTOR: Water stained; 68–72 degrees; 0.26’ high.

Black bass are slow. White bass are fair on small spinner baits and minnows. Crappie are slow.

Channel and blue catfish are good on stink bait and fresh shad.

RAY HUBBARD: Water lightly stained; 68–71 degrees; 0.23’ low. Black bass are fair on spinner baits, Texas-rigged craws and swim jigs. Crappie are good on minnows and jigs. White bass are good on slabs. Hybrid striper are fair on slabs. Catfish are good on trotlines.

RAY ROBERTS: Water lightly stained; 67–70 degrees; 0.58’ high. Black bass are slow. White bass are good on minnows.

Crappie are good on minnows.

Catfish are fair on trotlines.

RICHLAND CHAMBERS: Water lightly stained; 68–71 degrees; 0.43’ high. Black bass are fair on Texas-

rigged creature baits, swim jigs and spinner baits. White bass are good on slabs. Hybrid striper are fair on slabs. Crappie are good on minnows. Catfish are fair on trotlines.

SAM RAYBURN: Water stained; 69–73 degrees; 1.40’ low. Black bass are fair on watermelon stick baits, lizards, and creature baits. White bass are good on silver slabs. Crappie are good on minnows and white tube jigs in shallow areas. Bream are good on nightcrawlers and crickets.

Catfish are good on trotlines baited with nightcrawlers.

SOMERVILLE: Water murky; 71–75 degrees; 0.57’ high.

Black bass are slow. Hybrid striper are good on chartreuse striper jigs. White bass are good on minnows. Crappie are slow.

n Saltwater reports: Please turn to

Page 11

Channel and blue catfish are good on shrimp.

STAMFORD: 0.79’ low. Black bass are fair on spinner baits, stick baits and Texas rigs.

Crappie are fair to good on live minnows in the shallows. White bass are fair to good on Rooster Tails. Blue catfish are fair to good on cut and live bait.

STILLHOUSE: Water murky; 69–73 degrees; 1.88’ high.

Black bass are fair on watermelon soft plastics and lipless crankbaits. White bass are good on watermelon soft plastics and minnows. Crappie are good on minnows. Catfish are slow.

TAWAKONI: Water lightly stained; 68–72 degrees; 2.47’ low. Black bass are good on black buzzbaits, hollow-body frogs and Texas-rigged creature baits. White bass are good on slabs. Hybrid bass are good on slabs. Crappie are good on minnows. Catfish are fair on trotlines.

TEXOMA: Water lightly stained; 67–71 degrees; 2.70’ low. Black bass are good on shaky-head worms, spinner baits and Texasrigged craws. Crappie are good on minnows. Striped bass are good on slabs and top-waters.

Catfish are good on trotlines.

TOLEDO BEND: Water stained; 68–72 degrees; 1.79’ low. Black bass are fair on watermelon/red soft plastics and spinner baits.

White bass are fair on spoons in the river. Crappie are fair on watermelon jigs under the bridge. Channel and blue catfish are good on trotlines baited with live bait.

TRAVIS: Water stained; 71–75 degrees; 0.09’ high. Black bass are good on watermelon crankbaits and chartreuse top-waters in 8-16 feet.

Striped bass are fair on silver striper jigs. White bass are good on chrome jigging spoons and white jigs.

Crappie are good on minnows.

Channel and blue catfish are fair on liver and fresh cut bait in 20–30 feet.

WALTER E. LONG: Water murky. Black bass are slow.

Hybrid striper are fair on silver slabs. White bass are good on watermelon spinner baits and minnows. Crappie are fair on minnows. Channel and blue catfish are fair on nightcrawlers.

WHITNEY: Water stained; 68–72 degrees; 1.55’ low. Black bass are good on watermelon Texas- and Carolina-rigged soft plastics and crankbaits. Striped bass are slow. White bass are fair on minnows. Crappie are good on minnows and blue tube jigs. Catfish are good on stink bait and cheese bait.

—TPWD

LSONews.com

LoneOStar Outdoor News

Fishing the Corky Continued from page 9

edges. Plus we’ve got lots of mullet with a moving green tide. That’s the perfect recipe for big trout.”

West has been guiding on East Bay for decades.

And on this particular day he nailed it with the right water at the right time.

“With a Corky you have three options,” he said. “You can use the original sinking Corky, or the sinking or floating Fat Boy. This time of year I like the sinking Fat Boy because it’s a bigger bait, and that’s what big trout like.”

There is one little trick you’ve got to do with a corky before fishing it. Shortly after catching the record trout, Wallace said the tail had to be bent down to keep the lure from twisting.

“If you don’t bend the back end of a Corky down, it won’t fish right,” said Dwayne Lowrey, a Port O’Connor based fishing guide. “That’s especially true with a Fat Boy. You’ve got to remember that a Corky is a suspending twitch bait. The way to fish this lure is to cast it out, allow it to sink a few feet then bring the rod tip up with a twitch or two, then allow the bait to sink. It’s a mullet imitation plug and when a trout hits it you’ll usually feel a slight thump. That’s when you set the hook.”

Matagorda guide Charlie Paradoski has been fishing Corkys since about 1988, a time when the lure was just being built

by Paul Brown.

“It’s a lure that I always have with me on a wade,” Paradoski said. “I use it year-round. But it’s especially good during March, April and May when trout are feeding heavily on mullet. The one thing that I recommend is to fish this lure on braided line. You’ll feel more bites and definitely get better hook sets.”

Wallace said a key is maintaining a tight line. His advice was to lift the rod up slowly as if you were fishing a worm

Photo by Robert Sloan, for Lone Star Outdoor News

for bass. But the real trick was to keep a tight line as the lure was sinking. That’s when 99 percent of the strikes occur.

According to Brown, he started making the Corkys when a guy ask him to build a soft plastic Zara Spook. Wallace and a few other top Texas anglers used the original Corkys and tweaked them into what has become a star of trout fishing lures.

The Fat Boy is a soft wide-bodied lure.

It’s 3-1/2 inches long and weighs 7/8 ounce. The original Corky is 3-5/8 inches long and weighs 11/16 of an ounce. Wallace caught the state-record trout on a chartreuse/sparkle Corky. Other top colors are pearl/chartreuse back, strawberry/ white tail, and gold/black/chartreuse tail.

“I heard a mullet jump and turned to see where the commotion came from,” Wallace said after his record catch. “With a long cast, I pushed the Corky past where the mullet had jumped, then cast to the left and the right. On the third shot she hit. As soon as I set the hooks she ran about 100 feet, then jumped plumb out of the water. I finally got her in close and she made three runs. That’s when near disaster struck. The speck was too thick to grab around the shoulders, and too long for the landing net. I got her halfway in and the trebles on the Corky got hung up.

I thought for sure she was coming out.”

April 28, 2017

Page 11

TEXAS SALTWATER FISHING REPORT NORTH SABINE: Trout are fair to good on the Louisiana shoreline on top-waters and Corkies.

Flounder are fair on jigs tipped with shrimp around marsh drains. Redfish are good in the marsh on top-waters and spoons.

SOUTH SABINE: Trout are fair to good over shell on scented plastics and Down South Lures. Sheepshead and black drum are good at the jetty on live shrimp. Trout are fair to good around Lighthouse Cove on top-waters.

BOLIVAR: Trout are fair to good on the south shoreline on Bass Assassins and She Pups.

Black drum, sand trout and redfish are good at Rollover Pass on live shrimp.

TRINITY BAY: Redfish are fair to good in the marsh on shrimp on the outgoing tide. Trout are good for drifters working pods of shad and mullet on Bass Assassins, Gamblers and Sand Eels.

EAST GALVESTON BAY: Trout are fair to good on the south shoreline on Litl’ Johns, Bass Assassins and Down South Lures. Whiting and sand trout are good on the edge of the Intracoastal on fresh shrimp. Redfish are fair in the marsh around points on shrimp and scented plastics.

WEST GALVESTON BAY: Sheepshead, redfish and black drum are good at the jetty on shrimp and crabs. Trout are fair to good at the jetty on live bait when the wind allows.

TEXAS CITY: Trout are fair to good on Dollar Reef on live shrimp. Redfish are fair in Moses

Lake on mullet and shrimp.

FREEPORT: Trout are fair to good at San Luis Pass on shrimp. Sand trout and sheepshead are good on live shrimp on the reefs in Christmas Bay. Trout and redfish are fair at the jetties on live shrimp and finger mullet.

EAST MATAGORDA BAY: Trout are fair for drifters on live shrimp over humps and scattered shell. Redfish are fair to good on the edge of the Intracoastal on crabs and mullet.

WEST MATAGORDA BAY: Redfish are fair to

good on the edge of Oyster Lake on shrimp and crabs. Trout are fair on shell and grass on soft plastics. Redfish and black drum are fair to good at Shell Island on live shrimp.

PORT O’CONNOR: Trout and redfish are good on top-waters over sand and grass in the guts in San Antonio Bay. Trout and redfish are fair for drifters working the back lakes with live shrimp.

ROCKPORT: Trout are fair to good in the guts and channels on free-lined shrimp. Trout are fair over grass while drifting with live shrimp.

Redfish are good on the Estes Flats on shrimp and scented plastics.

PORT ARANSAS: Redfish are fair to good at East Flats and around Dagger Island on shrimp and crabs. Trout, redfish and sheepshead are fair to good at the jetty on shrimp.

CORPUS CHRISTI: Trout are fair to good on the edge of the spoils on scented plastics and live shrimp. Redfish are good in the potholes on shrimp. Trout are good for drifters working live shrimp under a popping cork over sand and grass.

BAFFIN BAY: Trout are good at night in the Land Cut on live shrimp. Redfish are fair to good in the grass on the King Ranch shoreline on small top-waters.

PORT MANSFIELD: Trout are good on top-waters around sand and grass at Green Island and the Saucer. Redfish are fair to good while drifting potholes and while anchored with natural baits at East Cut. SOUTH PADRE: Trout are fair to good for waders around the spoil island on DOA and live shrimp. Redfish are fair while drifting sand and grass on scented plastics and live shrimp under a popping cork.

PORT ISABEL: Trout and redfish are fair to good on the flats on live shrimp. Redfish are fair to good in while drifting sand and grass flats on top-waters.

—TPWD

Champion Lake saved Continued from page 8

music and a bonfire.

“My fondest memories are running around Lake Champion. I want my kids to have that,” said Amie. “We kind of flipped the whole park.”

Donna Madrid, city secretary for Colorado City, said the city has leased the park since 1961. The park wasn’t manned, and in recent years, miscreants began dumping furniture, leaving trash, playing loud music and even firing guns in the park.

“We were at the point we were going to close it,” Madrid said.

Ty Wood, an attorney, approached the city about fixing up the park instead of closing it. The Woods felt their experience restoring historic buildings in town would help them rehabilitate the park.

The city agreed and will continue to lease the park. Revenue will be split with the Woods after the park reopens, Madrid said.

“It looks great,” Madrid said, adding that spring rains and fish stockings have helped the reservoir. “It’s back to a good little fishing hole.”

For anglers on the Texas Fishing Forum,

the revamping of the popular lake was good news.

“This is one of the closest lakes to my house, though I have never been to it.

Sounds like it’ll be time to make the trip this next month. I do have a lot of coworkers who use to fish this lake all the time and talk about its glory days,” wrote Dosser.

Ty let fishing enthusiasts on the forum know that the lake was being cleared of brush and has been improving with the rains over the past two years. He reported the lake received 75,000 striped bass and 65,000 channel catfish in 2016.

“With the limited use this year, all the brush getting flooded, and us helping things along, the fishing could get old school epic with a little time,” Ty wrote.

Fees for entry into the park will be $4 per day for one person, with children under 12 and seniors 65 and older receiving free admission. Boat permits will be $3 per day. Annual vehicle passes for up to five people will run $70. The park will also offer camping spots with electricity and water, Madrid said.

Champion Creek Reservoir LOCATION: On Champion Creek in Mitchell County, 7 miles south of Colorado City SURFACE AREA: 1,577 acres MAXIMUM DEPTH: 28 feet IMPOUNDED: 1959

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4/17/17 11:35 AM

Page 12

April 28, 2017

LoneOStar Outdoor News

LSONews.com

GAME WARDEN BLOTTER FISHING REDEFINED Game wardens in Limestone and Freestone counties filed cases on multiple individuals for fishing from a bridge in clear violation of signs indicating the act was illegal. They were using a cast net to catch crappie, an illegal means and method for taking game fish in Texas. The netters were also in possession of undersized crappie and had no fishing licenses. In addition to citations, the individuals were educated on species identification and the definition of fishing.

DITCHING A STOLEN BOAT A Montgomery County game warden apprehended an individual trespassing on a deer lease, but the subject wasn’t there to poach, at least not wildlife. It seems he trespassed with the intent to illegally dump a boat. The subject was arrested for criminal trespassing and for driving with an invalid license.

After booking the subject into jail, the warden drove to the address on the subject’s vehicle registration and found three deer feeders in the backyard that matched the description of ones reported stolen from the deer lease several weeks earlier.

After receiving consent to search the residence from the subject’s mother, the warden discovered two stolen game cameras and a stolen ATV, both of which were also recovered. Additional criminal charges pending.

CARCASS DUMPING Live Oak County game wardens completed a two-month investigation stemming from complaints by concerned hunters about the illegal dumping of deer and hog carcasses

undersized crappie, possession of drug paraphernalia, failure to ID fugitive, and arrest on other agency warrants. Charges are pending.

BAD HARE DAY A Bailey County game warden responded to a call regarding shots being fired toward a highway intersection near the Texas-New Mexico state line. Bailey County sheriff’s deputies assisting encountered one of the suspects on a county road and detained them until the warden arrived.

During interviews, all three subjects admitted to road hunting rabbits and claimed that they didn’t

off a bridge near their hunting lease. The wardens set up remote surveillance on the site by mounting a game camera on a nearby tree, but several weeks passed with no activity. When the wardens checked the bridge, they observed two recently harvested white-tailed doe carcasses, one recently harvested hog carcass, a bucket full of guts, and several feedbags that had been dumped. Upon checking the camera, the time stamp indicated that the suspect had been there just a few hours before the wardens arrived. The images showed the individual stopping on the bridge and exiting his truck. His truck bed was full of feedbags and deer/ hog carcasses. As the vehicle left the bridge, the last game camera photo showed an empty truck bed.

The wardens noticed that each doe carcass had one small caliber entry wound in the head they believed to be from .22 caliber bullets. Based on the images captured, wardens were able to locate a residential address for the vehicle and interviewed the individual at his residence where it was determined

think a license was required. They also indicated their father, who sells hunting licenses as a local vendor, told them that a license was not needed to hunt rabbits. The warden advised them to educate their father on licensing requirements. Numerous citations were issued including no hunting license, hunting from a public roadway, and no hunter education.

that he had dumped deer/hog carcasses at the same place for more than 15 years. When asked who shot the deer that were dumped, he informed the wardens that it was his son and nephew. His nephew, who lived out of state and did not have a valid nonresident hunting license, had harvested a 6-point buck. Inspection of the father and son’s hunting licenses indicated only one buck tag missing. In total, two bucks and two doe were harvested by the son. The father admitted that he allowed his son to shoot the does in the head with a .22 caliber rifle and that they rarely tag deer. A total of 11 cases were filed along with civil restitution.

NETTER ESCAPES A tactical flight officer aboard a Department of Public Safety helicopter on patrol notified a Val Verde County game warden about a gill net being set out in the Rio Grande River. The individual setting out the gill net was observed crossing back and forth between the Mexico and Texas shorelines. The warden quickly responded to the location

and observed the gill net stretched across the river and the individual who set it still in the area. It took the warden several minutes to make his way through dense river cane and, upon breaking through, he saw the illegal netter cross back into Mexico with a large fish in hand.

The warden seized approximately 50 feet of gill net.

RUNNING INTO TROUBLE While patrolling late nights along Gladewater Lake’s public fishing piers, a Gregg County game warden encountered two separate groups of fishermen attempting to flee the scene as he made contact. Gladewater Police Department officers were also patrolling nearby and quickly apprehended one of the subjects after he unwittingly ran directly toward their patrol vehicle.

The other group’s runner was also located a short distance from the lake and apprehended with help from Gladewater Police Department officers. Undersized crappie were located in the subject’s backpack.

Collectively, charges filed included: no fishing license, possession of

ROADSIDE TURKEY Game wardens responded to a call concerning a turkey shot from the road. A landowner reported he had heard two shots close by, investigated and found a turkey flopping in the bar ditch. He also reported seeing a truck drive by slowly, not long after the shots, and identified the driver as a local man who lived just down the road. An empty shotgun shell was recovered from the roadway. Upon arriving at the suspect’s residence, the wardens located a truck that matched the vehicle description and saw two rifles and a shotgun inside the vehicle. While talking to the suspect, the wardens obtained consent to search the truck and located a box of shells that matched the spent shell obtained from the roadway. After a lengthy discussion, the man admitted to shooting the turkey from the road. Citations are pending for hunting from a public roadway and hunting turkey in closed season.

REPORT ILLEGAL HUNTING AND FISHING ACTIVITY FOR A REWARD OF UP TO $1,000.

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April 28, 2017

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Book explores fishing adventures through life

Texas coastal reds and trout

By Shannon Drawe

By Darlene McCormick Sanchez

Poet Henry Hughes’ book, “Back Seat with Fish A Man’s Adventures in Angling and Romance,” is a far-ranging autobiography that documents Hughes’ earliest fishing experiences and memories on Long Island and through his life as an observer and writer of his observations.

“I’ve kept a journal off and on, and wrote and received lots of letters since high school,” Hughes said.

“I kept detailed journals in college and during my time in Asia. The early years on Long Island were retrieved through memory and in revisiting all those places and talking to lots of people.”

As the book unfolds and Hughes matures through life, his fishing adventures take him across oceans to Japan, China, Malaysia and Alaska. Not only does he fish these faraway places, Hughes also drinks in the culture, including eating fish we would never imagine.

Hughes’ awareness of how the environment affects fish; catching certain fish because of new conservation efforts; and finding none when a favorite place is fished out — also becomes more sharp and important as his fishing life continues.

“We all know conservation is key, and when I saw the human-degraded waters of East Asia, I became especially worried about what could happen to America,” Hughes said. “I’m not against growth and industry, but we can’t go the way of China with polluted air and water.”

There’s a heavy dose of the author’s personal relationships that certainly add a dimension to the journey. Some may say this is a “guy’s book” because of his attention to detail and willingness to use a woman’s fishing IQ as a primary measure of compatibility.

The book does have mature subject matter, with references to sex, alcohol and marijuana, and is not for young readers.

“I asked my wife’s opinion because she teaches young adult fiction and has a good sense of appro-

Spring fishing for redfish and sea trout along the Texas coast is good to fair with reports of windy conditions this month.

Port O’Connor is experiencing a lot of trout and redfish action, said Capt. Lynn Smith with BackBay Guide Service.

On recent trips in West Matagorda Bay, Smith said catching 18-24 inch trout were the norm. Paddle tail Gamblers and Egrets have been his go-to lures. Fish can be had wading in knee-deep to waste-deep water near pockets of grass and shale.

Redfish have been near the shoreline. Smith said he’s been catching 20-to 28-inch fish on top-waters in sheltered areas.

“It’s been good. It’s typical — these fronts keep coming in one after another. But in Port O’Connor, we can get out of the wind,” Smith said.

Along the lower Laguna Madre, Capt. Grady Deaton of Dos Gringos Charters, said fishing has been fair, but he expects an uptick in activity as the weather stabilizes.

This time of year, he’s using shrimp or cut bait on reds, which tend to congregate on the mud flats north of the East Cut at Port Mansfield.

Deaton has been fishing for trout under popping corks near grass on the Gas Well flats closer to Port Isabel. His technique is to

For Lone Star Outdoor News

Lone Star Outdoor News

Photo by Shannon Drawe, for Lone Star Outdoor News

priate material,” Hughes said. “She says that ‘Back Seat with Fish’ is OK for readers over 16.”

Along the way, Hughes contemplates the deeper questions we longtime anglers think about in slower moments. Do the fish feel pain? Why is there such joy in feeling a fish struggle? Hughes looks fish in the eye, and knows that he must kill and eat some of them.

One of his favorite fish to eat? The common carp.

“Back Seat with Fish” is available from Skyhorse Publishing at skyhorsepublishing.com or at online bookstores.

Photo by Lone Star Outdoor News

fish the line between muddy and clear water by drifting across it.

“I fish that color change,” Deaton said.

S&S Guide service Capt. Riles Steussy, who’s been a guide since the ’80s, said weather is always a factor this time of year.

Steussy had some luck wadefishing for reds off Green Island near Port Mansfield recently with anglers catching 23- to 25-inch fish on gold weedless spoons. As for trout, he’s been catching 18- to 20-inch fish typically, with an occasional big one using shrimp and plastics.

Steussy recommends targeting reds on the east side of the bay in shallow water in the morning.

Later in the afternoon, the reds tend to go into deeper water, he said.

Lynn Smith (361) 983-4434 Grady Deaton (956) 455-2503 Riles Steussy (956) 245-5459

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Page 15

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Page 16

April 28, 2017

LoneOStar Outdoor News

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HEROES SHARE AN ADVENTURE

n Want to share hunting and fishing photos with other Lone Star Outdoor News readers?

Email them with contact and caption information to editor@lonestaroutdoornews.com.

High-resolution original jpegs only. Mail prints to Heroes, Lone Star Outdoor News, P.O. Box 551695, Dallas, TX 75355.

Kyler De Leon, 13, from Harlingen, caught this 27-inch red drum while fishing in Arroyo City during spring break.

Kannan Reynolds, 19, of Marshall, shot this 10-point buck in Harrison County hunting with her dad, Mark, while on Christmas break from Texas A&M.

Ava Owens, 5, shot this turkey while on her first turkey hunt in Junction with her dad, Chris, and her grandfather, Wes Tullos.

Keagan Rae Sohl, 8, of Port Aransas, shot her first deer while hunting with her family at Corvina Farm in Weesatche.

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Jeth Allen caught his first kingfish trolling a skirted ballyhoo 60 miles offshore.

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LoneOStar Outdoor News

April 28, 2017

Page 17

Port Isabel store Continued from page 8

rising off South Padre Island — often captioned with Sandra-isms such as “Fresh sunshine to start the day” or “Fish on!”

“Often, people are stuck in a building, a concrete jungle, and this is their beach therapy,” she said. “A beach is such a soothing place. It’s surprising how many problems get solved on the beach. And if you find some shells, that’s an added bonus.”

Sam Chavez III of Harlingen is an avid Quik Stop Facebook follower.

“I’ll be at work and it can be rainy and cold and, they’ll share a video or a photo and I feel better,” he said. Chavez said he’s a regular at the store, too.

“It’s one of those places,” he said. “There’s a consistency about it. We all know it’s a reliable place to find bait. They’re famous for live shrimp — the shrimpers come right up to the dock — and if you don’t have a bucket with an aerator, they’ll give you a bag with sawdust to keep the shrimp.

I don’t know how it works, but it does. It’s just a great place to go.”

Quik Stop’s goals online and in the store are the same, Sandra said. To be real.

“Our employees can back up the information they give out,” she said. “They live the salt life. A lot of places you go in and buy a fishing license and walk right out. We talk to you. We give out more information than the chamber, whether it’s about the weather or what people are catching.

We’re not one of those stores that won’t tell you where the fish are biting.”

Quik Stop makes you feel at home, Chavez said.

“They’ve got a wall where you can post pictures of your catches,” he said. “I’ve got pictures on it.

Anglers who have passed away have got pictures on it. Their legend lives on. There’s a lot of history on that wall.”

His father first brought him to Quik Stop some 20 years ago, said Chavez, 35. Sandra said she and Calvin hear such stories frequently.

“It says a lot about how we run our business, I think, that people come back to see us years later, often with their own families,” she said.

VARIETY: Quik Stop offers everything from shrimp to sunglasses. Photo by Erich Schlegel, for Lone Star Outdoor News.

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Lone Star Outdoor News, ISSN 21628300, a publication of Lone Star Outdoor News, LLC, publishes twice a month.

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April 28, 2017

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TEXAS SUN, MOON AND TIDES Moon Phases

First

Full

Last

New

May 2

May 10

May 18

May 26

Solunar Sun times Moon times

Houston

Dallas

2017 A.M. P.M. SUN MOON Apr./May Minor Major Minor Major Rises Sets Rises Sets

2017 A.M. P.M. SUN MOON Apr./May Minor Major Minor Major Rises Sets Rises Sets

28 Fri 29 Sat 30 Sun 01 Mon 02 Tue 03 Wed 04 Thu 05 Fri 06 Sat 07 Sun 08 Mon 09 Tue 10 Wed 11 Thu 12 Fri

28 Fri 29 Sat 30 Sun 01 Mon 02 Tue 03 Wed 04 Thu

7:50 8:56 10:03 11:07 ----12:35 1:25

05 Fri 06 Sat 07 Sun 08 Mon 09 Tue 10 Wed 11 Thu 12 Fri

7:44 1:29 8:50 2:35 9:57 3:42 11:01 4:47 ----- 5:47 12:29 6:42 1:19 7:31 2:04 8:16 2:45 8:57 3:25 9:35 4:03 10:14 4:43 10:54 5:25 11:37 6:10 ----6:58 12:47

8:14 9:20 10:27 11:30 12:01 12:55 1:44 2:27 3:08 3:46 4:25 5:05 5:48 6:33 7:21

1:59 3:05 4:12 5:16 6:15 7:08 7:56 8:39 9:19 9:57 10:36 11:16 11:59 12:22 1:10

06:41 06:40 06:39 06:38 06:37 06:36 06:36 06:35 06:34 06:33 06:33 06:32 06:31 06:30 06:30

07:55 07:56 07:57 07:57 07:58 07:58 07:59 08:00 08:00 08:01 08:02 08:02 08:03 08:04 08:04

8:43a 10:37p 9:38a 11:41p 10:37a NoMoon 11:38a 12:40a 12:39p 1:33a 1:39p 2:21a 2:38p 3:04a 3:35p 3:43a 4:29p 4:19a 5:23p 4:54a 6:16p 5:28a 7:09p 6:02a 8:01p 6:38a 8:54p 7:15a 9:45p 7:55a

1:35 2:41 3:48 4:53 5:53 6:48 7:37

8:20 9:26 10:33 11:36 12:07 1:01 1:50

2:05 3:11 4:18 5:22 6:21 7:14 8:02

06:43 06:42 06:41 06:40 06:39 06:38 06:37

2:10 8:22

2:33

8:45

06:36 08:10 3:39p

3:51a

2:51 3:30 4:09 4:49 5:31 6:16 7:04

3:14 3:52 4:31 5:11 5:53 6:39 7:27

9:25 10:03 10:42 11:22 ----12:27 1:15

06:35 06:34 06:33 06:33 06:32 06:31 06:30

4:26a 5:00a 5:33a 6:06a 6:40a 7:16a 7:55a

9:02 9:41 10:20 11:00 11:42 12:05 12:52

08:05 08:06 08:07 08:07 08:08 08:09 08:10 08:11 08:12 08:13 08:13 08:14 08:15 08:16

8:44a 10:49p 9:38a 11:53p 10:37a NoMoon 11:38a 12:51a 12:40p 1:44a 1:41p 2:31a 2:41p 3:13a 4:35p 5:30p 6:24p 7:18p 8:12p 9:05p 9:57p

San Antonio

Amarillo

2017 A.M. P.M. SUN MOON Apr./May Minor Major Minor Major Rises Sets Rises Sets

2017 A.M. P.M. SUN MOON Apr./May Minor Major Minor Major Rises Sets Rises Sets

28 Fri 29 Sat 30 Sun 01 Mon 02 Tue 03 Wed 04 Thu 05 Fri 06 Sat 07 Sun 08 Mon 09 Tue 10 Wed 11 Thu 12 Fri

28 Fri 29 Sat 30 Sun 01 Mon 02 Tue 03 Wed 04 Thu 05 Fri 06 Sat 07 Sun 08 Mon 09 Tue 10 Wed 11 Thu 12 Fri

7:57 1:42 9:03 2:48 10:09 3:55 11:14 4:59 ----- 6:00 12:42 6:55 1:32 7:44 2:17 8:28 2:58 9:09 3:37 9:48 4:16 10:27 4:56 11:07 5:38 11:49 6:23 12:11 7:11 12:59

8:27 9:33 10:39 11:43 12:14 1:08 1:56 2:40 3:20 3:59 4:38 5:18 6:00 6:45 7:34

2:12 3:18 4:24 5:28 6:27 7:21 8:09 8:52 9:31 10:10 10:48 11:29 ----12:34 1:22

06:54 06:53 06:52 06:51 06:50 06:50 06:49 06:48 06:47 06:46 06:46 06:45 06:44 06:44 06:43

08:07 08:08 08:08 08:09 08:10 08:10 08:11 08:12 08:12 08:13 08:13 08:14 08:15 08:15 08:16

8:57a 10:49p 9:52a 11:53p 10:51a NoMoon 11:51a 12:52a 12:53p 1:45a 1:53p 2:33a 2:51p 3:16a 3:48p 3:55a 4:42p 4:32a 5:36p 5:07a 6:29p 5:41a 7:21p 6:15a 8:14p 6:51a 9:06p 7:28a 9:57p 8:08a

8:10 1:55 9:16 3:01 10:23 4:08 11:27 5:13 12:03 6:13 12:55 7:08 1:45 7:57 2:30 8:42 3:11 9:22 3:50 10:01 4:29 10:40 5:09 11:20 5:51 ----6:36 12:25 7:24 1:12

8:40 9:46 10:53 11:56 12:27 1:21 2:10 2:53 3:34 4:12 4:51 5:31 6:14 6:59 7:47

2:25 3:31 4:38 5:42 6:41 7:34 8:22 9:05 9:45 10:23 11:02 11:42 12:03 12:48 1:36

06:59 06:58 06:57 06:56 06:55 06:54 06:53 06:52 06:51 06:50 06:49 06:48 06:47 06:46 06:46

08:29 08:30 08:30 08:31 08:32 08:33 08:34 08:35 08:35 08:36 08:37 08:38 08:39 08:40 08:40

9:01a 11:15p 9:54a NoMoon 10:53a 12:19a 11:54a 1:17a 12:57p 2:10a 1:59p 2:56a 3:00p 3:37a 3:58p 4:14a 4:55p 4:48a 5:51p 5:20a 6:46p 5:52a 7:41p 6:24a 8:36p 6:58a 9:30p 7:33a 10:22p 8:12a

Legend: Major=2 hours. Minor=1 hour. Times centered on the major-minor window. For other locations, subtract 1 minute per 12 miles east of a location, and add 1 minute per 12 miles west of a location.

Sabine Pass, north Date Apr 28 Apr 29 Apr 30 May 1 May 2 May 3 May 4 May 5 May 6 May 7 May 8 May 9 May 10 May 11 May 12

Time 6:28 AM 7:30 AM 12:53 AM 1:52 AM 2:57 AM 4:08 AM 5:22 AM 12:43 AM 1:54 AM 2:52 AM 3:42 AM 4:26 AM 5:04 AM 5:41 AM 6:17 AM

Port O’Connor Height 2.1H 2.1H -0.2L -0.1L 0.1L 0.3L 0.5L 1.5H 1.6H 1.7H 1.8H 1.8H 1.8H 1.8H 1.8H

Time 12:04 PM 12:58 PM 8:39 AM 9:54 AM 11:08 AM 12:11 PM 1:00 PM 6:35 AM 7:39 AM 8:34 AM 9:20 AM 10:00 AM 10:35 AM 11:07 AM 11:40 AM

Height 1.2L 1.4L 2.0H 1.9H 1.8H 1.8H 1.7H 0.6L 0.7L 0.9L 1.0L 1.1L 1.2L 1.3L 1.3L

Time 4:39 PM 5:12 PM 2:05 PM 3:38 PM 5:37 PM 6:40 PM 7:17 PM 1:37 PM 2:07 PM 2:32 PM 2:52 PM 3:08 PM 3:19 PM 3:25 PM 3:28 PM

Height 1.7H 1.6H 1.4L 1.4L 1.3L 1.2L 1.0L 1.7H 1.6H 1.6H 1.5H 1.5H 1.5H 1.5H 1.5H

Time 11:59 PM

Height -0.2L

5:50 PM 6:48 PM 9:05 PM 11:12 PM

1.6H 1.5H 1.4H 1.4H

7:49 PM 8:17 PM 8:43 PM 9:10 PM 9:39 PM 10:09 PM 10:42 PM 11:17 PM

0.8L 0.6L 0.5L 0.3L 0.2L 0.1L 0.1L 0.1L

Galveston Bay entrance, north jetty Time 6:55 AM 8:04 AM 12:46 AM 1:42 AM 2:48 AM 4:01 AM 5:28 AM 12:27 AM 1:53 AM 3:00 AM 3:59 AM 4:49 AM 5:32 AM 6:12 AM 6:53 AM

Height 2.1H 2.1H -0.2L -0.1L 0.1L 0.3L 0.5L 1.4H 1.5H 1.6H 1.7H 1.8H 1.9H 1.9H 1.9H

Time 1:10 PM 2:32 PM 9:15 AM 10:19 AM 11:19 AM 12:18 PM 1:06 PM 6:54 AM 7:57 AM 8:55 AM 9:58 AM 10:59 AM 11:47 AM 12:30 PM 1:17 PM

Height 1.3L 1.4L 2.1H 2.0H 1.9H 1.8H 1.7H 0.6L 0.8L 0.9L 1.1L 1.2L 1.2L 1.3L 1.4L

Time 4:48 PM 5:16 PM

Height 1.5H 1.5H

Time 11:57 PM

Height -0.3L

6:38 PM 7:06 PM 7:33 PM 1:43 PM 2:14 PM 2:39 PM 2:59 PM 3:12 PM 3:20 PM 3:32 PM 3:48 PM

1.3L 1.2L 1.0L 1.6H 1.5H 1.5H 1.4H 1.4H 1.4H 1.4H 1.4H

8:42 PM 10:34 PM

1.4H 1.3H

8:00 PM 8:27 PM 8:54 PM 9:22 PM 9:50 PM 10:21 PM 10:52 PM 11:24 PM

0.8L 0.7L 0.5L 0.4L 0.3L 0.2L 0.1L 0.1L

Height 1.4H -0.1L -0.1L 0.0L 0.1L 0.2L 0.4L 0.9H 1.0H 1.1H 1.1H 1.2H 1.2H 1.3H 1.3H

Time 2:20 PM 9:19 AM 10:32 AM 11:44 AM 12:51 PM 1:38 PM 2:11 PM 7:47 AM 8:47 AM 9:50 AM 10:56 AM 11:48 AM 12:30 PM 11:44 PM

Height 1.1L 1.4H 1.4H 1.4H 1.4H 1.3H 1.2H 0.5L 0.6L 0.7L 0.8L 0.9L 1.0L 0.1L

Time 4:43 PM

Height 1.1H

Time 7:46 AM 12:37 AM 1:29 AM 2:31 AM 3:40 AM 5:00 AM 6:36 AM 12:43 AM 2:21 AM 3:41 AM 4:50 AM 5:38 AM 6:17 AM 6:53 AM 7:38 AM

Height 2.1H 2.1H -0.2L -0.1L 0.1L 0.3L 0.5L 0.7L 1.4H 1.5H 1.7H 1.8H 1.8H 1.9H 1.9H

Time 2:01 PM

Height 1.2L

Time 4:18 PM

9:03 AM 10:13 AM 11:12 AM 12:04 PM 12:49 PM 1:22 PM 8:00 AM 9:04 AM 10:12 AM 11:24 AM 12:25 PM 10:11 PM 10:46 PM

2.1H 2.0H 1.9H 1.8H 1.7H 1.5H 0.8L 0.9L 1.1L 1.1L 1.2L 0.2L 0.1L

Height 0.3L 0.2L 0.3L 0.3L 0.4L 0.5L 1.2H 1.2H 1.3H 0.7L 0.6L 0.5L 0.4L 0.4L 0.4L

Time 10:42 AM 12:13 PM 2:19 PM 3:55 PM 4:41 PM 5:09 PM 9:50 AM 10:54 AM 11:51 AM 6:22 AM 7:26 AM 8:23 AM 9:14 AM 10:00 AM 10:44 AM

Height 1.6H 1.5H 1.5H 1.5H 1.5H 1.4H 0.5L 0.6L 0.7L 1.4H 1.4H 1.4H 1.4H 1.4H 1.4H

8:19 8:24 2:34 2:41 2:45 2:56 3:04 2:52

PM PM PM PM PM PM PM PM

Time

Height

0.9L 0.8L 1.1H 1.0H 1.0H 1.0H 1.0H 1.0H

10:39 PM

0.9H

8:48 PM 9:17 PM 9:48 PM 10:20 PM 10:51 PM 11:18 PM

0.6L 0.5L 0.4L 0.3L 0.2L 0.1L

Height 1.3H

Time 11:25 PM

Height -0.2L

Freeport Harbor Date Apr 28 Apr 29 Apr 30 May 1 May 2 May 3 May 4 May 5 May 6 May 7 May 8 May 9 May 10 May 11 May 12

Time 6:38 AM 7:45 AM 12:17 AM 1:12 AM 2:17 AM 3:34 AM 4:55 AM 6:36 AM 1:26 AM 2:35 AM 3:32 AM 4:24 AM 5:11 AM 5:53 AM 6:33 AM

Time 2:20 AM 3:08 AM 4:07 AM 5:27 AM 7:07 AM 8:36 AM 1:15 AM 3:29 AM 5:07 AM 12:01 AM 12:32 AM 1:00 AM 1:24 AM 1:44 AM 2:03 AM

Time 11:41 AM 12:53 PM 2:02 PM 3:04 PM 3:48 PM 4:17 PM 4:36 PM 4:44 PM 9:09 AM 9:59 AM 11:16 PM 11:41 PM

Height 1.0H 1.1H 1.1H 1.0H 1.0H 0.9H 0.8H 0.7H 0.6L 0.7L 0.3L 0.3L

10:30 AM 11:12 AM

0.9H 0.9H

Time 2:16 AM 3:13 AM 4:10 AM 5:08 AM 6:04 AM 6:56 AM 7:41 AM 8:16 AM 1:44 AM 4:01 AM 2:32 PM 2:40 PM 12:13 AM 12:59 AM 1:44 AM

Height 0.2L 0.2L 0.2L 0.2L 0.2L 0.2L 0.3L 0.3L 0.4H 0.4H 0.5H 0.5H 0.2L 0.2L 0.2L

Time 4:00 PM 5:02 PM 6:14 PM 7:32 PM 8:54 PM 10:20 PM 11:54 PM 3:23 PM 8:38 AM 8:39 AM 11:24 PM

Height 0.5H 0.5H 0.5H 0.5H 0.5H 0.5H 0.5H 0.4H 0.4L 0.4L 0.3L

2:55 PM 3:18 PM 3:48 PM

0.5H 0.5H 0.5H

Height 1.4H 1.4H 0.1L 0.1L 0.2L 0.3L 0.5L 0.6L 1.0H 1.0H 1.1H 1.1H 1.2H 1.2H 1.2H

Time 12:41 PM

Time

10:44 PM 4:07 PM 2:40 PM

Time

Height

0.6L 0.7H 0.7H

Height

Time

10:34 PM 10:53 PM

Time

Height

0.5L 0.4L

Height

7:35 PM 2:46 PM 2:33 PM

0.4L 0.4H 0.4H

9:16 PM 10:27 PM

0.3L 0.3L

Date Apr 28 Apr 29 Apr 30 May 1 May 2 May 3 May 4 May 5 May 6 May 7 May 8 May 9 May 10 May 11 May 12

Time 6:41 AM 8:10 AM 12:15 AM 1:18 AM 2:33 AM 3:59 AM 5:19 AM 6:30 AM 12:07 AM 2:43 AM 3:54 AM 4:47 AM 5:29 AM 6:03 AM 6:33 AM

Height 1.2L

Time 3:17 PM

Height 1.3H

Time 11:20 PM

Height 0.1L

9:38 AM 10:58 AM 12:06 PM 12:55 PM 1:27 PM 1:46 PM 7:33 AM 8:27 AM 9:14 AM 9:56 AM 10:36 AM 11:19 AM 12:09 PM

1.4H 1.4H 1.3H 1.3H 1.2H 1.1H 0.7L 0.8L 0.9L 1.0L 1.1L 1.1L 1.1L

7:15 7:43 1:18 1:02 1:18 1:41 2:05 2:30 2:53

1.0L 0.8L 1.1H 1.1H 1.1H 1.1H 1.2H 1.2H 1.2H

10:18 PM

1.0H

8:14 PM 8:44 PM 9:12 PM 9:38 PM 9:59 PM 10:17 PM 10:41 PM

0.7L 0.6L 0.4L 0.4L 0.3L 0.2L 0.2L

Height 1.6H 1.6H -0.3L -0.3L -0.1L 0.0L 0.2L 0.4L 0.9H 1.0H 1.1H 1.1H 1.2H 1.2H 1.2H

Time 11:27 PM

Height -0.3L

9:49 AM 11:09 AM 12:14 PM 12:55 PM 1:17 PM 1:27 PM 7:20 AM 8:25 AM 9:25 AM 10:22 AM 9:55 PM 10:22 PM 10:51 PM

1.6H 1.5H 1.4H 1.3H 1.2H 1.1H 0.5L 0.7L 0.8L 0.9L -0.1L -0.1L -0.1L

Height 0.0L 0.0L -0.1L 0.0L 0.0L 0.0L 0.1L 0.3H 0.3H 0.3H 0.3H 0.3H 0.3H 0.4H 0.4H

Time 1:25 PM 1:41 PM 1:51 PM 1:59 PM 2:13 PM 2:31 PM 2:45 PM 8:17 AM 9:26 AM 10:25 AM 11:06 AM 11:40 AM 11:28 PM 11:49 PM

Height 0.4H 0.4H 0.4H 0.4H 0.4H 0.4H 0.3H 0.1L 0.2L 0.2L 0.2L 0.3L 0.0L 0.0L

PM PM PM PM PM PM PM PM PM

South Padre Island

7:19 PM 7:41 PM 8:03 PM 1:46 PM 2:02 PM 2:14 PM 2:25 PM 2:34 PM

1.1L 1.0L 0.8L 1.4H 1.3H 1.3H 1.3H 1.2H

9:58 PM 11:46 PM

1.2H 1.2H

8:24 PM 8:42 PM 8:58 PM 9:16 PM 9:40 PM

0.7L 0.5L 0.4L 0.3L 0.2L

Rollover Pass Date Apr 28 Apr 29 Apr 30 May 1 May 2 May 3 May 4 May 5 May 6 May 7 May 8 May 9 May 10 May 11 May 12

Date Apr 28 Apr 29 Apr 30 May 1 May 2 May 3 May 4 May 5 May 6 May 7 May 8 May 9 May 10 May 11 May 12

Height 0.1L 0.1L 0.1L 0.1 0.2L 0.3L 0.4L 0.5L 0.7H 0.7H 0.8H 0.8H 0.9H 0.2L 0.2L

Port Aransas

San Luis Pass Date Apr 28 Apr 29 Apr 30 May 1 May 2 May 3 May 4 May 5 May 6 May 7 May 8 May 9 May 10 May 11 May 12

Rockport

Time 12:51 AM 1:44 AM 2:42 AM 3:46 AM 4:53 AM 6:01 AM 7:09 AM 8:12 AM 4:47 AM 6:32 AM 7:51 AM 8:56 AM 9:47 AM 12:07 AM 12:36 AM

Date Apr 28 Apr 29 Apr 30 May 1 May 2 May 3 May 4 May 5 May 6 May 7 May 8 May 9 May 10 May 11 May 12

Time 7:16 AM 8:29 AM 12:20 AM 1:19 AM 2:24 AM 3:36 AM 4:53 AM 06:09 AM 1:01 AM 2:40 AM 3:57 AM 4:58 AM 5:47 AM 6:29 AM 7:09 AM

Time

8:10 7:53 1:32 1:31 1:21 1:02

PM PM PM PM PM PM

Height

0.8L 0.7L 1.0H 0.9H 0.9H 1.0H

Time

Height

10:27 PM

0.8H

8:12 8:36 9:02 9:29

0.5L 0.3L 0.1L 0.0L

PM PM PM PM

East Matagorda Time

10:38 PM 5:24 PM 5:32 PM 5:32 PM 12:43 PM 1:33 PM 2:21 PM 3:09 PM

Height

1.1L 1.4H 1.3H 1.2H 0.9L 1.0L 1.1L 1.2L

Time

Height

11:02 PM 11:31 PM

1.0L 0.9L

5:26 5:23 5:29 5:42

1.2H 1.2H 1.3H 1.3H

PM PM PM PM

Date Apr 28 Apr 29 Apr 30 May 1 May 2 May 3 May 4 May 5 May 6 May 7 May 8 May 9 May 10 May 11 May 12

Time 12:19 AM 1:44 AM 2:55 AM 3:42 AM 4:36 AM 6:28 AM 7:26 AM 12:30 AM 1:34 AM 4:39 AM 5:38 AM 6:33 AM 8:09 AM 9:11 AM 12:55 PM

Time

8:56 2:29 2:08 2:17 2:37 3:05

PM PM PM PM PM PM

Height

0.2L 0.3H 0.3H 0.3H 0.3H 0.3H

Time

9:37 PM 10:12 PM 10:39 PM 11:00 PM 11:14 PM

Height

0.2L 0.1L 0.1L 0.1L 0.0L

Texas Coast Tides

Date Apr 28 Apr 29 Apr 30 May 1 May 2 May 3 May 4 May 5 May 6 May 7 May 8 May 9 May 10 May 11 May 12

Date Apr 28 Apr 29 Apr 30 May 1 May 2 May 3 May 4 May 5 May 6 May 7 May 8 May 9 May 10 May 11 May 12

LSONews.com

LoneOStar Outdoor News

April 28, 2017

Page 19

Predator contest supplies animals for research

Snapper, kings in state waters

Continued from page 4

Continued from page 1

rings found in a tree stump, to determine age.

Kirk hoped to get about 60 specimens of fox and coyote for each region, most of which came from the West Texas Big Bobcat Contest.

Kirk and her mom, Sherry Jones, have driven an empty trailer to San Angelo a few times in the last two years to collect coyote and fox from the hunters at the Big Bobcat Contest. After the hunts ended, all Kirk had to do was ask if the hunters wanted to donate their carcasses, record the county the animal was in and load it on a trailer.

“The hunters are allowed to hunt anywhere in Texas for the contest, so I get (animals from) counties I never would have gotten on my own,” Kirk said. “And the hunters are happy because they like to know their carcasses are going toward education.”

Kirk has 100 canines ready to go to the lab and another 600 waiting to be processed.

As for the results, Kirk said it’s too soon to tell. Only about 100 of the canines have come back from the lab, and she still has plenty of heads to process. When the lab results come back, Kirk will get to work understanding the data before she graduates in August of 2018.

She hopes that other researchers will use her thesis to study population counts, breeding structures or other behavioral patterns to facilitate better management of the species.

“My research is just a foot in the door of what’s going on with these populations,” she said. “More research would bring interest to this subject.”

Kirk formed her thesis on age structure after learning her advisor, Rich Kazmaier, had studied age structure in other animals.

“I’ve been doing research in age structure since the 1990s and I have used the same techniques as Cassie in turtles, fish, trees and more,” Kazmaier, an associate professor or TEETH: Aging predators is possible through tooth samples. wildlife biology and Scientists analyze them and determine age like reading rings of Kirk’s thesis advisor at a tree. Photo from Cassie Kirk.

West Texas A&M, said. gram leader with the Texas Parks and When Kirk completes her research, she hopes it will be Wildlife Department, said the reused by wildlife management servic- search would probably be most usees, but she anticipates a lot of inter- ful to biologists and other researchers. est from ranchers and farmers.

Coyote groups can impact fawn “In wildlife biology, a lot of attention gets paid to game species and populations as much as 50 percent a lot of attention gets paid to spe- on some ranches, which calls for cies in need of conservation. But management. Yet, on other ranches these common species (like coyote these predators are seen as a way to and gray fox) that aren’t really stud- naturally manage the deer populaied for hunting or conservation, tion.

“They can have an impact on a we don’t know a lot about. Yet, the state is still responsible for managing fawn crop,” Cain said. those populations,” Kazmaier said.

Alan Cain, white-tailed deer pro-

Photo by Lone Star Outdoor News

month. Weed lines have also started showing up, which will hold dorado and wahoo in the near future, Kinney added.

Capt. Frank Vasquez said snapper fishing in state waters about 58 feet deep some 5 miles off the beach has been good. He’s been using herring and mullet for bait.

“We’re all gearing up here,” Vasquez said.

Capt. Leaf Potter, with Texas Saltwater Adventures in Surfside, said he’s skipping the state-water snapper, which tend to be small. There are plenty of other game fish showing up in state water.

“The unusual water temperatures have brought fish in earlier,” he said.

Temperatures are running 75 degrees — about 5 degrees above the normal water temperature this time of year.

April charter trips produced king and Spanish mackerel catches. In particular, king mackerel moved into range in the first half of April. There were even reports of anglers catching kings off the jetties when there was no wind, Potter said.

Chad Kinney (956) 802-2269 Frank Vasquez (956) 642-7040 Leaf Potter (832) 428-3340

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Page 20

April 28, 2017

LoneOStar Outdoor News

INDUSTRY

OUTDOOR PUZZLER OUTDOOR PUZZLER

Solution on Solution onPage Page2625

1

2

3 4

5

8

9

6

7

Guidefitter hires agency

Thompson hired as ED of The Wildlife Society

Guidefitter, an online hub for guided hunting and fishing adventures, retained Gray Loon Marketing Group as its media relations agency of record.

The Wildlife Society named Ed Thompson as executive director of The Wildlife Society, beginning July 1.

10

New director at PF

11 12

13

14

15

16

17

Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever hired Chris Kalis as the organization’s new director of corporate partnerships.

MDF seeking COO

18 19

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22

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24

25 26

LSONews.com

27

28

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31 32

The Mule Deer Foundation is seeking a chief operations officer who will be responsible for managing day-to-day operations in the MDF headquarters office in Salt Lake City, Utah.

33 34

SPOT hits milestone The SPOT, LLC, family of satellite messaging and emergency notification products surpassed 5,000 rescues in 89 countries since its launch in 2007.

Promotions at Yamaha Marine Group Martin Peters was promoted to senior manager, marine communications and government relations with Yamaha Marine Group. David Ittner was promoted to manager II, tournaments and sponsorships.

35

36 37

Across

ACROSS 2. Dog's behavior after smelling fresh scent 3. Good2.bays forbehavior trout after smelling fresh scent Dog’s 8. Creek feeds river 3.that Good baysafor trout 10. Layer where warm and cold water meet but 8.

Creek that feeds a river don't mix 10. Layer where warm and cold water meet 11. A minnow species 12. Purina'sbut pioneer protein don’t of mix 14. Shooter ____ a flying bird 11. Amust minnow species 15. Florida's state mammal 12. Purina’s pioneer of protein 17. Used for bait in carp fishing 14. Shooter must 18. A shallow section of a____ lakeaorflying bay bird 15. Florida’s 20. A popular powerstate plantmammal lake 23. A good type of catch-and-release 17. Used forhook bait for in carp fishing 25. Protects archer's armof from string 18. Athe shallow section a lake or bay 27. Flying tool used in game management 20.

A popular power plant lake 29. Texas term for watering hole A good 31. The23. water dog type of hook for catch-and-release 32. Fishing line usedthe to archer’s fill the reel 25. Protects arm from string 33. A quail speciestool used in game management 27. Flying 34. A crossbow manufacturer 29. Texas term for watering hole 36. Scent applied to fishing lures 31. of The watercall dog 37. A type turkey 32. Fishing line used to fill the reel 33. A quail species 34. A crossbow manufacturer 36. Scent applied to fishing lures 37. A type of turkey call

Nature’s Calling

Down

DOWN 1.

The yellow cat 2.1.

Sound made cat by bull elk during rut The yellow 4.2.

A Sound game bird in by Africa made bull elk during rut 5. This program pays farmers to leave grasses 4.

A game bird in Africa 6. River that flows through San Angelo This program 7.5.

The long goosepays call farmers to leave grasses 9.6.

The 1-year-old buck River that flows through San Angelo 10.7.

A The safari destination long goose call 13. A grouse species The 1-year-old buck 15.9.

The African hunting guide 10.

A safari destination 16. Used in large goose decoy spreads 13. grouse 17.

AA deer blindspecies manufacturer 19.

Direction of most pheasant 15.

The African hunting guide flushes 21.

AnUsed offshore target 16. in large goose decoy spreads 22. Popular bait for trout 17.

A deeran blind manufacturer 24.

Jerking unbaited hook to catch fish 19. of most pheasant flushes 26.

AnDirection African game species 28.

Gobbler with his harem is _____ up 21.

An offshore target 30.

The fish big enough to take home 22.

Popular bait for trout 31. A type of net 24. Jerking an unbaited hook to catch fish 35. Corpus Christi pier built in 1948 26. An African game species 28. Gobbler with his harem is _____ up 30. The fish big enough to take home 31. A type of net 35. Corpus Christi pier built in 1948

By Aaron Anderson, For Lone Star Outdoor News

FOR THE TABLE *email LSON your favorite recipe to news@lonestaroutdoornews.com.

Chestnut stuffed wild turkey 1 (8-10 pound) wild turkey Salt Pepper 1/2 pound sausage meat 1/2 cup chopped onion 1 cup chopped celery 1 tsp. salt 1/4 tsp. pepper 1/8 tsp. crushed thyme 5 juniper berries, crushed 1/4 cup chopped parsley 1 cup cooked chestnuts, chopped 8 cup soft bread crumbs, made of day-old bread 4-6 slices bacon Melted bacon fat Sprinkle turkey inside and out with salt and pepper. Cook

sausage meat in skillet until well-done. Add onion and celery; continue to cook until vegetables are tender. Add seasonings, chestnuts, and bread crumbs; mix well. Spoon stuffing lightly into neck and body cavities. Close openings with skewers and string.

Cover breast with bacon slices and cheesecloth soaked in melted bacon fat. Pull legs upward, wild turkey fashion, and tie together with string. Turn wings under.

Place turkey breast up on rack in roasting pan. Roast in preheated 325-degree oven for 20-25 minutes per pound, or until tender, basting frequently.

—gohuntpa.org

Chesapeake Bay seafood stew 1/4 cup olive oil 1 large onion, diced 2 leeks, well washed, halved and cut into pieces 1/3 cup chopped fennel bulb, or 1 tbsp. fennel seed 5 pounds ripe tomatoes, chopped 2 small potatoes, peeled and diced 2 cups dry white wine 3 cups fish stock 1 tsp. dried thyme leaves 1 tsp. dried oregano 1 bay leaf Grated zest of one orange 3-4 threads of saffron Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste 8-10 pieces of French bread, sliced on diagonal Melted butter and chopped garlic for toast 2 pounds bass, rockfish, bluefish, or other firm-fleshed fillets 1 pound backfin crabmeat, picked over to remove shells 1 1/2 pounds small hard-shell clams, well-scrubbed Chopped parsley Heat oil in a heavy pot and sauté the onion, garlic, leeks and fennel until slightly softened, about 8 – 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes, potatoes, wine, stock, thyme, oregano and bay leaf. Bring to a slow boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes.

Puree the mixture in a blender or food processor. Pour through a fine sieve and return to the pot.

Add the orange zest, saffron, salt, and pepper. Cook over mediumlow heat, stirring frequently, until

somewhat reduced, about 20-30 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the oven to 375 degrees. Brush the bread slices with melted butter and top with garlic. Toast in the oven until browned. Cut the fish into chunks about 2 inches square. Add to the sauce and cook for 8-10 minutes, or until the fish is done. Add the crabmeat and clams. Stir, then cover.

Cook just until the clams have opened. Remove 1 cup of the liquid for making the Rouille.

Prepare the Rouille according to the recipe that follows. Place 1 piece of garlic bread in each bowl, then spoon in the fish and broth. Arrange the clams on top.

Garnish with fresh parsley. Serve the Rouille on the side.

Rouille 1 small potato, peeled 1 cup of the liquid broth from Chesapeake Bay Seafood Stew 6 cloves of garlic 4 fresh or died red chilies 1 tsp. Tabasco sauce 1/2 cup olive oil Salt, to taste Quarter the potato and cook in the broth. Drain, reserving the liquid. Finely chop the garlic and the peppers in a blender or food processor. Add the potato, Tabasco, and olive oil. Process until the mixture forms a paste. Slowly add enough of the reserved broth to give the mixture the consistency of mayonnaise.

— seafood.maryland.gov

LSONews.com

Fishing Village Creek Continued from page 8

“I fish out of one-man canoe and put in up around the Big Thicket National Preserve,” he said. “That water is flat loaded with bass. I’ve caught them up to about 4 pounds. My go-to lure is a small crankbait, but a spinner bait in silver with a white skirt is pretty good, too.”

Simmons said the fishing can require considerable effort.

“There are lots of logs to pull around or go over,” he said. “But the fishing is worth the effort.”

Fly-fishing is popular on Village Creek, especially from the swimming area below the park down to the Neches River. Jeff Avery flyfishes the creek out of a 12-foot Wilderness Systems kayak.

“I’ll put in at the park and float downstream,” he said. “Once I’m past the park swimming area, I rarely see another person. The best way to fly-fish the creek is to wade. I’ll beach the kayak and fish the deeper pools.”

Avery said an abundance of bluegill will hit small sponge spiders all day long.

“Poppers and streamers are best for bass,” he said. “The typical bass might weigh a pound. But I’ve caught a lot of 1-1/2 to 2-pound bass.

My favorite float is to put in at the park and camp out on the sand bars along the creek. That’s total escape.”

Other good flies on the creek are a cricket or grasshopper imitation — match the hatch — or small minnow imitations; a No. 4 or 6 clouser in white/silver or white/chartreuse; or a black or olive-colored bead head Wooly Bugger in the deeper pools that can be found along the end of the sandbars.

Village Creek flows through the Big Thicket National Preserve, amid towering oak and pine trees, for just over 41 miles, and eventually runs into the Neches River about 2.5 miles past the park. Most of the creek is wide enough to be fished.

The Caddoan and Atakapan Indians were the first people to float Village Creek and camp on its many pearl white sandbars — and the stream hasn’t changed much since then.

“The park is in good shape and all but the primitive camping areas are open,” said Alex Stamatis, operations manager at the Village Creek State Park. “A lot of people bring their own canoes or kayaks. We have camp sites along the creek with water, picnic tables and fire pits.”

The creek is generally an easy paddle with still or slow-moving current throughout much of the year. It’s a float-fishing adventure — a combination of primitive camping and fishing.

There are two nearby canoe and kayak rental shops, Big Thicket Outfitters (409) 786-1884 and Eastex Canoe Trails (409) 385-4700.

LoneOStar Outdoor News

April 28, 2017

Page 21

Mixed results mixing feed Continued from page 1

boxes with larger clumps mixed in with the grains or flakes.

“In a nutshell, larger objects tend to have larger voids between them,” said Dr. Charles Allen, a professor of physics at Angelo State University. “Hence the smaller pellets can find room to fall in between the cracks of the larger pellets, while the reverse doesn’t work. The larger pellets end up on top.”

Allen said there is really no way to avoid this phenomenon in something like a deer feeder.

“When on, the feeder will vibrate enough to open up those small spaces, and the small pellets sink to the bottom,” he said.

Mixing feeds is growing in popularity, with hunters mixing corn, milo, sunflowers, soybeans, peas and sometimes protein in one combination or another.

At Mumme’s in Hondo, the best mix found has been a mixture of corn and yellow peas grown in the Midwest and shipped to South Texas by rail.

“The crude protein on the peas runs 22 percent,” said Lance Cote, wildlife biologist at Mumme’s, Inc. in Hondo. “We mix it 50/50 with corn.”

Some try to mix deer pellets with corn and run them through a spin feeder. Cote said that is a bad idea.

“Moisture gets in there, the pellets expand and you have a real problem,” he said.

Adding milo also is a problem since the seeds are so small.

“It’s gonna go straight to the bottom,” Cote said. “It will come out first.”

With a road feeder, the problems are amplified.

“The load shifts around and the smaller seeds keep working their way down,” Cote said. “With a regular feeder without the constant shaking, it’s not as bad. It’s best if the seeds used are pretty much the same size, though.”

SCIENCE: When feeders vibrate, even from going off, smaller morsels of mixed feed make their way to the bottom, while larger items rise to the top, similar to a can of mixed nuts where the Brazil nuts always seem to be at the top. Photo by David J. Sams, Lone Star Outdoor News.

Page 22

April 28, 2017

LoneOStar Outdoor News

LSONews.com

NATIONAL Springdale residents arrested in elk-poaching case Three Springdale residents were arrested for poaching two bull elk in north-central Arkansas.

The dead elk were found earlier this year on a county road near the Newton/Madison county line.

Arrested in the case were Rebecca Burkett, 27, her husband, Clifford Lee Burkett, 52, and Joyce Stout, 57.

Charges against Rebecca Burkett included taking prohibited elk, hunting wildlife in closed season, and hunting from the road. Charges against Clifford Lee Burkett included hunting out of season and criminal tresspass. Charges against Stout included hunting from the road, hunting wildlife in a closed season, taking of prohibited elk.

Arkansas Game and Fish Commission wildlife officers responded to a landowner’s call Jan. 29 concerning two dead elk on private property.

Both elk had been shot. One elk had tenderloins removed and there was evidence that the head was in the process of being removed.

During the investigation, a third poached bull elk was found in a storage building in Springdale.

— Arkansas Game and Fish Commission

A hunter’s cautionary account in Kansas ON A LOW-FENCE RVESTED THIS BUCK AT HA , 29 , SE EE KN ER SUMM D, DENNIS, AND ING TRIP WITH HER DA NT HU A G RIN DU E AS LE SE SAW HER BUCK RRIZO SPRINGS. KNEE DOG, TUFFY, NEAR CA T HIM AT 150 YARDS ASON AND FINALLY GO THROUGHOUT THE SE R AND NIKON SCOPE. WITH HER .308 RUGE

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According to an account in the Joplin Globe, an Arkansas man accidentally shot his brother and friend while the three hunted turkey in Kansas.

The shooter drove the two injured hunters to the hospital in Girard with potentially lifethreatening shotgun wounds to their faces and upper bodies. They later were flown by medical helicopter to Freeman Hospital West in Joplin, according to authorities.

The shooter is the brother of one of the injured men and a close friend of the other, according to news reports. He told sheriff’s deputies that he was dropped off at the property by the other two about dawn. His brother and friend wanted to hunt at a different location and drove on to that spot.

The brother and friend eventually set up just inside a wooded area, wearing camouflage and lying behind a fan made of turkey feathers.

The shooter said that he fired his 12-gauge shotgun about 8:40 a.m. at what he thought was a turkey that he had been “calling in.” He told deputies that he then realized almost immediately that his brother and friend must have been hunting the same turkey and that he had shot them.

— Staff report

Bass Pro pays less under new merger deal Bass Pro Shops will pay about $500 million less for Cabela’s under the new terms of the companies’ merger agreement.

Under the Amended Merger Agreement, Bass Pro Shops will acquire Cabela’s for $61.50 per share in cash, representing an aggregate transaction value of approximately $5 billion.

Cabela’s Board of Directors unanimously approved the transaction, which is expected to close in the third quarter of 2017, subject to Cabela’s shareholder approval, regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions.

When the deal was first announced in October, it called for a price of $65.50 per share in cash or an aggregate transaction value of approximately $5.5 billion.

— Staff report

Alabama plans $70 million in restoration The Alabama Trustee Implementation Group has approved its first restoration plan and environmental impact statement. The restoration activities described in the plan will address natural resource injuries from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. This restoration plan focuses on lost shoreline recreational use opportunities and is consistent with the Trustees’ programmatic restoration plan.

The restoration plan identifies six preferred

projects in Mobile and Baldwin counties. The total estimated cost of the projects is $70.7 million. The projects include: • Gulf State Park Lodge and Associated Public Access Amenities – $56.3 million • Fort Morgan Pier Rehabilitation – $3.075 million • Laguna Cove Little Lagoon Natural Resource Protection – $4.4 million • Bayfront Park Restoration and Improvement (engineering and design only) – $1 million • Dauphin Island Eco-Tourism and Environmental Education Area – $4 million • Mid-Island Parks and Public Beach Improvements (Parcels B and C) – $1.9 million — Alabama Conservation and Natural Resources

California’s salmon numbers fall to record low Historically low numbers of fall-run and winter-run Chinook salmon have prompted the California Fish and Game Commission to limit the state’s salmon fishery for the remainder of 2017.

In the Klamath Management Zone, which is the area between the Oregon/California border and Horse Mountain, the entire ocean salmon fishery will be closed, as will the fall-run Chinook fishery on both the Klamath and Trinity rivers.

Returning stock projections for fall-run Chinook in the Klamath River Basin are the lowest on record. By limiting, and in some cases closing, the fisheries for the remainder of 2017, the FGC hopes to maximize fall- and winter-run Chinook survival and reproduction and support efforts to rebuild the fisheries.

“Closing an entire fishing season is not something that I take lightly, but the survival of the fall-run Chinook in the Klamath and Trinity rivers is at stake,” said California Department of Fish and Wildlife Director Charlton H. Bonham. “CDFW and other fisheries management partners agree that these restrictions are necessary to help recover this vital species.”

Inland, spring-run Chinook fishing will still be allowed through Aug. 14 on the Klamath River and through Aug. 31 on the Trinity River.

After these dates, both fisheries will close for the remainder of the calendar year. However, the nearby Smith River will remain open for fall-run Chinook, and there are additional opportunities in southern Oregon rivers. During the salmon season closure, steelhead angling will still be allowed in both the Klamath and Trinity rivers.

— California Department of Fish and Wildlife

Arkansas lake to be drained and refilled The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission plans to conduct an intensive renovation to Poinsett Lake in northeast Arkansas beginning in July. The lake will be drained during the renovation, which is expected to last until 2020.

Poinsett was created in 1960 by damming Distress Creek, and like many reservoirs constructed from the 1930s to the 1970s, it shows many serious signs of aging. Bank erosion, declining fish habitat and a deteriorating water control structure all plague the lake that has been a popular recreational opportunity in Northeast Arkansas.

“It’s really not unusual to see these sorts of issues,” said Ben Batten, assistant chief of fisheries for the AGFC. “All water-control structures have a usable life span, and many of our lakes built in that era are reaching the end of that term.”

The only way to replace the water-control structure and complete the necessary repairs involves completely draining the lake. However, the drawdown will enable biologists to make many improvements like what was done at Lake Atkins, Columbia Lake and White Oak Lake, some of the hottest up-and-coming lakes for angling in the state.

—Arkansas Game and Fish Commission

LSONews.com

LoneOStar Outdoor News

Ending a slump Continued from page 1

April 28, 2017

Page 23

Guide nets three 10-pounders on Toledo

By Darlene McCormick Sanchez Lone Star Outdoor News

SET A GOAL: Practicing and setting goals can help end the fishing doldrums, according to avid anglers. Photo

by Seigo Saito, B.A.S.S.

Everyone goes through slumps. But they can make you overthink, Faircloth said.

“So much of fishing is instinctive,” he said. “If you’re running down a lake and see something, you may think, ‘I ought to go back and hit that.’ When you’re fishing good, you tend to follow those instincts.

When you’re in a slump, you tend to be conservative and think you have to go where you’ve had a bite before. Fishing is a momentum deal, and I don’t have the key that unlocks it.”

Thurman Selman, who guides at Richland-Chambers Reservoir, said the first thing to do is figure out if you’re actually the one in the slump.

“It’s not necessarily the angler,” Selman said. “It could be the lake he’s fishing or the time of year. If it’s postspawn, the fish can be in a slump.”

If it’s you, Selman recommends narrowing your scope.

“Take one creek and dissect it,” he said.

“If you don’t do any good there, go to the next one. That’s how you learn a lake.

Somewhere on the lake you’re going to find fish.”

Slumps are often more about what’s going on in your head.

“You always seem to be a step behind,” said Jon Harshbarger of Kaufman, who belongs to the Century Bass Club of Dallas.

“You have a couple of bad tournaments, and you don’t build any confidence. That’s the biggest thing to me: having the confidence to know that when I put my boat in the water that I’m going to catch a limit.

“When I’m in a slump and put a boat in the water, it’s almost like practice. I don’t know where to start. That’s not a good scenario for amateurs. Pros are quick to make adjustments. We amateurs take longer to process information.”

Faircloth endorses going back to the basics.

“The number one thing is fish with a

bait you have confidence in,” he said. “Fish cover you’ve had success with, whether it’s grass, laydowns, whatever. I think a lot of time people get caught up with certain colors and think that’s going to make the magic. It’s more about being around fish than fishing with a special bait or special color.”

Selman advocates clearing your mind.

“Bass fishing requires concentration,” he said. “If you’ve got your mind on taxes or whatever, you’re not going to fish well.

Fishing is like riding a bicycle. Once you learn, it’s not like you’re going to forget how to fish. You just need to refocus.”

Both Selman and Faircloth said you can’t break a slump if you’re not on the water — and you never know when your luck will change.

After weeks of frustration, Harshbarger won a club tournament April 9 at Pat Mayse Lake.

“I was fortunate to get some bites at practice on Saturday,” Harshbarger said.

“It keyed me in on what to do. I caught a few flipping stumps in 2 to 3 feet of water. I made a mental note. I knew for a fact where there would be some fish the next day.”

Faircloth turned things around in 2015 by releasing the pressure valve and setting a modest goal for himself at the year’s final two tournaments.

“I had done the math and didn’t think I could qualify for the Classic,” he said. “I set a goal of just cashing checks. I wanted to end the year on a positive note.”

It worked out better than he could imagine.

“I finished in the top 20 at the first event,” Faircloth said, “then I won the last event of the year at Lake St. Clair and ended up qualifying for the Classic after all. Pressure just tightens you up as a fisherman. Set modest goals. Once you reach them, you start feeling better about your abilities and it can snowball from there.”

Guide Jason Courville has developed something of a following after landing three bass in as many months that top 10 pounds on Toledo Bend Reservoir.

Courville, who can’t be missed in his yellow boat, said that since news has gotten out about his lunker trifecta, he has noticed that when he leaves a fishing spot, others will move in.

“They know who I am,” said Courville.

“They see where I was fishing.”

Courville said he can’t really say what his secret to success is. Each time he’s caught a lunker, he’s been guiding with clients using the same bait and same line.

“I tie the baits on, and I tell them where to throw,” he said. Some clients have come close to double digits, landing 8- and 9-pound bass.

Though Courville, 48, has been guiding on the lake for only about a year, he has been fishing Toledo Bend most of his life.

All of his big bass have come from the Mill Creek area.

His most recent lunker, weighing 11.02 pounds, was caught there April 17.

Courville said he used a 1/2-ounce green pumpkin Jakked Baits jig and Strike King green pumpkin trailer while fishing the creek. He was casting in 11 feet of water in the creek area when the lunker hit.

His trophy fish taken this spring include a 10.61-pound bass Feb. 13, and a 10.24-pound bass caught Feb. 19.

Courville said Mill Creek is one of his

BIG BASS ANGLER: Jason Courville has caught largemouths weighing 10.24, 10.61 and 11.02 pounds since February on Toledo Bend Reservoir.

Photo from Jason Courville.

favorite areas to fish because there’s a lot of structure and timber.

Timing is also important when targeting trophy bass. In the prespawn, he knew the fish would be moving into areas to feed leading up to the spawn which is how he caught his two bass in February. His last fish this month came after the spawn when the fish were coming out of creeks and stopping to feed, Courville said.

Business has been booming for his guide serve on the lake he knew as a kid.

Courville has only been to his home in Orange three times since December, but he’s not complaining.

“It’s been great. I’ve been busy every day,” Courville said.

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Page 24

April 28, 2017

LoneOStar Outdoor News

LSONews.com

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LoneOStar Outdoor News

April 28, 2017

Page 25

PRODUCTS ATTAX HEAVY CASTING ROD: This 7-foot 6-inch long casting rod is one of six rods in Denali Rods’ AttaX series. The company describes it as an aggressively styled rod made to target the biggest and baddest bass in the lake. The rod has a re-engineered, ultra-sensitive graphite blank with Winn grips to maximize comfort and provide a sure grip and SeaGuide reel seats for increased sensitivity. This casting rod costs about $120.

>>

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The jacket also features a scent suppression system. Available in Kryptek Banshee and Mossy Oak Breakup Country camo, it costs about $200.

(800) 226-7956 nomadoutdoor.com

SERAPHIM PACK: The SOG hunting pack will carry a whole lot of gear in its generous main compartment with organizing components.

Any extra or bulky gear can be cinched on to the pack’s shock cord tie-downs, attached to the Hypalon MOLLE loop field, or strapped inside the fold-down panel. In addition, the hunter will appreciate the integrated long item carry for his rifle or field tools such as axes. Other features include an internal laptop sleeve to protect electronics; a built-in hydration sleeve with a hose pass-through for easy access to water (hydration bladder is sold separately); an impact-resistant top pocket with internal organization to secure valuables such as glasses, camera, binoculars or phone; a front access mission pouch for storing such items as extra ammo; and more.

The water-resistant pack, which is made from a durable 500D nylon with a polyurethane coating, costs about $260. sogknives.com

GREEN LED BOW LIGHT: TRUGLO designed this light for a hunter’s bow. It offers high and low brightness settings and a beam distance of up to about 175 yards. The battery-operated light will run from two to 18 hours, depending on the brightness setting. The light, which includes a mounting rail, mounts in a stabilizer socket. It also can be mounted to any weaver/picatinny rail for crossbows or firearms. “Great addition to my bow setup,” said LSON’s Operations Manager Mike Hughs. “The first night I used it, three hogs approached after dark and when I turned the light on they never moved, and I was able to take one with my bow. It does add weight to your bow due to the size of the batteries, but it’s worth it.” The bow light costs about $150. truglo.com

>>

Turkey statistics favor South Texas hunters Continued from page 4

South Texas coming in third at 3,939. The Rolling Plains saw 3,151 harvested, making it fourth.

Though South Texas came in third with the number harvested, it came in first in terms of the success rate.

An estimated 7,949 hunters in South Texas had a success rate of .58 in the spring of last year. In the Edwards Plateau, 17,223 hunters had a .52 success rate of bagging at least one bird last spring.

Jason Hardin, TPWD’s turkey leader, said the data is based on a survey mailed out to hunters and isn’t specific enough to spell out why chances seem better in the south.

However, Hardin had a few ideas. One is that deer hunting is the main attraction in the fall at large South Texas ranches.

Hunting a turkey on the state’s southern ranches is usually an afterthought in the fall — the result of a bird showing up for corn at a deer feeder.

Come spring, when turkey are the primary quarry, South Texas birds don’t experience the same type of hunting pressure as in other areas, he said. There are fewer hunters on larger ranches.

“They’re not typically as wily,” Hardin said of the birds.

Another factor is that an earlier spring opening date in March could mean hens aren’t ready to mate, making it easier to call in toms, he added.

Hardin said he’s had to deal with hens in the northern regions walking up and taking the toms away while he was trying to hunt them.

So might it be possible that South Texas region hunters are simply better shots?

Not likely in Hardin’s book.

“I think there are good hunters all over the state,” Hardin said. “Hunter effort and hunter ability would be evenly distributed.”

Robert Linder, a retiree who serves on the National Wild Turkey Federation board, has hunted turkey all over Texas.

He thinks turkey hunting is better in the southern region. Anecdotal evidence suggests that the birds are more naïve than those in other regions of the state. In the second week of the South Zone’s opening, Linder said he called in 19 birds in four hours or less.

“It has to do with hunting pressure and the number of birds,” Linder said.

Lance Gray, another hunter who has hunted in both regions, said he finds the terrain easier to navigate in South Texas, compared to the northern ones, which could account for a better success rate.

Ranches are much smaller in the Edwards Plateau, yet they accommodate a larger number of hunters.

“The pressure down there is not as great,” Gray said.

>>

Page 26

April 28, 2017

LoneOStar Outdoor News

LSONews.com

DATEBOOK APRIL 29

Ducks Unlimited Katy Patos de Mayo Crawfish Boil American Shooting Centers, Houston (713) 858-7669 ducks.org

Texas Brigades 25th Anniversary Fundraiser Gillespie County Fair Grounds texasbrigades.org Mule Deer Foundation Chapter Banquet, Van Horn (817) 565-7121 muledeer.org

MAY 4-7

Texas Team Trail Lake Texoma Fishing Tournament, Denison texasteamtrail.com/tournaments

MAY 5

NRA Texas Long Range School Level 1 (844) 672-6883 nraoutdoors.com Mule Deer Foundation Chapter Banquet, Bexar County (817) 565-7121 muledeer.org

Wishes for Warriors Sporting Clay Shoot Caney Creek Shooting Sports, Teague ttha.com

Coastal Conservation Association Texas A&M Chapter Banquet Brazos Valley Civic Center (800) 626-4222 ccatexas.org

DSC Conservation Society 10th Annual Crawfish Festival Tailwaters Fly Fishing Co., Dallas biggame.org

MAY 5-7

MAY 1-JULY 27

Total Archery Challenge Natural Bridge Caverns, San Antonio (801) 380-6442 totalarcherychallenge.com

Sporting Clays Corporate Cup Summer Shooting League Night Joshua Creek Ranch, Boerne (830) 537-5090 joshuacreek.com

Lone Star Hunting and Fishing Expo McAllen Convention Center (956) 330-7402 lonestarhuntingexpo.com

MAY 3

Ducks Unlimited West Houston Dinner Chateau Crystale (830) 708-0331 ducks.org

MAY 6

Dallas Safari Club 10th Annual Big Bore Shoot, Wilmer biggame.org

MAY 4

Coastal Conservation Association San Antonio Chapter Banquet Freeman Expo Hall (800) 626-4222 ccatexas.org

Gulf Coast Greenwing Day Dewberry Farms, Brookshire (936) 718-3780

MAY 11

Coastal Conservation Association Fort Worth Chapter Banquet Joe T’s (800) 626-4222 ccatexas.org National Wild Turkey Federation Lee County Hunting Heritage Banquet Sons of Herman Hall, Giddings (903) 227-2006 nwtf.org Coastal Conservation Association Austin Chapter Banquet Palmer Events Center (800) 626-4222 ccatexas.org

MAY 12

Houston Safari Club Sporting Clays Tournament (713) 623-8844 houstonsafariclub.org National Wild Turkey Federation Panola County Hunting Heritage Banquet Carthage Civic Center nwtf.org

MAY 12-13

Texas Deer Association Brush to Bay Tournament Bluff’s Landing Marina and Lodge, Corpus Christi texasdeerassociation.com

MAY 13

Alzafar Shriners Pulling For Kids Charity Clay Shoot Joshua Creek Ranch, Boerne (830) 537-5090 joshuacreek.com

MAY 18

Mule Deer Foundation Chapter Banquet, Greater Houston KC Hall (817) 565-7121 muledeer.org

OUTDOOR PUZZLER Solution on Page 25

1 3 4 8

G A L V E S T O N

F

T R

A

N C

H

D

I N

19

V

27

A

20

Z

U

L

A

F

I

N

F

21

M O N T

E

D R O N E

22

G U A R D

31

I N G

E

R

C

I

N

O

C N

34

K

2. Dog's behavior after smelling fresh scent [BIRDY] 3. Good bays for trout [GALVESTON]

R

11

L

C H U B T

15

H

F

16

P A N T H E R

D O U G H

A

I

G

L O

35

T E N P O

E

I N E

E

C 17

7

G

23

S O

Down

24

B A R B L E S S

28

29

H

30

N

T A N K

A

E

G

B L U E

G

I N T

P

I

E

E

N

S A L A M A N D E R

A T T R A C T A N T

Across

P

I R D Y

U

I C E L L O

25

B A C K

L

13

R

T

36

6

C

B

T H E R M O C L

E

E

32

5

10

V A R N E R

L E A D

O

Z

12

E

14

F L A T

26

9

I B U T A R Y

A

18

2

F

N

37

D

33

I A P H R A G M

1. The yellow cat [FLATHEAD] 2. Sound made by bull elk during rut [BUGLE] 4. A game bird in Africa [FRANCOLIN]

Puzzle solution from Page 20

Coastal Conservation Association Katy Chapter Banquet Palacio Maria (800) 626-4222 ccatexas.org Dallas Safari Club Monthly Meeting biggame.org Ducks Unlimited San Antonio Sportsman’s Night Out Barbecue Cookoff Alzafar Shrine Pavilion, San Antonio (832) 256 - 3630 ducks.org

MAY 19

Casa of Tarrant County Pull For Kids Alpine Shooting Range, Fort Worth (817) 877-5891 Coastal Conservation Association Brazoria County Chapter Banquet Dow Academic Center (800) 626-4222 ccatexas.org Ducks Unlimited Arlington Quack Classic Tangle Ridge Golf Club, Grand Prairie (972) 841-3770 ducks.org Mule Deer Foundation Greater Houston Chapter Banquet KC Hall, Houston (817) 565-7121 muledeer.org

MAY 20

Quail Forever Sporting Clay Tournament and Banquet American Shooting Center, Houston gulfcoastquailforever3066.org

LSONews.com

LoneOStar Outdoor News

April 28, 2017

Page 27

Page 28

April 28, 2017

LoneOStar Outdoor News

LSONews.com

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