December 2008 by Texas Salwater Fishing Magazine

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Just Keep Five

Texas Saltwater Fishing

December 2008

Texas Saltwater Fishing

www.TSFMAG.com

Just Keep Five

www.TSFMAG.com

Just Keep Five

Texas Saltwater Fishing

December 2008

Texas Saltwater Fishing

www.TSFMAG.com

Just Keep Five

www.TSFMAG.com

Just Keep Five

Texas Saltwater Fishing

December 2008

Texas Saltwater Fishing

www.TSFMAG.com

Just Keep Five

Contents

eDitor anD PUBlisher Everett Johnson

DeCeMBer 2008 Volume 18 No. 8

Everett@tsfmag.com general Manager

featUres

Pam Johnson Pam@tsfmag.com

12 Here Be Dragons!

Mike McBride

16 Searching for a Storm/Freeze Connection

Kevin Cochran

20 Nostalgia Trip

Martin Strarup

22 Choices

Billy Sandifer

24 Low water to no water, it’s all good

Chuck Uzzle

BUsiness / aCCoUnting Manager Shirley Elliott Shirley@tsfmag.com aDVertising Manager Pam Johnson Office: 361-785-3420 Cell: 361-550-9918 Ads@tsfmag.com

DePartMents 18 Science and the Sea

national sales rePresentatiVe

UT-Marine Science Institute

26 Let’s Ask The Pro

Jay Watkins

28 Fly Fishing

Casey Smartt

30 Offshore

Bart Manganiello Bartalm@optonline.net CirCUlation Debbie Dugan Cir@tsfmag.com

Bobby Byrd/John Cochrane

32 Conservation

CCA Texas

34 TPWD Field Notes

Lucas Skinner

36 Kayak Fishing

Scott Null

38 Youth Fishing

Aaron Cisneros

Design, laYoUt & weB MaintenanCe GRaPHiCs BY DEsiGn Jasmine and Jackson Gordon Office: 361-785-4282 Jasmine@graphicsbydesign.biz Jackson@graphicsbydesign.biz

what oUr gUiDes haVe to saY… 44 Dickie Colburn’s Sabine Scene

Dickie Colburn

46 Mickey on Galveston

Mickey Eastman

48 Capt. Bill’s Fish Talk

Bill Pustejovsky

50 Mid-Coast Bays with the Grays

Gary Gray

52 Rowsey's Ramblings

David Rowsey

54 Capt. Tricia’s Port Mansfield Report

Capt. Tricia

56 South Padre Fishing Scene

Ernest Cisneros

regUlars 8

sUBsCriPtion – ProDUCt sales Debbie Dugan aDDREss CHanGED? Email Store@tsfmag.com Texas Saltwater Fishing Magazine is published monthly. Subscription Rates: One Year (15 months for 12 months; Get Three Free. Offer valid until 12.31.08)

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Editorial

Phone: 361-785-3420 fax: 361-785-2844 Mailing aDDress: P.O. Box 429, Seadrift, Texas 77983

40 Tips and Tricks

PhYsiCal aDDress: 58 Fisherman’s Lane,

42 New Tackle & Gear

Seadrift, TX 77983

58 Fishing Reports and Forecasts

weB: www.TSFMAG.COM Photo gallerY: photos@tsfmag.com

60 Gulf Coast Kitchen

PrinteD in the Usa.

61 Photo Gallery–Catch of the Month

aBoUt the CoVer Tiffany Fluitt, owner of Gruene Outfitters in Gruene Texas, shows off a beautiful winter speck that came on a Rapala Skitter Walk. Tiffany was fishing Baffin Bay with Capt. David Rowsey. Tiffany released her trophy to grow and fight another day. www.TSFMAG.com

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Texas Saltwater Fishing

Texas Saltwater Fishing Magazine (ISSN 1935-9586) is published monthly by Texas Saltwater Fishing Magazine, Inc., 58 Fisherman’s Lane, Seadrift, Texas 77983  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. Periodical class permit (USPS# 024353) paid at Victoria, TX 77901 and additional offices. POSTMASTER: Send Fishing Magazine, TX 77983.

address changes to Inc., P. O. Box

Texas 429,

Saltwater Seadrift,

December 2008

Something bad is occurring in our flounder populations. TPWD has been documenting a 20-year decline in relative abundance of this popular species. And this is not just a Texas problem. Resource managers in all Gulf and Atlantic states are seeing it in their fisheries as well. Conservation efforts in the form of increased minimum length and reduced bag and possession limits that have worked with other recreationally important species just haven’t worked on southern flounder. Bay shrimping has been historically blamed for depleting stocks but might have been overrated. Shrimping efforts have declined 90% over the past decade with license buyback, increased cost of operation and market conditions yet the decline persists. Lance Robinson, Upper Coast Regional Director of Coastal Fisheries, describes the situation. “We are about out of wiggle room. The stocks have declined such that a freeze or red tide of any magnitude could force a moratorium on all use.” So what should be done and how will it affect Joe Angler? Recreational users point fingers at the commercial sector. “The commercials are stabbing too many,” is heard often. We also have rod and reel anglers miffed at recreational brethren who fish with pitch forks. Trace that one farther and you’ll find a rift among rec giggers. Waders clamor for lighted, air-driven boats to be outlawed. I attended a Key Recreational Stakeholders meeting recently during which TPWD presented information that will be put before the public soon in a series of opinion scoping sessions. Science suggests there is more in the equation than simple over-utilization. Spawning and recruitment rates are greatly influenced by water temperature, flounder doing best in cooler periods. The warming trend of the last twenty years is gaining acceptance among researchers as the root of much of the evil. Flounder need three years to achieve sexual maturity and full impact of conservation efforts do not appear until six years following implementation. Hatchery production and stocking, while perhaps a viable option for the future, cannot provide the boost managers seek today. Harvest data identifies a peak of landings coinciding closely with annual spawning migrations. October, November and December bring the greatest success for fishermen of every class with 55% of the documented harvest occurring during these months. November alone contributes almost 28%. Management tools include further reduction of bag limits along with seasonal and area closures. Seasonal and area closures (passes) would promote escapement to gulf spawning grounds, reducing bag limits works year round. Seasonal closures would be easiest to enforce, area closures might be a nightmare. Elimination of commercial trade is also on the table. None of these will please all users. The missing link may be failure to fully understand what percentage of the harvest presently goes un-counted. Creel surveys describe what rods and reels take, but occur well after nighttime floundermen have returned to the dock. Some postulate that “backdoor trade” to restaurants by commercial and even some rec giggers may be larger than we’d care to know. One fact is undeniable, between the fishermen and Mother Nature our flounder are slipping away. Somewhere in the middle of all this TPWD is going to have to make some tough decisions. From my viewpoint; if indeed too many are being stabbed and hooked then the limits and/or areas and seasons should be adjusted. As for commercial utilization; I see the sun setting. The charge to resource managers is to maximize socio-economic benefit that can be derived from the resource while providing viable fisheries for the future. This would certainly seem to favor rec users. I’m going to put a twist on an old proverb. “You can’t have your flounder and eat ‘em too.” It’s time to make some changes. Catch and release; take a few to eat fresh and pray the managers get it figured out before our flounder are gone. 8

December 2008

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Texas Saltwater Fishing

December 2008

tanDing in water that BarelY covers your

do a lot of stupid things. It’s like a kid going

seems to be more about laying up comfortably

treasure hunting and ﬁnding things we are not

and unmolested, yet still close to that food

wading booties with your boat the only

supposed to, then realizing that more treasure

bowl when it’s chow time. It’s like the big dog

awaits if we just dig.

lounging in the crawl space, but still able to hit

manmade structure in sight; the feeling of being where humans aren’t supposed to be

Big trout can be found in many areas, but a

the porch when the dish gets rattled. To the

comes easy. It’s mystical and silent except

certain percentage will often use water that is

unenlightened, some of these areas may look

for an occasional mullet ﬂipping or protesting

shallower than most people are willing to try.

like nothing but stingray water, but a few others

squawk from a lifting heron. The only real

Different tribes of ﬁsh perhaps, and while those

see miles of silent opportunity.

distractions here are self-imposed, but the thrill

that go shallow in winter can be fairly easy to

of anticipation dominates and would be hard

pattern, they are not the easiest to catch. Lower

in little water is a good presentation. The idea

to rival in any other given arena. Like those

water levels from November to March can help

is to sneak something to them they can’t turn

ancient mariner’s charts that warned “Here Be

concentrate great ﬁsh in predictable times and

down, not chunking something on them they will

Dragons” there are mythical beasts lurking here

places. Compelling is that where you ﬁnd one

run from. Stand still, cast to every potential ﬁsh

as well. It is just a matter of knowing it, and most

there will usually be others.

holding spot you can reach no matter how small,

importantly, wanting it. It’s ﬁshing for big trout on

A pattern I anxiously await occurs following

The most useful key to approaching big ﬁsh

and then move up a few feet and repeat. The

purpose and in water skinnier than many might

a norther; the immediate recovery period after

slowest offerings are usually the most effective;

think. It’s awesome, and hey… it’s time!

a good blow. As soon as it’s over, and the sun

not because ﬁsh are lethargic as we often hear,

One of the beauties of ﬁshing is that there

either comes out or the air becomes warmer

but simply because they are spooky. Here’s a

are so many ways to do it we can all specialize

than the water, big ﬁsh will move up to where

short list of what I like to use but certainly not

in whatever methods inspire us most. It just

we can isolate them better. We’re talking water

the only things that will work. Imagination is a

depends on what our measurement is. For me,

that is ankle to shin deep, and there are many

beautiful thing so feel free to be creative.

probing for big ﬁsh in extremely shallow water

types of shallow areas they will use but most

does it, especially down here in the magical

common are fairly near deeper water and with

reasons. You get that critical casting distance,

Laguna Madre during the colder months. I have

a lot of cover. Cover can be a lot of things;

yet the landing can also be feathered to make

this curse of wanting to catch them my way,

broken bottoms, color changes, thick grass, little

a “good” noise, a ﬂat entry that sounds like a

regardless what other method might be available.

depressions, bait lines, etc.

vulnerable baitﬁsh and not an attacking brick.

A ﬂoating Corky can excel for several

Everybody has opinions and this is merely

It’s not always about baitﬁsh, although

They are fairly easy to keep out of the grass

one look at one way to ﬁsh, but for me, it’s one

it’s good to see at least some movement or

whether it’s ﬂoating or growing, and you can

of those compulsive drives that have made me

at least good concentrations nearby. This

manipulate it to custom ﬁt many situations.

December 2008

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It is a very interactive lure that you need to

more about size, speed and placement. With

[or are able to] constantly adjust, a great

every cast; work to force that bite from ﬁsh

characteristic which some have perceived

you know are there. You may get only a few

as a negative, perhaps because they haven’t

bites all day, sometimes more, sometimes

“gotten it” yet. That “high maintenance” effort

none. But as we often ﬁnd, the biggest

is exactly what helps us be a better angler.

rewards bring the biggest challenges.

The biggest factor is ﬁguring out what

Whatever your ﬁshing quest might be,

presentation you need for the moment and

just go for it. If this type of determined effort

this can change with each cast or even

appeals to you, go with conﬁdence and it will

during a retrieve. I’m talking about things

happen. We can read about things a thousand

like working it faster across that shallow

times or experience it just once. The dragons

grassbed or pausing it to sink deeper into that

will be there, and so will I, but you’ll have to

little depression. Taking the time to address

draw your own map. Remember though, we

each potential spot the best way possible is

don’t have to slay those dragons to win the

ﬁshing on purpose. Throw it long and give

battle. Let them live to snort another day.

it some teasing death twitches over every

By the way, this whole concept is not new…

suspected ﬁsh holding zone. Hang on with

here is a humorous quote from Dr. George

high expectation.

Washington Bethune in 1847.

Plastic tails offer so many options it’s not

“An angler, sir, uses the ﬁnest tackle,

realistic to even go there. However, I would

and catches his ﬁsh scientiﬁcally - trout for

like to mention that I rely on the Brown Lure

instance - with the artiﬁcial ﬂy, and he is

Devil Eye on a 1/16 oz. screw lock jig head. It

mostly a quiet, well behaved gentleman. A

has a little fatter proﬁle, casts a mile, yet it is

ﬁsherman, sir, uses any kind of 'ooks and

buoyant and responsive for shallow work. A

lines, and catches them any way; so how he

weedless Bass Assassin can be killer for the

gets them it's all one to 'im, and he is usually a

most discriminating ﬁsh. You can get it right

noisy type of fella.”

down in their face with a lot of hang time and it

I wonder if George did any stupid things while chasing his passion.

rarely spooks them. Sure topwaters can work, but only if you can. There are topwater artists and there are is not to threaten these ﬁsh with too much information. One game I like to play with a surface plug in delicate conditions is pretending the bait is trying to get through enemy lines without being detected. A lot of big ﬁsh have been fooled by ‘dead sticking’ a plug… just letting it rock in the waves with small, teasing

ContaCt

topwater thrashers. The big factor, again,

MiKe MCBriDe

twitches. No, it’s not boring if you really want what lies below. There are certainly situations where a strong top water presentation is needed, such as off-colored water with a ton of bait, but mostly it’s about seduction.

Mike McBride is a full time fishing guide based in Port Mansfield, Tx., specializing in wadefishing with artificial lures.

As with any lure offering to these mature shallow water ﬁsh, it takes an iron constitution to stick to your goal. It doesn’t, however, take very long to develop one after only a few successful attempts. There’s just something very special about catching big trout in water shallower than they are long, even more special is water that barely cover their back. Colors? Sometimes, but for me it’s usually www.TSFMAG.com

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December 2008

M an aCKnowleDgeD worrY wart. Recently,

my brain to spiral negatively

well-publicized crises have given

around such a concept, I decided

those of us who ﬁsh for a living plenty

to look into the weather archives

to fret about. This year brought both economic

to see if there is indeed evidence

and environmental calamities which threaten

which supports the idea that a major

our livelihoods.

hurricane affecting an area is likely

Oil shot up to nearly one hundred and ﬁfty

to cause a freeze the following winter.

dollars a barrel, driving the price of a gallon

With the help of the internet, accessing

of gas to the four dollar mark. This increased

relevant information is not too difﬁcult.

our costs of operation and made it more

I looked to various sources, most

expensive for our customers to get to us; it

prominently data and charts on the

also eroded their conﬁdence in spending on

websites of NOAA and the National

Bay area. Certainly, a freeze in 1959 occurred

luxury items like guided ﬁshing trips. Wall

Weather Service. First and foremost, I

after a strong tropical storm (Ella) in ’58. Most

Street Banks went broke and the costs of

wanted to narrow my search to include

notably, the December 1989 freeze, one of

stocks plummeted, causing a reduction in

only Texas, since I know the people who ﬁrst

the worst in our state’s history, followed an

the value of portfolios and retirement accounts

exposed me to the theory of a storm/freeze

active storm year in which three named storms

nationwide, further damaging the willingness

connection were talking about our home state,

impacted the upper coast. Two of those,

of our clients to spend.

not the entire basin of the Gulf of Mexico.

Chantal and Jerry, hit near Galveston, where

Trout in the Galveston Bay system were said to be carrying unacceptable levels of potentially

Quickly, I listed twenty one major storms (category three or greater) that came ashore on

many ﬁsh were later killed by the chill. A majority of the most damaging freezes

harmful toxins by a state government agency.

the coast of Texas beginning with the “Storm

I discovered in my research for this piece

Two hurricanes slammed into our coastline,

of the Century”, which devastated Galveston

did not follow strong storm activity, though.

either damaging our homes and businesses, or

Island in 1900. I included 1988’s Gilbert, which

For instance, the arctic blast of 1899 was

those of our valued clients. One of them also

didn’t actually make landfall here, because of

called a 200 to 500 year event, meaning a

dumped disturbing volumes of pollutants into

its strength and size and the magnitude of its

freeze of that magnitude would likely occur

Galveston’s already-stressed bays. The phones

effect along our coast. Signiﬁcantly, I could ﬁnd

only once every two to ﬁve hundred years.

of many guides went nearly silent after all the

only four examples of documented ﬁsh-killing

The effects of those icy days doomed many

dominoes ﬁnished falling.

freezes which occurred in winters following

citrus trees in the orchards of the Rio Grande

those cyclones. A freeze in 1917 followed the

Valley; undoubtedly, millions of trout, redﬁsh

last few weeks, I’ve been consistently told

1916 storm which hit near Port Mansﬁeld, one

and other piscatorial species also went belly

that business is slow, excruciatingly so, but

in ’62 followed Carla, the well-documented

up. It’s perhaps tempting to search for a

one prediction I heard caused more beads of

’83 event came on the heels of Alicia and the

connection between that costly event and the

cold sweat to form on my forehead than all

deadly chill of February 1989 followed Gilbert.

deadly storm which forever altered the history

When talking to my fellow guides over the

others. The prognosis came from the mouths of

In looking for evidence of lesser storms

of Galveston Island, but the fabled Storm of

several respected ﬁshing pros, people whose

preceding documented freezes, I found that a

the Century occurred some nineteen months

opinions and outlooks I generally trust.

category one storm hit Freeport the summer

after the freeze.

“We’ll probably have a bad freeze this

Rather than passively allow

prior to a deep January 1930 freeze. There

Of course, the people who alerted me to the

winter,” they lamented. “That’ll really be the end

may have been a correlation between either

storm/freeze connection were not referring to

of us. Seems like every time we get hit by a big

the Freeport storm of ‘41 or the Matagorda

storms spawned by weather phenomena which

storm, there’s a freeze the following winter.”

Bay storm in ‘42 and a freeze in ‘42, though

started with a freeze; they were asserting

Such words make me shudder at the thought of

the time frame for the freeze is hard to ﬁnd.

that the opposite happens, that freezes follow

dead ﬁsh piled up in rows along the icy banks

Similarly, details for a freeze event in ’45 are

storms, so any connection between a cold

of our bays. I remember somber photos of just

hard to trace, but there may be a connection to

winter of 1899 and the most infamous hurricane

such evidence from the events of 1983 and ‘89.

an August storm which struck the Matagorda

ever (before Katrina) must be discounted. Much

December 2008

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more signiﬁcant with respect to this discussion

most active storm producer of the twentieth

by a storm! Sliding

are the facts that no major storm hit the coast

century, spawning four major storms that hit

market tickers and rising

prior to 1899’s super chill, nor did a major

Texas, but no major ﬁsh killing chills occurred

dollar counts on the gas

freeze follow the storm of 1900.

in the wakes of those storms. 1933 was Texas’

pump make me nervous.

most active cyclonic year in the thirties, with

Contemplating the

freezes of 1895, 1909, ‘24, ‘40,’ 41, ’47, ’48,

ﬁve named storms affecting our coast, but no

disastrous effects of a

‘49, ‘51, ‘73, ’82 or ‘97 either. Some of these

freeze occurred during the following winter.

ﬁsh killing freeze is even

freezes were deep indeed. The winter of ‘40

Similarly, 2005 was the most active storm

more troubling.

was particularly severe; parts of Rockport

season on record in the Atlantic Basin, but the

area bays froze for more than a mile out from

following winter was warmer than average in

event may get a grip on

shore. A gale howled for four days and dead

Texas. Other major storms can also be shown

the Lone Star State in

ﬁsh were documented to be ﬂoating along area

to have come before warm winters, including

the coming months, I

shorelines afterward. In ‘47, dead “trout were

Beulah, Celia and Brett.

know. But it is comforting

No major storm hit the coast prior to the

reported to be… thick on the surface of Bafﬁn

Basically, the evidence shows no clear

Just such a dreary

to learn that we aren’t “likely” to be crippled by a

in an area and an increased likelihood of a

freeze this winter because

caused the mortality of many living things,

freeze there the following winter. It should be

hurricanes harassed us

including fruit trees in The Valley and ﬁsh along

noted that I have been amply lenient in the

last summer. Ike and Dolly

most of the coast. The lack of mature trout in

deﬁnition of the term “area” for the purposes

chased poor folks from

Texas bays in subsequent months has been

of this discussion, deeming the whole state to

their homes; here’s to the

well-documented. The ’51 event came at the

be the area. Some of the storm/freeze events

hope that Jack Frost doesn’t chop off some of

end of a “big chill” which spanned more than

only appear related when the entire state is

their toes!

a decade, with eight freezes in twelve winters.

viewed as the area. Further narrowing the

Importantly, only two major hurricanes affected

deﬁnition of area would lessen the strength

the coast of Texas during that frigid span.

of some of the correlations.

Similarly, the freeze of ’51 is known to have

Though the overall period saw moderate levels

All of this research helps put my mind at

of tropical cyclone formation, the prolonged dip

ease. I respect many of the guides and others

in temperatures can’t be clearly connected to

who believe in the storm/freeze connection;

unusually strong storm activity.

some, I’m sure, have forgotten more about

In fact, many of the documented hard freezes in coastal Texas over the last century can be shown to have followed slow or downright dead

ﬁshing than I’ll ever know. But on this issue, I can’t agree with them. storm/freeze theory do so because they place

indicating that much of the time, a freeze is

far too much emphasis on a relatively small

in no way related to a prior storm. Marshall

portion of the data; poignantly, it’s the part they

McFarland, of the Environmental Studies

actually experienced. I’m sure they ﬁnd it hard

center at Texas A&M, reviewed many of the

to erase dark images that linger in their minds

freeze events in attempt to determine their

from 1983 and ‘89. Recalling only those years

causes. His conclusions are that “causes for

paints a partial, painful and misleading picture

Arctic air dipping this far south… [are] …related

of the connection between hurricanes and

to anti-cyclonic activity, jet stream positioning,

freezes on the Texas coast. When digging out from under a mess

connection to cyclonic activity occurring during

scattered by strong cyclones, it’s easy to

the previous hurricane season.

become frustrated and gloomy. Heck, I get

The decade from 1911 through 1920 was the

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KeVin CoChran

I believe those who lend credence to the

storm seasons in the western Gulf of Mexico,

etc.”. He makes no mention whatsoever of a

ContaCt

connection between the landfall of a hurricane

Bay”. (Fishes of the Texas Laguna Madre, 28)

that way even when I haven’t been slammed

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December 2008

was looKing throUgh soMe olD Photo alBUMs the other day; pictures of Dad and me fishing a long time ago. The pictures reminded me of the fishing tackle that was “hot” for those times and I thought it would be fun to see if those old rods and reels will still catch fish. So I’ve got my plan together and it goes like this. I’ll blow the dust off of one of Dad’s favorite old fishing rods from the late 1960s and I’ll put on an Ambassadeur or Pflueger reel spooled up with some “fresh” squidding line. I’ll dig into my collection of antique lures and tie on one of Earl Humphrey’s M-5 Humps or maybe a red Plugging Shorty Shrimp. I’ll head to some of my favorite wintertime haunts in Matagorda Bay and San Antonio Bay and see if this stuff still works. I think you and I already know what the result will be, but here’s some things I’ll enjoy “rediscovering” on my nostalgia trip. The rods of today are way advanced

compared with those of a decade ago, not to mention 40 years. There is just no way to compare a rod made of

But having said all this, I’m going to step right out on

heavy ﬁberglass, wood handles and plated guides to one

this limb and tell you what I think is going to happen.

of the sleek, almost weightless, graphite rods of today with

I think that just the same way Dad’s old Model 71

the skeletonized cork handles and titanium recoil guides.

Winchester with .348 shells that looked like Coke bottles

And what of our reels? Compare the Ambassadeur

will still drop any deer or hog in its tracks, open sights and

5000 to say a Shimano 50MG or Shimano Core reel…

all, that the old ﬁshing gear will still catch ﬁsh. I don’t think

you can’t. There is just too much difference; too many

the trout and redﬁsh have evolved even a fraction as much

improvements and we haven’t even touched on the

as our tackle has.

improvements in line and in lures. I can’t compare a Mirrolure 83MR She Dog to any of the topwater lures that

were made of wood way back then.

December 2008

I know that there will not be as much sensitivity in the line and I probably won’t be setting the hook on many

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subtle taps when a fish picks up the lure on a chilly winter morning. But I don’t think it’s going to matter all that much. You see, that’s not how Dad taught me to fish a Hump M-5 or Plugging Shorty. We didn’t do the Corky Crawl as my buddy calls it. On movement of the rod. The fish that hit the Humps or the old Plugging Shorty will slam into it; these are not subtle or finesse baits, they were made to imitate fleeing bait. So how did they do it 40 and 50 years ago? They caught fish and they caught them on artificial bait too. How did they manage with the tools that they had then? We’ll see how it goes. I’ll have a report and pictures for the next issue that will show how I did. If anyone has any tips on lures, or other nostalgic tackle that I should be carrying, drop me an email and let me know. If I have it or can get it easily, I’ll use it.

ContaCt

the contrary, the lures that I’ll be ﬁshing require a constant retrieve and a rhythmic

Martin strarUP

Just so nobody gets mad when they see the photos, I’ll be wearing modern waders and my Shimano wading boots too. Oh and I’ll have my high-tech Laguna Rods and my modern Shimano reels with me too. Nostalgia only goes so far. Be Safe.

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Texas Saltwater Fishing

December 2008

s i stanD watChing MY CUstoMers, both of them ﬁghting jack crevalle, I think what a tedious and harsh

year it has been and I am grateful for this moment as it seems to have been a long time coming. Gene Titus and his future son-in-law ended the day with thirteen jacks and 3 reds. Then we fought our way along the beach in extremely high tides, far above the forecasted levels. I had to stop frequently to remove nail-studded lumber from our path that drifted in from the hurricane. That is the way of life in the surf zone; tough going, but a good day. As I drive along I think of all the problems currently facing all of us and suddenly it hits me. After having been a chain smoker for 50 years, this marks 120 days without smoking. Pretty cool huh? It reminds me to be grateful and being grateful takes the place of worry and doubt concerning the future. I notice that while the economy is effecting most aspects of our lives it sure isn't decreasing the number of people surf fishing as weekend crowds remain strong. There are two large fishing tournaments that impact PINS annually and both were held recently. I have compiled some data and am including some personal observations and then you choose what you would rather see as the future of these tournaments. “Surf Cats” is based out of San Antonio and began in 1985 and until recently was held for the most part on PINS. The payouts to participants have never changed since 1985 and they have had as many as 600 participants. This year they chose not to pay the event fee required by the National Park Service, but rather told participants it was their choice where they fished as long as it was on or south of the Port Aransas jetties. Citations were issued to Surf Cats participants fishing on PINS by NPS Rangers. Surf Cats overall has a bad track record concerning littering PINS. I contacted their organizers for years to see if I could interest them in participating in the annual Big Shell Beach Cleanup since they were the biggest user event. I received no positive results, although some individuals who fish Surf Cats have participated in the cleanup on their own. Surf Cats entry fees run $40-$60. They paid out $1,600 in cash and approximately $1,800 in prizes to six winners. They gave away T-shirts and door prizes. All tournament fish are killed. Sharkathon was created with the concept of using digital photography and computers to design a catch and release tournament. The event began in 2004. This year they capped the number of contestants to 400 in order to minimize impact on the environment. The entry fee ranges from $40 to $160 depending the number of categories you enter. They paid $24,300 in cash and $7,700 in prizes to a total of sixteen winners. They paid $3,000 for a National Park Service permit to hold the event on PINS. They made a $1,000 donation to PINS and a $1,000 donation to the Friends of Padre. More on the Friends of Padre at a later date. They gave each participant a T-shirt. The grand total of $0 went to the organizers and they ended with $0 left in the bank. Good environmental track record; Sharkathon is highly supportive of conservation, catch and release, and the Big Shell Beach Cleanup plus efforts of their own during the event. Which type tournament would you prefer to see in the future taking place in saltwater Texas? Think about these comparisons when evaluating other Texas tournaments. The days when kill tournaments were appropriate has long passed, Jeffrey Wolda of Bulverde; sixteen pound kingfish on topwater during a nearshore panga trip 21 Oct. '08. 22

December 2008

every one knows it, and yet far too many remain. All it takes is a bit of reconstruction to make them just as much fun and good for the local economies without taking a Texas Saltwater Fishing

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Dredging equipment arriving at the Port Mansfield jetties; 22 Oct. '08.

deadly toll on species that may already be on

to continue without being detested by the rank

before and I wondered how many large bruiser

the decline.

and ﬁle everyday angler they need to be well

gameﬁsh each of these reels has landed with

managed and have a strong conservation

no maintenance. Gotta' be over 100 each. I

ethic. My choice is obviously already made.

replaced a total of two bearings and all three

Unfortunately, many tournament ﬁsh end up in garbage cans when the event concludes. This is a blatant waste of valuable resources.

The dredging equipment is for the most part

reels go back to work for a few more years in

Sharkathon was started with the goal of

in the Port Mansﬁeld channel and the dredge

the morning. The BG Daiwa Spinning reels are

catch and release while targeting the most

is nearby offshore. Dredging operations should

absolutely the toughest workhorses made and

dangerous of ﬁsh species and I think they've

already be underway by the time this writing

come in sizes from light bay ﬁshing through big

been very successful in achieving it. I was

reaches you. Very probably, once the dredging

game for less than $100. Not many bargains

booked during two days of the tournament

starts and the dredged material is pumped

out there nowadays but these reels have got to

and had no problems or complaints about the

onto the badly eroded beach north of the

be the exception. Have a very Merry Christmas

behaviors I observed nor did the tournament

jetty, the water will become murky/muddy for

and be grateful for what you have; I am.

interfere with my being able to carry out

some distance to the north. This will vary as

Be careful, be courteous, be kind.

successful charters.

per prevailing wind velocities and long shore current but it can muddy the waters of PINS for as much as 15 miles and has done so in the

the Sharkathon tournament. With participants

past. A small and short term price to pay for

giving me water to keep a leaking radiator from

longer term gain.

destroying my engine I managed to make it all

Recently I weighed a Skipjack (ladyﬁsh)

the way to the 4-wheel drive sign. There, one

for a young man named Jake Hornberger of

of the organizers making a town run, carried

Dallas who had spent the night down island

my customers back to their hotel while another

with longtime surf ﬁsherman, Capt. Frankie

called a friend with a wrecker who towed me

Echolz. It was 30” long with an amazing 10.25”

back to town. I got all the gear changed over

girth and weighed in on certiﬁed scales later

to my other truck in the middle of the night and

at 5 pounds 9 ounces. Old state record was

was able to make my next day’s charter. None

5.2 pounds so congratulations on a new state

of these people owed me anything. It was

record ﬁsh Jake.

looking out for the other guy and in essence

Yesterday I decided it was time for some

the kindnesses shown me and my customers

maintenance on three of the Black and Gold

by Sharkathon participants and organizers is

Series 90 Spinning reels we use for jack

the embodiment of the attitude the “People

crevalle, tarpon and other large gameﬁsh. As

of the Beach” have always had towards each

I took them apart I realized it has been years

other and it warmed my heart more than

since I had done so, or even greased the drag

anything has in a long time. For tournaments

washers. One had caught 11 big jacks the day

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Texas Saltwater Fishing

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To the contrary, I had trouble with my vehicle overheating on the way back north on Friday of

CaPt. BillY sanDifer

Billy Sandifer operates Padre Island Safaris offering surf fishing for sharks to specks and nature tours of the Padre Island National Seashore. Billy also offers bay and near-shore fishing adventures in his 25 foot Panga for many big game and gamefish species. telephone 361-937-8446 Website www.billysandifer.com December 2008

s i sit here PeeKing oUt the winDow at an absolutely drop dead gorgeous fall afternoon I can’t help but be excited about the prospects for another great fall and winter here

venues so it’s understandable when you hear

all the water being gone. Several different

anglers say, “let the tourists have those, we are

patterns come to mind but one of them

after better ﬁsh.”

requires no ﬁshing rod or bait. Gathering

Yes, it’s true some things are different in

information during low water periods can be

this part of the world but there are also plenty

invaluable and there are very few times when

of things we have in common with the rest of

you can learn as much about a body of water. I

Texas coast and western half of Louisiana got

the coast. Low winter water is one that comes

once ﬁshed with a good friend on Toledo Bend

absolutely hammered by this past summer’s

to mind. How many times have you shown up

and he had an entire photo album dedicated to

hurricanes and the landscape has changed

to the ramp and almost all the water is gone?

the areas he ﬁshed and where his camp was

as far as the eye can see. Many traditional fall

It happens several times every fall and winter

located. All of the photos were taken when the

and winter “hotspots” have either been covered

for me. On Sabine we are fortunate enough

lake was at an all time low and the amount of

in mud or littered with debris making ﬁshing

to have some really nice launches that afford

structure he had uncovered and saved in the

those spots a much more difﬁcult task. In

you the opportunity to launch in almost any

photos was mind-boggling. All it took was a

years past we have always made a great living

condition, especially low water. One of these

little effort, a camera, and some determination

chasing birds at this time of the year and that

ramps is up on the Sabine River and is an

and he had easily the best information one

hasn’t changed. For many middle and lower

exceptional area for both launching and ﬁshing.

could ever hope to have about the area.

coast anglers the thought of chasing a school

During extreme low water periods stripers and

When the water came up and covered all

of trout under the birds is about as attractive

redﬁsh will congregate on the big points in the

the structure he could study those pictures

as a trip to the dentist. The big difference

river and will really smoke a crankbait or soft

and literally see below the surface. All that

between our schools of trout and those farther

plastic. Live bait ﬁshermen just wear them out

information made it easy for him to understand

south is the size and quality of the ﬁsh found in

on shad ﬁshed Carolina style. It’s amusing to

certain patterns for different times of the year

those schools. On one occasion at Calcasieu

watch the boats that don’t normally launch in

as well as know exactly where to set up for

I had two clients catch 7-pound trout back

this area blow right by some of the best ﬁshing

species like crappie and catﬁsh.

to back under the birds while I took a pair of

in the whole complex. Birds on the brain will

6-pounders in between the pictures. Big trout

give you tunnel vision.

on Sabine and Calcasieu. The upper

like that rarely show up under the birds at other

Okay let’s look at this scenario from the standpoint of you got your boat launched and are now trying to ﬁgure out what to do with

December 2008

Texas Saltwater Fishing

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Saltwater anglers can take advantage of

water. Areas like ditches and drains that

the same situation and become much more

don’t completely empty out will often hold

informed as well. Low water often uncovers

amazing concentrations of ﬁsh. The maze of

ditches and guts that otherwise go unchecked

marsh drains along the Louisiana shoreline

and not ﬁshed. Shell pads and other forms

of Sabine have tons of these little areas. A

of structure become visible in low water

few years ago I sat in a spot no larger than a

conditions. One winter Capt. Lynn Waddell

two car garage and caught big trout on nearly

and I were wading Calcasieu and we had

every cast as the water rolled out of this small

just set the anchor and climbed over the

drain. Topwater plugs just got destroyed as

gunwale to investigate a pristine ﬂat. In the

this herd of big ﬁsh was stacked in such a

distance we spotted another boat headed

small area that you just could not imagine

towards our location so we stopped to see

there being room left for more. If you cast

just exactly where it was headed. As it closed

even a few feet out of the ditch you may as

the distance it was obvious that the boat

well have been ﬁshing on the Interstate, you

was coming straight for us when it began to

weren’t getting bit no matter what you threw.

zigzag. Immediately we thought, “what is this

Make the right cast into that small area and

jerk doing?” As the boat destroyed the ﬂat for

you couldn’t get the bait across the surface if

wade ﬁshing we realized it was an oyster boat

you tried, it was ridiculous.

and they were looking for beds. Well instead

I guess for me the point of this whole line of

of wallowing in our misery we followed the guy

thinking is that regardless of the situation there

and found some areas of oyster that we never

is always a pattern to be learned or discovered

knew were there. The low water allowed the

and there is always new information to gather

oyster ﬁshermen to see farther down into the

that will make you a much better ﬁsherman.

water and ﬁnd places where they could set

Always remember that there is somebody out

up and harvest. Under normal water levels

there who has ﬁgured out the pattern and is

this type of technique certainly wouldn’t work

having a career day on the water, that could

so the oyster men were deﬁnitely taking

be you if learn and understand the situation

advantage of the situation.

and make it work for you.

Another reason to get out on low water days is the afternoon high tides, these tides wash over exposed areas that have been warming they become absolute ﬁsh magnets. The north end of Sabine Lake is famous for this situation as the ﬂats near the mouth of the rivers often lies bare in the sun until afternoon tides bring water levels back to normal. There have been some outstanding catches of big trout made

ChUCK UZZle

ContaCt

all day and once they get covered back up

on this pattern, especially as you get closer to January. Warm flats hold both heat and bait so they become very obvious places for better fish to hang out. The same pattern holds true for the opposite condition, when the water is at normal level and starts to go out. The falling water on hard fronts will back fish off of the shallow flats to the first break or deeper

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Texas Saltwater Fishing

December 2008

2-degree difference in water

me. I love this time of year, especially the

shoreline and this made the

goodies in the kitchen. I fully expect to gain ﬁve

difference in ﬁnding ﬁsh.

pounds for my winter fat layer that I will most

Years ago down in

certainly need for burning while wading the bog

Redﬁsh Bay I ﬁshed by

in search of trophy trout the next two months.

water temperature almost

When I return from ﬁshing on cold overcast

exclusively. I start just about

afternoons I build a ﬁre and sit in the living

every ﬁshing seminar by asking how many in

these products have brought to my trophy

room looking out at all the ducks and other

the class carry a device for measuring water

trout ﬁshing speak for themselves. Simply

waterfowl feeding on the lake. It is the best

temperature. This is absolutely critical to

put, you must have the right gear to reach

of times to take a moment and be thankful

discovering winter ﬁshing patterns. My Garmin

your full potential.

for family, friends and the many freedoms we

GPS includes a water temperature gauge that

Since we are on the subject, my personal

have as Americans. I will celebrate my 50th on

will display on all screens so I can monitor

winter trout equipment includes the 6’6”

December 8th. My life is better than half over.

water temperature changes constantly while

Waterloo HP Slam Mag, Power Pro 6x20

It is a reality check for sure, not depressing

I’m running.

braided line, 36-inches of 20 pound Sufﬁx

by any means, well the loss of hair on top and

Back to that scattered shell-grass-soft

clear mono leader, a device for measuring

the hair growing out of my ears is weird but

bottom structure; this has been my key to

water temperatures throughout the day,

my eyes have gotten so bad I can’t see that

success the past few seasons. This has been

everything Simms from top to bottom and a

anyway. Fishing still holds a high ranking in my

especially true when throwing topwaters and

few energy bars and energy drinks. Add these

life but it is not the only thing as it once was.

suspending lures. And incidentally, winter is

to the time you spend on the water and you

I still dig going every day and anticipate the

a great time to add the suspending bait to

have all the ingredients necessary to pull off

ﬁrst strike as if it were my ﬁrst ever but I have

your daily arsenal. The nature of the bottom

the big catch.

matured to realize it’s not the most important

structure sometimes pushes us toward lures

thing in my life.

I hope Christmas brings your family a

that can be worked above the structure as

joyous season. I look forward to the New Year

well as drifted down into it. While we’re at it

and new things to learn and share from my

to take to the water along the middle Texas

let’s dispense with an old wintertime myth.

ﬁshing adventures.

coast. Fishing is at its peak and the lack of

Every year as I chase winter trout I continue

ﬁshing pressure just makes it that much better.

to be amazed how cold it can get and we still

In December I start looking for scattered shell

ﬁnd an aggressive topwater bite under the

with a bit of grass and softer bottoms. Finding

right conditions.

With this said, December is a perfect time

the proper bottom structure that is holding bait,

I have always been a big fan of the

any amount of bait, is paramount to success.

MirrOlure slow-sinkers. These and Paul

You probably grow tired of hearing about

Brown’s Corky are perfect for working the

locating bait, but it is one of the most important

scattered shell and grass-mud bottoms and

things you have to do each time out.

they have made me a better winter angler

Monitoring surface water temperature and

temperature on the same

over the past three or four seasons. This is

tide and solunar table is also critical. David

due to the design of the baits and also quality

Rowsey and I have discussed this many times,

rods such as the Waterloos I use. I cannot say

we believe that ﬁsh are inﬂuenced more by

enough about how the combination of the two

the moon and water temperature than any

has helped me in my quest to become a better

other aspect this time of year. You would be

suspending bait ﬁsherman. I know this sounds

surprised how many times I have found a

like a advertisement but the changes using

December 2008

Texas Saltwater Fishing

May Your Fishing Always Be Catching.

ContaCt

J aY wa t K i n s

i hoPe the ChristMas sPirit has filleD you as it has

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Texas Saltwater Fishing

December 2008

C a se Y sM a rt t

three Months ago, we Began a series titled “Simple

it makes gives the Gurgler its name.

Saltwater Flies.” The series was designed to

effectiveness. Rather than plugging and

marabou with a few strips of ﬂash added. The

showcase effective, simple ﬂy patterns. So far

popping like many surface patterns, the

legs are formed from saddle hackles and the

we have covered subsurface ﬂies, including

Gurgler is more subdued. It lands lightly on

Gurgler’s foam carapace can be built from

the Bendback, the Seaducer, and the Clouser

the water and it makes a bubbling sound when

either 2mm or 3mm craft foam. The foam is

Deep Minnow. This month we wrap up the

snapped forward. This unique “gurgling” sound

available in the craft section of department

series with a topwater pattern — the Gurgler.

is irresistible to all kinds of ﬁsh large and small.

stores and hobby shops. The Gurgler will

The Gurgler was created by East Coast

The foam lip is one key to the Gurgler’s

The second key to the Gurgler’s

available and most ﬂy tyers likely already have them. The tail is crafted from bucktail or

make a great edition to your arsenal of simple

angler and master ﬂy tyer Jack Gartside. It is

effectiveness is its neutrality. Rather than

ﬂies for the Texas Coast. Learning to tie it

a strange looking ﬂy and the ﬁrst time you pick

looking like a speciﬁc prey species, the

correctly only takes a few runs and it is well

one up you might wonder exactly what it is

Gurgler’s strange features manage to

worth your time.

supposed to imitate. It looks sort of like a June

effectively mimic many different types prey.

bug with a funky collar and a long tail. But in

For example, a small tan Gurgler could be

spite of its odd appearance, the Gurgler is a

taken for a shrimp, or a baitﬁsh, or even a

great ﬂy. When tied in small sizes the Gurgler

crab. Large grey/white Gurgler’s look like

Hook: Mustad 34011 or equivalent

is just right for cautious ﬂats ﬁsh. Much larger

shad or mullet, and tiny yellow or green

Thread: Color matched to body

versions can be tied for open water predators

Gurglers easily pass as insects. Because of

Tail: Slender clump of bucktail or marabou

that feed on big prey.

its versatility, the Gurgler has become a widely

Flash: Krystal Flash, Polar Flash, or Flashabou

The design of a Gurgler is simple. It is

popular ﬂy. If the Gurgler has a weak point it

Body: Webby saddle hackle

basically a Woolly Bugger with a foam strip

is perhaps its light weight, which makes the ﬂy

Carapace: 2mm or 3mm craft/sheet foam

stretched across its back. A small tag of foam

difﬁcult to accurately cast in high winds. But,

Cement: Sally Hansen’s Hard-as-Nails

is left extending over the eye to serve as a

no ﬂy is perfect for all ﬁsh under all conditions.

popping lip. The lip spits water and the sound

The materials to tie Gurglers are readily

NEW! To view the ﬂy tying video, visit TSFMag online at www.TSFMag.com

VIDEO

attend Fishing Tackle Unlimited’s 2008 Fly Fishing Expo. This is a one day event, scheduled for Saturday, December 13, 2008 from 9:00 am to 6:00 pm at Fishing Tackle Unlimited located at 12800 Gulf Freeway in Houston. This year’s guests include World Casting Champion Steve Rajeff, and Texas fly fishing legend Chuck Naiser. Other fly fishing personalities will no doubt be roaming the store throughout the day. There will be free seminars, casting and tying demonstrations, and door prizes. Regardless of your level of skill this is your chance to learn more about fly fishing. For more information, contact FTU at 281-481-6838, or visit them online

ContaCt

FTU 2008 FLY FISHING EXPO - DON’T MISS IT! If you are interested in learning more about fly casting, fly fishing, or fly tying, be sure to

Casey smartt has been fly fishing and tying flies for 30 years. When he cannot make it to the coast he is happy chasing fish on texas inland lakes and rivers.

at www.ﬁshingtackleunlimited.com Hope to see you there! 28

December 2008

Texas Saltwater Fishing

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Texas Saltwater Fishing

December 2008

include freestanding cockpit models and

phenomenal ﬁshing. Whether inshore, offshore

and gunwales. The tuna is placed in the

– bluewater or skinnywater, Texas has a lot

tube head down and “swims” into the current

to offer. With the excellent blue marlin ﬁshing

created. The inside of the tube is painted black

Texans enjoyed this past summer; one item

to calm the bait and the bottom is cone shaped

bluewater ﬁsherman may want to consider

to direct the bait’s mouth directly into the ﬂow.

installing on their big game boat is a set of

A dedicated high-ﬂow saltwater pump is used

tuna tubes.

to provide fresh clean saltwater and designers

arsenal. You can check them out at your local

are careful to keep turbulence to a minimum,

tackle shop or online; www.livebaitlarry.com,

wells that can be used for many types of bait.

eliminating bubbles which can lodge on the

www.baitwells.com or www.kodiakmarine.com.

The most common bait found in deep water

tuna’s gills. Valves are used to adjust water

for big game ﬁsh is the blue runner. It is a very

ﬂow and a manifold is normally used to handle

ﬁshing in Texas, come by our Fox Yacht Sales

hardy bait and along with its bruiser cousin,

multiple tubes. Most anglers mount at least

ofﬁce at Tops-N-Towers. We’re always happy

the rainbow runner, provides anglers with

two tubes, but more can be added if you have

to answer your questions. At Fox we have an

two great marlin baits to keep in their livewell.

the space and enjoy this technique.

extensive inventory of brokerage boats as well

Most offshore boats are equipped with bait

Although many marlin are caught every year

When catching bait, careful handling is very

To learn more about tuna tubes or big game

as new CABO and Riviera Yachts and we will

on these runners, members of the tuna family

important. Remove or modify hook barbs on

be glad to help you ﬁnd a boat or sell yours.

are favorite meals for marlin and even though

bait rigs to make them easier to remove. The

For more information call our Seabrook ofﬁce

“elephants eat peanuts” a bigger bait can

least amount of handling, the longer tuna will

at 281-291-0656 or call Capt John Cochrane

entice a big marlin to attack. Our favorite is

stay alive in the tubes. The exception to this

direct at 409-739-4817.

the skipjack tuna with silver sides and black

would be having a rigged bait ready to pitch

stripes, blue marlin absolutely love eating

to a marlin, which is a great feature of using

them. Bonito, which are technically little tunny,

tuna tubes. If you do have to handle a bait,

are also very hardy baits. Blackﬁn tuna round

use a clean moist towel and keep handling to

out the list of the most common baits used of

a minimum.

the tuna family and are normally easy to catch

The greatest advantage of tune tubes is the

around the rigs. The problem is keeping these

ability to catch a tuna and have it ready to go

tuna alive and ready to use as bait. Tunas are

without stopping to catch another each time a

constantly swimming pelagic predators, and

ﬁsh is caught or a bait dies. Tuna are easiest

even the smallest specimens will not live more

to catch early in the day when they are up near

than a few minutes in a bait well, thus came

the surface and then kept in tubes for later

the invention of the tuna tube.

use. Many times it is just a matter of having

A tuna tube is basically a plastic or

the bait available for a marlin to eat and we

ﬁberglass tube; usually 6 to 8 inches in

can remember trying frantically to catch a bait

diameter and 2 to 3 feet long, round or oval

later in the day when the bite is on and the bait

in shape and mounted vertically with fresh

is down.

seawater pumped into the bottom and allowed

others are incorporated integrally into decks

Tuna tubes are used by many boats here in

to spill over the top. Because of this, many

the Gulf and even more so along the western

tuna tubes are mounted on the transom where

coast of Mexico. They have proven to be a

overﬂow runs directly overboard. Variations

very useful tool in the big game angler’s tackle

December 2008

Texas Saltwater Fishing

ContaCt

B o B B Y B Y r D & C a P t. J o h n C o C h r a n e

here on the texas Coast we are BlesseD with some

Born in Galveston, Capt. John Cochrane has been a professional captain for over 25 years and is now a full time yacht broker for Fox Yacht Sales. He concentrates his fishing efforts in the Gulf of Mexico, promoting big game fishing and billfish research. A native Texan, Bobby Byrd has fished the Gulf of Mexico since he was eight. In 1995, Bobby combined his love of fishing and boating into a business when he opened Tops-N-Towers in Seabrook, Texas.

Contact Fox Yacht Sales / Seabrook 281-291-0656 Tops-N-Towers 281-474-4000 Capt. John Cochrane 409-739-4817 Websites www.byrd-cochrane.com www.topsntowers.com www.foxyachtsales.com www.TSFMAG.com

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Dr. Joan holt froM the UniVersitY of texas Marine sCienCe institUte (UtMsi) in Port aransas recently announced a major gift of $15,000 from CCA Texas for the purchase of automated feeding systems. The new systems will provide precise measurement and timetables for the feeding of developing ﬁsh in the three major

Boat Shows Just Around the Corner CCA Texas looks forward to 2009 and will kick off the year at area boat and ﬁshing shows. Look for CCA Texas staff and volunteers at these events.

growth tanks at the $700,000 CCA Texas Laboratory for Marine Larviculture. The systems, developed by the Department of Fisheries in Western Australia, are water resistant and are based on a 12 volt system, thus reducing the threat of shock to both researchers and ﬁsh. “These feeding systems will provide another valuable tool for the hard-working researchers at the CCA Texas lab at UTMSI,” said Robby Byers, CCA Texas executive director. “Now rather than worrying with a feeding schedule, researchers can concentrate on more important issues. This can do nothing but improve our ﬁsheries and our

Houston Boat Show January 3-12 Reliant Park Austin Boat Show January 9-12 Austin Convention Center Corpus Christi Boat Show January 16-19 Bayfront Convention Center

knowledge of the resource.”

San Antonio Boat Show January 16-19 Alamodome Outdoorsman’s Fishing and Hunting Show January 31- February 2 Reliant Arena (Houston) Rio Grande Valley Boat Show February 13-16 Mercedes Livestock Show Barn

The CCA Texas Calendar

Houston Fishing Show

Whether you are looking for a great Christmas gift for the angler in

George R. Brown Convention Center (Houston)

February 18-23

your life or simply want to purchase one for yourself, we have it right here. Check out the new 2009 CCA Texas calendar.

Shallow Water Fishing Expo

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December 2008

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Texas Saltwater Fishing

December 2008

field notes the PeCUliar looKing triPletail is quickly becoming a very

September with warmer water. Tripletail have

popular sport ﬁsh in the Gulf of Mexico. This

which they travel offshore to spawn. The larva

can most likely be attributed to the powerful

remain offshore until the fall when they migrate

ﬁght of the brute ﬁsh and the fact that it makes

back inshore. Juvenile coloration consists of

great table fare. Many compare the ﬁght and

yellowish orange with black splotches which

taste of the tripletail to that of a grouper. Though

resembles that of a dead leaf. These color

there is little known about the life history of the

patterns act as a camouﬂage which helps to

tripletail, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department

protect the young ﬁsh from predators. As they

(TPWD) have begun projects in order to better

mature they take on a more solid grayish black

understand growth rates, migration, spawning

appearance. Another unique feature is the large

and the status of local populations. Through

spines located on the ﬁsh’s gill plate.

surveys TPWD has found that the greatest

The tripletail is most commonly found near

concentrations of tripletail in Texas come from

structure within the bays and offshore such as

Gulf waters off of Sabine Pass and out of

pilings, buoys, sargassum, oil and gas wells,

Galveston where they are caught near rigs and

and even ﬂoating debris. These are the areas

such as pilings it is best to use heavy tackle.

ﬂoating structure. However, Matagorda Bay is

where they are most commonly caught by

Many anglers use at least 30 lb test line with

a very close third place behind these areas.

ﬁshermen. They have, however, been landed

a steel or monoﬁlament leader. This is crucial

What makes Matagorda Bay so interesting is

in open waters especially in Florida where they

because when the ﬁsh takes the bait it will

that it appears to have the highest density of

are caught by sight ﬁshing. The typical method

swim for cover frequently breaking the line

migrating tripletail out of all Texas bays.

of catching the ﬁsh is to pull up near one of

against barnacles on the pilings. A heavy

these structures where the ﬁsh can frequently

action offshore rod is also recommended. This

member of the Lobotidae family. They are

be spotted ﬂoating near the surface on its

will aid the anglers in forcing the ﬁsh away

called tripletail due to the fact that both its

side. This strange behavior of ﬂoating on one

from the structure and avoid a break off. Many

dorsal and anal ﬁns sit toward the back of its

side often causes it to be mistaken for ﬂoating

experienced tripletail ﬁshermen may also use

body giving the appearance of three tails. It

Tripletail, Lobotes surinamensis, is the only

been found to mature in about one year after

December 2008

seventeen inches or greater daily bag limit. When ﬁshing for tripletail around structure

debris. It is not known exactly why the ﬁsh acts

the boat to their advantage. After a tripletail is

is found in many

in this manner but some believe it is to lure

hooked the captain will reverse the boat helping

bodies of water

unsuspecting bait ﬁsh and shrimp to dinner.

the angler coax the ﬁsh out of the pilings.

throughout the world

As for bait, tripletail seem to prefer shrimp

but most commonly

and live or dead ﬁsh. They have, on occasion,

exciting experience tripletail is the way to go.

found in warmer

been caught on artiﬁcial lures though this is

In fact it is more like hunting than ﬁshing. You

temperate waters.

not very common. The average size of ﬁsh

have to put in some effort in ﬁnding the ﬁsh but

The peak spawning

caught range from about 2 to 15 pounds though

when you do it is deﬁnitely worth it. Though

season within

they can reach sizes in upwards of 40 pounds.

they can be ﬁnicky, one day seeing dozens

the Gulf is from

The current tripletail record for Texas is 33.50

and the next not a one, I assure that once you

late June through

pounds caught by Edie Pruitt in Matagorda Bay.

catch one you will be hooked. With a little bit of

July. However, the

Until recently there has been no length or bag

knowledge and some patience you can enjoy

season is capable

limit on tripletail due to the fact that there is little

one of the hardest ﬁghting and best tasting ﬁsh

of lasting through

known about the ﬁsh. In order to preserve this

that Matagorda Bay has to offer.

August and into

unique ﬁshery TPWD have set a three ﬁsh of Texas Saltwater Fishing

If you are looking for a challenging and

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December 2008

f i s h i n g

if YoU’re liKe Me, ChristMas gift-BUYing season can be tough. Some of the folks

up in price. A good paddle will fall in the $150 -

kayaker’s gear bag and allow them to summon

$200 range, while a top of the line carbon ﬁber

help if they need it or check on the weather.

on my list seem to already have everything

who doesn’t already own one has his eyes

help in a real emergency is a personal locator

they could possibly need. I had pretty much

set on a high-end paddle and you are sure to

beacon. I don’t currently own one, but I’ve been

reached that point with my mom and dad

be the Holiday-Hero if you put one under the

checking them out and seriously considering

a couple of years ago. I always want to get

tree. I’d suggest talking with his ﬁshing buddies

adding it to my arsenal. These cool little devices

them a gift they can really use and appreciate.

or visiting a specialty paddling shop for this

work off of cospas-sarsat, an international

They both enjoy the outdoors and in particular

purchase as the Big Box stores won’t generally

satellite based system for search and rescue

they like to ﬁsh, but after several seasons of

carry them.

alert detection and information distribution.

upgrading their equipment I was running low

model can reach four bills. Most every kayaker

Another item often ripe for an upgrade is a

Should your kayaker get into a serious situation

on ideas. Then they joined me in my kayak

PFD. Most of the anglers getting into kayaking

they only have to hit a button and help is on

ﬁshing obsession and the door of opportunity

already have a PFD of some type from their

the way in a matter of minutes. The unit sends

swung wide open again. Kayak ﬁshing is an

boating or wading past. It will work, but there

an emergency signal via satellite to NOAA, US

accessory-intensive activity and just acquiring

are better options on the market designed

Coast Guard, US Air Force and the National

quality basic gear can be a daunting task for

speciﬁcally for paddlers. Most of these will

Association of Search and Rescue. The unit

the new kayaker on a tight budget. Even the

have a thinner rear panel making them

I’ve been eyeing is the ACR-Aqua-Fix which

veteran kayak ﬁsherman on your list could

more comfortable to wear while seated and

provides rescuers with the exact location

always use an upgraded paddle, PFD or seat.

paddling. My favorite model has gone a step

of the unit using GPS coordinates. It is also

And if they already have the best of the best,

further and has no ﬂoatation along the lower

waterproof and ﬂoats, pretty handy for anybody

there is still a laundry list of gear and gadgets

back. I can wear it all day with no problems

who ventures into the outdoors.

available to make their day on the water safer or more enjoyable. The most basic piece of equipment that every kayaker needs is a paddle. Many

and that is what you want your kayaker doing.

the local paddle store or tackle retailer is in

can rest easier knowing they are being safe

order. Most any kayak angler would be happy

out there on the water.

to get a new hand-held GPS unit, a stainless

And while we are on the subject of safety,

pocket knife or dive knife, a waterproof bag or dry box, a lip-gripper device for landing

basic and affordable model

category. While kayaking is generally a safe

ﬁsh, or maybe a kayak cart for hauling their

when they buy their kayak.

activity, I know that many spouses tend to

kayak from the truck to the launch. And there

Unfortunately many of

worry. Giving safety equipment might ease

are dozens of other possible stocking stuffers

these paddles are

your mind a bit. One of the most important

hanging on the display racks.

heavy and inefﬁcient.

is a waterproof, handheld VHF radio. Many

There you go guys. Take this article and

A high quality paddle

anglers rely solely on their cell phones for

circle your favorites, then leave it on the table

will be lightweight

communications, but as most ﬁshermen have

and hopefully Santa will take the hint.

and fairly stiff.

discovered cell phones are quite susceptible to

This is an area of

failure with the slightest exposure to moisture.

the sport where

Being a water sport, most any emergency

you get what you

situation will involve getting wet. A good VHF

pay for and as

radio would be a welcome addition to your

you step up in quality you’ll also be stepping

December 2008

If you’re still stumped for gift ideas, a trip to

Not only will they be more comfortable, you

there are several items that fall into this

beginners choose the most

A more specialized method for summoning

Texas Saltwater Fishing

ContaCt

C a P t. s C o t t n U l l

K a Y a K

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Texas Saltwater Fishing

December 2008

a a ro n C i s n e r o s

it was a BeaUtifUl, CalM sUnDaY Morning; my mom was busy doing her annual fall cleaning, and my dad and I were getting ready to go to church by ourselves. After dressing up in our Sunday best we hopped in the car for a very short ride to church. On the way there my dad commented, “Man, isn’t it a beautiful day to be out ﬁshing.” I swiftly agreed because I have to admit that the thought of coming back from church and going through my mom’s intensive

less than a minute before

cleaning regime did not sound as appealing

it broke me off. What a

as being out on the water chasing ﬁsh with

disappointment, but a

my dad.

thrill at the same time. I

As soon as the service was over, I headed

second opportunity when

We practically beat the door greeter out the

my dad called me over

door. Since the conditions were favorable for ﬂy ﬁshing, I decided to take the long rod

to where he was ﬁshing. From the looks

out, fully committing myself by leaving my

of it he was on some

baitcaster at home.

great redﬁsh action

Upon arriving to one of our favorite secluded lagoons we were not

Author's first redfish on a fly.

on topwaters. What happened next was

an opportunity. There he was milling around

disappointed when we saw scores of

learned from watching ﬂy-ﬁshing on

a grass line. With my heart pounding and

big redﬁsh, schools of sheepshead, and

TV shows. My dad tossed his topwater as far

adrenaline rushing I made a perfect cast, and

sighted a few large trout in bathtub clear

as he could into a school of redﬁsh. When the

bam he was on, stripping line like a bull out of

water. Rigging the ﬂy rod seemed like

redﬁsh tried to grab his lure, he would reel as

a cage. After a good hard battle my second

eternity, but I ﬁnally tied on a popper and

fast as he could with the redﬁsh in hot pursuit.

redﬁsh came into my hands. I was feeling the

jumped in the water in pursuit of my ﬁrst ﬁsh

As the redﬁsh got within my casting distance,

excitement, and I could tell that my dad was

on a ﬂy. I headed to a calm shallow ﬂat with

I put the ﬂy right under their nose. After

happy for me too. Only those that have ever

grassbeds hoping to ﬁnd signs of tailing reds,

numerous misses I ﬁnally got one to inhale a

caught a ﬁsh on a ﬂy know exactly what I was

and it didn’t take long to ﬁnd the ﬁrst one. You

spoon fly, and the fight was on. What a fight! It

experiencing. I knew then that the Lord had

must know that I am a novice when it comes

was quite different fighting a fish on a fly rod;

heard and answered my prayers earlier that

I enjoyed every second of it. Finally, I landed

morning because this experience was beyond

and not being successful at it. Quietly

my first redfish on a fly. After that first redfish

my expectations.

approaching this ﬁsh, I made a short

I managed to break off twice before heading

cast. Correct or incorrectly; I don’t know,

back to the grassbeds and trying to catch one

the horizon our evening was soon coming to

but it landed close enough to attract its

on my own.

a closing. I was grateful to experience such a

to ﬂy-ﬁshing, having tried it only once before

continued looking for my

out the door with my father not far behind.

After four fun hours and the sun setting on

attention. With a ﬂip of its tail, it lunged

Walking through the clear water and

and grabbed the popper heading

spotting lots of sheepshead and dozens

forward to doing some more ﬂy-ﬁshing in the

straight for a grassbed that was

of blue crabs was a pretty sight. Now all I

near future.

full of moss. I had the ﬁsh on for

needed was to see another redﬁsh to give me

December 2008

Texas Saltwater Fishing

meaningful accomplishment and certainly look

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Texas Saltwater Fishing

December 2008

B Y

e V e r e t t

J o h n s o n

the DroPPer looP is a VerY UsefUl Knot for a VarietY of applications. In live bait ﬁshing

when you need a weight, it can be advantageous to rig so the weight will be on bottom and the bait a few feet higher. Another application might be anytime you want to rig multiple hooks on the same line; any number of dropper loops can be formed in your leader or main line without weakening it. When using artiﬁcial lures in deep water around rip-rap, reefs, rocks or other hard structure, hanging the lure on the structure

often means losing it. We frequently find strong currents in these areas and the weight or action of the lure alone may not be enough to get it down to the depth where the fish are holding. By forming a dropper loop in the line a short distance above the lure, you now have a connection point for a weight. Using light line to attach the weight, 6 to 8 lbs test, offers the chance to sink the lure and break the weight line if it hangs up. You get your lure back by sacrificing the weight.

STEP 1: Form a loop of about six or eight inches diameter in your line leaving a tag of suitable length. STEP 2: Where the strands cross, begin rolling one over the other, keeping your ﬁngers inbetween to preserve an opening. STEP 3: Reach through the opening and pull the lower strand of the original loop up through the twisted strands so there are an equal number of twists on each side.

STEP 4: Now, with your incisor teeth, or an

assistant’s ﬁngers, tug gently on the loop protruding through the twists. STEP 5: Moisten the twisted strands so they’ll seat easily. STEP 6: Tug gently to begin seating the coils, with heavier mono you may need to nudge them together slightly to achieve even seating. STEP 7: Tug vigorously to seat everything nice and tight, and then pull hard to test the knot. STEP 8: Attach hook or lure.

December 2008

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Texas Saltwater Fishing

December 2008

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for getting out deep set hooks.

there are more and more baits that are crossing over between the two environments. Though the original Gulp! Jerk Shad is already a

Put these glasses on your face and

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that’s where they stay, period. Give

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temple, the flexible hinges making

The result: the new Berkley® Gulp!®

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Gulp! Alive! in the new oval bucket

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performance by allowing them to

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suspend in the tubs. Plus, these baits are completely rechargeable: once the bait has been used for a while, it can be placed back in the container to soak up more fish-catching scent and flavor.

December 2008

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Us reels superCaster 1000 Pro Bait Cast reel

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Evair Marine/Fishing Shoes, featuring

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innovative features to improve

ultra lightweight EVA material. After

backlashes. Patent pending Super Cast

Honda products. When the team at

a day of fishing or any other marine

system includes Angle Bar Levelwind,

Honda Marine recognized a need

activity, you will feel as if you were

a reverse rotation spool and height

for programmed electronic fuel

wearing nothing on your feet during

adjustment for the levelwind bar. The

injected (PGM-FI) outboards in the

hot summer days.

SuperCaster baitcast reels feature

mid-horsepower range, the process

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another innovation with the internal

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Texas Saltwater Fishing

December 2008

not sUrPrisinglY, the CatChing has Been

ferret out the larger trout when hustling the gulls. When the bite is deep, the longer 5-inch Assassin rigged on a 3/8ths ounce head has a better

DiCKiE ColBuRn

exceptional for the past month on Sabine

chance of making it to the bottom where both larger trout and reds dine on

Dickie Colburn is a full time guide out of Orange, Texas. Dickie has 37 years experience guiding on Sabine and Calcasieu Lakes.

and shows no signs of slowing down.

the scraps as well as smaller trout!

telephone 409-883-0723 Website www.sabineconnection.com

Prior to the non-stop gull activity kicking

Ike deposited some huge chunks of marsh in the open lake and they

into high gear, we were wearing out

are rapidly becoming ﬁsh magnets. Much of the visible grass marking this

trout, redﬁsh, ﬂounder, and stripers in the

submerged structure has rotted away, but the ﬁsh are already adapting to

bayous and the river. That action never

the new cover. Spinner baits, weedless spoons, and Texas rigged plastics

slowed down, but the trout bite under the

are excellent choices for successfully negotiating the potential hang-ups.

gulls proved too addicting for most folks. A four-inch Assassin Sea Shad rigged

I ﬁsh Power Pro line ranging from 15 to 30 pound test most of the time anyway, but braid is a must when ﬁshing this pattern. It is pretty much a

on a quarter ounce head has been our

case of hand-to-hand combat when trying to extract a slot red or big sow

number one choice for a mixed bag.

trout from this thick cover and braid will swing the odds in your favor.

When the ﬁsh are a little ﬁnicky, we switch to the Bass Assassin BLURP

While on the subject of tackle, I still ﬁsh topwaters and suspending

to take advantage of the scent factor. Our best colors have been glow-

baits on CastAway Skeleton rods rigged with low proﬁle casting reels, but

chartreuse, roach, pumpkin-chartreuse, and chicken-on-a-chain. Those

I prefer to ﬁsh plastic tails on spinning tackle. It takes the wind factor out

same colors, along with red shad, have worked equally well when chasing

of the equation and U.S. Reel’s 230SX SuperCaster has eliminated the

the birds.

dreaded line twist problem.

The MirrOlure She Dog or MirrOdine in bone or chrome will consistently

December 2008

By the time you read this, our big trout bite will be in full swing again.

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s a B i n e Dr. Marvin Watson released this nice red to thrill another Sabine angler.

The islands on the north end took a beating and the flats are a little deeper, but the larger trout are already showing up for the more patient anglers. Topwaters like the She Dog and Spook are proven winners, but suspended baits and tails are especially hard to beat as the water temperature heads south. I will spend most of my time cranking on a Catch V or Catch 2000, but the Crazy Croaker and Corky are also deadly. Because we spend so much time drifting the flats rather than wading, we will catch a large percentage of our bragging size trout this month swimming the 5-inch Texas Shad on a 1/16-ounce head. If we are not bucking the wind with a drift sock; I will bury my Stake-out Stik as soon as we catch a fish. It is not at all unusual to catch several big trout from a small area if you can avoid drifting over them. Look for the slicks!

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December 2008

Mickey on Galveston no Matter how YoU

look

mid-bay stuff and not wading. This makes it especially nice for those of us

at it ﬁshing is just plain good right now,

who prefer to wade and you can ﬁsh uninterrupted just about anywhere you

good all over. The whole bay system is

like. Wading is producing solid trout in the 20 to 24 inch class and every

rocking and rolling. This is not to say you

now and then a 27 to 28 incher shows up, but in general waders are not

can get a limit every place you try, but

getting the numbers the boat anglers are catching. I think it needs to get a

anglers who understand fall ﬁshing and

little bit colder and we’ll see a change along the shorelines. Redﬁsh action

how to ﬁsh under the birds have been

is good and we’re not even targeting them, limits and more have been found

doing very well. We are beginning to see

mixed with trout schools. We are focusing on concentrations of mullet along

an increase in the number of boats on

protected shorelines and only seeing a few shad at this time. Topwater

the water and folks seem to getting

bite has been good on many days, sometimes all day, and of course we’re

the hardship and disruption of the

getting them to hit MirrOlures and soft plastics when the surface action

hurricane behind them, and that is a

slows down. Last year we had an uncommon number of hybrids and stripers

welcome sign.

in Trinity Bay and it looks like they’re back. The numbers are not quite what

trinitY BaY

we saw last year but the size is impressive. We hear that ﬁsh in the 12 to

The birds have been working steadily

14 pound range have been caught in the last few days. The best area is up

for about a month now and it seems there

around the Center Point Spillway and in the cooling canal.

is an endless supply of shrimp. They are

east BaY

so thick the ﬁsh can’t eat them all up and

The same as Trinity, the birds are just tearing it up. There are a lot of

there are almost no shrimpers working. It’s crazy out there some days.

the reefs holding ﬁsh at this time and in general the water is in real good

Birds can be sighted all over the bay, especially after a front when the wind

shape. Trout action is good to excellent, and again, East Bay anglers are

lays down. With all this going on it seems most people are focusing on the

ﬁnding reds in there with them. There is a lot of debris from the hurricane

December 2008

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g a l V e s t o n all over East Bay which makes it really tough to navigate. I urge that anyone

years of experience it seems that some of our worst

heading to East Bay should use extreme caution and take their time

freezes have occurred in the same years as bad

because a lot has changed and you never know what you’re going to run up

hurricanes and Ike certainly was a bad one. Our bays

on. I don’t like running it but I have gone over there and checked it out and

and ﬁsh populations are in excellent shape and having

there’s a lot of good ﬁshing going on.

seen what a really hard freeze can do I sincerely hope we do not

DiCKinson - Dollar - UPPer galVeston BaYs

get one this winter. The stage is set for outstanding winter ﬁshing and we

Like I said the whole system is rocking and rolling and these areas have

have trout and redﬁsh pretty near everywhere they should be during fall.

it going on too. Even though the trout seem smaller there are a lot of ﬁsh

Unlike recent years when all the rivers in East Texas swelled out of their

in these areas. They are easy to ﬁnd on the reefs and under the birds the

banks sending ﬂoods of freshwater into the bays, we have good salinity

same as in Trinity and East Bays.

everywhere right now. In fact we are seeing spadeﬁsh, pompano and other

west BaY

offshore species way up in Trinity and over in East Bay which is quite a

West Bay has been producing real nice ﬁsh even though most oldtimers

switch from being fresh-watered to death. I was working a cove up in the

would say it has not been cold enough to turn it on yet. West Bay usually

back of Trinity Bay last week and we were sight-casting at redﬁsh when a

shines during the coldest part of winter and on into early spring. Just goes

school of pompano swam right by the boat, there must have been 20 or 30

to show you what kind of fall ﬁshing season we’re having all across the

of them. That ought to tell you how salty our bays are right now. I rate ﬁshing

Galveston System. Reports from ﬁshermen working behind San Luis Pass

all over the Galveston area bays at 9.5 with good potential to become a

indicate lots of action. There is a lot of bird action throughout the middle of

solid 10 over the winter months. We could deﬁnitely use some rain to help

West Bay from Karankawa Reef all the way down to San Luis.

with the hurricane recovery in our marsh and nursery bay areas but not a

ChoColate - ChristMas - BastroP BaYs

ﬂood. I know this been a tough year with fuel prices, hurricanes and the

It’s just plain good everywhere you go right now and these little bays are

economy, and lots of folks have been missing out on this great ﬁshing, so

no exception. The redﬁsh have been a bonus here too, coming steadily with

get out there and enjoy what we have going on right now. The weather has

the trout.

been beautiful; Indian summer is what the old folks used to call it. We’ve

wraP-UP

only had one or two blown-out days in the past month, let’s hope it holds.

I really hate to jinx our winter ﬁshing by using the “F” word, but in my

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Merry Christmas and good ﬁshing.

Texas Saltwater Fishing

December 2008

December is prime time for specks in East Matagorda Bay; ask Cleo Lozano wade fished with Capt. Bill recently.

noVeMBer was an exCellent Month in both East and West Matagorda Bay systems and all our back lakes. With bird activity and big bull tides running anywhere from 1.5-2 ft above normal, we saw good numbers of redﬁsh come out of Austin Lake, Crab Lake, and Oyster Lake the past couple of months.

December ﬁshing will ﬁnd us dealing with colder water temperatures and a migration of shrimp from our bay systems except for perhaps on the far east end of East Matagorda Bay. This is the bay system I will choose to set up camp. Normal December activity historically offers up some good sized trout for those willing to brave the conditions. Trout anywhere from 25-29” are not uncommon this time of year. Typical baits to chunk will be chartreuse gold-sided Corkies, Fat Boys in day glow, 5” Bass Assassins in

December 2008

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M a t a g o r D a day glow, red & white,

as long as there is some shell mixed in. I cannot stress

roach, and 10W40

the importance of baitﬁsh present in your wade ﬁshing

along with 52 Mirrolures

area enough. If I can’t detect some sign of baitﬁsh, I’m

in 808.

probably not going to stop or stay long if I do. I’ll go look for another spot;

Since all of the shrimp will have left our bays,

scattered shell is that mud retains heat from the sun longer than the sand

trout and reds will be

and grass ﬂats and the shell gives bait a good place to hide.

feeding on eels and

tagorda f – wading East Ma Richard Grosskop 2oz. lbs "-7 28 ns ss Assassi and throwing Ba

simple as that. The reason these gameﬁsh and baitﬁsh are on mud and

Glare from the sun seems to be worse this time of year as the angle

small bait ﬁsh. I know it

of the sun’s rays is lower, so make sure you have your polarized shades

doesn’t sound like a lot

with you. I see lots of guys who do not use sunscreen in winter and this

of fun but wading mud

is a mistake. Protecting your eyes will enable you to ﬁnd ﬁsh such as the

and shell, sometimes

reds that should be on the sand ﬂats in West Matagorda Bay on a low tide.

knee-deep, can be

Protecting your skin from harmful UV is necessary year around.

your best ticket. I

If you like to remain in the boat and drift for your ﬁsh, I recommend you

shouldn’t have to

try in front of Boiler Bayou and Raymond’s Reefs and maybe around the

remind you to walk

Tripod over in East Matagorda Bay. Look for slicks and jumping mullet.

slowly because you won’t have much of a choice. Take two or three steps

I like rigging plastics on 1/4 ounce lead heads for drifting as 1/16s and

and fan your cast from left to right. Make sure you can see mullet in the

1/8s just won’t get the lure down there where you need to be when they’re

area you are ﬁshing. Just keep walking slowly or you will tire too easily

holding deep. Look for me at the Greater Houston Boat Show at the Reliant Center

and give up. Fish anywhere along the south or north shoreline where there is mud and shell along with baitﬁsh and you’ll be okay. Mud doesn’t have to be

from January 2 through 10 because that’s where I’ll be. Have a Merry Christmas and God Bless.

knee-deep to hold ﬁsh, ankle-deep will also produce quality ﬁsh as well

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Texas Saltwater Fishing

December 2008

in DeCeMBer, when the weather allows I will be spending a lot of time on the

There are some key factors you will need to look for before committing to a wade. Bait must be present whether it be mullet or shrimp. An added

numerous reefs in this bay you are

plus is to have current moving, either driven by wind or tidal ﬂow. Slicks

probably wondering how I decide which

are another indication that feeding ﬁsh are in the area, and some sort of

reef will be most productive.

bird activity doesn’t hurt either whether they are hitting the surface or just

there are areas that have always held ﬁsh during this time of year. These areas

walking up and down the reef; birds are always a good sign when looking for ﬁsh. The next thing we need to decide on is what lures to start the day with.

were either learned by reef hopping or

When the ﬁsh are ganged on reefs you can pull just about anything from

by information from other ﬁshermen;

your box and catch ﬁsh with it in the month of December. I have told many

and oh yeah, we also spent a lot of

customers that this is the time of year that you can use up the lures you

time in November ﬁshing these reefs.

couldn’t catch ﬁsh on during the summer months.

There are reefs north and south of the Intracoastal Waterway.

I say if you like to throw topwaters for the excitement of the explosive blow-ups, throw it! If you like to hop soft plastic off the bottom or over

The reefs that I like to ﬁsh will have

December 2008

east side of the reefs.

reefs in San Antonio Bay. With all the

For starters, like any other bay system,

more ambush points. These ambush points will normally be located on the

humps in the reefs, throw it! We will always have someone throwing a

drop-offs and ﬁngers that jut out from

topwater in the mix of Sea Shads and Texas Assassins, at least ‘til they get

the main reef, giving my speckled friends

tired of watching the rest of us catch ﬁsh.

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P ort o'Con nor /se a Dr i f t A very important tip to remember when fishing the reefs or shorelines is that you must have patience. The fish this time of year are more tightly schooled up then they were earlier in the fall. The trout will be schooled up so tight on the reefs that if you don’t place your lure within a 10ft. radius of a point or hump in the reef you may think that there is not a fish for miles. So remember keep plugging until you get

Wade slowly and fish thoroughly, plant your feet when you get that first bite, trout school very tightly on December reefs.

your first bite then plant your feet and don’t move until you have fished the area thoroughly. Being patient and fishing an area completely is something I can’t stress enough when fishing reefs with my customers. I use a fan cast, casting all directions when trying to locate fish on points and drop-offs on the reefs. Once I hook up I plant my feet. If one guy decides to move towards the fish before we have thoroughly worked the area, the school will move and this will shut down the fishing for the whole group of fishermen, until you can relocate the school again. Pay special attention to your buddy when you are reeling in your fish. Make sure he doesn’t walk into the area that you just plucked your fish out of. One more time… plant yourself after you find the first fish! My favorite lure for reef trout in December is the Texas Assassin on a 1/16 ounce unpainted Assassin jighead. I prefer the pumpkinseed/chartreuse, limetreuse and glow/chartreuse. The color I select depends mostly on water clarity, using limetreuse when the water is really torn up and off-color. Fish hard, fish smart!

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Texas Saltwater Fishing

December 2008

when i thinK of wetting a line, it never occurred that I would be exchanging my Waterloo and Daiwa once a month for

DaViD RoWsEY

pen and paper. Although I have written

David Rowsey has 20 years experience in the Laguna/ Baffin region; trophy trout with artificial lures is his specialty. David has a great passion for conservation and encourages catch and release of trophy fish.

a couple of guest articles for TSFMag,

Mrs. Kelly Childress with big redfish.

the thought never crossed my mind that I would be doing it on a monthly basis. EJ (our editor) and I go back quite some time. I have always found him to be a gentleman, and a man I could discuss the most pressing issues with, whether it be ﬁsh, conservation, ducks,

361-960-0340 www.DavidRowsey.com

politics or women. EJ has always had steady and truthful talk with me, and that is something I have always admired. I

weighed the ﬁsh and cut her loose as discreetly as possible when I heard

sincerely look forward to many years of

from behind me, “Good job, Bubba!” I acknowledged that I heard him and

the same.

noticed his partner was coming toward me at an uncomfortable speed. I

I was wading a ﬂat in March ‘99 when I had a boat pull in a respectable

turned to make another cast and was crushed immediately by a second

distance away. Fishing was kind of slow and I was just easing along casting

trout over 8 pounds. “Good job Bubba, great ﬁsh!” I turned and waved again

a pearl and chartreuse Corky when I got smashed by an 8 pound trout. I

after releasing my second great trout and noticed the silent guy closing the

December 2008

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UPPer l agUna/Ba ffin gap. I made a few empty casts before I was smoked by a third big trout. As

FOLLOWED BY THE fall equinox tide. These high waters

I was about to land the ﬁsh I heard the voice again, “Do not take another

have slowed the ﬁshing, but the upside is that the bay has

step towards him or this trip is over.”

gotten a much needed ﬂush from the gulf (as opposed to

I ﬁnished the morning releasing some really solid ﬁsh and then made

runoff), which should allow for great water clarity this winter and spring.

my way to the boat. In passing the two guys, one of them walked over and

A couple of strong fronts will knock the water level and temperature down

introduced himself. Turns out it was Cliff Webb. I’d heard his name for

to more traditional levels, and everything should fall into place.

years but never met him. He congratulated me on the great morning and

I will be seeking out areas of the Laguna and Bafﬁn that possess softer bottom, grass, and bait; the latter being the key ingredient. These areas

we soon became fast friends. Many things have changed in Bafﬁn since our ﬁrst meeting there, and

can be found from the JFK to the Landcut and as far west as Riviera

Cliff’s actions that day made a great impression on me; showing a sign of

Beach. As a general rule, I will remain in the Upper Laguna during the

class that, more often than not, is fading away on the water.

higher tides, and slowly head toward Bafﬁn as the water begins to fall. I

The man I am replacing in this column is a legend on this part of the coast. Capt. Cliff Webb has done more, seen more, and been a part of more than most could ever fathom with regards to Texas inshore ﬁshing.

know that may sound a bit vague, but most do not realize how much good water they are passing up by trying to be the ﬁrst in Bafﬁn. My lure selection takes on characteristics of being a minimalist: Bass

His retirement from guiding will not be a departure from ﬁshing, as he told

Assassins and top waters to start, and the original Corky and Fat Boy to

me he would still do charters on a limited basis with a select clientele. I wish

ﬁnish them off.

he and Carol all the best in their travels, fishing, and surfing adventures. Now for some fishing. By the time you get this it will be the start of my favorite time of year in Baffin and the Laguna. I hate all the extra clothes,

I will go into more speciﬁc detail in January’s issue with regards to these lures and which application is working best for me this winter. Practice Catch and Release and utilize only the ﬁsh you will eat

but I love cold weather ﬁshing. With each passing front the ﬁsh will

fresh. The bays are as crowded now as ever, and it is safe to say that the

become more predictable. December has always been a fantastic month

demand is far greater than the supply. Be proactive and set some loose

for me and I am predicting this one will be better than most. High tides

for the future.

starting with Dolly came to maximum level with Ike, which has now been

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Texas Saltwater Fishing

December 2008

fishing is fantastiC; for seVeral weeKs Capt. Triciaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Skinny Water Adventures operates out of Port Mansfield, specializing in wadefishing with artificial lures.

now it has consistently exceeded our greatest expectations. Numbers and quality have shown in most places that made sense for the conditions, and a consistently strong topwater bite has been a hoot for many happy clients. A lot of signs are pointing towards one heck of a big trout year. Who knows all the reasons why, but both trout and reds seem to be adding weight earlier than normal this year. Our trout started sporting body weight in November not usually seen until January or February,

and even more impressive is that we are seeing a surprising number of large ďŹ sh using the shallows on almost every trip. Standard patterns have prevailed of late;

Gary Bankhead; consistently strong topwater action has been a hoot.

usually starting behind grass lines early and then moving toward progressively

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December 2008

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Port M a nsfielD deeper structure as the day wears on. We are ﬁnishing up most days in

been a literal blast. Even though the numbers are strong,

thigh to waist deep potholes with heavy grass. With prevailing light wind

it is curious that we have seen very little schooling. The

the entire Laguna has been wide open.

traditional water pushing herds of the fall season just

Lure choices have been wide open too. Fish have been caught on everything from Corky lures to spinnerbaits and even weedless bass

didn’t seem to happen so far this year, none-the-less there are still boaters out there cutting up lots of water looking for them.

frogs. While experimenting has been fun, out of habit, I’m sticking

Outlook for a solid December seems promising. As overall water

to my proven favorites; the Brown Lure Devil Eye for tail work and

levels drop ﬁsh will become easier to pattern. Whoever said all of the

either a Skitter Walk or She Dog on top. Just like lure type, lots of lure

big reds leave the bays in winter must be staying indoors. Some of our

colors have been working as well. I’ll catch them on plum plastic while

absolute best redﬁshing success happens in winter as schools of big

clients may do just as well on white. It’s more about getting on good

ﬁsh stack in small depressions and guts. Wading into them can be all

concentrations of ﬁsh and ﬁguring out the retrieve. Of course good

your wrists and elbows can handle and this year should be no exception.

equipment that will keep a lure in the water and a willing attitude to stick

As fun as this can be, I am more excited about our big trout potential. As mentioned, we have already been catching ﬁsh that are heavier

with it is always a cornerstone of ﬁshing success. Redﬁsh have also been providing consistent action, gorging on crab

than normal for this time of year. Many clients get their personal best

and shrimp in shallow grass. Speaking of which, our water is loaded with

ﬁshing with me down here from January to March. For those of you

bait. There are more crabs here than in recent memory. We have been

having that goal you may need to rethink a bit and come earlier. It’s

pulling in several per day on slow-worked plastics; unheard of for a long

already going on. You can bet I’ll be grinding every day that will let me.

time. The abundance of crabs has really attracted redfish, and a large shrimp crop has most late afternoons filled with flocks of wheeling birds. Lower slot redfish can be found in good number on many area flats, readily taking spoons and tails. There are also several areas holding

Final news is the dredging of the East Cut. The shoaling at the mouth of the jetties should be cleared shortly after the ﬁrst of the year. That should provide greatly increased ﬂow, just in time for interesting spring season tides.

upper to oversized redﬁsh, and getting into these with topwaters has

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Texas Saltwater Fishing

December 2008

the lower lagUna MaDre has reallY

taken us a little deeper, mainly concentrating on potholes in about three to

come alive as of late fall and early winter.

seeing some of the biggest trout still holding on shallow sand.

four feet of water. Don’t rule out shallow sand ﬂats just yet though, we’re

The ﬁshing has been nothing short of

December’s focus will be trucha grande; Spanish for big trout.

outstanding. Overall, our waters look

December weather tends to be rather mild on average but we certainly

to be in great shape, clarity is back

expect a few cold blasts. The colder temperatures can last a day or two

to normal with the exception of only

and in rare cases a little longer. Before a front arrives, the usual south -

a few areas. The bay system looks

southeast winds take place. Temperatures will be on the warm side and

exceptionally healthy going into this

the ﬁsh will more than likely be in their early fall patterns, staying shallow;

winter season; plenty of baitﬁsh schools

so we will stick to relative shallow water always with an eye for bird and

around for the hungry predator.

bait activity. Topwaters like the She dog or Skitter Walk will be good

Something very interesting has

choices along with darker Sea Devil plastics from Brown Lures in plum-

taken place in our local waters. For the ﬁrst time in many years I have noticed the resurgence of the blue crab in

treuse and black. Believe it or not, one of my favorite times to be on the water is during a frontal passage with cloudy skies, drizzling rain, wind blowing out of the

our shallow back bays. It’s been a long while since we’ve seen a good

north ten to ﬁfteen mph with temperatures in the upper ﬁfties. This is when

population of this redﬁsh attracting species. In areas where we ﬁnd blue

I head for the mud and deeper holes. My allies in the search for big trout

crabs we also ﬁnd the redﬁsh to be thick and their stomachs have been full

will be a few jumping mullet, diving pelicans, and a logbook of information

of them. As of this writing our redﬁsh have not retreated to deeper water

from previous winter successes. In the wintertime ﬁsh will head deep and

yet and sight ﬁshing on the ﬂats is still in full swing. Targeting trout has

lay in mud bottoms which tend to hold warmer temperatures. Our winter

December 2008

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arroYo ColoraDo to Port isaBel wades through mud are not long marches but rather calculated, slow-paced walks in ankle to knee deep mud. The colder water temperatures slow down the bite considerably and this is where the Corky Fat Boy or Corky Devil worked slowly near the bottom will do the trick. Last year we had the best big trout fishing I have ever experienced on the Lower Laguna Madre, and many of these sows came from areas we felt deserved names like, Heart Attack Hole, Mud Hole, and Mud Island. These are not for the faint of heart; you have to work hard and you certainly earn every bite walking through what we joking call “swine mud.” I will be the first to say our efforts were greatly rewarded last year and so can yours this winter. As I have written in prior December articles, this is my favorite month to be on the water and I can only hope this one will be as good as we had in 2007. December is the month of giving and our good old Lower Laguna certainly gave her share. She is certain to give many opportunities at big trout, hefty redfish, and let’s not forget the elusive winter snook. The question is… will you allow the opportunity to arise? John Hunter sight casted to this redfish with his fly rod.

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Will you be at the right place at the right time? The right place is the Lower Laguna Madre, and the right time is any day you can get out during the month of December.

Texas Saltwater Fishing

December 2008

Jeff says the ﬁshing has been on ﬁre in Big Lake over the last month or more.

Randall says the ﬁshing in his area is consistent on all three of the glamour

“We’ve had birds working most of the time, catching easy limits of both trout

species lately. “We are boxing good numbers of trout, at least ﬁfteen or twenty

and redﬁsh under them. Best lures have been soft plastics, but we are seeing

on most trips. The redﬁsh action is fair too; we are catching several solid

some days with a good topwater bite and the Catch 2000s have just started to

keepers on almost all of our trips, and the ﬂounder are more and more often a

come into play some. We are also able to ﬁnd some better trout in shallower

bonus. We’ve had some up to four pounds lately. We did take out the Corkies

water along the shorelines under rafts of mullet. That is just starting up and

the other day for the ﬁrst time in a while, and the bite was steady on them. I like

should get better in December. The thing that normally takes off in December is

those best when I’m wading. Action has also been good out of the boat lately,

the reef ﬁshing. Lately, we have had some hot bites on reefs, but it usually only

over mud and shell in a little deeper water. We’re using our Norton Sand Eels

lasts a half hour or so. As the water gets colder, it will be an every day thing and

when ﬁshing that way. The recent weather patterns have helped with our water

the bite will last longer over the shell. Most of the action should be in the north

quality tremendously; north winds and dry conditions have things greened up

half of the lake, though reefs anywhere in the lake can produce. We’ve seen

and salty. We’re seeing trout in the lights here at the lodge at night and we’re

some nice trout way up the river lately and if it stays dry, they’ll stay there.”

way up the Bayou. Usually, that’s a sign of good ﬁshing to come.”

James was in Trinity Bay when we talked, and he said the ﬁshing was

The options for ﬁshing in the Matagorda area in December are many Tommy

excellent. “We’ve got our limits of trout already. It was good while it was calm

asserts. “We really do have about as many different types of good ﬁshing as

this morning. Now the south wind is getting up and it will probably mess this

any area of the coast in December. Of course, East Bay has great wading for

bay up for a couple of days. We caught our ﬁsh this morning wading in about

big trout in the guts on the south shore, around reefs on the north side and

two and a half feet of water, mostly on tails. The dark red paddletail and the

over shell out in the middle at times. Not to mention that the birds are often still

pumpkinseed/chartreuse Bass Assassin were working best. I did catch some

working in the bay this time of year. In West Bay, the wading along the south

on my pink Top Dog Jr.. too. We had some reds as well. Have been limiting out

shoreline for redﬁsh can be world class, especially after the fronts when the

on them on some days too.” He says that the ﬁshing in various bays is about

winds knock all the water out of the lakes and marsh. It piles all the reds up in

the same. “East Bay is good, but the junk is really bad. It’s tough to get around

the guts and locating a few often means locating a mother lode. In addition to

at all. The upper reaches of Galveston Bay are productive; there’s plenty of

the bays, there is the Colorado River. When it’s salty and we don’t have heavy

birds working there, and also in West Bay. Fishing after the fronts is best under

rains, the trout ﬁshing in there can really crank up in December. In fact, we’re

the birds for bigger trout; they’re mostly small on the pre-front side.”

already seeing plenty of trout in the lights, so it sets up well if it stays dry.”

Recent outings in both Trinity and East Bays have been productive, Jim says. “There is a lot of trash in East Bay, and boaters have to be very careful. Trinity isn’t quite so bad, but it’s more crowded as a result. The birds are working over small and medium-sized trout. The shorelines are producing better trout and good numbers of redﬁsh too. We were catching ours the other day out of the boat. Some on soft plastics, but they were really liking the MirrOlures, the catch 2000s and the old 51M too. I had trout up to about four and a half pounds, but I’ve heard of some better ﬁsh, up to 30 inches, for waders. Best bite for waders is late evening, right at dark.” He says the duck hunting shapes up to be good following a steady dove season. “Our marsh over here is best on strong north winds. We usually have good hunting throughout the second half of the season on ducks. Geese too. We’re seeing plenty of birds already.” 58 58

December 2008 December 2008

When fishing in the Palacios area, December is one of the best months of the year in which to catch a wallhanger trout. The big specks have ready access to deep water in the Tres Palacios River and an abundance of good mud and shell bottoms to hang around looking for food. Corky Fat Boys in pearl/black and dayglo are two of my favorite lures for taking the big trout in the cold winter months. The key to finding fish this month will be finding the large schools of mullet. When good concentrations of bait are found, it pays to grind out the area with patience, waiting for the trout to bite. Redfish should be easier to locate on the flats, with clearer than normal water in our bay system. Gold half ounce weedless spoons and Berkley Gulp Shad in watermelon are my two favorite lures for reds this time of the year. Also, the deep wells in West Matagorda will provide good action on solid keeper trout.

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Thank goodness for the good supply of redfish in the Laguna Madre. I have not had to go very far to find reds in the northern end. We have also been catching fair numbers of trout. The water has not gone back down to its normal level since the passage of Ike, but the clarity is good. The trick has been finding concentrations of bait and chances are the reds and trout will be in the same area. In coming weeks, I’ll target water that is three to four feet deep, with grassy bottoms. I will be using Texas Assassins in plum and pumpkinseed/ chartreuse, bone diamond and the Bass Assassin five inch Swim Bait in gold shiner rigged on eighth ounce Bass Assassin Spring Lock jigheads. For redfish, I will be targeting water two feet deep or less, with potholes and long sandy shorelines. I will be using Johnson Silver Minnow weedless spoons. I’m seeing many stingrays while wading, so don’t forget your Ray Guard boots. Lynn was splitting time between the deer lease and the waterfront when we spoke, and he says the fishing has been good lately. “The Corky bite has been hot. I’m really partial to my slow sinking Corky when the water cools down some this time of year. I’m liking that new Mardi Gras color they are making, especially for some of the dark days we get in the coming months. I’ll be fishing mostly drains and guts connecting the marshes and shallow areas with deep open water. This time of year, I favor a mix of mud and shell as opposed to the sand and grass areas. When it gets really cold, the deeper drains with soft mud on the bottom become favorable. I’ll stick with my Corkies and soft plastics mostly, unless it gets nice and warm and lots of baitfish are jumping. I do like my topwaters, but I get impatient with them if I’m not getting blow ups. We usually catch some big trout on slow sinking twitch baits in December. I love it.”

Blake will be in the middle of his cast and blast season this month. “I’ll be steadily hunting the local marshes for the ducks most mornings, fishing my way out during the middle of the day. Also, we have another part of the dove season starting up right after Christmas and carrying into January. The hunting looks to be good; we have been seeing plenty of birds.” On the fishing front, he expects to be using some of the old standby lures in some familiar places. “I like a muddy kind of fishing hole this time of year. Somewhere with relatively deep water next to shallow water and a soft bottom. Preferably, there’s a little scattered shell too. I throw mostly Sand Eels in pumpkin or purple and chartreuse and also the Gulp baits. When the fish are more active, I will switch over to my topwaters, especially the Super Spooks. Usually, December is a great month for catching reds and trout, and some of the trout will be big.”

Last December was the most productive month of the year for Florida pompano on fresh, peeled, dead shrimp and pink or green Fishbites. Look for deep cuts through the outside bar. Sandbar sharks should be in good supply with lesser numbers of blacktipped and bull sharks. Most of these will be caught in late afternoons and at night on kayaked baits. Rays seem to be the best winter baits. The three mako sharks landed off the beach of PINS were all winter fish. Slot and oversized reds, scattered Atlantic bluefish and Spanish mackerel are usually present in varying numbers, finger mullet and cut bait being most productive. Speckled trout are available in the December surf with 51M Mirrolures being the bait of choice in a variety of colors. Tsunami minnows, silver spoons and plastics could possibly produce some trout but the 51M reins supreme. Large jack crevalle are often present the first half of the month. Watch for diving brown pelicans to locate the jackfish. Beware of NE winds which bring high tides. www.TSFMAG.com www.TSFMAG.com

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Joe reports good fishing for redfish lately on the flats around the JFK Causeway. “There are lots of redfish schooled up lately, and we are finding them pretty shallow, so they are easy to spot. Of course, by next month, that pattern won’t work so good. We will be focusing mainly on edges and drop offs when it gets cold. I like to fish the main channel of the ICW a lot. The fish really seem to stack up in there when the water temperatures first drop. The key to catching them will be to control both the boat and the presentation of the lures. The boat needs to stay away from the edge so casts can be made to allow the lure to fall along the drop off. We will use fairly heavy jigheads for this drill, up to three eighth of an ounce and more. A slow overall presentation works best, so that the lure will maintain contact with the bottom and make little puffs as it works its way down. Light colors on bright days, dark on dark ones.”

Fishing in the Port Mansfield area is as good as it’s been in a long time, Bruce says. “You can catch good numbers of solid trout all over our bays right now. We’ve had light pressure for some time now and the influence of the Hurricane was good, flushing out the system. They are also getting the jetties open again, and that helps with water transfer. Lately, small topwaters are taking lots of fish in gravelly potholes in thick grass beds. As we get into December, the fish will transition over to a darker, softer bottom, relating to drains between shallow and deep water. We’ll get away from our topwaters then, preferring Corkies and Catch 2000s more of the time. I also love Pradco’s new Money Minnow. It’s a slotted swim bait that can be worked really slow with lots of action when rigged weightless. It should prove to be a killer bait on some of these winter days. I predict fishing around here will be as good as it’s been in a decade this winter.”

The shallow flats of the LLM are full of trout and redfish, and we’re taking full advantage of the situation. When we have any wind at all, we’re limiting on both species, sometimes in one drift, hitting herds of oversized reds when it’s calm. Gulp three inch shrimp in glow, nuclear chicken or pearl under a Mauler or Cajun Thunder cork are working best, rigged on a twelve inch leader with a quarter ounce head. The fish are filled with more shrimp than perch, so the Gulps are our first choice. Retrieving the cork much like a topwater keeps the hook riding high in the water and out of the grass, but can make it harder to stick the fish. Freddy says, “As long as you don’t jerk the lure away from the fish, they’ll keep after it until they get it. You might have to stop reeling and let the lure drop in order to hook up.” Fall is a great season for fishing the bay or the surf with tons of bait and less traffic now that deer season has started.

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Yields: 2 deep dish quiches made of eggs and cream baked in a Quiche, from French cuisine, is made primarily sure to please all your family and recipe fast break hearty e, pastry crust. Quiche is a simpl before then heated for breakfast! day the baked be friends during the holiday season. It can

16 oz. bacon â&#x20AC;&#x201C; thick sliced 1 cup spina ch 4 oz. shredded sharp cheddar 2 oz. shredded Parmesan 1 medium sliced tomato 1 cup half-n-half 1 tsp. garlic powder 1 tsp. salt

2 deep dish pie crusts 8 oz crabmeat 4 oz. shredded mozza rella 2 chopped spring onions 10 eggs 1 tsp. ground musta rd 1 tsp. pepper

section already cleaned. Ready to use! Hint: H-E-B sells fresh crabmeat in the seafoo d Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prick the Thaw pie crusts 10-20 minutes before starting. 10 minutes, just slightly browned. You for Bake fork. a with crusts the of bottoms and sides the edges. Let cool as you prepare burn to want not do you will bake these once more and the other ingredients. s. Layer these ingredients from top to Cook bacon and let cool, chop into small piece eat, sharp cheddar, mozzarella, Parmesan, crabm ch, spina , bacon crust: pie bottom into each onions and tomato. ground mustard, garlic powder, pepper Mix together in large bowl; eggs, half and half, crust over the other ingredients. and salt. Pour mixture into each pre-baked pie es or until top of quiche begins to brown . minut 45 for Bake es. degre 350 Preheat oven to Other quiche ingre dients suggested to try: Asparagus Artichoke Broccoli Turkey (cube d) d) (cube Ham Mushrooms Swiss cheese Shrimp

December 2008

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CATCH OF THE

MONTH

Brought to you by…

A topwater proved efficient as Greg Linbeck landed his personal best trout 28", 7.5lb.

Hiram & Manny Rodriguez landed these flounder (21 & 20.5”) with Berkley Gulp at South Padre Island.

The Galveston Jetties was the place to be as Allison Haverlah displays her first black drum.

No better present could Cheyenne Tharp have received than this snook on her 13th birthday.

Allison Schwartz holds up her 4lb trout which she released with a big smile.

Brittany Bolf, poses with her 26" red landed in Matagorda Bay.

Mary Spoonemore & son-in-law with her first trout caught out Ken Haverlah, holding a 39", 38lb. black drum, of Charlie's Bait Camp. knows how to reel ‘em in. Matagorda Bay was the spot for Branden Bolf as he shows off his 31" redfish. This 39" redfish was no match for Sherri Haverlah at the Galveston Jetties.

Even a windy day didn’t keep Shelly Caldwell from catching Leta Morton of Denver, this 27” redfish in Matagorda. Barney Norton with a nice redfish CO exclaimed with joy from the Laguna Madre near SPI. after she caught her first red in Trinity Bay.

Please do not write on the back of photos.

What a catch for angler, Stephanie May, a 52" dorado landed at Anegada. www.TSFMAG.com

Charles Tatton with a hearty redfish boated in St Charles Bay.

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

Aprox 50 lbs, Gentry Hanson caught & released this black drum in POC. Texas Saltwater Fishing

Mail photos to: TSFMag P.O. Box 429, Seadrift, TX 77983 December 2008

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TSFMag SPECKLED TROUT CATCH AND RELEASE PHOTO CONTEST All you have to do is catch a really good speck and release it aliveâ&#x20AC;Ś and send us some photos! Photos will be judged on photographic quality, artistic merit, demonstration of conservation ethic and, of course, you must include a shot of the release. The winner will be featured on the cover of TSFMag and receive a high-quality rod and reel combo. Four runner-up prizes will also be awarded. Fish must be caught and released Jul 08-Dec 08, photos must be received on/before Jan 15 09. Fish must be caught in Texas waters and TPWD regs apply. Make sure your camera is set to capture high-quality images. Photos become property of TSFMag, employees and writers are not eligible. Submit entries via electronic mail to: Everett@TSFMag.com.

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