August 2015

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Contents

August 2015 VOL 25 NO 4

about the Cover Billy Gerke of ForEverlast Hunting and Fishing Products is this month’s cover angler. Billy shares a great tale of family fishing fun and success on page 42.

FEATURES

DEPARTMENTS

10 Fresh Water Inundation - Tricks, Tips...

16 Amigo to Many 22 Tommy Has Some Trouble, Conclusion 26 Traveling Angler or Tourist?

30 Blacktip Fever!

36 Shadow Dancing 42 Epic Father’s Day Came Early 46 Doubling Up on Coastal Fun

52 Let’s Ask The Pro Jay Watkins 56 Shallow Water Fishing Scott Null 58 TPWD Field Notes Terry D. Stelly 62 Fly Fishing Scott Sommerlatte 64 Kayak Fishing Chronicles Dave Roberts 68 TSFMag Conservation News CCA Texas 72 Fishy Facts Stephanie Boyd 74 Inshore | Nearshore | Jetties | Passes Curtiss Cash 78 Extreme Kayak Fishing & Sharks...

Eric Ozolins 108 Science & the Sea UT Marine Science Institute 110 Boat Maintenance Tips Chris Mapp

Steve Hillman Kevin Cochran Martin Strarup Chuck Uzzle Joe Richard Joe Doggett Billy Gerke Everett Johnson

64

36

WHAT OUR GUIDES

HAVE TO SAy

84 86 88 90 92 94 96

Dickie Colburn’s Sabine Scene The Buzz on Galveston Bay The View from Matagorda Mid-Coast Bays with the Grays Hooked up with Rowsey Capt. Tricia’s Port Mansfield Report South Padre Fishing Scene

Dickie Colburn Caleb Harp Bink Grimes Gary Gray David Rowsey Capt. Tricia Ernest Cisneros

REGULARS

94

08 Editorial 82 New Tackle & Gear 98 Fishing Reports and Forecasts 102 Catch of the Month 106 Gulf Coast Kitchen

106 6 | August 2015

Editor and Publisher Everett Johnson Everett@tsfmag.com VICE PRESIDENT PRODUCTION & ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Pam Johnson Pam@tsfmag.com Office: 361-785-3420 Cell: 361-550-9918 National sales representative Bart Manganiello Bartalm@optonline.net regional sales representative Patti Elkins Patti@tsfmag.com Office: 361-785-3420 Cell: 361-649-2265 PRODUCTION COORDINATOR Donna Boyd Donna@tsfmag.com Circulation Subscription – product sales Linda Curry Cir@tsfmag.com ADDRESS CHANGED? Email Store@tsfmag.com Design & Layout Stephanie Boyd Stephanie@tsfmag.com Texas Saltwater Fishing Magazine is published monthly.

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Email store@tsfmag.com for all address changes or please call 361-785-3420 from 8am - 4:30pm. The U.S. Postal Service does not guarantee magazines will be forwarded. how to contact tsfmag: Phone: 361-785-3420 fax: 361-785-2844 Mailing Address: P.O. Box 429, Seadrift, Texas 77983 Physical Address: 58 Fisherman’s Lane, Seadrift, TX 77983 Web: www.TSFMAG.com photo gallery: photos@tsfmag.com Printed in the USA. Texas Saltwater Fishing Magazine (ISSN 1935-9586) is published monthly by Texas Saltwater Fishing Magazine, Inc., 58 Fisherman’s Lane, Seadrift, Texas 77983 l P. O. Box 429, Seadrift, TX 77983 © Copyright 1990 All rights reserved. Positively nothing in this publication may be reprinted or reproduced. *Views expressed by Texas Saltwater Fishing Magazine contributors do not necessarily express the views of Texas Saltwater Fishing Magazine.

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EDITORIAL A well-intentioned reader called… “Six guys are in the hospital, got Vibrio in West Matagorda last Saturday. Man, it’s bad. You need to write something.”

As bad as that sounds and, terrible if true, the fact of the rumor mill is that reports can grow as they travel. Everything from rivers full of livestock manure to “overflowing septic systems” are to blame, according to some sources.

And while it is true that Vibrio vulnificus can be found in Texas bays, it is also present in the Gulf of Mexico. Actually, Vibrio lives in temperate seawater all around the globe, all year round. The yearly average of confirmed Vibrio cases in Texas is about 20, Florida sometimes reports double that, more on the Atlantic than gulf side. It is also true that many cases go unreported, bacteria never identified, as doctors focus foremost on saving limbs and lives.

Everybody who frequents Texas bays and beaches during warmer months should also be aware that equally dangerous staphylococcus and streptococcus are also present and, like Vibrio, thrive greatest during summer. That severe infection cases rise sharply in summer is likely due to greater participation in beach and fishing activities as much as the seasonal increase in bacteria.

So—what’s a fisherman to do? Having interviewed a number of physicians on this topic, I came away with precautions I practice religiously between April and October—the months of greatest risk.

-Schedule a physical exam, including blood work, and pointedly ask

8 | August 2015

What About Vibrio? the doctor, “What precautions should I take to guard against Vibrio and other bacterial infection?”

-Do not go wade fishing with an open cut or even a slight abrasion anywhere on your body. If you simply must wade, wear waders to avoid seawater contact. Same goes for boat fishing, you do not have to be in the water to get Vibrio.

-People at greatest risk are males, middle-40s to seniors, especially if immuno-comprised. Immuno-compromised means diabetics, any who suffer chronic liver and/or kidney ailment, those with steady alcohol habits (be honest), and any being treated with steroids or antibiotics for other problems as these can suppress the immune system.

-Should you receive a wound while fishing, get out of the water immediately and flush liberally with bottled water. Cleansing with anti-bacterial soap and water is recommended. Hydrogen peroxide and Hibiclens are also highly recommended to arrest bacterial growth.

-Seek medical attention! Too often we hear of patients who waited until affected regions became dark and severely swollen. This can cost a limb—possibly your life!

There is much to know and good, safe habits to practice. On page 71 you will find more information about Vibrio vulnificus and several of its relatives. I have Type-II diabetes. I have discussed my condition with my physician and I follow his advice as regards seawater contact. Above all—if you suspect you may have contracted a serious infection—seek medical attention immediately!

STORY BY STEVE HILLMAN

– Channel catfish might be a good target species this day in the back of East Bay.

F

or the last five years or so we’ve all been praying for rain but, La Niña had other things in mind. During that time, and to a lesser extent even prior, drought took its toll. Texas’ inland reservoirs recorded record low pool levels, thousands of square miles burned in wildfires, while farmers and ranchers suffered losses in the billions. 2011 was the driest year on record.

During that same period, Upper Coast anglers experienced some of the best fishing we’ve seen in a long while. Trout in Galveston Bay’s vast complex became heavily concentrated in the lowest salinity areas they could find. Salinity readings at the mouth of the Trinity River were in the 30-plus parts per thousand (PPT) range and the water looked like the Bahamas. It was pretty to look at and everyone was happy catching tons of trout. Meanwhile, organisms such as Dermocystdium, sponges and oyster drills that thrive in higher salinity feasted on many of the live oyster reefs along the Texas Coast. Shad and shrimp suffered. Juvenile gamefish such as spotted seatrout struggled to find the low salinity habitat they thrive in. But hey, fishing was great!

Fast forward to 2015. El Niño is being blamed for record amounts of rainfall. Flash floods, some catastrophic, wreaked havoc across Texas. It’s late June as I type and the discharge at the Lake Livingston Dam is 35,000 cubic feet per second (Trinity River Authority/USGS).

This is actually half the amount being discharged a few weeks ago. In addition to fresh water flowing into the bay from the Trinity, above normal flow from the San Jacinto River has impacted Galveston Bay more than it has in many years. Typically, we don’t see nearly as

much fresh water inflow from the San Jacinto because of significant industrial and residential surface water demand from Lake Houston and Lake Conroe. However, this year has been an exception. Above normal river flows, heavy local rainfall events and dozens of tributaries throughout the watershed basins have lowered bay-wide salinities more than we’ve seen in years, and for a longer period of time.

Salinity readings in Trinity Bay are currently less than 1 PPT. Upper Galveston Bay salinities are running less than 2 PPT. Speckled trout start heading the opposite direction when the salinity drops lower than 10 PPT. When this happens, trout become heavily concentrated in areas of the highest salinity they can find. A clustering effect takes place similar to what happens during drought years, except in reverse.

Remember the old cliché - “It’s like shooting fish in a barrel.” Boats become stacked like cordwood in the same few areas for long periods of time. Everyone is catching lots of trout. That’s great news right?

But, will the short-term gain result in long-term pain?

I’ve touched on the value of habitat in our bay systems in past articles. In most Lower Coast areas it is shoal grass that helps create and hosts the base of the food chain. In Upper Coast bays oysters are the lifeblood. Prolonged periods of excessive freshwater like we’ve seen this year is devastating to live oyster reefs. No one knows for sure how many beds have been killed so far, but it’s a safe bet that it is substantial. On a positive note, predators and parasites that are known for decimating live reefs are not tolerant of the low salinities so when new oysters grow on the remaining substrate (oysters that have been killed by fresh water) they usually come back stronger than ever.

It may take a couple of years. We witnessed this following Hurricane

Spooks have all proven very effective in dirty water conditions. A wake bait like Strike Pro’s Hunchback can stir up some violent strikes in muddy water Trinity River locks at as well. The Hunchback creates a ruckus just 70,000 cfs on 27 May; beneath the surface like nothing I’ve ever seen. there’s a boat ramp Some folks think that they’re only for shallow down there somewhere.

(Photo by Caleb Harp) water fishing especially when targeting redfish. While this is indeed a fantastic choice for the back lakes, we’ve caught plenty of nice trout in deep water on them. My team won the 2013 Tails and Tunes tournament chunking Hunchbacks in nine feet of water on a day when big trout were playing hard to get. Rat-L-Traps can call in a dirty water trout or red with the best of them. I’ve always used them in deeper water, but my good friend Sean Gilstrap showed me something I’d never seen before when we fished the Galveston Redfish Series back in April. We were fishing a shallow flat in less than three feet of water and were not able to buy a bite on soft plastics or Alicia in 1983 and two years after Tropical Storm Allison which inundated our bay system in 2001. In addition to the long-term benefit to reefs, marsh and upstream water quality improves for forage species and juvenile gamefish species.

In the meantime, how do we trick trout in this dirty water?

Sounding off!

When evaluating which of the three senses a trout uses the most it has always been my belief based on experience that vibration (sound) is at or near the top of the list. We have proven this time and again with the use of Saltwater Assassin paddletail-type baits such as their 4 and 5 inch Sea Shad. Many soft plastic manufacturers have followed suit in recent years and are now offering shadtail-style baits and various other paddletail swimbaits in addition to their traditional rat-tail plastics. Loud topwaters such as MirroLure She Dogs, Rapala Skitter Walks and Heddon’s One Knocker

Peg float/Rat-L-Trap rig for less than 4 feet, especially over shell.

anything else, for that matter. It was obvious that the reds were there because we could see the wakes and mud boils. Sean was in the front of the boat digging through his bag of tricks. When I noticed what he had tied on his line I couldn’t help but chuckle. I had never witnessed anyone throw a Rat-L-Trap under a cork. The cork was actually a 2.5 inch Comal peg float. I looked at him and said “I’ll kiss your (butt) if you catch anything on that.” Six reds later—guess what I was throwing?

12 | August 2015

Dirty water lure line-up – (Top) Cajun Thunder cork with Berkley GULP! 4” Swimming Mullet-Rootbeer Gold, (Left to Right) MirrOlure She Dog, Heddon One Knocker Spook, Rapala Skitter Walk, StrikePro Hunchback, 5” Saltwater Assassin Sea Shad-Red Shad, 5” Assassin-Morning Glory, 5” Assassin-Plum, 4” Saltwater Assassin Sea Shad-Red, 4” Saltwater Assassin-Texas Roach.

redfish boats on tourney day.

In speaking with geneticist Joel Anderson at the Texas Parks and Wildlife Perry R. Bass Science Lab in Palacios he said that to his knowledge there have never been any studies conducted to determine a spotted seatrout’s order of feeding based upon their senses. His summation was “they likely rely on all of their senses when foraging, and process information from multiple sensory sources simultaneously when they are locating prey. The importance of each of those senses would also change with changes in turbidity and the amount of light available. A 1996 lab study on the closely related weakfish (same genus as spotted seatrout) suggested that the efficiency of predation was low in complete darkness, suggesting that nonProper technique visual strategies were not as and the right color efficient as visual strategies for

Rat-L-Trap reds!

Assassin (Red Shad) helped Lauren Neva trick this solid trout in water with less than 3 inches of visibility.

Sight and Smell To clarify, I’m not saying that trout always rely most heavily on sound but I do believe that it plays a larger role in certain conditions. It has been written many times how dark-colored soft plastics work better in cloudy water and low light because of the contrast. This seems true for the most part. And, it’s no secret that Berkley GULP! under a rattle cork can catch fish in stained water.

Just take a look in most of the rod holders of all of those rocketship

foraging. I would say this makes the case for visual attraction being towards the top of the list.” The information that Joel shared didn’t exactly lead me to believe that my “Vibration is King” theory didn’t hold water, but it might have made it spring a small leak.

Mother Nature will always have a profound Kat whipped this open water effect on our environment. She controls our mud monster on 10 pound fisheries. However, we affect them. My word mono in less than 15 minutes! of advice to all fellow fishermen is to keep Dark colored Sea Shad this question in the back of your mind; “While Assassin near the bottom was too much to resist. my buddies and I are catching trout on every drift in the 30% of the bay we’re fishing, what’s going on in the other 70%?” How many trout will be left to swim back to that other 70% when the salinity returns to normal? Oh, and give that Rat-L-Trap trick a try. It’s pretty cool!

Contact

Steve Hillman

14 | August 2015

Steve Hillman is a full-time fishing guide on his home waters of Galveston Bay. Steve fishes the entire Galveston Bay Complex, wading and drifting for trout, redfish, and flounder using artificial lures.

Phone 409-256-7937 Email captsteve@hillmanguideservice.com Web www.hillmanguideservice.com

STORY BY KEVIN COCHRAN

I

met Jesse Arsola in Matagorda, on the eve of a Troutmasters tournament, sometime just before the turn of the century. We became fast friends; in fact, when I first talked to him, it felt like I had known him forever. That’s the way Jesse made people feel. He had more love in his heart than a million ordinary souls, a love which shined through his words and his work, making the world a brighter place.

Back in those days, I sometimes called him Cochise. He ran with a tight crew, and seemed like its leader, the chief. Mostly, I referred to him by the name because I thought of a Native American when I watched him run his boat through the shallows along the south shoreline of West Matagorda Bay, his long black hair dancing on air. The skiff became his painted pony.

In another way, Jesse was a maverick, the independent individual who refuses to conform to the expectations of the group. When he became busy and successful as a fishing guide, he enforced some strict boat rules. He did not succumb to greed and gluttony and kill all the fish he legally could.

Eventually, he would not allow anyone to kill a large trout at all. I think because he thought of them as his friends. The trout, I mean.

I heard him refer to big trout as his “pets” on more than one occasion. I vividly remember him pointing into the corner of a cove in East Matagorda Bay and telling me, “One of my pets lives in that pocket right there. I’ve caught her several times, but she’s okay.” He chuckled. The comment clearly revealed the communion he felt with the fish. Jesse’s legacy will always include a respect for the resource, a deep and abiding admiration for the fish. He led by example, catching and releasing many picture-worthy trout in his days.

As an angler, Jesse showed unparalleled patience and unbridled enthusiasm. The people who paid to fish with him mostly did so because they enjoyed watching him work, wanted to feed off his passion for the game. Because he trained himself to catch trophy trout mostly by fishing the south shoreline of East Matagorda Bay, he developed a “stand and grind” style. He could pick apart a tiny

TSFMAG.com | 17

area in the most masterful and thorough way, generally deploying a highly rhythmic, raspy presentation style. Often, his persistence paid off in the form of a bite.

I learned plenty by fishing and talking with Jesse. He taught me much about the proper pace of movement, about fishing with faith, maintaining the belief that the right fish swims within reach and can be coaxed to come out and play. Perhaps most significantly, he introduced me to the beauty of what became and remains one of my all-time favorite lures, Paul Brown’s Fat Boy. The efficacy of the slow-sinking twitch bait became apparent to me one afternoon, while Jesse and I shared space in a shallow corner of his home bay. The knee-deep, crystal clear water could not conceal the grass beds and potholes on the bottom, nor hide the trout that swam at times within mere yards of us. I began to find the scenario frustrating, to see the fish and have no luck in making them take a bite.

In those days, I had a stubborn, sometimes stupid love for conventional topwater plugs. In the memorable, poignant instance, I had tossed a Super Spook Junior at a cruising four pounder several times, succeeding mostly in annoying it, without a glimmer of hope of making it strike. I narrated some of the action to Jesse. He asked, “Can you still see her?” I affirmed that I could, and pointed in the direction where the fish sat between us, along the edge of a sandy spot.

He turned and cast toward me, his lure landing between me and the trout, saying, “I bet she won’t turn her nose up at this Fat Boy.” I watched, amazed, as the fish’s demeanor and attitude Here’s an old photo I scanned of Jesse, taken when we fished together in a changed. She rose from the Troutmasters tournament in the year 2000. As usual, he got his three fish.

18 | August 2015

Jesse’s admiration for the trout was truly transparent. How ironic then, that he could see himself through the flesh of this strange specimen.

bottom, alert, sizing up the wobbling plug as Jesse artfully danced it toward her, imparting side to side movement in the lure by using rhythmic twitches of his rodtip.

Eventually, the trout darted right over and snatched the Fat Boy purposefully, with an obvious intent to kill, surely confusing it with a perch or shad. “Uh oh!” Jesse exclaimed when he felt the thump; when he set the hooks, the fish’s head exploded through the surface, shaking in defiance of the mistake she’d made, throwing suds into the sky, leaving an indelible impression in my mind’s eye.

After releasing the trout, Jesse continued with the lesson, “A pearl and black Fat Boy is the perfect lure for a place like this. You can work it slow without getting hung on the bottom, and walk the dog with it under water. The big girls can’t resist it.” I did more than make a mental note of what I’d seen; I made a commitment that day to master the use of the plug, and my fishing life forever changed for the better.

Jesse positively influenced me in other significant ways. Over the last 10 years or so, I’d see and talk to him for a couple months, when he moved his operation to my home waters during the first quarter or third of the year. We fished many of the same areas, formulated plans, shared all relevant information on a daily basis. I experienced several great runs of catching because of the things we learned together.

Jesse showed the utmost respect for me as a fellow angler and guide.

Normally, when he got ready to head my way to begin his time in my area each year, he’d call to ask where I had been, what I had seen and caught. He wanted to go out scouting, find something new, but never to interfere. The consummate considerate and cooperative friend, he

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always sought to help me in the best ways.

To that end, he appeared in the first fishing video I made. I have fond memories of the day we spent on the water getting footage in East Flats and Shamrock Cove. Jesse caught and released the biggest trout that day; the comments he made as we stood side by side near the mangroves in a quiet corner of the bay still resonate with me to this day.

Recently, I returned to the exact spot while shooting footage for my latest video. I experienced a sudden and profound sense of loss there, remembering the other occasion. Life has a strange way of turning us in circles, back around to familiar places and people time and time again. I’m glad I left footprints in the sand next to Jesse’s, that I stood with him in such a pristine and pretty place.

After I finished work on the first DVD, Jesse helped me sell them.

He always went out of his way to look out for me, Jesse helped make almost like a big brother might, or like a chief looks the concept of catch, out for the other members of the tribe. I recall him photograph and release saying he almost came to blows with some guys at cool. Many young anglers like Ethan Aaron, a tournament one time. They made the mistake of shown here with his saying rude things to him about me. He stood up personal-best, now for me, though I was many miles away, because his willingly follow his lead. loyalty to friends knew no limits.

He talked to most everyone the same way, calling them “brother” and letting them know they were important to him. longer than they said he could.

During his final days, he spent much of his time consoling those who My buddy and partner Jesse Arsola lost his battle with cancer came to visit him. When I first called to let him know I had heard of his this past Memorial Day. I offer this piece as a tribute to the diagnosis, he tried to make me feel better, to soothe MY pain. friendship we shared. I told him I loved him before he passed When I asked him how he was doing, he said, “Ahh, I’m gonna make away; he said the same to me. These words we said not in a sappy it. I’m gonna fight this thing. I’m not gonna just roll over and give up.” way, but in the most authentic and genuine sense. Given the pain And fight he did. Originally, doctors told him he would last a couple I experienced upon learning of his passing, I can only imagine months at most. He didn’t accept that, and lived for considerably how hard the loss is for his wife Mary K., his children and his other family members and close friends. I’d like here to publicly state the deep sympathy I feel for them.

One of Jesse’s favorite Replacing someone like Jesse isn’t really possible. lures was a pink Skitter The human tribe lost one of its best members when Walk. This picture he slipped away. I and others in the fishing community shows one of the will never forget him. He was an original, one of a pretty trout he caught on the floating plug. kind, a great friend to both the fish and those who love to catch them. We should all honor his legacy by treating others with kindness, as did he.

I will always remember him as he was when I first met him, standing barefoot at the helm of his Tran Sport center console, riding off to the far corners of the bay, his long, jet locks flowing free in the breeze. Ride on, Cochise! I will miss you, my brother.

Contact

Kevin Cochran

20 | August 2015

Kevin Cochran is a full-time fishing guide at Corpus Christi (Padre Island), TX. Kevin is a speckled trout fanatic and has created several books and dvds on the subject.

Kevin’s home waters stretch from Corpus Christi Bay to the Land Cut.

Trout Tracker Guide Service Phone Email Web

361-688-3714 kevxlr8@mygrande.net www.FishBaffinBay.com www.captainkevblogs.com

Conclusion STORY BY MARTIN STRARUP

B

odie was crossing the Harbor Bridge in Corpus when Dale rang his cell phone.

“Wish I had something good to tell you, but nothing new came of my meeting with Vince,” Bodie told him.

“Well,” Dale informed, “I thought you’d like to know, an FBI agent came by and said they are fair certain Raymond Woodford left the country last night under a forged passport. Looks like you can rest easy and get Tommy home. Hopefully the Feds will be able to deal with him.”

“Where did he go?” Bodie asked.

“He was vague on that, Bodie. Seems like that part of it is classified.

But at least it’s good to know he’s far away and that they’re on his trail.

Probably means other agencies are tracking him, too, which is good.”

Bodie hit the call end button and settled in for the drive home but Woodford haunted his thoughts. His mind turned eventually to Tommy and other matters at hand.

With Woodford out of the picture, at least for a while, he could concentrate on getting Tommy home. And, if Vince could follow through as he indicated and stay with him a while, things could get back to normal. He hoped.

A call to the hospital brought Dr. Hanson on the line.

“Hi Doc! Thanks for taking my call,” Bodie greeted. “Last time I was at the hospital the staff nurses said Tommy might be released tomorrow.

I thought I’d get it straight from you, whether I might be able to take him home in the morning.”

“Actually, Mr. Allen, I was planning to call you. Mr. Meyers is scheduled to be released day after tomorrow, but I see no reason he could not leave in the morning. We are very pleased with the

progress he has made.”

“Sounds great, Doc. I can be there around 9:00, if that’s OK with you, and the staff.”

“That will be fine. I will notify the staff and I’ll let Mr. Meyers know you’re coming when I make my rounds,” the doctor said.

Bodie called Monroe to make sure a new air conditioner had been installed at his house, and then headed to the post office and home.

Bodie’s situational awareness was in high gear as he pulled into the yard. Circling the place, and everything appearing to be in order he parked, and headed inside.

He grabbed a beer from the refrigerator, put his leftover Mexican food in the microwave, and then sat at the kitchen table to look through the mail.

“More junk than bills,” he muttered. “But better than the other way around.”

Rising and scooping the junk mail, he noticed a scrap of paper on the table with a note scrawled on it.

“Had some business come up more important than you cowboy.

But I’ll be seeing you one of these days. Oh, nice locks. They work really well. -RW” Bodie hated bothering Dale so late in the evening but knew he had to call him.

“I never touched the paper,” Bodie told the detective. “Used a pencil to slide it into a clean envelope and sealed it.”

“Good thinking,” Dale replied. “I will make a copy for the FBI and place it in the evidence file. And if I were you,” he continued. “I’d find some better locks.”

“I’m not so sure locks are the answer, dealing with a guy like Woodford. I’m thinking maybe a couple of hungry Dobermans,” Bodie TSFMAG.com | 23

said, laughingly.

“It’s really not funny at all, Bodie. He might be out of the picture for now but you have to take this guy seriously,” Dale said with concern.

“I know I do, Dale; but I’m not going to walk around looking over my shoulder every few seconds or checking under my bed every night. Anyway, I will be stopping by Tommy’s house in the morning to pick up some of his clothes and then heading to the hospital to bring him home. It’s late, so I’ll let you go.”

When the elevator door opened, the hubbub from Tommy’s room told him his friend was saying his goodbyes. Nurses and aides were giving him hugs and helping gather his things.

“Bodie,” Tommy yelled. “I’m almost ready but I have to sign some papers before they’ll let me go.”

“You sure look a lot better than when they brought you in here, Buddy,” Bodie beamed.

“Did you bring me anything to wear?” Tommy chortled.

“Well no, Tommy, I didn’t even think of that. I guess you’ll just have to ride home in that pretty little gown you got there.”

“Aw come on, Bodie. You’re kidding, right? I can’t wear this thing in the public. What if some woman or kid saw me, or Ol’ Red. I’d never live it down,” Tommy whined.

“Come to think of it, Tommy Boy, those old worn seats in my truck probably wouldn’t feel too good. Your bare butt sticking out the back of that gown and all,” Bodie shot back with a laugh.

Tommy was grabbing the gown tight across his backside when Bodie tossed him the sack of clothes.

“I went by your place and picked you up some underwear, shorts and a fishing shirt. Your flip-flops are in there, too,” Bodie said. “Get dressed. I’ll be down the hall in the waiting room.”

Bodie was thumbing through a three-year-old fishing magazine when a ruckus broke out in Tommy’s room. He got up in time to see Tommy doing his best to fight off two orderlies trying to put him in a wheelchair.

“Tommy! What in the world is going on, boy?”

“Bodie, tell these two gorillas to lemme go! I still remember how to walk,” Tommy was yelling.

One of the orderlies looked at Bodie with pleading eyes. “Please, sir. Please ask him to cooperate. Patients can only leave the hospital in a wheel chair. It’s the rules.”

Bodie gave Tommy that old “I’m not fooling around here” glare and informed him he could ride in the wheelchair or he’d carry him out over his shoulder.

Tommy wondered for a second whether the big man was serious but a second glance into those icy eyes told him he’d better take a seat.

“Y’all be careful now, and don’t be turnin’ this thing over with me in it,” he said, trying to lighten the mood.

As the elevator doors closed, Tommy wanted to know if Bodie would stop at Wienerschnitzel so he could get a few chili dogs and chili burgers, and a Dr Pepper.

“I just love their chili dogs and chili burgers, Bodie. They are just the best with extra onions and French fries,” Tommy said, almost drooling.

“Tired of hospital food huh, Tommy,” Bodie asked with a grin.

“Oh my Lord, Bodie. They like to starve me to me death and I haven’t had a cold beer in a month,” Tommy said excitedly.

“What did your doctor say about drinking beer?” Bodie asked.

24 | August 2015

“Ya know, I told him that I liked an ice-cold beer now and again, and he said that I could have at it. So I’m planning to follow his orders,” Tommy giggled.

Bodie pulled up to the drive-through at Wienerschnitzel and Tommy blurted out, “Oh wow, Bodie, they have the 12-12 & 12 special going on!” Bodie scanned the menu and sure enough, the special was 12 chili dogs, 12 chili burgers and 12 orders of fries.

“Tommy, maybe you ought to go easy on the chili—just out of the hospital and all,” Bodie said.

“Heck no, Bodie, I’m going to eat what I can right now and the rest is for dinner tomorrow. And don’t forget the Dr Peppers,” Tommy gushed.

Bodie placed the order and a young female voice announced the price. “Aw heck, Bodie, I don’t have any money,” Tommy exclaimed.

“I’ve got this, Tommy, don’t worry about it.” Bodie paid the girl and they hit the road.

Bodie had to admit the food smelled good and before he could comment Tommy was digging in the sack, “You want a chili dog or a chili burger, Bodie?”

Between bites of chili burger Bodie allowed as how it was quite tasty.

“Oh, I know, Bodie. I just love this stuff,” Tommy replied, tearing at his burger like a wolf. “You wanna try a chili dog next?”

Bodie took a sip of Dr Pepper, “Yeah, why not. And lemme try some of those fries, too.”

Twenty miles later Bodie had eaten two chili burgers, two of the chili dogs and a bag of fries. Tommy had somehow stuffed twice that amount down his scrawny neck.

“Man, I could eat these all day, Bodie, how about you?” Tommy managed between burps.

“Yeah, Tommy, they’re good all right. But I think I’ve reached my limit of chili and onions,” Bodie chuckled, rooting in his shirt pocket for a toothpick.

Bodie turned into Tommy’s driveway. “What’s been going on here?

It looks different!” Tommy exclaimed.

“Yep, that new paint sure brightens it up, doesn’t it?” Bodie said with a smile.

“Bodie, who in the world painted my house?”

“The folks at the EMS all pitched in, and some others,” Bodie replied.

“Well, wh-what for?” Tommy asked.

“Tommy, they did it because they like you and wanted to give you a homecoming gift.”

Bodie grabbed what was left of the Wienerschnitzel sack and Tommy’s home-care package from the hospital; “Come on, Tommy, let’s have a look inside.”

Tommy whistled in disbelief, “My god, Bodie, they painted inside, too. And new flooring!”

Bodie was naturally proud of how everybody had pitched in but Tommy was suddenly glum, “Why the sad face, Tommy Boy,” he asked.

“Oh, this is too much, Bodie, way too much,” Tommy squeaked tearfully.

“Well, you have lots of friends, Tommy, maybe more than you know. And we were all in it together,” Bodie assured him. “What say you get yourself together and we’ll head in to Haddon’s for a couple cold ones, and then call it a night.”

“Vince!” Tommy screamed as they met mid-floor, hugging and dancing like ten-year-olds. “Eloisa!” Tommy yelled. “The beer’s on me.

For the next hour!”

The crowd went to roaring, again.

Red slid in next to Bodie at the bar and said that he sure had missed Tommy. “Just wasn’t the same around here, Bodie.” He quipped. “Didn’t have a single person to pick on the whole time he was gone.”

The crowd celebrated while Tommy and Vince took a table and chatted over how good it felt to be reunited. Bodie was happy, too.

Feeling all was right in the world, or at least in their tiny fishing town.

He had lots of things to catch up at the ranch. But that could wait. For tonight, anyway.

In the back of mind, though… Raymond Woodford, and the promise that they’d meet again.

Martin Strarup

Contact

Haddon’s parking lot was full and Tommy was surprised. “Must be that weeknight shrimp and oyster special you told me about, Bodie.”

Bodie held the door for Tommy and a huge round of cheers greeted them. Tommy looked like he was about to crawl under a table but before he could move he was riding shoulders and sitting on the bar, sipping a cold sudsy mug.

Red gave Tommy a big bear hug and told him he’d had his boat lift rebuilt, “But don’t go getting all mushy on me, it’s not like I missed you or anything!” Red shouted over the cheers.

Bert, the local knife maker, gave Tommy a beautiful handmade fillet knife and Mr. Sellers was next, announcing that Tommy’s old freezer was in the dump and the new one was full of prime Angus steaks. A group of Coasties presented a fancy shirt they’d had made and a certificate declaring that Tommy Meyers had been made an Honorary Admiral in the US Coast Guard.

Whistling between her fingers to still the crowd, Eloisa announced Haddon’s newest menu item; The Tommy Burger—two quarter pound patties, cheese, pickles, onions, bacon and chili, on a jalapeño sourdough bun. The crowd cheered again and Tommy started choking. Eloisa applied the slap on the back he always needed at such times.

“Speech—Speech!” everybody yelled.

Tommy got down from the bar in tears and did his best to assure his friends he loved them all and was deeply moved by their generosity. “All of you are my family,” he choked between sobs of joy.

“I’m your family, too, Brother!” Vince Meyers exclaimed as he burst through the door. “Sorry I’m late, but it’s a long drive from Corpus!”

Martin Strarup is a lifelong saltwater enthusiast and outdoorsman.

Martin is also a collector and dealer of vintage fishing tackle and lures, especially those made in Texas.

Email

Trouthunter@swbell.net

TSFMAG.com | 25

STORY BY CHUCK UZZLE

I

n some ways it seems the world becomes a little smaller every day, just a bit more crowded. And then there are times when everything feels wide open, with plenty of space to roam. Welcome to Texas!

Even when it feels that everything is closing in, the Texas coast still presents exceptional opportunity for those willing to do a little homework and put on a few miles. Destinations from Sabine Lake to South Padre, and all points in-between, offer saltwater anglers any number of prime opportunities. For many anglers the thought of attacking a new body of water is a tad daunting while others readily embrace the challenge. Just like everything else, there are right ways and wrong ways of going about this task.

In the past few years it has become much more common to field calls and emails from anglers who want to come to Sabine Lake or Calcasieu and “do it themselves.” I truly appreciate the fact these anglers are willing to venture off to a foreign body of water and try to solve the puzzle on their own, and for years I wondered how some of the more successful tournament anglers could move from bay to bay and consistently end up high on the leaderboard.

The thought of keeping up with fish catching patterns on multiple bodies of water seemed like a ridiculously difficult task to me, but somehow these top-end anglers managed to do just that. Eventually I understood how they were able to pull off the feat; they asked the right people the right

A trip to any new bay or body of water should begin with a GPS and studying a quality fishing map of the area.

questions and eliminated unproductive water in order to maximize their available time.

Very few successful anglers ventured into a new bay without having some sort of idea or plan that would help them locate fish. Most of their homework was done well before their boat ever touched the water and that’s exactly how even the average angler should approach a new body of water.

I know we have all had those conversations, either in the boat or just hanging out with other fishermen—which bodies of water we would like to go explore and learn next.

Upper Coast folks dream of the Laguna Madre or Baffin while the South Texas anglers wonder what it would be like to spend time on Galveston, Sabine or Calcasieu, for a few days. Well there is no time like summer to make a road trip to a new venue and see just exactly what all the fuss is about.

Before you go though, it would be wise to do some reconnaissance—homework—that might insure the difference between a memorable trip and a busted weekend.

It’s always a great idea when venturing to a new body of water to take advantage of some local knowledge. Hiring a guide is perhaps the best way to gain a crash course in a short amount of time. If you choose to hire a guide, be honest with them as far as what you are looking for. Remember the day is more about learning the water than actually discovering where they have been fishing because this type of information is far more valuable than any limit of fish.

Many of my customers bring maps and/or GPS in order to take notes or make waypoints for later use, and I’m OK with that. Basic, safe navigation should be the Being handy with a cast highest priority. Learning net can make or break a where you can and cannot trip. Bait houses can be run is usually the first few and far between in some venues. thing most folks want, or

TSFMAG.com | 27

should want, to know.

Your more adventurous anglers may point to their GPS and say they have all the navigation assistance they need.

Just remember though, things can change quickly out there on the bays, and GPS can be next to worthless for identifying underwater obstructions, water levels as pertains to seasons and tides, and other variables.

Years ago I saw a brand new highdollar bass boat capsized on an open water hump at Sam Rayburn. The guys were from California and were prefishing an upcoming tournament. Their boat was equipped with the best GPS of that era, but with no way of knowing the lake was more than 10 feet lower than normal level. Hence, the 10-foot-deep channel they thought they were heading through (that is how it was marked on the screen) turned out to be all but dry.

Very scary lesson learned and fortunately nobody was seriously injured.

Besides basic navigation it’s always good to learn what type of structure is most productive at given times of the year. Don’t ask the guide for exact coordinates to his or her favorite reef, rather, ask them about general areas and patterns, instead. If all you have are coordinates to Successful release! structure that was What better way to remember your first trip to a new bay?

28 | August 2015

productive a season ago, you will more than likely arrive to find no other boats working it, or fish to be caught, either.

Whereas, obtaining a general report of recently Homework – preparing useful patterns; for the trip before you depth, structure go – can make all the types, etc.; you can difference between be well on your way memorable outings and busted weekends. to a successful outing and the knowledge you gain will be invaluable should you decide on making another trip. I cannot emphasize enough how helpful a map is when quizzing the guide or other knowledgeable locals. Marking up a quality map with navigation notes and other tidbits they are willing to contribute can be invaluable to any angler on a new body of water.

Now that you have a basic idea of navigation and a maybe few landmarks as well to choose from, take notice of the wind and what it will likely do to certain areas.

Nobody wants to make a long trip to a new body of water only to have the target area blown out by wind from a bad angle. Many times, wind from a particularly undesirable direction will render an entire bay system next to unfishable. On Sabine, we hate to see big southwest wind because it just tears up the water on the east shoreline where the all the marshes connect to the lake.

Other bays have similar problems with winds from their own specific directions; it pays to know what’s favorable and what’s not.

Other elements of local knowledge that will come in handy are lures or baits of choice.

In salt water, the mystique of one particular color or specific bait being the only one that will produce is drastically overrated compared to our fresh water counterparts who tend to go absolutely berserk over this. I know freshwater anglers that have color charts for lure selection that would

guides from that area, searching for credible reports either in print or electronic, visiting local tackle shops, or just giving a guide a phone call or email, you can acquire tons of useful information that will put you farther down the road to success.

Most folks would be amazed at how helpful most anglers can be if you just take time to talk with them and ask a few of the right questions. By perfecting a pattern of finding out where to fish, how to fish, and when to fish; you can quickly graduate from tourist to traveling angler, and not be afraid to try new venues. A little bit of leg work before the actual trip will pay off in the end and make those road trips well worth the effort.

Chuck Uzzle

Contact

make Sherwin-Williams envious. Saltwater anglers tend to be more practical. More often than not, in saltwater angling, we find technique and presentation to be far more valuable than matching colors to the tee.

I watched some local guys, one time down in southeast Louisiana, absolutely vacuum a stretch of shoreline using a small rattling cork and a mid-size soft plastic. Our boat had just fished the same stretch of water, like Texas guys often do with topwaters and swimbaits, and managed only a few bites, while these guys followed right behind us and nearly had to beat the redfish away from the boat. Their technique (we did not try rattle corks) and lure selection was the difference and we quickly adapted after being taught a valuable lesson.

Another bit of local knowledge that also helps is where to locate live bait if you need it. Most bay systems have tackle or bait shops that provide everything from live shrimp, mullet and croaker, while in other places those selections are scarce. On Sabine we routinely catch our own bait with a cast net and the preferred live offering is one of the several species of shad that are so abundant. An angler who can handle a cast net really has an advantage when it comes to gathering some live bait for either fishing or chumming. Most local folks know where to go if they need to catch some live bait and that’s an important bit of information, especially if there aren’t any bait houses around.

Anglers who take the time to learn all they can about the water they want to fish before they launch their boat are light years ahead of the ones who just take a shot in the dark and hope for the best.

By reading articles about certain areas, attending seminars given by

Chuck fishes Sabine and Calcasieu Lakes from his home in Orange, TX. His specialties are light tackle and fly fishing for trout, reds, and flounder.

Phone Email

409-697-6111 cuzzle@gt.rr.com

TSFMAG.com | 29

STORY BY JOE RICHARD

Blacktips are not shy and seem fearless around the boat. These are being teased with a dead shad on a hook.

O

ver the years I have not exactly been a stranger to blacktip sharks.

The upper half of Texas and perhaps all of Louisiana has an amazing population of these sharks during summer. You can hardly avoid catching them. They’re energetic, strong enough to bust up tackle, and good to eat. Much more appealing than the sneaky bull shark that steals hooked fish even in muddy water, wanders far up rivers, and is implicated in a number of human deaths. The bull is strangely sluggish on the hook, at least all of the four-footers that I’ve caught.

Not so the blacktip; this character will sprint and jump and try to empty a reel. They also have a cruel set of teeth you don’t want to mess with; they’re easily capable of removing fingers.

Fortunately for Texans, they also don’t mind murky water. Brown or murky green seems best.

For this reason I think the upper half of the Texas coast carries far more blacktips than the clear water found further south. They may also favor the upper half of the coast because summer menhaden schools concentrate along that very same stretch.

Out there within sight of summer bathers, blacktips are hard on the menhaden. But they’re also a versatile shark, wandering into muddy bays and even crowding around shrimpboats offshore. If you see a hundred sharks behind a shrimpboat, they’re blacktips.

Friends of mine have seen blacktips crawling over the tops of one another, eager for handouts when the shrimpboat crew begins shoveling bycatch overboard. It’s amazing action, though one many boaters will turn their backs on, saving their energies for other fish.

TSFMAG.com | 31

But heck, if you’re after a fish fry, you can do worse than a 30-pound blacktip.

We once held a big fry for 30 people who were visiting the coast. And blacktip was on the menu. That summer weekend the wind was blowing and the entire bay was a chocolate mess; there was no way we were going to feed a crowd with trout fillets.

Some place in town had boxes of frozen fish fillets, (restaurant product), and the price was right, but they had Chinese markings all over the box and we weren’t sure about the quality. Much less the species. So, we saddled up with Jimmy Crouch and artist Sam Caldwell, and plowed offshore to the first rigs in state waters. That’s where the blacktips—small ones, maybe 10 pounds— gave us plenty of action under corks. Back at the house we admired the 30-inch fillets, and then chunked them up for the frying pan. The crowd was impressed with the final result. Some of them had seen the whole fillets and we told them they were trout, which raised a few eyebrows. It was a great fish fry.

But while catching them, don’t toss those sharks in the ice chest and then stick your head too close later, the ammonia will send you reeling. Get the skin off those sharks back at the dock, and the white meat smells pretty much the same as trout. If the bag limit is tight on sharks these days, aim for a 30- or 40-pounder (ling size) if

Close-up of a solid blacktip shark alongside the boat.

you have a crowd to feed.

Blacktips get mixed reviews from anglers, but in Port Arthur, Mike Spencer has a thing going with these sharks. He takes a boatload of college-age gals out there, who have all become big fans of the fighting blacktip. The local population of sharks is very dependable during summer.

“We use thin, sharp circle hooks, and just leave them in the sharks,” says Mike. “No use risking fingers unhooking them. The gals think it’s pretty sporty and they’re young enough to battle Little “ankle snapper” these sharks most of the day. We catch some big blacktip shark caught ones, six feet at least, and a shark like that will go while wade fishing in nuts when it feels the hook.” the bays. Nice to have a Blacktips are good at busting up tackle too, pair of long, needle nose pliers around these guys. breaking the line with tail strikes or chomping on steel kingfish leaders—sometimes right through them. But Mike only uses one foot of wire leader, and then six feet of 125-pound mono shock leader. He says the circle hooks always get them in the corner of the mouth, and most often you don’t even need a wire leader.

“I keep a bundle of stand-up rods with TLD-15 reels in the boat, “ Spencer says. “The gals wear rod belts for protection. Some of these sharks will try to spool a reel; they have amazing energy. Some of them have made runs of 150 yards.”

He says that sometimes the sharks and jacks are waiting around a shrimp boat that has stopped to nap during the heat of the day. “We check them all until we find fish. Some shrimpboats are anchored, or tied up to rigs, even drifting. Find the right one, and it may have hundreds of big sharks, jacks, kings and a couple of ling.”

“When a shrimpboat is pulling his nets, we run parallel, upwind of them, then slow down and stop just outside of their upwind outrigger,” says Spencer. “We drift into his muddy wake with four dead pogies. Sometimes the sharks are there immediately, or we may wait 10 minutes before getting a hit. We sometimes put a chum bucket in the water. If the sharks are there they will leave the shrimp boat and stay with us until we get tired of catching them. These

32 | August 2015

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sharks weigh from 40 up to 140 pounds, and we release them all. We use measurement charts off the Internet for weight estimates.”

“These sharks are not always behind the boats. And Marci Hebert leans we may stop behind six to eight shrimpboats before we into a blacktip shark find a fish. But sometimes there are hundreds. When the alongside the boat. shrimp boat stops to pull in the nets on deck, it can be Her crew cuts each leader close to the awesome. The water needs to be at least a clear green or shark, releasing them clearer. Poor visibility or muddy water seldom works. But for another day. we are not going far from shore. Most of the time we’re one to six miles out.”

With this kind of savage action, Spencer’s crew is obviously not using Mickey Mouse tackle out there.

“We use 40-pound line on our reels. And size 7 to14 circle hooks with about six feet of leader. This makes it easy to leader and hold up a fish for pictures. The sharks seldom cut the leader because the circle hook is always in the corner of the mouth. I seldom use wire leader but when I do, it’s only about a foot. And this is when there aren’t a lot of sharks that day and we don’t want to lose even one.”

“We use 5’6” stand up rods and rod belts. Leave the reels in gear for the strike. A six-foot blacktip is going to run off 150 yds of line on of line in one run. That’s fun with any kind of fish. And in the calmer the first run. Many will jump two or three times, sometimes five feet summer months around here they can be easy to find. They also stick in the air, and spin. They can be as thrilling as a tarpon or any other around into October,” Spencer says. gamefish. Especially for someone who has never caught a fish over One word of caution: Be careful around these sharks. It’s best to five pounds. And you can catch all you want in an afternoon, unlike leave them in the water, and don’t try to save a cheap circle hook tarpon or other game fish.” before releasing them; it isn’t worth it. The cost of rebuilding fingers “We do notice strikes from sharks are more common on the or a hand is very expensive. brown- green water edge of a shrimp boat’s path. The cleaner water We’ve had a good record with these sharks, but had one close is best. But we do occasionally catch a shark in muddy water around call. We tried to tail-rope a five-foot blacktip and drag it backwards the jetties or along the beachfront. We can almost always find behind the boat to drown it, before bringing it home. Quick as a blacktips. And then maybe one BIG bull shark a year, usually trying snake, it bent completely around and chomped the air near Amy’s to attack our hooked blacktips when alongside the boat. And twice elbow. So, we abandoned that landing technique. I picked up a pole we’ve hooked big tigers,” Spencer says. spear in the boat and shot the shark through the middle gills, which Jaclyn McKee and “It’s become huge fun for the younger Jolee Spencer has is where the heart is. The shark went limp, and we dragged it aboard. fishermen. Most people never catch a subdued this blacktip Gaffing a blacktip will really give them some bad attitude, so be 100-pound fish that burns off 100-200 yards shark off Sabine Pass. careful. Capt. Howard Horton tried to unhook a gaffed three-foot blacktip at the Galveston jetties, and very soon had to have three of his fingers sewed back on. Along with a week of hospital stay and morphine.

Joe Richard

Contact

Joe Richard has fished the Gulf since 1967, starting out of Port Arthur, but his adventures have taken him up and down the entire coast. He was the editor of Tide magazine for eight years, and later Florida Sportsman’s book and assistant magazine editor. He began guiding out of Port O’Connor in 1994. His specialty is big kingfish, and his latest book is The Kingfish Bible, New Revelations. Available at Seafavorites.com

34 | August 2015

STORY BY JOE DOGGETT

Sight-casters hope to make the most of bright sun over white sand as storm clouds loom close.

A

grand speckled trout drifted across the sun-sparkled flat of sand and grass. The slim gray/black image looked to be 27 or 28 inches long.

They get bigger, but not often.

The fish had no idea I was anywhere near the Laguna Madre, let alone poised on the bow of a flats skiff about 80 feet away. I cocked the casting rod and eyeballed the Skitter Walk topwater plug and the 25-pound fluorocarbon shock leader to confirm nothing was tangled.

Then, as I glanced back to the water, the lights went out. A mutinous cloud blocked the high sun. The riffled surface and mottled grass erased the trout.

The boat was drifting and the opportunity was fleeting. I let fly, hoping for the best, and the cast arced above the dull water. I under-compensated and the 1/2-ounce lure landed with a jarring splat on top of the fish. This abrupt campaign of “shock and awe” resulted in a sucking boil and a roil of sand as the alarmed fish fled across the flat.

That depressing incident underlines the importance of bright sun when stalking fish in clear water. This so-called “sight casting” carries the game to its highest level—and excellent sub-surface visibility is your strong ally. Of course, good sun never is a sure deal.

When the lights go out and you are forced to shadow dance, here are several tactics to

improve the chances of spotting a fish before it senses you: First, use a quality pair of polarized sunglasses. Amber lenses are a good choice for all-around flats work, and seem especially good under dull conditions. The contrast really snaps out. I’ve been using a pair of reasonably priced Salt Life glasses this year and consider them to be exceptional. They use Zeiss lenses, if that tells you anything.

I also have a favorite pair of amber-tinted Onos that feature small magnifiers cut into the lower lenses—a smart idea for the graying, balding “boomer” attempting to re-rig on the water. Sadly, many of us fall into that category.

Regardless of brand, try several choices and pick a comfortable pair with large lenses and a snug fit to minimize side glare.

Incidentally, the “aviator” type glasses look cool but they can allow too much side light to enter. Even less practical are the “granny” glasses with small round frames; unless a John Lennon lookalike contest is being held nearby, they are not the best choice.

Also a factor, big, snug frames and lenses provide better eye protection from errant hooks. One day you might be extremely thankful for this forethought.

Good glasses do make a difference in spotting fish, and unless you sit on them or they blow out of the boat or a sly partner swipes them, you’re good for at least several years.

An in-range redfish or trout can be easy to miss even under ice cream conditions—and under flat light you’re likely to be handcuffed by the fish before you see it. The dark spotted back Slight shadow in of a motionless trout can be awfully hard to identify diffused light on white amid bouncing chops and broken bottom; so can the sand bottom helps mark grayish-pink hues of an open-water redfish (opposed a moving bonefish. to the bold coppery bronze of a marsh red).

Drifting or wading, the tuned angler stands ready to cast close and cast quick. Looking way over there on a gray day will cost chipshot chances. cloud cover. Of course, it helps if fish are on the sand. A clean You can improve the ability to spot fish in dull light by fishing bottom serves little purpose if the next 500 yards are void of over clean sand. Grass beds are almost impossible under heavy meaningful life—but you get the idea.

Here’s another advantage to prowling over clean sand: Even on a gray day you might be able to spot the faint shadow of a slowly moving fish.

The slim shadow on the bottom acts like an exclamation point to define an otherwise vague target. Marking the shadow especially is helpful on translucent fish such as ladyfish and, on tropical flats, bonefish. Same thing with one of those pale redfish just in from the Gulf.

Conversely, even on a bright day fish shadows can vanish over a dark or variegated bottom.

Moving as shallow as practical also helps. Something substantial such as a four-foot lemon shark or maybe a 20-pound stud jack is a no-brainer as it pushes across a Some days are better than others for thigh-deep flat but a sight-casting. Despite shallow water “keeper” speck or red and clean sand, Doggett, left, and Jim can utterly vaporize in Easterling head for the dock.

38 | August 2015

three feet of water. Working shin-deep gives average eyes a better chance of seeing fish.

If the skiff or scooter seems too bold along a skinny shoreline, it might be a good idea to sacrifice the mobility and elevation and get out and wade. If you sink to a knee in goopie muck, another option for the thin-water stealth mission is a tricked kayak.

Redfish, especially, are apt to “tail” in shin-deep water. And you certainly don’t need sunlight to spot those waving, waggling pennants; indeed, a gang of bottom-grubbing reds frothing with saucy blue-tipped fans after crabs and grass shrimp is one of the most thrilling sights in coastal fishing.

This is assuming, of course, that in your haste to wade within casting range you don’t blunder up the back of a hideous Summer days on the doormat stingray cozied into the sand Texas coast often see and mud. Come to think of it, that kayak scattered cloud buildups is starting to look even better. as sun rises over the Gulf.

Fish cruising through shallows often push wakes. Of course, not all surface movement is caused by trout and reds; the bulbous head of a bull mullet can displace an impressive hump. But, if the disturbance looks significant, it costs nothing to cast. At least you’ve got something in your sights. I’ve thrown at thousands of mullet and other assorted riffraff—and, every now and then, that big mullet turns out to be a dandy trout.

Most impressive is the bulging “V” caused by a school of big reds moving leisurely across a flat or down a shoreline. Just give a nod to Lady Luck and aim ahead of the moving water and hope you don’t backlash. Again, you don’t have to be an Amber polarized Aztec sun worshipper to make this work. sunglasses with Calm, clear water can be a doublesnappy contrast over clean sand help sightcasters spot ghosting fish on cloudy days.

40 | August 2015

edged sword. Locating a fish on a gloomy day certainly is easier but one ill-advised move or “clunk” can blow the stalk. Shallow fish can be ultra-skittish under slick conditions.

Of course, many—no, most—days serve up a mix of sparkling sky and passing clouds. During summer, dark billows often build up over the humid Gulf and move inland on the prevailing southeast wind.

Overall, this is good fishing weather.

But, when heavy clouds are a recurring issue, the determined sight caster on a productive stretch of water needs to maximize the minutes of bright visibility. Halting the wade or drift until a wad of clouds pushes past is a good way to keep from squandering good chances waiting just ahead.

And, when the lights come back on, the savvy angler takes a moment to study the close water before starting to move. This includes a careful glance behind. A nice trout or red might have eased within easy range. If a major cloud bank covers the area, accept the setback and use the down time to re-rig or relocate. Or maybe just take a break.

If the light really washes out and the clean sand and skinny shorelines show no promise, you might want to forget the whole sight-casting drill. Some days it helps to be realistic. Go blind cast over a deeper flat or reef, or work the edges of a channel.

Or run to the nearest dock and look for the nearest “Cold Beer” sign. Even under adverse conditions, these are usually easy to spot.

STORY BY BILLY GERKE

W

ith summer hitting full swing and the kids ready to have fun, my family and I decided to break away for a few days of coastal fishing in early June before the hectic All Star Baseball schedule got in the way. If you have children in sports I’m sure you understand.

Now everybody has their favorite places to spend time with those they love and, for our crew, being on the boat with no one else around ranks right up there with family time spent in deer stands and duck blinds. The outdoors is our get-away place, far from life’s interruptions; if you know what I mean.

This time of year Baffin Bay and all that it offers in tranquility and fishing is easily one of our favorites and we have made many fine memories amid her rocks and clear water. Little did I know that this trip was going to turn out to be so epic for of all us.

The first morning, I turned the boat into Nighthawk Bay, figuring to make a quick drift and hopefully land a few and get things off to a good start. Shortly into that first drift my wife, Amy, and boys Ty and Layne, let it be known that they did not want to stay. Amy said, “I thought we were headed to Baffin.” I immediately pulled the drift sock and we were off.

The wind that morning was basically a non-factor and the slight turn it had made to the north really got me to thinking hard about where I wanted to start the summer off. Being that the family likes to wade with me I am always thinking of sure bottom and hard sand in particular. The light north breeze and hard bottom equaled a nobrainer move to Tide Gauge.

Tide Gauge Bar, for those who do not know, lies along the shoreline of the famed King Ranch. This long bar of sand has been a favorite of

Baffin anglers for many years, its gentle slope and near constant shape along its length makes an excellent tide level reference—partially or nearly exposed on low tides and sometimes covered by several feet of water during higher tides. After a 35-minute boat ride we were gliding into the Tide Gauge and making preparations for our first wade. Very few bites at our first stop prompted a move and it would turn out to be a good choice for more reasons than one.

Idling in for our second stop, I could see bait working in the shallows.

Another boat had beaten us there but there was plenty of room in this particular area to spread out and share the water. As we began fishing I noticed the guys down from us landing fish after fish so I knew there were plenty in the area, we just had to settle in and get on the bite.

I noticed one of the guys down the way kept looking our direction and then began waving for me to move that direction which, in this day and time, really took me by surprise.

After a few minutes he yelled, “Hey Mike, get over here.” I yelled back, “Well, I am not Mike but I can be today as I can see you guys are really on ‘em!” We both laughed at his mistake and then he said, “Well, come on over anyway. Bring your family and join us. There’s plenty room and plenty of fish here.” I just about had to pinch myself to see if this was really happening but soon after we joined in the fun.

Both my boys moved up and the guys we had just met were handing them rods and pointing my sons in the right direction, like we had known them for years.

I looked to the Heavens and thanked God for His reassurance and blessing, knowing that the old homage is true, “Birds of the same feather truly do flock together.”

It gave me a sense of great pride to be more than a father that day; to be a part of an industry that truly does care about others. That there TSFMAG.com | 43

are still people out there that do this for what it is, not just chest pounding, but for sharing these gifts with others.

Well our fun ended pretty quickly as a storm had formed out over Baffin Bay. We took refuge with our new friends on the porch of a nearby floating cabin where we tied our boats and waited for the squall to pass. We all got to know each other quite a bit better on that small porch.

During that time on the porch my phone went off and it was one of my employees checking on us. I wondered how in the heck he could possibly have known we were in a storm but, it turned out, friend Robb Guerra had seen us earlier that morning and did not see us return back by them. He began making calls out of concern for me and my family and that’s why the phone rang. God reassured me again with that phone call that I am truly blessed to be part of an industry where people truly care. An hour or so later I decided it was safe to get back on the water. We said goodbye to our new friends and headed back to port.

The story does not end there. My son, Ty, and I were itching to get

back on those fish as the bait was thick in the area and we knew that the next morning could be really good with light wind predicted again. Amy and Layne decided that the storm had been enough for them, sleeping late sounded better. So, early next morning, Ty and I loaded up and we were headed south once again.

With light wind and a moonlit sky we got an early start with the moon about to set in the west while the sun would soon be rising in the east—perfect setup for a good bite. We drove up to the same spot we had been the morning before and to say bait was working would be a huge understatement. I looked at Ty and I am sure he could see the spark in my eyes, as I could see in his and, he said, “Dad, let me out!”

We both slid out of the boat with quail chirping from the King Ranch shoreline and bait active up ahead. We just knew it was going to be good. On my second cast I landed a dream fish—a true 30-incher weighing just over 8-pounds on my Snatch Em tool. Ty was catching them cast after cast with his largest that morning measuring 27-inches, in the 6-pound range.

We caught an unbelievable number of fish and when all was said and done we kept our limit of trout over 3 pounds, and a few redfish to boot. We released all our larger trout as we typically do after photographs but the 30-incher will take a spot on our wall to commemorate this awesome adventure.

After we finished fishing that morning and were fixing to head in, I asked Ty to join me on the bow of the boat and we prayed together, giving thanks for the time we were able to share and lay witness to God’s beauty that morning. My Father’s Day came earlier than expected, those two days in early June, but in all honesty I have Father’s Day every day as I am so very blessed to be able to share my passion for the outdoors with my family and my friends. I also believe I am very blessed to share this business and industry with people who passionately care for one another and the fishery that we have been given.

I want to say a special thanks to those guys who invited us over to fish with them, and also to the employees and friends who made a special effort to check on us during the storm. These gestures made it much more than just a fishing trip, it made it more than special to me. I want my boys to see this world through acts of kindness—something we all need lessons in from time to time.

I was asked the other day to what do I attribute our success in business and the answer was very simple and summed up in one word—God! He is the centerpiece of our business and our family and for that reason we are humbled.

“Family, friends, and the great outdoors is who we are.”

Billy Gerke - ForEverlast

44 | August 2015

Mike Sutton enjoying a tight line.

Pam’s six-pounder!

STORY BY EVERETT JOHNSON

I

n this high-information age I would be willing to bet that most coastal fishing enthusiasts have either experienced firsthand or at least heard the term, cast-n-blast—splitting a day between bay fishing and wingshooting.

Pam and I have been combining bay fishing with duck hunting and dove shooting for a long time, long before you could Google it and way before Facebook. September’s teal and dove seasons and the first split of “big” duck during November are prime times, given that the weather then generally suits combination days better than later duck and dove seasons in December and January. Pam deserves all the credit for getting us involved; here’s how it happened.

You first need to understand that I am a hard case when it comes to duck hunting. My dad began dragging me around in the marsh before I could heft a shotgun and I blame him that chilly mornings, Labs, decoys and the rush of wings own my heart and won’t let go. My only truly bad duck days are when I don’t hunt. I also suffer a hopeless addiction to coastal fishing. But, until Pam forced me otherwise, I forsook fishing for ducks during duck season.

Now Pam’s a duck hunter too, but on limited terms. She hates the cold and when the action isn’t fairly steady she is easily bored.

And if you haven’t already figured it out, she is also Craig Nyhus swings hopelessly addicted to fishing. on another high one.

We were way back in the Matagorda Island marsh that beautiful November morning and the hunting was slow as pretty mornings can be. I was determined to wait them out but she thought we should have been fishing.

“Tomorrow,” she announced, “I am bringing my fishing rods. You can wait for ducks if you like…but I’ll be fishing.” As she spoke we had mullet flipping in the decoys and redfish crashing against the cordgrass. Tough to argue.

The next morning was a weather repeat. A dawn flurry of pintails and redheads left us sitting-waiting-hoping. Pretty soon, true to her announcement, my dear wife vacated the blind, tied on a gold spoon and took off wading the edge of the spread. What’s a man to do? By the time I had the dekes collected she had a red on her stringer and was fighting another. Our cast-n-blast career was born and the rest, as they say, is history.

Over the years our cast-n-blast adventures have given us exceptional opportunity to enjoy the outdoors. Living in an area of abundant ducks, doves and great fishing, it seems natural to gun teal at daylight and spend the afternoon fishing. Then, come south zone dove season, we reverse the order, preferring afternoon shooting. During big duck season you can flip a coin, which way to

start the day. It’s all her fault.

Last September, good friend, Mike Sutton, called and invited us to participate in a media event he was putting together. Mike had recently become the new owner of Get-Away Adventures Lodge at Port Mansfield and was keen to meet more people in the Texas outdoors media.

Get-Away is an on-the-water lodge where anglers can book full-service stays that include guided fishing and they also host do-it-yourself anglers who bring their own boats. Staying at the lodge, even if self-guided, is a great option for maximizing fishing opportunity, excellent Teddy’s first stop dining and comfortable lodging in this tiny fishing gave us lots of these. village. Sandra Garza, lodge general manager and chef, puts great effort into insuring you will be Lots and lots of doves! comfortable and very well fed. Hospitality honcho, Robert Wilson, waits on you hand and foot if you let him. Sutton has a great team.

Fishing the Lower Laguna Madre from Port Mansfield has long been legendary for trophy trout and some of the best redfish action this side of Heaven. What lots of folks do not know is that dove shooting in nearby Rio Grande Valley grain fields takes a backseat to no place in Texas. Sunflower fields at harvest time can inspire images of Argentina. So, heck yeah—we jumped all over Mike’s invitation.

Mike had arranged his Get-Away guide team to get us on the water at daylight and then back at the lodge in time for lunch. A short siesta was thankfully included before we would drive to the dove fields. Dinners 48 | August 2015

would be back at the lodge. Two long action-packed days—great camaraderie—lots of fun.

Pam and I fished with Capt. Teddy Springer the first morning, longtime Get-Away guide and Lower Laguna veteran. Teddy had three spots in mind; one we would hit early with a promise of every-cast action for “keepers”, another for (hopefully) bigger trout when the solunar minor kicked in around 9:00, and then finishing up in a favorite redfish hole. If Teddy was never a drill sergeant, he should have been. He knows his business and doesn’t waste time getting after it. He is also a top-flight angler and fishing guide.

The first stop gave us lots of bites as promised. Right on Teddy’s prediction at the second stop Pam nailed a solid six-pound speck in the shoreline gut he directed her toward. We made a bunch of photos and sent her swimming, no worse for wear. We made the quick run to the redfish hole and found them stubborn but managed to trick a couple decent fish on slow-rolled plastics. Ol’ Sarge came up with the boat and said we had to leave or we’d miss lunch.

Stuffed with Sandra’s lunchtime handiwork, we did the siesta thing and then caravanned south to the dove field.

David Sykes of the Corpus Christi Caller-Times joined Pam and me with our Labs and mojo decoys in the shade of an oak motte that had been left standing partway out in the field. The rest of the crew headed farther down but when the shooting got going we all sort of congregated. We were right on the Mexican border, in Ruben lands another backcountry redfish. fact, if you allowed a southbound whitewing to sucker you it would fall into the gorge of the Rio Grande—un-retrievable even for the dogs. I learned the hard way, twice.

The second day’s schedule was nearly a carbon copy of the first. We fished with longtime friend, Capt. Ruben Garza, Sandra’s husband and, he too did a fine job of putting us on the type of fishing Port Mansfield is famous for delivering. Ruben showed us some backcountry we had never fished and it was teeming with reds. The second afternoon in the dove field, Ruben and Craig Nyhus of Lone Star Outdoor News put on an Me and Wink. With as many doves as were exhibition, crushing high-flyers and neatly dropping our dogs received a great workout. folding birds coming in low for feeding toward dusk. We had another great shoot and with so Pam’s Daisy bringing many birds falling in the stubble our dogs got a in another one. fantastic workout.

It ended way too quickly, as great trips always do.

Sandra served up a belt-buster breakfast and Robert was busy everywhere at once. We reluctantly made goodbyes to our fellows in the media, with hugs and handshakes all around. Mike put the icing on the cake saying, “Y’all mark your calendars for South Zone Special Whitewing Season next September.”

Contact: Get-Away Adventures Lodge Port Mansfield, Texas 956.944.4000 www.getawayadventureslodge.com

50 | August 2015

View from my office window the past 35 years.

J AY WAT K I N S

A S K THE P R O

The Lighter Side of Fishing Fishing is my life. Those who know me well or have fished with me know that I take my fishing very seriously. But not all fishermen do. I wrestled with this in the early part of my guiding career; that some were not as gung-ho. But I have matured over the years (somewhat).

It finally sunk in that many less-serious anglers gain as much or more joy from fishing than the hardwired types.

On the enjoyment meter; if there is such a thing, being totally serious all the time can wear on folks around you.

I am sure that throughout the years of taking my boys and their friends fishing, behind my back, they laughed at how anal I was about so many things. As I enter a new stage in my guiding career I am starting to realize that many of those booking with me enjoy all the things that go along with fishing just as much as the actual catching.

Call me a work in progress.

Sometimes it’s the funny things that we remember versus the fish we caught, or did not catch. Personally, I’ve had many trips where I remember comic events and cannot for the life of me recall what we caught. I want to tell you some stories about serious issues, in a humorous way; I hope you will be entertained. No names will be 52 | August 2015

mentioned and I mean no disrespect to those that have provided the laughter. I heard once that laughter was life’s best medicine.

A few years ago I was fortunate to fish a Bass Champs tournament on Falcon Lake with my youngest son, Ryan.

We pre-fished and found some 6- to 7 pound bass, which I thought to be great but, Ryan was not impressed. On tournament day we were one of about 300 teams and I honestly had never seen such a thing.

I backed Ryan down the launch ramp and spent the next 15 minutes trying to park the truck. The lake was extremely low and trucks and trailers were parked every which way. Once on the lake and fishing I found myself picking up lures and putting them back in the proper boxes. Before every move I would put everything away in its proper place. When Ryan would catch a bass I would try to help him. I found myself in his way and messing up his whole fishing sequence. It would have been hilarious to watch.

Finally he turned to me and said, “Dad, just fish!

Don’t worry what the boat looks like or if I can handle getting my fish in the boat.” I was driving him crazy and

preventing him from doing what he does. We laughed all the way home after our 83rd place finish.

Both Jay Ray and Ryan do a great impression of me holding onto the console grab rail at any speed over 50 mph. Funny to them but not so much to me.

I had a group of guys show up and get on the boat with a ton of gear. They had a variety of rod and reel combos, baitcast and spinning, all with mono line, half-full or less. Now our line is the only thing between us and the fish and it’s also probably the least expensive part of a trip—braid included. In my younger years I would have lost any hope of receiving a tip right there—probably would have gone like this: Client—“So how’s my casting, Jay?” Me—“Truthfully, the lure was not in the air long enough for me to tell. Your form is pretty good but your distance is lacking.”

One of the gentlemen in the group finally hooked a nice fish but after about a ten yard run he was spooled and the line broke. Actually, I think the tape he had holding it to the spool came off. Anyway, we

Danny Lee with 27-inch summer trout- CPR. Danny wears Simms waders in summer due to a very expensive knee brace.

put new line on his reel and the guy spent the rest of the day admiring the distance of each cast.

I had a guy ask me one time if I thought the weight of the jighead made any difference. I guess he thought the manufacturers make all those different sizes for the heck of it.

Or the guy that asked, “Why do you use jigs with such tiny hooks, don’t you think the larger mouth of a larger fish warrants a bigger hook?”

Or the guy that wanted me to teach him—and after the explanation of why we were going to use a 5” bone diamond Bass Assassin—asked whether the pink and gold deep-diving Border Jumper he had tied on might work.

I had a group show up with not one thing I had told them they needed—and then proceeded to inform me that some guy at the restaurant said they did not need to wade to catch trout. That might have been true, if they were fishing with him. I took a $650.00 loss that day—sent them and their 12-pack packing. Not funny to me or them at the time but everyone else at the dock found it quite amusing. I have matured since then. If that happened today I would just get them in the boat, secretly jerk the kill switch keeper, and cancel the day due to engine problems.

Had a guy show up and tell me that he knew I did not like my wading people using landing nets, but he needed to. He had this handcrafted little wooden beauty with about a 10 inch mouth. Nice net. But a 15 inch trout wouldn’t fit in it. If you’re going to drag a net, at least bring one that will hold a decent-sized fish.

One of the funniest was a guy that showed up with waders and wading shoes still in the box. Two left shoes, one size 12 and the other size 9. I told him that at least one of his feet would be comfortable. He then informed that he wore size 10!

One of the best-ever was the macho guy that brought his young son on a wade trip and, despite my insistence, they came in shorts. The jellies were very bad. Fishing was great in the moving water around the mid-bay reef, fast and furious. I was constantly stringing trout and watching for jellyfish. In the midst of things I missed seeing one being pulled along in the current and it wrapped the boy’s legs and really lit him up. Tears welling in his eyes, the dad warned, “Don’t be a whimp!”

Quickly shifting from guide mode to dad, I assured the youngster that I understood how much it hurt and we took a short boat break. The sting subsided and we were soon back in the water, on high alert.

We’d worked our way to a gut that ran through the reef and I commented this was where the better fish would be. Ol’ Dad jumped ahead of me and the boy, intent on TSFMAG.com | 53

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big trout. Landing several he forgot about the jellies. Suddenly a brute of a jellyfish appeared about 3 feet up-current from him. The youngster was about to warn him when I placed my hand over his mouth. It was amazing how quickly the big man became a little boy. The language he spewed and the gyrations of his legs and body was enough to make me bust out laughing. I commented to the son, “Your dad is acting kind of whimpy, huh?” Never saw them again.

The absolute worst and funniest was on yours truly in my young and stupid years. I had a very nice gentleman bring his son and he wanted to drift rather than wade as the son had some physical challenges.

Back then catching trout and reds in big numbers was pretty much a guarantee if you could cast. I helped the duo onto the boat at Palm Harbor and we made the short run to Estes Flats. They both looked perfectly normal to me. They even had the best polarized sunglasses of that day. I was impressed.

Spoons were working like champs and we were into the fish left and right. I coached the young man numerous times about reeling them too close to the rod tip and to lead them to the net so I could boat them. As the morning progressed I became frustrated that he did it the same way every time. Finally I suggested that he might be deaf. That’s when the dad told me he was not deaf; he was blind!

Wow! I was so embarrassed. I just sat down and looked at my feet, trying to decide which to shove in my mouth. They laughed it off saying that they should have told me. You think?

I had a guy with a prosthetic leg fish with me and he fell overboard on a hookset. I went into panic mode trying to grab him in the choppy water. He calmly told me, “I’m OK but grab that darned leg, it came off and it’s beating me to death in these waves.” We laughed a lot once I got him back in the boat.

Last one is another on me. Busy day at Cove Harbor, I was in line to put my 23 Haynie Cat on the trailer when a client and friend backed his 21 Haynie down to launch for an afternoon trip. We talked briefly as he backed it off and I walked to get in mine, further down the dock. Another guy asked me a question and in answering I became distracted. Now I can put a boat on a trailer in my sleep. Ran it up to the trailer stop and killed the engine. The boat slipped backward, which surprised me, but I simply restarted the engine and bumped the stop again. It slid back a second time. Just then, Vince, the owner of the 21 Haynie, walked up and asked me how I liked his trailer. I was dumfounded and did not snap-to until he climbed into the truck the trailer was hitched to and began to leave. Turns out 23-Haynie Cats do not fit well on trailers built for 21s. My truck was right next to his. We still laugh about it.

So the lighter side of fishing is sometimes the best part of the day.

Try to remember all the good times whether you catch them or not. I think it’s true; laughter is life’s best medicine.

AMERICAN BORN, TEXAS BUILT Call Today!

54 | August 2015

855-879-5225

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May your fishing always be catching. -Guide Jay Watkins Jay Watkins has been a full-time fishing guide at Rockport, TX, for more than 20 years. Jay specializes in wading yearround for trout and redfish with artificial lures. Jay covers the Texas coast from San Antonio Bay to Corpus Christi Bay. Telephone Email Website

361-729-9596 Jay@jaywatkins.com www.jaywatkins.com

ATZENHOFFER CHEVROLET ATZENHOFFER.COM

Helping you make the most of your time off.

The famous Cape Lookout lighthouse.

C A P T. S COT T N U L L

S H A L L O W W ATER FI S HING

A grim reminder I’m always a bit surprised when I hear coastal anglers speak negatively of CCA. I guess I can understand taking exception with a position on a particular issue but overall it is hard for me to see this organization as anything but good.

As a youngster I was privileged to have been a fly on the wall listening to guys who helped organize the Gulf Coast Conservation Association. I was just a kid working at the old Marburger’s on Spencer in Pasadena.

I remember listening to them talking about how something needed to be done, to stop the downward spiral of redfish. They wanted to give reds and trout gamefish status to end commercial harvest. Gill netters were their main target and I recall thinking that would be a pretty big hill to climb.

The guys I hear speaking against CCA nowadays are pretty young. I suppose they don’t know the history and weren’t around for the really bad times. Believe it or not, there was a time on the Texas coast when redfish weren’t found on every grass flat as they are now.

As a teenager I was on the water every chance. I had a boat shortly after getting my driver’s license. Friends and I prowled all the Galveston Bay system, sometimes 56 | August 2015

distances and to places we probably shouldn’t have ventured. Under the mentoring of guides and old salts who frequented Marburger’s we got pretty dang good.

But all we caught were trout. Catching a single redfish was noteworthy. There just weren’t many.

The reasons were pretty obvious if you ventured into a marsh or worked a shoreline close to the grass—gill nets were all over the place. I saw far more dead reds in those nets than I ever caught. Then along came the blackened redfish craze. The nationwide demand led to an insane effort by netters. Spotter planes would locate breeding schools off the beachfront and direct the net boats, allowing them to wipe out entire schools. Now they were not only taking out the juveniles in the bays, they were taking away their ability to reproduce.

It was frustrating, but as a kid I couldn’t envision a solution. Thank goodness there were older, wiser and more determined individuals like Walter Fondren and a host of others who cared. It certainly wasn’t easy and in fact became quite a nasty battle. The founders persevered through threats of bodily harm, burned fishing cabins and other acts of vandalism. Often referred to as the “Redfish Wars” it was a difficult time for those

Slow day for cobia but Camille discovered bean bags.

The original Gulf Coast Conservation Association logo; now a collector’s item among Texas saltwater anglers.

either being worked by other boats or a boat was leaving as we arrived. Dr. Elkins noted that more and more anglers have turned to fishing the beachfront or offshore due to the lack of fish in the bays.

Day two the winds were up a bit and we decided to go out on the skiff and see what we could find in the bays. Not much. We went all over the place trying several areas. Every stop looked awesome. Clear water, grass flats, oyster beds and marsh shorelines loaded with bait that should have also been loaded with trout and redfish. The habitat was as good as any I’ve ever seen, miles upon miles. I saw a grand total of two reds that were maybe 18 inches, and caught one. While blind casting a drop-off near a flat, I caught a small flounder which really surprised Dr. Elkins. Apparently the commercial guys really hammer them.

At one point we came up to a really cool looking marsh island surrounded by a big grass flat with deep feeder guts. Within the island were several small lakes. As we fished it he noted this was the last place he had found a decent sized school of reds. It had been a couple of years. He and a buddy found a good school working the lakes inside the island. The third day fishing this school they noticed a commercial boat nearby. The following day they arrived to find several netters surrounding the island with gill nets. These guys then proceeded to go into the lakes and drive all of the reds to the nets. He and his friend watched helplessly as a couple hundred redfish were dumped into boats and hauled away.

On the way back to the house we passed by the dock where he keeps the bigger boat. As we rounded the corner he said, “Well it’s still there.” It wasn’t a flippant remark. He actually has to worry about losing his boat every day. I can’t imagine.

It was like going back in time to pre-HB 1000 Texas, and served to strengthen my feelings towards CCA. I may not agree with every position they take on every issue but I will never doubt the overall good they have done for Texas coastal fisheries.

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involved. House Bill 1000 became law in 1981, giving trout and reds gamefish status which immediately took them off the menu at restaurants and fish houses.

Not long after, the first redfish hatchery came online and started pouring fingerlings into the bays. The results are obvious to anyone who spends time in Texas bays. These two things alone are enough for me to pledge my allegiance to CCA. Without HB 1000 I honestly don’t think we would have redfish in our bays and certainly not the healthy population we enjoy today.

All of this was brought back to me on a recent trip to North Carolina. Camille and I were invited on a trip purchased at a CCA banquet to go fishing for a couple days with one of the directors of CCA North Carolina. I’ve always heard about the great flood tide fishing in South Carolina and figured North Carolina would be much the same. It wasn’t.

Our host, Dr. Chris Elkins, is a retired college professor with a passion for saltwater. He is currently serving as the Fisheries Committee Chairman. He and his wife have a beautiful home facing the bay near Harker’s Island. In talking to him it became obvious that he is in a battle reminiscent of our Redfish Wars. One of his boats was burned at the dock, his gear storage building was burned to the ground and he has been threatened numerous times on the water.

Why? Because North Carolina still has gill nets and he’s pushing to change that. The deck is stacked against him as the state fisheries commission is heavily influenced by the commercial fishing industry.

The first day we ventured outside on the beachfront to hunt for migrating cobia aboard his 27’ boat. Heavy cloud cover kept the bait balls down and we spent a lot of time cruising many miles of beachfront. There were a surprising number of boats out there, many more than you’d see in Texas. The few bait balls we did locate were

Capt. Scott Null is a devout shallow water fisherman offering guided adventues via kayak, poled skiff, and wading.

Telephone Email Website

281-450-2206 scott@tsfmag.com www.captainscottnull.com

TSFMAG.com | 57

B y Te r r y D . S t e l l y | P o r t A r t h u r M a r i n e L a b

FIE L D N O TE S

Sharks of Sabine Lake

58 | August 2015

Table 1. Numbers and total length summary for taxa of sharks landed by Sabine Lake anglers (May 1987 - Nov 2014) and Coastal Fisheries sampling gears by area caught.

Texas coastal anglers often target red drum, spotted seatrout, and southern flounder, often called “The Big Three.” For those making fishing a regular outdoor activity, sooner or later they will find there are many more fish which will bring new appreciation of Texas resources. Surely one of those would be catching and landing one of several species of coastal sharks. At times, Sabine Lake anglers targeting sharks closely matched those trips targeting “The Big Three.”

Sharks caught in the Sabine Lake system were part of the landings for 512 out of 32,710 intercepted fishing trips (1%), 64 of which targeted shark species (May 1987 – Nov 2014). Of the 512 trips, 427 anglers landed sharks while landing other fish. Those trips targeting sharks were taken mostly by sport anglers (63), 1 was taken during a guided trip, while none were taken by tournament anglers. Only 19 trips of the 64 actually landed sharks.

All sharks were caught using rod-n-reel, except for a smalltail shark taken with a fly rod somewhere in the Sabine Pass Channel which includes a 1-mile radius around the Sabine Pass Jetties (the SBC+J).

Anglers landing sharks baited their hooks mostly with squid, live fish, or dead fish. Dead fish was the top bait in both state and federal waters, while live fish caught more in Sabine Lake including the Neches and Sabine rivers (Sabine Lake/Rivers).

In the Sabine Lake system anglers landed 1,160 sharks from 15 species during creel surveys conducted at boat access points (ramps, marinas). Of those sharks landed 845 lengths were obtained. Nine sharks were landed in Sabine Lake/Rivers, 421 were landed from the SPC+J, while 730 were landed from offshore state waters (less than 10 miles): 249, Federal waters (more than 10 miles: 481). The blacktipped shark (277) and Atlantic sharpnose (680) were the most commonly landed sharks by Sabine Lake anglers. Nine sharks were landed from the waters of Sabine Lake/Rivers; 6 were bull sharks, 2 Atlantic sharpnose, and 1 bonnethead. Of the ten taxa landed in SPC+J the Atlantic sharpnose (297) was the most abundant. From Gulf state and federal waters, seven taxa were landed. Check Table 1 for a summary

Table 2. Current shark regulations (September 2009 to Present). Bag limit is one of any allowable species.

by location, species, numbers, and lengths.

Before September 1991, a period of no shark regulations, there were 334 sharks landed (May 1987- August 1991). Regulations came about in an attempt to provide increased protection to shark species from overfishing because of the time required for them to reach maturity and their low birth numbers (Table 2).

The first shark regulations were introduced in September 1991, remaining in affect through August 2000—allowing 5 of any species of any length. Sabine anglers in 199 trips landed 499 sharks divided among six species with no bag limit violations.

The next shark regulation change came in September 2000, lasting until August of 2009, with a bag of 1 of any species with a minimum total length of 24 inches (610 mm). During this period there were 141 trips (11 targeting sharks) in the Sabine Lake area landing 243 sharks among 12 species. One trip surpassed the allowed possession limit with one angler landing 5 sharks, which may indicate a lack of knowledge of the change in regulation. Of the 243 landed sharks, 9 sharks missed the minimum length which included 7 Atlantic sharpnose (21.5 – 23.7 inches), 1 blacktip (23.3), and 1 bonnethead (22.5).

Since September 2009, shark regulations have been divided into 3 groups (2 length groups, 1 prohibited group) with a bag limit of one for the length groups, while sharks in the prohibited group limited anglers to catch-and-release only (Table 2). During this period 52 trips landed 84 sharks among 5 species. Atlantic sharpnose sharks (60) were most often landed by Sabine anglers, followed by blacktip sharks (11). Majority of the trips landing sharks were below the daily bag limit, however 13 trips met the daily bag limit, with1 trip meeting the possession limit. There were no bag limit violations. Eleven of the 78 sharks measured missed the minimum length requirements, 3 of the 53 Atlantic sharpnose sharks (20.1 – 23.3 inches), 6 bull sharks (29.2 – 44.3), and 2 spinner sharks (26.8 – 36.3).

Besides creel surveys (dependent samples), Coastal Fisheries (CF) staff collect routine independent samples to gain additional insight into fish and shellfish populations.

Gears used for collecting these samples include bag seines, trawls (bay and Gulf ), gill nets, oyster dredges and in the early years, beach seines. From the Sabine Lake system these gears caught 5 species of sharks spread among 607 individuals (1986 – 2014). Majority of the sharks captured were 565 bull sharks (93%), all from gill nets with 532 coming from the Sabine Lake/Rivers, 22 from the Sabine Pass Channel, 10 from Bessie Heights, and 1 from Shell Lake of the Salt Bayou/Keith Lake marsh (Figure 1). In addition, gill nets captured 1 Atlantic sharpnose and 3 blacktip sharks. Gulf trawls captured 26 Atlantic sharpnose, 9 bonnethead, and 2 Florida smoothhound sharks. Beach seines caught 1 blacktip and 1 bonnethead sharks.

From the above discussion, a Sabine angler should have plenty of opportunity to catch a shark inshore or nearshore before even thinking of going greater distances offshore. Now landing a shark of legal size is the next question. Under current regulations, CF sampling indicates catching and landing the most common shark in the Sabine Lake system, a bull shark, is a rare event for most are neonates-early juveniles TSFMAG.com | 59

Y

<64 inches, only one of 565 met the length limit at 81.5 inches (Late Juveniles â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Subadults) caught south of Johnson Bayou in Sabine Lake.

In the first years of regulation (Sept 1991 - Aug 2009) identification was not a major issue. However, since September 2009 shark identification has become more important. Shark identification is very challenging, even for biologists. Anglers would benefit by reviewing shark identification at either of the two web sites referenced below. The NOAA publication provides a key which uses a number of characters to separate allowable and prohibited sharks. If there is doubt about the identification of a shark, simply release it. Anglers with smart phones may like to keep these links ready for use. Others may like to print and store copies in your boat or tackle box for easy reference when landing sharks. Now that you have identified your landed shark, how should one go about cooking your catch? Check your internet browser for there are numerous ideas.

Figure 1. Bubble plot for number of bull sharks caught in Sabine Lake gill nets (1986-2014).

Web Resources:

SHARK - Identification and Regulations in Texas (TPWD Brochure) https://tpwd.texas. gov/publications/pwdpubs/media/pwd_br_v3400_1162.pdf

Allowable and Prohibited Species (NOAA, Key type aid) http://www. nmfs.noaa.gov/sfa/hms/species/sharks/rec_shark_id_placard.pdf http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/sfa/hms/news/news_list/2008/9/09-0408_rec_shark_id_placard.pdf 2015-04- Texas Salt Water RS Ad 06-15_2 copy.pdf

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Check the TPWD Outdoor Annual, your local TPWD Law Enforcement office, or www.tpwd.state.tx.us for more information.

The Hampton

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S C O T T S O M M E R L AT T E

F LY F I S H I N G

One Last

Fishing Trip For those of you who have followed my column in this publication, you already know how fond I am of the days gone by. And, chances are, if you have been a long-time Texas fly angler, you will recognize the name of a dear friend to many, Chris Phillips. The following is an account of Chris’s last fishing trip.

Again, for whatever reason, I live for the nostalgia of yesterday, but that is not the story. The story is of a man from East Texas that discovered and then fell in love with the sport of saltwater fly fishing in its infancy. He then brought the skills he learned on the tarpon flats of the Florida Keys to the shallows of the Texas coast and in doing so he helped introduce and teach many of us to the sport that we love today. In fact, it would be safe to say that a man who left us way too early had some effect and touched the lives of almost every saltwater fly angler in this state, to some degree.

For many, Chris was known as the right-hand man in a few different fly shops in Houston and also as the first and original Galveston Bay fly fishing guide. But for those of us who knew him best—we knew him as a fly rod tarpon 62 | August 2015

fanatic who dreamed about making it back to the ginclear flats of Florida to catch one last tarpon on a fly rod.

Unfortunately, Chris never made that trip because of that dirty little word we all hate—cancer.

Some years back, after several seizures, Chris was diagnosed with a brain tumor. The first surgery went well and it bought us some time and a few more days on the water with our dear friend but, sadly, it wasn’t enough. A year and half later we lost our dear friend and teacher.

Fast forward to February 2015 when I was packing for my annual trek to South Florida for the spring fishing season. To this day I cannot tell you what made me even look at it, much less open it but, I did.

The ‘it’ I speak of was one of Chris’s tarpon fly/ leader stretcher boxes that I somehow was blessed to have placed in my care. Now, the stretcher box is not something that is used as much in modern fly fishing as it once was but is still used religiously by many South Florida guides. It is usually a handmade wooden box that is used to keep the bite-tippet of a tarpon leader stretched taught so that there is no curl in the leader

Taylor spotted the first fish of the day but it was a wrong-way, meaning that it was not following the normal travel route and headed opposite the direction we expected. The cast was perfect and first part of the retrieve was flawless but, when the fish turned and started following, I fell completely apart—slowed my retrieve and the fish turned off.

The next opportunity came in the form of a string of eight fish swimming a shallow sand bar and Taylor set me up perfectly. The cast was perfect to the lead fish and the retrieve drew an immediate follow.

I was better on retrieve this time and, in my mind, I saw Chris smiling when the fish’s maw opened and the fly disappeared. The line came tight and first jump was nothing less that spectacular. As was the second and third, and things just kept getting better as the fish made his way on to the reel.

Unfortunately the fight did not last long. Once the fish was on the reel and it was time to get down and dirty, the aged hook gave in to the unseen corrosion of the years and broke. While I have to admit I was somewhat disheartened, I was also elated. To be able to share the experience with my long gone friend was as special a moment to me as any that I have had on the water.

Now, because of the limited space that I have, I cannot tell you the whole story. And believe me, there is a lot more to tell. Just know this—there was one other fly in that old box that was “fishable” and our friend, Chris, got to spend several more days hooking, fighting and landing tarpon.

Chris, if you can hear me, my friend, I will always cherish those days as will I cherish our friendship. And, if I can find a way to get you back out there… we will go fishing again. Thanks for the memories.

C ontact

and the fly runs true in the water. Without making this into too much of a history lesson, I will move on.

For whatever reason, I picked up that OLD BOX and opened it up for the first time ever. I have no idea why it took so long but something beckoned me and I did. What I found was, to say the least, a mess.

There were still numerous leaders stretched and ready for action but the flies had, for lack of better words, decomposed over the last 30 years. Remember, a lot of chicken feathers were used in the old days and feathers are not as resistant to age as a lot of the synthetics we use today. Needless to say there was a fly and leader that was stretched taught that immediately caught my eye. It was a traditionally-tied Keys-style orange tarpon fly. It immediately caught my eye because we no longer use such flamboyant flies.

Inspecting it, I began to dream of the long ago days when tarpon would eat practically anything thrown in front of them. I snapped out of the dream when I realized this particular fly and leader were still in fishable condition. Then I noticed another identical fly loose in the bottom of the box. Inspection revealed part of a well-chewed leader and bent hook, and this sent me back to dreamland. My mind’s eye conjured Chris on the bow of a skiff fighting a hundred-plus pounder—right down to the smile on his face and the excitement in his voice. If only I could have been there. Then it hit me—why not take my dear friend Captain Chris to the tarpon flats just one more time.

Back to the present—early June 2015. My season had, for the most part, wound down and I was mostly fun-fishing with friends. Wright Taylor and I were preparing for such a trip to one of his favorite tarpon flats when I remembered the fly. Truth be told I was more than a little suspicious how a thirty-something-year-old leader was going to hold up to a strong fish so I clipped the fly and attached a new one.

Arriving at the flat, Taylor hopped on the platform and I took the bow. It was the first that I had a fly rod in my hand in months and I was hoping for the best. In all honesty, we both had our doubts about Chris’ brightly colored fly but, to say the least, I was determined to make it happen. This meant I would need to be perfect in every aspect of the game—cast, presentation, retrieve and hook-set.

Scott Sommerlatte is a full time fly fishing and light tackle guide, freelance writer and photographer.

Telephone Email Website

979-415-4379 vssommerlatte@hotmail.com www.scottsommerlatte.com TSFMAG.com | 63

DAV E R O B E R T S

K AYA K F I S H I N G C H R O N I C L E S

Happens to the best In the world of a fisherman, there are no absolutes or guaranties when you hit the water. Having fished in every possible condition Mother Nature can throw at you; one can get comfortable in his or her own ways and throw caution to the wind. Your everyday routine fishing trip becomes just another fun-filled day on the water. After all, you are an expert; so what could possibly go wrong?

I have been kayaking just shy of eight years now and for the first time I flipped out of my kayak. The inevitable finally happened and I was not prepared at all. The only thing that went my way that day was that I was wearing my lifejacket and the water was only three feet deep.

The previous day I got a call from Nathan at Fishing Tackle Unlimited saying my new Jackson Cuda 14â&#x20AC;&#x2122; was rigged and ready to be picked up. As soon as I got off work I was eagerly headed to Houston to get her. The crew at Fishing Tackle Unlimited did a great job of 64 | August 2015

rigging and they have always been dependable when it comes to customer service. I got it loaded and on my ride home I had a hard time deciding whether I wanted to chase trout or redfish the following morning. After some thought I decided to hit the marsh since I have caught very few reds this year.

When I arrived at my launch point it was a little windier than I expected but nothing that I could not handle.

I made my way into the marsh and started my typical fishing pattern; topwater along the edge of the marsh grass and then fan casting across the flat. I do this to see if the redfish are feeding on the shoreline or scattered across the flat, then adjust accordingly. After the sun rose and temperatures picked up I moved deeper into the marsh and switched to a Gulp under a popping cork. After no luck and only seeing few signs of redfish, I then decide to just explore deeper and enjoy my day on the water.

I pulled up Google maps on my iPhone and found an alternate route out of the marsh that would tack on another 2 miles or so to my paddle back. No big deal, I just purchased a waterproof radio so I had tunes and no reason to get in a rush. Maybe 10 minutes into my long paddle back I saw a redfish swirl at about my 4 oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;clock. I pick up my rod and when I turned back to cast is when I started to lose my balance. I fought it for a split second and before I knew it I was knee-deep in mud and chest-deep in water.

There were bags of lures and other items floating past me while I tried to gather my thoughts.

My first reaction was to flip my kayak back over. I did so and then reached down to pick up my rods and get them situated back in my kayak. At this point is when I realized my phone was in my pocket. I threw it in my hatch and then continued to gather small items.

After 5 minutes of trying to pull my shoes out of the mud I got a peculiar feeling that I was forgetting something. This is when it registered that my Nikon D3200 was in my dry hatchâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;that

TSFMAG.com | 65

66 | August 2015

Also noteworthy, my brother and I had all of these fish to ourselves, everyone fishing around us left with plenty of time remaining in the day. I never understood why anyone would fish all afternoon and then leave at the best hour of the day. A majority, if not all, came within the last 45 minutes of the day. If you make an afternoon trip, stay till dark. It will pay off.

Over the past few trips I have learned a lot about the sport that we all love. Not just fishing, but kayaking as well. It is important to be prepared for the unexpected. Accidents do happen and are always preventable but in the line of work we do, they are hard to avoid at times. It is easy to deviate from your normal safe practice due to being comfortable in your set ways.

It is easy to take precautions when on the water; wear a PFD, have a paddle and rod leash, strap down your dry hatch. Some people may have not had an incident yet while others, like me, had to learn the hard way. Just remember, it happens to the best.

C ontact

was not latched. I fished around for it on the muddy bottom, picked it up and I knew right away it was ruined. Regardless, every bit of this was preventable. I have made that same exact cast flawlessly dozens of times! This one time though, I was not prepared and I paid for it.

I just want everyone to be aware that it can happen quickly and a simple mistake can easily be avoidable.

Anyways, enough of the bad, letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s talk about fishing. Lately I have had trouble finding redfish holding in our marsh due to the fresh water on our side of Texas. I have had to stay as far south as I can to find any salt water, which has not been much. Although, with all of the fresh water we have had, the southern ecosystem is thriving. Some of the back marshes are covered in widgeon grass and are infested with crabs. This is a great sign for sea life and fishing in the near future.

On the other hand, trout fishing has been lights out for me and other anglers lately. I believe the fresh water has kept them south and heavily congregated along with all of the shad. Recently most of my trips have been in the afternoon and wade fishing in the surf. I have been pulling out limits of trout and all coming off topwaters. The Skitter Walk and She Dog have been producing more fish than any other lures. Color has not seemed to make any difference but I believe the pitch or sound of these plugs has been the key to catching them.

The conditions of the surf have varied; some days have been calmer than others. I have even fished a few days that it was too choppy to launch my kayak. Despite the circumstances, the trout were in large schools and wanted a topwater! They were not planning on missing a meal when it came to hitting my She Dog, which made for an exciting hook-set.

Dave Roberts is an avid kayak-fishing enthusiast fishing primarily the inshore Upper Coast region with occasional adventures to surf and nearshore Gulf of Mexico.

Email: TexasKayakChronicles@yahoo.com Website: www.TexasKayakChronicles.com

www.power-pole.com

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Prefabbed reef structures about to be placed in Texas nearshore Gulf of Mexico near Corpus Christi.

Story by John Blaha | Photos by Lisa Laskowski

T S F M a g C ons e r v a t ion N e ws

Habitat Today for Fish Tomorrow

CCA-Texas Habitat Initiative CCA Texas is grateful to have the opportunity to provide monthly articles for Texas Saltwater Fishing magazine.

Generally articles are provided that describe habitat restoration and creation work CCA Texas is involved in.

TSFM has many new readers each month and this month is a good month to let all the new readers know how CCA Texas gets involved in habitat work through its habitat initiative, Habitat Today for Fish Tomorrow.

Cast concrete pipe placement during construction of nearshore reefing projectâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; Port Mansfield.

68 | August 2015

Habitat Today for Fish Tomorrow (HTFT) is the habitat initiative of Coastal Conservation Association Texas (CCA Texas). CCA Texas began in 1977 and made its mark on fisheries conservation through the legislative process in Texas. Some of the big early victories included championing the establishment of size and bag limits on speckled trout and redfish, game fish status for these species, and making the use of gill nets in Texas state waters illegal. CCA continued with many success stories throughout the years including a leading role in establishing saltwater hatcheries in both Corpus Christi (CCA Marine Development Center) and in Lake Jackson (Sea Center Texas). As the organization grew and with fisheries management at a strong point, CCA Texas leadership began to explore where CCA Texas could once again take its conservation efforts to another level. In November of 2009, the CCA Texas Executive Board approved an initial funding of $200,000 to start a new habitat initiative, which came to

CCA Texas was one of the major players in the recent restoration of Cedar Bayou-Vinson Slough in Mesquite Bay near Rockport.

be known as Habitat Today for Fish Tomorrow.

Since its inception in 2009, HTFT has been a part of twentyfour projects and contributed approximately $3.9 million to these habitat restoration and creation efforts. CCA Texas takes part in these efforts by using its strength in fundraising to provide critical dollars to selected projects. These dollars often times provide much needed local funds for matching in state and federal grants. In addition, CCA Texas is able to use its lobbying power to gather support for projects when needed in the political arena.

It also provides local help and support through a vast volunteer network. Once completed, CCA Texas can provide critical outreach and education about them to its vast membership base through the many publications that provide space for the organization to educate the general public about the importance of coastal conservation for present and future generations. Volunteers are the driving force of the organization and without their efforts CCA Texas could not accomplish the important work that it does.

“Habitat projects do so much for a local volunteer and it is like connecting the dots,” commented Mike Petit, longtime CCA Texas member and CCA Texas Executive Board member. Petit continued, “it is really gratifying as a local volunteer to see where the money goes

that local chapters raise and to see that it is making an impact on a local bay system.”

HTFT has taken part in many different types of habitat projects that have ranged in monetary value from $10,000 to $10,000,000.

These projects include marsh restoration and creation, shoreline stabilization, grass plantings, oyster reef restoration, nearshore Gulf reefing projects, bay debris cleanup, and in the restoration of hydraulic connections between the Gulf of Mexico and inland bays.

Partnerships are key to successful projects and CCA Texas has worked with many partners. Some of past project partners of CCA Texas include Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD), Coastal Bend Bays and Estuaries Program (CBBEP), Galveston Bay Foundation (GBF), Texas A&M Corpus Christi and the Harte Research Institute (HRI), Ducks Unlimited, and the San Antonio Bay Foundation.

Three of HTFT’s biggest contributions to habitat restoration and creation in Texas have been oyster reef restoration, nearshore Gulf reefing in Texas state waters and the opening of Cedar Bayou and Vinson Slough to the Gulf of Mexico in the Mesquite Bay area.

Partnering with TPWD, CCA Texas was part of an oyster restoration project in East Galveston Bay that restored 180 acres of oyster reef that was silted over by Hurricane Ike. CCA Texas contributed $500,000 to Cultch material being placed to restore oyster habitat in East Galveston Bay following Hurricane Ike.

TSFMAG.com | 69

this project that had an overall cost of $3.9 million. CCA Texas partnered with TPWD in the CIAP grant process to secure $3.4 million and the project was completed in the late spring of 2014. CCA has partnered with HRI on two smaller oyster restoration projects and places these type of projects high on the list of habitat needs for Texas bays.

Nearshore reefing in Texas state waters has been a big part of HTFT’s efforts as well. To date, CCA Texas has partnered with TPWD on five different projects with a total commitment of $700,000. These projects include reefs out of the ports of Freeport, Port O’Connor, Corpus Christi, and Port Mansfield. CCA Texas’s vision is to see nearshore

Restored reefs in Galveston East Bay are now protected from commercial harvest.

70 | August 2015

reefing projects out of every port in Texas that gives the recreational fisherman easily accessible nearshore fishing when conditions and the season regulations allow.

Perhaps the biggest effort to date for habitat restoration is the Cedar Bayou and Vinson Slough restoration project. This project was completed after many years of studies, engineering, a laborious permitting process and lastly, a huge effort to raise the necessary funds. Cedar Bayou and Vinson Slough were bulldozed closed during the IXTOC oil spill in the Bay of Campeche in 1979 in order to protect the area bays from the approaching oil. Since that time multiple efforts had been made to open the passes but fell short in funds and engineering. When Aransas County took over the project from private individuals, a permit was finally secured and CCA Texas then stepped forward with an original commitment of $500,000 to start the fund raising campaign needed. Through different grants, and commitments from Aransas County and TPWD, the necessary funds were raised. CCA Texas eventually committed $1.6 million to the project, and at the end of September 2014, the dream of many recreational fishermen became a reality as Cedar Bayou and Vinson Slough freely flowed to the Gulf of Mexico once again.

CCA Texas is committed to ensuring the health of Texas’s coastal resources through habitat creation and restoration, and also through legislative efforts. The cornerstone to this success is the support of CCA Texas volunteers and supporters across the state that raise the necessary funds and awareness that allow these projects to become reality. For more information about CCA Texas and its efforts, please visit www.CCATexas.org.

Vibrios, a Refresher...

Story by Stephanie Boyd

Members of the genus Vibrio consist of common bacteria in aquatic usually oysters, are the primary culprits of the acute gastroenteritis environments, especially marine environments. caused by this bacterium. Wound infections can also occur in warm The most sensationalized vibrio is Vibrio cholerae, which causes seawater but are less common than seafood-born maladies. Higher epidemic or Asiatic cholera which, untreated, is one of the most water temperatures breed higher levels of bacteria, so outbreaks are rapidly fatal infectious diseases known. The cholera toxin, which is more common in summer and early fall. Symptoms typically occur the classic model of a bacterial enterotoxin, is also produced by some in about 24 hours and include watery diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, strains of E. coli. An enterotoxin is a protein exotoxin released by a abdominal cramps, and sometimes fever and chills. The illness usually microorganism. Exotoxins may be secreted during growth or released resolves itself in three days, but it can persist for up to ten days in when the bacterial cell dies and breaks down. immunocompromised individuals. Treatment is unnecessary in most You certainly wouldn’t want to room with V. cholerae. But making cases. Antibiotics don’t seem to decrease the severity or the length you sick is the byproduct of its company, not the objective. Vibrio of the illness anyway. Drinking plenty of liquids and electrolytes to bacteria don’t directly attack a person’s body. Rather, they produce replace fluids lost through diarrhea is the best course. proteins, as a byproduct of feeding and growth, that are toxic to the V. vulnificus is responsible for the majority of seafood-related deaths. human body. It’s like being allergic to cat fur. The cat isn’t actively Immunosuppressed individuals are 80 times more likely to contract clawing your eyes out, but she IS leaving her fur everywhere, making Vibrio infections, though these bacteria are capable of harming you miserable in the process. Still, it’s a good reason to avoid cats. anyone. However, most cases occur in males over the age of 50. Turns Most bacteria secrete a peptidoglycan covering for themselves, out, estrogen protects females against the V. vulnificus endotoxin. which we call a cell wall. Whether a bacterium has a thin or a thick Endotoxins, also known as lipopolysaccharides (LPS), are part of the cell wall determines what antibiotic will work against it. If you’ve ever outer membrane of the cell wall of Gram-negative bacteria. They waited for the results of a culture and sensitivity are released when the bacterial cell disintegrates test, you may have heard the terms “Gram-positive” (whereas the other toxins are usually a byproduct of or “Gram-negative.” This is the legacy of a cellgrowth; endotoxins are a byproduct of death). staining method developed by Christian Gram: V. vulnificus primarily spreads through bacteria with thick cell walls retain dye and are contaminated seafood; it does not alter the labeled Gram-positive; bacteria with thin walls do appearance, taste, or odor of oysters which, again, not and are labeled Gram-negative. are the primary culprits. It can also be contracted Some antibiotics, like penicillin, don’t outright by an open wound that is exposed to seawater. kill the bacteria; they just prevent the bacteria Among healthy people, ingestion of this bacteria from making more cell wall, halting the bacteria’s can cause vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal pain. growth. That’s why antibiotics typically need to In the immunocompromised, V. vulnificus can be taken for several days. The bacteria, unable to infect the bloodstream, causing septic shock and grow, die of “old age.” If a person stops taking the blistering skin lesions. These bloodstream infections antibiotic too soon, any bacteria still living would are fatal about fifty percent of the time. If this (above) 36 hours after a stingray hit, an resume growing and reproducing; stopping early bacteria is suspected, treatment should be initiated extreme bacterial infection is brewing. also contributes to the propagation of antibioticimmediately because antibiotics improve survival. (below) Incisions were necessary to relieve resistant strains of bacteria. Antibiotics tend to be Luckily, V. vulnificus infections are rare. swelling and to debride necrotic tissue. more effective against thick-walled bacteria, the These vibrios are potentially dangerous, but a Gram-positives. Gram-negative bacteria are more little overdone in the media. Just take the correct resistant. That’s why it is important to determine precautions when preparing seafood, especially which of the two types of bacteria have moved in. shellfish and don’t swim in the bays with a Thanks to improved sewage and water significant open wound. It’s not inconceivable that treatment, there is a low occurrence of V. cholerae you’ll have a rough experience with one, at some in the United States. Over ninety percent of the point in your life, but the probability is low. cholera cases occurring in the U.S. are the result of Vibrios are kind of a downer, so it’s nice to travel to a country where this species is prevalent; know the human body contains huge amounts of recurring infections of cholera are rare. friendly bacteria, even some that protect us from Other headlining species of Vibrio include V. dangerous ones by occupying places in the body parahaemolyticus and V. vulnificus, known to cause the pathogenic bacteria want attach to, and some seafood-borne illnesses such as septicemia and that actively come to the rescue and attack the wound infections. pathogens. So don’t let one group of bacteria taint V. parahaemolyticus seems to be the more your worldview! amiable of the two. Raw or undercooked seafood, TSFMAG.com | 71

A tonguefish in a depression.

Photo by NOAA Okeanos Explorer Program, Gulf of Mexico 2012 Expedition.

STEPHANIE BOYD

F I S H Y FA C T S

FUN TONGUE FACTS Did you know that, on average, women have shorter tongues than men? More facts about tongues are coming up, but not your tongue – dog tongues, of course! Yes, an entire family of fishes named after dog tongues: Cynoglossidae (Greek, kyon = dog and glossa = tongue).

Don’t think too poorly of these fish because of their name.

Many animals are named for the way they look: blobfish, starfish, walking sticks, horny toads... Tonguefish are just one more you can add to the list.

Tonguefish, like the more-familiar flounders and soles, belong to the order of flatfishes, Pleuronectiformes.

These highly compressed, carnivorous fishes are small to medium in size. Flatfishes usually inhabit shallow, soft sediments on the continental shelf, though some species are found at much greater depths. They are a rather homogenous tribe, united by three traits derived from a common ancestor: 1) cranial asymmetry, 2) forward placement of the dorsal fin over the head, and 3) presence of the recessus orbitalis, a muscular sac-like outgrowth that allows the protrusion of the eye, enabling them to see their surroundings while concealed. They also differ from other bottom-dwelling fish in that they do not lie on their belly but on one side, right or left (which side depends on the family). The side of the fish that hugs the bottom is referred to as the “blind” side. It is usually whitish but can exhibit colors and patterns. On the “ocular” side, some species, especially the flounders, are 72 | August 2015

capable of a rapid changes in coloration, allowing them to match their background almost perfectly. Flatfishes are found on a variety of substrates including silt, mud, sand, sand-shell mixtures, and rocky or pebbly bottoms. Some species appear to have strong preferences for particular substrates; others are less picky. As bottom-dwelling predators, they are usually found either lying on top of the substrate or partially buried in sand or soft mud, with only their eyes protruding. Some of the larger species will rise off the bottom to capture prey.

The development of young flatfish repeats, to some degree, their probable evolutionary process. The newly hatched, transparent larva is bilaterally symmetric and free-swimming. At this point, it is no larger than a pinhead, but before the larva reaches one inch, the characteristic compression of the body develops, and one eye “migrates” to the other side of the head. For some species, this will be to the right side; for others, including tonguefishes, it will be to the left. This signifies the end of the pelagic larval stage, and they settle to the bottom of the sea floor. Besides the migration of the eyes and the compression of the body, other changes occur in the skeletal and digestive systems, including the loss of the swim bladder. They don’t need to float around, after all. The mouth retains its original position, more or less, so that it is often described as opening sidewise. Adults finish up with only one dorsal and one anal fin, both

without spines.

Among the family of flatfishes (Cynoglossidae), tonguefishes are distinguished by their characteristic tear-drop shape and the presence of a long hook on the snout overhanging the mouth. The largest species reaches a length of 26 inches, though most grow no longer than about 12 inches. The ocular side is usually a uniform brownish or greyish, often marked with varying patches, spots, or cross bands; some species sport blotches and spots on the fins. The blind side is primarily whitish or yellowish in most species, though some also have small indistinct cloudy patches or darker spots. They are found in tropical and subtropical oceans, mainly in shallow waters and estuaries at lower latitudes, though a few species are found in deep sea floors, and a few in rivers. They spawn chiefly during summer.

Eggs are spherical. Adult tonguefishes have little to no commercial value. Some are harvested for food, but most are too small to bother.

The few species that are harvested can be found in high-class French cuisine and Japanese sushi. Apparently, tonguefish is low in calories and a good source of vitamin B12 and niacin. For now, they have more scientific value than table fame. One species of tonguefish, Symphurus thermophilus, lives around “ponds” of sulphur at hydrothermal vents on the seafloor. No other flatfish is known to live near hydrothermal vents. The mechanism that allows the fish to thrive in such a hostile environment is a subject of research, though they are thought to graze on the bacterial mats created near the warm nutrient flows. Somehow, these fish survive in toxic sulfuric pools that are boiling hot… and don’t seem to die, or even mind.

The most common (and perhaps the only modern) genus of flatfishes found in the Gulf is Symphurus, from the Greek syn = grown together, and oura = tail. Most species in this genus occur mainly in shallow waters, such as estuaries, though some are found in deeper water, such as S. thermophilus, mentioned above. Symphurus species are distinguished by merged dorsal, caudal, and anal fins; the absence of a lateral line and pectoral fins; and the presence of only one pelvic fin. The largest species reaches 12 inches long. There are 14 Symphurus species found in the Gulf, according to the World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS). Eight of those species can be found in Texas bays or along barrier island Gulf-facing coastlines. The most common, by far, of those eight species is Symphurus plagiusa, the blackcheek tonguefish. It is also the only species found in the bays. The other 7 are along the barrier islands. How much more common is the blackcheek?

According the the Ocean Biogeographic Information System (the occurrence map used by WoRMS), there are 14,251 occurrences of the blackcheek tonguefish in the Gulf. The next most common is the offshore tonguefish, with a measly 79 occurrences.

Blackcheeks are rare among the tonguefishes in that they inhabit estuarine environments in the seasonally dynamic region of north temperate latitudes, whereas most other flatfishes occur only in the tropics. This makes them a good candidate for age and growth studies, according the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, which conducted just such a study in Chesapeake Bay during 1994-95. Fish are aged by the rings of growth on their ear bones, sort of like rings on a tree. But flatfish in the tropics are difficult to age from these bones because environmental constancy (i.e., lack of seasons) makes the rings hard to count. Blackcheeks living in environments with wider temperature fluctuations between seasons have more distinct rings.

This species is very abundant on soft mud and sand bottoms in coastal lakes and bays in Texas, out to about 120 feet of water. The

ocular side is brownish with darker, mottled brown vertical bands and a dark blotch on the upper part of the gill cover. They can grow just under nine inches long and reach five years old. Their diet consists mainly of small benthic invertebrates, such as small crabs, polychaetes, copepods, amphipods, and ostracods (aka seed shrimp).

The tonguefish does have a “tongue,” but not in the same way you do. Your tongue is a muscular organ. The tongue of a fish is formed from a fold in the floor of the mouth. However, fish do have tastebuds, just like you. Fish tastebuds can distinguish between sweet, sour, salty, and bitter. Unlike you, fish have tastebuds not only on their tongues, but on the outside of their bodies, too. This means they can rub up on something to check its edibility… which sounds cool, but sometimes I’m really glad my hands can’t taste.

Where I learned about tonguefish, and you can too!

World Register of Marine Species: Symphurus www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=126113 Ocean Biogeographic Information System iobis.org/mapper/ Early Stages of Atlantic Fishes: An Identification Guide for the Western Central North Atlantic, Two Volume Set, Volume 1

By William J. Richards Identification Guide to Marine Organisms of Texas: Flatfishes txmarspecies.tamug.edu/fishfamilydetails.cfm?famnameID=Achiridae “Age, growth, longevity, and mortality of blackcheek tonguefish, Symphurus plagiusa (Cynoglossidae: Pleuronectiformes), in Chesapeake Bay, Virginia”

By Mark R. Terwilliger & Thomas A. Munroe fishbull.noaa.gov/12terwil.pdf Galveston Bay Project bioc.rice.edu/precollege/k12resources/fieldguide/resources/fish1.htm “Saltwater Fishes of Texas, A Dichotomous Key” Second Edition (McKee Key) Prepared by M. Shane Merryman, Kenneth C. Rainer, David A. McKee, & Edward O. Murdy texasseagrant.org/assets/uploads/resources/12-601_Saltwater_Fishes_of_ Texas.pdf Blackcheek Tonguefish World Register of Marine Species www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=159363 Identification Guide to Marine Organisms of Texas txmarspecies.tamug.edu/fishdetails.cfm?scinameID=Symphurus%20plagiusa FishBase www.fishbase.org/summary/1019 Rod-n-Reel rodnreel.com/gulffish/gulffish.asp?cmd=view&FishID=242 Fishes of Texas www.fishesoftexas.org/taxon/symphurus-plagiusa/

TSFMAG.com | 73

Manta Rays are some of the best “flotsam” found on the nearshore tide line. Cobia can occasionally be found swimming in the shadow.

CURTISS CASH

I N S H O RE | N EAR S H O RE | J ETT I E S | PA S S E S

EATING FISH CAN KILL YOU One of the only calm days during the 9-day 2014 Federal red snapper season I ran my Carolina Skiff out to some rigs in 90 feet of water. For fun I boxed my two fish limit with three drops, which was one more than it should have taken. On the second drop an 18-inch rock hind grouper gobbled the bait before one of the 10-12 pound red snappers had a chance. I was jazzed to catch one so large, I knew it wasn’t far from the state record of 19.5 inches. I was even more excited knowing that I would have some thick grouper fillets to share with my wife, Meredith.

Meredith was away on vacation for another week so I decided to eat one fillet and freeze the other for her. Just a few hours after my late Sunday dinner I awoke to the feeling that my insides were about to explode. I didn’t get far from the restroom or get any more sleep that night. I felt like the flu had hit me wide-open but the strangest sensation had come over me. My stomach was growling and I had hunger pangs like I hadn’t eaten in days. That is something I had never experienced with the flu, a virus or food poisoning. Lucky for me my charter 74 | August 2015

the next day was in the afternoon which allowed more than a dozen hours to dry up.

I made it through Monday afternoon and Tuesday morning charters by a thread. By Wednesday I felt like a truck had drug me down the road and my joint and muscle aches were steadily getting worse. I Googled my symptoms and dehydration stood out above all else, questionable at best, though, as I’d been drinking fluids like a fish.

Off to the big city for more supplies—sports drinks, infant rehydration liquids and food for the POC compound. All was going well until that afternoon when I almost fainted in the middle of the store. I was lightheaded, confused and not making rational decisions. To this day I fear that I may be featured on one of those YouTube videos poking fun at people of WalMart. Several hours passed with no recollection; I even drove at least ten miles to my house in Victoria.

Luckily my son, Sterling, called to chat that evening and woke me from a deep sleep. I didn’t know where I was or what was going on, he sensed the danger and

picked me up for a visit to the emergency room. I remember sitting there crying from muscle pains while trying to answer questions from the triage nurse. I even had difficulties signing the paperwork because my fingers were numb.

My preliminary diagnoses was heat exhaustion and dehydration but after multiple blood and fluid testing procedures they could not find anything wrong. Once I received some intravenous electrolyte infusion for good measure and monitored for a short while I was released. The discharge papers listed inconclusive results, my insurance carrier even hassled me by not wanting to cover the charges from the ER visit. The only good news that week was that on Friday about noon the symptoms mysteriously disappeared leaving me exhausted but relieved the ordeal was done.

Fast forward to Labor Day with a slick calm Gulf of Mexico from horizon to horizon. Meredith and I ran from structure to structure offshore bombing the bottom with big blue runners in hopes of some fresh grouper. All we could find were large red snapper at each snag. The grouper never cooperated but some nice cobia filled the box. Later that evening I thawed the other rock hind fillet to fry up with the fresh cobia. Meredith took one bite of grouper and luckily spit it out protesting that it did not taste right to her. Very strange for sure, it tasted just fine to me so I gobbled it down leaving extra cobia nuggets for her. At 2:00 AM I woke to the hell that was about to consume the next five days of my life.

Ciguatera is a food-borne illness caused by eating reef fish which have flesh contaminated with toxins from dinoflagellates. In tropical and subtropical waters these dinoflagellates attach themselves to algae, coral and seaweed upon which smaller fish feed and the toxin is stored in their bodies. In turn, larger structure-oriented fish such as barracuda, snapper, grouper, amberjack and eels consume these smaller fish. Commonly called ciguatoxin, they accumulate in these predator fish and can become very concentrated in larger and older specimens.

Ciguatoxin is odorless, tasteless and temperature resistant, so cooking or freezing has no effect on toxicity. There is no reliable overthe-counter test for the concentrated toxin in fish. To add insult to injury the toxin is not able to be detected in humans after ingestion.

The only way to know of toxicity levels is to have a sample of the fish flesh tested by a lab.

I hope the explanation of my experience can help someone in the future in case of poisoning. People die worldwide annually, even here in the USA, due to misdiagnosis and downright ignorance in the medical field. I challenge everyone who reads this to study up on Ciguatera and share your findings with those you know and love.

Awareness is the first step, ask your medical caregivers to do the same.

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MEAT & POTATOES FISHING THIS MONTH TM

JETTIES I’ll be targeting bull reds this month crushing blue crabs on the surface. The crabs will be migrating to the gulf riding the ebbing tide.

Many protein-rich egg-laden females will never make it past the line of demarcation to drop off the kids at the pool. This is definitely a sight-casting/hunting-style of angling. Most floating topwater lures will work when you see these fish riding the tide lines searching for an easy meal. For better releases of these bulls I recommend removing all but the rear hook on the plug, even change to a single

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TSFMAG.com | 75

hook if at all possible. Coincidentally that toothy patch in the redfishâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s throat is designed for this type of dining. Try not to let the fish swallow the lure by setting the hook immediately. I like gold or brown colors to better match the hatch, fly fisherman definitely have an edge by being able to mimic the prey almost exactly with hairy creations.

SPOIL ISLANDS & DEEP REEFS The bay water is likely warmer this month than any other of the year. The thin-skinned trout like cooler surroundings, so deeper waters oblige. Spoil islands near the ICW or any major channel can spell relief from the heat. Look for the deeper edges with steep drop-offs near the channel.

When a barge or ship passes by, cast shallower where the fish anxiously anticipate food to be sucked off the flats.

Deep bay reefs harbor cooler water with increased water flow around the structure. On windy days, fish farther away from the shell making long casts to keep hull slap from spooking fish. Live croaker is king in these areas, free-lined or Carolina-rigged, with just enough weight to get the bait heading deep without hanging in the shell. I typically start with a 1/8 ounce egg weight and adjust heavier from there depending on current velocity.

At the POC jetties, Ritchie Howell assists son, Ace, with a bull red for a quick photo.

Average-sized rock hind grouper.

76 | August 2015

NEARSHORE August is the month to get out there and mix things up during the calm conditions. The Spanish mackerel and false albacore will be stalking and feasting on clouds of rain minnows and dusky anchovies. Kingfish and bruiser jacks will be working the current line that forms from the opposing currents of the inshore and offshore waters. The line normally forms along 30-45 foot depths here on the mid-coast. Look for flotsam in this area that will often hold tripletail and cobia in the shadows. I like to troll deep-diving lures and a spoon on the surface while working the current line with the clearer water.

Summer is slipping by, best to get out there before the water starts to cool. Be safe and do some research; educate and be aware of the lesser-known evils that lurk in our food.

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Noe with his 10’-8” tiger shark; first-ever client tiger on one of my charters.

E X T R E M E K AYA K F I S H I N G & S H A R K S F R O M T H E S A N D

ER I C O Z O L I N S

Why I Love My Job During my 35 years I have been fortunate to travel many places around the world in pursuit of adventure. I have seen wonderful things and met fascinating people of many walks of life. I have always worked hard to excel at pastimes and occupations that intrigue me, yet it is the aquatic realm that has had the greatest influence.

It began as a curious youngster glued to the television watching the movie Jaws and my interest in the marine world expanded greatly as I discovered saltwater fishing. When I first started my guiding business in 2013 I was sometimes challenged by friends and associates questioning my decision to make fishing my profession.

Mainly, I was being told, “You probably will not enjoy your job…allowing others to catch YOUR fish.” Truth be told, though, I get the same satisfaction putting eager folks on their first big shark as I do catching large sharks myself.

Seeing the joy on the face of a 10-year-old landing a fish larger than they are is priceless.

I chose guiding for a reason. If you are good at something and enjoy doing it, why not do it every day of your life and make a living while you’re at it? I have been shark fishing the surf for over 15 years and do it with great diligence and passion. I would like to consider 78 | August 2015

myself remarkably good at it. In fact, while not sounding too cocky, I think I am one of the best current-day surf fishermen along the Texas coast. I am not basing this personal opinion on notable catches, tournament wins, television appearances, or other publicity. To me, being “good” has more to do with the sport—how you treat it, share it, and help reinvent and improve it.

Anyone can go out and get lucky and land a trophy fish. I’ve seen it many times, rookie sharkers landing an impressive fish for their very first shark. But in retrospect, there are many guys that have shark fished 20 years who haven’t broken eight feet. Sometimes it is just luck of the draw. You see, to me, it is not about how many fancy reels you own or how elaborate your beach-shark vehicle might be. It is about the passion you possess and using hardearned knowledge and creativity as tools for increasing success—and your willingness to share these.

When I first started shark fishing things were pretty basic. Throw some meat on a hook, toss it in the water and wait. At times the wait was painfully brutal, and all for nothing. While there were a lot of individuals in the same position as me at that time (beginner), there was no one to really teach beyond the basics. It eventually came down

to experimentation and earned knowledge; the power of creativity will get you far in this sport. I started trying different methods and optimizing processes that yielded valuable results. Finding the happy medium between creativity and keeping it simple is ultimately the name of the shark fishing game. Some individuals work hard and learn quickly, others seem to lack desire to go beyond basics. I believe much of my success has come through careful study and learning to adapt to the constant changes in our marine ecosystem.

I believe that my type of fishing is quite possibly the most physically demanding of virtually any other offered by a guided fishing service.

I know I wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be able to do this type of work forever but feel I have a solid 10-15 years or more ahead if my body holds up. I can only praise my predecessor, Capt. Billy Sandifer, who managed to do it so many years. He is the one individual in the world that knows how physically demanding shark fishing is and how tough it is to do it for a living. You must realize that unlike other guides (many are good friends), I am not standing in a boat directing clients where to cast, etc. My job entails me kayaking through dangerous surf, getting smashed up at times, just to get the baits out. Some days the surf may be relatively calm, but unfortunately that is not your average day on a South Texas beach. I willingly endure the danger, minor injuries and aches as simply part of the job of providing clients the best possible chance of a great catch and equally great experience.

My work does not go unnoticed or unrewarded. Recognizing the great effort required to put a successful surf-shark trip together, most clients are talking about rebooking even before the trip is over. There is a huge difference; a kayak guide paddling a couple of miles for a bay

Vanessa preparing to release a blacktip after tagging.

TSFMAG.com | 79

Oz and Noe dragging the tagged tiger back into the surf for release.

80 | August 2015

Vanessa’s giant stingray that hit a shark bait.

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charter—try kayaking a similar distance just to get baits out, paddling into 20 knot wind, four foot breakers and raging current. That is sometimes what it takes.

I love what I do. If things are slow I will try to extend the trip to put a solid fish on the beach. Of course there are rare times when the fish simply aren’t around or are not feeding, but historically I have a very good track record. My participation in shark research for various agencies always provides satisfaction for not just me, but the clients as well. Their tagged shark has potential to be recaptured, allowing them to receive data collected on “their” shark. Little factors like this add to the uniqueness of my charters.

I recently conducted a 3-day shark charter with a fantastic couple. I have been blessed to receive some very top-notch and friendly individuals. Kind of ironic considering the crusty lot many hobby shark fishermen can be. The conditions on this trip would hardly be considered encouraging; mostly muddy water and high surf. While things looked bleak, the fish were quite active. We finished up catching and releasing 11 sharks and losing a couple more at the leader. The highlight of this trip is that one of those sharks was a 10’-8” tiger, first-ever on one of my charters.

Noe is a very polite and respectable young man and fought this massive fish for well over two hours before wrestling it to the beach.

The sense of accomplishment I felt personally and also for them was indescribable. This was actually one of the final sharks of the trip and, up to that point, Noe and Vanessa were already ecstatic with their catches. When Noe released this fish I did not know the human grin could stretch so wide. THIS is why I love my job!

For the past decade Eric ‘Oz’ Ozolins has been promoting shark catch and release and assisting various shark research programs. Eric offers guided shark fishing on Padre Island National Seashore. Also renowned for extreme kayak big game fishing, Eric runs Kayak Wars; one of the largest kayak fishing tournaments in the world.

Email Websites

oz@oceanepics.com extremecoast.com | oceanepics.com | kayakwars.com

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TSFMAG.com | 83

Dickie Colburn

DICKIE COLBURN’S Sabine Scene While I both appreciate and accept the fact that three consecutive months of flooding will prove beneficial over the long haul for inland lakes and a significant portion of the coastal fishery, it has been more akin to a nightmare with no immediate end in sight for Sabine Lake anglers. As a Catching was more matter of fact, it is as black as important than the inside of a cow outside keeping for Andrew!

Sabine right now, and pouring!

In even the driest of years, the infusion of less fresh water has never posed a problem Dickie Colburn is a full for our bay fishermen. In fact, time guide out of Orange, visiting anglers are quick to Texas. Dickie has 37 years point out that our venue is experience guiding on actually saltwater-lite at best.

Sabine and Calcasieu Lakes.

The Sabine and Neches rivers as well as the bayous nurture Telephone 409-883-0723 healthy brackish marshes Website while affording a viable bite www.sabineconnection.com for everything from black bass to speckled trout.

Between hoping there was a bite that I may have TroKar_TexasSaltwater_July2015.pdf 1 6/1/2015 3:44:49 PM overlooked and refusing to

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ask clients to fish amongst the daily crowds south of the Causeway, rather than sit home and wait it out, I spent most of the past week exploring every depth and technique that ever yielded a trout from north of I-10 to the Causeway. We chose a different section each day and while we found more flounder and redfish, we caught only three keeper trout in three days.

Because my pipeline of recreational fishermen that share a phenomenal amount of information throughout the year has given up on the lake, we were very much on our own. In fact, in spite of a spate of light winds and more sunshine than rain, we counted a total of only sixteen boats on the entire lake over a three day period and a few of those were repeat fishermen.

While I am personally frustrated and concerned

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The best part of fishing in the rain!

with how this will all play out, depending on your affinity for fishing in a crowd, there is still a very decent trout bite to be had from the Causeway to the short rigs as well as in Keith Lake. Some of the largest trout reportedly have been taken out of the Keith Lake area, but that chain of lakes is shallow and a little added pressure keeps the fish on the move.

Depending on the strength of the tide changes and the number of boats jockeying for a little elbow room, the trout bite from the LNG plant to the end of the jetties can be well worth the hassle. Certain colors can provide an edge at times, but for the most part, everyone has figured out the most productive pattern and speed of retrieve.

Easily, the most decisive advantage is arriving at the launch well before most folks even climb out of bed. The topwater bite on the Gulf side of the rocks can just be incredibly good for both numbers and size and the best of that bite takes place in the dark. Expect to ruin a few of your favorite topwaters as the fish hold tight to the rocks and you can only bank a She Dog off the granite so many times.

As the morning wears on, crawling a plastic tail down the rocks or working a crankbait a little deeper can extend the bite. While it is all about the direction and strength of wind, the beach front and the short rigs can be excellent options as well.

The saving grace for those of us that continue to try to make the fish in the lake bite on our terms has been a sporadic, but decent flounder and redfish bite. There isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t much difference in the water clarity, but cuts exiting the marshes continue to provide a reliable bite, especially early and late. Gulp tails and live finger mullet have been the most dependable baits.

I would love to report that the learning curve for us has involved exploiting a seldom-fished depth of water or even a new lure, but it has undoubtedly been more about the speed of retrieve. The trout are hugging the bottom in that thin layer of saltwater just off the bottom and slowly crawling a jig across the shell is a necessity even in deeper water.

Our solution to exploiting that bite without going broke has been rigging our tails weedless on Assassinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new swim hook. Due to the spoon shape of the belly weighted hook, your plastic tails swim upright and skin-hooking the barb minimizes a world of hang-ups. The best attribute, however, is that it converts every Sea Shad and Die Dapper in your arsenal into a legitimate swimbait!

Every trip is a good one when you fish with the kids!

TSFMAG.com | 85

Capt. Caleb Harp

The Buzz on Galveston Bay

Galveston

Capt. Caleb Harp has fished the Galveston Bay System since childhood and, now a charter captain and fishing guide, he uses his knowledge to enable clients to enjoy the excellent fishing the area offers. His specialty is the year-around pursuit for trophy trout and redfish with artificial lures

Telephone 281-753-3378 Website harpsguideservice.com

86 | August 2015

I hate to say that we are starting to salt up because when I said that in the April we got 13 inches of rain later that week. The Galveston Bay complex is still about 45% completely fresh. Another 15% of the bay is fishable, but so muddy that you could grow corn in it. As bad as another big push of fresh water would seem, the damage is already done, at least as far as this summer’s prospects are concerned.

As bad as the flood was/still is in some places, the fishing is just incredible in others. I wrote here last month that the flood has congregated the fish in certain areas. This is still true but unfortunately those areas are now widely known and very popular.

It’s not uncommon to see 50 to 60 boats already parked where you planned to go.

Right now, the Lake Livingston dam discharge on the Trinity River is ONLY 28,400 cubic feet per second. That’s a pretty substantial drop from last month’s 73,000. IF

WE DON’T GET ANYMORE RAIN (big IF) the salinity will begin to recover and the fish will start to spread out— and so will the crowds.

Trinity Bay is still full of blue cats, channel cats and crappie. It’s fresh and will continue to stay fresh for a quite a while. With the Lake Livingston dam pumping 73,000 cubic feet per second into the top of the bay for a prolonged period of time, there’s so much fresh water that it will take some time before the salt water coming in from the Houston Ship Channel can dilute it.

Some people don’t understand the term cubic-feet-per-second.

70,000 cubic feet per second is equivalent to 259 dump trucks, full to the brim with fresh water, all dumping in one second. Do that every second for 24 hours Ricardo with a big and that’s the volume of fresh Lower water we had coming down the Galveston river. A 40,000 CFS reduction in Bay trout. discharge rate is a step in the right direction but Trinity Bay

salinity will not recover overnight. It’s going to take some time; my guess is that we might be able to fish Trinity Bay sometime in lateAugust or September.

Upper Galveston Bay is still mostly fresh from all the water that came down the San Jacinto. There is presently a salty layer at the bottom of the ship channel, and more salty water is flowing daily up the channel. This area will recover much sooner than Trinity.

East Galveston Bay is producing most Clay with a 7lb victim consistently among all our bays but it’s so of a MirrOlure Lil John. crowded that it will make you want to pull your hair out. Traditionally, the trout have been plentiful on the oyster reefs that cover much of East Bay’s bottom during summer.

Fishing these reefs can be quite successful and fun, even in the crowds, if done right.

When approaching a reef, take note of the wind direction. Avoid disturbing the reef and other anglers with your outboard motor, running on top of the reef, idling toward a position, etc. Simply idle around, well away from the reef, and let the wind carry you in.

Use your trolling motor to keep position or move around while on the reef and near other boats. Think of this as taking turns. The guy drifting behind you might be catching fish too, do not crank up and haul butt, spooking the fish he was targeting.

The bite has been fairly steady but low and slow, for the most part.

Darker plastics (Tidal Surge Split Tails; plum-chartreuse) bounced off bottom have been doing very well. Every once in a while a faster presentation has been getting bit and that tells me that some of the fish are now feeding higher in the water column; maybe the salinity is improving. Let’s hope.

West Galveston Bay has been generally good but the feeding patterns can be a bit finicky. Waders are doing well on trout and reds on grass bottom and also over sand and shell bottoms throwing MirrOlure She-Dogs and soft plastics. Topwaters early and then switching to soft plastics when the top bite plays out is the name of the game. Redfish are still thick against the grass and sand pockets along many shorelines. The key to this is vision. You have to be able to see the fish and the sand pockets amongst the grass to be able to fish them. That’s where a good pair of polarized sunglasses become valuable. I like the Costa 580Gs, their unmatched contrast and color definition make it a lot easier for me to spot fish and structure.

Hopefully the rain is done and we can soon get back to normal.

Stay tight! –Capt. Caleb Harp

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Bink Grimes

The View from Matagorda

Matagorda

Bink Grimes is a full-time fishing and hunting guide, freelance writer and photographer, and owner of Sunrise Lodge on Matagorda Bay.

Telephone 979-241-1705 Email binkgrimes@sbcglobal.net Website www.matagordasunriselodge.com

88 | August 2015

Lots of talk begins to circulate in August about which football team will win it all. Sweat, two-adays, preseason games—always couldn’t wait for September to get here. That’s not the case now; I love August as far as fishing goes. Kids are getting ready for school, families are getting back in the swing and the bays have less traffic.

Fishing for most folks is put on the back burner while sons and daughters buy school supplies and a new wardrobe. Hence, one of the best weekends to fish in August is the Tax Free Holiday Weekend.

Many days we captains pray for light winds, but in August we sometimes pray for it to blow just a little to move our boats over scattered shell. When winds are light, we drift the middle of East Bay. Trout and redfish hang there all year, and slicks become more prevalent during August, especially from schooling redfish. There are some good trout on the shorelines for waders as well. We find those trout over the grass early, then they fall along the ledge in about 4-5 feet of water later in the day.

The reefs along the north shoreline are a boon for waders tossing topwaters on the incoming

tide. Never underestimate the cuts leading to the bay on the incoming tide as well. Those fish enter and exit the “Ditch” daily through the cuts. The mid-bay reefs consistently hold good trout in August. We start out in waist-deep water on the shell drop then end up in chest-deep water on the end of the reef as the water warms.

Know your tides. There have been many mornings I have arrived to find nothing, but patience prevails knowing the incoming tide will bring fish to the reef. Slicks popping in deeper water adjacent to the reef are good signs.

Birds work along the north shoreline with calm conditions. Since the ICW runs along the northern boundary of East Bay, those shrimp running the ICW often enter the bay on the incoming tide. It won’t be full blown with a dozen gulls laughing and diving; rather, just one, two or three birds circling and dipping. If you see them, it’s worth a cast.

Southeast wind normally returns in August and bring with it a low barometer; and, falling barometric pressure is generally more conducive for fish to bite. Weak cold fronts push light and variable winds which flatten the summer surf, giving us miles and miles of guts and bars to work the beach. We will work the surf and jetty on these days, concentrating in the first gut on the incoming tide and tossing topwaters on the outer bars on the falling tide.

The good news with an easterly flow is tides rise and push water to back lakes and estuaries devoid of tides for most of the summer.

This new water and swollen tides give the bays a shot in the arm and push new fish to the shallows.

Results of early duck population-nesting surveys have been announced. Blue-winged teal numbers are as solid as ever for 2015 and the first sign of these acrobats will begin arriving late this month. Teal season will run September 12-27 and we will be running hunts in the morning and fishing in the afternoon.

Call, text or email.

-Bink

TSFMAG.com | 89

Capt. Gary Gray

MID-COAST BAYS With the Grays

Port O'Connor Seadrift

Captain Gary Gray is a full time guide born and raised in Seadrift. He has been guiding in the Seadrift/ Port O’Connor area for 28 years. Gary specializes in wading for trout and redfish year round with artificial lures.

Telephone 361-785-6708 Email bayrats@tisd.net Website www.bayrat.com

90 | August 2015

Mother Nature did it again! For the first half of 2015 clients in the muddy stuff. we have received more than enough rain to take us I know that I started out with “Mother Nature did out of a record-long drought. Originally the fresh it again” but what I really meant by that statement water coming down the Guadalupe River seemed was that she ended our long drought and now she to stay on the north side of San Antonio Bay and was actually turning our fishing around, right in would either run west or run east down the major front of our eyes. The bays need a good fresh water channels, depending the direction of the prevailing flushing a lot more often than we get them. I have wind. This left the southern half of San Antonio Bay already noticed how much better our trout fishing holding close to normal salinity and very fishable is in the bays compared to the last 4 to 5 years or so. for our speckled friends.

It is not uncommon to catch trout and reds at every Then the upper reaches of the Guadalupe Basin stop we make during the day. began to experience rainfall in greater amount and the Guadalupe River rose to flood stage. The flood stage inflow continued until all of San Antonio, Espiritu Santo, Ayers and Mesquite Bays became almost entirely inundated, salinity fell to single digits in many areas, zero salinity in many. Yes, there were still a few salty pockets where you could catch trout and redfish on the south shorelines but it finally got so nasty looking that I started looking elsewhere for fish. It was more of a mental thing for me; I would rather fish Waist-deep and deeper will in trout-green water than a mud hole. The be the game plan in August. fishing was starting to suffer for me and my

Where we ended up finding our best water and best action has been in West Matagorda Bay. This bay system is usually a go-to area for me this time of year anyway, because of the deep water located right off the ship channel spoils. This area will hold cooler water and lots of current to attract and hold baitfish, which in turn holds lots of speckled trout.

West Matagorda’s renowned Hump also holds deep water within casting range of the wader working the sand drop-offs and also will have a lot of current movement. Just keep an eye out for the man in the gray suit!

The south and the north shorelines between Pass Cavallo and the big jetties have also been go-to spots for the Rat Pack working the sandbars in close to the shoreline. By the time the sun gets well-up we are waist-deep in guts between sandbars.

Last but definitely not least we have the surf. There were days in early-June that it flattened out enough to get out there but I had just had knee surgery and missed those opportunities. It will calm down again and I will try to be the first one out of the pass on those days when it does.

For August, the fishing areas and the methods we are currently using in July shouldn’t change. We will be starting off shallow throwing She Dogs in bone or black back-chrome sides. Sound and action seem to make more of a difference than color when throwing topwaters—remember that.

When the topwater bite slows I will be switching to either a 4” Bass Assassin Sea Shad in copperhead or green moon, both very naturallooking baits. My other go-to bait is the 5” Bass Assassin Vapor Shad.

The colors I prefer for the Vapor Shad are green moon and hot chicken.

The Vapor Shad should be worked like any other jerkbait, with lots of twitches to make it dart and dive. The big difference with the Vapor Shad is that it seems more buoyant than the older rat tail jerk shads. This allows you to work it slower as it stays in the target zone longer.

Last but not least, when I am able to get to the surf and we have our trout, with my ShallowSport X3 I am able to point it towards the nearshore rigs or hit weedlines out in the Gulf for some ling and dorado. Even better, we can run until we spot one of the large schools of tarpon that inhabit the nearshore Gulf waters. The ShallowSport X3 has definitely made my job easier, Costa Del Mar no matter what the weather brings. guys with their winning trout.

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david rowsey

HOOKED UP WITH Rowsey Are y’all hot enough yet? It’s pretty toasty here in Corpus Christi and Baffin Bay. I don’t understand how guides and recs can sit cooking in a boat all day when temperatures are hitting 100F. If there was ever a time you would want to become a wade Upper fishermen, it is now. There is a lot to be said for Laguna/ submerging to the neck and then rising up to have 15 mph wind cool you down. The heat is the real Baffin deal this time of year and can be dangerous. Y’all do what you have to do stay cool. I can already hear the “Drink more beer” jokes.

We have had an amazing summer thus far and see David Rowsey has 20 years no signs of slowing down. I have not witnessed the experience in the Laguna/Baffin region; trophy trout with artificial whole bay system with water this gorgeous since lures is his specialty. David has a 2007. Fishing has been so much more rewarding great passion for conservation due to the fact that we can see every piece of and encourages catch and structure and make specific casts to trick most any release of trophy fish. species to take a lure.

Site-casting has been the norm when in skinny Telephone water.

Spotting a giant trout lying shin-deep will 361-960-0340 Website give even the most seasoned anglers a raging case www.DavidRowsey.com down of buck fever. I have had it happen so many Email times this summer that I have lost count. The good david.rowsey@yahoo.com news is that we get to see them and watch them

92 | August 2015

behave and react in their natural state. The bad news is they can be very hard to catch. They did not get big because they are stupid. My best advice for catching them is to go small on the lure selection and make accurate casts. If your line crosses their body before your lure; you are busted!

Large trout and reds are being caught throughout Baffin and the Upper Laguna Madre. Large schools of reds have been popping up all along the ICW and King Ranch shoreline. Most of these schools are oversized fish but they are a hoot to catch at the end of the day. During low boat traffic days they are pretty easy to find, but the burn boat crowd can shut it down real fast if they are out buzzing the shorelines and around every island. This style of “fishing” has become a plague down here, unfortunately. If you find yourself having to deal with these “fishermen” you will be best served by moving into deeper water where the reds will be fleeing.

The largest trout that we have been catching have been in skinny water. When conditions are perfect, we are site casting them. As mentioned before, this a ton of fun, but tricky. Ideally a little chop on the water is best for success, whether you can see

This 32-incher was caught site-casting on a calm day. Cloud cover made her hard to see until right at my feet. She was lean but the fight was epic as most of this class are, especially when hooked only 12’ away.

them or not. As always, a good supply of bait is always a great place to start when going the skinny route for big trout.

If you just want to get bit and throw some filets in the box, head for deeper waters. Areas that have sharp drop-offs and grass lines growing into the deeper water are my first choice for catching numbers.

The area known as the Badlands is full of this kind of structure. Other great areas are the Kenedy shoreline as well Rocky Slough. All of the spoil islands stretching from Bird Island offer more of the same. Generally, the best technique is to cast a Bass Assassin out deep, on a quartering angle, and work it back toward the grass line. The transition area between the grass and sand is your money spot 90% of the time. Expect to catch all species doing this. We are routinely catching some great flounder and reds when targeting trout in this manner.

The MirrOlure topwater bite has been awesome all summer.

We have found a few areas that are so loaded with fish that you can catch them all day on top. They are not always big fish, but good fish are mixed in with the small ones if you have the patience to deal with the little guys. The 5” Bass Assassin is still my go-to lure for the big trout and their 4” Sea Shad paddletail is my favorite for the schooling reds. Swimming the paddletail on a heavier jighead is my favorite technique for the reds.

Remember the buffalo! -Capt. David Rowsey

TSFMAG.com | 93

Capt. Tricia

TRICIA’S Mansfield Report Mid-summer fishing can be a hit or miss deal and lately artificial lure folks have been hitting it big or missing it altogether. There are many reasons why we chose fishing as a pastime and the ever-changing challenges that nature presents would not be last on the list.

Over the past month exceptionally high tides, tons of Port floating grass, and overflowing Mansfield parking lots have presented some tough times. Of course fish will naturally scatter with more water to roam in and Capt. Tricia’s Skinny Water unfathomable boat traffic will Adventures operates out of spread them even further. Each Port Mansfield, specializing in summer season more hopeful wadefishing with artificial lures. anglers arrive in Port Mansfield, so I suggest you had better hit the water early with a good Telephone 956-642-7298 game plan in mind.

Email During the past month, shell@granderiver.net when targeting trout, focusing Website www.SkinnyWaterAdventures.com on mostly deeper water with heavy grass beds has been the Steve Lyon with a best plan. The greater catches bruiser of a redfish. have routinely come from

waist-deep or more in areas with good cover, or dropoffs. Finding bait in areas like this with fewer boats has been key. Topwaters with single hooks have worked fairly well early in the day, even in water greater than waist deep. One-Knockers and Skitter Walks are most often the better producers and during calmer periods the junior-size plugs have been more effective.

Although we have been finding some decent topwater action at times, soft plastics are the way to go for anglers seeking more action than size. Shrimp-like colors, pumpkinseed-chartreuse, etc., have been mainstays in clearer water while plum-chartreuse or black are great choices when the water is murky. We have to remember that during late-summer the afternoon water temps will average around 90⁰ in most areas and fish will be found deeper on

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average. Working plastics low, just above the grass beds in murky waist-deep water (and casting deeper) is usually your best bet.

Redfish can be on the flats some days, great for sight-casting enthusiasts, but most often they seem to have preferred deeper, dirtier waters through much of June. With this said, we started seeing them returning to the shallows after the July 4th weekend, but they are very shallow and require long walks for a shot at them.

As you may have already heard, flounder are making a strong showing and we have been finding them consistently enough to target them specifically. The better areas to target are cleaner bottoms where you can drag a soft plastic without hanging up on grass or The Lyon brothers had another great trip.

other bottom clutter. Edges and small guts along the East Cut and ICW, the old oil well ditches, spoil islands and sandy windswept shorelines are your best choices. The average sizes are running from sixteen to twenty-inches and they are fat and healthy.

Another species to consider is black drum and the Laguna around Port Mansfield certainly has plenty. You can often find drum schools in otherwise clear water by searching for large murky spots during the afternoon and toward evening. GULP pulled slowly across the bottom or fished under corks work well and can be a whole lot of fun when they are feeding. I wish more fisherman and family groups would take advantage of the fun and excellent table fare the black drum offers, and it would certainly take the heat off other gamefish.

August, despite the heat, is often an alluring month. In the first weeks the overall water levels will drop and should put fish in more predictable areas. I hope, and also expect to see more redfish on the shallow flats. With calm August conditions, redfish should be easy to spot during early morning boat rides. Trout should also be easier to pattern. For some reason, every August, we start seeing large trout showing up shallow and becoming “catchable.” Silent, stealthy approaches are critical, and that is another reason why we wade, plus it’s a rush getting in there with them.

As of this writing the Lower Laguna holds lots of promise and barring a hurricane, brown tide, red tide, etc., I believe we could experience epic late-summer and early-fall fishing. Remember that the Lower Laguna is a very shallow ecosystem and how we manage our boating practices can have a great effect on the marine environment, fish behavior and also our fellow fishermen. Be courteous and get out there early…August is going to be a scorcher!

TSFMAG.com | 95

Capt. Ernest cisneros

SOUTH PADRE Fishing Scene

A rr oyo C olorado t o Port I sabel

A Brownsville-area native, Capt. Ernest Cisneros fishes the Lower Laguna Madre from Port Mansfield to Port Isabel.

Ernest specializes in wading and poled skiff adventures for snook, trout, and redfish.

Cell 956-266-6454 Website www.tightlinescharters.com

2015

96 | August 2015

Perhaps the greatest reason I enjoy guiding is sharing my passion with clients and teaching them the how-where-when of locating and catching fish.

I have never played chess but I understand it to be a game of strategy, each game is different, and strategy often changes as the game develops. Fishing is quite the same, especially during these past two busy months. Many variablesâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;boat traffic, direction and strength of wind, tide level and movement of water, water color and also weather all play key roles, and strategy must therefore be adjusted as each day progresses.

Patience will always be a virtue and this is never more true than when fishing spots you know to be holding fish. There have been times I left such a spot, only to experience the same pattern in another. Had I been thinking like a smart and seasoned chess player, I would have stayed put and waited for them to feed. This most recent full moon period was a prime example.

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It always amazes me how they can suddenly turn on, almost precisely on cue with predicted solunar feeding periods. Like I said, patience will always be a virtue.

For some time now we have been experiencing very low water levels and many days with little or no water movement except when the incoming or outgoing flow briefly hits peak strength. Some of the back bays have been bone dry or too shallow to fish for several weeks. Slow grinding Mike Cisneros caught this through late morning and early nice flatty while afternoon has been common but targeting redfish. thankfully the late afternoon and evening hours have been very good to us, best bites we have seen in quite some time.

Trout action continues to be steadier and more reliable than redfish. Most of our trout are being caught on semi-soft bottom with shell and also hard sand along the ICW. Areas with numerous potholes on grassy bottom are also holding good numbers. Slowly working a KWiggler through the

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potholes has been the trick in getting them to bite. Slow presentations have been the best tactic everywhere and the bite is usually more of a nibble or slight bump than a solid thump.

It has been a totally different story when we have found trout under birds. The feeding is very aggressive here; they will hit just about any soft plastic of any color, worked at any speed. Even when the water has been churned to a “coffee with cream” color they still seem to find our KWigglers.

At the present time we are catching lots of solid trout but no trophies, although I have seen quite a few on the flats. It doesn’t surprise me that (this time of the year) with low water levels and weaker tide movement the live-bait fishermen seem able to produce larger trout from the flats areas.

Ryan and David had a blast; limits of trout and redfish.

Find out for yourself…

Redfish continue to be hit and miss. I mentioned in an earlier article that our reds have not staged in any one place for very long, and this remains true. Boat traffic, I believe, keeps them moving and searching for quieter locales. Large schools like we used to find in past years are nowhere lately and our best catches are made on weekdays when traffic is lightest. With low tides moving them from back bays to deeper regions it has been a hard game of chess. The only sure redfish bite of late has been under birds hovering above tailing and waking fish.

Quite noteworthy is the fact that flounder have appeared in surprising numbers. We are finding a few even without targeting them and this tells me they are quite abundant. If your desire is flounder, concentrate on the drop-offs of old oil well channels, along the ICW when there is good tidal flow, and on flats that contain a slight drop-off with a sand and shell bottom.

In August we should notice an increase in tide strength and see water returning to our back lakes. I say this in anticipation of tropical weather developments being likely in addition to the fact that July is typically a lower-tide month in general. August is also the beginning of our fall rainy season. Starting in August and into the fall months I tend to find bigger concentrations of fish in the middle part of the Lower Laguna or near the Arroyo Colorado. With all the shallow back lakes found in this area and an increase in tide level, these areas should become full of life.

In closing I would like to thank Capt. Wayne Davis for producing what I find to be the most durable and fish-attracting soft plastic baits on the market today. I rely on his KWiggler Ball Tail Shads; plumchartreuse, Flo-Mingo and the new bone diamond, every day.

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FISHING REPORTS

ORECASTS F from Big Lake to Boca Chica

AND

Lake Calcasieu Louisiana Jeff and Mary Poe - Big Lake Guide Service - 337.598.3268 It’s nearing the end of June, and we are really looking forward to July fishing. We were very fortunate with Tropical Storm Bill in that it didn’t rain much at all and the storm surge pushed a load of salty, green water into our system. It actually left the system looking better than it had before the storm. The trout are biting, and we don’t see them slowing down anytime soon. August is just around the corner, and things look like they’re lining up to be excellent. The shrimp are a little late coming into the system from the Gulf, due our prior freshwater issues. Now that Bill solved that problem, we should see large numbers of them in the months of July and August. August is typically hot, so we will be fishing deeper, mid-lake reefs, jetties, nearshore rigs, and the ship channel. We will typically throw shrimp imitations, such as MirrOlure Lil’ Johns, H&H Salty Grubs, and Beetles rigged on quarter, eighth and sixteenth-ounce jigheads. Opening night, glow, avocado, and clear will be the most effective colors at this time.

Jimmy West - Bolivar Guide Service - 409.996.3054 Jim says the fishing pressure in East Bay lately is as great as he’s ever seen, and there are two reasons. “We have over one hundred boats a day fishing the reefs in East Bay. I’ve never seen so much freshwater, and it has stacked up the fish around here. Everybody is catchin’ ‘em.

The key is to fish pretty deep, in water around the main reefs. You’ve got to keep your lure close to the bottom to make it work, because the fish are staying there, where the water is a little salty. I like to use a light jighead, like an eighth-ounce, which forces me to fish really slow in order to keep the lure low enough. I have been having good luck on bright colors like limetreuse and glow. Others are throwing black and dark red and doing okay too. The areas along the channel in Lower Galveston Bay and around Texas City are producing a lot of fish too. Fishing for reds has been slower for us. We can’t really see the mud streaks in this dirty water.

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Trinity Bay - East Bay - Galveston Bay | James Plaag Silver King Adventures - silverkingadventures.com - 409.935.7242 James says the same thing the other Galveston experts does. “All this freshwater has the fish stacked up in the lower parts of Galveston Bay and East Bay. We are catching lots and lots of trout, and all of the action is in pretty deep water, over shell. Best bite by far has been on soft plastics in colors like slammin’ chicken and limetreuse. In places where the current

isn’t too strong, I’m using a three-eighth-ounce jighead to keep the lure down close to the bottom, where the fish are. If currents are running stronger, I’ve been tying on a sixteenth-ounce head at times and just letting the current sweep it along. Fishing for redfish has been a lot slower for the most part, except at places like the jetties. The trout fishing patterns should remain the same throughout August. I don’t really think the freshwater situation is going away any time soon. If the weather allows, we will start heading out into the Gulf on a regular basis in search of the silver kings. August is typically one of the best months for targeting tarpon.”

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It is possible to catch a few of the smaller reds wading shallow areas along the shoreline at times.”

West Galveston - Bastrop - Christmas - Chocolate Bays Randall Groves - Groves Guide Service 979.849.7019 - 979.864.9323 Randall points to an old, familiar factor in determining the productivity of the fishing lately—the weather. “The Brazos River is still running really high, so every time we get south and southwest winds, our water gets muddied up pretty bad. It makes the fishing tough. We do have a great shrimp crop right now, and the fish are there, but it’s hard to catch them unless we get our normal southeast winds. When the wind blows southeast, we get clean water pushing in from the Gulf and the catching goes off. We’re catching best on Norton Sand Eels in colors like chicken on a chain and glow. I’m using a three-eighths-ounce head, and working it hard. The redfishing has been kind of slow. I believe the fish are out in the middle, and with the water quality, it’s hard to find the mud boils and find them the way we normally can. In August, I expect to be fishing the surf a lot. We usually whack ‘em pretty good in the surf this month on topwaters. Another option when it’s calm is the nearshore area. We caught some kingfish on topwaters out there recently.”

Matagorda | Charlie Paradoski Bay Guide Service - 713.725.2401 Charlie expects to be hitting the surf as much as possible in August.

“August means two things. The best trout fishing will be in the surf, because the wind usually settles down and water temperatures are hot.

We are currently catching plenty of trout along the beachfront, and some of them are pretty big. Topwaters generally work well out there, since we are fishing in relatively calm weather. If the surf is muddied up, and we are focusing on trout, we’ll usually favor drifting scattered shell

over a muddy bottom in some of the deeper parts of East Bay. Using fairly heavy jigheads allows us to keep the soft plastics in contact with the bottom, which is a key. Hot water means fish in the bay like to stay somewhat deep. The other thing August consistently brings is the beginning of the redfish schooling season. We normally have large schools of fish roaming the shallows along the shorelines of both East and West Matagorda Bays. Wading is the best way to target them, of course. They are usually pretty easy to catch once they are located.”

Palacios | Capt. Aaron Wollam www.palaciosguideservice.com - 979.240.8204 Wow, June has been a tough month of fishing! Tropical Storm Bill dumped a ton rain in the area, and our river and Tres Palacios Bay system are still fresh as of this report. A positive from all the rain is that the freshwater has concentrated our fish, even though we have had to make some long runs to catch them. Back lakes off the Intracoastal Waterway between Palacios and Matagorda have held good pockets of salty water and tons of redfish and drum. Drifting these back lakes with live shrimp rigged about two feet under popping corks has accounted for best action. Trout have moved to the south shoreline of West Matagorda Bay as the freshwater has moved them off mid-bay reefs and wells.

Live shrimp rigged about three to four feet under popping corks have accounted for good bites on the guts west of Green’s Bayou. Tripletail do not like fresh water; the few that have been caught have come from the surf or further out on the short rigs. Hopefully, as the bays get saltier, they will return to our bay system. The amount of crabs and shrimp in the bay is nothing like we have seen in a long time--this fall should be great!

TSFMAG.com | 99

Port O’Connor | Lynn Smith Back Bay Guide Service - 361.983.4434 The first priority for Lynn in August will always be trying to get into the surf when possible. “In August, we should be in the surf big time. The seas should be flattening out, and when that happens, we catch plenty of trout along the beachfront. We like to throw large topwaters out there, starting early in the gut closest to the beach and moving out as the sun rises higher. We normally switch over to soft plastics if the topwater bite peters out. If we can’t get into the surf, we’ll most likely be fishing areas close to the Pass and the ship channel. It’s a good idea to stay close to deep water with strong tide movement when temperatures are at their highest. We like to look for big rafts of mullet on flats close to deep water. Those flats are normally sandy, with plenty of grass. Usually, we find the fishing to be best on the deeper grass beds, which lie closest to the deep water. When fishing these areas and patterns, an incoming tide early in the morning usually produces the easiest catching.”

Rockport | Blake Muirhead Gator Trout Guide Service - 361.790.5203 or 361.441.3894 Blake will be using a variety of methods to target both trout and redfish in August, he says. “I like to fish places where the reds are schooling up to begin their migration to the Gulf this time of year. I fish areas on the flats around the Pass, and also around drains leading into the backwater areas in bays like Mesquite and San Antonio and Aransas. I like to use soft plastics when targeting the reds. Of course, I normally throw Sand Eels in colors like pumpkinseed and purple/chartreuse. Lately, a plum Bass Assassin has been working great. When targeting trout, I will fish the surf when winds allow. I also like to wade shorelines which have a hard, sandy bottom covered by grass beds. Lately, we’ve been on a run catching trout like I haven’t seen in many years. Catching lots of

nineteen to twenty one inch fish. Topwaters are working well on some days, with the soft plastics taking up the slack when it’s slower. I will also be using live croakers some of the time throughout August if I need to.”

Upper Laguna Madre - Baffin Bay - Land Cut Robert Zapata – rz1528@grandecom.net - 361.563.1160 Baffin Bay is in great shape! All the rain that we’ve been getting this year has been good for Baffin. We have the best water quality and clarity I’ve seen in a long time! I’ve been spotting a few schools of redfish early in the mornings on days when the wind is blowing less than ten miles per hour. I’ll get upwind from the school and keep up with them with my trolling motor and cast natural-colored Bass Assassin Die Dappers or half-ounce gold, weedless spoons. I’ve been finding numbers of trout and redfish in less than two feet of water in areas with sandy potholes using Texas Assassins in the pumpkinseed/chartreuse color rigged on eighth-ounce Assassin Screwlock jigheads. Many of the trout’s stomachs are loaded with shrimp, so at times, I’ll use three inch Berkley Gulp!

Shrimp under a Bass Assassin Kwik Kork with a short drop. Of course, live croakers will also be working along grass lines and drop-offs in two to three feet of water. August will be a great month to do some sightcasting with shrimp-flavored Fish Bites.

Corpus Christi | Joe Mendez – www.sightcast1.com - 361.937.5961 The lower salinities helped clear out the brown tide, and fishing has been outstanding in the clear water all over the area lately, Joe says.

“The water is beautiful, so we’re able to pick and choose where we fish and are able to target both trout and redfish effectively, with sightcasting opportunities available much of the time. Some of the trout and redfish are hanging out really shallow, particularly early in the mornings. They are preferring areas with a sandy bottom, surrounded by grass beds. Some of these areas can be found tight to shorelines, but others are along the spines of spoil banks and humps. Finding the

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schools of redfish has been pretty easy much of the time. They can be seen pushing wakes when it’s calm, and when the wind is up, they are fairly easy to spot once the sun is overhead. As we get into August, the fish tend to stay a little deeper in the hot water, so patterns like potholes next to rocks in four to six feet of water become more productive. We’ll throw topwaters and soft plastics mainly when fishing those.”

Padre Island National Seashore Billy Sandifer - Padre Island Safaris - 361.937.8446 First off; as of late June, the entirety of Padre Island National Seashore has been affected by upwellings of cold water from offshore. The upwelling has muddied the water and dropped water temps about 10 degrees. Both bait fish and predators have nearly abandoned the colder water and this has turned much of the surf into a “no life zone.” Other than hardheads and maybe a few gafftop very little will be caught until this event concludes. Typically the upwellings subside in late-July or early-August. If the water clears and the bait returns, speckled trout will be available in both early and late-August. For some reason, they tend to disappear for a week or so at mid-month. Some really big tiger sharks are possible on kayaked baits a good distance from the shore along with some blacktips. Blacktips of two to three feet can become abundant in late-August. Whiting will be in good supply but they tend to be smaller this time of year. Tarpon are possible if menhaden or bait balls of dusky anchovies are present. Kingfish are possible and ladyfish should be thick.

Port Mansfield | Ruben Garza Snookdudecharters.com – 832.385.1431 Getaway Adventures Lodge – 956.944.4000 Trout fishing at Port Mansfield has been very steady for us. Lots of solids and juveniles, too. An abundance of small trout is a good sign for the future—please handle carefully. Keepers have been averaging 16 to 19 inches, which I find make the best table fare. The topwater bite has been

sporadic, so we have been relying on K Wiggler Ball Tail Shads on eighthounce jigheads. Concentrations of solid trout can be challenging to find some days, but the action is rewarding once located. East-side grass beds that taper to deeper water are good places to begin the search.

My forecast for August--elevated temperatures push trout schools deep.

Target mid-thigh to waist-deep potholes early and progress steadily deeper. Look for schools of active finger mullet, and keep an eye open for shrimp skipping on the surface. During worst case scenario (calm days), hit the jetties, which are holding decent numbers. Kingfish can be a hoot on light tackle and sometimes tarpon will be seen rolling and feeding. Target flounder along the East Cut. Lower Laguna Madre - South Padre - Port Isabel Janie and Fred Petty – www.fishingwithpettys.com – 956.943.2747 Back in the 80s, we would see five to six-foot blacktip sharks on the east side during summer months. This year is the first time since then that we are seeing sharks on a regular basis, but these are ten-foot bull and hammerhead sharks. There could be several reasons why these predators are showing up in shallow water--increased numbers of trout, warmer water temps or even the flooding that occurred north of the LLM. We’re catching large numbers of trout up to over thirty one inches, way more flounder than in years past, and some good redfish, including oversized, using Cajun Thunder round corks with Berkley Gulp! Live three-inch shrimp. The corks are especially effective on the west side where the water remains muddy. Freddy says, “So far this summer, more rain (which, incidentally is good for the shrimp hatch) and wind than we would normally expect, have combined to help keep already cloudy bay waters from clearing.” Tides run very low this time of year, so be careful and help stop open bay dredge disposal.

TSFMAG.com | 101

Caitlin Laguna - 28” first trophy trout!

Peter De La Fuente Port Mansfield - 40” 26lb bull red

Len D’Eramo Matagorda - 29” redfish

Chayse Jones & Joshua Jordan Port Aransas - 63” cobia

Mike Garcia 60lb alligator gar 102 | August 2015

Duane Curlee Matagorda - 42” first bull red!

Sergio Flecha Fulton - 22” redfish

Tyler Tabbs Bay - 34” 20lb red CPR

Sebastian Flecha Fulton - redfish

Collin Loxterman 27” redfish

Anthony Brawner Galveston - 21” first keeper red!

Cole Chrisman Galveston - 34.5” 20lb first bull red!

Ivan Flecha Fulton - 22” redfish

Scott Thornhill Bayou Vista - redfish

Jared MacDonald Laguna Madre - 44” redfish

Wayne Moore McFaddin - 45” redfish

Dick Mathys Sr Landcut - redfish

Jennifer & Michelle Matagorda - LOTB Tournament

Glenn Morrow Galveston - 29” redfish

Tonya Morrow Galveston - 28” first redfish!

Jonathan Mcminn Seabrook - 27” 7.75lb trout

Suzie Thornhill Bayou Vista - 8.5lb redfish

Gabriel Rocha Port Aransas - first shark!

Mario Henry Redfish Bay - first redfish! CPR

David Brooks offshore dorado

Tony Ximenez Packery Channel - 28” red

Noah Wood Chocolate Bay - first flounder!

David Brown offshore red snapper

Larry Whitehead Galveston Bay - pulling a redfish TSFMAG.com | 103

Jake Berry Galveston - first red! CPR

Christian Fuller Moses Lake - 14” first flounder!

Bobby Gossett POC - first ling!

Nathaniel Guerra Laguna Madre - 21” & 23” red

Paul Henderson Freeport - snapper 104 | August 2015

Juan Alonso Arroyo City - 26” red

Nik and Nolan Schneider Chocolate Bayou - 42” black drum

Zac & Spencer Hawthorn Aransas National Wildlife Refuge - 30lb jack

Jeff Atchely (wih help from Will Griffin) King Ranch shoreline - trout CPR

Daniel Guillette Laguna Madre - 39” redfish CPR

Wes James Port Aransas - 38” 28lb red

Kelli Henry PINS - redfish

Eva Green Hernan Guajardo & Alberto Gonzalez Galveston Bay - 36” bull red San Luis Pass - redfish

Wade Land, Ben Smethurst, & Russell Harder Port Mansfield - big school of trout!

Hallie Kunz Port O’Connor - 30” first redfish!

Matthew Law Rollover Pass - 28”redfish

Linda Springs Claudia Saldana Port Mansfield - 25” personal best red! Lambert’s Wier - 38” red

Mark Lawrence Baffin Bay - 26” trout & 24” red

Cory Power Lavaca Bay - 42” tarpon

Sherman Powers Jr. Galveston - 25lb red snapper

Jay Shellady Sunday Beach - 40” bull red

Cal Kirkpatrick Galveston Bay - 22” trout Justin Ruiz Rockport - 37” black drum

CW Raetzsch offshore - 52” first wahoo!

Kaedon McCool first catch ever! CPR

Please do not write on the back of photos.

Email photos with a description of your Catch of the Month to: Photos@tsfmag.com

Anna Bell Strader with father & brother Rockport - black drum

Noe Salazar Port Mansfield - 33” speck

Mail photos to: TSFMag P.O. Box 429, Seadrift, TX 77983 TSFMAG.com | 105

Pam Johnson

Gulf Coast Got ideas, hints or recipes you’d like to share?

Email them to pam@tsfmag.com or send by fax: 361-785-2844

Shrimp & Gouda Grits Cakes INGREDIENTS

SHRIMP & SAUCE PREPARATION

1 ½ cups grits (instant or use your favorite, I use Geechie Boy) 1 (7-oz) package of Gouda cheese, shredded 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley ¼ tsp. ground black pepper 2 Tbsp. butter melted Garnish: chopped fresh parsley

In a medium bowl, combine shrimp and seasoned salt, tossing to coat. In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium high heat.

Add shrimp, and cook, in batch, for one minute per side or until lightly browned. Remove shrimp to a bowl, and set aside. Repeat with remaining shrimp, adding 2 tablespoons olive oil if needed.

Heat remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. Add green onion, bell pepper, and garlic; cook for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add wine, cream, salt, and pepper; cook for 2 minutes. Add shrimp and parsley, stirring to combine. Remove from heat.

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Line a 13x9 inch baking pan with aluminum foil. Spray foil with nonstick cooking spray, and set aside. In a large saucepan, cook grits according to package.

Stir in cheese, parsley, and pepper, stirring until cheese is melted. Spoon grits into prepared pan, and spread into an even layer. Cover, and refrigerate for 2 hours or until firm.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil, and brush with melted butter. Unmold grits onto a large cutting board. Using a 3” round cutter, cut 12 rounds from grits and place on prepared pan. Bake for 25 minutes. Turn grits cakes over, and bake for 25 minutes more or until lightly browned on both sides.

Top with creamy shrimp. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley.

TSFMAG.com | 107

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The “Lost Years” of Sea Turtle Toddlers Shortly after sea turtles hatch and enter the waves, they vanish from sight for the next two to ten years. Scientists often call these the “lost years” because no one is sure where the turtle toddlers go during this time. Until recently, many marine scientists believed the young turtles ride the waves until they gain the strength or navigation skills to actively swim. But scientists wanted to find out for sure, especially since sea turtles are endangered. Knowing where they are going and how they are getting there might make it easier to protect them.

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A green sea turtle in Hawaii. Credit: Claire Fackler, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Researchers at the University of Central Florida caught 24 green sea turtles and 20 Kemp’s ridley sea turtles between 6 and 18 months old then attached solar-powered tags to them. Satellites tracked the turtles’ movements for two to three months before the tags detached from the turtles’ shells. Satellites also tracked tiny surface buoys that were placed alongside each turtle when it was tagged and released so that researchers could compare the movements of the buoys with the turtles’ movements.

It turns out turtle toddlers aren’t drifting aimlessly wherever the waves take them. Within a few days, they were sometimes up to 125 miles away from wherever the buoys had drifted. The young turtles were swimming toward habitats that ended up being very hospitable areas for them.

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CHRIS MAPP

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Summer is always incredibly busy in the boating sales switches are evaluated in turn. and service trades and this has been no exception.

Electrical connections at the battery post-battery Customers bring all manner of boat problems to switch, circuit breakers and any place a mechanical us and of course some are simply unfortunate connection is used should be tight and most of all, cases of excellent and well-maintained equipment clean. Mechanical connection means nut, bolt and or succumbing to everyday wear and tear. The majority any wiring splice. though are caused by neglect over time, ethanol The connection can look good and possibly even related fuel problems and a variety of electrical have a slight amount of visible surface corrosion, and failures that arise from the harsh marine environment it may seem like no big deal. All forms of corrosion, no these boats see year around. matter how slight, can be a very big deal!

Focusing on electrical issues, the number one The attached photos should give an idea as to the common denominator is boat accessory circuit failure extent of corrosion and deterioration we often see. brought about by corrosion. We see everything from What appears minor, as in the splice connectors, can engines not starting to baitwell shut entire circuits and systems and bilge pumps not working, down. Electrical connections are running light issuesâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;you name it. not just vital to accessory and Trolling motors, Talon and Power component operation but also Pole hydraulic anchor systems not to longevity of electrical motors, operating are also very common. etc. Voltage starvation will result Quite often the customer in higher amperage causing indicates they have already premature failure.

Telltale discoloration of shrink tubing on splices checked fuses and circuit We highly recommend regular should never be ignored. breakers, checked for broken inspection and application of wires and wiggled connections, Corrosion-X (red and/or green but without good results. formula where appropriate) to The diagnosis of any electrical prevent corrosion. issue starts with the basics.

Battery condition, age of Have a great summer season. batteries, and cleaning of battery Chris Mapp connectors are always a primary Coastal Bend Marine | Port Regularly application focus. Then we begin inspecting Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Connor, TX of Corrosion-X would all related circuits and wiring.

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Tidal Corrections Location Calcasieu Pass, La. Sabine Bank Lighthouse Sabine Pass (jetty) Sabine Pass Mesquite Point Galveston Bay (S. jetty) Port Bolivar Texas City, Turning Basin Eagle Point Clear Lake Morgans Point Round Point, Trinity Bay Point Barrow, Trinity Bay Gilchrist, East Bay Jamaica Beach, Trinity Bay Christmas Point Galveston Pleasure Pier San Luis Pass Freeport Harbor

High -2:14 -1:46 -1:26 -1:00 -0:04 -0:39 +0:14 +0:33 +3:54 +6:05 +10:21 +10:39 +5:48 +3:16 +2:38 +2:39 +2:32 -0:09 -0:44

Low -1:24 -1:31 -1:31 -1:15 -0:25 -1:05 -0:06 +0:41 +4:15 +6:40 +5:19 +5:15 +4:43 +4:18 +3:31 +2:38 +2:33 +2:31 -0:09

For other locations, i.e. Port O’Connor, Port Aransas, Corpus Christi and Port Isabel please refer to the charts displayed below.

Please note that the tides listed in this table are for the Galveston Channel. The Tidal Corrections can be applied to the areas affected by the Galveston tide.

Minor Feeding Periods coincide with the moon on the horizon, and the last from 1.0 to 1.5 hrs after the moon rise or before moon set.

Major Feeding Periods are about 1.0 to 1.5 hrs either side of the moon directly overhead or underfoot.

Many variables encourage active feeding current flow (whether wind or tidal driven), changes in water temp & weather, moon phases, etc. Combine as many as possible for a better chance at an exceptional day. Find concentrations of bait set up during a good time frame, and enjoy the results.

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