DEER HUNTING ANNUAL inside October 13, 2023
Deer HUNTING
texas
Texas’ Largest Hunting and Fishing Newspaper Since 2004
A NNUA L 2 02 3
A COMBINATION OF LEGACY RIFLES See story on page 21
Advertising Section
Volume 20, Issue 4
Fall flounder run beginning By Robert Sloan
For Lone Star Outdoor News Strong tides and structure are a fall home for flounder. The fish are hitting soft plastics. Photo by David J. Sams, Lone Star Outdoor News.
The fall flounder run is underway, with some of the best catches coming from Sabine Lake, where anglers are fishing soft plastics around any type of structure, including barges, cuts, bayous and pilings. “Some of the best places to
get in on the fall run of flounder on Sabine Lake will be at the mouths of bayous draining into the main body of water,” said longtime guide Jerry Norris. “The strong tides will produce the most consistent bites. There are also cuts and channels on the Louisiana side of the lake that can be very good.” Norris said as the run of
flounder continues, he’ll be doing a lot of fishing in Sabine Pass. “In the pass there are pilings, points and little cuts flowing into the pass,” he said. “The best way to catch flounder in the pass is to work soft plastics, like rat tail Assassins, close to the structure. I like to fish up close to the barges, too. It’s sort of like
crappie fishing. You want to get right up on the structure and work the jigs up against the pylon or some sort of man-made wall, like a bulkhead.” A lot of anglers on Sabine and East Galveston Bay work swimbaits along the bottom at the mouths of the bayous. The bayous on the south shoreline of East Galveston Please turn to page 17
Full moon, warm temps greet archery hunters Some strike out, others find success By Nate Skinner
For Lone Star Outdoor News Conditions were less than ideal to kick off the archery season for white-tailed deer. Some hunters observed slow activity, as bucks moved overnight or changed their patterns in areas where acorns fell or recent rains promoted new vegetation growth. Others were lucky enough to find themselves in the right place at the right time. JoAnn Bone was able to arrow her first deer with a bow, a mature buck that scored 153 inches, on opening morning on a prop-
erty her and her husband lease in Schleicher County, just east of Eldorado. During the weeks leading up to the opener, Bone had captured quite a few photos of the buck on a game camera. “Not only was this my first deer and buck with a bow, but this was a deer that I had made the decision to target from the moment I saw game camera photos of him,” she said. “That really just made the experience extra special.” Bone said the buck showed up to her setup about 10 minutes or so after the feeder in front of her went off on opening morning. It wasn’t long before he turned broadside at about 20 yards. She drew her bow, found her anchor point and let an
JoAnn Bone harvested her first bowhunting buck on the opening morning of archery season in Schleicher County. Photo by Justin Bone.
arrow fly. Her husband, Justin, was back at camp with their 8-monthold daughter. Together, the three of them tracked and recovered the buck before celebrating her harvest and taking some photos. Cody Johnston also hunted on
opening weekend in Schleicher County on a property he leases south of Eldorado. His experience was much different, as he didn’t see any of the mature bucks that he had been seeing on his trail cameras.
“Recent rains had greened up the pasture, and there were acorns starting to fall from some of the oak trees,” Johnston said. “That combined with the full moon made for some slow hunts. It was probably the least amount of deer Please turn to page 5
PRSRT STD US POSTAGE PAID DALLAS, TX PERMIT 3814
SITKA, KUIU add brick-and-mortar stores Two high-end outdoor apparel companies have opened brick-and-mortar stores in Dallas. SITKA Gear recently opened its second store, the first outside of the company’s Bozeman, Montana home. The 3,000 square-foot store, located at 4438 McKinney Ave., hosted Grand Opening festivities Sept. 30. SITKA began in 2005 in Bozeman and is known for its
Two high-end hunting gear companies opened stores in Dallas. Photo from SITKA Gear. Freshwater Fishing Report . . Page 10 Game Warden Blotter . . . . . Page 12 Heroes . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 14 Sun, Moon & Tides . . . . . . Page 16 Saltwater Fishing Report . . . Page 21 Datebook . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 22 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . . Page 22
hunting gear that combines comfort, breathability, and heat and moisture management. “We’re excited to bring SITKA to our Texas and southern customers,” said Alley Ray, Retail Experience Manager. “With our new Dallas store, we’re providing enthusiasts with a hands-on opportunity to completely understand the difference our gear can make.” Competing brand KUIU also opened its first store away from its Dixon, Califor-
nia home in Dallas, at 13846 Dallas Parkway near the Dallas Galleria. The 4,053 squarefoot store began a soft opening Oct. 2. Patrick Meyer, KUIU’s director of public relations, said with quality and more expensive products, customers like to touch and feel the apparel. “At trade shows, we’re absolutely packed,” he said. “People want to make sure it fits and feels right.” KUIU is known for its lightweight, rugged gear for Please turn to page 20
INSIDE
CONTENTS
Time Sensitive Material • Deliver ASAP
Lone Star Outdoor News
HUNTING
FISHING
Elk for 13-year-old (P. 4)
Moving into fall (P. 8)
Bull taken in Davis Mountains.
Crappie coming up, feeding.
Quail hunters hopeful (P. 4)
Redfish in high tides (P. 8)
Northern Panhandle, South Texas look best.
Anglers finding pods of fish.