Lone Star Outdoor News 110819

Largest Hunting and Fishing Newspaper in Texas

November 8, 2019

Volume 16, Issue 6

Voice your opinion on TPWD Public comment sought

by Sunset Advisory Commission Lone Star Outdoor News The Sunset Advisory Commission is reviewing the mission and performance of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and is

welcoming public comments on whether the agency is still needed and ideas to improve its operations and services.

The Texas Sunset Act requires the Sunset Commission to review TPWD every 12 years and recommend whether to continue the agency and change state law to improve the agency’s efficien-

cy and effectiveness.

The Texas Legislature ultimately will decide whether to continue TPWD and adopt the commission’s other statutory recommendations. The Sunset Commission also may adopt management directives for TPWD that do not require statutory change.

Comments are requested by

Dec. 2 in one of the following manners: • Email sunset@sunset.texas.gov • Submit comments online at sunset.texas.gov • Send a letter to Sunset Advisory Commission, Attn: TPWD, P.O. Box 13066, Austin, Texas 78711 Please turn to page 19

Man shoots antler to free locked-up buck

Terry Bomar, of Houston, caught this flounder in East Matagorda Bay. Photo Capt. Trey Prye.

Flounder run in early stages on Upper Coast

By Craig Nyhus

Lone Star Outdoor News

By Nate Skinner

For Lone Star Outdoor News Flounder fanatics are beginning to find the flatfish stacked up in their typical autumn haunts as the species’ annual migration towards the Gulf gains momentum along East Matagorda Bay, the Galveston Bay complex and Sabine Lake.

Smaller, male flatties have been more prevalent as the larger, female fish have yet to gather in dense concentrations. With each passing cold front, more and more flounder are making their way toward deeper channels and passes.

Please turn to page 19

When he discovered two bucks’ antlers intertwined, Wade Montgomery used his rifle to free the still-living animal. Hunters reported earlier than normal fighting activity as the general season opened. Photo by K.C. Jones.

Wade Montgomery came across two bucks locked up on a ranch near Albany, and used his rifle to free the buck still living.

“We have a few oil leases on a ranch I take care of,” he said. “A pumper headed out to check his lease and drove up on two deer locked up near the entrance of ranch and called me.”

When Montgomery pulled up, he immediately recognized one of the bucks as one they had been watching for years.

“I had been looking for him for a few weeks,” he said. “He is 4 years old and scores around 155 — we plan to let him grow another year.”

The other deer, one Montgomery didn’t recognize, was already dead.

“Coyotes had eaten his back end,” he said. “He also was a 4-year-old. The living deer was pretty worn-out and docile.”

Montgomery knew the ranch owner had a similar situation more than a decade ago, and his foreman shot the antlers, and both deer made it.

“I had seen other people saw the antlers off, but I was worried about how worn-out the buck was,” he said. “So I carefully walked up to him and took a few different shots.”

His first two shots, taken with a 6mm Creedmore, only poked holes in the dead buck’s antlers.

“I got my .257 Weatherby, it has Please turn to page 16

PRSRT STD US POSTAGE PAID PLANO, TX PERMIT 210

Sandhill cranes consistent near Lubbock, Amarillo

By Nate Skinner

West Texas hunters enjoyed good shoots during the opener. Scouting was the key to success. Photo by Lone Star Outdoor News.

Crane hunters who found concentrations of birds were able to coax the birds into shooting range during the opening weekend in West Texas. The season began Oct. 26 in parts of the state.

Realistic decoys and inconspicuous blinds helped hunters bring the birds in.

Texas Tech University master’s

student Josh Haese said he and some buddies were able to harvest limits of sandhills over a hailedout wheat field situated about 25 miles south of Lubbock during opening weekend.

“The wheat field we were set up in is located a little over a half of a mile away from a lake where good numbers of birds roost,” Haese said. “While scouting during the week prior to opening day, there were anywhere from 5,000 to

6,000 birds hitting the field daily.”

Haese and two friends hunted opening day, and they added a fourth hunter for the second day.

“The birds piled into the decoys on opening day, and we polished off our three-man limit in under half an hour,” he said. “They were more wary the next morning, but we were still able to harvest our four-man limit after sticking with it for a couple of hours.”

Scouting is the key to consistently Please turn to page 25

Freshwater Fishing Report . Page 10

HUNTING

FISHING

Game Warden Blotter . . . . Page 12

A superstitious lot (P. 4)

Salinity returns to Sabine (P. 8)

Archery hunters share routines, quirks.

Trout, reds move back to normal areas.

MLDP fees may be coming (P. 5)

Bass on the surface (P. 8)

TPWD claims will hire biologists.

Cooler water brings top-water action.

Heroes . . . . . . . . . . . Page 14 Saltwater Fishing Report . . . Page 16 Sun, Moon & Tides . . . . . Page 18 Products . . . . . . . . . . Page 22 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . Page 24

INSIDE

CONTENTS

Time Sensitive Material • Deliver ASAP

For Lone Star Outdoor News

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November 8, 2019

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November 8, 2019

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HUNTING

Archery hunters adhere to regimens, routines

By Nate Skinner

For Lone Star Outdoor News The art of hunting with stick and string runs deep within most hardcore bowhunters. Some refer to it as an addiction or a bad drug. Whatever it is, it’s a force strong enough to keep the hands of those enthralled with the sport fastened to their bows and quivers, even during the regular rifle season. With this obsession for hunting deer in a more primitive fashion, comes routines, superstitions and a variety of quirks.

Bryan Maley is one of those deer hunters who only hunts with a bow and arrow.

“It’s hard to describe the feeling that I get while hunting with a bow,” he said. “It’s so intense, that I’d rather harvest a doe at a short distance with an arrow than take a shot opportunity with a rifle at a trophy buck that’s 200 yards away.

This might sound foolish, but that’s truly how special bowhunting is to me.”

Like many other archery hunters, Maley does what he can to stack the cards in his favor each time he takes a stand. He admits some of his regimen may be considered superstitious, but he wouldn’t change it for the world.

“I am very particular about which arrow I use while hunting,” Maley

said. “There’s typically two or three in my quiver that I just feel the most confident with. This is usually due to the fact that they seemed to fly better than the others during a practice session.”

Maley also prefers to be very businesslike when entering and exiting his hunting area.

“I like to get in and out of my stand as quickly as possible while creating as little of a disturbance as possible,” he explained. “If I’m chasing a specific buck that’s been frequenting a certain stand, I absolutely will not take a shot at any other animals, including hogs, and risk spooking the deer I’m after. I try to leave my hunting areas alone as much as I can, and avoid using flashlights when walking to and from the blind in the dark. ” Northeast Texas bowhunter Aaron Welch also chooses to hunt with certain arrows over others.

“I keep my arrows numbered in my quiver, according to which ones I seem to be the most accurate with,” he said. “My number one and number two arrows have both harvested animals previously, and in my mind this gives me added confidence and good luck while in the stand.”

Scent control is something that many bowhunters concern themselves with, and it’s the reason Welch hangs his hunting clothes Please turn to page 25

South Zone duck open

Daniel Ayres and friends bagged these ducks while hunting at the J.D. Murphree WMA in Port Arthur on opening weekend. Photo from Daniel Ayres.

Bowhunters take all sorts of steps in preparation for the hunt, many to help eliminate their scent from the sensitive noses of white-tailed deer. Others insist on using the same arrow each hunt. Photo by Nate Skinner, for Lone Star Outdoor News.

By Robert Sloan

For Lone Star Outdoor News The South Zone duck season was a big success for lots of waterfowlers, with teal leading the way to many limits.

Some of the easiest hunts were on fresh water ponds between Port O’Connor and Seadrift.

Lots of redheads were flying on the shallow flats of South Texas bays. Plenty of teal were buzzing hunters on flooded rice fields out of Garwood. And on the Upper Coast, duck hunters at the J.D. Murphree Wildlife Management Area ended up with a smorgasbord of ducks.

The weather was perfect and the ducks were flying on the first two days of South Zone hunts.

“We had easy limits of greenwinged teal along with a few pintail and gadwall,” said guide Tobin Copeland with Mike Lanier’s Red Bluff Hunting Club in Garwood. “We were set up in flooded rice and that’s where the teal were flying. The farmers are cutting rice out there and that’s been a big attraction for teal. As for geese, we didn’t kill any and saw very few specks.

There are a couple of small groups of snows. One had about 1,500 birds.”

Copeland said the rice harvest is the key.

Please turn to page 21

After buying a ranch devoid of quail, Jim Willis improved his habitat and eventually formed the Wildlife Habitat Federation that helps landowners on more than 35,000 acres in Texas. Photo by Scott Hohensee.

Conservationist creates grassland for quail

By Julia Bunch

For Lone Star Outdoor News When Jim Willis bought a ranch in Cat Spring in late 1999, it wasn’t until later that he learned his property sat in a wildlife desert. There were only a handful of quail on his 220 acres, and not much else.

So Willis, who was a longtime agriculture economist at the United States Department of Agriculure, went searching for some answers. He started asking around to find a pioneer in restoring primarily quail populations. Because, as he put it, quail are the canary in the prairie, the common denominator in wildlife livability. When he couldn’t Please turn to page 15

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Nikon rep buys Carroll’s Guns

LoneOStar Outdoor News

November 8, 2019

Page 5

Fees sought for MLDP participation

By Craig Nyhus

By Craig Nyhus

Lone Star Outdoor News

Lone Star Outdoor News A former sales representative and his wife have purchased a storied gun shop in Wharton.

John Herlitz and his wife, Pam, decided to make career changes after years of discus- John and Pam Herlitz purchased Carroll’s Gun Shop in Wharton. sions between Photo from John Herlitz.

Herlitz and Taylor Carroll, the owner of Carroll’s Gun Shop while Herlitz was a representative with Owens Outdoor Sales.

“I used to call on them as their Nikon rep,” Herlitz said. “Taylor would joke about selling it for a few few years, and would say, ‘Did you bring the check?’”

The Herlitz couple wasn’t looking for a change, but eventually, the conversations with Carroll became more serious.

“Another dealer in my territory was trying to sell, so I was aware of what the negotiations were,” Herlitz said. “When Taylor (Carroll) was ready, I talked to Pam about it and we looked at the potential and decided it was a worthy endeavor. We worked on the deal for about six months.”

Carroll’s Gun Shop began in 1960, owned by Taylor’s father. Taylor Carroll purchased the business in 1988 and, in 2004, bought a 100-year-old building on the highway where the business remains.

“The building was a bar at one time,” Herlitz said. “The bar is still in it.”

Herlitz said future plans include growing the business through marketing, albeit without making major changes at the headquarters.

“We’ll keep the name, it’s a strong brand,” he said. “We will update the processing methods. Two of the employees have worked there a combined 80-plus years, so we’re sensitive to the way they have been doing things.”

Herlitz will man the store, while his wife will take care of the back office and accounting details. He also plans on adding a fishing department with heavy focus on saltwater after the first of the year.

Participants in the Managed Lands Deer Program may be paying fees next year, if proposals from Texas Parks and Wildlife Department to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission are adopted.

Fees for the program have been discussed for more than a decade, said TPWD White-tailed Deer Program leader Alan Cain.

“The growth in MLD has gone through the roof since 1998,” Cain said. “But the number of staff has remained static. Today, the staff can’t handle it all.”

The commission lacked the authority to establish fees, however, until earlier this year when the Texas Legislature enacted Senate Bill 733, which authorized the commission to establish a fee for participation.

At the commission meeting Nov. 6, TPWD staff requested permission to publish amendments establishing fees and payment deadlines, and to open the proposals for public comment.

The fees proposed would be $30 for each management unit within a property that is enrolled in the Harvest Option; a $30 fee for each aggregate acreage enrolled in the HO; a $300 fee for the first management unit of each property enrolled in the Conservation Option plus a $30 fee for each additional management unit of a property enrolled in the CO;

A TPWD biologist examines plants on a Texas ranch, identifying which are preferred feeding choices for deer. Photo by David J. Sams, Lone Star Outdoor News.

a $300 fee for each aggregate acreage enrolled in the CO; and a $30 fee for each management unit of a wildlife management association or cooperative enrolled the CO. Please turn to page 17

Crash claims helicopter pilot, passenger Lone Star Outdoor News Two people died following a crash involving helicopters that were netting deer at a ranch northeast of Hebbronville on Oct. 23.

They were identified as 49-year-old James “Charles” Short, of Alice, and 39-year-old Jose “J.R.” Garcia, of Realitos.

According to the Duval County Sheriff’s Office, the accident happened over a private ranch inside Duval County about 5 miles away from Hebbronville.

Three helicopters were being used to net deer on the ranch. It is believed that two of the helicopters got too close to each other and their rotors collided and one of them crashed. The other two landed safely.

Short, the pilot, was confirmed dead at the scene.

Garcia was transported in critical condition to a hospital in Alice where he later died.

The netting was being done to capture does as part of a Deer Management Program.

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November 8, 2019

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Program for wardens raises $1 million

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Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation’s Gear Up for Game Wardens program hit the $1 million fundraising milestone two years after the program launched.

The program provides specialty equipment Texas game wardens need to maintain safety and ensure the highest level of service.

Since the program launched, close to 800 donations have been made, for a total of just over $1 million raised. Since October 2017, specialty equipment and gear has been purchased and deployed across all eight game warden regions in Texas. The gear includes search and rescue drones, inflatable boats, side-scan sonar units, water rescue drysuits, night vision and thermal imaging units, ATVs, UTVs and specialized K-9 units.

“Texas game wardens play an important role in the lives of all Texans,” said Dan Flournoy, chair of the Gear Up for Game Wardens leadership council. “They are on the frontlines of natural disasters such as Hurricane Harvey. There have been other significant flooding events in Texas since Gear Up for Game Wardens launched, and there is no doubt in my mind that specialty gear provided through this program has saved lives.”

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Robin and Pauline now live in the foothills of Gamsberg Mountain in Namibia where his sons, Derek and Roger, operate Robin Hurt Safaris Ltd. In 1990, Robin founded the Robin Hurt Wildlife Foundation, with assistance and contributions from Joseph F. Cullman III, with the goal of developing linkages between Tanzania’s sustainable utilization of wildlife, poverty alleviation and the maintenance of healthy ecosystems. The foundation has built 37 schools in the last 12 years, accompanied by 74 houses for teaching staff and 34 health dispensaries.

In 2014, Robin and Pauline also started Habitat for Rhino, a rhino conservation and breeding program on their ranch in Namibia.

The main purpose of this project is to provide safe habitat for rhinos on private land.

—DSC

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The Peter Hathaway Capstick Hunting Heritage Award Committee selected Robin and Pauline Hurt as the 2020 award recipients. The Hurts will be presented with the prestigious award at the DSC Sporting Expo on Jan. 11, 2020.

“Robin and Pauline have left a significant conservation footprint across Africa, from Kenya and Namibia down to Tanzania,” said DSC Executive Director Corey Mason. “We are proud to honor their legacy with this year’s Capstick Award.”

Robin was born in London in April 1945 and grew up on his family ranch on the shores of Lake Naivasha in Kenya’s Great Rift Valley. At age 18, he became a licensed professional hunter in both Kenya and Tanzania. In 1984, he started Robin Hurt Safaris Ltd. in Tanzania. Robin has been a licensed professional hunter in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Sudan, Central African Republic, Zaire, Botswana, Zambia and Namibia.

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Squirrel tails sought for lures Mepps needs squirrel tails to create hand-tied, dressed hooks for their world-famous lures. They’ve been recycling squirrel tails for more than a half-century.

The company buys fox, black, grey and red squirrel tails and will pay up to 26 cents each, depending on quality and quantity. Plus, the cash value is doubled if the tails are traded for Mepps lures.

“Over the years Mepps has tried hundreds of other natural and synthetic materials, such as bear hair, fox, coyote, badger, skunk, deer, even Angus cow, but nothing works as well as squirrel tail hair,” said Mepps Communications Director Nik Kolbeck.

Squirrel tails are all hair, with no fur. Practically all other animals have fur tails with just a few guard hairs. Fur doesn’t have the same rippling, pulsating movement that the squirrel hair has while moving through the water.

“We do not advocate harvesting of squirrels solely for their tails,” Kolbeck said.

—Mepps

Marshall man wins Grand Slam hunts Lee Ferguson, of Marshall, won the Texas Grand Slam in this year’s Big Time Texas Hunts, and will hunt desert bighorn sheep, white-tailed deer, pronghorn and mule deer.

Ferguson was chosen out of a total of 106,114 entries in the contests.

Other winners: Ultimate Mule Deer Hunt – Carlton Martin, Palmhurst Nilgai Antelope Safari – Carrie McCoy, Montgomery Premium Buck Hunt – James Handley III, Campbell Exotic Safari – Stanley Harris, Cypress Whitetail Bonanza – John McCall, Arlington; Chris Fields, Corsicana; Phillip Lucky, Waxahachie; Justin Venable, Groesbeck; Darrell Dugas, Nederland Big Time Bird Hunt – Richard Way, Christoval Gator Hunt – Gerald Burch Jr., Bynum Texas Waterfowl Hunt – George (Kelley) Taylor, Corpus Christi Wild Hog Adventure – Lance Lang, Minot, North Dakota —TPWD

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November 8, 2019

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Biologist draws sambar hunt on the Powderhorn

By Craig Nyhus

Lone Star Outdoor News Ben Binnion’s time is usually occupied as the ranch manager at the 17,000-plus acre Paloma Ranch near La Pryor and an annual three week stint in Alaska where he guides moose hunters.

The wildlife biologist was understandably excited when he was drawn to hunt at the Powderhorn Ranch in Calhoun County, especially since the hunt was for a sambar in addition to white-tailed deer and axis.

“I drew the gun deer, either sex permit for Oct. 29-31,” Binnion said. “With that permit, you’re allowed to harvest a samber either sex, three whitetails, one of which could be considered a trophy, and an axis either sex.”

Binnion was focused on the sambar, a large deer native to the Indian subcontinent, South China and Southeast Asia. Sambar are consid-

ered the largest cervids after moose and elk.

The sambar were brought to the ranch in the 1950s, and took to the habitat well, according to Powderhorn biologists.

“I had talked to the biologist on the phone a few times,” he said. “We did the check-in on Tuesday morning and got assigned compartments that ranged from 500 to 3,000 acres to hunt.”

By the afternoon, Binnion was hunting.

“It was raining off and on the whole time,” he said. “The sambar like the water and wetlands; all of the animals I saw were standing in water. I found and passed on a younger bull.”

When in his truck moving to a different area, Binnion spotted another bull a half-mile away.

“He was walking into a pond and I stalked through some brush to a windmill where I got a good rest,” Binnion said. “I shot at 150

Ben Binnion drew a sambar hunt at the Powderhorn Ranch in Calhoun County, and bagged this heavy buck. Photo from Ben Binnion.

yards and he dropped right in the pond.”

The next project was getting the bull out.

“I called the WMA manager and they came out to help me load it,” Binnion said. “We floated him to the edge, gutted him and it still took three of us to load him. He dressed Please turn to page 22

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November 8, 2019

LoneOStar Outdoor News

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FISHING

Flounder regulation changes may be coming

By Craig Nyhus

Lone Star Outdoor News Flounder anglers are reporting good catches during the annual flounder run this November. But Texas Parks and Wildlife Department officials say southern flounder populations along the Texas coast continue to be at relatively low levels compared to historic levels.

At the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission meeting on Nov. 6, the possibility of regulation changes in the future was discussed.

“We continue to see this fishery at the bottom of what we have seen in our long-term monitoring,” said Robin Reichers, TPWD’s coastal fisheries director. “The changes we implemented in the past gave us a slight bump-up,

but they didn’t raise stock close to historical levels.”

According the the Coastal Fisheries division, flounder recruitment is highly dependent on a narrow critical temperature range that may not be occurring as often in the winter as seen historically.

No specific proposals were offered at the commission meeting; however, Reichers said TPWD

staff wants to conduct scoping with anglers and the public. After scoping, which would include meetings along the Texas coast and public comment, proposals could potentially follow in January.

Scoping would include various items including reduction in bag limits, seasonal closures, size limits, boat limits and other means to increase flounder abundance.

Past regulation changes took place in 2009 and 2014. In 2009, gigging for flounder was banned in November and bag limits for both the commercial and recreational fishery were reduced from five fish to two fish. In 2014, the two fish bag limit was extended from November into the first two weeks of December with take allowed by any legal means including gigging.

Top-water action triggered by colder water temps

By Robert Sloan

For Lone Star Outdoor News On just about every lake across Texas, the top-water bite has turned on with regular cold fronts dropping water temperatures and sending largemouth bass on a big feed.

Anglers know what lurks beneath the surface of Lake Fork, and now is when you can get some pretty good blowups from big bass.

Pro angler and guide Michael McFarland’s home lake is Fork, and he said with the last couple of cold fronts, the water temperature has dropped several degrees and the top-water bite is about as good as it gets. He said the bite should remain good until the surface water temperature hits the 55-degree mark.

“The topwater bite is definitely on, and numbers of bass are hitting smaller lures,” McFarland said. “Largemouth bass are gorging on small shad right now. So, the smaller top-water lures will be best. Two of my goto lures are a Whopper Plopper and buzzbait.”

The Whopper Plopper is a top-water propeller bait made by River2Sea. It was originally designed for muskie fishing, but it is a favorite among bass anglers.

“It’s a good bait to use when you need to downsize,” McFarland said. “I like the smaller ones, 3 to 4 inches long, for catching late fall and winter bass. My best colors are bone, white and shad. With a buzzbait, I’ll go with white.”

McFarland will be fishing the top-water lures in about 5 feet of water.

“I like to fish the points way back in the creeks,” he said. “I don’t ever pass up a chance to fish the grass, and I’ll also key on birds like terns and egrets. More often than not, they will be following feeding bass.”

On Fayette County Reservoir, guide Bob Green said the most recent hard-hitting cold fronts have delivered a great top-water bite on this lake. It’s a power plant Lures fished on the surface, like propeller lures and buzzbaits, are bringing in bass with the weather changes. Photo by Robert Sloan.

Please turn to page 17

Salinity level rising after years of flood events on Sabine Lake Trout, reds and flounder back

By Robert Sloan

For Lone Star Outdoor News For the past couple of years, Sabine Lake has been hit with a flood of freshwater that put a major dent in catches of game fish. But, for the time being, high tides have pushed a lot of salty water back into the lake and fishing for trout, reds and flounder is good, and getting better every day.

It all started with Hurricane Harvey back in 2017. A lot of Southeast Texas was underwater and all that water drained down into Sabine Lake.

“Sabine Lake is smaller than most bays and all the runoff we had was too much for the lake to handle,” said guide Jerry Norris. “I’ve been fishing here for over 40 years and I have never seen it so fresh. But the saltwater is coming back in, and so are numbers of fish.”

Katie Zghaib, a Texas Parks and Wildlife Fisheries Technician II on Sabine Lake, said during September the salinity levels were basically back to normal.

“We were finding 22 parts per thousand on out going tides,” she said. “That’s back from being down to about five to seven parts per thousand. At one point we had bluegills on the lower end of Sabine Lake at Blue Buck Point. With the much higher salinity levels, Sabine is in

good shape.”

Aside from all the flooding from Harvey, the Neches and Sabine rivers were moving freshwater into Sabine Lake due to so much rain upstream, including another rain event just as things were settling down in late summer. And B.A. Steinhagen Lake, located on the Neches River, was drained due to work on the dam.

“Thank goodness all that freshwater has moved on and it’s back to some pretty good fishing,” said guide Bill Watson. “Everything began getting back to normal during the first week of September. That’s when we began catching trout on the north end of the lake. Some of them were actually under small groups of birds.”

Watkins said scattered redfish Please turn to page 15

Sabine Lake anglers are finding redfish in open water now that salinity levels have returned to normal. Photo by Robert Sloan.

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LoneOStar Outdoor News

November 8, 2019

Page 9

High largemouth numbers found Tuna action good offshore during electrofishing surveys Inland Fisheries departments around the state are wrapping up their fall electrofishing surveys.

The Dallas/Fort Worth District said they caught 141 largemouth bass per hour and caught 26 keeper-size bass per hour on White Rock Lake. Of the bass caught, most of them were plump, suggesting that the shad also caught are keeping them fed. The group also caught numerous and large smallmouth buffalo, although no data was collected on them.

On Lake Grapevine, shad were found all over the lake and sunfish were abundant on the dam. The largemouth total catch rate was 158 per hour. Breaking it down further, they caught 34 14-inch bass per hour and 10 18-inch bass at 10 per hour. The smallmouth total catch rate was nine fish per hour and the catch rate of keeper-sized fish was one fish per hour. They also noted a few nice spotted bass weighing just over 2 pounds.

The largemouth were also looking good on Lake Lewisville. With a total catch rate of 125 bass per hour and a catch rate of keeper-sized bass was 11 fish per hour.

“We caught one largemouth just under 9 pounds, several 2- to 4-pounders, and a bunch of little ones that will be recruiting into the population in the next couple of years,” the district noted on its Facebook page.

The San Angelo District noted that the 40-foot water level rise last year created an abundant flooded habitat that produced an impressive 2019 year-class largemouth in Twin Buttes Reservoir.

“Catch rates of 4-5-inch bass this fall were higher than we’ve ever seen, significantly higher than the 2017 survey.

These yearling bass should reach legal

Lone Star Outdoor News

size in 2 to 3 years, and around 18 inches It’s the slower time of year for party boats and in about 4 to 5 years,” they noted. charters heading offshore for tuna and other “We did not observe many large bass species, but maybe it shouldn’t be. during the survey, but this is due to the A 36-hour trip with Williams Party Boats out large fish being scattered as the reservoir of Galveston returned Nov. 2 with blackfin and increased from about 1,300 acres in 2017 yellowfin tuna, ling, a kingfish and beeliners. to over 6,000 acres in 2019.”

The office didn’t have the totals, but said they The Marshall Fisheries Management had never seen the boat return with so many District has been conducting electrofishfish. ing surveys for the past month in area At Port Aransas, a 60-hour trip with Dolphin lakes to assess the status of largemouth Docks Deep Sea Fishing on the La Pesca returned bass, sunfish and shad populations. The Oct. 30 with similar results. reservoirs are on a four-year sampling ro“They went about 140 to 150 miles offshore tation with quality largemouth bass fishwith 22 people,” said Erin at Dolphin Docks. eries being surveyed every two years.

“They caught blackfin and yellowfin tuna, am“Largemouth bass populations in our berjack and loads vermilion snapper.” district all look pretty stable this year. Surveys are showing good numbers of bass in North Texas reservoirs.

Photo from Inland Social media photos showed more than 90 Surveys at Lake Bob Sandlin and Martin tuna and more than 100 vermilion snapper.

Creek Lake showed excellent numbers of Fisheries Dallas/Fort Worth District. largemouth bass below 10 inches, which is an indication of good reproduction and a good year class,” said Tim Bister, Marshall district fisheries biologist.

“Our best survey of the year was at Lake Welsh. There were many fish between 12 and 18 inches, with more in the survey up to 20 inches,” Bister said.

They caught largemouth bass at a rate of 331 fish per hour during the survey.

Lake Welsh largemouth bass are managed with an 18-inch minimum length limit. This harvest regulation, along with fast growth and a high percentage of pure Made in USA Florida largemouth bass genetics, help to make this one of the district’s best bass fisheries.

In addition to largemouth bass, they The 12” Sna-Koil pro-style snake is so close to the real thing it’s scary. saw a lot of large sunfish in their surveys.

A true snake shape, the Sna-Koil’s lifelike profile slithers through weed lines and Brandy Branch Reservoir had bluegill and over matted vegetation producing heart thumping strikes. redear sunfish as long as 10 inches. able in

New

­—Staff report

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Its unique coiling action triggers strikes from stubborn fish when others can’t.

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5/10/18 9:38 AM

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November 8, 2019

LoneOStar Outdoor News

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TEXAS FRESHWATER FISHING REPORT ALAN HENRY: Water clear 63-65 degrees; 4.45’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on worms, spinner baits and crankbaits around the northern creek bed.

White bass are good on artificial shad. Crappie are good on minnows and jigs. Catfish are fair on live bait and stink bait.

AMISTAD: Water lightly stained; 67 degrees; 32.32’ low.

Largemouth bass are good on buzzbaits, spinner baits, plastic worms and grubs. Catfish are fair on stink bait and cut bait.

ARLINGTON: Water stained; 68-72 degrees; 1.22’ low.

Largemouth bass are good on crankbaits, spinner baits, topwater poppers and plastic worms.

Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs around docks and structure.

Catfish are good on live bait and stink bait.

ARROWHEAD: Water stained; 63-65 degrees; 1.99’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on Texas rigs, top-waters and buzzbaits. Crappie are good on live minnows and jigs amid brush piles and cover.

Catfish are fair at night under lights on shad, cut bait, shrimp and nightcrawlers.

ATHENS: Water clear to stained; 70-72 degrees; 1.01’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on top-waters, Texas rigs, crankbaits and spinner baits. Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs. Catfish are good on cut bait and stink bait. Sunfish are fair on cut earthworms around shallow vegetation and shallow boat docks.

AUSTIN: Water clear; 71 degrees; 0.82’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on top-waters, spinner baits and plastic worms.

Sunfish are good on weighted jigs, worms and corn. Yellow and blue catfish are fair on prepared baits.

BASTROP: Slightly stained; 71-73 degrees; Largemouth bass are good on top-waters, Carolinarigged plastic worms, spinner baits and rigged lizards. Crappie are good on jigs and live bait.

Channel and blue catfish are fair on stink bait or cut bait.

BELTON: Lightly stained; 71-75 degrees; 2.11’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on edges of creeks and in the deeper channels on stick baits, chuggers buzzbaits, and plastic worms.

Hybrid stripers are fair on jigs and crankbaits. Crappie are fair to slow on jigs or live shiners.

Channel and blue catfish are fair on shad, shrimp, blood bait and stink bait.

BENBROOK: Water stained; 68-70 degrees; 11.53’ low.

Largemouth bass are fair on Carolina-rigged worms and lighter-colored spinner baits.

Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs on the edges of coves.

Hybrid striped bass and white bass are good on slabs or spoons.

Catfish are good on stink bait and live bait.

BOB SANDLIN: Water stained; 69-72 degrees; 0.85’ low.

Largemouth bass are good on top-waters and spinner baits.

Crappie are good on jigs and minnows. White bass are fair on jigs. Catfish are good on worms or stink bait.

BRAUNIG: Water lightly stained; 70-72 degrees; Largemouth bass are fair on Carolina-rigged plastic worms.

Red drum are good in the heated discharge and points on lipless crankbaits or live bait with crawfish. Striped bass are fair on jigs and live shad. Catfish are fair on live bait and cheese bait.

BRIDGEPORT: Water lightly stained; 67-70 degrees: 5.05’ low. Black bass are fair on Texas-rigged worms or craws, top-waters and spinner baits.

Crappie are good on jigs and minnows. White bass are good on slabs and live minnows.

Catfish are fair on shrimp and cut bait.

BROWNWOOD: Lightly stained; 70-72 degrees; 3.14’ low.

Largemouth bass are good on jigs, spinner baits and topwaters. White bass are good on slabs and swimbaits. Catfish are good on prepared bait and shadbaited trotlines.

BUCHANAN: Water stained; 71-74 degrees; 1.96’ low.

Largemouth bass are good along the banks with top-waters, jigs, and lighter weight spinner baits.

Striped bass are fair on plastic swimbaits. White bass are good on minnows and twisted tail jigs. Crappie are fair on crappie jigs. Channel catfish are good on stink bait. Yellow and blue catfish are good on live or stink bait.

CADDO: Water stained; 70-72 degrees; 0.41’ high. Largemouth bass are good on top-waters, plastic worms and spinner baits.

Crappie are fair on smaller minnows and jigs by brush. Catfish are fair on stink bait and live bait.

CALAVERAS: Water stained; 70-72 degrees. 1.80’ low.

Catfish are good on stink bait, liver and live shad. Red drum are good on crawfish and lipless crankbaits. Largemouth bass are fair on plastic worms, crankbaits and spinner baits.

CANYON LAKE: lightly stained; 71-73 degrees; 2.49’ low.

Largemouth bass are fair on top-waters and plastic worms.

Crappie are slow. Catfish are good on stink bait and cut bait.

CEDAR CREEK: Water lightly stained; 66-68 degrees, 2.06’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on spinner baits, Carolinarigged creature baits and buzzbaits. Hybrid stripers are good on lipless crankbaits. Crappie are fair on pink and white jigs. Catfish are good on cut shad and stink bait.

CHOKE CANYON: Water lightly stained; 69-73 degrees; 17.02’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on top-waters, jigs, plastic worms and tube baits. White bass are fair on minnows and small lipless crankbaits. Catfish are good on larger live bait and cut bait.

CONROE: Water stained; 68-74 degrees; 2.34 low. Largemouth bass are good on jigs, spinner

baits and buzzbaits. Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs. Catfish are good on stink bait and cut bait.

COOPER: Water clear; 67-69 degrees; 1.85’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on top-waters, Texas-rigged craws, Carolina-rigged worms and spinner baits. White bass are good on slabs and live bait. Channel catfish are good on punch bait and cut bait.

CORPUS CHRISTI LAKE: Water lightly stained; 70-74 degrees; 2.72’ low. Largemouth bass are good on Texas-rigged worms, Carolina rigs and crankbaits.

White bass are fair on lipless crankbaits and minnows. Crappie are fair on live minnows and jigs. Catfish are fair to good on cut bait and cheese bait.

EAGLE MOUNTAIN: Water stained; 65-70 degrees; 1.99’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on plastic worms, crankbaits and jigs. Crappie are good on minnows and jigs. Catfish are good on cut bait and liver.

FALCON: Water lightly stained; 74-76 degrees; 35.63’ low.

Largemouth bass are fair on soft plastic worms, spinner baits and top-waters. Crappie are slow.

Catfish are good on live bait.

FAYETTE: Slightly stained. 7173 degrees; Largemouth bass are good on buzzbaits and topwaters. Catfish are fair on stink bait, live bait and cut bait.

FORK: Water stained; 66-69 degrees; 1.79’ low. Largemouth bass are good on plastic worms, craw tubes and top-waters around main lake points. White and yellow bass are good on Alabama rigs. Crappie are fair on jigs and minnows in the stumps or manmade structures. Catfish are good on prepared bait and cut bait.

GRAHAM: Water stained; 6567 degrees; 2.70’ low. Black bass are good on top-waters, plastic worms and spinner baits. Crappie are fair on jigs and minnows. White bass are good on slabs and Alabama rigs.

Catfish are fair on cut shad and live bait.

GRANBURY: Water stained. 6872 degrees. 0.80’ low. Crappie are good around brush piles and boat docks with minnows and jigs. White bass are fair on slabs and live bait.

GRANGER: Water clear; 72 degrees; 0.25 low.

Largemouth bass are good upriver on crankbaits and topwaters. Crappie are good on jigs and minnows. White bass are fair on slab spoons over humps and ridges. Blue catfish are fair on cut bait fished on juglines.

GRAPEVINE: Water stained; 64-67 degrees; 1.41’ low. Black bass are good on Texas- and Carolina-rigged worms, spinner baits, crankbaits and buzzbaits.

White bass are good on live shad. Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs.

HOUSTON COUNTY: Water stained; 66-70 degrees; 0.02’

low. Largemouth bass are good on soft plastics, buzzbaits and crankbaits on the northeast side of the lake and islands. White bass are slow. Crappie are fair on minnows. Catfish are good on live and cut shad.

HUBBARD CREEK: Water stained; 63-65 degrees; 2.32’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on Texas rigs and top-waters. Crappie are good on live minnows and jigs. Catfish are fair at night on live and cut shad.

JOE POOL: Water stained; 66 degrees; 2.59’ low. Largemouth bass are fair to good on plastic worms, spinner baits, drop-shot rigs and crankbaits. Crappie and catfish are fair to good by the spillway.

LAKE O’ THE PINES: Water stained; 64-67 degrees; 0.89’ high. Largemouth bass are fair on top-waters, spinner baits, swimbaits and chatter baits.

Crappie are fair on jigs and minnows. Catfish are good on live bait.

LAVON: Water stained; 66-68 degrees: 4.31’ low.

Largemouth bass are good on white spinner baits, Carolinarigged lizards, Texas-rigged worms and crankbaits. White bass are fair in deeper water near the dam on small jigs and minnows. Crappie are fair on jigs and minnows.

Catfish are good on live bait, cut bait and prepared blood bait.

LBJ: Water stained; 71-75 degrees; 0.75’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on worms and jigs around private docks and cover.

White bass are fair on smaller crankbaits and minnows. Catfish are good on stink bait and cut bait.

LEWISVILLE: Water stained; 64-67 degrees; 1.67’ low.

Largemouth bass are good on top-waters, Texas-rigged plastic baits and spinner baits. White bass are good on slabs. Crappie are good on minnows and jigs.

Catfish are fair on prepared bait and cut bait.

LIVINGSTON: Water lightly stained; 67-70 degrees; 0.58’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on Carolina- or Texas–rigged plastics, top-waters and jigs. Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs under docks and marinas. White bass are good on spoons. Catfish are fair on live and prepared bait by the spillway.

MEDINA: Water lightly stained; 69-73 degrees; 6.71’ low.

Largemouth bass are fair on jigs, spinner baits and plastic shad around submerged creekbeds.

Crappie are slow. White bass are fair on small crankbaits and jigs.

Catfish are fair on live bait and blood bait.

NACONICHE: Water clear; 65-68 degrees; Largemouth bass are fair on plastic worms and creature baits near hydrilla.

Crappie are fair on jigs and live minnows. Sunfish are good on jigs and crickets in the middle of the day.

NASWORTHY: Water stained to murky; 63-65 degrees; 0.99’ low. Largemouth bass fair on buzzbaits and square-billed crankbaits. Crappie are good on channel edges on jigs and minnows.

O.H. IVIE: Water stained; 64-66 degrees; 9.83’ low.

Largemouth bass are very good on Carolina- and Texas-rigged worms and minnows. Crappie are fair on live minnows and jigs. Catfish are fair on stink bait, live and cut bait.

PALESTINE: Water lightly stained; 64-68 degrees; 1.55’ low. Largemouth bass are good on Carolina-rigged worms and jigs near the creeks. Crappie are fair on jigs and minnows. Hybrid stripers are good on minnows.

White bass are good on slabs.

Catfish are excellent on shad and chicken livers.

POSSUM KINGDOM: Water clear; 64-67 degrees; 1.66’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on Carolina rigs, Texas rigs, topwaters and spinner baits near cliffs and vegetation.

Crappie are fair on jigs and minnows.

White bass are good on jigs, slabs and spoons.

Striped bass are fair on live shad and jigs in the main channels. Catfish are good on cut bait, live sunfish and stink bait.

PROCTOR: Water stained.

72-75 degrees. 3.20’ low.

Largemouth bass are fair on jig, and plastic worms. Crappie are good on jigs. Catfish are good on stink bait and cut bait.

RAY HUBBARD: Water stained; 66 degrees; 3.04” low. Largemouth bass are fair on spinner baits and top-water poppers.

Crappie are fair on jigs and minnows under bridges and around docks. White bass and hybrid stripers are fair on slabs. Catfish are good on stink bait, liver and cut bait.

RAY ROBERTS: Water stained: 64-67 degrees; 0.60’ low.

Largemouth bass are fair on Carolina-rigged worms, lizards and top-waters. White bass are fair on spoons and Alabama rigs.

Crappie are fair on jigs and minnows. Catfish are good on live bait and stink bait.

RICHLAND CHAMBERS: Water lightly stained; 65-69 degrees; 2.80’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on top-waters, spinner baits and jigging spoons. White bass and hybrids are good on slabs and jigs. Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs. Catfish are fair on live bait and cut bait.

SAM RAYBURN: Water stained; 72-74 degrees; 2.46 low.

Largemouth bass are good on top-waters and Carolina-rigged soft plastic worms. White bass are fair on minnows. Crappie are good on minnows and jigs.

SOMERVILLE: Water stained; 72-76 degrees; 0.37’ low.

Largemouth bass are good on plastic worms, spinner baits and top-waters. Hybrid striper and white bass are fair in open

n Saltwater reports Page 16 water. Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs. Catfish are good on stink bait, live bait and cut bait.

STILLHOUSE: Water lightly stained; 71-74 degrees; 2.05’ low. Largemouth are good on top-waters, spinner baits, jigs and soft plastics. Catfish are fair on shad across the flats.

TAWAKONI: Water stained; 64-68 degrees; 1.42’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on spinner baits, plastic worms and jigs.

White bass and hybrid stripers are good on slabs, spoons and Alabama rigs. Crappie are fair on minnows under docks and marinas. Catfish are fair on stink bait, worms and chicken livers.

TEXOMA: Water stained; 62-66 degrees; 0.04’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on crankbaits, Texas-rigged worms and spinner baits. Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs. Striped bass are good on live shad. Catfish are fair on live sunfish, cut bait and minnows.

TOLEDO BEND: Water slightly stained; 72-74 degrees; 7.02’ low. Largemouth bass are good on drop-shot rigs and football jigs. White bass are fair on spoons and small crankbaits.

Channel and blue catfish are good on live bait and stink bait.

WACO: Water lightly stained.

70-73 degrees; 3.81’ low.

Largemouth bass are slow.

Crappie are fair on minnows and light-colored jigs. Channel and blue catfish are fair on cut shad, live bait and blood bait.

WEATHERFORD: Water stained; 63-66 degrees; 2.97’ low.

Largemouth bass are fair on spinner baits and plastic worms.

White bass are good with smaller crankbaits and Alabama rigs.

Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs. Catfish are good on crawfish, liver, blood bait and cut bait.

WHITNEY: Water stained; 71-75 degrees; 6.05’ low. Black bass are good on plastic worms, crankbaits and top-waters. White bass are fair on Alabama rigs, spinner baits and minnows.

Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs. Catfish are good on live shad, stink bait and cut bait.

WRIGHT PATMAN: Water lightly stained; 65-69 degrees; 3.85’ high. Largemouth bass are good on jigs, spinner baits and plastic worms. White bass are fair on slabs and spoons. Crappie are fair on jigs. Catfish are good on cut bait, live bait and stink bait.

—TPWD

LSONews.com

LoneOStar Outdoor News

UBATHI GLOBAL SAFARIS

November 8, 2019

Page 11

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November 8, 2019

LoneOStar Outdoor News

LSONews.com

GAME WARDEN BLOTTER SHIP CHANNEL PROTESTERS Game wardens responded by boat to the Greenpeace protest on the Fred Hartman Bridge at the Houston Ship Channel with fellow officials from the Houston Police Department, United States Coast Guard and the Harris County Sheriff’s office. A group of 11 protestors rappelled off the bridge with 11 spotters, stopping boat traffic for approximately 22 hours. They were protesting the use of fossil fuels.

The protestors were apprehended by the Harris County Sheriff’s SWAT team and lowered into the boats.

All 22 protestors were booked into the Harris County jail.

WARDENS HIT THE DOVE FIELDS In Williamson County, game wardens conducted a saturation patrol in the county. Wardens checked for state compliance and issued 53 tickets and five warnings. Violations ranged from baited dove fields, unplugged shotguns, no hunter education, no migratory endorsement and no hunting license.

TICKETS IN FRIO COUNTY In Frio County during the opening of the general dove season in the South Zone, wardens discovered two baiting cases and several cases of exceeding the daily bag limit, with more than 100 birds seized.

SPONSORED BY

STOP FOR PHOTO OP COSTLY A group of dove hunters taking pictures of their birds at a roadside park were observed by game wardens in Maverick County. The wardens stopped to check and found the group to be 60 dove over their limit for the weekend. The explanation was

There also was one hunting accident with the hunter sustaining an injury to the left pinkie finger. More than 35 citations and warnings were issued.

RENTAL BOATS NOT REGISTERED After a boating accident on Canyon Lake involving a private boat owner and the operator of a rental boat, a Comal County game warden found the rental boat did not have a Texas identification number assigned to it. It was then discovered that the rental company had acquired the boat some time ago and had been renting the boat throughout the summer under a temporary dealer tag. Numerous other rental boats also were displaying dealer tags. A

that the two young boys with the group also shot a limit each day. After a brief conversation, the group finally admitted the boys only had a BB gun and didn’t shoot 60 birds.

total of 13 additional rental boats were not titled or registered properly. The resulting boat registration transactions totaled $25,308.92 in sales tax paid and $3,308.06 paid in late fees and interest.

QUAIL IN THE DOVE BAG After receiving a complaint about hunters pelleting a house, an Atascosa County game warden checked a group of hunters and noticed a pile of bird feathers and carcasses.

Five quail carcasses were present in addition to mourning dove carcasses. There were about 20 hunters, but none would admit to having killed the quail. A cooler in the bed of a truck contained the quail breasts. The owner of the

truck acknowledged possessing the quail and was cited for possession of bobwhite quail during closed season.

CHICKEN SCRATCH IN THE CALICHE PIT A landowner told Duval County game wardens that his hunters had shot 110 dove over the course of two days, but became nervous when asked to identify the location where the hunt took place. The landowner identified a caliche pit as the location of the hunt and said the hunters were already on their way back to Houston. After searching the caliche pit, large amounts of milo, scratch, and corn were located approximately 20 yards

away from the pit. A feeder full of scratch and milo was located in the same area. The landowner admitted that this feeder had been running until two days prior to opening day.

A Harris County game warden was contacted and interviewed two of the hunters resulting in the seizure of 63 birds. The remaining 47 birds were returned to the warden by the landowner. Cases pending.

PROTECTED INDIGO SNAKE AMONG THE HARVEST During the opening weekend of general dove season in Willacy County, game wardens made multiple contacts throughout the weekend and violations included over the daily bag limit of dove, unplugged shotgun, no hunting license, no hunter safety certification, no migratory endorsement and the possession of a threatened nongame species, a Texas indigo snake. The snake and more than 80 dove were seized.

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

CALL OPERATION GAME THIEF AT (800) 792-4263

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LoneOStar Outdoor News

November 8, 2019

DA L L A S S A F A R I C L UB w i t h SP OR T S A F IE L D pr esen t s

JANUARY 9-12, 2020

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HOST HOTEL: Omni Dallas Hotel - 555 South Lamar Evening Banquets, Auctions, Ladies’ Luncheon & Life Member Breakfast

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SATURDAY Life Member Breakfast & Auction 7:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m.

Conklin Award

Evening Banquet & Auction 6 p.m. – 11 p.m.

Evening Banquet & Auction 6 p.m. – 11 p.m.

Colin Caruthers Young Hunter Award

Bull Elephant Award

Weatherby Award Banquet & Auction Omni Hotel

Dave Baxter Literary Award

Cocktails & Silent Auction 5:30 p.m.

Artist of the Year Award

Dinner & Live Auction 6:30 p.m.

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Page 13

Page 14

November 8, 2019

LoneOStar Outdoor News

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HEROES

Bill Borg, of Waco, caught this 38-inch bull red off of the Port Aransas jetties.

Townes Webb, 6, harvested his first deer two days before his 7th birthday in Blanco County.

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.

SANTA ANNA HUNTING AREA

THE BEST FLYING BIRDS IN TEXAS

Reese Ferguson, 17, hunted kudu at Red Sands near the Botswana/ South Africa border. The kudu crossed the river and fell in after the shot.

Ferguson and her guide swam across the river to retrieve it.

Brandon Skinner landed this trout while fishing with his dad, Noel Skinner, and his brother, Capt.

Nate Skinner, over deep oyster shell in upper Galveston Bay.

Carter Haggar, 12, of Dallas, caught his personal best bass weighing 5.1 pounds at a local Dallas park.

LSONews.com

Sabine Lake producing Continued from page 8

Speckled trout catches have returned at Sabine Lake, along with higher salinity levels, primarily due to high tides. Photo

by Robert Sloan.

were about the only catches when Sabine Lake was so fresh.

“During October we had some really high tides that pretty much got us back to normal, with trout and reds under the birds,” he said.

“The fishing is good on the main lake, and the fall flounder run will really get to going now that we’re into November.”

The best places to find flounder are in the marsh and at the mouths of bayous, Watkins said.

He’s been fishing soft plastics at the mouths of bayous on hardfalling tides directly after a front moves through. Also, after the last couple of fronts, Watkins said the action under the birds has improved 100 percent.

Angler Bill Panto reported on a recent trip to Sabine, they did well while fishing at night under the lights on a lower lake pier.

“We caught mostly reds, along with a few trout,” he said. “Some of the reds were over the slot. We fished two nights and the water looked good the whole time. Most of the fish were caught on tails fished on 1/4-ounce jigheads.”

LoneOStar Outdoor News

Continued from page 4

find an organization to help him restore his property’s natural landscape, he figured he’d better do it himself.

“The fact was, there was a lack of certain structures needed for their habitat,” Willis said. “Quail need nesting cover, screening cover, roving cover, all types of cover. If you leave just one of those things out, it’s like saying, ‘Alright you can live here, but you’re going to have to survive without food.’ It doesn’t work.”

Willis procured a government grant and created the first-ever quail corridor, which spans 7 miles through Willis’ ranch and others to the Attwater Prairie Chicken National Wildlife Refuge in Eagle Lake. The idea was

to restore a delicate balance of native grasses and weeds not traditionally used for grazing cattle.

He went from virtually no quail when he bought the ranch to more than a bird per acre. And once his own experiment proved successful, other landowners wanted his help duplicating that accomplishment. So Willis, along with two respected businessmen, John Webb and the late Bob Moore, founded Wildlife Habitat Federation in 2004.

“There was pent-up demand for someone to do this,” Willis said. “I think every conservation group imaginable came out to our first meeting.”

Wildlife Habitat Federation is a boots-on-the-ground wildlife

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the Red River, and it recently completed a small pocket prairie at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. Since its inception, WHF has impacted more than 30,000 acres across 29 counties in Texas. In the last year, the team of biologists led technical guidance on more than 35,000 acres for 50 landowners in 19 counties.

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restoration operation. Biologists on staff create detailed proposals for landowners, and then WHF implements the plan using its own equipment and laborers.

In many instances, landowners keep coming back to WHF years later to maintain the right mix of native grasses. “(Our clients) are people who realize it can take a couple seasons to see results,” Willis said.

“You can’t just plow and reap. It’s not cotton. But if you maintain it, this results in better outcomes for wildlife, for livestock, and for man.”

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Quail conservationist

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10/23/19 1:34 PM

Page 16

November 8, 2019

LoneOStar Outdoor News

TEXAS SALTWATER FISHING REPORT

Bucks fighting earlier than normal Continued from page 1

a little more power,” he said. “I shot and shattered the main beams where the bucks were locked. I got lucky, I broke the main beam on the dead deer and didn’t hit the antlers of the other deer.”

Once freed, the living buck was shaken but ran off.

“I think he’ll probably be all right,” Montgomery said. “I hope so. I would like to see him next year in all his glory. It makes you wonder how often this happens.”

Montgomery said fighting between bucks seems at least two weeks ahead of schedule this year; and he’s noticed something else — an abundance of broken antlers.

“I’ve been seeing a lot of bucks fighting,” he said. “I run 15 cameras on the ranch, and we have deer busted up from one end of the ranch to the other.”

Montgomery can explain the fighting, as temperatures dropped into the 20s recently on the ranch. But he’s at a loss to explain the broken antlers.

“We were so wet for so long — from October until June — that something went on,” he said. “The antlers are weak.

“But I was glad we could save this deer.”

Shadd Reed had a similar occurrence involving two mature bucks in Maverick County.

“We just found the deer,” he said. “It was odd this time of year to have deer locked up like that. We saw the deer come across the road, the one deer was dead and his hind quarters were miss-

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ing. The other deer was dragging him.”

Reed and his coworker used rodeo skills to free the buck.

“We caught the deer and tied his head to a tree,” he said. “We roped his back legs and sawed the antlers off of the dead deer.”

Reed said the dead deer was 5 years old, with about 140 inches of antler, while the live deer was 6 years old, likely scoring in the 150s.

“I’ve never seen deer fighting this early,” especially mature deer,” he said.

“We’ve also seen a lot of broken antlers.

It’s not uncommon, but it’s uncommon in October.”

Across the state, hunter reports varied from seeing lots of movement and hearing plenty of shots to a quiet weekend.

In Erath County, Erathkid reported plenty of movement on the Texas Hunting Forum, but the bucks were cruising and skittish, offering little time for a shot. An Eastland County hunter reported a quiet opener, with only one shot heard in the distance.

On the RRR Ranch in Mills County, Dori Blesh broke the ranch record with her 20-point buck that measured 206 inches.

Meat processors saw plenty of deer coming to their docks. Rhodes Brothers Taxidermy and Game Processing in Kerrville reported its cooler was getting full and the deer looked in great shape, while a line down the block formed at Dallas’ Kuby’s Wild Game Processing.

NORTH SABINE: Water temperature 66 degrees, tide high. Trout are good on jigs and soft plastics. Redfish are good mixed in with schools of trout and along shorelines.

Flounder are fair along ship channel dropoffs.

SOUTH SABINE: Trout are good on jigs and soft plastics. Redfish are good mixed in with schools of trout and along shorelines. Flounder are fair along ship channel dropoffs.

TRINITY BAY: Water temperature 73 degrees. Speckled trout are good on soft plastics and live shrimp under a popping cork. Redfish are good for wade-fishermen on the flats. Flounder are very good on mullet or shrimp.

WEST GALVESTON BAY: Flounder are good in back lakes and marshes on live mullet or soft plastics. High tides are keeping redfish in back marshes. Speckled trout are fair on main bay oyster shell using live shrimp under a popping cork.

TEXAS CITY: Bull redfish are fair along the Texas City Dike. Speckled trout are good along the levee and Mosquito Island.

FREEPORT: Flounder and redfish are good at San Luis Pass. Redfish and speckled trout are good in Christmas Bay on live shrimp or soft plastics.

EAST MATAGORDA BAY: Water temperature 75 degrees. Speckled trout and redfish are very good on plastics. Red drum are good in the surf on live shrimp and mostly found in the surf.

WEST MATAGORDA BAY: Speckled trout are good on soft plastics. Redfish are very good on plastics. Black drum are fair on live shrimp. Flounder are good on minnows.

PORT O’CONNOR: Speckled trout are very good on a shrimp and crabs. Redfish are very good in back bays on live shrimp. Flounder are good on mullet and croaker.

ROCKPORT: Black drum are very good on live shrimp. Redfish are very good on mullet.

Sheepshead are good on mud crab or live shrimp around heavy jagged cover.

PORT ARANSAS: Redfish are good on shrimp, paddle tails and top-waters. Speckled trout are good in the grass on shrimp, plastics and top waters. Bull reds on the jetties are excellent.

CORPUS CHRISTI: Redfish are very good on mullet and shrimp. Speckled trout are good on lures and shrimp under popping corks.

Flounder are very good on minnows or squid.

BAFFIN BAY: Redfish and flounder are excellent on the flats on top-waters and live bait.

Speckled trout are fair to good on scented plastics.

PORT MANSFIELD: Speckled trout and redfish are fair to good after fronts on soft plastics, top-waters and shrimp. Flounder are good in the East Cut on scented plastics and paddle tails. Bull reds on the jetties are excellent.

SOUTH PADRE: Water temperature 78 degrees, tides high. Speckled trout and redfish are fair along grassy potholes on live shrimp and scented plastics.

PORT ISABEL: Redfish and speckled trout are very good mainly on paddle tails. Snook are fair on the shallow flats.

—TPWD

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LoneOStar Outdoor News

November 8, 2019

Bass action on top

Proposed MLDP fees

Continued from page 8

lake with higher water temperatures than what you’ll find on most Central and East Texas lakes.

“Our top-water bite will last through December and maybe into January,” Green said. “You won’t catch too many really big bass here, but you’ll catch a bunch in the 16- to 24-inch class, which is the new slot limit. The number one thing to keep in mind when fishing top-waters here is to slow down. I’ve been fishing here for 30 years and a slow retrieve will get you more top-water bites.”

His top two lures are a Pop-R and a buzzbait, and white is the go-to color. Another good lure on Fayette is a Spittn’ Image. Green fishes these lures on the outside edge of grass.

“We have a lot of grass on the lake this year,” Green said. “And that has definitely made the topwater bite better than in past years. One of the best lures you can use in the grass is a 1/2- to 3/8-ounce buzzbait. It’s an easy lure to fish and bass will hit them all day long. Plastic frogs are also good. A good color combination is green on top/yellow on bottom.”

Fishing top-water lures along the bank, in 2 to 5 feet of water, is another option for the next month or so.

“That’s where there will be lots of shad and bass will be there with them,” Green said.

Sam Rayburn has been a topwater fishing jewel for years, and long-time guide Will Kirkpatrick said the bass are feeding on lots of shad at the ends of points.

“Rayburn is 3-feet low right now, and that has moved a lot of shad toward the ends of points,” Kirkpatrick said. “On many of those points it’s shallow enough to work top-water lures and shallow-running divers.

The small divers can be worked down to about a foot, then stop and let them float up to the surface. That’s when bass will almost always hit them. One of the best top-water lures on this lake is a Zara Spook. I once had a guy on my boat that caught a 10 1/4-pound bass on a chrome and black spook. That bass hit the plug five times before getting hooked.”

The best way to fish a spook is with a walk-the-dog retrieve, but Kirkpatrick said you don’t want to twitch the lure too much.

“You just want to give it enough twitch to move it left to right,” he said. “That will get you a lot more strikes from heavier bass. The best colors are pearl/ silver stripe and black back/ chrome.”

The best top-water bite now is on overcast days, and the best visible structure are lily pads and hydrilla in about 3 feet of water in the coves.

“Another lure that has caught more bass than you can believe

PERFORMANCE B E A U T I F U L LY D E S I G N E D

Continued from page 5

Anglers are hitting the shallows and heavy cover, hoping to land a largemouth bass on a surface lure. Photo by Robert Sloan.

is a Booyah Prank,” Kirkpatrick said. “It’s just under 3 inches long and is a lipped popper. It can be worked on top as a popper that spits water thanks to a cupped and shaved mouth. But it also doubles as a shallow-run-

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ning crankbait where the shaved back helps impart a swimming action. A feather-dressed treble adds the final touch to entice strikes. Chrome with a black back is a killer on Rayburn bass.”

The Harvest Option places less burden on agency resources, hence the lower fees; while the Conservation Option, which identifies habitat improvements and sets harvest numbers based on the habitat and deer population on a specific tract or ranch, usually involves TPWD biologist involvement, including the preparation of a wildlife management plan.

Cain said TPWD staff received input from a working group of landowners to come up with the proposed fee schedule, with the revenue going to support additional positions and help administer the program.

“We received some different opinions on the fee amounts,” he said. “But overall people were supportive.”

The proposed fees would raise about $1.5 million each year, enough to support 10-15 positions plus support the online reporting system, Cain said.

The MLDP currently covers approximately 28 million acres in Texas with 12,000 tracts of land enrolled.

If the proposals are approved for publication in the Texas Register by the commission, public comment will be opened until the January commission meeting, where adoption may be sought.

Page 18

November 8, 2019

LoneOStar Outdoor News

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TEXAS SUN, MOON AND TIDES Moon Phases

Full

Last

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First

Nov 12

Nov 19

Nov 26

Dec 4

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Houston

Dallas

2019 A.M. P.M. SUN MOON Nov Minor Major Minor Major Rises Sets Rises Sets

2019 A.M. P.M. SUN MOON Nov Minor Major Minor Major Rises Sets Rises Sets

08 Fri 09 Sat 10 Sun 11 Mon 12 Tue 13 Wed 14 Thu 15 Fri 16 Sat 17 Sun 18 Mon 19 Tue 20 Wed 21 Thu 22 Fri

08 Fri 09 Sat 10 Sun 11 Mon 12 Tue 13 Wed 14 Thu

1:56 2:32 3:08 3:48 4:31 5:19 6:12

8:06 8:42 9:19 9:59 10:43 11:31 12:01

2:16 2:52 3:29 4:10 4:54 5:44 6:38

8:26 9:02 9:40 10:21 11:06 ----12:25

15 Fri

7:10 12:56

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16 Sat 17 Sun 18 Mon 19 Tue 20 Wed 21 Thu 22 Fri

8:11 9:14 10:15 11:13 ----12:31 1:17

8:39 9:42 10:43 11:41 12:07 12:57 1:43

1:50 8:00 2:26 8:36 3:03 9:13 3:42 9:53 4:25 10:37 5:13 11:26 6:07 ----7:04 12:51 8:05 1:51 9:08 2:53 10:09 3:55 11:07 4:54 ----- 5:48 12:25 6:38 1:12 7:24

2:10 2:46 3:24 4:04 4:48 5:38 6:33 7:32 8:34 9:36 10:37 11:35 12:02 12:51 1:37

8:21 8:57 9:34 10:15 11:00 11:56 12:20 1:18 2:20 3:22 4:23 5:21 6:15 7:04 7:50

06:39 06:40 06:41 06:41 06:42 06:43 06:44 06:45 06:46 06:46 06:47 06:48 06:49 06:50 06:51

05:29 05:29 05:28 05:27 05:27 05:26 05:26 05:25 05:25 05:24 05:24 05:23 05:23 05:23 05:22

3:43p 3:03a 4:13p 3:56a 4:44p 4:49a 5:17p 5:43a 5:53p 6:39a 6:33p 7:37a 7:18p 8:36a 8:09p 9:35a 9:06p 10:33a 10:07p 11:27a 11:11p 12:18p NoMoon 1:04p 12:17a 1:45p 1:23a 2:24p 2:28a 3:01p

1:57 2:59 4:01 4:59 5:54 6:44 7:30

06:49 06:50 06:51 06:52 06:53 06:54 06:55

05:30 05:30 05:29 05:28 05:28 05:27 05:26

3:50p 4:19p 4:48p 5:19p 5:54p 6:33p 7:18p

3:08a 4:02a 4:56a 5:52a 6:49a 7:49a 8:49a

1:24

06:56 05:26 8:08p

9:49a

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06:57 06:58 06:59 07:00 07:01 07:02 07:02

05:25 05:25 05:24 05:24 05:23 05:23 05:22

9:05p 10:46a 10:07p 11:40a 11:12p 12:30p NoMoon 1:14p 12:19a 1:55p 1:26a 2:32p 2:33a 3:08p

San Antonio 2019 Nov

A.M. P.M. SUN MOON Minor Major Minor Major Rises Sets Rises Sets

08 Fri 09 Sat 10 Sun 11 Mon 12 Tue 13 Wed 14 Thu 15 Fri 16 Sat 17 Sun 18 Mon 19 Tue 20 Wed 21 Thu 22 Fri

2:02 8:13 2:38 8:48 3:15 9:26 3:54 10:05 4:38 10:49 5:26 11:38 6:19 12:06 7:17 1:03 8:18 2:04 9:20 3:06 10:22 4:07 11:20 5:06 ----- 6:01 12:38 6:51 1:24 7:37

2:23 2:59 3:36 4:16 5:01 5:50 6:45 7:44 8:46 9:49 10:50 11:47 12:14 1:03 1:49

8:33 9:09 9:47 10:27 11:12 ----12:32 1:31 2:32 3:34 4:36 5:34 6:27 7:16 8:02

06:51 06:51 06:52 06:53 06:54 06:55 06:56 06:56 06:57 06:58 06:59 07:00 07:01 07:01 07:02

05:43 05:42 05:41 05:41 05:40 05:40 05:39 05:39 05:38 05:38 05:37 05:37 05:36 05:36 05:36

3:56p 3:17a 4:26p 4:09a 4:57p 5:01a 5:30p 5:55a 6:06p 6:52a 6:46p 7:49a 7:32p 8:48a 8:23p 9:47a 9:20p 10:45a 10:21p 11:39a 11:25p 12:30p NoMoon 1:16p 12:31a 1:58p 1:36a 2:37p 2:41a 3:14p

Amarillo

2019 A.M. P.M. SUN MOON Nov Minor Major Minor Major Rises Sets Rises Sets

08 Fri 09 Sat 10 Sun 11 Mon 12 Tue 13 Wed 14 Thu 15 Fri 16 Sat 17 Sun 18 Mon 19 Tue 20 Wed 21 Thu 22 Fri

2:16 8:26 2:52 9:02 3:28 9:39 4:08 10:19 4:51 11:03 5:39 11:52 6:32 12:19 7:30 1:17 8:31 2:17 9:34 3:19 10:35 4:21 11:33 5:20 12:01 6:14 12:51 7:04 1:38 7:50

2:36 3:12 3:50 4:30 5:14 6:04 6:59 7:58 9:00 10:02 11:03 ----12:27 1:17 2:03

8:47 9:23 10:00 10:41 11:26 ----12:46 1:44 2:45 3:48 4:49 5:47 6:41 7:30 8:16

07:14 07:15 07:16 07:17 07:18 07:19 07:20 07:21 07:22 07:23 07:24 07:25 07:26 07:27 07:28

05:46 05:45 05:45 05:44 05:43 05:42 05:42 05:41 05:40 05:40 05:39 05:39 05:38 05:37 05:37

4:11p 3:27a 4:39p 4:22a 5:07p 5:18a 5:37p 6:15a 6:10p 7:14a 6:49p 8:14a 7:32p 9:16a 8:23p 10:16a 9:19p 11:14a 10:22p 12:07p 11:28p 12:56p NoMoon 1:39p 12:36a 2:19p 1:45a 2:54p 2:53a 3:28p

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 Nov 8 Nov 9 Nov 10 Nov 11 Nov 12 Nov 13 Nov 14 Nov 15 Nov 16 Nov 17 Nov 18 Nov 19 Nov 20 Nov 21 Nov 22

Time 1:15 AM 1:28 AM 1:40 AM 1:51 AM 1:58 AM 2:05 AM 2:12 AM 2:22 AM 2:38 AM 12:24 AM 1:27 PM 2:33 PM 5:07 AM 5:31 AM 6:06 AM

Rollover Pass Height 1.62H 1.59H 1.56H 1.54H 1.54H 1.54H 1.55H 1.57H 1.58H 1.52L -0.08L 0.05L 1.15L 0.86L 0.53L

Time 7:25 AM 7:40 AM 8:02 AM 8:29 AM 9:00 AM 9:33 AM 10:10 AM 10:51 AM 11:37 AM 2:57 AM 10:02 PM 10:49 PM 8:08 AM 10:52 AM 12:22 PM

Height 0.77L 0.56L 0.36L 0.17L 0.01L -0.12L -0.20L -0.24L -0.24L 1.56H 1.69H 1.65H 1.18H 1.24H 1.40H

Time 1:35 PM 2:20 PM 3:00 PM 3:39 PM 4:18 PM 5:00 PM 5:47 PM 6:42 PM 7:47 PM 12:28 PM

Height 1.48H 1.57H 1.65H 1.72H 1.77H 1.80H 1.81H 1.78H 1.75H -0.18L

Time 7:03 PM 7:43 PM 8:20 PM 8:55 PM 9:30 PM 10:05 PM 10:43 PM 11:26 PM

Height 0.79L 0.90L 1.00L 1.10L 1.21L 1.30L 1.40L 1.47L

8:58 PM

1.71H

3:43 PM 4:53 PM 5:59 PM

0.21L 0.38L 0.56L

11:24 PM 11:54 PM

1.61H 1.58H

Galveston Bay entrance, north jetty Time 1:04 AM 1:15 AM 1:27 AM 1:37 AM 1:44 AM 1:46 AM 1:39 AM 1:32 AM 1:34 AM 11:45 AM 12:43 PM 1:50 PM 3:06 PM 5:47 AM 6:00 AM

Height 2.12H 2.08H 2.07H 2.06H 2.06H 2.08H 2.11H 2.17H 2.23H -0.09L 0.03L 0.21L 0.44L 1.39L 0.97L

Time 7:17 AM 7:27 AM 7:43 AM 8:04 AM 8:29 AM 8:58 AM 9:32 AM 10:10 AM 10:54 AM 9:33 PM 10:28 PM 11:06 PM 11:34 PM 10:27 AM 12:15 PM

Height 1.25L 0.99L 0.73L 0.48L 0.26L 0.08L -0.05L -0.13L -0.14L 2.34H 2.27H 2.19H 2.10H 1.64H 1.80H

Time 1:12 PM :11 PM 3:04 PM 3:53 PM 4:41 PM 5:31 PM 6:24 PM 7:22 PM 8:27 PM

Height 1.93H 2.04H 2.15H 2.26H 2.34H 2.40H 2.43H 2.42H 2.39H

Time 6:46 PM 7:23 PM 7:57 PM 8:31 PM 9:07 PM 9:42 PM 10:18 PM 10:56 PM

Height 1.25L 1.41L 1.57L 1.73L 1.87L 2.00L 2.11L 2.20L

4:26 PM 5:43 PM

0.69L 0.96L

11:57 PM

2.01H

Height 1.70H 1.62H 1.56H 1.51H 1.49H 0.16L 0.07L 0.01L -0.01L 0.02L 0.10L 0.23L 0.42L 1.05L 0.81L

Time 7:35 AM 7:29 AM 7:43 AM 8:04 AM 8:27 AM 5:36 PM 6:29 PM 7:33 PM 8:42 PM 9:39 PM 10:22 PM 10:53 PM 11:18 PM 10:07 AM 11:50 AM

Height 0.99L 0.82L 0.64L 0.46L 0.29L 2.06H 2.10H 2.11H 2.11H 2.10H 2.04H 1.95H 1.82H 1.29H 1.47H

Time 1:23 PM 2:23 PM 3:16 PM 4:04 PM 4:50 PM

Height 1.50H 1.64H 1.78H 1.90H 2.00H

Time 7:05 PM 8:03 PM 9:01 PM 10:11 PM

Height 1.07L 1.18L 1.28L 1.38L

Time 12:41 AM 12:50 AM 12:54 AM 1:06 AM 1:24 AM 8:54 AM 9:25 AM 10:03 AM 10:48 AM 11:42 AM 12:43 PM 1:48 PM 3:00 PM 6:29 AM 6:31 AM

Height 0.55H 0.54H 0.56H 0.61H 0.67H 0.72H 0.78H 0.83H 0.87H 0.90H 0.89H 0.84H 0.76H 0.65H 0.54H

Time 11:03 AM 10:41 AM 10:42 AM 10:53 AM 11:11 AM 11:38 AM 12:12 PM 12:54 PM 1:44 PM 2:43 PM 3:48 PM 4:53 PM 5:53 PM 6:47 PM 9:12 AM

Height 0.30L 0.21L 0.13L 0.05L -0.02L -0.09L -0.14L -0.18L -0.19L -0.18L -0.13L -0.05L 0.06L 0.21L 0.38L

Height 0.27L 0.35L 0.44L 0.52H 0.58H 0.63H 0.66H 0.68H 0.68H 0.66H 0.62H 0.56H 0.48H 0.40H 0.33H

Time 5:51 AM 5:23 AM 3:28 AM 12:54 PM 1:13 PM 1:45 PM 2:36 PM 3:57 PM 5:24 PM 6:41 PM 7:50 PM 8:53 PM 9:50 PM 10:53 AM 11:24 AM

Height 0.43H 0.42H 0.46H 0.08L 0.01L -0.04L -0.07L -0.09L -0.10L -0.12L -0.11L -0.08L -0.01L 0.33L 0.20L

4:28 PM 6:06 PM

0.64L 0.85L

Time

Height

11:35 PM 11:50 PM

1.68H 1.54H

Port O’Connor Date Nov 8 Nov 9 Nov 10 Nov 11 Nov 12 Nov 13 Nov 14 Nov 15 Nov 16 Nov 17 Nov 18 Nov 19 Nov 20 Nov 21 Nov 22

Time 3:31 AM 2:27 AM 1:31 AM 12:52 AM 12:27 AM 12:07 AM 12:28 AM 01:20 AM 2:06 AM 2:47 AM 3:20 AM 3:43 AM 3:53 AM 3:50 AM 3:25 AM

Time 12:01 AM 12:38 AM 1:09 AM 2:38 AM 2:13 AM 2:39 AM 3:07 AM 3:38 AM 4:13 AM 4:54 AM 5:39 AM 6:18 AM 6:36 AM 6:07 AM 5:35 AM

Date Nov 8 Nov 9 Nov 10 Nov 11 Nov 12 Nov 13 Nov 14 Nov 15 Nov 16 Nov 17 Nov 18 Nov 19 Nov 20 Nov 21 Nov 22

Time 1:26 AM 1:32 AM 1:36 AM 1:42 AM 1:53 AM 2:04 AM 10:17 AM 10:59 AM 11:47 AM 12:41 PM 1:41 PM 2:46 PM 12:06 AM 12:10 AM 12:13 AM

Time 11:37 AM 11:54 AM 12:10 PM 12:26 PM 4:48 AM 4:54 AM

Height 0.72L 0.59L 0.46L 0.33L 1.34H 1.34H

Time 4:46 PM 5:55 PM 6:55 PM 7:54 PM 12:44 PM 1:09 PM

Height 1.02H 1.10H 1.20H 1.30H 0.21L 0.12L

Time 10:23 PM 11:03 PM 11:51 PM

Height 0.84L 0.95L 1.07L

8:59 PM 10:24 PM

1.38H 1.45H

2:23 PM 3:13 PM 4:12 PM 5:19 PM 6:32 PM 7:44 PM 10:01 AM 10:17 AM

0.01L 0.02L 0.06L 0.13L 0.23L 0.36L 0.85L 0.62L

1:37 PM 3:41 PM

1.00H 1.07H

8:54 PM 10:02 PM

0.52L 0.71L

Height 1.27H 1.24H 1.22H 1.22H 1.22H 1.22H 0.07L 0.03L 0.03L 0.07L 0.13L 0.23L 1.32H 1.23H 1.16H

Time 8:14 AM 8:18 AM 8:26 AM 8:43 AM 9:09 AM 9:40 AM 7:33 PM 9:08 PM 10:28 PM 11:20 PM 11:51 PM

Height 0.83L 0.70L 0.56L 0.41L 0.27L 0.15L 1.48H 1.49H 1.49H 1.47H 1.41H

Time 1:48 PM 2:52 PM 3:46 PM 4:36 PM 5:26 PM 6:21 PM

Height 1.13H 1.20H 1.28H 1.35H 1.42H 1.46H

Time 7:44 PM 8:30 PM 9:20 PM 10:19 PM 11:34 PM

Height 0.86L 0.94L 1.02L 1.10L 1.18L

4:02 PM 6:46 AM 7:00 AM

0.35L 0.85L 0.65L

10:26 AM 12:18 PM

1.00H 1.07H

5:30 PM 6:53 PM

0.49L 0.64L

Date Nov 8 Nov 9 Nov 10 Nov 11 Nov 12 Nov 13 Nov 14 Nov 15 Nov 16 Nov 17 Nov 18 Nov 19 Nov 20 Nov 21 Nov 22

Time 1:49 AM 1:58 AM 2:05 AM 2:05 AM 1:57 AM 11:13 AM 11:55 AM 12:43 PM 1:30 AM 2:28 AM 2:54 AM 3:07 AM 3:07 AM 2:35 AM 1:06 AM

Height 0.34H 0.35H 0.35H 0.35H 0.36H -0.00L -0.03L -0.04L 0.45H 0.45H 0.44H 0.41H 0.37H 0.33H 0.32H

Time 9:42 AM 9:46 AM 9:54 AM 10:12 AM 10:39 AM 10:28 PM 11:22 PM

Height 0.18L 0.15L 0.11L 0.07L 0.03L 0.41H 0.43H

Time 4:05 PM 5:07 PM

Height 0.27H 0.29H

Time 8:31 PM 8:49 PM

Height 0.25L 0.28L

9:56 PM

0.39H

1:39 2:45 4:03 5:19 7:24 7:33 8:02

-0.03L -0.01L 0.01L 0.04L 0.32L 0.25L 0.17L

9:42 AM 11:45 AM 1:47 PM

0.33H 0.32H 0.33H

6:22 PM 7:17 PM 8:11 PM

0.09L 0.15L 0.22L

Height 0.75H 0.38L 0.88H 0.90H 0.91H 0.92H -0.09L -0.12L -0.13L -0.10L 1.12H 1.07H 0.98H 0.72L 0.54L

Time 6:50 PM 2:03 PM 7:42 AM 8:07 AM 8:36 AM 9:10 AM 9:48 PM 10:43 PM 11:46 PM

Height 0.53L 0.80H 0.26L 0.15L 0.05L -0.03L 1.07H 1.11H 1.14H

Time 11:59 PM 7:31 PM 3:00 PM 3:52 PM 4:56 PM 6:41 PM

Height 0.85H 0.61L 0.85H 0.91H 0.95H 0.99H

Time

Height

12:52 PM 1:47 PM 3:05 PM 9:27 AM 11:09 AM

-0.04L 0.06L 0.19L 0.79H 0.85H

11:35 PM 4:57 PM 6:15 PM

Height 1.81H 1.71H 1.63H 0.59L 0.37L 0.18L 0.04L -0.06L -0.08L -0.03L 0.10L 0.29L 0.54L 1.29L 0.98L

Time 6:50 AM 7:03 AM 7:20 AM 3:55 PM 4:45 PM 5:37 PM 6:33 PM 7:34 PM 8:36 PM 9:31 PM 10:15 PM 10:45 PM 11:02 PM 9:03 AM 11:45 AM

Height 1.25L 1.04L 0.82L 1.89H 1.94H 2.00H 2.07H 2.13H 2.17H 2.19H 2.14H 2.04H 1.88H 1.34H 1.46H

PM PM PM PM AM AM AM

Port Aransas Time

Height

3:55 PM

0.41H

7:40 PM

0.37L

Time 11:38 AM 12:11 PM 12:36 PM

Height 0.31L 0.23L 0.15L

Time 6:25 PM 7:58 PM

Height 0.49H 0.49H

2:03 PM 5:12 PM

0.36H 0.33H

10:41 PM 11:28 PM

0.09L 0.20L

Nueces Bay Date Nov 8 Nov 9 Nov 10 Nov 11 Nov 12 Nov 13 Nov 14 Nov 15 Nov 16 Nov 17 Nov 18 Nov 19 Nov 20 Nov 21 Nov 22

San Luis Pass

Height 1.40H 1.38H 1.37H 1.35H 1.19L 1.30L 0.05L 1.51H 1.56H 1.58H 1.55H 1.47H 1.37H 1.28H 1.21H

East Matagorda

Freeport Harbor Date Nov 8 Nov 9 Nov 10 Nov 11 Nov 12 Nov 13 Nov 14 Nov 15 Nov 16 Nov 17 Nov 18 Nov 19 Nov 20 Nov 21 Nov 22

Time 4:20 AM 4:18 AM 4:24 AM 4:36 AM 12:53 AM 2:23 AM 1:42 PM 1:35 AM 2:39 AM 3:23 AM 3:53 AM 3:57 AM 3:37 AM 3:24 AM 3:18 AM

Date Nov 8 Nov 9 Nov 10 Nov 11 Nov 12 Nov 13 Nov 14 Nov 15 Nov 16 Nov 17 Nov 18 Nov 19 Nov 20 Nov 21 Nov 22

Time 12:47 PM 7:21 AM 12:21 AM 12:45 AM 1:07 AM 1:19 AM 9:49 AM 10:31 AM 11:16 AM 12:03 PM 12:52 AM 1:47 AM 2:26 AM 6:37 AM 6:25 AM

8:17 PM 9:14 PM 10:26 PM

0.69L 0.79L 0.87L

0.87H 0.33L 0.45L

10:55 PM 11:12 PM

0.84H 0.84H

Time 12:58 PM 2:06 PM 3:03 PM

Height 1.68H 1.76H 1.83H

Time 6:34 PM 7:36 PM 8:45 PM

Height 1.36L 1.46L 1.52L

3:54 PM 5:20 PM

0.81L 1.08L

11:08 PM 11:06 PM

1.70H 1.55H

South Padre Island Date Nov 8 Nov 9 Nov 10 Nov 11 Nov 12 Nov 13 Nov 14 Nov 15 Nov 16 Nov 17 Nov 18 Nov 19 Nov 20 Nov 21 Nov 22

Time 12:17 AM 12:13 AM 12:02 AM 7:41 AM 8:05 AM 8:34 AM 9:08 AM 9:47 AM 10:32 AM 11:24 AM 12:21 PM 1:25 PM 2:35 PM 6:01 AM 5:47 AM

Texas Coast Tides

Date Nov 8 Nov 9 Nov 10 Nov 11 Nov 12 Nov 13 Nov 14 Nov 15 Nov 16 Nov 17 Nov 18 Nov 19 Nov 20 Nov 21 Nov 22

Date Nov 8 Nov 9 Nov 10 Nov 11 Nov 12 Nov 13 Nov 14 Nov 15 Nov 16 Nov 17 Nov 18 Nov 19 Nov 20 Nov 21 Nov 22

LSONews.com

LoneOStar Outdoor News

November 8, 2019

Page 19

Fishing the flounder run Continued from page 1

Texas City angler Rick Wilkenfeld said there are plenty of fish to be caught by shorebound anglers along the Texas City Dike.

“I’ve been focusing on areas around the piers, docks and moored shrimp boats near the base of the dike,” he said. “Most of the keeper-sized flounder I’ve been catching have been under 18 inches in length, and there have been a lot of small, undersized fish biting as well.”

Wilkenfeld said the best action he as experienced has come while bouncing soft plastics slowly along the bottom.

“There have been some folks fishing near the end of the Texas City Dike that have been catching some flounder in the 20inch range,” he said. “The bite from these larger fish has not been hot and heavy, and most have fallen to live mullet.”

Galveston Bay angler Tyler Iguess has been catching flounder near Sand Island and Pelican Island. Shrimp imitation soft plastics have been his lure of choice.

Mark Risinger of Dickinson said up until recently, most of the flounder in the Galveston Bay complex were still staging along the shallow stretches of back bays and marshes.

“We’ve finally started to get some strong enough fronts to help push some water out of the marsh and get our flatfish moving,” he said. “The fall run is definitely picking up, and there are flounder in a lot of places throughout Galveston Bay.”

Comment on TPWD

Risinger said the south shoreline of East Galveston Bay is loaded with flatfish, and that the north shoreline of West Galveston Bay also is holding good numbers as well.

“Live mullet and various soft plastics have produced strikes in both of these areas,” he said.

Hitchcock resident Danny Kauffman recently caught several flounder up to 21 inches in Lower Galveston Bay near the causeway railroad bridge, and at Virginia Point.

“There are a ton of 14- to 17-inch fish out there right now,” Kauffman said. “The largest flounder that I’ve seen caught lately have been coming from the mouths of marsh drains after the passage of a front.”

Galveston Bay guide Capt. Ryan Battistoni said flounder have also been stacking up along hotspots in the Galveston Ship Channel.

“There have been a bunch of fish along the edges of the channel, but there’s also been quite a few boats pressuring them,” he said. “The best action in the channel has been occurring within the first 48 hours after a norther hits. Both live mullet and scented soft plastics are working well.”

Battistoni said the fish have not wanted the bait to be sitting still along the bottom.

“Even when using a live mullet, it’s best to slowly twitch it and give it some extra action,” he said.

East Matagorda Bay guide Capt. Trey Prye said anglers can catch flounder almost

•

Call (512) 463-1300 to speak to Danielle Nasr, project manager of the TPWD review The Sunset process has three stages. First, staff will evaluate TPWD, seek public input, and issue a report recommending solutions

anywhere in East Matty right now. Prye said this year has produced some of the most consistent flounder activity he’s seen in the bay system.

“Midbay reefs, cuts leading into the ICW along the north shoreline, and drains along the south shoreline have all been great for flatfish,” he said. “Most of these fish have been in the 2- to 3-pound range.”

On Sabine Lake, Capt.

Chris Phillips said the flounder run is just now picking up steam.

“We had a lot of high tides during the second half of October, which kept the majority of flounder in our marshes,” he explained. “Recent cold fronts have helped to push some water out of our system, and flounder have been showing up near the mouths of bayous on main lake shorelines,

to problems found. Second, the Sunset Commission will hold two public meetings: a hearing on the staff report and the agency, and a decision meeting to adopt recommendations to the Legislature based on the report and public comments. Third, the

Photo by Lone Star Outdoor News

as well as along the edges of the ship channel.”

The daily bag limit for flounder is two fish through November 30, and fish may only be taken by pole-and-line for the remainder of the month. From December 1-14, the daily bag limit remains at two fish; however, flounder may be taken by any legal means, including gigging.

Legislature will convene in January 2021 and will consider the Sunset Commission statutory recommendations in a Sunset bill for TPWD.

Continued from page 1

FIRE FOR EFFECT CZ 1012 BRONZE

GAS-LESS INERTIA OPERATING SYSTEM

OVERSIZED AMBIDEXTROUS CONTROLS

RUNS A WIDE VARIETY OF SHELLS

28 INCH BARREL

4+1 CAPACITY

5 EXTRA LONG CHOKES

CZ-USA.COM

Page 20

November 8, 2019

LoneOStar Outdoor News

LONE STAR OUTDOOR PUZZLER Solution on Page 22

LSONews.com

INDUSTRY New marketing coordinator at Mammoth

Fishing Tackle Company as tackle brand manager.

Mammoth Coolers added Olivia Jent to its team as marketing coordinator.

Horizon Firearms honored Horizon Firearms is among the top 100 companies selected for the 15th annual Aggie 100, which honors the fastest-growing companies owned or operated by former students of Texas A&M University.

Ducks Unlimited is seeking a conservation communications specialist in its 13-state southern region.

Bass Champs, Skeeter extend deal DOWN 2. U.S. national tree 3. Opening day was Nov. 2 in South Zone 4. An outboard manufacturer 5. A coastal fishing town 6. Blue, green or cinnamon 10. Keeps the duck hunter dry 11. Tournament trail bought by Major League Fishing 12. Areas of land saturated by water 13. A shooting sport (two words) 14. A shorebird species 15. A mule deer hunter’s organization 16. Keeps the deer away from the feeder 19. Good color to wear while quail hunting (two words) 21. A safari destination (two words) 23. Rare leopard species 25. Proper name for dove weed 29. River that flows through Dallas 31. A good snack in the deer blind 33. A grouse species 35. The mating period for deer

Tim Sullivan was appointed the chief revenue officer of B.A.S.S.

RMEF position in North Texas The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation is hiring a person to engage and manage volunteer activities, event fundraising and major gift fundraising in North Texas.

New technology head

Position at DU

ACROSS 1. A trout species 6. A warden’s home away from home 7. The tail fin of a fish 8. The king of ducks 9. A quail predator 14. Required by feds to hunt waterfowl (two words) 17. Cotulla’s county (two words) 18. A boat brand 20. A sheep hunter’s organization 22. The small white goose 24. Town called Texas’ deer capital 25. A good bass lure 26. The full moon in October 27. The male mallard 28. Failing to keep game in edible condition 30. Spinning-wing decoy brand 32. Native game or fish to a region 34. An offshore target (two words) 36. Exotic common in the HIll Country 37. An African game species

Executive named at B.A.S.S.

Skeeter Boats will partner with Bass Champs for an additional three years, including extending incentives for competitors.

Gant joins AFTCO

Richard Bonazzoli has joined online sales platform company Sovereign Sportsman Solutions as senior vice president of technology innovation.

Companies consolidate under one name Jackson Adventures is now the main corporate brand representing Jackson Kayak, Orion Coolers, Orion Kennels and Blue Sky Boatworks.

Robby Gant joined the American

Puzzle by Craig Nyhus, Lone Star Outdoor News

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

Venison with sage and Dijon cream sauce Venison backstrap medallions Black peppercorns, cracked or crushed 2 tbsps. Dijon mustard Olive oil 1 shallot, minced Sage leaves 1/2 cup of white wine 1/2 cup chicken stock 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream Italian flat leaf parsley Remove all fat and silver sinew from venison. Coat one side with one tablespoon of Dijon mustard and cover with peppercorns. Heat oil in a cast-iron skillet until hot but not smoking. Sear venison

on both sides to medium rare, set aside.

In the same skillet, add shallots and sauté for 1 minute, add white wine. Once wine reduces by half, add 1 tablespoon of Dijon mustard and chicken stock. Allow the sauce to reduce, stirring constantly. Add the heavy whipping cream and let simmer until the sauce thickens. Add more cream if needed. Salt and pepper to taste. Chop sage and Italian parsley and add to the sauce, reserving some for serving. Serve over noodles, rice or potatoes. Spoon sauce over venison and add extra sage and parsley to garnish. ­— Lili Sams

Photo by David J. Sams, Lone Star Outdoor News

LSONews.com

LoneOStar Outdoor News

Too many axis in Gillespie County

November 8, 2019

Page 21

Duck opener down south Continued from page 4

Project seeks to raise awareness of negative impact

By Craig Nyhus

Lone Star Outdoor News The Hill Country Alliance and other groups are hoping to raise awareness of the impact of the increasing numbers of axis deer on the landscape.

Through the Axis Deer Control Project in Gillespie County, hunters who bring in a frozen axis ear to one of five drop-off points will be entered into a drawing for prizes.

“The free-ranging axis deer are having adverse impacts on white-tailed deer, agricultural production and riparian (creek-side) habitat,” said Daniel Oppenheimer, HCA land program manager. “We are seeing a tremendous Axis deer are beautiful, make great trophies and are number of axis proliferating. They hit excellent to eat, but landowners in Hill Country areas are the hay production, oats and wheat concerned their numbers are impacting whitetails and pretty hard. They’re like a sheep or agriculture. Photo by Lili Sams, Lone Star Outdoor News. goat part of the year and a cow the other part. One wildlife management association found they had twice as many axis as whitetails.”

The goal of the Axis Deer Control Project is to raise awareness about the impact of the axis, to support research that will improve management and recognize land stewards for their efforts to control the exotic species.

“We will provide the ears to a Ph.D. student at Texas Tech who is trying to better understand the health and dynamics of axis,” Oppenheimer said.

The project is supported by the Gillespie County AgriLife Extension, HCA and TPWD. Ears should be brought frozen in a bag labeled with county, sex and date harvested.

Drop-off locations are: Nov. 2-3: Cave Creek School Nov. 16: Stonewall Smokehouse Dec. 11: Gillespie County AgriLife Extension Jan. 11: Stonewall Smokehouse Jan. 12: Weinheimer and Son

Duck hunters headed back to the marsh on Nov. 2 in the South Zone. Photo by Robert Sloan.

“As long as the farmers are cutting rice, the hunting should be pretty steady,” he said. “This opener was much better than last season on ducks. That’s mainly because of the fronts we’ve had the past couple of weeks.”

The J.D. Murphree WMA in Port Arthur had plenty of hunters and a fair number of birds, according to Mike Rezsutek, project leader of the upper coast wetlands ecosystem project. “We had 120 hunters that averaged 2.4 ducks on Saturday, Nov. 2.

On Sunday we had 156 hunters that averaged 2.9 ducks. That’s pretty much an average opener for us. We’ve had lots of high water since tropical storm Imelda.

We are working to get the water level down so the ducks will have something to eat, and stay here.”

The Justin Hurst WMA, located about 60 miles south of Houston near Lake Jackson, had 176 hunters who averaged three birds per gun. And at the Mad Island WMA, in Matagorda County, 123 hunters averaged 3.5 birds per gun.

“Those numbers are a little low for this

early in the season,” Rezsutek said. “It’s because of the high water. Most of the ducks harvested were teal, gadwall and shovelers.”

Hunts out of Port O’Connor were much better than this time last season. Hunters on the open bay got easy limits of bluebills and a fair number of redheads. But the best hunts for teal, pintail, gadwall and spoonies were in backwater lakes like Pringle and Contee. Mike Mason and three of his buddies hunted the lagoon along Dewberry Island on opening day and had an excellent hunt out of their boat blind. They racked up good stringers that included teal, gadwall, pintail, scaup and a few redheads.

Guide Ruben Garza Jr. reported their hunts out of Port Mansfield were very good for bluebills and redheads.

“We’re holding a ton of redheads,” he said. “The best hunts are on the backwater flats. Lots of redheads moved in with the cold front that came through just before the opener. We also had a few teal and pintails.”

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November 8, 2019

LoneOStar Outdoor News

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EMERGENCY DESCENDER: Primal Treestands’ device is for those who hunt from a tree stand and wear a safety harness. The compact Emergency Descender prevents hunters from hanging in their harnesses should they fall by allowing them to get down quickly and safely. Even if a hunter is unconscious or injured, the device can provide an automatic and gradual descent to the ground. It can be used with any full-body safety harness that meets ASTM standards for a fall-arrest system.

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Hunting the Powderhorn Continued from page 7

out at 385 pounds, I didn’t realize they were that big.”

The bull’s main beams were 31 inches and the animal was old, although no one really knew how to age them, Binnion said.

Binnion had two more days to hunt, so he turned his attention to whitetails and axis.

“The whitetails were in the full-blown rut,” he said. “At daylight I found a buck and did a 200-yard stalk through the grasslands. He was a 10-pointer. After I shot him, a big 6-pointer got up with a doe out of the grass.”

The coastal whitetails are smaller in the coastal area than in much of Texas, and the buck scored 118 and dressed out at 104 pounds, heavy for the area.

The hunt continued.

“I shot a doe and a spike,” Binnion said.

“It was the second season of drawn hunts at the WMA, and no one had killed all five available animals, so I started looking for

axis.”

The great hunt turned slightly bittersweet, though.

“When I was about to go home, I saw two axis does,” Binnion said. “I followed them through the brush, got a rest on an oak tree and shot one. She jumped up and ran into a thick live oak stand.”

Binnion marked the spot the doe entered the brush and started across the wetland.

“There was a cottonmouth in the water, it scared me,” he said. “I’m used to rattlesnakes, not cottonmouths. I went around the wetland and looked for two hours, but found no blood, hair or anything.”

Binnion said the trip was one of the most fun hunts he has had in South Texas.

“There were lots of deer and animals,” he said.

A total of 36 permits were drawn for the Powderhorn WMA hunts out of 3,800 applicants.

Puzzle solution from Page 20

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NATIONAL ARKANSAS

TV host, former B.A.S.S. co-owner dies Jerry McKinnis, host of The Fishin’ Hole on ESPN for 44 years, died Nov. 3. Mckinnis was a former B.A.S.S. co-owner and the founder of JM Associates. He was 82.

Mckinnis had been in the hospital for six weeks, dealing with an infection that cropped up after a fishing trip in Wyoming.

McKinnis, along with Don Logan and Jim Copeland, purchased B.A.S.S. from ESPN in 2010, and then sold controlling interest in the organization to Anderson Media in the fall of 2017. He was the leader of JM Associates, producing television and Internet shows about fishing and the outdoors.

McKinnis was a member of the Bass Fishing Hall of Fame, the National Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame, and the International Game Fish Association Hall of Fame.

A pioneer in outdoors television, McKinnis and his JM Associates production team took over production of the long-running The Bassmasters television program for B.A.S.S. and ESPN in 2001.

—B.A.S.S.

OKLAHOMA

Trout stockings begin The Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation operates two year-round trout fisheries in the Lower Mountain Fork River below Broken Bow dam and in the Lower Illinois River below Tenkiller Ferry Dam. Trout are normally stocked in those areas every week or two.

Also, on Nov. 1, the wildlife department began stocking trout in six other designated trout fishing areas. Those areas are Perry CCC/Lake Perry Park, Robbers Cave, Blue River, Lake Watonga, Medicine Creek and Lake Carl Etling.

—ODWC

FLORIDA

NASGW award winners The National Association of Sporting Goods Wholesalers announced the winners of its annual Appreciation and Caliber Awards at the NASGW Expo Appreciation dinner.

Winners of the NASGW Appreciation Awards: Firearm Manufacturer of the Year Ruger Optics Manufacturer of the Year Leupold Ammunition Manufacturer of the Year Hornady Accessory Manufacturer of the Year Magpul Importer of the Year CZ-USA Innovator of the Year SIG SAUER NASGW also partnered with the Professional Outdoor Media Association to select the best new products in six categories as well as an overall best new product.

Winners of the NASGW-POMA Caliber Awards: Best New Accessory Mantis X10 Best New Optic Leupold Freedom RDS Best New Ammunition Winchester 350 Legend Best New Handgun SIG SAUER P365 SAS Best New Rifle Ruger Precision Rimfire Best New Shotgun Franklin Armory Reformation RS7 Best New Overall Product CVA Paramount —NASGW

ILLINOIS

Boat sales stable As the recreational boating industry prepares to close out 2019 and what will have been the second highest level of sales in 12 years, the National Marine Manufacturers Association member manufacturer confidence continues to be favorable with 97 percent of CEOs stating business is stable or expanding (51 percent stable and 27 percent expanding).

November 8, 2019

Page 23

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A year ago, 97 percent of CEOs also reported an expanding or stable environment; however, this shifted in Q3 2019 from a majority seeing expansion to a majority seeing stabilization, as there are signs of a flattening out after seven consecutive years of growth and sales. Driving the flattening is the slowdown in the aluminum and pontoon segment in 2019.

—NMMA

VIRGINIA

New outdoor program for kids Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s, in partnership with the National Wildlife Federation and YMCA, announced Outdoor Adventurers, a nature-based education initiative aimed at introducing the wonders of the outdoors to kindergarten through fifth-grade students from urban areas across the United States.

The program will launch in Atlanta, Chicago and Houston this year with plans to expand to 13 American cities over the next three years.

The program will engage more than 7,800 children and their families, providing educational outdoor experiences designed to help kids develop a lifelong appreciation for nature. Planned activities include fishing, hiking, wildlife observation, kayaking, archery, exploration and more.

—NWF

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Man caught with 62 extra walleye John Linde Esse of Ely fishes for walleye nearly every day on Shagawa Lake.

But the 83-year-old kept too many walleye this summer — 62 too many — and has paid $1,860 in restitution and a $50 fine.

A conservation officer made the bust after a tip on a big pile of discarded fish carcasses found in the woods, and he later caught Esse dumping more fish carcasses at the site. The officer found 74 walleye in Esse’s freezer, 62 over the state possession limit of 12 for he and his wife.

Esse said others also caught fish and he lost track of how many fish people took home with them and how many fish he had in his freezer.

—Staff report

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President Masisi reelected The Botswana Democratic Party emerged with a majority of seats in the national assembly, ensuring Mokgweetsi Masisi another term as president of Botswana.

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—Staff report

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LoneOStar Outdoor News

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November 8, 2019

Cranes out west

Bowhunter quirks

Continued from page 1

Continued from page 4

on his back porch throughout the entire deer season.

“I do not want to go to the blind smelling like something foreign that might alert a whitetail that danger is nearby,” Welch said. “I always wash my clothes with a scent-eliminating detergent and then hang them outside until it’s time to get ready for a hunt. I will also get dressed for a hunt on my back Nate Skinner arrowed this buck in Wilson County. Photo from Devin Leissner. porch and won’t “I like to practice shooting a lot, and my bring any of my routine becomes as realistic as I can mahunting clothes inside the house.”

Competing with a whitetail’s sense nipulate it, each time another hunt draws of smell can be downright impossible, near,” Link said.

During the days leading up to a hunt, though. Veteran bowhunter John McClain said he always reminds himself that no Link begins to limit himself to one or two matter what steps he takes to eliminate his shots per practice session. He will also vary scent, it’s not likely that he’s going to beat how long he holds his bow at full draw to mimic possible scenarios that could come a deer’s nose.

“For this reason, I decide how I make up while in the stand.

“You only have one chance to make your my every move in the woods according to the wind,” McClain said. “I will not try to shot count during a hunt,” he said. “You occupy a stand if the wind is wrong, and don’t get any redos, and a shot opportusometimes that means not going hunting nity can present itself after you’ve been sitting for hours on end. That’s why I like to at all during certain conditions.”

Accuracy and precise shot placement are recreate the pressure of a hunting situation essential keys to achieving success with when practicing at home, by making mystick and string. Joe Link said these con- self concentrate on one shot at a time. It cepts are steadily on his mind throughout helps me feel both mentally and physically the duration of deer season as he pursues prepared for the task at hand.” whitetails with his bow.

having successful crane hunts in West Texas, Haese said.

“I spend about 80 percent of my free time scouting and the rest hunting,” he said.

Living on a typical college student’s budget, Haese has been able to find areas to hunt by knocking on doors and building relationships with landowners.

“My buddies and I will drive around and scout until we find the birds on a particular stretch of land,” he said. “Then, we will ask the landowner for permission to hunt them. We’ve had days where it took knocking on 20 different doors to find two landowners willing to let us hunt on their property. When it works out, it’s almost always worth it.”

Haese uses a homemade blind made out of burlap and T-posts when pursuing sandhill cranes. He always tries to set it up near a pivot point, wellhead or other structure.

“This helps prevent us from sticking out like a sore thumb in a flat field,” he said. “Cranes have excellent vision and will become blind shy very quickly.”

Haese’s decoy spread composed of two dozen silhouette sandhill crane decoys to achieve his early season success.

“The spread was oriented in a U-shape, and the hole was filled with a tight group of decoys,” he said.

Toby Brohlin of Cadillac Creek Outfitters said his hunters harvested limits of cranes on opening day over fields with wheat stubble and volunteer wheat located north of Amarillo.

“Strong winds greeted us on the second day of the season, which made decoying the birds a little more difficult,” Brohlin said. “Overall, the season started off with very consistent action for crane hunters.”

Brohlin has been using a mixture of

Tyler Eubank enjoyed his first crane hunt outside of Lubbock with his buddy, Josh Haese. Photo by Josh Haese.

silhouette and full-body decoys, and has concealing his hunters with A-frame style blinds.

Outside of Lubbock, Evan Botsford of Crooked Wing Outfitters said most of the sandhills that are currently in the area are adult birds.

“Many of the juveniles have not arrived yet,” he said. “The birds are for the most part in smaller concentrations as the migration is in its early stages; however, they seem to be uneducated and easy to fool for the time being.”

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November 8, 2019

LoneOStar Outdoor News

LSONews.com

DATEBOOK NOVEMBER 8

Stewards of the Wild Fort Davis Excursion Sproul Ranch, Fort Davis tpwf.org/SOTW McKenna Quinn Fall Trunk Show Bevy Hotel, Boerne shopmckennaquinn.com

NOVEMBER 10

National Wild Turkey Federation Texas State Turkey Calling Championship Premier Best Western, Bryan (281) 639-9185 nwtf.org

NOVEMBER 12

Ducks Unlimited The Woodlands Dinner Twin Peaks, Shenandoah (832) 381-7901 ducks.org

NOVEMBER 13

Coastal Conservation Association Hays County Chapter Banquet Wimberley VFW (713) 626-4222 ccatexas.org Houston Safari Club Foundation Monthly Meeting Houston Racquet Club hscfdn.org Ducks Unlimited Waco Dinner Texas Ranger Museum (254) 366-2160 ducks.org

NOVEMBER 14

Dallas Safari Club Monthly Meeting Addison Conference Centre (972) 980-9800 biggame.org Ducks Unlimited Katy Dinner Midway Barbeque (281) 770-9213 ducks.org

NOVEMBER 15-17

Higgins Branchini Shooting Foundation 2019 Quail Hunt Fundraiser Greystone Castle, Mingus hbshootingfoundation.org

NOVEMBER 16

Dallas Woods and Waters Club Duck Hunt with Bullzeye Outfitters Whitesboro jabeene@gmail.com Texas Parks and Wildlife Learn to Fish Laguna Atascosa USFWS National Wildlife Refuge Los Fresnos (832) 202-5221 tpwd.texas.org

NOVEMBER 16-17

Silver Spur Trade Shows Gun and Blade Show Brownwood Coliseum, Brownwood silverspurgunshows.com

NOVEMBER 19

Ducks Unlimited Tyler Dinner Harvey Hall Convention Center (903) 570-5124 ducks.org

NOVEMBER 21-22

DECEMBER 6-7

NOVEMBER 22

DECEMBER 7

Stewards of the Wild Mentored Duck Hunt Port O’Connor tpwf.org/SOTW Delta Waterfowl Brazos River Banquet Johnson County Sheriffs Posse Grounds, Cleburne (817) 307-4468 deltawaterfowl.org

NOVEMBER 23

DSC Conservation Society Fishing trip Lake Texoma dscconservationsociety.org Mule Deer Foundation Turkey Chapter Beers For Deer Event Hotel Turkey (806) 269-1289 muledeer.org

NOVEMBER 24

Texas Archery Indoor League Monthly archery tournament Texas Archery Academy, Plano (214) 960-4088 texasarchery.info

NOVEMBER 30

Kimble County Chamber of Commerce 35th Anniversary Wild Game Dinner Stevenson Center, Junction (325) 446-3190 junctiontexas.net

DECEMBER 5

Houston Safari Club Foundation Christmas Party House of Blues hscfdn.org

Rock Island Auction Company Premier 3 Day Live Auction (309) 797-1500 rockislandauction.com R2BA Auction Company Online Gun Action (940) 644-0053 r2baauctions.com Del Rio Chamber of Commerce Wild Game Dinner Del Rio Civic Center (830) 775-3551 drchamber.com

DECEMBER 7-8

Silver Spur Trade Shows Gun and Blade Show Display Bldg., TC Expo Center Abilene silverspurgunshows.com

DECEMBER 11

Stewards of the Wild Midland Fall Speaker Series Basin PBS, Midland tpwf.org/SOTW

DECEMBER 12

Dallas Safari Club Christmas Party Winter Wonderland Howell and Dragon (972) 980-9800 biggame.org

DECEMBER 16

Texas Wildlife Association 3rd Annual Houston Sporting Clay Shoot Greater Houston Gun Club texas-wildlife.org

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November 8, 2019

Page 27

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