December 2019

December 2019

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Located at the entrance of Harborwalk, an upscale coastal community on West Galveston Bay, Harborwalk Lodge offers the outdoor enthusiast excellent fishing, hunting, and various other outdoor water activities all from the comfort of our luxurious lodge accommodations. The Lodge offers wellappointed rooms, a Great Room for sharing stories, food and drink, incredible views of the surrounding wetlands, and access to the Harborwalk Marina and Yacht Club where guests can join guided trips, launch boats, go swimming, or simply buy some necessary supplies including snacks, sandwiches and bait. Harborwalk Lodge invites you to visit and enjoy all that Galveston Bay has to offer.

FISHING • HUNTING • OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES

www.HarborwalkLodge.com 201 Harborwalk Blvd, Hitchcock TX 77563 • 409-359-3000

ABOUT THE COVER Parker Mitchiner is our December cover angler. Parker says landing this beautiful fish that taped 31-inches and weighed 8-1/2 pounds was the best day of his life. Parker was fishing Galveston Bay and was excited to report a successful release immediately after the photo was snapped! TSFMag offers congrats on a fine trophy and conservation kudos!

DECEMBER 2019 VOL 29 NO 8

CONTENTS

FEATURES

DEPARTMENTS

10 14 18 22

27 42 44 48 50 52 56 58 62 66 68 92 93

Time to Upgrade for Christmas!

Straightening Out the Circle Early Winter on Sabine...

Holiday Wish List

Steve Hillman Kevin Cochran Chuck Uzzle Joe Richard

18

Holiday Gift Guide Let’s Ask The Pro Shallow Water Fishing TPWD Field Notes Kayak Fishing Chronicles TSFMag Conservation News Fishy Facts Extreme Kayak Fishing & Sharks...

Plastic & Water Don’t Mix First Blush: Shimano SLX-DC 150HG Frogg Toggs: Hellbenders & Boots Boat Repair & Maintenance Science & the Sea

WHAT OUR GUIDES

HAVE TO SAY

72 74 76 78 80 82

Dickie Colburn’s Sabine Scene The View from Matagorda Mid-Coast Bays with the Grays Hooked up with Rowsey Wayne’s Port Mansfield Report South Padre Fishing Scene

74

Dickie Colburn Bink Grimes Gary Gray David Rowsey Wayne Davis Ernest Cisneros

52

REGULARS 8 Editorial 70 New Tackle & Gear 84 Fishing Reports and Forecasts 88 Catch of the Month 90 Gulf Coast Kitchen

88

6 | December 2019

Jay Watkins Scott Null Ashley Fincannon Dave Roberts CCA Texas Stephanie Boyd Eric Ozolins Everett Johnson Everett Johnson Everett Johnson Chris Mapp UT Marine Science Institute

EDITOR AND PUBLISHER Everett Johnson Everett@tsfmag.com VICE PRESIDENT PRODUCTION & ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Pam Johnson Pam@tsfmag.com Office: 361-785-3420 Cell: 361-550-9918 NATIONAL SALES REPRESENTATIVE Bart Manganiello Bartalm@optonline.net REGIONAL SALES REPRESENTATIVE Patti Elkins Patti@tsfmag.com Office: 361-785-3420 Cell: 361-649-2265 PRODUCTION COORDINATOR Donna Boyd Donna@tsfmag.com CIRCULATION SUBSCRIPTION – PRODUCT SALES Vicky Morgenroth Store@tsfmag.com DESIGN & LAYOUT Stephanie Boyd Artwork@tsfmag.com SOCIAL MEDIA COORDINATOR Jen Shive Jen@tsfmag.com Texas Saltwater Fishing Magazine is published monthly.

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HOW TO CONTACT TSFMAG: PHONE: 361-785-3420 FAX: 361 792-4530 MAILING ADDRESS: P.O. Box 429, Seadrift, Texas 77983 PHYSICAL ADDRESS: 58 Fisherman’s Lane, Seadrift, TX 77983 WEB: www.TSFMAG.com PHOTO GALLERY: photos@tsfmag.com PRINTED IN THE USA. Texas Saltwater Fishing Magazine (ISSN 1935-9586) is published monthly by Texas Saltwater Fishing Magazine, Inc., 58 Fisherman’s Lane, Seadrift, Texas 77983 l P. O. Box 429, Seadrift, TX 77983 © Copyright 1990 All rights reserved. Positively nothing in this publication may be reprinted or reproduced. *Views expressed by Texas Saltwater Fishing Magazine contributors do not necessarily express the views of Texas Saltwater Fishing Magazine.

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POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Texas Saltwater Fishing Magazine, Inc., P. O. Box 429, Seadrift, TX 77983.

EDITORIAL

DECEMBER GREATNESS

I could probably make a list at least a foot long of all the great things December offers Texas outdoors enthusiasts, but first we need to remember the greatest event of the twelfth month is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. Agnostics, atheists, and people who practice other religions may disagree and that’s their right. But having been raised in a Christian home, Christmas will always be very sacred to me. For those who believe likewise; I wish you a joyous Christmas season. If you believe otherwise; I pray you will find peace and tolerance to respect this great tradition.

On to the outdoors – December is recognized as the kickoff to the long-awaited trophy trout season. Big trout are caught in every month but the development of winter weather and feeding patterns makes targeting the largest fish more exciting and more predictable. Fishing in December isn’t always easy, we have to endure inclement conditions at times, but rising to such challenges only makes it more special.

This is not to say that hunting is not also very important. Like many anglers, I too have great difficulty deciding between fishing and hunting this time of year. Some days I get to do both – part of the beauty of living on San Antonio Bay. This issue is filled with information that could enable you to become a better wintertime angler. Our writers share generously of the lessons they learned the hard way to make your pathway to

8 | December 2019

success easier. If by chance you find any of it adding to your success, please drop an email or text message to the writer. I’m sure they will enjoy the feedback.

Now for the giving part of Christmas. I believe it safe to say everybody reading this magazine has an angler in their life. We have two product highlights in this issue that could make gift buying a whole lot easier. The same as my wife with her many pairs of shoes to match every outfit, I doubt there’s an angler anywhere who wouldn’t treasure a new reel or wading gear wrapped in shiny Christmas paper.

Another great gift idea would be a guided fishing trip. Our writing team includes some of the best fishing guides in Texas. Pick one in your area or one that operates in a bay system your angler likes to fish.

They will love you for it.

I will close this column by asking that you consider your family foremost in all your outdoors activities. Especially with children, believe me when I say we have only a short time to influence them before they’re grown and on their own. I speak from experience!

Get them out of the house and into the outdoors where there’s no TV and other distractions. Look for exciting things to do out there to take their mind off cell phones and game devices. Most importantly, you will be spending time with them, which might be the most special gift of all.

Capt. John Havens and I stayed plenty dry and warm on this afternoon winter scouting trip, thanks to our Simms gear.

for

Christmas!

STORY BY STEVE HILLMAN

T

here always seems to be that one guy on the boat who struggles to catch as many fish as the rest of the crew. Sometimes it’s because of skill level while other times it can be chalked up to just good old- fashioned bad luck. The one factor that I notice most often, however, is the use of inferior equipment.

This month’s issue couldn’t come at a better time to provide gift ideas for those who are in need of some upgrades in the fishing gear department.

If I’ve heard it once, I’ve heard it…well, you know, “Man, I haven’t had a bite in a while.” Well sir, part of the reason may be because the rod you’re using would be better suited for a jetty bull red trip or even a self-defense weapon. Sometimes trout bites are subtle, especially this time of year. Sensitive lightweight rods are one of the primary tools available to give us the upper hand.

If you can’t feel the bite your chances of catching are very slim.

There are more than a handful of top quality fishing rods on the market. For more than a decade my choice has been Waterloo. Waterloo has found its niche by custom-making rods tailored to fit the needs of both salt and freshwater anglers. Over the past 20 years or so they’ve communicated closely with hardcore anglers who spend hundreds of hours on the water each year. The feedback provided by these anglers who employ various styles and tactics goes into every rod made. Not only do Waterloo Rods put us in direct contact with the fish via their sensitive high-modulus blanks, but the personal touch from their staff and even the owner, Jimmy Burns, is something most big box stores cannot provide.

Waterloo’s HP Lite is a softer tip rod which is perfect for fishing with soft plastics. The Carbon Mag is a very lightweight faster tip rod that works phenomenally well with twitchbaits, Corkys and topwater plugs. In my opinion, the Ultra Mag is the Swiss Army knife of all fishing rods. I use mine for all the above. It has a slightly softer tip than the Carbon Mag but carries a strong backbone throughout the length of the blank for superior fish landing power.

I think it’s kind of cool that certain trends and styles tend to be somewhat cyclical. For example, my daughter tells me that bell-bottomed jeans are popular again. Apparently, the retro-70s look is a thing. What’s not cool is when someone shows up on my boat with a retro reel. I understand the whole “durability” concept and that’s great. However, a reel used to catch TSFMAG.com | 11

Just one of many styles of Lure Lock boxes with a few of my favorite baits. Visit www.lurelock.com to see their many lure storage options.

Bill Austin and Gary Lovett with another double hookup on a recent trip! Concept Z and TXZ on Waterloo HP Lite and Salinity rods. Having the right tools makes life easy!

Using a Boga Grip to land this 5.25 lb. trout made for a clean and easy release. We need to keep these trout in the system so they can possibly reach trophy status one day. Bogas are another great gift idea and are a major upgrade over a landing net.

12 | December 2019

speckled trout and most any other inshore species we’ll be targeting doesn’t need to weigh one pound and have a 400 yard line capacity. For Pete’s sake, take it off of your telephone pole of a fishing rod, have it professionally cleaned then put it in a glass case on your fireplace mantle because it’s a damn antique! Oh, and leave the Dacron line on it for style points. Jeez!

There are so many great options out there these days when it comes to fishing reels. My choice has been 13 Fishing’s Concept line of reels ever since they’ve entered the saltwater scene several years ago. They have a reel for every price point so putting a quality reel on your new rod doesn’t have to break the bank. From the Inception or the Concept A all the way up to the TXZ, their reels are extremely lightweight and sensitive. The casting distance is unreal and you won’t find a smoother drag system.

Now that we’re set up with a top quality rod and reel let’s get lined out on what kind of line to use. There are obviously many types of line from which to choose. A lot of it comes down to personal preference. That being said, there are standard guidelines that we should follow when we’re talking about fishing for trout and redfish so let’s get those out of the way first. The three most common problems I witness are having your reel spooled with line that is too heavy, too much line, or not enough line. Let’s start with the line weight issue. When choosing monofilament backing I prefer 10 or 12 pound test. Higher tensile strength line is typically not needed for anything we’re going to catch in the bay. In addition, the smaller diameter of the backing enables our reel to hold more line, which allows us to cast further. With braided line we need not go any higher than 30 pound test (8 lb. diameter), but 20 pound (6 lb. diameter) is plenty good.

Many times I see reels spooled with way too much line, which usually results in backlashes of epic proportions.

The other extreme is not having enough line on your reel.

Talk about not getting any distance! My standard rule of thumb is to fill a baitcast reel to slightly below the bevel at the edge of the spool.

With regards to monofilament, I prefer Trilene XL Smooth or Sensation. Both have very little memory which greatly reduces the “Slinky” effect. Trilene Sensation has a bit less stretch, which can assist in better bite detection. The advantage of using mono over braided line is that it gives a little on a finicky trout bite. In other words, the fish will feel less resistance, thus enabling you to use a “wait and let ‘em take it” approach. This same attribute can also cause you to miss a bite because of not feeling it in time to set the hook.

When using mono, I recommend attaching a 20 pound fluorocarbon shock leader (about 16 inches long) to reduce break-offs. Fluorocarbon is also invisible in the water. My preferred brand is Seaguar. I like to use a #8 (50lb test) SPRO Power Swivel to fasten the leader to the line.

Of the hundreds of brands of braid on the shelves, my top three choices are Seaguar Smackdown Tournament braid, Suffix 832 and Fins Windtamer. Braid has several advantages over monofilament. Because there is very

Concept TXZ strung with Seaguar Smackdown braid on a Waterloo Ultra Mag rod while chunking a MirrOlure Paul Brown Original Corky Fat Boy. Can’t get any better than that!

little stretch, bites are more easily detected. However, we have to be careful having too itchy of a trigger finger. We can sometimes set the hook prematurely on those gradual “spongy” bites. One way I’ve found to help prevent this is to add a 5-or 6-foot fluorocarbon leader of 20 pound test (as opposed to an 18 or 20 inch). The added leader length should provide that little extra “give” and the trout should feel less resistance prior to hookset.

There are a variety of different line-to-line knots to use when tying your leader to the backing. I prefer a uni-to-uni because it’s fast and easy. Braided line also allows us to muscle fish away from line-cutting structure such as rocks, towheads and pilings. Braid also helps anglers in live weigh-in tournaments get trout and reds to the boat quicker, causing less stress. It’s important to remember to start with about 15 or 20 yards of mono backing on your baitcaster before finishing off the spool with braid. This prevents the braid slipping on the spool and reduces the amount of expensive braid required to fill the reel.

Now that we’re in the colder months, waders will be a necessity on days we choose to jump out of the fiberglass. To me there’s only one choice when it comes to waders, jackets and boots, and that’s Simms.

Simms has been around a long time and they are proven topnotch quality with the customer service to back it up. You can choose from the Freestone all the way up to the G4 waders. I personally use the G3 Guide stocking foot waders and the G3 Guide boots. My G3 Guide Tactical wading jacket keeps my upper body warm and dry. The last thing you want is to have leaky waders during these colder months.

This is one area you definitely do not want to cut corners.

Lures make excellent stocking stuffers and I know just the ones to recommend for this time of year. Of course, we can never go wrong with soft plastics. MirrOlure Lil Johns and Provokers will fit in the toe of the stocking perfectly, as will Saltwater Assassins. MirrOdines, Custom Double Ds, Leles, Skitter Walks and Paul Brown Original Corkys will top it off nicely.

I do have to mention the tackle boxes I’ve been using the past year or so. The Lure Lock tackle boxes have revolutionized the industry with their Tak Logic technology, which is a tacky gel that holds your lures in place preventing them from shifting or bouncing around. This technology protects the paint and hooks on your hard and soft baits without affecting their integrity and enables you to neatly store all of your favorite lures in the most organized fashion ever.

There are many other tools I could discuss but there’s just not enough time and certainly not enough paper. But, I’ll leave you with this all important question; If we’re going to spend our precious time and gas money to go fishing, then why wouldn’t we want to possess the best gear to give us the greatest opportunity for success? It may be time to upgrade. Merry Christmas to all!

This 33-inch redfish gave Ty Matlock a workout! www.waterloorods.com

CONTACT

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

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

TSFMAG.com | 13

During cold spells in December, big trout in Baffin Bay and the ULM often crowd into tight spaces, making them easier to catch on slow-sinking twitch baits. Matt McCollum poses here with one of four giants he caught in the span of about an hour on a MirrOlure Catch 2000 on a chilly December day.

Straightening out the

Circle

STORY BY KEVIN COCHRAN

T

he appetites of fish, like those of other creatures, vary over time. When hungry, fish eat if they can. If they consume enough food, their pangs wane, and for a while, they become less motivated to eat. Over the years, I’ve developed a tendency to use a circle as a favorite way to illustrate the everevolving feeding mood of fish.

A circle makes sense primarily because of a significant consequence spurred by the fishes’ dynamic appetites. Through evidence gathered anecdotally, while probing the water with hooks and line, I’ve witnessed the effects of this truth on many occasions. Anyone who’s wet a hook more than a few times has likely experienced it; fish feeding hard enough will abruptly stop chewing at some point, sometimes soon after they start. To my customers, I’ve often stressed the way this fact dictates a need for focus on our part, using some version of the following statement: “We better make hay while the sun shines, ‘cause it ain’t gonna last.”

The optimal feeding mood of fish leads to gorging, with an associated period of inactivity immediately following the fill-up, so the most negative appetite level resides close to the optimal one, on the forward-leaning scale of time. Given this truth, a circle seems perfect for visualizing these events. The appetite climbs the curve to the top, then a breaking point occurs, and the 100/100 level drops instantly to 0, or at least close to nil, while fish take a break from eating and begin to digest what they’ve consumed.

To some, it might seem more meaningful to snap the circle at the breaking point and straighten it into a line, placing the optimal feeding level at the top, the most negative one at the bottom. This linear representation does imply some things inaccurately, in my estimation, and I’ve synthesized a better way to graphically represent the mutability of this aspect of the fishes’ behavior.

Using line graphs, I’ve attempted to construct an easy way to grasp how various aspects of a situation can drive the fishes’ appetites either up or down, and how anglers should typically respond to these changes. All my assertions assume a key fact related to any angling effort— the angler should always consider the appetite level of the fish when making decisions. For artificial lure enthusiasts, this assumption carries more significance than for anglers deploying live and natural baits.

TSFMAG.com | 15

Producing line-graphs involves generating a grid with two axes, one horizontal, one vertical. I’ve done so by placing time on the horizontal axis and feeding mood on the vertical. This allows for the simplest way of documenting what happens while sand slides through the hour-glass, as the feeding mood of fish either improves or declines.

Obviously, looking at the images associated with this piece, the optimal feeding level resides at the top of the vertical axis, the most negative at its base. Time moves forward from left to right.

It pays to think of a couple other things when visualizing the vertical axis. As temperatures rise, the likelihood of high feeding activity generally increases. This happens because fish have cold blood coursing through their veins; they’re more active and thus need more energy as temperatures rise. This general truth does not always apply. Fish become negative in hot weather too, but this happens less frequently, for shorter periods of time, and with less severity, compared to what occurs in cold weather.

In addition to considering temperature as an underlying, influential part of the vertical axis, thinking about what basic ramification the axis implies on the decisions made by anglers makes sense too. A better feeding mood in the fish means they will show a more cooperative attitude towards rising to take lures placed higher in the water column and moved around at faster speeds, with more erratic action. A vigorous bite on topwaters moving fast on the surface occurs more often when the targeted fish feed aggressively. Conversely, the most negative fish might only half-heartedly bite at something moving slowly, close to or on the bottom.

Size of the lure also comes into play, in a similar fashion. Hungry fish show a better attitude towards larger lures than sated fish, so as the biting mood of the fish improves, larger lures stand a better chance of urging strikes, especially from mature predators accustomed to taking prey of more substantial size. In total then, a better biting mood increases the odds for anglers using bigger lures, presented more quickly and closer to the surface, while a really negative mood dictates using smaller lures presented slowly, closer to the bottom.

These static truths remain in play all the time, but the feeding mood of the fish constantly changes. In an ideal world, anglers adapt their methods in attempt to adjust to the mutating situation. Doing so effectively requires more than a basic grasp of the foundational, static truths; it also involves an understanding of which environmental factors affect the feeding mood of fish, how they do so, and the probable intensity with which they influence a given situation.

Certainly, some aspects of a situation could negatively alter the feeding mood of the fish, or at least the ability of the angler to take advantage of the fishes’ desire to feed. Winds ramping up and staying at a high level for an extended period of time, excessively strong or weak tidal currents and frigid temperatures come to mind as prime examples of negative environmental stimuli. All anglers should fish in a mindful state, constantly attempting to adjust techniques to the factors which potentially stifle a bite.

On the other hand, anglers should also remain poised to pounce on the advantages provided by stimulators, which increase the likelihood of temporary improvement in the biting attitude of the fish within the scope of 16 | December 2019

their influence. A list of such stimulators includes some basic, more predictable ones, and some complex, unpredictable ones. The rising and setting of the sun and moon, the turn of the tide, and dramatic weather changes all potentially increase the motivation of fish to feed, and in so doing, the ability of anglers to catch them.

These stimulators do not exert equal influence at all times. Some have greater impact than others. Additionally, the simultaneous occurrence of multiple stimulators can increase their cumulative effect, well beyond the norm. For instance, if a full moon drops close to the horizon while the sun rises and a strong front blows over the coast after three days without a frontal passage, the fish in the area might become ridiculously ravenous for a while.

In order to address the issue of stimulators on the graphs I’ve produced for consideration here, I’ve placed a green S on the horizontal axis. Making the S larger and bolder better represents its complete potential for influence, graphically acknowledging the severity of a weather condition, the strength of a moon phase and/or the simultaneous occurrence of multiple stimulators. Analysis of the three attached graphics will help clarify these concepts.

In the first, titled Summer Day, excellent conditions, the line on the graph shows the bite attitude moving from medium into the high range and staying elevated for an hour or so, in response to a stimulator. This represents what typically occurs on a standard summer morning, with stable, normal weather in play, when the sun rises. Fish tend to feed somewhat aggressively in this situation, becoming easier to catch on topwaters for a while. The effects of a sweet tide-change or a strong setting or rising moon would likely increase the duration and intensity of the up-tick in bite attitude.

The second shows the typical changes associated with a stimulator like a weak moon setting or rising on a Cold Winter Day, with negative conditions like bright skies and ballooned barometer in play. Finicky fish, nearly impossible to entice into taking a bite thirty minutes before and after such an event will likely become somewhat easier to catch for a short period of time. Note the line only rises slightly, meaning the

angler should still employ something small, moved slowly, at or near the bottom, even during the perceived window of ripe opportunity.

The S on this graph should probably be tiny and faint, to illustrate the weakness of the effects of the stimulator.

In essence, then, anglers should learn to make both proactive and reactive decisions, in anticipation of and in response to external stimuli. These three line-graphs emphasize how static truths about weather and environment interact with the fluid nature of the biting mood of the fish and impact angling efforts. The smartest, most productive anglers mirror the dynamic qualities of the ever-changing environment, adjusting their lure choices and presentations to address the specifics of the situation.

A contrasting picture emerges on the graphic titled Winter Day, frontal passage, which documents what regularly happens during the cold season, when a front passes over the coast, ending a stretch of benign weather. If the passage occurs while the moon and sun both hover on the horizon, a steady, good feeding mood in the fish might morph into an epic, short-lived feeding frenzy, before collapsing when strong offshore winds replace the softer, warmer ones prevalent before the event. I’ve increased the size of the green S on this graph, to illustrate the strong influence multiple stimulators can exert. In such a case, an angler who chooses to replace a slow-sinking twitch bait or soft plastic with a topwater during the hour or so when the front bears down and passes through might catch more and bigger fish than one who makes no adjustment. Soon after the front passes, a move back down to a worm might be necessary to earn a few more strikes.

Recent outings prior to production of this piece produced decent numbers of trout in the three to five-pound class for the captain and his customers.

CONTACT

KEVIN COCHRAN

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

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

TROUT TRACKER GUIDE SERVICE Phone 361-688-3714 Email kevxlr8@mygrande.net Web www.FishBaffinBay.com www.captainkevblogs.com TSFMAG.com | 17

Redfish dining on crabs and shrimp are some of the prettiest you will ever see.

EARLY WINTER ON

b i n a S e

Keeping My Fingers Crossed!

STORY BY CHUCK UZZLE

I

cannot remember going into the prime fall and winter fishing months and being so conflicted about exactly what was going to happen heading forward.

Sabine Lake has been a complete mystery for many months and that has caused local fishermen plenty of heartache as they struggle to get it all figured out. Tried and true seasonal patterns have been thrown out the window, courtesy of repeated record rainfall events that only Noah and his crew could look down upon and say, “Well, that’s really not so bad.”

Hurricane Harvey and Tropical Storm Imelda bookended several significant but lesser events that produced massive quantities of fresh inflow from Toledo Bend and Sam Rayburn reservoirs. Couple all these with a pair of colder than normal winters and you have the perfect recipe for disaster, and that’s exactly what we’ve been living with on Sabine Lake. But hope is not completely lost, just like a soap opera star watching a character lying in a hospital bed, there have been a few faint beeps from the heart monitor signaling renewed life taking shape in our estuary.

Forever it seems, the most anticipated time of year on Sabine was late fall and early winter, basically from October until Christmas. Each successive cold front blasted tons of shrimp, shad, and crabs from the marshes into the open body of Sabine, where hordes of hungry speckled trout and redfish would gang up and gorge. This pattern was easy pickings for any angler willing to brave the weather or put down their hunting gear long enough to cash in.

Now I’m sure that folks from the middle and lower coasts scoff at the notion of chasing these fish under birds because most of the time those fish in their home waters are small or undersized, and many anglers just pass them by. On Sabine, if you passed on such opportunity you might have turned down a shot at an entire school of three- to five-pound trout, along with upper-slot and oversized redfish. That’s how good it can be under “normal” conditions. Unfortunately, conditions haven’t been normal for quite some time.

At present, Sabine Lake is beginning to show new signs of life as we are encountering TSFMAG.com | 19

more schooling activity on the south end near the Causeway and all the way to the jetties. The quality of the trout under those birds is still small on average but it’s a start, and that’s all we can ask for right now. If the water clarity holds up for any length of time and the marshes continue to dump, the forecast looks much brighter than the last two years. There have been a few days when the trout showed up mid-lake around Willow Bayou and beyond, but that was never a sure bet, like it should and would have been when things were normal. Just the thought of these trout beginning to show is like light at the end of a long tunnel and something to be optimistic about.

For the present, redfish and flounder will have to carry the load for local fishermen. And while November flounder regulations that allow only a two-fish daily bag will discourage some from getting on the water because a pair of flatties isn’t worth the effort in their minds – the way I see it, a pair of solid flatfish make a great meal and a welcome addition to any stringer this time of year. The redfish will continue on, hale and hearty, oblivious to the plight of their speckled cousins, as they gang in the open lake and gorge on the seasonal bounty.

A school of redfish is unmistakable at first sight, the way they blow holes in the water and generally wreak havoc like the bullies they are. If you are fortunate enough to catch a calm day ahead of a front, the type of action a large school can provide is absolutely insane. They will inhale virtually anything you offer and will give a much better fight than during the hotter months. The chaos associated with this activity can be off the chart and is a big reason many anglers look forward to this time of the year. With the speckled trout being scarce you can bet the diehards will turn their attention toward the redfish.

Solid fish are far more common under the birds on Sabine Lake under normal conditions.

20 | December 2019

To be completely honest I fall into the segment of fishermen that love this time of year for the all-around variety it normally provides.

From one end of Sabine to the other there is usually a program that will fit your style. From anchoring in the deep water of the Sabine or Neches Rivers, all the way down to the beachfront and into the gulf, the early winter season generally has it all. The latest spark of life from Sabine’s speckled trout fishery, that hopefully signals a turn for the better, is a much needed shot in the arm for all of us who call the border lake home. I hope to see Sabine return to her former glory and more in the very near future, and being able to look back on these tough years as the days when I paid my dues.

Flocks of gulls and terns will often lead the way to fast and furious fishing as they shadow shrimp being pushed to the surface by hungry trout and redfish.

Big schools of redfish from legal to oversized will take the spotlight during the fall and early winter months.

Another example of those gorgeous fall redfish.

CONTACT

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

Phone 409-697-6111 Email wakesndrakes@yahoo.com Website wakesndrakes.com

TSFMAG.com | 21

Comfortable Fish Monkey gloves made for handling lots of fish. Mine smell fishy most of the time, for good reason.

HOLIDAY

WISH LIST

F

STORY BY JOE RICHARD

ishing guides hoping to go the distance without injury or health problems have to cover up from the sun, changing weather and flying hooks. And their fishing clients do too; many of them just don’t know it. Even after all of these years, I’m dismayed how little people know about dressing properly for a full day on the water.

As the holiday season draws near, a list of gift items seems like a good idea.

Hats. Starting at the top, I don’t leave the house without my Lefty Kreh-style cap circa 1980s, the one with earflaps. Raising a few eyebrows at my first big offshore tournament in Galveston in 1983, they called it my “pelican cap.” After three days and nights offshore in a small boat, with cruel sun and lots of flying spray, that hat felt pretty good. And I wasn’t overly sunburned, either.

Others have not been so lucky. In recent years, we have lost two friends to serious skin cancers on the top of their heads; they couldn’t stop it from spreading. Today I won’t even check the mailbox without wearing a hat.

A good hat can prevent other types of injuries. My luckiest hat story involved two fighting, red shoulder hawks that were locked up in mid-air before crashing into the water nearby (while fishing a reservoir). Still fighting in the water, the two birds became waterlogged and sank lower while I took pictures. Alarmed at their plight, I used a wooden paddle to lift the biggest hawk onto the bow, where I was able to pet it. Within seconds, it flew up and landed on my head! Not sure why, but it gave me a squeeze with its talons before flying and perching on a nearby tree.

That cap gave just enough protection from what would have been a serious injury. (Photos can be seen on my web site http://seafavorites. com/birds/raptors ).

Sunglasses. Recently I was reminded why I favor wrap-around polarized glasses, and not just protection from sun glare on water. They also aid greatly in depth perception when light conditions are low, and you’re trying to find that stick marker late in the day, against a setting sun; or in mist and rain, for that matter. Forty years of sunglasses has helped prevent a host of eye and vision ailments.

Many of us have heard awful stories of anglers getting hit in the eye by flying hooks, plugs and weights, but here’s a new twist: Last week I rigged up a few leaders for a redfish trip; we would be using cut mullet in shallow water. Unable to find the usual spool of 40-pound line, I used leftover line from an old spool that felt like 40-pound. Next day, we’re out there fighting slot redfish and a bunch of energetic bonnethead sharks from 3-4 feet long. I landed nine of these sharks without a problem; they quieted down while I jiggled each circle hook loose.

But then a stingray of 50 or more pounds grabbed a bait. Three times, I slowly hand-lined the creature close to the boat before it bolted and clamped itself to the bottom. You can see where this is going: On the fourth try, only six feet away, that leader broke at the swivel. Turns out, what I thought was 40-pound line was actually 30-pound; line and leader were identical. The metal barrel swivel flew past my eyes like a bullet, thumping off the underside of my sun visor. It could easily have put out an eye. Noticing that my client, who was retirement age, wore no glasses at all, I reminded him that we wear sunglasses for a variety of reasons, and having an eye put out by a lowly stingray is one of them.

Staring at my green Cabos, he nodded in agreement.

Sun Mask. I started wearing a bandana face wrap in August 2009 in Port O’Connor, and didn’t see another one. People at Clarks’ Marina stared and scratched their heads; today, not so much. The generic “Buff” mask has become a fashion statement. Though a little thin, they cut sun exposure pretty well. Very hot in the summer, they can at least be worn while driving the boat. In cooler weather, they’re nice to wear, even warm and comforting during a cold boat ride, protecting from wind and sun.

Add a little Neutrogena 50 sunscreen under that mask, to be sure.

Fishing gloves. Recently on a forum, one of the guides was griping

This older guy wears a good hat, neck protection and long-sleeved shirt. His buddy, not so much.

24 | December 2019

how he gets cut on almost every trip, and he was worried about waterborne infections like Vibrio. Which is the very reason I’ve been wearing fishing gloves for more than 10 years. Thinner gloves are meant for sun protection and occasional fish (like fly-fishing for rainbow trout).

And then there are the thicker varieties, with an extra layer of cloth or leather sewn on for handling a lot of fish, deflecting hooks, fish spines and occasional teeth. I’ve had flying lures stick in my gloves without penetrating much further.

Shirts. Sun-proof long sleeves made famous by Columbia more than 20 years ago are now standard fare. Keep in mind that 100 percent cotton feels so much better than polyester in hot weather. However, in cooler weather, the tight polyesters are ideal; smooth and without buttons, they’re also good for throwing a castnet. You don’t want net mesh snagging a shirt button just as a school of prime baitfish happens by.

Long pants. Give up on wearing shorts out there, guys, because skin cancer later in life is no fun. A skin doctor will carve your leg like a Christmas turkey. Bugs, sun, cold, rain, those long pants really feel good.

Last year a medium-sized hardhead catfish fell off the hook onto my lap.

It bounced from one leg to the next, each time landing on its poison fins, but somehow never penetrated my pants. Sometimes injuries still happen, though. A few days ago we returned at night after fishing late and watching the harvest moon rise over the Gulf. Back at the dock, I walked forward in the jonboat and was tripped up by something invisible, making me stumble. A little 1/0 J-hook on a leader had stuck in my calf and ripped the pants good. It also found skin, leaving a 6-inch scratch around my leg like a one-clawed bobcat. Wearing shorts, it would have been worse. Hours earlier, Miss Amy had been wading in shorts, practicing her cast-netting skills while I took a break. A sea nettle, maybe a foot long, passed by underwater in the current, wrapping around her bare leg just above the knee, knocking her out of commission and making her wish she’d had those long pants on.

Shoes. Wear decent shoes with inserted pads and good tread. I scored a cheap pair of Kroc shoes last year and started wearing them in the boat. Nice and impervious in the water if I had to step out, maybe throw the castnet or go ashore. They were good water shoes, but the bottoms wear smooth very quickly. Then I slipped and fell twice in the same week, careening off Igloo, boat seat or anchor box. Fortunately I landed light,

Chuck from Atlanta wears the clip-on magnifier lens on his cap. He fishes the Gulf with me only in early April and November, so the nylon long-sleeve shirt is comfortable. (In cooler weather I wear a variety of Guy Harvey shirts). Chuck always wears his automatic PFD vest, by the way.

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nothing broken or bruised, though a topwater plug was sticking into my glove and was easily yanked out. I switched back to tennis shoes with a good tread, and no problems since then. Going back to 1978, I’ve only been hurt twice in boats, and each time I was wearing spur-of-themoment borrowed shoes with poor traction I was unfamiliar with.

The opposite of wearing good shoes would be the once-common barefoot fisherman, many of whom received foot wounds. Several were good friends, including the late Capt. Howard Horton in Galveston. Aside from not wearing gloves and having three of his fingers left dangling from a small blacktip shark, Howard was almost

always barefootin’. One day during a billfish tournament, a 30-pound mahi flopped all over the deck and stuck a big stainless steel hook completely through the top of his foot. The crew carried bolt cutters and cut it loose, and next day Howard could barely limp up the stairs at Josie’s restaurant in Port O’Connor. No thanks: I’ve had hooks sticking into my shoes a few times, but never my feet.

Other items: I’ve written before about those self-inflating PFDs that take up little space, and inflate automatically if you fall overboard.

According to several of my clients, they’ve been real lifesavers, especially for the older guys. They’re not uncomfortably hot to wear during summer, either.

I tie a lot of knots out there while bouncing around, often in whitecaps.

Miss Amy recently watched me fuming over tying a complicated knot in the boat; a combination of eyestrain and smudged reader glasses wasn’t doing the job. So, I’m pretty sure a hat clip magnifier, commonly worn by fly fishermen, will be waiting this year in my Christmas stocking.

JOE RICHARD

This lady angler was covered up, even on a cloudy day.

26 | December 2019

CONTACT

Joe Richard has fished the Gulf since 1967, starting out of Port Arthur, but his adventures have taken him up and down the entire coast.

He was the editor of Tide magazine for eight years, and later Florida Sportsman’s book and assistant magazine editor. He began guiding out of Port O’Connor in 1994. His specialty is big kingfish, and his latest book is The Kingfish Bible, New Revelations. Available at Seafavorites.com

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J AY WAT K I N S

ASK THE PRO

ALTERNATIVE DRAIN STRATEGIES The first real cold front of the season is passing through the Coastal Bend as I write. The temperature is 53° with NNW wind gusting to 36 mph – a drop of 27 degrees since yesterday. Glad I’m not on the water. It feels like we are transitioning suddenly from a fall pattern (that never developed fully) into a winter pattern. Hopefully, the fishing patterns associated with this one will be easier to predict.

Tides have remained higher than high the past three to four weeks, causing many (me included) to struggle with the patterning process each day.

Establishing patterns for each day of fishing is critical and I sometimes have difficulty conveying to my clients just how important this process is. In my last article we talked about change or transition. I spoke about my belief that change occurs constantly throughout each fishing day. This could never be truer than what we are seeing right now, and what we are sure to experience behind this front with water temperatures and tides falling over the next 24 to 36 hours.

During frontal passages that reduce water levels and water temperatures, a pattern develops that I have always called the Drain Thang. It is the easiest of patterns to understand and utilize as fish can be literally stacked in the mouths of the drains at certain times. The productivity

potential of this pattern is no secret; over the years it has become increasingly difficult, when the timing is right, to locate a drain where somebody is not already fishing.

Drains, for any not familiar with the term, are waterways that connect back-lakes and marsh areas with larger bodies of water. Growing up we called them creeks.

In fall and winter, baitfish and small crustaceans migrate from backwaters to bays via these waterways. Naturally, gamefish congregate to take advantage and both ends of the drain can become feeding zones. Sharp bends and troughs within the drains can also be very productive and I fish these features often when my clients are capable of wading some soft stuff. Chances for success in any part of a drain are always greater when the water is moving during a solunar feeding period.

Like I said, the drain thing is probably the easiest pattern for this time of year. But what about days when the water isn’t moving or the solunar periods do not align with our ability to be there? And what about the days when you pull up and water is pouring out of the drain but nothing happens? These are times when knowledge of adjacent bottom structure and the general nature of predators can come into play. Here are some things to think about the next time you run into a day when the drains look right but simply aren’t producing.

Alex Whitaker with a solid fall trout.

Redfish have been very reliable; Robert Moll releases a big one.

42 | December 2019

Over the past week I have discovered a half-dozen areas offshore of secondary drains that have good bottom contour and scattered submerged grassbeds. These are not directly adjacent but lie within a hundred or so yards of the secondary drains I have been describing. All are rather obscure and probably overlooked by the majority. All have proven very productive.

Yesterday we landed a dozen or so trout from twenty-two to twenty-five inches over submerged grass about 75 yards out in front of a small drain on San Jose. I have definitely noticed that the trout holding over areas of hard sand bottom with scattered grassbeds and humps are better quality fish. All the fish were holding tight to the bottom over grassy humps your feet can detect when your eyes can’t see them.

The grass is short and soft in texture, so we can literally dust the soft plastic through the grass. The bite was not aggressive – more of a soft take than a strike. I told my group they might not feel the grass through their rods, so any resistance on the line was likely a fish. I’m a huge fan of the 2/0 size – 1/16-ounce Texas Custom’s jigheads in this situation, but an 1/8 or even a 1/4 can be effective if water depth, wind, and/or current prevent getting the bait down where it needs to be.

This new pattern I have established is definitely effective and transferrable to other places with similar conditions and bottom structure. I proved it yesterday – leaving an area with fish in the belief that we could find more fish by applying the pattern in a similar area. It worked.

Always remember that what is good for one group of fish will typically be good for another, so long as those fish are holding over similar bottom structure and under similar conditions. I hope you will be able to use this example to expand your drain fishing knowledge the next time the normal DRAIN THANG seems to be failing you.

It is exciting for me to continue learning after all these years, and be able to pass on what I have learned to my fishing clients. The chase is what makes fishing enjoyable to me. At this stage of my career I find myself enjoying the fish’s victories equally as much as my own. Please keep what you need and release the rest to fight another day.

May your fishing always be catching! -Guide Jay Watkins It’s getting to be time for Custom Soft-Dines.

Note that the Boga Grip has not pierced the soft tissue near the jaw and trout is supported by angler’s hand. Please practice CPR the right way!

C O N TA C T

First thing, in my home waters, Cedar Bayou can be a huge player in the drain game. Cedar Bayou creates strong circulation through the marsh of San Jose Island via Vinson Slough. It is incredible the amount of water movement we have when fronts push through or whenever wind velocity reaches 20 mph or more. Hurricane Harvey failed to scour Cedar Bayou as we had hoped and we have since seen some major changes in the drain patterns in the area. That is the bad news.

The good news is that Harvey created tons of smaller drains along the St. Joe shoreline that help provide circulation to the area’s backwaters that would otherwise become nearly stagnant. Without the tidal influence through Cedar Bayou, wind is the major player in creating these flows and circulation.

I find myself focused on learning and establishing patterns on the smaller drains these days, and leaving the major drains to the general public.

What I have learned is that the smaller drains tend to have stronger currents, due to their narrower funnel points. Behind these drains is mostly flooded marsh grass, which is a great refuge for small baitfish and crustaceans, a favorite food of just about all gamefish. I think the life of crabs and shrimp must be very stressful this time of year.

On many occasions over the past several weeks we observed strong currents pushing through these small drains but would find few bites in or close to them. Tides have been extremely high and winds strong, so waters have been slightly off-color. Normally the waters around Rockport are some of the clearest on the middle coast. Knowing that the fish were using the moving water to make for easier feeding, it would only stand to reason that they would not venture too far from this primary feeding grounds.

Over the three to four week period of extremely high tides, the drain pattern in my area became almost nonexistent as bait scattered and water flow to and from the backcountry was occurring almost everywhere. I have always been of the belief that I am good enough to make them bite even when they do not truly want to eat. I know it’s a cocky attitude, but I still have that belief. With that said, I started looking at the outsides and offshore areas surrounding the drains, searching for areas with scattered grassbeds and lots of sand. Any amount of bottom contour (ridges and humps) makes it even better.

The only way to do this was to fish longer hours and use the lure and my feet to establish what the bottom was like. In most years I would have been able to see the bottom but that has not been the case this fall due to high water and higher winds. Your feet can tell you a lot and a properly worked MirrOlure Lil John XL or 5” MirrOlure Provoker will confirm that fish are present. A single bite can be the beginning of establishing a pattern, a pattern that can be repeated in other areas that hold the same bottom conditions.

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

361-729-9596 Jay@jaywatkins.com www.jaywatkins.com TSFMAG.com | 43

Jim Dolan, perhaps the biggest man to ever squeeze into a Mini X kayak. His heart was even bigger.

C A P T. S COT T N U L L | P H OTO S B Y J O E W I N S TO N

S H A L L O W W AT E R F I S H I N G

“IT’S JUST FISHING.”

REMEMBERING JIM DOLAN There are certain moments in life that burn into your memory. You will always remember where you were and what you were doing. My first such memory was when President Reagan was shot. I was in my old ’74 Chevy Nova headed to work at the Eagle grocery store. As I turned onto the Gulf Freeway service road the radio DJ broke into the middle of a song to deliver the news. Since that time I’ve had many more. They’re never good news.

Sunday, October 6, 2019 will now join those memories. I had just arrived at the deer camp in South Texas to do a little bow hunting. As I walked up onto the porch my cell phone buzzed and the caller ID was my good friend, Captain Dean “Slowride” Thomas. Our conversations usually start with him saying something like, “Hey Dillweed, where ya at?” Not this time. I could tell immediately by his tone that it wasn’t good, “Hey man, Jim Dolan just passed away.” Weeks later it still hurts to even type that. Jim was firmly planted within my

44 | December 2019

inner circle of close friends.

A genuinely kind and Jim came into my life while Dean and I were teaching the Kayak caring man, Jim Dolan had Fishing School in Aransas Pass. He was this big jovial fella always a smile for everybody. grinning and making jokes. After the first evening of classroom instruction we met at the water the following morning to launch onto the flats and do a little fishing. We had talked about kayak stability, safety, paddling instruction, etc. Well, Jim gets a few paddle strokes out into the channel and decides to check the stability of his craft. I happened to be paddling past him at that moment and watch as he quickly flipped over. I was momentarily concerned with having a student/customer upside down in some rather chilly water, but Jim popped up with a big goofy grin assuring me he was alright. Jim’s brother-in-law just grinned and paddled on by, shaking his head.

I gathered up the floating garage sale of gear as Jim swam back to shore pushing his kayak. It had all happened so fast that Dean An early Heroes on hadn’t even shoved off yet. We got everything put back together the Water event. and I headed off to catch up with the rest of the students. I no sooner got to the far side of the channel and I hear a large splash.

Yep, Jim was upside-down yet again. I hollered back to Dean, “He’s yours this time.” I kept on paddling towards the rest of the class thinking to myself that just maybe this guy wasn’t cut out for kayaks.

By the end of the class we had tagged him with the nickname of Double Dip and it stuck. I was very much wrong about Jim. He was more than cut out for kayak fishing and we became good friends.

A retired Air Force pilot, Jim was flying for American Airlines when we met. He found that he enjoyed kayak fishing so much he wanted to share it with others. Being retired military, he and a couple other veterans got with Major Cody Roberson to see about taking some wounded vets on an outing. They began by working with the Center for the Intrepid out of Brooke Army Medical Center. This program Jim and other volunteers assist a hero getting into a kayak. deals with casualties who have sustained amputations, burns, or functional limb loss. At first it was just intended to give them a break from the rigors of rehab and daily life in a hospital.

I was fortunate enough to be involved in some of those early trips. Each of us would take on one soldier and paddle with them.

Some fished as hard as anyone you’ve ever been around while others would just relax and paddle. On one trip I was paired with a young man who was fishing pretty hard. He was really into it and asking lots of questions. After a while he had caught a few reds and paddled over to a little mangrove island. He backed his kayak into the bushes, stretched his legs out and leaned way back in his seat. I paddled over to check on him. He said he was just fine and was relaxing for the first time since he could remember. I backed in next to him and we both just sat there in silence watching the birds go about their day. having…all without a single stutter. Amazing.

Within a few months it was becoming clear that these little Jim started to get the idea that this was something he wanted adventures were actually helping with both their mental and to grow and get more organized. He incorporated and set up physical rehabilitation. It gave them something to look forward to a 501(C)3 to legitimize the organization. Jim and his wife, Sally, and a reason to move forward with their rehab. My favorite story worked tirelessly to organize and support a growing interest in the came from an event I wasn’t available for. A young soldier suffering program. Others began setting up chapters across the country for from a traumatic brain injury had developed a stutter as a result of veterans beyond BAMC. the injury. He had been in rehab for a couple of years when he came I have heard so many great stories about how this program has out to the event. He went out on the kayak and relaxed so fully that saved lives, marriages, and families. One in particular I wrote about he fell asleep. After his nap he caught a few fish and came to shore a couple years ago was sitting in his apartment preparing to end his a couple hours later. He got out of the kayak and started talking to life with a shotgun when the phone rang. It was a guy with Heroes the guys about the fish he had caught and how much fun he was on the Water asking him to go fishing. He agreed and is now an area TSFMAG.com | 45

C O N TA C T

Ollie Hughes paddling his way to recovery.

coordinator with the program and giving back to the organization that literally saved his life. Powerful stuff.

If you would like to get involved as a donor, volunteer or even organizing your own chapter within your area; you can find all of the information you need at www.heroesonthewater.org.

HOW has grown far beyond what any of us could have dreamed.

There are now more than 60 chapters in 30 states as well as the U.K. and Australia. Their service has reached beyond just the wounded veterans to include any veteran, their family members, and most recently first responders. As Jim said, a cop with 20 years of accumulated stress needs HOW as badly as a veteran after a 9 month combat tour. That was Jim, always thinking about how to help somebody else.

But you know, I think Jim knew it was going to expand beyond any of our expectations. He was so positive and enthusiastic about the program that it was contagious. Being around Jim made you want to help out. It made you want to be a better person. He was the most selfless man I’ve ever known. I am better for having Jim as a friend and I will miss him dearly. As he often said, “It’s just fishing.”

Godspeed, my friend.

46 | December 2019

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

Telephone Email Website

281-450-2206 captscottnull@gmail.com www.captainscottnull.com

TSFMAG.com | 47

By Ashley Fincannon | TPWD Coastal Fisheries Marine Development Center Hatchery Manager

FIELD NOTES

THE FUTURE OF SOUTHERN FLOUNDER HATCHERY PRODUCTION Anyone who enjoys fishing along the Texas coast knows that southern flounder (flounder) are a popular fish to catch. Whether it’s on a rod and reel or from a lucky gig at night, landing a flounder is exciting. Flounder are one of the top three most sought after sportfish in Texas, along with spotted seatrout and red drum. Despite the skill it takes to land flounder, population trends show flounder have been decreasing over the last 30 years; Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Coastal Fisheries (TPWD) has seen decreasing catch rates from the Marine Resource Monitoring Program’s data that has been collected since 1975. The change in flounder catch rates has largely been tied to winter temperatures, with increased larval survival in colder years. Different management strategies have been enacted by TPWD to sustain healthy flounder populations, such as regulation changes and a stock enhancement program that aims to release hatchery raised flounder into the wild.

The southern flounder Stocking Program was initiated

by TPWD in 2006 with ongoing efforts since 2009. The primary goal of the program is to develop techniques to produce flounder on a large-scale to supplement wild populations. By supplementing wild populations with hatchery fish, the fishery can be supported during periods of decreased larval survival from warm winters, harmful algal blooms, and/or other environmental disturbances. In Texas, we have three coastal hatcheries that are working on producing southern flounder for Photo Credit: TPWD Hatchery Staff Image 1: A microscopic view of larval southern flounder.

48 | December 2019

stock enhancement. These facilities are strategically located along the coast with the CCA Marine Development Center in Corpus Christi, Perry R. Bass Marine Fisheries Research Station near Palacios, and Sea Center Texas in Lake Jackson.

To produce juvenile flounder, the TPWD hatcheries maintain adult fish that are obtained from the wild, kept in indoor tanks and subjected to a 150-day light / temperature cycle that mimics seasons and conditions flounder would experience during a year in the wild.

Eggs that are spawned by the flounder are cared for indoors during an intensive larval grow-out phase that lasts between 40 and 50 days until metamorphosis into juvenile is complete. During metamorphosis, larval flounder undergo a body change that involves the migration of the right eye to the left side of the head, and as the eye migrates, the body of the fish begins to settle to the right side and become flat. Flounder have a very tight temperature range for survival in the critical larval stage leading up to metamorphosis. Optimal environmental conditions for larval flounder to reach metamorphosis include a narrow seawater temperature range between 64 and 68 °F. Once metamorphosis is complete, they can be stocked into outdoor rearing ponds for further grow out before they are released into Texas bays and estuaries (Images 1 and 2).

While the light and temperature cycle has been successful in producing millions of red drum and spotted

seatrout eggs, it has not consistently provided enough of the desired flounder eggs. Therefore, a hormone-induced strip spawning method is used in conjunction with the light and temperature cycle, which allows hatchery staff to obtain more fertile eggs on a consistent basis. With this process, hatchery staff select females to be injected with hormones to increase egg production. Females that are injected with hormones are held for 48 hours in separate tanks until they are ready to release eggs.

Hatchery staff catch male flounder from their tanks and obtain milt that will be used to fertilize the eggs. Eggs are expressed from the female, mixed with milt and then incubated in 100-gallon seawater tanks.

Hatchery staff monitor development from egg fertilization until they hatch out of the egg as a larval flounder.

Hatchery production of flounder is directly tied to the production of live natural feed for early grow-out stages. The first food source for flounder in hatcheries are rotifers, a microscopic animal also known as zooplankton, that consume microalgae (Image 3). Rotifers are a good food source for fish in hatcheries because of their small size, high reproductive rates, and the ability to alter their nutrition by adding supplements such as vitamins and fatty acids. Rotifers are not the only live food that is offered to the larval flounder. As fish grow, so does the size of the food offered.

Artemia, or brine shrimp, are the second food source currently offered to hatchery flounder. The transition between food sources can be difficult, and it is not always successful. Currently, hatchery biologists are looking into growing other organisms, such as copepods and mysid shrimp, to help diversify the types and sizes of food offered to hatchery flounder. Being able to offer a diverse variety of feed will not only be more nutritious for the growing fish but will help improve survival. Having new feed to bridge the food-size gap will help in the transition to larger food items in later life-stages. Currently, cultivating new live food sources is an obstacle the hatchery is facing.

Production of flounder has proven to be tough, but hatchery staff are up for the challenge. We are moving forward and working toward advances to improve the production and survival of hatchery flounder.

Maintaining optimal temperature for larval flounder metamorphosis has proven problematic with the existing hatchery infrastructure, which was originally designed for red drum. Due to space issues and equipment needs, new buildings are being constructed for both the CCA Marine Development Center and Sea Center Texas to specifically address the culture and grow-out of flounder. The new buildings

Photo Credit: TPWD Hatchery Staff Image 2: Juvenile southern flounder harvested from the rearing ponds at the MDC hatchery in Corpus Christi, TX.

Photo Credit: TPWD Hatchery Staff Image 3: A microscopic view of rotifers (Brachionus plicatilis) used for southern flounder larvae first feeding.

will give us the space and equipment we need to expand live feed production and eventually flounder production. The future is looking bright for hatchery flounder as we actively work towards ways to improve survival prior to metamorphosis so we can grow-out more flounder to support wild populations.

Check the TPWD Outdoor Annual, your local TPWD Law Enforcement office, or tpwd.texas.gov for more info.

TSFMAG.com | 49

You have to pick your days carefully but kayaking for bull reds in the surf makes for an awesome fishing adventure.

DAV E R O B E R T S

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

FINISHING THE YEAR OFF RIGHT Well, the end of the year is approaching and, as always, it has me wondering where the time went. I know where a majority of my time was spent, and unfortunately it was not on the water. Work seemed to get in the way a lot this year but that’s how life goes, I suppose. However, in hindsight of it all, I cherished the days I was able to get out there and cast a line.

Besides work, I did have some great fishing opportunities arise and luckily for me I was able to take advantage of them. I got to fly fish on one of the best rivers in Montana and was able to check off brown trout from my bucket list of species. I was also able to check off permit and pompano while fishing in Florida’s Everglades.

Both of these adventures have made me even more eager to travel in my quest for fishing adventure.

In the meantime, here at home, I was lucky to make a trip to the surf and get in on the bull red run at its peak.

This only happens once per year as the mature reds stage in the surf and nearshore gulf for spawning. The best action usually occurs in a rather narrow window, so you have to be there when it is happening or wait until the next year. Naturally, I do my best not to miss it. Being a kayak fisherman, I prefer to wait for calm surf days, which makes the timing of the trip doubly difficult. Taking a kayak into rough surf can be a recipe for losing gear, or 50 | December 2019

worse. I’ve learned to wait it out and considered myself lucky when it all came together.

I called around to several kayak fishing buddies to see if anyone was interested in making a surf trip. Brice and Tony said they were in but all the others declined. The three of us formed a plan and decided to meet at the beachfront around daylight. Along the way I stopped and bought a dozen fresh-dead mullet, a few extra sand weights, and new hooks.

As I pulled off the road I was greeted with calm seas and my buddies waiting on me. We unloaded quickly, got rigged up, and made our way out. Brice brought along two-way radios that made communication between the members of the group easy.

I paddled out about 300 yards and Brice went 75 yards beyond me. Tony elected to stay closer to shore and slow troll a mullet to see what he could find with that method. It didn’t take long for him and we could see in the distance, his rod bowed and being dragged around by a strong fish. Tony hooked up again shortly thereafter while Brice and I got into a double hookup a few minutes later. These were all very large fish, exactly what we came for! Quick photos were snapped and all the fish went back to continue their spawning activities.

We replayed that scene for most of the morning and

Z-Man’s Chatterbait is especially effective in murky water.

for our local fishery on Sabine Lake with the trout population trying to bounce back. Hurricane Harvey dealt our fishery a cruel blow and trout have been nearly nonexistent ever since. I spent two nights on a buddy’s lighted pier this summer and we caught more 10-12” trout than I have ever seen. We only managed a handful of keepers but it was a reassurance of what we all hope lies ahead.

Merry Christmas, and take advantage of every fishing opportunity that comes your way in the New Year!

C O N TA C T

decided to call it a day just before noon. We Eight bull reds before landed a total of eight bull reds and a nice noon; a fine day’s work! blacktip shark. The only casualty we had was one of Tony’s rods that got jerked into the water by a fish after the butt section broke while in the holder. I guess incidents like this are to be expected when you play with big fish. I only got one morning to chase the bulls but it was enough to get my fix until next year.

Here recently, I was also able to squeeze in another day of fishing for a few hours before heading to work. One of my favorite things to do is catching redfish after the water drops from a cold front. I kept an eye on the weather and bided my time for a mid-week opportunity to beat the weekend crowds. I finally was able to pick my day and headed to a set of flats I usually only fish this time of year. I tied on a Z-Man Chatterbait and stood up in the boat hoping to spot cruising or feeding fish. It didn’t take long and I had a nice fish coming directly at me. I pitched just in front of the fish, fluttered the Chatterbait, and the fight was on. I got her to the boat and couldn’t be any more excited since that was the first fish I have caught in several weeks. A couple quick photos and she was back on her way.

I continued across the flat and caught fish after fish on the Chatterbait. An amazing productive lure. I personally like throwing it this time of year because the water tends to be dirtier with the larger tide swings and the extra vibration helps the fish find it a little easier.

Anyways, I made my way back and saw plenty of fish along the way, and even got to take a couple for dinner. I couldn’t have asked for a better two-hour trip.

Even though I didn’t get to fish as often as I wanted, I would say this has been an incredible year of fishing overall and I am thankful for the opportunities I was able to enjoy. Here lately, things are looking up

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

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

TSFMAG.com | 51

Hard to believe; early in life southern flounder undergo metamorphosis during which the eye on the right side moves to the left. (Shane Bonnot photo)

S t o r y b y S h a n e B o n n o t | C C A Te x a s A d v o c a c y D i r e c t o r

T S F M A G C O N S E R VAT I O N N E W S

CONTINUING PLIGHT OF

SOUTHERN FLOUNDER Difficult decisions loom as southern flounder stocks continue to struggle Southern flounder, Paralichthys lethostigma (meaning parallel fish that forgot its spots), are one of the more peculiar fish native to the Eastern and Gulf coasts of the United States. As juveniles and adults they can survive in bodies of water ranging from freshwater rivers and lakes to bays and offshore. That ability to tolerate varying salinities has allowed them to be widely distributed and highly abundant throughout our coastlines, particularly during seasonal spawning migrations. Their range begins in northern Mexico and extends all the way up through the Albemarle Sound in North Carolina, with a slight absence of presence around the tip of Florida.

This wide distribution, coupled with their fighting ability and quality of flesh, make them one of the most prized catches among coastal anglers.

52 | December 2019

While they spend most of the year inshore feeding on invertebrates and smaller fish, the southern flounder migrate to offshore waters each year during the late fall and early winter to depths of over 100 feet to spawn (some flounder have been found at depths greater than 350 feet).

After the eggs are fertilized in the water column, they float to the surface and, dependent on the water temperature, will hatch after an approximate 48-hour incubation period.

A colder incubation temperature would equate to a longer incubation. After hatching, the larvae (measuring ~0.1 inches), will feed off their yolk sac for nearly a week, during which time the young fish develop their eyes located on opposite sides of the head. The fish will begin feeding on prey items after the mouth parts and digestive tract have formed, and for the most part, they look like “normal� fish larvae at this point of their life.

Over the next approximately 30-40 days (again,

dependent on water temperature), something truly remarkable fishing has improved this year, we need to look closely at where the happens. Losing their aura of ordinary larval fish, southern flounder data is trending. will undergo a metamorphic process in which the skull bones bend The flounder fishery is primarily supported by age-1/age-2 fish, and shift positions as the right eye migrates to the left side of the and current size restrictions ensure that harvested fish are at least head. During this process the fish will swim at a slight angle, and age-1. Figure 2 clearly shows that we are witnessing a rapid and pigmentation on the left side (top side) of their body begins to develop. Once the right eye is in its final resting position, Figure 1. Southern Flounder Coastwide Seasonal Bag Seine the fish settles onto the right side of its (Jan-Mar) Catch Per Unit Effort body and becomes a true flatfish for the (Courtesy of TPWD) remainder of its life (interestingly, a small percentage of southern flounder larvae undergo left eye migration, which makes one wonder if eye dominance plays a role in metamorphosis). It is just after metamorphosis when the flounder can tolerate variable water conditions, allowing them to thrive in bays and estuaries as they migrate from offshore.

Imagine the energy demand required and resultant stress for an eyeball to move across a head, shifting skull bones in the process. Everything has to be in sync to pull off that feat. Unfortunately Figure 2. Southern Flounder for flounder there are factors outside Annual Gill Net Catch Per Unit Effort by Age Class. of their control that highly influence (Courtesy of TPWD) successful metamorphosis. One of the most important abiotic factors that drives flounder development in offshore waters is temperature. In the Gulf of Mexico, young southern flounder larvae thrive at 62-65°F and can tolerate temperatures ranging from 59-73°F. After the flounder complete metamorphosis, that tolerance increases dramatically, but during the first few weeks of a flounder’s life it is absolutely critical that water temperatures remain stable in the upper 60s.

Fishery managers along the Gulf Coast, particularly in Texas at the lower end of the species distribution, have expressed concerns about the effects of warmer winters on the stock’s abundance. It takes two years for southern flounder to reach maturity, and due to their relatively short life span, only 4 to 5-year classes contribute to the spawning biomass. Historically, the stock has been able to recover from back to back warm winters but throw a third or fourth consecutive warm winter into the picture, you begin to have far-reaching implications on the fishery. The colder winter of 2018 provided the stock with a little respite after hitting all-time lows in juvenile recruitment in 2016 and 2017 (Figure 1).

Fingerling flounder captured in Recruits from the 2018 class have now entered bag seines during TPWD sampling into the legal slot fishery and anglers across the exercises provide valuable data in calculating the state of the fishery. coast are reporting that flounder stocks have recovered. While no one can deny that flounder TSFMAG.com | 53

dramatic decline in these fish. Furthermore, the warm winter of 2019 has resulted in the fourth lowest year class recorded since 1982, meaning that we have very few flounder available to enter the slot fishery next year.

To put it plainly, the flounder fishery is in trouble. We have one successful year class supporting the bulk of the fishery and absorbing most of the harvest pressure.

Moving forward, fishery managers are going to be faced with difficult decisions on how to properly manage a mixed commercial and recreational southern flounder fishery that continually struggles to maintain status quo. The Texas Parks and Wildlife (TPW) Commission has acted in the past to increase the relative abundance of southern flounder and it appears that they will need to do more in the future.

In early November, TPW Coastal Fisheries staff briefed the TPW Commission on the status of southern flounder and discussed potential future management options, including further reductions in bag limits, boat limits, extension of seasonal closures, increases in slot size and other efforts to increase flounder abundance.

Ultimately the population may shift away from the lower (and warmer) end of its geographic range if warming trends continue.

Time (and temperature) will tell, but we remain optimistic that additional management efforts will help this fish rebound. In the meantime, let’s hope for another cold winter.

Happy angler displays a mature specimen. (Photo courtesy Bryan Treadway)

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Costa Rica Fishing at Los Suenos and Jaco Beach By: Costaricapro CC BY-SA 3.0

STEPHANIE BOYD

F I S H Y FA C T S

SAILFISH Reaching just over ten feet, sailfish are one of the smaller members of the billfish family. Their most identifying characteristic is, of course, the sail-like first dorsal fin, which is taller than the width of their body and runs most of the length. A close second is their long, bill-shaped upper jaw, extending twice the length of their lower jaw.

Long is the name of the game for this fish. Long body, long dorsal fin, long jaw, long pectoral fins, long pelvic fins… The pelvic fins are almost twice as long as the pectoral fins and reach back nearly to the first anal fin. A pair of grooves run along the underside of the body for the pelvic fins to fold into, a bonus feature that increases their streamlining. The second dorsal fin and anal fin are set far back on the body, opposite each other, and are both short and concave. The tail is long and strongly forked. In general, the body is dark blue above and whiteish below, with vertical bands of light blue spots along the sides. Fins are all blackish-blue except the base of the anal fin, which is white. Sailfish have a readily visible lateral line used to sense movement and pressure changes in the environment. Their large eyes are flush to their head, and a pair of nares located in front of their eyes can detect dissolved chemicals in the water column.

Sailfish migrate according to water temperature and prey movements. Some travel over 200,000 miles in their 56 | December 2019

lifetime. While they spend more than 80 percent of their time in the warm, upper layers above the thermocline – and frequently visit nearshore waters – they can dive over 330 feet. One tagged sailfish had a maximum depth recording of 1522 feet. Special heat-producing tissue beneath the brain and adjacent to the eyes keep those organs warmer than the rest of the body and the surrounding water on deep dives. This is important because below a certain temperature, the eyes can’t follow (and the brain can’t process) flashes of light created by prey moving erratically and changing directions often.

Warm organs function more effectively than cold ones.

Its extreme maneuverability and bursts of speed have earned the sailfish the reputation of being the fastest fish in the sea. In a series of speed trials conducted at a fishing camp in Long Key, Florida, one sailfish took out 100 yards of line in three seconds, equivalent to a speed of 68 mph.

However, the fish was leaping while it was being timed, so the recorded speed, while commonly cited as the top speed for this species, doesn’t represent a true swimming speed. Measuring swimming speeds in fish can be tricky because the water they swim through is also moving, either contributing to or hindering their momentum.

Separating swim speed from water speed takes some calculating. Many biologists have concluded that 68

mph is unlikely to be an attainable speed. By measuring how quickly muscles responded to electrical stimulus and translating that into how quickly the sailfish would be able to beat its tail, one study estimated that their top speed is probably closer to 25 mph, and that they probably spend most of their time swimming much slower. Another study – coming from a more mathematical perspective – concluded that at speeds above 31 mph, a beating fish tail would begin to experience cavitation, meaning it would be moving so quickly through the water that it would create tiny bubbles, which then burst and cause damage to the tissue, besides reducing swimming performance. Kind of puts a limit on the speed any animal can swim in shallow surface waters.

Sailfish occasionally form schools of up to 30 individuals, but more often occur in loose aggregations over a wide area. Juveniles school more densely than adults. While there is little specific information on communication between individuals, sailfish can vary their body colors by activating chromatophores in the skin, and they can utilize other visual signals, such dorsal fin movements. Normally kept folded down and to the side when swimming, the sail-like dorsal fin can be raised when the fish feels threatened or excited, exaggerating their size. They also use their high fins to herd schools of fish or squid into a tight ball. Other sailfish then burst through this mass of baitfish, slashing their bills from side to side (not spearing the fish, as is often incorrectly assumed). Small tooth-like protrusions on the bill called denticles intensify this effect. The sailfish can then leisurely swallow the stunned and injured prey. Divers have filmed sailfish hunting like this in groups, often flashing brilliant colors. They tend to prefer squid, flying fish, tunas, mackerels, jacks, halfbeaks, ribbonfish, and other fish that swim near the surface, but they’re not above taking their meals near the bottom if it comes down to it. Octopus is not an uncommon item on the menu. Free-swimming adult sailfish have very few predators. Hooked sailfish, however, have been known to be chomped on by great whites and orcas. Juveniles are preyed on by sea birds and other pelagic fishes, such as dolphinfish and sharks.

Though their size at hatching is only about 0.3 cm, sailfish grow extremely quickly. At six months, a juvenile may be 4.5 feet long and weigh six pounds. Sexual maturity is reached around three years, at 4 to 5 feet long. Females tend to grow faster and reach a larger maximum size than males. In general, sailfish don’t grow more than 10 feet long or weigh over 200 pounds, and those larger ones tend to be in the Pacific population. Sailfish from the Pacific attain significantly larger sizes than those in the Atlantic, which originally led them to be classified as two separate species. But recent genetic research has discovered that they are, in fact, the same species, Istiophorus platypterus. The Atlantic sailfish’s original species name, Istiophorus albicans, is now listed as a synonym for I. platypterus. The IGFA AllTackle World Records still keep a list for each population though.

The Pacific sailfish record is 221 pounds, caught near Isla Santa Cruz (Ecuador) on 2/12/1947. The Atlantic sailfish record is 142 pounds 6 ounces, caught near Lobito (Angola) on 3/12/2014. Though sailfish can live up to fifteen or sixteen years, the specimens typically caught by sport anglers have an average lifespan of only four to five years.

In the Atlantic, sailfish have little value as a commercial fish. Besides recreational fishing catches, they are mainly caught as bycatch in the longline tuna fishery or by commercial fisheries in surface drift nets, and by purse seines and some artisanal gears targeting marlin.

The Pacific population is harvested for their dark red meat, which is

utilized for sashimi, sushi, broiling, and baking. Though the IUCN Red List classifies them as Least Concern, many assessment models show evidence of overfishing, and additional models are data deficient.

Even as widely recognized as they are, sailfish are difficult to study because of their highly migratory nature, making it hard for scientists to locate, tag, and collect data on individuals. Without more data on stock and catch statistics, informed management decisions are difficult to make. But their popularity may eventually bring them some protection. Many recreational anglers already practice catch and release, and with their cooperation, scientists may learn a lot more about the range and behavior of sailfish.

Where I learned about sailfish, and you can too!

FishBase www.fishbase.de/summary/Istiophorus-platypterus.html www.fishbase.org/summary/78 Animal Diversity Web animaldiversity.org/accounts/Istiophorus_platypterus/ Littoral Society www.littoralsociety.org/uploads/2/8/2/8/28281631/species_spotlight_atlantic_ sailfish.pdf Florida Museum www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/discover-fish/species-profiles/istiophorusplatypterus/ BBC www.bbc.com/earth/story/20161025-the-one-thing-everyone-knows-aboutswordfish-is-wrong Biology Open bio.biologists.org/content/5/10/1415 Oceana oceana.org/marine-life/ocean-fishes/sailfish Shark Team One www.sharkteamone.org/sailfish-information.html UN Food & Agriculture Organization www.fao.org/fishery/species/3301/en MarineBio marinebio.org/species/sailfishes/istiophorus-albicans/ BioKids www.biokids.umich.edu/critters/Istiophorus_platypterus/ Extreme Science www.extremescience.com/sailfish.htm IGFA igfa.org/igfa-world-records-search/?search_ type=CommonNameSummary&search_term_1=Sailfish%2C+Pacific igfa.org/igfa-world-records-search/?search_ type=CommonNameSummary&search_term_1=Sailfish%2C+Atlantic IUCN Red List www.iucnredlist.org/species/170338/6754507 TSFMAG.com | 57

Alexis battling a huge hammerhead that unfortunately got loose before she could bring it to the sand.

ERIC OZOLINS

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

SALTY REFLECTIONS OF 2019 We are closing in on the end of another memorable year of fishing. Over the past twelve months the Coastal Bend region has endured weather and water conditions that were both phenomenally good and extremely brutal, the same cycle we deal with every year.

On the drastic end of the spectrum, harsh weather conditions relocate normal concentrations of gamefish, one of Mother Nature’s ways of protecting and replenishing the fisheries.

We are lucky to live in a place where we have so many different species to target throughout the year. Notable has been a resurgence of jack crevalle and speckled trout in the surf zone, both species showing in better numbers and sticking around longer than we’ve seen in quite a few years. We were also blessed with an exceptional season of big shark activity. This article will review the highs 58 | December 2019

and lows of surf fishing along the Padre Island National Seashore in 2019.

While we did not have the coldest of winters, cooler than normal temperatures lingered into early spring producing a somewhat delayed and sluggish kickoff in the surf. Redfish and black drum roamed the shallows in fair numbers but the Young Reid Nicolau general absence of bait added this impressive concentrations made hammerhead to them difficult to target at his list of angling times. The surf zone then accomplishments. fell nearly dormant in the aftermath of a strong cold front in early March that delivered some of the coldest temperatures of the winter season.

In the bays, redfish and trout activity spiked right on cue as it typically does following a harsh cold spell. With surf action registering near nil, I spent some time sightcasting reds along ICW drop-offs in the Upper Laguna Madre.

Winter is one of the few times I actively pursue bay

and backwater fishing, simply because there’s little or nothing to pique my interest in the surf.

The surf didn’t lie quiet for long, though. While slightly delayed, fishing opportunity struck with a vengeance later in March. This year was perhaps the best April we have experienced in the surf in a decade or more. Jack crevalle stormed the beach in impressive numbers, better than we have witnessed during spring in quite some time. On a morning scout prior to a charter, with clients scheduled to meet me on the beach after midday, I managed fourteen mature jacks on lures within a three-hour stretch. Other anglers on the beach that morning enjoyed similar success.

Appropriately enough, the charter that followed focused on the abundance of jackfish.

In terms of shark bait, jackfish are the equivalent of manna from heaven. The flesh is oily, bloody, and tough.

Their large size is another godsend. Hardcore sharkers rarely pass the chance to fill the freezer with quality baits when the jacks are running. The kicker to the whole deal is the angling sport while collecting them. Pound for pound, jacks are some of the most powerful fish you will ever encounter in the surf zone on rod and reel.

Bull sharks began to show almost as soon as the jacks arrived. Another highlight during spring was having one of my regular clients, who happens to be a seventyyear-old sportsman, accomplish a double hookup and landing of a pair of seven-foot sharks. To date, I have witnessed only three instances of double shark landings – on a single rod and bait.

Around this same time we also got the first Texas lemon shark of the year. A recapture, actually. One of my clients had previously landed and tagged the nine-footthree-inch specimen. Even crazier, I had originally tagged and released the same fish myself a year earlier, only a few miles away. What better proof that sharks utilize similar patterns year after year during the availability of a relevant food source?

Right on schedule in May, speckled trout began to trickle into the surf. Come June, we were enjoying the best trout action we have experienced in years. The trout remained in the surf all summer, with several absolute beasts sighted in the shallows. I typically do not target trout very heavily, but when they’re smashing topwaters mornings and evenings it’s hard to pass up. Other species, not exactly regulars in the surf, made significant showings. These included king mackerel and little tunny (bonito). A friend and fellow angler landed a solid cobia (ling) while tossing a spoon into a frenzy of bait.

All this action would soon translate to big sharks. Alexis managed to bring what could be the largest bull shark, in terms of mass, I’ve ever witnessed on the beach. The tape formula pointed close to 500 pounds for the 8-foot 10-inch specimen. Heavier even than my personal best 9-foot 2-inch beast I landed a few days later.

Shark fishing remained on fire through June and July. In the wee hours of a notable overnight charter we had a double hookup with a large great hammerhead and tiger shark. Both anglers landed their respective fish and we accomplished successful releases. A very memorable experience for a fishing guide that does what I do.

Success continued with a variety of shark species through mid-

Zac Stewart and Matt Chaz doubled up on this pair of surf jacks.

Seventy-year-old Ron Ulseth fought this pair of seven-foot bulls that hit the same bait rig.

July, which happens to be the beginning of our gulf shrimping season. During shrimp season the majority of our small to medium shark species leave the surf to gorge on the smorgasbord of net cull discarded by the shrimp boats. The hottest part of summer also contributes to a general slowing of shark action in the surf. Luckily, we still had phenomenal trout action to help take up some of the slack.

August has a reputation for attracting large sharks to the surf and it did not disappoint this year as tigers and hammers began to appear. Unlike the smaller species that shadow the shrimp boats for handouts, the tigers and hammers come to the surf zone to feed on the abundant southern and roughtail stingrays. On a trip with Alexis and my daughter, Alexis tangled with what could well be the biggest hammer I’ve ever seen hooked in the surf.

The big hammer picked up a whole ray and proceeded to nearly dump an 80W reel filled with braid. Alexis finally got it turned with about 50 yards left on the spool. Yielding to the pressure, the shark swam to within 400 yards of the beach and then turned and abruptly headed back offshore. Alexis would ultimately and painfully end up losing this fish. But that was just the beginning.

Come nightfall, Alexis hooked into a tiger and fought it nearly an hour before it too managed to get loose. A few hours later she won her revenge though, landing a ten-and-a-half-foot tiger. The largest TSFMAG.com | 59

dominated again by hordes of jacks and redfish. Sharks, too, joined the frenzied feeding, as they traditionally do during November.

Oversized reds, bulky jacks, and feisty sharks are usually the name of the game until just after Thanksgiving.

And while I cannot yet report on our December activity, I can say I expect good things until the water gets too cool, later in the month. With patterns running about a month behind, we will likely see jackfish action into December along with an epic pompano season.

Overall, 2019 had been a great year in which anglers were able to participate in a great variety of fishing opportunity. Bring on 2020!

C O N TA C T

shark thus far in her career.

In a four week period at the end of The author prepares to release a beastly 9-foot summer, my clients and I put five tigers 2-inch bull shark. on the beach. Around 10pm on August 31st, another regular client, young Reid Nicolau, battled a 12-foot 6-inch great hammer to the sand. This is the largest shark on any of my charters, exceeding the previous record of a near 12-foot tiger, landed by none other than Reid himself, four years earlier.

Big sharks continued to roam the surf zone in September as our summer weather pattern continued well into the fall. Even in mid-October, the surf temperature remained in the 80s, much warmer than average. During the annual Sharkathon tournament (one of the largest surf fishing tournaments in the world), I had a tiger shark take a generous bite out of a whole ray I had deployed. Unfortunately it did not get the hook. Ironically, there has never been a tiger shark landed in this tournament, as it is often held in October when the blacktip and bull sharks have returned to the surf to feed on mullet and other finfish, greatly outnumbering the other species present.

Air and water temps continued warmer than normal until near Halloween when a strong cold front arrived. As expected, mullet trains began to form along the beaches and the surf became

For the past decade Eric ‘Oz’ Ozolins has been promoting shark catch and release and assisting various shark research programs. Eric offers guided shark fishing on Padre Island National Seashore. Also renowned for extreme kayak big game fishing, Eric is the owner of Catch Sharks Tackle Company.

Email Websites

oz@oceanepics.com oceanepics.com | catchsharks.com

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EVERETT JOHNSON

P L A S T I C & W AT E R D O N ' T M I X

MONTAUK TACKLE’S PERFORMANCE APPAREL INCORPORATES RECYCLED YARNS In past installments we have featured a variety of ways anglers can accomplish better plastic management and help prevent plastic waste from collecting in Texas waterways and bays. There have been many, not the least of which is to simply stop taking disposable plastics on the boat when we go fishing. We have also encouraged participation in beach and shoreline cleanup activities and, of course, proper recycling and disposal of the many forms of plastic we cannot avoid using. My hat is off to readers who have taken these messages to heart and changed their habits for the

62 | December 2019

betterment of our precious marine resources.

Lately I have become aware that some manufacturers of performance fishing and outdoor wear are also making significant contributions in recycling. A problem that has cropped up in recent years is that the end result of some recycling effort does not always play out as we had hoped – meaning that it actually costs more to process certain recyclables than utilize newly-minted plastic – and the plastics we thought we were recycling actually end up in landfills. The sportswear industry, however, has come up with a genuinely clever and cost effective option that

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redirects plastic waste in the manner we intend.

Montauk Tackle Co. is one of them and deserves accolades for their recycling efforts. Montauk Tackle offers an extensive line of fishing-themed sportswear that is not only stylish and breathable, their 50+UPF infused fabrics block harmful sun rays from reaching the skin.

According to the Montauk website: “Our fabrics are made from recycled plastic bottles. We estimate four plastic bottles have been repurposed into each one of our shirts. Our fabric partner was selected because they actually collect their own plastic bottles and feed them into a vertically integrated process to create Montauk’s engineered recycled smart fabrics.

TSFMag’s relationship with Montauk goes back quite a few years and I can attest personally to the quality and durability of their fishing shirts. Beyond comfortable and cool on the water, and I’ve fished in them many days, I have worn them for casual dress at least as often.

As you shop and compare, please consider this promotional statement, also from Montauk’s website. It kind of makes me want to jump up and wave Old Glory!

“Montauk Tackle Company was built to design and produce the finest American-made sun-protective apparel available. But it’s about more than that. It’s also about celebrating this incredible land of ours and its amazing people, our incredible coastlines that embrace our waters; the mountains and forests, and industries that thrive in them; the vibrant cities; the rural villages; the vacation getaways and the hardworking industry towns. It’s about the great American outdoors, and the great Americans who work and play in them.”

Check out all their fine products and shop online at: MontaukTackle.com

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Relax, we’ll take care of the details!

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First Blush SLX-DC 150HG STORY BY EVERETT JOHNSON | PHOTOS BY PAM JOHNSON We got our first peek of the SLX DC at ICAST 2019 back in July. ICAST is an acronym for International Conference of Allied Sportfishing Trades, hosted and produced by the American Sportfishing Association, the largest trade show of its kind in the world. Shimano timed the introduction of the SLX DC to coincide with the event, same as they’d done in 2018 with the Curado DC. New Product Showcase is one of ICAST’s greatest attractions; manufacturers enter their latest and greatest in head-to-head competition for Best of Category Awards (rods, reels, lures, clothing, etc.). Members of the sportfishing media and retailers cast ballots to determine winners. Shimano earned the coveted Best New Baitcast Reel award in 2018 with the Curado DC and returned to the winner’s podium in 2019 with the SLX DC. On the surface, the SLX DC looks much the same as its Shimano siblings – clean lines, low profile, easy-to-palm HAGANE body, rigid aluminum frame, large cranking handle, etc. But don’t pop the sideplate and expect to see the traditional four or six peg casting brake system…it ain’t there!

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What you will find instead is Shimano’s I-DC4 Digital Control Braking technology. A microcomputer module that monitors spool speed 1000 times per second and applies braking force as needed to prevent overruns during the cast. While old dogs are supposedly not fond of new tricks; get over it. This is better. Much better!

Digital Control Braking technology from Shimano is not new. They first introduced it in the Calcutta TEDC back in the late ‘90s. It was reintroduced with the Calais DC in 2006, and again with the Curado DC in 2018. While highly effective in all iterations, the DC feature was originally available only in higher price point models. MSRP for the Calcutta TEDC was $500; the top-of-the-line Calais DC went for a whopping $650. Making the technology available in a more affordable package, last year’s Curado DC sells for $249.99. This year’s SLX DC is even more affordable at $189.99 – a price tag certain to appeal to anglers on smaller budgets.

So what’s all this DC stuff about anyway. Well, to put it simply, it’s as revolutionary to baitcast reels as the automatic transmission to the automobile. Learning to clutch and change gears was thankfully

bypassed by technology. Likewise; anglers no longer need an “educated” thumb to control backlashes. More on that in a bit.

Digging into the nuts and bolts; the SLX DC is a 150-size reel that weighs 7.6 ounces, with ample line capacity of 12-lb mono/150 yards and braid capacity of 20-lb/150 and 30-lb/135. Gearing is all brass for smoothness and longevity. Gear ratio on the reel tested was 7.2:1 – highly applicable to the normal range of inshore applications. Other ratios available range from 6.2:1 to 8.5:1. Bearings are A-RB anti-rust.

Drag capacity is advertised at 12-pounds max. Available in both right and left hand models; a large tournament-style crank handle with comfortable paddle grips rounds out the package.

My test setup included spooling the reel with 30lb Power Pro – Super Slick 8 V2. I chose a 6’-6” Waterloo HP-Lite rod; the lure was a KWiggler Ball Tail Shad on the 1/8 ounce Bass Assassin jighead. I am very accustomed to the action of the rod and the lure combination which, I hoped, might help smooth the learning curve.

Learning to cast the SLX DC without backlashing is simple and requires only a few minutes of practice. The sideplate opposite the handle houses a dial with settings numbered 1 through 4. Adjusting the dial to 4 applies the greatest braking force – perfect for beginners and situations requiring greatest overrun control. The smaller the number selected, the greater the casting distance…but beware!

Casting in perfect conditions with the dial on 1 (light wind at your back) will provide the greatest casting distance. Turning to face the wind, you might want to adjust upward to 3 or even 4. Your cast will not carry as far but you won’t have to control the speed of the spool with your “educated” thumb.

Another likely scenario would be skipping a lure under mangrove limbs or docks. Adjusting the dial to 4 would provide greatest control; more experienced anglers might feel safe with a lighter setting.

During testing, it occurred to me that the greatest advantage of the SLX DC for experienced anglers might be found in sight-fishing.

While I’ve caught hundreds of fish while sight-fishing with traditional baitcast reels, for really serious work, I always felt better equipped with a spinning rig when one was available. Nobody wants a backlash when a fish chomps down on their lure. Like when a fish appears instantly only a few yards away, or suddenly alongside the boat. The spinner has always been a better choice – for me anyway. I can’t wait to try the SLX!

This reel could also prove highly useful when casting a plastic bait or live shrimp under a float. The cork rig can be ungainly even in expert hands. Younger and less experienced anglers need all the help they can get. Adjust their SLX DC to 4, turn them loose, and enjoy your own fishing. Once they get the hang of it you can reduce the control setting for longer casts.

Getting to know the reel, being a long-time spool thumber, my first instinct was to allow my thumb to ride the spool just ever-so lightly.

Don’t do this! All it will accomplish is confusing the microcomputer and might produce a backlash if you let up suddenly. Instead, keep your thumb completely off the spool during the cast and then clamp down on it the instant it lands. New trick for an old dog, for sure.

After the no-thumbing discovery mentioned above, I began with 15 mph wind at my back, cast control adjusted to the 4 setting. No backlash – the lure sailed about 25 yards. I proceeded to reduce the control setting in steps, all the way down to 1. Casting distance increased about 10 yards with each reduction of cast control. Failing to clamp down on the spool when the lure touches down will almost always produce a few loose coils of line on the spool, but by no means a backlash. Clamp down on it and you’ll be ready to begin your lure presentation the instant it lands.

I continued testing by changing my casting angle from varying degrees of crosswind to finally throwing straight into it. The results were all impressive, but I will say a cast into the wind with 1 showing on the dial might not be your best idea. This produced a moderate backlash, but hey, I wanted to discover the limit of the system, and I did. Adjusting to level 2 yielded a much better result and my casting distance seemed about equal or slightly better than anything I would have achieved by thumbing a standard reel.

I will conclude this report by saying the reel genuinely lived up to its advertising claims as regards trouble-free casting performance. No statement of how the reel will perform after months of service is being offered, however, the Curado DC has been fishing more than a year now and feedback on the cast control system has been very favorable.

I would expect the same from the SLX DC. If by chance you have been shy of baitcast reels for fear of backlashes, fear no more. For younger or less-experienced members of your fishing crew, put an SLX DC in their hands. If they can cast a spinner or closed-face reel it shouldn’t take long to master this one.

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Hellbender Breathable Wader Hellbender Java Jacket Aransas Wading Boot STORY BY EVERETT JOHNSON Good outdoor gear doesn’t have to cost a fortune!

Frogg Toggs has been quite a success story. Founded in 1996, to the best of my knowledge, their first product was a super-lightweight waterproof jacket that many outdoorsmen fell in love with from the get-go. The original jacket and matching pant could be folded compactly to fit in a large zip-lock bag. I do not recall the price, it’s been a long time, but it was friendly enough that I kept several on my boat for loan to fishing clients and another in my truck. Those original Frogg Toggs suits saved my bacon many times and Pam still keeps one on her boat for emergencies. I recall a nasty, rainy IFA Redfish event at Aransas Pass back in 2005 when nearly all the contestants wore those original Frogg Toggs jacket and pants to the weigh-in.

Fast forward – Success over the years spawned a variety of increasingly better rainwear products for a full range of outdoor activities, and Frogg Toggs eventually entered the wader and footwear market. Today’s lineup is very impressive; highlighted with fashionable and functional designs for both men and women, all at attractive price points.

Anxious to learn more about their wader and footwear lines, I jumped into the Hellbender Wader and Aransas Wading Boot for the opening of the current waterfowl season.

Waterfowl hunting is tough on gear, even under the best of conditions. Unless you have a surface-drive or airboat to get you where you want to go, hunting coastal marshes can include long walks through 68 | December 2019

heavy vegetation to reach backwater ponds, knee deep mud with bits of abrasive shell, and snagging clothing on hastily erected blinds.

There can also be some kneeling and lying in mud and marsh grass.

Not for the faint of heart, it’s a torture test of both men and gear. I figured if my Hellbenders could make it through a rigorous season of this activity they’d surely survive a full season and probably more of cooler weather wade fishing.

Right out of the box, I was pleased when my Hellbender Wader fit perfectly. It hasn’t always been so easy with other brands. At 5’-11” and 190 pounds, I selected the Large size. The waist, chest, and inseam are perfect for a guy my size, with adequate room for layering on colder outings. The neoprene bootie was a good fit with light socks for warm weather and still room for thicker wool socks when necessary. I also liked that the overall height of the bib and back of the wader reach high enough to protect for inadvertent stumbles into deeper water. I rarely encounter this while hunting but it happens often when I’m fishing.

The Aransas Wading Boot is comfortable with nice support in the footbed and arch. My normal size is 10, which is a great fit with a thin wading sock for wet wading. I went with size 11 to wear with waders to avoid a too-tight fit when adding insulated socks.

I like that the zippered closure is snug enough to prevent boot-sucking muck stealing my boots. The cleated soles provide lots of traction for clambering up muddy banks.

The Hellbender Jacket – So far so good in the rainshedding department. I have worn it (size large) through

• Adjustable X-back suspenders with quick-release locking buckles • Zippered flip-out security chest pocket • Horizontal zippered storage pocket • Integrated zippered hand warmer/ storage pockets • Oversized multifunction chest pocket • Adjustable wading belt with locking buckle • 4-ply nylon upper • Double-reinforced knees • Attached gravel guards with integral lace hooks • 4 mm double-taped neoprene booties one miserably chilly morning of north wind that pelted us with steady drizzle and several brief downpours. Like the wader, there is plenty room for additional layering for a guy my size. The generously-sized chest pockets have plenty room for lots of stuff hunters and fishermen need to carry and keep dry. I would have preferred this jacket in camo for hunting but the stone color it came in works just fine when the blind is covered with faded palm fronds or layout hunting in dead grass. Just keep still ‘til time to shoot – the ducks won’t mind.

Summing this all up, in addition to being very functional, the items described here come at a very friendly price point. Yes, I own and use some very popular and expensive gear of other brands, but this look into Frogg Togg’s offerings is aimed at the more budget-conscious consumers. Guys looking for quality that simply cannot afford pricier stuff, and those that need to consider outfitting youngsters and other family members in addition to their own needs. Aside from budgets, gear at these price points also make good

sense for outdoorsmen who do not hunt or fish several days a week throughout the colder and rainier seasons, and therefore find difficulty justifying heftier purchases.

The Hellbender Wader offers many features and is easily affordable at $139.99. The Hellbender Java Jacket sells for $89.99. The Aransas Wading Boot is competitively priced at $59.99. All carry a One-Year Full Replacement Warranty for normal wear and tear.

These goods and more from Frogg Toggs can be found at the following fine retailers near you: Academy Sports + Outdoors; David’s Tackle Box; Fishing Tackle Unlimited; Johnny’s Sport Shop; Port O’Connor Rod and Gun; Rockport Tackle Town; Roy’s Bait and Tackle; Serious Tackle; Tackle Box of Victoria.

Pam still keeps one of the Frogg Toggs rainsuits on her boat!

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NEW Eichhorn, Gonzales & Miller Fine Jewelers Eichorn, Gonzales & Miller have come up with an idea that will make you a hero again and again. We’ve designed sterling silver Huggy Hoop earrings that have convertible dangles. The dangles are available in Speckled Trout, Redfish, Flounder, Sand Dollar and Starfish and can be crafted from sterling silver and 14 karat gold. Prices start at $182.00. We have also created matching sterling silver and 14 karat gold “Big Three” matching wedding bands so you can share your passion. Prices start at $195.00 per band.

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Eagle Claw – TK9 Inshore Kahle Hook Eagle Claw® Trokar®, the U.S. manufacturer of premium quality fishhooks brings the competitive advantage with the TK9 Inshore Kahle hook. Originally developed by Eagle Claw over 20 years ago, the Kahle hook is the predominant choice for inshore live bait fishing. The TK9 upgrades the original design with Trokar’s patented Surgically Sharpened Technology™ for faster, deeper penetration requiring half the pressure of the competition for hookset. Ideal when using shrimp and other live baits to target seatrout and redfish.

Eagle Claw, Trokar TK9 Inshore Kahle Hook Specs: Part #: TK9 | Name: Inshore Kahle Hook | Size: 1/0 - 5/0 | Wire: Light Wire | Offset: Offset | Eye Configuration: Straight Eye | QTY/Pack: 11-14 www.EagleClaw.com/tk9-inshore-kahle-hook

Dexter Outdoors Dexter’s SOFGRIP® Flexible Fillet Knife and Tiger-Edge Bait Cutter are built with DEXSTEEL™ Stain Free Blades and both of these fine fishing knives feature our SOFGRIP® Handle – Soft to the grip while providing great control with slip resistance! The Flexible Fillet Knife makes filleting and skinning easy. Ultra-sharp right out of the package and with just the right amount of flex to glide over bones. Our legendary Tiger Edge Bait Cutter goes through fresh and frozen bait with ease. It’s a great allaround knife for bait, cutting cartilage, and other fish processing chores.

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P R O D U C T S

H&H Lure Company Super Heavy-Duty Flounder Gig Perfect for your next fishing trip, this heavyduty flounder gig is sure to hold up with a one-inch diameter aluminum tubing handle with textured black anodized finish. Whether it’s fishing out of a boat or wading along the flats, having this on the boat means you’re always ready for flounder fishing. The sturdy body has interchangeable heads with three, four, or five prong options. All heads have barbed tips to secure your catch. For increased comfort and utility, the pole has EVA foam grips.

MSRP: $69.99 www.HHLure.com

Gamakatsu Tackle Management G-Box 3500D Deep Utility Case Our designers continue to expand the offering of G-Boxes because anglers keep expanding their requests for more of these intuitive storage solutions. The new G-Box 3500 is nearly 2.4” deep, so big-lipped and fat-bodied baits fit with ease. It’s 7.4” wide to accommodate stick baits, long spinners and spinner blades. The clear top lets you see what’s inside and the one-handed, easy-opening design makes access exceptionally convenient. Of course, the dividers are fully adjustable, too. | www.Gamakatsu.com

Starbrite Star Tron: Maximize Performance by Tuning Your Fuel Regardless of engine manufacturer, horsepower, or age; fuel quality is the most important factor in making sure boat engines start easily, develop full power, and run smoothly.

Star Tron Enzyme Fuel Treatment is the ideal way to improve the performance of all boats and everything else that runs on gasoline. The proprietary blend of enzymes allow Star Tron to do a lot more than just stabilize fuel. Star Tron also helps allow a more complete burn of the fuel charge to keep engines and fuel systems clean while helping to improve performance and fuel economy. MSRP $15.49 - www.StarTron.com (800) 327-8583

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DICKIE COLBURN

DICKIE COLBURN’S Sabine Scene

Albert Bates killed the engine, slowly walked to the front deck of his center console and lowered the troll motor, without bothering to even pick up a rod. The light north wind was just strong enough to slowly dissipate the S ab i n e early morning fog.

“Did you ever think that we would see this again on Sabine,” he asked while pointing at the dimples in the Dickie Colburn is a full surface created by hordes of twelve to time guide out of Orange, fourteen-inch trout hustling a shrimp Texas. Dickie has 37 years breakfast. “I think it will be a long time experience guiding on Sabine and Calcasieu Lakes. before we ever see the numbers of big trout we took for granted, but this Telephone lake could be packed with solid keeper 409-883-0723 trout in a year if everyone would Website release their trout right now!” www.sabineconnection.com Back to back fronts temporarily emptied the marshes pushing small shrimp and baitfish into a clear and salty lake during the last week of October. Overnight, small flocks of terns and gulls hovered over massive schools of undersized trout throughout every outgoing tide.

I have no idea how many keeper size trout we catch as we never give them a second look before carefully releasing them, but it would be fewer than five percent on the best of days. Catching fifty to a hundred trout in a morning’s time, however, is a given.

It appears at this point, provided we can dodge anymore catastrophic rain events, that our trout population will continue to grow. When the average trout is once again in the fifteen to eighteen-inch class, the five fish limit will play an even greater role in maintaining a robust fishery.

Unfortunately, the improvement continues to be at least minimally slowed by Texas anglers that trailer to the Louisiana side in order to keep both more and smaller trout. This practice could possibly change in the near future, however, as reports from the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries show a serious decline in their trout populations statewide.

Now, for the best news!

For the first time in the past two years, fishing is fun again on Sabine. If you are serious about helping out the trout, your fish fry will consist of redfish, flounder or sand trout, but they are there to be caught.

If catching fish is more important to you than eating them, load up the kids, arm them with light tackle and park in the middle of schooling trout all the way from the Causeway to the revetment wall.

Four-inch Sea Shads or Lil’ Johns fished on a quarter-ounce head or under a cork will guarantee more bites than you thought possible.

The bonus has been that we are now finding more and more upper slot redfish hunting both for and with the smaller trout. Switching to a longer tail like the five-inch Assassin or a Down South somewhat minimizes the small trout bite and appeals to the reds.

Tying on a larger topwater is my first choice for duping reds mixed with schooling trout as every strike is a happening. Switching the 72 | December 2019

stock treble hooks for single hooks helps when releasing a small trout with an attitude and it will not affect your catch rate with the redfish.

Our best two colors have easily been speckled trout and clown.

The always reliable Hoginar and a Rat-L-Trap are good choices as well. Both are easy to cast long distances and can be fished from top to bottom depending on speed of retrieve. Once again, I replace the two small trebles on the Hoginar with a single 2/0 hook on the rear end.

Predicting the much anticipated flounder run has been a crap shoot for the past couple of years so I won’t go there while hoping for the best. Once again, a large number of Texas anglers make their way to Louisiana launces in order to keep more and smaller flounder, but the folks that have stayed in Texas thus far have caught some really nice fish. Because of the two fish limit they change their tactics a little and the result has been fewer, but larger fish.

The ship channel and the drains on the Louisiana side of the lake are dependable starting places. Gulp tails rigged on jigheads and three inch Usual Suspect Swimbaits work the best for me. I don’t think you can beat a live mud minnow or finger mullet, but catch and release is difficult once a big flounder inhales one of these offerings.

The trout are waiting on you and the kids!

Redfish bite only getting better following recent cold fronts!

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BINK GRIMES

THE VIEW FROM Matagorda

North winds, gray clouds, and low tides dominate December at Matagorda.

But December fishing can be just as productive as its autumn predecessors.

It all hinges on the weather.

I can remember a few Decembers M ata go r d a where birds still worked along the east end of East Matagorda Bay. By mid to late December, most of the white shrimp crop have left the bays Bink Grimes is a full-time fishing and speckled trout adapt their diet to and hunting guide, freelance finfish. That’s when slow-sinking mullet writer and photographer, and imitating plugs like MirrOlure’s Softowner of Sunrise Lodge on Matagorda Bay. Dines and Corkys go to work.

Locales receiving the most tidal flow often hold the majority of schools Telephone 979-241-1705 – that means reefs and mud flats Email adjacent to the Intracoastal in East Bay binkgrimes@sbcglobal.net really come into play. Brown Cedar Website Flats, Chinquapin Reefs, Bird Island, matagordasunriselodge.com Half-Moon Reef and the Log are all proven winter spots holding healthy specks.

Drift fishing is also an option, especially with the low tides that occur on winter solstice that comes later in December. East Bay often drops 2-3 feet below normal in December, depending how hard the north wind blows.

Raymond Shoals, Boiler Bayou, Pipeline Reef and Cleveland Reef hold good fish during the winter; and, when tides are extremely low, shoreline redfish move off the flats to these reefs in the middle of the bay.

74 | December 2019

When the wind really blows, never discount the Colorado River.

Low tides in West Bay drain the delta at the mouth of the Diversion Channel and funnel all fish to the deep channel. We use our trolling motors and work along the banks in bass fishing mode. A couple of December’s ago we caught easy limits in about 15 casts with snow on the ground. Best baits are Down South Lures, Bass Assassins. Lately I have become quite fond of the MirrOlure Lil’ John.

I like to use 1/4-ounce jig heads, but Capt. Tommy Alexander prefers 3/8-ounce jigs to gingerly tickle the muddy bottom.

Nighttime is even better under lighted piers as fish seek the warm solace of the Colorado River. Tandem-rigged beetles and small DOA Shrimp are great baits. So are the smaller MirrOlures and MirrOdines.

We will be running cast and blast trips for ducks and geese in the morning and drifting for trout and redfish in the afternoons. Our duck hunting has been fabulous in our freshwater marshes.

Now for Christmas gifts: We have some of the best oysters in Texas.

A gallon of Buddy Treybig’s Matagorda Bay oysters would be a great appetizer for all those Christmas parties you will be attending this month.

How about a gift certificate for a guided fishing charter or hunt?

Maybe a Waterloo Rod or Browning shotgun from Johnny’s Sport Shop in Eagle Lake?

It might sound corny, but the best gift is taking the time to toss the smart phone aside and just listen and communicate with people. Look people in the eye, shake their hand and give them a hello.

Be kind to others on the water and on the roadways. It is a blessing to be able to live our outdoor lifestyle. Thank the Good Lord for it.

Merry Christmas.

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CAPT. GARY GRAY

MID-COAST BAYS With the Grays

Port O'Connor Seadrift

Captain Gary Gray is a full time guide, born and raised in Seadrift. He has been guiding the Seadrift/Port O’Connor region since 1986. Gary specializes in year ‘round wade fishing for speckled trout and redfish with artificial lures.

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

76 | December 2019

I hear it all the time “Man, you have the best job; you get to fish every day.” That is mostly a true statement. While the fishing part is great my boss is a whole other story. No, I’m not talking about Shellie although she can be tough at times. I’m talking about Mother Nature.

There are mornings during spring when I wake to screaming southeast wind and wish I could just roll over and postpone my charter for another day. Well, that doesn’t work too well when you have an excited angler that has been waiting all year to fish with you.

It is a fishing guide’s job to make sure clients have a good time and are successful on the water.

Same goes for howling northers this time of year.

I was told a long time ago that you must take the bad with the good and I have to remind myself every morning when the weather isn’t exactly peachy.

I prefer fishing low tides over high tides, so this is actually a plus when we have a norther blowing through the area. Strong north winds push the water from our bays out into the gulf. Back-lakes are similarly affected as soon as the bulge of water that is first blown into the marsh and back-lakes on Matagorda Island begins to drain into the bays that

Carly Moran scored a nice flounder during her first-ever drain experience.

THE

SOURCE ULTIMATE FOR THE

CUSTOM ROD

are already draining to the gulf. For this article I would like to share some of the strategies I employ when fishing low tides during winter.

Let’s say before a cold front arrived you were catching trout in a small back lake where the water is typically two feet deep on a normal tide. Along comes Mr. Winter with his thirty-mile-per-hour blast and…Boom! Your back-lake has only about a foot of water left in it, the rest drained down into the bay. The water remaining in that lake has become much too cold with the big drop in air temperature that accompanied the front. Bait and gamefish have flown the coop.

So, where might they have gone? The main bay water temperature is probably also too chilly for the bait to be comfortable so, along with the trout and reds you were seeking, they are most likely taking up temporary shelter in the sloughs or channels that connect backwater areas with adjacent bays. We typically refer to these sloughs and small channels as drains.

Drains will be substantially deeper than the backwaters you had been fishing. Most are deep enough to provide a thermocline.

The best way for me to describe a thermocline goes like this. When you are wading shirt-pocket deep on a bay shoreline in August you can feel cooler water near bottom. That’s a thermocline – the reverse would describe the scenario I am describing in the drain - the warmer water will be at the bottom. During severe cold snaps thermoclines can spell the difference between life and death to bait and gamefish alike.

The drains are but one example of areas that will have a thermocline. Dredged harbors, the Victoria Barge Canal, rivers, and neighborhoods with canals, can also qualify if they are deep enough.

Now that you have pinpointed some areas where your quarry might be weathering a winter storm, you will need to know how to catch them. Some of these likely places (drains) are not as deep as others (Victoria Barge Canal). Different fishing techniques will be required for the depths you are fishing.

When fishing a drain I will bump up the weight of my Bass Assassin jighead from the normal 1/16 ounce to an 1/8 or even a 1/4 ounce, depending on the depth of the water. I also typically downsize my soft plastic lures. Scented lures, such as GULP really shine in this type of fishing. The key is to hop the lure along the bottom. When the water is especially cold and the fish become sluggish in their feeding, it is sometimes necessary to simply drag the lure along the bottom.

Fishing harbors and rivers that run to the bay usually means probing for bites in deeper water – sometimes eight to ten feet – maybe even deeper. In this scenario I would normally use a 1/4 or 3/8 ounce Bass Assassin jighead.

Another proven wintertime lure for deepwater work is the Hoginar made by Hogie’s Lures.

Whatever lure you decide to go with, make sure it will stay in contact with the bottom.

These deepwater tactics can be employed in many scenarios throughout the winter season.

Fish hard, fish smart!

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TSFMAG.com | 77

DAVID ROWSEY

HOOKED UP WITH Rowsey

Upper Laguna/ Ba f f i n

David Rowsey has over 25 years in Baffin and Upper Laguna Madre; trophy trout with artificial lures is his specialty.

David has a great passion for conservation and encourages catch and release of trophy fish.

Telephone 361-960-0340 Website www.DavidRowsey.com Email david.rowsey@yahoo.com @captdavidrowsey

78 | December 2019

Winter may not have officially arrived but it sure feels like it. We had to cancel this morning’s charter due to a big front blowing in. It’s 40° outside and 62° inside my house. I switched the heater on for the first time and the smell of dust burning on the coils is kinda spooky.

This kind of weather is what kickstarts trophy trout season in the Upper Laguna and Baffin. Water temperatures stabilizing between high-50s and low60s seems to really get the trout to gorging and they grow noticeably fatter. The swollen fall tide departs when these big northers blow and take most of the mullet with it. As bait becomes more scarce, trout will congregate in sweet spots where food is still available.

An observant angler will do well to pay attention to Mother Nature’s subtle signals.

Unlike the warmer months, I do not look for large aggregations of baitfish this time of year. Three or four mullet flipping in an area where we just arrived is a great sign. Mix that with good bottom structure, proper depth, and protection from strong north wind and I have all I need to get started. Those few mullet will typically multiply into many when things settle down and you shift into slow wade fishing mode. “The young bull may rush in and get one; the

older and wiser bull moves in slower and gets them all.” Fish slowly and methodically, covering all the structure with multiple casts.

As the bay waters cool, many areas come into play that were not productive during warmer months. The Upper Laguna and Baffin are relatively shallow bay systems. Many areas that were too shallow with water too warm become candidates for holding big trout. Shallow water warms quickly, especially along shorelines.

Upper Laguna and Baffin water temps mimic air temperatures very closely, outside of extreme conditions. As the day warms toward afternoon, the shallows can be three to five degrees warmer than four-foot depths. While not significant to us, large trout instinctively seek this warmth, especially later in the day. Late afternoon shorelines present some of the best opportunity to catch a giant during colder months – even more so when combined with a solunar feeding period.

My lure selection is very basic this time of year. Trust me, I own multiples of everything and I’m as guilty as the next guy for scooping up the newest and hottest items when I walk into Roy’s Bait and Tackle or the

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WARNING Using this product results in heart pounding adrenaline, explosive strikes, sore arms, epic pictures, and envious friends.

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Waterloo Pro Shop. There’s a saying that most fishing lures do 90% of their catching at the cash register. I believe it is true. Since I’ve likely spent two retirement funds on fishing lures, let me give you a short list of must-haves for your wade box in the coming months.

My all-time favorite fish-finder is the rattail 5” Bass Assassin. It not only finds them; it also catches BIG trout better than any soft plastic on the market. Hands down!

I can hardly believe I’m saying this but the MirrOdine XL and Corky Fat Boy are running a dead heat in the subsurface-suspending category. My Fat Boy love is well-known and documented, but my confidence in the MirrOdine XL has absolutely shot through the roof the past few years.

Texas Custom Lures has partnered with MirrOlure to produce the Double D XL. This is a floating-diving version of the MirrOdine XL and exceptionally effective when targeting trout in the shoreline shallows mentioned above. The Double D isn’t offered in every tackle store but the Waterloo Pro Shop in Victoria carries the largest stock I have seen anywhere. You can also order from their online store.

Outside of these few plastics and plugs, I will carry one trusty topwater for good measure. Stock your box with these few basics and you will have everything you need for targeting big trout in the Upper Laguna and Baffin during the colder months.

We will be celebrating the birth of Jesus soon, and with that comes lots of shiny packages, squealing kiddos, too much food, and broken New Year’s resolutions. Making a living in the fishing industry is a not as easy or glamorous as one might think. Lots of unforeseens and immeasurables; weather primarily, and fish with uncooperative attitudes.

Something that helps take some of the pressure off is the group of wonderful people I’m associated with on the business side. If you need any Christmas ideas this season, I would heartily encourage supporting these great companies: Waterloo Rods, 13 Fishing, Simms, Maui Jim, Bass Assassin, MirrOlure, Texas Custom Lures, Seaguar, Chris’ Marine, Haynie Boats, and Mercury Outboards.

Remember the buffalo! -Capt David Rowsey

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TSFMAG.com | 79

WAYNE DAVIS

WAYNE’S Mansfield Report

Port Mansfield

Captain Wayne Davis has been fishing the Lower Laguna-Port Mansfield for over 20 years. He specializes in wade fishing with lures.

Telephone 210-287-3877 Email captwayne@kwigglers.com

80 | December 2019

Howdy from Port Mansfield. As I sit here pondering the content of this report we have already experienced some really cold weather. Having said that, I’ll provide my opinion on fronts in general and some of the effects they can have on fishing.

To begin, we had only a brief snapshot of normal fall weather and fishing patterns. Summer lingered forever and then crashed headlong into an early-October front that dropped water temperatures 15° overnight.

Even though very abrupt, this event had little if any negative impact on fishing. You had to be dressed properly to enjoy it, though.

Late October and early November brought additional fronts that were indeed much colder, perhaps jumpstarting what might prove to be a prelude to winter patterns arriving earlier than normal.

The question that now looms is whether a prolonged stretch of warmer weather will put us back into the transitional patterns of a normal fall season or actually prove to be the beginning of winter.

Case in point, one day we were wet-wading in 83° water temps and the next day we were working in 62° water under a perfect bluebird sky. That’s a pretty

significant change. That temperature drop and quite possibly the high barometric pressure following the front did influence our fishing. It seemed on this trip that the trout were indeed finicky and behaving in transition mode.

I told my guys we needed to fish slow, on the bottom, barely bouncing our plastics through each pothole and prop scar. Bites were tricky to detect, about the same as if a single blade of grass was hung on the hook. Once we, the anglers, “transitioned” and slowed down, we started catching fish.

With the first fish landed I waded over to my client who was removing the lure from a pleasantly plump two-pound trout. I asked him to flip it over and guess what – the belly of that fish had small parasites clinging to it, (argulus – also known as fish lice). This is a tell-tale sign that fish are on the bottom and not moving around much. When fish are active and swimming normally there is little chance for this to occur. This is a variable in the transitioning equation that we should pay attention to if we want to be more effective anglers and catch more fish.

The fish we were catching on that day had only the

tiny parasites on their bellies and not red sores. Later in winter when Gus Alvarez landed his personal best speck on a they spend more time inactive on recent trip as the first real bottom, they will have the small front was blowing through. parasites and red marks from Note the waders and heavy resting and rubbing the muddy jacket…it was cold! bottom sediments. Dark, muddy bottoms hold warmth, pretty much the only source of warmth left in the bay during cold periods unless they are in a deep harbor or channel where deeper water is typically warmer than the shallows.

Given opportunity to continue fishing through the seasons I hope to continue learning more every day. Try to pay close attention to details such as I have described here. I have been guilty and probably overlooked many signs in years past. Every tidbit you can cram into your quiver of knowledge can prove useful in your quest to become a better year-round angler.

Our fishing has been good for most all species. Having said that, though, the trophy snook fishing we enjoyed through much of summer and early fall is coming to an end. Once the water temperatures drop, which they have already been doing, the snook will vacate the flats and seek warmer water. Hopefully they will be back and bigger than ever next summer.

I’m still fishing shallow, tossing soft plastics on light jigheads. I’ve been on the KWigglers 4-inch Paddletails and Willow Tail Shad about 70% of the time. I like the Ball Tail Shad, but only when fishing deeper than three feet or so.

We can expect tides to continue to drop as successive cold fronts pass through the coastal region. This will concentrate the fish into deeper, low-lying areas. Slow your approach Mike Sarosdy, past president and work more methodically. of CCA Texas-San Antonio, Patience is the byword. snagged this great flounder A quick announcement; Captain on a recent (warmer) charter.

Ernest Cisneros and I will be giving a presentation at Fishing Tackle Unlimited’s Gulf Freeway location on Saturday, December 14, 2019. We have dedicated several days to comparing notes and ideas and condensed it into Power Point format. We are very hopeful you will find it interesting, entertaining, and informative. Our goal is that you will be able to take away something you can use while fishing on your own this winter. Stay tuned for more details.

TSFMAG.com | 81

CAPT. ERNEST CISNEROS

SOUTH PADRE Fishing Scene Arr o y o C ol o ra d o t o Po rt I sa bel

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

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

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

Here we go, about to close out another year of fishing and it has been a good one. It seems the older I get and the more fun I’m having, the faster time flies. As water temperatures dipped below 70° recently our fishing success improved from good to excellent. Reduced boat traffic also contributed positively as many folks began to focus more on hunting than fishing.

Tide levels will be generally declining through the weeks ahead, common for this time of the year.

Fish should feed more often and for longer periods – almost as if they know winter is coming. Weather will present challenges, though, especially as fronts approach and pass through.

I’m going to step out on a limb and say that prefront conditions are overrated. While we have done well fishing an approaching front, my experience says it can go both ways, and quite often it works against us. A good example is when the wind is strong from the west as the front approaches. Nothing puts the kibosh on a good bite quicker than west wind here in the Lower Laguna.

North or northeast wind can be okay, so long as they do not blow all the water out or turn everything muddy. Fishing typically improves after a front passes

through and everything, including the barometer, begins to settle down.

East wind often prevails behind a front and this too can be favorable, provided it does not bring lingering high atmospheric pressure with it. My strategy for high

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pressure days has always been to wait patiently for the fish to acclimate and began feeding again.

Last but not least in weather possibilities is southeast wind. Southeast brings a steady barometer that tends to encourage fish to feed more aggressively. I guess that’s why they call it sweet southeast.

Redfish have suddenly shown up in numbers I haven’t seen in quite some time. There are lots of singles, small groups, and even larger schools roaming the shallow grass and sand flats. They bail off quickly to deeper water on colder days but, like clockwork, they come right back to the flats as soon as it warms up. Locating large schools of mullet has been the surest way to find the reds. KWiggler Ball Tails on 1/8-ounce jigs in Mansfield Margarita and Plum-Chartreuse have been our best redfish baits.

Looking back over the past eleven months, I can say we have enjoyed an excellent year of trout fishing. My clients and I landed some real beauties, and even when the bite was tough we could grind out limits, if that’s what they came to do. Looking forward, with the shape this fishery is in, my outlook for another successful winter trophy season and excellent spring fishing is very bright.

Trout are definitely more weather sensitive than redfish, quicker to fall off into deeper water during a cold snap and slower to return to the flats as it begins to warm. Grass flats littered with potholes near the ICW and other channels are great places to look for them as soon as the water temperature begins to rise. Bait concentrations become increasingly difficult to locate as we go deeper into winter and this is when my attention turns to seagulls, ospreys, and brown pelicans. It doesn’t matter whether they’re diving or just sitting on the water; they are way better fishermen than we are and they are most likely eyeing something to eat.

Trout often become picky eaters during periods of unstable weather and the best way to get them to take a lure is with a slower retrieve. Some fishermen believe you cannot catch big trout on soft plastics as well as slow-sinkers in winter but I do not find this to be true. Believe what you will, I’ll stick with my KWiggler Ball Tails and Willow Tails. I have fooled too many trophy fish over the years to believe otherwise.

December is one of my favorite months, if for no other reason than the sheer numbers we catch.

The weather down here remains pleasant enough to spend the majority of the days on the water.

The fish are hungry, the fishing pressure is light, and our water quality takes a turn for the better compared to the warmer months.

With Christmas right around the corner, if you’re stumped for a great gift for the angler in your family, you need look no further than Fishing Tackle Unlimited’s three Houston locations. You can also shop their online store. If you need more clues; think Shimano, Simms, AFTCO, Costa del Mar, and FTU Green Rod. Merry Christmas to all and thanks for being a loyal reader!

TSFMAG.com | 83

FISHING REPORTS

ORECASTS F from Big Lake to Boca Chica

AND

Lake Calcasieu Louisiana Jeff and Mary Poe - Big Lake Guide Service - 337.598.3268 Traditionally, December is a great month for fishing Lake Calcasieu. We always look forward to it because it offers so many good opportunities for targeting the three main species, much like November. Trout, redfish and flounder can be found in numbers throughout the estuary, trout over sand flats and around oyster reefs in the northern end, mostly.

Catching them can become tough if water temperatures dip into the 40s, but on warm, sunny days, they become much easier to trick into biting lures. Soft plastics rigged on eighth- and sixteenth-ounce jigheads work best. Slow-sinking twitch baits like MirrOdines and Paul Brown Lures work better, if catching bigger fish is the goal. Redfish are aggressive and easy to catch this month, one of the best for the species around here. Fast action happens regularly, and it's possible to target reds for the table or ones for mounting on the wall. 90% of the redfish we catch this month bite a Gulp! Swimming Mullet rigged on a quarterounce head. Flounder can be intercepted as they make their way out of the bay into the Gulf for winter. Gulp! lures work well to entice the flatfish, especially in areas close to Cameron.

West Galveston - Bastrop - Christmas - Chocolate Bays Randall Groves - Groves Guide Service 979.849.7019 - 979.864.9323 On trips made just prior to sending this report, Randall says the topwater bite has been excellent. “Doesn't matter which one we're throwing much of the time lately. We've been having good success on a wide variety of floaters, including white Skitter Walks with red head and the black/ oranges ones. Bone Super Spooks and One Knockers have also been attracting a lot of attention from the fish too. When the blow ups stop coming, we're having much better luck on Norton Sand Eels, the fullsized ones, in chicken on a chain. This color pattern effectively mimics brown shrimp, which continue to migrate out of the backwater areas and through the lower parts of the bay, into the Gulf. As long as we don't get an exceptionally strong cold front, this will continue at a steady pace, probably lasting through the middle of December. At some point, a blue norther will blow the water and shrimp out for good, and action will improve in water about four to nine feet deep, with a mix of mud and shell on the bottom. Most of the best areas meeting this description are in the bayous and open expanses of West Galveston Bay.”

Trinity Bay - East Bay - Galveston Bay | James Plaag Silver King Adventures - silverkingadventures.com - 409.935.7242 Full limits of both trout and redfish had been the norm for James on trips made in the days and weeks prior to giving this report. “We're catching thirty or forty fish per day, full limits of both the main species on most. The fish are hanging around shell in water of medium depths.

Lots of birds working in some places. Decent numbers of flounder biting too, up to about four pounds. Not a great bite on sinking MirrOlures lately. Topwaters have been working better, especially the little ones, like the She Pup. Of course, soft plastics in natural colors will work well during the shrimp migration. Right now, the shrimp are concentrated in the ICW and the birds and fish are following them. Some of the little blow-outs and drains connecting with the ditch are holding a bunch of fish right now, all three main species. This pattern is usually best in months like December and January, so since it's already producing well, that's a really good sign. For me, areas west of the Ship Channel have been better than Trinity and East Bay lately. This isn't unusual at all in years when we have big flood events.”

Matagorda | Tommy Countz Bay Guide Service - 979.863.7553 cell 281.450.4037 Multiple options provide opportunity for anglers heading to the Matagorda area in December. “The Colorado River is at its best in December. It's been shaping up great already, and should get even better, especially if it gets cold. It's easy to get out of the wind and catch quality trout and reds in the deeper parts up that way. Right now, we've got birds working all over East Bay, since the shrimp are still on their way out. Fishing on the shorelines of East Bay is about as good as it gets in December. We'll have plenty of big trout and schools of reds roaming the shallows on the South Shoreline over there. Catching is best on slow-sinking twitch baits and soft plastics on really light heads in the shallows. Same lures work well if we're wading West Bay too. Over there, really low tides help, because they concentrate the schools of mainly reds, with a few trout mixed in, in the guts leading into the big coves on the south side. So, everything really depends on the weather. Colder weather sends us fishing deeper, out in the middle, or in the river, while warm weather lets us wade the flats.”

Jimmy West - Bolivar Guide Service - 409.996.3054 December is a great month to spend time with Jim, either in the marshes and flooded fields, on the bay, or both. “We'll be splitting time between the bays and the fields in December, hunting ducks and targeting trout and redfish. Normally, the time around the holidays is great for both outdoor activities. Fishing has been decent lately. Water quality is a little off in East Bay, so fishing is best when winds are light, especially for people intent on staying in the boat and targeting their fish out in the middle. Wading can be better, particularly after frontal winds peter out and tides rush back into the bays. If and when this occurs during late-afternoon and early-evening hours, the bite can be fantastic. Areas along both shorelines adjacent to small reefs and places with overall muddy bottoms with some shell scattered around are usually best this time of year. Some folks will catch some really big trout in places like that. On an average December day, with lower tides, fishing in the drains and bayous can produce better results. Soft plastics work best on the colder days. Topwaters and sinking twitch baits attract bigger trout during warm spells.”

Palacios | Capt. Aaron Wollam www.palaciosguideservice.com - 979.240.8204 Fishing was awesome on the outings in the days and weeks prior to Aaron giving this report. “Fishing for reds has been about as good as it gets. We've been following big schools down shorelines. They're chasing shrimp and we're catching plenty of pearl/pumpkinseed paddletails. The size of the fish has been consistent, with most in the upper end of the slot.

Trout fishing has also been excellent. We've been doing best working shell in water about three to five feet deep, throwing a white Gulp! dangled under a cork. Our main focus has been the search for bait. Once we find the bait, we're catching a mess of fish pretty easily. Birds have been working pretty steady in the river and in East Bay, with lots of undersized fish biting, but also a decent number of keepers. Flounder fishing has been good for solid keepers around ditches and drains emptying out of the marshes. December should be a great month too. Normally, it's a fairly simple time. Find the bait, catch some fish! Normally, the predators and their prey hang out in water over a muddy bottom with some shell scattered around during the colder days.”

84 | December 2019

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Port O’Connor | Lynn Smith Back Bay Guide Service - 361.983.4434 Lynn likes to fish the lulls between cold fronts, targeting trout and redfish in and around drains leading from the main bays into the backwater areas. “We target big trout as much as possible. Normally, we don't leave the dock as early as usual this time of year. Waiting until the sun heats up the flats a little gets us off to a better start most of the time. Best pattern is one where the sun shines all day on the shallows over the muddy, grassy bottoms in the back-lakes and coves, then an outgoing tide brings that warmer water out of those areas and dumps into the main bay. The fish usually bite aggressively in such situations, especially if there's some mullet and other prey around.

Don't need such a concentration in December like you do when it's warmer, but some bait is necessary, for sure. We'll throw soft plastics some, but mostly, we stick with slow-sinking twitch baits like SoftDines and Paul Brown Lures, because the big trout like to eat small fish more than they like to eat shrimp. As a bonus, we usually catch a few saddleblanket flounder while targeting the big trout.”

Rockport | Blake Muirhead Gator Trout Guide Service - 361.790.5203 or 361.441.3894 Cast and blast season persists throughout the month of December, for Blake. “I normally spend the early-morning hours in the blind hunting ducks in the shallow areas well away from the main bays, then start fishing my way out of there about 10 or 10:30, when the shooting ends.

We usually spend a little time driving around in the airboat to find some redfish in the shallows. Once we locate some, they're normally fairly easy to catch on Norton Sand Eels in dark colors with light tails, rigged on light jigheads, like eighth- or sixteenth-ounce. From there we move into the trout-fishing phase of the day, moving to a little deeper water, either in the bayous and drains leading out to the main bay, or along the drop-offs in the main bays themselves. We use the same lures to target trout in those places, sometimes adjusting jighead size up a little, if strong currents are moving through the deeper parts of the bayous. In most years, this month provides a few really good days for catching on topwaters, too. I like the Baby Skitter Walk in silver and black this time of year more than all others.”

Upper Laguna Madre - Baffin Bay - Land Cut Robert Zapata – rz1528@grandecom.net - 361.563.1160 On most December days, quiet falls over the coastal waters, with so many people heading into the fields and woods, searching for a monster buck.

Water temperatures this time of the year, like the boat traffic, generally stay low. After the cold nights, the fish tend to move into deeper water than they have been in throughout the warm period. We find good numbers in five to six feet of water early in the mornings. After the sun rises and warms the flats some, fishing is better in depths of two to three feet, in water with a mix of gravel and mud on the bottom. Much of Baffin is inflicted with brown tide at the moment, with clearer water both south and north of there. In better water, we're throwing natural colors like chicken on a chain and salt & pepper on eighth-ounce heads, switching to sixteenth-ounce later in the days. If I find fish in water less than a couple feet deep, I throw the Assassin Elite Shiners in colors like meat hook, rigged on the lighter heads. In Baffin, we're mainly throwing live shrimp under corks to cope with the murky water.

Corpus Christi | Joe Mendez – www.sightcast1.com - 361.877.1230 Strong cold fronts drove the water temperatures down rapidly in the days before Joe gave this outlook. “Fishing from Thanksgiving to the end of the year in the ULM normally means staying close to the ditches, at least if catching numbers of trout and slot redfish is the goal. Colder water temperatures cause the fish to seek out the warmer depths of the Intracoastal Waterway and the channels which connect with it. Those old, partially silted-in channels hold lots of fish when water temps first fall into the 50s and stay there for a few days. A few people try to wade and take advantage of this pattern, but most of us like to stay in the boat, throwing 86 | December 2019

soft plastics from deeper water toward the shallow humps, sand bars and edges of the ditches. If the wind's blowing just the right direction, this can be done from a drifting boat. More often than not, maintaining contact with the edges of channels means staying on a trolling motor to control the direction and pace of movement. Too much wind makes it tougher, and dictates the use of heavier jigheads, as do strong tidal currents.”

P.I.N.S. Fishing Forecast | Eric Ozolins 361-877-3583 | Oceanepics.com Weather rules the December surf and with patterns currently in place, we could be in for some exceptional fishing opportunity. Possibilities include a late surge of jack crevalle if bait remains in sufficient quantity to satisfy their needs. Two other species of great interest to surf anglers are Florida pompano and red drum. Many people find pompano to be as good on the table as any fish. Pompano traditionally appear in the December surf in great numbers, with occasional four pounders possible. We target them with Fish-bites and freshly peeled shrimp, sometimes in combination on small hooks to match their small mouths. Red drum should also be abundant, both slot and oversized. Larger specimens reaching up to 45 inches are the backbone of the breeding stock and should be handled carefully. Cut whiting cast far from shore is the best way to target them.

Other species can include black drum, Spanish mackerel, and bluefish, depending on water temperatures. Shark action will be generally slow, but we can expect some mature sandbars coming to the surf to breed. Keep an eye on the weather and avoid beach travel during frontal passages.

Port Mansfield | Ruben Garza Snookdudecharters.com – 832.385.1431 Getaway Adventures Lodge – 956.944.4000 As tides finally return closer to normal after more than a month of superhigh levels, fronts are arriving ever more frequently, and water temps are on the decline. The time for waders has arrived, except for those staying in the boat. Topwater action has been fair to good for both trout and reds.

Cooler water temps behind fronts slow the blow ups down temporarily, but the action at the surface bounces right back when bait becomes active again. Bone and pink/silver One Knockers are working great, as usual. Soft plastics continue to produce bites at the fastest rates; KWiggler Willow Tails in Lagunaflauge, turtle grass and flomingo are the current go-to colors.

West Bay, the Saucer behind the cabins, the Pipeline, the Northeast Pocket and the Weather Station all hold plenty of fish right now, as does the West Shoreline from the Oak Mottes to Gladys Hole. On the east side, the area from the Game Warden Shack to Butcher's is always a good bet this time of year. Look for working birds along the channel edges, where lots of small trout gather in schools, with a decent number of 2 & 3 pounders mixed in.

Lower Laguna Madre - South Padre - Port Isabel Aaron Cisneros | tightlinescharters.com – 956-639-1941 We have had some really cool fall weather, but it doesn't last long in most cases. Forecasts continue to consistently call for high temperatures rising into the 70s and even 80s. The trout bite has been good most of the time, and falling tides and water temperatures make it better. Best bite has been in areas where the bottom cover and structures change, around the edges of sand bars, and close to old man-made channels with silty bottoms. The East-side Flats have been holding lots of bait, and we're catching plenty of redfish and trout on that side. Kwiggler Ball-tail Shads in plum/chartreuse rigged on eighth-ounce screw-lock heads have produced steady bites, on slower retrieves on the colder days. The redfish have mostly stayed shallow, cruising along shorelines regardless of the weather, especially in places with a mix of mud and shell on the bottom. Topwaters continue to produce at a decent rate, especially Super Spook Juniors. They tend to get more attention when south winds return after a front blows itself out, and barometric pressure levels begin to fall back into the normal range, along with the fishes' feeding habits.

TSFMAG.com | 87

Steele & Ace De Leon Friendswood - largemouth bass

Austin Kirkley 24” 4.5 lb first trout!

Landon flounder from first Texas Slam!

Jaime Quiroga Lower Laguna - 24” redfish

Jaxson Murray Galveston - first Spanish mackerel!

88 | December 2019

Michelle Sneed San Antonio Bay - 28” red

Ryli Murray Galveston - first Spanish mackerel!

Maddie Mikus 26” redfish

Luke Andel Matagorda - 27” 10.15 lb black drum

Sammy Morales Alazan Bay - 45” bull red CPR

Kingston Faldyn Shoalwater Flats - first redfish! CPR

Tommy Hermosa Port Aransas - 27” trout

Cris Flores San Martin Lake - 25” snook

Colton Tucker Rockport - 26.5” & 27.25” reds

Grayton Holloway West Bay - first fish!

Paul Baumann & Paul Baumann, Jr Rockport - redfish

Kole Bendele - 29.25” red IFA Kayak Corpus Tournament

Brian Hoogendam West Bay - 27.5” redfish

Aubrey Dobbins with Pop Pop personal best red! CPR

Kaden Faglie Sargent - 22” first redfish!

Mat De La Garza Port Aransas - 48” kingfish

Faith Nickols Olivia - 25” redfish

Ryan Mikus 27” redfish

Justin Jones Surfside - 20” flounder

Gage Fowlkes Seadrift - redfish

Photo Gallery Guidelines

Ryan Riojas Bob Hall Pier - 6' bull shark

Phillip Karasek Matagorda River - 33" 20+ lb snook

First come – first published!

Photos are judged on artistic merit and sporting ethic displayed. No stringer, cleaning table, or hanging board images allowed.

Digital images only. Adjust camera to high or best quality. All images become property of TSFMag. Email to: Photos@TSFMag.com Include short description of your catch with name, date, bay system, etc.

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PAM JOHNSON

Gulf Coast

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

Email them to pam@tsfmag.com or send by fax: 361 792-4530

Cilantro Crusted Trout INGREDIENTS

PREPARATION

6 speckled trout fillets

2 Tbsp fresh chopped cilantro

Season fillets with salt and pepper and set aside.

Salt and pepper

1 large egg

1 cup panko breadcrumbs

1/8 cup water

Place flour and cilantro in a large bowl. Beat egg with water in separate bowl. Set up a breading station in this order: flour – egg wash – panko.

1/2 cup flour

Olive oil for frying

Dredge each fillet in flour to coat evenly – dip in egg wash allowing excess to drip off – place in the panko mixture and flip to coat both sides.

In a large nonstick frying pan over medium heat; add about 1/8 inch olive oil, heat until shimmering. Place fillets in oil in a single layer.

Cook until golden brown (3 to 4 minutes), flip and cook second side until golden brown and cooked through.

Cilantro Tartar Sauce 1 cup Hellmann’s Mayonnaise with Olive Oil ¼ cup chopped dill pickle ¼ cup chopped onions 2 Tbsps. fresh chopped cilantro Combine all ingredients and refrigerate for one hour before serving.

90 | December 2019

‘‘‘

‘‘‘

DEXTER FOR 3 GENERATIONS, TRIED & TRUE

ANDRADE’S CATCH Narragansett Bay & Surrounding Waters

DEXTEROUTDOORS.COM

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S P O N S O R E D B Y C O A S TA L B E N D M A R I N E

C H R I S M A P P ’ S R E PA I R & M A I N T E N A N C E

CONNECTIONS, CONNECTIONS, AND MORE CONNECTIONS The attached photo shows two separate repairs where the electrical problem was intermittent.

Chris Mapp, owner of The first is a livewell pump that Coastal Bend Marine. would not work under a load yet Evinrude, Suzuki, Yamaha, Mercury, Honda, BlueWave, operated consistently with the SilverWave, Shallow Stalker boat on the trailer in a no-load Boats, Coastline Trailers, situation (reference connectors Minnkota & Motor Guide in the lower portion of photo).

Trolling Motors.

Detecting a voltage drop was the Great Service, Parts & Sales key to discovering the source of “What can we do for you?” the problem. Over time, corrosion had developed inside the shrink-wrap; however, the shrink wrapping was not where the problem began. The problem started when the crimping tool pierced the cable sheathing above the wrap when the connector was installed, which allowed moisture to enter the wire itself and create a compromised connection and intermittent failure.

The second wiring issue, which was also intermittent, was discovered in the jackplate circuitry. The jackplate would operate normally while the boat was stationary in the water (i.e., jackplate under less than full load.) When underway, the jackplate could not

92 | December 2019

be lowered. The problem was traced to the jackplate switch, which was attached to the throttle. When the throttle was advanced, the green wire at the top of the photo would lose continuity inside the insulation. The point where the break occurred was hidden behind the throttle lever, and, when accelerating, the connection would separate the strands in the wire that controls the downward movement.

In conclusion, voltage drop tests can save a great deal of time and help pinpoint the exact location of electrical problems.

Have a great fall and winter season on the water.

Chris Mapp Coastal Bend Marine Port O’Connor TX 361-983-4841 | chrismapp@ coastalbendmarine.com

Science and the

Sea

TM

Even White Sharks Fear Predators Most people think of great white sharks as the top predator of the sea, and they are among the largest, most ferocious sharks swimming around. But even white sharks fear another predator—possibly a surprising one. Orcas, commonly called killer whales, may seem friendly when performing tricks at some amusement parks, but just their arrival is enough to send white sharks packing.

Even great white sharks flee an area when a group of killer whales comes around. Credit: NOAA Around the Farallon Islands off the coast of San Francisco, California, white sharks frequently spend a month or so hunting young elephant seals. Yet when orcas periodically dropped by to hunt the seals, biologists repeatedly observed the white sharks immediately fleeing the area. In fact, the sharks often stayed away “up to a year, even though the orcas are only passing through,” according to Monterey Bay Aquarium senior research scientist Dr. Salvador Jorgensen.

The researchers analyzed data from 165 white sharks who had been tagged between 2006-2013 and combined it with seal, orca and shark survey data at the Farallones over a 27-year period. Every time orcas entered the area, white sharks disappeared within minutes and didn’t return until the following season.

The sharks fleeing the area has been a boon to the elephant seal colonies, biologists learned. During seasons when the white sharks took off early, four to seven times fewer elephant seals ended up as shark food. The orcas, which sometimes left the area within an hour, did not stay long enough to eat as many of the seals as the sharks would have. It wasn’t clear whether the orcas ever directly targeted or confronted the sharks, but it was clear the sharks didn’t plan to give them the opportunity.

www.ScienceAndTheSea.org © The University of Texas Marine Science Institute

TSFMAG.com | 93

TEXAS SALTWATER FISHING HOLES GUIDE SERVICES M ATA G O R D A B AY Speckled Trout / Redfish

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• Bay Fishing, Offshore, Floundering, Waterfowl, Dove • Night Fishing off Lighted Pier • Right On The Water • Lodging with/without Meals www.matagordasunriselodge.com 979-241-1705

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