Texas Fish & Game January 2015

THE Texas Outdoor Authority

www.FishGame.com

January 2015 | VOL. 31 • NO. 9 | $3.95

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www.FishGame.com Published by Texas Fish & Game Publishing Co., LLC. TEXAS FISH & GAME is the largest independent, family-owned outdoor publication in America.

Owned by Ron & Stephanie Ward and Roy & Ardia Neves.

ROY NEVES PUBLISHER

CHESTER MOORE EDITOR IN CHIEF

C O N T R I B U T O R S JOE DOGGETT DOUG PIKE TED NUGENT LOU MARULLO MATT WILLIAMS CALIXTO GONZALES LENNY RUDOW STEVE LAMASCUS DUSTIN ELLERMANN KENDAL HEMPHILL WILL LESCHPER REAVIS WORTHAM TOM BEHRENS GREG BERLOCHER PAUL BRADSHAW CAPT. MIKE HOLMES DUSTIN WARNCKE STAN SKINNER LISA MOORE JOHN GISEL

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SENIOR CONTRIBUTING EDITOR SENIOR CONTRIBUTING EDITOR EDITOR AT LARGE HUNTING EDITOR FRESHWATER EDITOR SALTWATER EDITOR BOATING EDITOR FIREARMS EDITOR SHOOTING EDITOR POLITICAL COMMENTATOR CONSERVATION EDITOR HUMOR EDITOR CONTRIBUTING EDITOR CONTRIBUTING EDITOR CONTRIBUTING EDITOR CONTRIBUTING EDITOR CONTRIBUTING EDITOR COPY EDITOR CONTRIBUTING PHOTO EDITOR STRATEGIC ADVISOR

A D V E R T I S I N G ARDIA NEVES VICE PRESIDENT/ADVERTISING DIRECTOR LARRY DALTON • ADVERTISING COORDINATOR 1745 GREENS ROAD HOUSTON, TX 77032 PHONE: (281) 227-3001 • FAX (281) 227-3002

REPRESENTATION

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SUBSCRIPTIONS 1745 GREENS ROAD, HOUSTON, TX 77032 PHONE (800) 725-1134 TEXAS FISH & GAME (ISSN 0887-4174) is published monthly by Texas Fish & Game Publishing Co., LLC., 1745 Greens Road, Houston, Texas 77032. ©Texas Fish & Game Publishing Co., LLC. All rights reserved. Content is not to be reprinted or otherwise reproduced without written permission. The publication assumes no responsibility for unsolicited photographs and manuscripts. Subscription rates: 1 year $19.00: 2 years $34.75; 3 years $48.50. Address all subscription inquiries to Texas Fish & Game, 1745 Greens Road, Houston, Texas 77032. Allow 4 to 6 weeks for response. Give old and new address and enclose latest mailing address label when writing about your subscription. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: TEXAS FISH & GAME, 1745 Greens Road, Houston, TX 77032. Address all subscription inquiries to TEXAS FISH & GAME, 1745 Greens Road, Houston, TX 77032. Email change of address to: dhruzek@fishgame. com Email new orders to: dhruzek@fishgame.com Email subscription questions to: dhruzek@fishgame.com.

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Table of

JANUARY 2015 • Volume 31 • NO. 9

Contents Features

TEXAS 20 POUNDERS?

COVER: Small Boats Can Make a Big Splash

Texas has become a premier destination for double-digit largemouth.

But despite Texas Parks & Wildlife’s aggressive programs, will the Lone Star State ever produce 20-pounders in the numbers California does?

Canoes, kayaks and small aluminum boats may not be able to run across a lake or bay at 70 mph, but they can get into many places big power can’t reach.

STORY:

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by Matt Williams

MID COAST SPOTLIGHT

Story by John N. Felsher Cover Photo: Clay Connor

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A destination profile of the coastal stretch from San Antonio Bay to Aransas Bay.

ALSO IN JANUARY:

by TF&G Staff

Paving Paradise?

PINTAILS IN PERIL

The Trans-Texas Corridor, killed in 2009, could still be reincarnated, threatening half a million acres of wildlife habitat

by Steve Shaffer

STORY:

Why are pintails suffering greater population declines than other duck species common to Texas?

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by Chester Moore

TEN TIPS FOR ARROWING FERAL HOGS Pursuing hogs with a bow or with a crossbow is super fun, and can be a challenging and effective way of taking out some wild pork.

Cruising into 2015 STORY:

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It’s boat show season, and here is the latest bling for boaters.

by Lenny Rudow

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by Chester Moore |

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Contents (continued)

Inside Fish&Game

Columns

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by Roy & Ardia Neves | TF&G Owners

Editor’s Notes

by Chester Moore TF&G Editor in Chief

Pushing the Envelope Over the Cutting Edge

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HEN YOU SPEND WEEKS OF EXHAUSTIVE search for off-the-shelf resources to help implement a new concept and keep ending up looking at the same basic —uninspired—solutions, it’s a pretty clear sign that you may be venturing into Pioneer territory.

That has been our experience as we have ramped up the introduction of our all-new set of Digital Editions.

We’ve been producting digital versions of Texas Fish & Game magazine for several years now, but like most publishers, we have fought against two limiting factors.

One is the challenge of building truly unique versions that optimize the capabilities of increasingly sophisticated—and mobile—devices. It’s not enough to just re-package a replica flip-book and expect anyone to get excited about it. The other limitation is the chilling effect on user interaction mandated by Apple, and to a lesser degree, Android and Amazon and their user-unfriendly and publisher-hostile Newsstand environments.

Because it has been so difficult for small independent publishers like us to negotiate the chaos inherent in these Newsstand sinkholes—and from what we read in the trade papers, it hasn’t been a cake-walk for Time, Inc. either—we have finally decided to break out and do our own thing.

Beginning with this issue, there is a brand new mobile version available for iPads, iPhones, Android tablets and phones, Kindles and Amazon Fire phones. If you read the magazine on a phone, you will have a completely unique experience from someone reading it on a tablet, or in printed form.

The electronic versions all have enhanced content. This includes expanded coverage in feature articles and columns with videos, slide shows, audio and other bonus content. They have interactive Hotspot reports, where you can actually view the spot on a Google map, and the Sportsman’s Daybook lets you select a customized location for your tide forecast—rather than only getting the forecast for a fixed spot.

Since sportsmen have always been early-adopters of the latest gadgets, especially electronics, a far greater percentage of our readers already use smartphones. For this reason, we have taken special care to build phone versions that are not only compatible with the devices, but in many ways are more convenient to use and navigate than the other versions.

You’ll still use an app to download and organize the issues, but once you install it, it will be easy to find and use—it will be right there on your home screen—and not buried in the Newsstand.

Find a link to the app in your device’s app store at www.FishGame.com

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Doggett at Large

by Joe Doggett

TF&G Senior Contributing Editor

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Pike on the Edge

by Doug Pike

TF&G Senior Contributing Editor

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TexasWild

by Ted Nugent TF&G Editor At Large

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Commentary

by Kendal Hemphill TF&G Politcal Commentator

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Texas Freshwater

by Matt Williams TF&G Freshwater Editor

Texas Saltwater 30 by Calixto Gonzales

Departments 8 LETTERS 12 TF&G REPORT 36 TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

TF&G Saltwater Editor

35 Bare Bones Hunting

by Lou Marullo TF&G Hunting Editor

Season 53 Open

by Reavis Wortham TF&G Freshwater Editor

Texas Boating 60 by Lenny Rudow TF&G Boating Editor

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42 TRUE GREEN 66 TEXAS TESTED 67 INDUSTRY INSIDER

68 FISH AND GAME GEAR

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HOTSPOT FOCUS

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TEXAS HOTSPOTS

Texas Guns

86 TIDES & PRIME

TF&G Firearms Editor

94 TF&G PHOTOS

by Steve LaMascus

Texas Tasted

TIMES

by Bryan Slaven The Texas Gourmet

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Letters to the Editor Quail Success AFTER READING THE TF&G REPORT on pages 10-11 in the Nov. issue, I could not help but report my experience in late Oct. at Staten Creek. We have been fortunate enough to join my son-in-law for three years now in culling does for one of the owners, Jim Erben.

I am delighted to report that in the five days we were hunting we flushed well over 300 quail in coveys from 25-75 birds, spread over the 80 percent of the 4,700 acres we hunted. Turkeys also, again for the first time.

Don’t know if this is a result of the rains or due to stocking, as Jim was not there to answer our questions, but it was very encouraging to see. Also, more doves than we have seen in three years.

Rocke Roy Editor: Great news! Always good to hear of pockets of quail in the Lone Star State that are not just holding on but flourishing.

—CM

Big Bobcat THIS IS ONE OF THE LATEST TRAIL cam pictures of a bobcat on my place. Pretty large one. Friends keep telling me I should try to shoot it, that it will kill fawns and at least spook other deer, but I am not so sure of that and I like seeing it around. If it does kill a deer now and then, it has just as much “right” to do so as I do or more. Also, I can buy meat to feed my wife and I, the cat can’t, and has to hunt to eat. More power to him!

I have seen bobcats on this land that were bright yellow in color, looked more like a leopard or jaguar if you didn’t get a look at the whole body.

beautiful I have seen photographed recently.

As he notes, they come in many shapes and sizes and can be easy to misidentify for those not familiar with the species.

—CM

More on the Big Rattler (Oct. Issue) THE RATTLESNAKE PICTURED IS an Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake The first Freer Jaycee Rattlesnake Roundup was held at my service station in 1967, the next year we moved the Roundup to the Rotary Park just east of Freer.

I was one of twenty Jaycees that founded

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Editor: We were able to ascertain that information and published it in the November issue. I appreciate your information on the snake research. We may contact you down the line as we do more with animal identification.

—CM

Mail: Editor Texas Fish & Game 1745 Greens Rd Houston TX 77032

Editor: Mike is a TF&G contributor and a fine one at that. We often share emails about cats, and this bobcat is one of the most J A N U A R Y

David Velau

Send your Comments to:

Mike Holmes

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the roundup and I worked with the roundup for about twenty years. Also bought and sold all kinds of snakes.

In 1968 a college from Oklahoma sent a team of biologists to dissect all the snakes we killed, and visiting with those people gave me information that really helped me to ID snakes!

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Editor’s Notes

by Chester Moore | TF&G Editor in Chief

Going Back to Basics

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AVE YOU PRICED A NEW BRAND NAME compound bow lately?

If you get out of the archery shop under $1,000 with arrows and the various accessories you are lucky.

Have you seen ammo prices lately?

Feeders? Corn?

Everything down to the very food we eat has gone sky high in prices, from a variety of causes. Our tech-savvy society has eaten up the myriad gadgets associated with hunting and even though I am not a techie myself, some of them are downright amazing.

With every action, however there is a reaction, and I think in the next decade we will see a move for hunting to go back to the basics. The industry itself is now not promoting the hunting itself, but the gadgets and the lifestyle, and it is leaving many hunters empty.

Over the last couple of years I have met, several young hunters who have no delusions they can afford the current hunting lifestyle promoted by an industry I admittedly make a portion of my living in, but instead are about the experience.

And it is not what people would expect.

Back in the late 1970s/early 1980s you had a rush of bowhunters getting into primitive archery, shooting longbows and even making their own gear. I once hunted with a guy who shot a ram with a flint point he made. That was about the gear, this is about connecting with nature.

For starters, young hunters coming out of college cannot afford a $2,000 lease, $1,000 in feeders, a $5,000 ATV, a $1,000 bow and the gas to get back and forth to the lease.

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in a bow or gun, get a $48 annual public hunting permit, throw some gas in the tank and hunt hundreds of thousands of acres in Texas.

And instead of waiting for an animal to walk out to a feeder, they can learn about the preferred food items of deer and other game, seasonal patterns and learn to set up a proper hunting ambush.

When I started hunting in New York 10 years ago where baiting is illegal, I came back realizing we miss a lot here in Texas.

I am all for baiting, but hunters who cannot use it and score on just as many deer as we do must have a deeper understanding of their animals.

I have no problem saying the average deer hunter I meet up there has a much deeper knowledge of whitetails than the average Texas deer hunter. They have to because they cannot rely on feeders or any other kind of bait for that matter. They must find the deer where they are instead of attracting them to a spot.

The young hunters I have met are taking more time to study their quarry and spend time scouting. I know young, local hunters who take quality bucks on public land every year where baiting is illegal and the use of permanent stands is illegal.

Fishing started experiencing the same thing about a decade ago when kayaks started becoming a mainstay. I believe within 10 years we will see a back to basics contingent of fishermen as well. It will start for economic reasons but will spread for spiritual ones.

There is something powerful about pursuing animals this way. Those hunters who hit the woods with purpose, not just passion, will find a new path to outdoor enjoyment.

I am seriously considering joining them.

I didn’t have a deer lease for the last two years because we couldn’t afford one with the other things we choose to invest in for our family, but I am saving up for one this year. I have an old feeder left, so I will probably put it out, but the bulk of my hunting is going to be done differently. Instead of hunting the feeder, I will hunt trails leading to the feeder.

And since I choose to take my little girl

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to and from school daily so we can spend time together, I will hunt from say 10 a.m. until around 2 p.m. instead of making other arrangements for her. That’s called being a good father, but it also makes hunting sense.

Numerous studies have shown the biggest bucks move either after dark or between 10 and 2 when they sense most hunters are at home.

My strong suit is knowledge of animal behavior, so that is what I plan to use simply getting the deer to follow the yellow brick road, so to speak.

We must have gear to use, and it needs to be the best we can afford or we are cheating ourselves. “Afford” is the key word here.

Common sense is good in the woods and in the world of finance.

Don’t let preconceived notions determine your fate. If keeping the fishing tradition alive means simply taking the kids out to soak worms for catfish from the bank, then find your joy there. If it means hunting public land instead of a lease, scout hard, hunt harder and use the gear you can afford to get the job done.

Many (not all) of the spokesmen and women for our industry are nothing more than camouflaged versions of infomercial salesmen. Use good judgment on your purchases and create a game plan to make this year your best ever on the woods or water.

Consider going back to basics and connecting with the outdoors like you did growing up.

You may just find more joy in the outdoors than you have ever experienced.

Catch Chester on the radio Fridays, 6 pm on 560 KLVI Beaumont (www.klvi.com) and Thursdays online on TF&G Radio (www.fishgame.com) Contact him at CMoore@fishgame.com

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The TF&G Report New Wildlife Management Area Created Near Lubbock THE TEXAS PARKS AND WILDLIFE Commission has approved acceptance of a land donation to create the new 14,037Acre Yoakum Dunes Wildlife Management Area in Cochran, Terry and Yoakum Counties near Lubbock. This provides a refuge for the threatened lesser prairie chicken and other native grassland birds and wildlife. It’s the first new WMA in Texas since the 2006 donation of the McGillivray and Leona McKie Muse Wildlife Management Area in Brown County.

Acquisition of land for the WMA was made possible through a partnership between The Nature Conservancy of Texas, The

Conservation Fund and Concho Resources, Inc., an oil and gas company operating in the Permian Basin of Texas and New Mexico. The company donated $400,000 to The Conservation Fund towards land acquisitions for the WMA. The donation leveraged $1.2 million in federal Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program funds.

“Conserving the lesser-prairie chicken all comes down to habitat, and the new Yoakum Dunes Wildlife Management Area will provide vital breeding and nesting habitat for the species in a critically important part of its range” said Ross Melinchuk, TPWD deputy executive director for natural resources.

“It would not have been possible without federal wildlife grant funds and support from private partners.”

Big Bags&Catches

BONNETHEAD SHARK

WHITETAIL

Port O’Connor

Gillespie County

In 2007, the Nature Conservancy of Texas began purchasing land that would become the Yoakum Dunes Preserve, using federal grant funds. The conservancy has acquired 10,635 acres, which the commission today approved to accept as a donation to Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

The department has acquired tracts totaling 3,402 acres contiguous with the TNC holdings. Today’s commission vote clears the way for the conservancy to transfer its holdings to TPWD in order to establish the Yoakum Dunes Wildlife Management Area.

The primary impetus for the WMA is conservation of the lesser prairie chicken, whose historic shinnery oak/midgrass prairie habitat has been fragmented by agriculture, oil and gas development, and other land uses. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service listed the bird as threatened under the federal Endangered

Travis Donnaud with the first big buck he has ever taken. It was taken on the Grobe Ranch in Gillespie County. The buck scored 151 3/8. It was a main frame 8 point with 4 kickers.

Seven-year-old Derrick Crumley of San Antonio caught this 44-inch bonnethead shark whild fishing with his family in Port O’Connor. It was his “biggest shark ever.”

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Species Act in May, 2014.

Besides the prairie-chicken, the new WMA will also provide important habitat for a wide range of indigenous wildlife, including Texas horned lizards, quail and mule deer.

The partners emphasized that although the new WMA is a major achievement, private landowner conservation is essential to recover the lesser prairie chicken. TPWD and four other states within the bird’s range are cooperating in a range-wide plan led by the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, which provides funding and incentives for private ranchers and other landowners to conserve habitat.

It will take a few months to complete the land transfer from TNC to TPWD and create the new WMA. In June, Brandon Childers, formerly at Black Gap WMA, started work as the new biologist and WMA manager at Yoakum Dunes.

For the next year or two, he will lead department efforts to complete baseline surveys to assess natural and cultural resources, begin habitat management practices such as brush control and water improvements to benefit the lesser prairie-chicken and other grassland wildlife, and plan public use opportunities on the WMA.

ALLIGATOR GAR San Bernard River Emery Johnson, 13, and Brandon Carriere, 11, worked together to land this 53-inch alligator gar at their family camp on the San Bernard River. Their “Pa” Carriere is holding the gar.

In coming years the agency plans to offer public recreational use of the WMA, including hunting, birding and other compatible recreation. However, decisions about what degree and how much of the WMA may be open to the public won’t be possible until after on-site resources are fully assessed.

A&M Study Examines State Park Economics THE TEXAS STATE PARK SYSTEM’S more than 90 sites have a significant economic impact on the state’s economy, generating $774 million in retail sales annually, contributing $351 million in economic benefits and creating 5,800 jobs statewide.

Those were just part of the findings of a recent Texas A&M University study shared with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission today.

The commission was briefed on the results of a survey of park visitors and their spending habits conducted between March and June of this year by a team led by Dr. John Crompton, a distinguished A&M professor in the Recreation, Parks and Tourism Sciences Department.

According to Dr. Crompton, Texas state parks not only provide conservation, recreational and health benefits, but also greatly contribute to the economies of communities throughout Texas, far exceeding the state’s expenditures to operate these sites.

“The take-away message from this study,” Dr. Crompton says, “should be that the state park system is an important contributor to the Texas economy, particularly in rural areas and that the state’s net investment in parks is returned many times over as visitors travel to enjoy the outdoors and leave their dollars behind.”

To generate data for the study, almost 14,000 visitors at 30 state parks were polled between March and June of 2014 about their spending on fees, groceries, restaurant meals and equipment during their travel to the park and in close proximity to the park.

The results were then extrapolated to apply to 60 additional parks, using strict study methodology.

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made by park visitors result in greater wealth and employment in communities located near state parks.

For example, spending by Bastrop State Park visitors added nearly $1.7 million to the Bastrop County economy and led to the creation of 35.6 jobs. Similarly, in the Panhandle, Palo Duro Canyon visitors added more than $3.7 million to the coffers of Armstrong and Randall counties that supported 86 jobs in the local area.

Even remote Big Bend Ranch State Park in far West Texas contributed significant economic benefits to Presidio County by adding $1.9 million in sales and roughly 27 jobs.

Texas State Parks Director Brent Leisure says the A&M findings confirm the ongoing value of the Texas State Park system.

“We’ve long known that state parks are places that preserve the best of our state’s scenic wonders, historic sites and recreational venues,” Leisure said. “This report shows that park visitors not only take home wonderful memories and enriched lives, but that the dollars they leave behind lead to jobs and higher incomes in local communities.”

The study further revealed that state park spending increased all Texans’ income by $202 million and generated 5,871 jobs paying an average annual salary of $34,000.

Local economic impacts varied by park, depending on the number of visitors and their spending habits. Some of the findings: BALMORHEA — $2.3 million in value added; 50.3 jobs.

CEDAR HILL — $3.1 million in value added; 41.7 jobs.

GARNER — $6.9 million in value added; 16.1 jobs.

MCKINNEY FALLS — $883,146 in value added; 16.1 jobs.

PEDERNALES FALLS — $1.7 million in value added; 41.1 jobs.

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Doggett at Large

by Joe Doggett | TF&G Senior Contributing Editor

Catching the Exotic Fever

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ANUARY AND FEBRUARY ARE GREAT months to target exotics in Texas. It’s still “huntin’ weather” and, worth noting, no closed seasons are in effect for non-native big-game animals.

At least a half-dozen legitimate exotic options are available in various regions across the state. By “legitimate,” I mean these are imports that have adapted well to native habitat. All have flourished in the Lone Star State for decades. These hunts can be as sporting and challenging as any for whitetails maybe more so.

Here are my Top Three picks:

AOUDAD SHEEP

The aoudad is native to the Barbary Coast of North Africa. It was introduced in Texas during the early 1950s, and the rough, arid mountains of the Panhandle and West Texas proved ideal for this burly sheep.

The tawny ram is an impressive trophy with heavy down-curving horns and flowing “chaps” on the forequarters. A mature ram with keg-like body, might weigh 250 pounds and carry horns in excess of 30 inches.

Free-ranging aoudads are, frankly, wary as hell. They cling to the roughest back canyons and ridges and spook easily. You don’t just walk up on them in a barnyard. More likely, you will exhaust yourself crawling over ridges and rimrocks spiked with yucca, pear, and lechuguilla. Any shot inside 200 yards must be regarded as a date with Lady Luck.

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canyon and faced a windmill waterhole.

Two mature rams bolted up the side of the ridge. I couldn’t tell which was larger, but they both looked big and the lower one offered the best chance. I ran to the windmill and braced the 7mm Remington Magnum against the frame and fired as the sheep angled up the rocks.

The 160-grain bullet smacked the shoulder at about 150 yards. The ram staggered as his buddy topped the ridge. I fired again and the sheep fell, rolling and sliding about halfway down the slope. It was a grand trophy, an old brute with heavy 30 and 31-inch horns.

I still have that shoulder mount and it looks very nice, very rugged, and very wild.

I am proud of that hunt, and I am proud of that shot seeing as how I’ve been known to miss stationary game at similar distances.

AXIS DEER

The axis deer, or chital, was imported to Texas from India during the 1930s. It has been a remarkable success story, especially in the Hill Country. The axis deer is the most abundant exotic ungulate in the state.

It thrives free-ranging in approximately 30 counties, no doubt having taken advantage of careless gate handlers and fence-flattening flood waters.

Like whitetails, axis deer are “edge” animals, and the rocky, broken mix of hardwoods and brush and hill tops and creek bottoms of Central Texas provides excellent habitat. Never mind India the chital now belongs here.

A mature buck is a handsome rascal, with fawn-spotted hide and long, sweeping antlers. The typical configuration is a sixby-six - but what a “six-point!” Good main beams tape at least 30 inches and racks in the mid-30s are not unusual. Wide spread and long, curving points add to the aura.

A mature axis buck weighs about 150 pounds, significantly larger than most Hill Country whitetails, and the venison is superior sweeter on most palates than the native deer.

Most axis deer are hunted from box

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blinds, although a spot-and-stalk campaign certainly is possible probably frustrating, but possible. I’ve killed several axis bucks but nothing really exceptional. My largest, about 31 inches, was shot with a .270 Winchester whitetail-style from a blind, but the one I remember most was taken on foot.

I wanted to take a real monster but it never happened. One problem with hunting axis deer in winter is that many of the mature bucks are in velvet. Spring (the rutting period for axis) provides the best odds for hard antlers on the majority of studs in a herd.

I’ve passed on several heavyweights in velvet while selecting lesser bucks with polished antlers. That’s just my choice; either way, it’s a rewarding hunt and extremely exciting to see those high beams slipping through the shadows.

NILGAI ANTELOPE

The “blue bull” is another import from India, this time by the King Ranch during the 1920s. The attempts to raise them for market failed, as they were too wild, but they took to the lower coastal prairie and thrived in free-ranging populations on the big ranches between Corpus Christi and Port Mansfield. The population continues to drift west, but nilgais seem to favor the sandy soil of the coastal belt.

They are large animals. A mature bull might weigh 600 pounds. Well, 500 anyway. The brute is dark, almost blue-black, while the cow is reddish-tan and much smaller. No mistaking the two which is just as well since the bull’s horns don’t show you much. A world-class nilgai sports piddly 10-inch spikes.

Also, it has a head like a horse a trophy in dire need of a PR agent.

What the nilgai lacks in wall-hanger image, it makes up for in substance as an outstanding game animal. It’s also the finest eating of any big game in Texas maybe anywhere. Lean, mild “nilgai burgers” are a celebrated lunch on many leases and ranches in the region.

To repeat, nilgai are plenty game. They rely heavily on keen eyesight in the flat

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country, and gallop away at the Doggett took this free-rangsight of a distant “high rack” ing Aoudad ram years ago in vehicle. And they can run a west Texas. long way.

I’ve killed one big bull. This was on a 50,000-acre lease near Mansfield. Nilgai are built low in the hindquarters and cannot jump for squat.

A spooked herd was running parallel to a three-strand fence that a yearling whitetail could have sailed over with ease and elegance.

I swung a .300 Weatherby Magnum and hit the trailing bull broadside at about 100 yards. The 180-grain bullet struck high, a bit far back, and the bull did a flip, crashing in a spectacular cloud of dust.

It sprang up and, naturally, I panicked (To validate this story, I just took a break and missed clean with the second shot. The to measure the horn plaque 9 2/8 inches and magnum caliber only holds three rounds; I 9 1/8 inches. Scoff if you will, but that’s a settled down and whacked the staggered bull solid nilgai. If the blue bull had great spiralwith the final shot. ing horns like the kudu of southern Africa,

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you would never be able to book a hunt.)

But this is more about the measuring tape. Under proper circumstances, many exotics can offer excellent hunting experiences. The three I’ve highlighted are my top choices. Well, maybe.

The aoudad is going to stay there but I might swap the nilgai or the axis for the blackbuck antelope another huge success story in Texas.

The best advice I can offer about shooting at a worldclass blackbuck standing broadside at 200 yards is: don’t over-estimate the range.

The blackbuck is much smaller than it looks. Trust me on this.

Email Joe Doggett at ContactUs@fishgame.com

12/10/14 2:16 PM

Pike on the Edge

by Doug Pike | TF&G Senior Contributing Editor

It’s Not Easy Being Green

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ONE OF US WANTS TO BE RESPONSIBLE for killing the last of any species on the planet—at least nobody I know. But the price of protecting everything forevermore under current guidelines is ridiculous.

I consider myself a conservationist, which I define as being conscious of my impact on the environment and careful to cause as little impact as possible. I want lush woods full of wildlife, blue sky black with birds and clear water filthy with fish.

What I don’t want is to carry or have anyone else attempt to carry the impossible burden of

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saving every species into eternity.

Earth has swallowed species since time began and will continue to do so no matter how we vigorously we try to sweep the sand off the beach. We (not I), but some people, want to blame our own recent ancestors somehow for the disappearance of any number of plants and animals as if, had we zigged instead of zagged, those species might still be here.

They may have hung on for a few more years, a decade, maybe even a century; but the weak never survive and never will. No amount of technology or sympathy or money is going to change that.

During the past year or so, three stories have emerged that illustrate the silliness of fancying ourselves the at-any-cost saviors of all creatures great and small.

In San Antonio a few years ago, roughly

$1 million went into an underpass project that would have loosened snarled traffic in a busy part of the city, somebody found a Bracken Bat Cave spider in an exposed cave at the construction site. Turns out, that little spider is federally protected, and its federal protectors shut down the work.

That entire project, estimated at roughly $11 million dollars, ground to a halt over one spider the size of a dime or maybe a nickel. I can’t recall and don’t care.

Want to guess, in a release issued this year, what was decided as the best course of action?

Build the underpass with an eye out for more spiders? Move the underpass left or right so as not to disturb the spider’s known habitat?

No, and no. Instead, the plan now is to erect an overpass instead. Current-day bid on that overpass? around $40 million. That’s tax

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dollars, by the way. Maybe the people who care so much about that spider should pick up the difference.

It gets better. Same city. In 2013, $11 million worth of water pipeline construction there also was shut down for the same kind of spider.

They’ve found two. No word on whether one is male and the other female, which might just solve the whole situation or not.

We’re not the only ones blowing that loony whistle, either. In November, demolition plans for parts of the old San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge were still being held up by 800 or so cormorants that live beneath the unused structure, which was replaced recently by a $6.5 billion beauty of a bridge.

There have been efforts to relocate or remove the birds, but none has worked. Why would they move? The birds have lived there for decades. But the span must come down and the birds, ultimately, must relocate.

If they’re not gone by nesting season this spring, when eggs probably will appear in those nests, their presence would cause further delay at higher expense. Already, the estimated cost of this cormorant eviction is at least $30 million

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and maybe as much as 10 percent more. That’s close to $40,000 apiece for birds that remain protected despite being no longer threatened or endangered.

Bay-area engineers are scared to take on local environmental fanatics over the cormorants, too, noting that many people in the area see humans as the invaders and animals as having rights that supersede ours. I don’t see it quite that way.

Until there are no more starving children, no more sick children, no more unemployed among people who really want to work, until politicians abide by the same laws they impose upon us that’s our fault for electing them and until ignorant people quit blaming guns for the illegal behavior of bad people…

I could ride this train for days. Until all that, at least, let’s not spend $40 million to save a spider or $30 million to save a bunch of nasty, fishery-depleting cormorants.

I acknowledge our tremendous responsibility to the planet and what lives on it, but here’s an undisputable fact. As its overwhelmingly dominant species at least for the next few thousand years, the needs of our growing population are

going to leave what some will call “damage” and others “progress” in their wake.

Attempting to save species reduced already to the verge of extinction, we’re trying to change the fundamental working of a planet that’s been here a long, long, long, long time. Of course, that won’t happen.

In Hawaii now, as a timely example, a stream of molten lava is creeping down a mountainside every hour of every day. Homes have been destroyed. Trees, plants, and even some animals have been incinerated by the fiery ooze as it slips seaward.

But nobody’s trying to stop it, because it can’t be stopped. The lava will cover what it covers. Nature wins. Always will.

We should do what we can to extend the stay of weaker species, but not at the expense of people or human health. We must appreciate what we have today, in the moment. No matter how many bridges or overpasses we build, they could be gone tomorrow. Ask those Hawaiians.

Email Doug Pike at ContactUs@fishgame.com

12/10/14 2:23 PM

Ted’s TexasWild

by Ted Nugent | TF&G Editor-at-Large

Variety is the Spice of My Life

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HEN I STARTED BOWHUNTING with my dad, way, way back in the 1950s, we were fumbling around pretty good in this fascinating rebirth of close-range stick and string predatorship. Why, with the ballistic advancements of Roy Weatherby and the gung-ho wildcatters developing amazingly efficient ammo and rifles to reach way out there to kill big game, why on earth would anyone want to so severely handicap ourselves and attempt the near impossible to penetrate the nearly impenetrable red alert danger zone of game we could easily kill from afar?

Why indeed.

What Fred Bear had so profoundly promoted and marketed was the human instinct to seek extreme challenge. Of course putting a bullet in the vitals of a deer or elk beyond 200, 300, 500 plus yards is certainly a serious sporting marksmanship challenge by anyone’s measurement, but there is something primal and freaky about out-maneuvering prey animals’ ears, eyes, noses and 6th sense of escape in order to get within 20, even 10 yards with the bow and arrow.

Such complete dedication to stealth will either drive you completely bonkers or make you the happiest backstrapper in the land. I spent many, many years as a fulltime resident of Bonkersville, I assure you.

Back then, as I believe to a great degree even to this day, all young boys got a Daisy Red Ryder BB rifle, a Whammo slingshot and a bow and arrow. These days, more and more young girls are now part of this wonderful ritual.

My entire youth from my earliest and fondest recollections, centered around rotating

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these three magical projectile implements for the ultimate fun a kid could imagine.

Back in Detroit, I was put in charge of English sparrow and starling control in our cinderblock garage, and I had to be forced away from my “poop patrol” duties to function as a student and family member. I simply could not get enough shooting in to soothe the little savage Nuge.

The mighty Rouge River snaked through the riverine habitat across the street, and to my young imagination, it may have well of been the jungles of Africa. I played very little baseball, basketball, hockey, football or any other athletic sports, for I literally lived in the woods.

My fascination with wildlife and the stalking adventure owned me. I killed lots of critters with well-placed pebbles from my slingshot, plenty of birds and squirrels with the BB gun, but it was the mystical flight of the arrow that mesmerized me from day one. I believe I still hold the world record for most river rats.

Sixty-five years later now, I am oh so very happy to report that little has changed in my never ending pursuit of happiness. Much of the game I hunt has gotten bigger and better, but the sheer joy of the pursuit is much like that of my pure, uninhibited youth. And of course I don’t shoot robins anymore.

I know that 95+% of my hunting on Ted Nugent Spirit of the Wild TV on Outdoor Channel is with the bow and arrow, and God knows I absolutely love every minute of it.

But my wonderful Labrador retrievers and I still thrill at wingshooting and waterfowling and small game as often as possible, and I shoot rifles, machineguns, shotguns and handguns constantly.

One of our most popular segments on Spirit of the Wild is Uncle Ted’s Favorite Guns, as I try out many of my various firearms.

The grand family tradition of Opening Day firearm’s deerseason in Michigan with my sniper 12 gauge is more exciting for me than Christmas, New Years and my birthday combined. I kill a lot of game with my 10mm and other handguns, varmint hunt year round with various firearms and calibers, and literally celebrate hunt, fish, trap, shoot all year long.

My favorite hunting of all is the strategic

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ambush where I scout like a madman to determine the best place to kill a deer undetected.

Stand placement is a predator science that intrigues me no end.

But I also still hunt, stalk, wander and even do some longrange sniper work on game and varmints.

I love scoped rifles and handguns, but prefer open sights when I gun hunt. I have done my share of black powder hunting but find the cleanup procedure to be less than enjoyable.

I love my Excalibur crossbow and am working diligently to regain my Robin Hood accuracy with some of my beloved longbows and recurves.

I also run a year round trapline, and no doubt trapping is also one of my favorite forms of hunting. Not only does it teach you the ultimate knowledge of wildlife, but the furs are stunning and the lessons learned on a trapline will certainly make you a better hunter real quick.

And of course trapping fawn and small game killing vermin is the ultimate conservation balancing act known to man.

The Nugent family eats lots of fresh fish, and we get after the bream pretty hard in spring and summer and occasionally fall and winter when we can.

Then there is the most intense shooting fun known to mankind when we saddle up helicopters with my full auto M4 and work on the overpopulated hog epidemic in Texas. There is a very real distinct possibility that I actually have too much fun in the helicopter.

A little this and a little that is what keeps me bright eyed and bushytailed when it comes to my love of the great outdoors. Give it a shot and go beyond your sporting paradigm and see how much some different methodologies will do for your fun factor this season.

Some things come relatively easy, and some are very difficult to master. But if an old guitar player from Detroit can do, certainly anyone can. And should!

Contact Ted Nugent at TNugent@fishgame.com

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12/8/14 1:46 PM

Commentary

by Kendal Hemphill | TF&G Political Commentator

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E STOOD AND LOOKED AT THE DEER, Paden and I, and blew white, smoky breaths into the frosty morning air. It was a nice doe, and Paden had made a good shot. It fell where it stood. Although I had tried to encourage my boys to shoot for the heart, they had all decided the neck was a better target, as long as the deer wasn’t too far away. It cut down on trailing time.

Paden glanced at me from the corner of his eye, looked around like he might have heard something, and looked back at the deer. He said, “Well.” I didn’t say anything.

This was not Paden’s first deer. He had killed one before, and I had field dressed it.

As with all the boys, I told them I would do their first one, and it was their responsibility after that. A boy has to learn these things sometime. Now was Paden’s sometime, and he knew it. He wasn’t exactly looking forward to it.

Leret walked up then, rifle over his shoulder, and looked down at the deer. The younger brother, who hadn’t shot that morning, and therefore was now a spectator. Leret has a way of cutting to the chase. He looked at the deer, and looked at Paden, and said, “She’s not gonna gut herself.”

I said, “Paden, I’ll do it if you want me to.” Field dressing a deer is one of those things that is about as difficult as tying your shoes, if you’ve done it a lot. And I’ve done it a lot. Deer hunting has been one of my favorite activities most of my life. And they never gut themselves.

If you’ve never done it, field dressing a deer is a somewhat daunting task. Paden had watched me do it several times, and he knew

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The focus should be on why such adventures are important to the student...

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Junior Writing Contest

what to do sort of in theory. But theory is always different from practice.

“No, I’ll do it,” Paden said. He got out his knife and walked around the deer, ending up at the stern and said, “You start back here, right?”

Leret, ever helpful, made a snide remark or two I can’t recall, which is probably for the best. Brothers can always, without fail, count on one another. When one of them is down, the others will pile on top if at all possible.

With two older brothers, Leret had been on the bottom of the pile plenty of times. He

wasn’t about to pass up a chance to be on top.

Paden finally began the onerous task, with Leret and me “helping.” Leret mainly offered free, unsolicited advice of questionable validity and dubious accuracy, while holding one hind leg out of the way. I tried to make the job sound as easy and casual as I could, but no normal person enjoys cutting open a large animal and messing around in there. At least, no normal person should enjoy it.

It took Paden a lot longer to field dress his doe than it would have taken me, but then, I usually don’t have a little brother taking full advantage of every perceived mistake, and telling me to hurry up.

Paden did fine. And he will never again have to field dress his first deer. That’s the thing about stuff like that—the first time never happens again.

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If you have a child who enjoys outdoor pursuits, please encourage him or her to enter this year’s Junior Outdoor Journalist Adventure Story Writing Competition. The contest is a collaboration between the Texas Outdoor Writers Association and Dallas Safari Club.

The competition is open to any junior high and high school student in Texas who wants to participate. The first place winner in each division receives a laptop computer, second prize is $100, and third prize is $25.

Categories are divided between high school (grades 9-12) and middle school (grades 6-8).

Students are encouraged to write an essay, up to 500 words, about an outdoor experience they’ve had. It can be a story about hunting, fishing, camping, rock climbing, bird watching, canoeing, or anything else related to the outdoors.

The focus should be on why such adventures are important to the student in particular or young people in general, and a conservation message is encouraged. The essay doesn’t have to be about field dressing a deer for the first time, although I’m sure there are some kids whose memory of that event is fresh enough to make a great story.

The deadline (no pun intended) for entry is January 31, 2015. Texas teachers are encouraged to have students write their essays in school if they like, and can then send them in as a group, but all entries will be judged individually.

The greatest responsibilities we have, as Texas outdoor people, is to leave our state in a better condition than we found it, and to pass on our outdoor heritage to the next generation. Getting kids involved in the outdoors may seem to be a daunting task at first, but it’s one of the most rewarding experiences in life.

As long as you can keep brothers separated.

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Email Kendal Hemphill at ContactUs@fishgame.com

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12/8/14 1:42 PM

Can Texas Catch California in the Bass Race? Story by Matt Williams 20 |

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COMPOSITE GRAPHIC: TF&G

12/8/14 3:13 PM

IT IS NO SECRET THAT TEXAS IS HOME TO some of the nation’s premier destinations for tangling with double digit largemouths.

Sort of like it is no secret that the lakes in this part of the world have kicked out a small army of giants, some with bellies so fat that Santa might not be able to stuff them in his fluffy red bag of goodies.

The proof is right there in the puddin’. To wit: The Texas Top 50 list begins with a state record of 18.18 pounds and ends with a 15.38 pounder.

Sandwiched in between are more than two dozen 15 pounders, 20 fish upward of 16 pounds and five others in excess of 17 pounds.

Even more convincing evidence can be found in the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s ShareLunker archives.

Currently sponsored by Toyota, the 28-year-old program seeks donations of Texas-caught bass weighing 13 pounds or more for spawning and genetics research aimed at producing bigger and better bass to catch. All total, the program has taken in 557 entries from 65 different public lakes and more than a dozen private lakes since its inception in 1987.

As impressive as all those numbers are, they tell a different story when you dig a little deeper, put a timeline on things and bring California into the equation.

Early on, there was some speculation that Texas might one day challenge The Golden State for the king of hill as the nation’s top producer of mega-size bass, but thus far it hasn’t happened. In fact, it hasn’t even come close.

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Lakes in southern California have produced 20 of the 25 heaviest bass ever caught in the world, including nine fish in excess of 20 pounds, according to the Bassmaster Top 25 list.

For various reasons, the list doesn’t recognize several other California bass verified to weigh upwards of 20 pounds, including a 25.1 pound giant caught off a spawning bed at Dixon Lake in 2006 by Mac Weakley. The Weakley bass would have easily claimed the world record title had the angler not inadvertently foul hooked it, thus making it ineligible for the record books.

Here in Texas, the mega-bass train isn’t running near as well as it used to. In fact, it appears to have run out of gas.

The state record caught from Lake Fork in January of 1992 has been stuck in place for 22 years with no serious challengers. In fact, the last time anyone cracked the Texas Top 10 fish was in 1997, when a 16.9 pounder was caught at Sam Rayburn.

As much as I’d like to say Texas might one day surpass California as “the place” to go gunning for a 20 pounder, I just can’t reach that far. That’s not to say there isn’t a 20-pounder finning around out in Toledo Bend, Fork or Falcon right now. Or that somebody might not catch one out of a private lake tomorrow. But as far Texas producing fish that size in large numbers, it’s probably not going to happen.

Even with another perfect storm.

We’ve already seen three perfect storms come and go in Texas―one at Lake Fork, one at Lake Falcon and another at Lake Amistad. Even so, nothing bigger than an 18.18 pounder caught by crappie fisherman Barry St. Clair has been reported, despite all the technological advancements we’ve seen in electronics and other fishing related equipment during the last decade.

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So, what is it that seems to have given California the leg up on Texas when it comes to producing largemouths in the super heavyweight class?

If you guessed that it probably has something to do with biology, you probably guessed right. To get some scientific answers, I looked to Craig Bonds, Inland Fisheries Region 3 Director with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. In his opinion, there are three key factors to look at: Climate, trophic state (based on water fertility) and prey bases.

CLIMATE: According to Bonds, the mild coastal climate that has lured millions of people to southern California is also conducive for the genetically superior Florida bass stocked in those waters to reach maximum size.

“Although Texas’s climate swings between extremes, Southern California offers more days within that perfect growing temperature for Florida bass,” he said. “You’d think the long growing season in Texas would be perfect, and to some extent it does favor Florida bass. However, the Texas summers can get so hot that fish metabolism increases to a point that, bio-energetically, they have to consume an enormous caloric intake to continue gaining weight when water temperatures exceed the upper 80s.

Remember, consuming calories requires expending energy, too. Also, the higher the water temperature, the more energy is expended by fish even at rest. Southern California’s year-round climate keeps water temperatures in that ideal range for growth.”

TROPHIC STATE: One thing Texas’s best bass lakes have in common is good water quality, rich in nutrients necessary to maintain good game fish and forage populations. The downside to this is it causes oxygen levels in cooler, deeper water to deplete during summer as our reservoirs stratify.

“This keeps fish in the warm upper layer,” Bonds explained. “In Southern California, the lakes are less fertile and have clearer water. This allows the deeper, cooler water to maintain oxygen. As predator fish age, their preferred temperature range can shift slightly toward cooler water. Deeper, cooler water is habitable by fish in Southern California.”

PREY BASES: As a rule, Bonds says, less fertile water results in less prey to support bass. “However, several of those southern California lakes support what biologists 22 |

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call two-story fisheries a warm-water fishery (bass) up top and a cool-water fishery (trout) down below,” Bonds said. “A bass is limited by its mouth gape to the size of prey it can swallow. A trout is a long, cylindrical-shaped fish with no spines. It is the perfect “protein pill” for a trophy bass.

Newly stocked hatchery trout are generally naïve about predators. Bass can capture them easily, digest them easily and occupy ideal water temperatures from a bioenergetics standpoint, meaning high energy intake with little energy expenditure while active and at rest.”

Bonds said he feels certain that routine trout stockings in select impoundments in southern California have played a key role in trophy bass production.

“I don’t think this is the sole reason, but it is part of the formula,” he said. “We have several small impoundments in Texas that receive winter trout stockings. In my opinion, it is more than coincidence that many of these tiny waters also produce large bass.

“Think about why striped bass grow much larger in the Canyon Lake tailrace than in the upstream reservoir,” he added. “The ideal summer habitat combination of cool water and dissolved oxygen is largely absent in the depths of the reservoir in summer.

There, adult striped bass have to choose between occupying warmer water than preferred where oxygen and prey reside (and pay huge energetic costs) or choose their desired cool water, but suffer from low dissolved oxygen and lack of prey.

In the tailrace, cooler water exists. Plus, it is oxygenated, and it supports trout yearround. This equals optimum striped bass growth conditions. The southern California lakes compared to Texas reservoirs is not a perfect analogy, but it is close enough to help picture how fish bio-energetics works.”

All things considered, Bonds says he thinks is possible for Texas to crack the 20-pound barrier, but things are going to have to set up just right for it to happen. In other words, it’s going to take another perfect storm.

“Lake Fork nearly did during its “newlake-boom” period in the late 80s to mid90s,” Bonds said. “That was the perfect storm of fertile water, great habitat, good fish genetics, and prey.

Those fish stocked in pre-impoundments and the initial year classes had little competition for unlimited prey at first. It may take a new-lake effect to put together the right combination of habitat, genetics, and prey, again. This can happen in one of our existing lakes like Falcon, Choke Canyon, O.H. Ivie, etc, or in a new reservoir like Lake Naconiche within the next five years.

“Lake Fork has been at least three feet below conservation pool since 2010,” Bonds added. “Although this isn’t as drastic as what we see in South and West Texas, terrestrial and semi-aquatic plants have grown up in the exposed shore areas. We’ve been working with the Lake Fork Sportsman’s Association to plant button bushes in this zone. When Lake Fork eventually fills back up, get ready for a phenomenal stretch of fishing to ensue for several years.”

BASSMASTER: TOP 25 BASS CAUGHT Bonds also pointed to the selecRANK WEIGHT ANGLER LOCATION DATE tive breeding techniques utilized in 1a* 22.3106 Kurita, Manabu Biwa Lake, Japan Jul 2, 2009 1b* 22.25 Perry, George W. Montgomery Lake, Georgia Jun 2, 1932 the ShareLunker program as tools 3 22.01 Crupi, Robert J. Castaic Lake, California Mar 12, 1991 that might help Texas bust the 20 4 21.75 Arujo, Michael Castaic Lake, California Mar 5, 1991 pound threshold.

5 21.6875 Dickerson, Jed Dixon Lake, California May 31, 2003 6 21.2 Easley, Raymond D. Casitas Lake, California Mar 4, 1980 “This will pay dividends down 7 21.01 Crupi, Robert J. Castaic Lake, California Mar 9, 1990 the road,” he added. “It just takes 8 20.9375 Zimmerlee, Dave Miramar Lake, California Jun 23, 1973 time for these generations to con9 20.86 Torres, Leo Castaic Lake, California Feb 4, 1990 10 20.75 Long, Mike Dixon Lake, California Apr 27, 2001 centrate the right combinations of 11 20.25 Dupras, Gene Hodges Lake, California May 30, 1985 growth genes to become evident in 12 20.125 Friebel, Fritz Big Fish Lake, Florida May 19, 1923 successive generations. Remember, 13 19.70 Coniglio, George Mission Viejo Lake, California Mar 21, 2006 14 19.50 Balloid, Mark Castaic Lake, California May 28, 1990 we’re not experimenting with fruit 14 19.50 Crabtree, Randy Casitas Lake, California Apr 9, 2002 flies in a one-semester genetics 14 19.50 Gunsauls, Keith Miramar Lake, California Feb 29, 1988 class. We’re dealing with an ani17 19.4375 Weakley, Mac Dixon Lake, California May 20, 2003 18 19.25 Brant, Chris Miramar Lake, California Mar 22, 1998 mal that requires a good 10-plus 19 19.1875 Beasley, Steve Wohlford Lake, California Feb 3, 1986 years to reach 13 pounds. It may 19 19.1875 Hanline, Arden Charles Morena Lake, California Feb 17, 1987 take another half-decade to reach 21 19.15 Shimada, Kazuya Ikehara Lake, Japan Apr 22, 2003 22 19.0625 DeFresco, Sandra W. Miramar Lake, California Mar 14, 1988 20 pounds.”

23 19.04 Kadota, Dan T. Castaic Lake, California Jan 8, 1989 24 19.0313 Kerns, Larry Success Lake, California Jan 27, 2001 25 19.OO Witt, Riley Tarpon Lake, Florida Jun 26, 1961 *A tie, due to International Game Fish Assoc. (IGFA) 2-ounce rule for fish under 25 pounds.

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12/8/14 3:13 PM

Also Available at Amazon.com

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9/24/14 5:41 PM

Texas Freshwater

by Matt Williams | TF&G Freshwater Editor

Great Expectations

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’VE HEARD SOME FUNNY STORIES FROM fishing guides over the years, many of them linked to inexperienced customers who show up at the boat ramp bright and early with huge aspirations of catching the biggest bass in the lake carrying fishing gear better suited for bluegills and rainbows than a thick-shouldered largemouth.

One of the most meaningful goes back to the early 1990s, the height of big bass mania at Lake Fork. The 27,000-acre impoundment near Quitman was spitting out gobs of 8-10 pound bass at the time, and anglers from all over the world were flocking there in droves with high hopes of reeling in a fat fish worth bragging about.

Veteran fishing guide Hollice Joiner was readying his rig for the day when his client approached from his blind side and began introducing himself. When Joiner turned to greet him, he immediately knew it was going to be one of “those days.”

To hear Joiner tell it, the guy talked a good line, but he certainly didn’t have the equipment to back it up. He had a tackle bag in one hand and a fly rod in the other.

Never one to talk down to folks, Joiner politely asked the man what he intended to do with the fly rod.

“I wanna’ catch a 10 pounder,” he said.

A quiet man with dry sense of humor, Joiner pointed to the thick jungle of timberfilled water that was Lake Fork at the time.

He looked at his client with an impish grin and offered a response that was straight to the point.

“If you want to catch a 10 pounder in this lake you had better leave that flyswatter in the truck,” he chuckled. “You can play with these

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fish when you get them in the boat.”

I’m not sure whether the ambitious angler was successful in his quest to catch a career bass or not. But that’s beside the point.

A bass that grows beyond seven pounds is an entirely different animal than a threepounder. Not only is a fish in this class bigger, meaner and much stronger, but it also plays by an entirely different set of rules when you poke a sharp hook in their mouth. Think bullin-the-china-cabinet, and you’ll get the idea.

While January isn’t the premier month for catching big bass in Texas, there is no time like present for a crash course in preparation for the months ahead. Here are few big bass tips gleaned from more than 25 years of bass fishing with some of the nation’s top pro anglers and fishing guides: • FISH DURING FOUL WEATHER: There is something about nasty weather that puts big bass in the mood to play. Days with a high wind and cloud cover are especially good. Days with snow or sleet can be even better. The days that are most conducive for comfortable fishing are not necessarily the days when big fish bite the best.

• THE RIGHT MINDSET: Anybody can get lucky and catch a big bass once. But to do it with consistency you have to find the right mindset and stay there. Perhaps Lake Fork guide and former state record holder Mark Stevenson summarized it best.

“Realize that if you are fishing big fish water, you aren’t going to get as many bites. Don’t get discouraged. Fishing for big fish is a lonely game, but it can be really rewarding if you don’t mind putting in the time.”

• FISH BIG FISH BAITS: Big bass

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are fat and lazy opportunistic feeders. They had rather gobble up a few big meals over the course of a day rather than chase down a bunch of little ones. Although little baits will catch big bass from time to time, larger baits such as jigs, swim baits, spinnerbaits, big bill crank baits, worms, lizards and buzz baits will do it more often.

• GEAR FOR THE OCCASION: If you are fishing a lake known for producing big fish, use tackle that is suited for the chore.

Rods and reels should be of decent quality.

Line, hooks and other terminal tackle should be the best you can afford.

• FISH WHERE THEY LIVE: Big bass like to hang tight to some type of cover; often times, the thicker the better. Areas with heavy brush or grass are a plus, especially if the cover is located where shallow water meets with deep.

• BE A LINE CHECKER: Monofilament and fluorocarbon fishing lines undergo a tremendous amount of abuse out there. Line that rubs on rocks, limbs and other debris can nick or fray, thus creating weak spots that can result in premature breakage. Always check your line three to four feet above your hook for rough spots. It is also a good idea to retie knots periodically. One of the best all-around knots you can tie is the palomar.

• STAY QUIET: Big bass don’t get big by being stupid. When fishing an area known to produce big fish, try to avoid bumping and banging around in the boat, slamming into stumps with the trolling motor and making other excessive noise. Some big bass gurus will go so far as to turn off their electronics to eliminate the pinging, pulsing noises created by the transducer.

Following these tips won’t guarantee the bite next time you go fishing, but it is sure to improve the odds.

Email Matt Williams at ContactUs@fishgame.com

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Destination Profile by TF&G Staff ANGLERS WANTING TO SCORE ON REDFISH AND SPECKLED TROUT have many options on the Middle Coast of Texas. With habitats varying from oyster beds to sea grass, the region offers diversity in habitat and bountiful fishing options in a variety of large and small bays.

Here are some of the most popular and productive waters, from near Port O’Connor to just north of Corpus Christi.

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mainly of the combined waters of the San Antonio and Guadalupe rivers, and is located at the mouth of the Guadalupe River, about 55 miles northeast of Corpus Christi and 130 miles southeast of San Antonio.

It is protected from the Gulf of Mexico

by Matagorda Island, leaving only relatively small and distant outlets to the Gulf

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for little mixing of bay and Gulf waters. The remoteness of the bay has kept it relatively undeveloped.

The Aransas National Wildlife Refuge is on the southwest portion of the bay. The diverse wildlife on these shores makes up for the lack of a sizable human settlement.

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SAN ANTONIO BAY

MESQUITE BAY

COPANO BAY

CEDAR BAYOU ROCKPORT-FULTON

ARANSAS BAY

Gulf of Mexico PORT ARANSAS

On average, the San Antonio Bay system is 6.6 feet deep, and covers approximately 205 square miles. The system is made up of the bay itself and its extensions. The main extensions include Espiritu Santo Bay, to the bay’s east; Hynes Bay, to the northwest; and Guadalupe Bay, due north.

Every second, approximately 31,000 gallons of water flows into the bay. The exchange with the Gulf of Mexico occurs at Cedar Bayou and Pass Cavallo.

There is very little seawater exchange, with most of the bay’s waters coming from the freshwater flows of the converged San Antonio and Guadalupe rivers. But don’t let that fool you.

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The fishing action for redfish and speckled trout can be quite dynamic here.

Mesquite Bay Mesquite Bay is west of St. Joseph Island, between Ayers Bay and Carlos Bay, principally in Aransas County. It may be entered from the Gulf of Mexico through Cedar Bayou, a cut between St. Joseph and Matagorda islands. The northeastern extremity of Mesquite Bay extends into Calhoun County.

Copano Bay Copano Bay is a northwestern extension of Aransas Bay, west of Rockport, Texas in

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Refugio and Aransas counties. It is supplied with seawater from the Gulf of Mexico via Aransas Bay, and fed fresh water from the Aransas River, Mission River and Copano Creek. As an estuary, the bay is home to a diverse ecosystem consisting of various birds, including the endangered whooping crane, and is a haven for speckled trout, flounder, black drum and redfish.

Copano Bay is approximately 12 by 6 miles, oriented from the southwest to the northeast. It is found mainly on undeveloped land, though ranches are located on parts of the west, south and north shores. The main extensions include Mission Bay, which stretches north to the mouth of the Mission MAP: BING

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The recently re-opened Cedar Bayou provides access between Mesquite Bay and the Gulf of Mexico and is considered a major improvement to the ecological health of the mid coast bay system and its fishing.

River and Port Bay to the west, which forms the southern boundary of the Live Oak peninsula.

The peninsula is located on the eastern shore of Copano Bay and is lined with beach homes and residences, which begin just west of the inlet Salt Lake to the head of Live Oak peninsula at the confluence of Copano and Aransas Bay. The Copano Bay Causeway and the Copano Bay Fishing Pier, which once served as the main crossing to the Lamar peninsula, span this opening.

The bay’s maximum depth is 9.8 feet, and in contrast to nearby Laguna Madre, is not hyper-saline. The Mission and Aransas rivers are the main freshwater sources. They are small rivers with deep banks that carve through a landscape lined with hardwood trees. At both mouths, marshes covering several square miles stretch from the confluences with Copano Bay and form several saline lakes.

Rockport-Fulton Rockport-Fulton is a thriving sport-fishing hub located on the central western shore of Aransas Bay, which connects Corpus Christi Bay on the south, Mesquite Bay on the north, and Copano Bay on the west.

From this shoreline perch, RockportFulton offers access to prime fishing for inshore species such as redfish, speckled trout, flounder, black drum and sheepshead.

As a major area commercial center, Rockport-Fulton also provides a great variPHOTO: CCA-TEXAS

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ety of options for lodging, dining, shopping and entertainment while fishing in the area.

Nearby is the 314-acre Goose Island State Park, bounded by the waters of the St. Charles, Copano, and Aransas bays.

Fishing opportunities include speckled trout, redfish, drum and flounder. Crabs and oysters are abundant as well. Developed campsites overlooking the bay or in a secluded, wooded area are available. Tent campsites are limited to the wooded area.

Additional facilities include a recreation hall, group camp, boat ramp, two playgrounds, and a lighted 1,620-foot-long fishing pier. One of the park’s notable features is the “Big Tree,” a magnificent 1,000-yearold coastal live oak whose trunk measures more than thirty-five feet in circumference.

Port Aransas/Aransas Bay Port Aransas is located on the northeast end of Mustang Island, 24 miles from Corpus Christi. It fronts Aransas Pass, the main outlet of Aransas Bay into the Gulf of Mexico.

Aransas Bay is separated from the Gulf of Mexico by San José Island (also referred to as St. Joseph Island). Aransas Pass is the most direct navigable outlet into the Gulf of Mexico from the Bay. The bay is oriented laterally northeastsouthwest, and is extended by Redfish Bay to the southwest, Copano Bay to the west, Saint Charles Bay to the north, and T E X A S

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Mesquite Bay to the northeast.

On average, the Aransas Bay system is nine feet deep, and covers approximately 208 square miles. The system is made up of the bay itself and its extensions. The main extensions include: Saint Charles Bay, to the east of the Lamar peninsula; Copano Bay, to the west of both the Live Oak and Lamar peninsulas, Mesquite Bay to the bay’s northeast, and Redfish Bay to the southwest. Redfish Bay is sometimes considered an extension of Corpus Christi Bay. This area has seen protective measures put in place for its valuable sea grass beds, which are the key to its high level of productivity for game fish. In certain areas designated by signs, anglers are not allowed to run their propellers. This measure has seen a comeback in sea grass in certain pressured areas as well as an increase in kayak fishing.

Port Aransas offers some of the finest offshore fishing in the state with deep water only a few miles from the jetties. Besides red snapper, tarpon and grouper anglers in this area frequently catch blue marlin, sailfish and wahoo.

If you would like detailed maps with GPS fishing hot spots on all of these systems make sure to pick up the latest copy of Texas Lakes & Bays available at Academy Sports + Outdoors and from the official TF&G online store, www.FishandGameGear.com.

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Texas Saltwater

by Calixto Gonzales | TF&G Saltwater Editor

S

O, NOW THAT YOU’VE READ MY December column, you want to have a hand at making your own lures.

Good. You’re gonna have a blast.

Before we continue, let me warn you.

You aren’t going to be churning out tackle shop-quality product right off the bat. There is a learning process involved at each step.

Even though the typical reader is not going to be anywhere near as ham-fisted as I am, but it will take a little practice to become as adept as you hope. (Somewhere in Heaven, my uncle the engineer who helped build dams in South America is shaking his head in embarrassment.) Even so, there is a sense of gratification and accomplishment when the lure you envisioned pops out of the mold. The feeling should last a while, or at least until your wife or mother walks in and finds the mess you made.

In order to get started, you will need: Sculpting clay or sculpter’s wax Cookie sheet 1 poster board 1” corrugated cardboard or balsa panels Fast-curing molding putty Universal Mold Release Liquid Plastisol X-Acto knife or utility knife Lure coloring Glue gun with sticks Krazy Glue

You can find most, if not all, of the materials at your local hobby store, although you may have to order the Plastisol online.

Alumilite sells the materials at their website, including kits for either making soft plastics or even hard baits.

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“ Your only limitation is your imagination.

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Do It Yourself, Part 2

Check them out at www.makelure.come.

You can design other molds with materials such as silicone mold-making rubber such as Alumisol’s High Strength 2 or 3, but the easiest material for beginners to work with is the molding putty. It cures very quickly, usually in 10 to 15 minutes, is clean to work with, and easy to measure out in a one to one ratio.

First, pick a lure design you want to fabricate. Perhaps you have a favorite lure you’ve often thought would be more effective in a larger or smaller size, or a different tail, or there’s a specific design that is discontinued.

Use your imagination. It may help to draw

your idea on paper so you can flesh it out, modify it and have a diagram to work from.

From there, begin shaping your master out of the clay or wax. Follow the directions provided by the package to soften the product.

Be persistent. Keep working with the master until it looks exactly as you want it. Shape it, cut it, sand it (if you are using clay, which must also be baked to set) and create the shape you want. If you are using clay, use the cookie sheet to bake it at the temperature and duration specified on the directions.

Use the hot glue and panels to build your mold box. Cut the panels to the size of the mold you want to build. After the box cools, secure it to the poster board with the Krazy Glue. Now, move on to the mold putty.

Mix and knead the mold putty according to the directions. You will only need HALF of the desired amount of putty to begin with because you are going to make two different

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parts to the mold. Shape the putty inside the mold box to fit snugly, but take care not to damage the box.

While the putty is still fresh, “squish” the master into the center of the putty. Make sure that every part of the master is pushed into the putty evenly all the way to the center line of the master. Use a drill bit or the X-Acto knife cut guide holes on the four corners of the mold and allow the putty to set (about 15 minutes).

Once the putty has set, spray a decent amount of the UMR onto the mold. Mix the other half of the desired amount of the putty and press it on top of the master. Make sure it covers every part and that it also presses into the guide holes. Shape a pour hole on the nose of the mold and allow it to set.

Once the mold has cured, pop it out of the box (don’t feel bad if you break the box) and pull the two halves apart. Set the master aside and start heating your Plastisol either in a microwave exclusive for this purpose or a hot plate. Make sure you are in a wellventilated area. When Plastisol heats up to activation (about 360 degrees) it will smoke a lot. You will know that the Plastisol is ready because it will change from milky to clear and have the viscosity of water. Add color to the desired shade.

Put the two mold halves back together and secure them either with quick clamps or with heavy rubber bands. Carefully pour the hot plastic into the mold. If you want to wear work gloves to prevent the plastic dripping onto your hands, go ahead. Allow the plastic to set. As it cools, the plastic will contract, so pour a little more to top off the mold. Allow the plastic to cool. Once it has, open the mold and pop out the tail. Trim the excess plastic (the “flash”) and examine your handiwork.

The great thing about the process is that you can take the master and modify, change the tail, add to it, or trick it out any way you want and create other molds. Your only limitation is your imagination.

And perhaps how much of a mess your wife will put up with.

Contact Calixto Gonzales at CGonzalez@fishgame.com

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Why are Pintails Suffering Greater Population Declines than Other Duck Species Common to Texas? Story by CHESTER MOORE 32 |

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INTAILS ARE THE MOST PRIZED duck on the Texas coast.

Absolutely graceful in flight and beautiful in every imaginable way, they are truly an artistic representation of nature.

This year hunters are allowed to take two pintails with the population sitting at 3.22 million breeding bucks, only slightly (three percent) down from last year. The birds are currently at 20 percent below their long-term average but nearly 70 percent south of their high of more than 10 million in 1955 when surveys started.

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The majority of these birds winter along the Texas Coast and just happen to be omni-present this year on a local basis.

“Severe decline in habitat and other problems in core pintail areas have translated to a poor fall flight in this species of special concern,” said John Devney, senior vice president of Delta Waterfowl (Delta).

Pintails are unique ducks, not only in their long-necked, streamlined appearance but also in regard to their behavior. They are the first ducks to leave wintering grounds and to nest in the spring and this exposes them to deadly late season freezes. Although gadwalls and teal, which both have seen major population increases, prefer tall-grass prairie for nesting, pintails use short-grass plains, farm fields and shallow wetlands that expose them to numerous risks.

A prime example is in the Canadian prairie, the pintails preferred nesting grounds.

Since the early 1980s, agricultural practices on millions of acres of this region have changed from fall seeding to spring seeding.

This has been severely detrimental to pintails as studies by Ducks Unlimited (DU) in Canada have shown that fall-seeded areas produce one successful pintail nest per 80 acres while spring-seeded areas only produce one per 1,000 acres.

Another change in Canadian agriculture has also hurt pintails. Farmers used to practice “summer fallowing,” where they give cropland a rest every second summer.

According to DU Canada, since the 1970s, farmers have converted 13 million acres of summer fallow to annual cropping in prime pintail breeding grounds.

Predators are another problem for pintails. The decline of the gray wolf and changes in agriculture along with a decline in trapping allowed small predators such as raccoons to flourish. The natural prairie habitat is not suited to raccoons, but with man-made changes to the region, raccoons flourished. By the 1970s, raccoons took a strong hold on the region and are now common, to the point of being a major problem.

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Pintails leave wintering grounds earlier and tend to nest in more exposed locations, behavior that makes them more vulnerable to late-season freezes and other environmental and predatory threats.

pintails, in particular, in harms way.

Delta officials conducted a trapping study in the spring of 2000 in what they call the “moonscape” of southern Saskatchewan.

This area has very little cover now and is perhaps the pintail’s greatest area of vulnerability.

In this study, Vance Lester of the University of Saskatchewan and Aaron Pearse of Idaho State kicked off a predator removal project on 16 square mile blocks near the town of Ceylon. Lester covered nest success while Pearse measured duckling survival.

The control block (untrapped) had an 11 percent nest success while the trapped area had 28 percent. Duckling survival in the control area was 28 percent and 50 percent in the trapped area. That was after only one year and predator control tends to become more effective after people have trapped it for a few seasons, showing that

The pintail’s appeal begins with its long-necked, streamlined beauty and grace in flight.

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nest and duckling predation is a major problem for pintails.

Currently, waterfowl managers are keeping an eye on pintail numbers and are working on ways to get them back at least to a semblance of what they used to be.

It is worth mentioning that hunters should not feel guilty for taking any of these three species. Wildlife officials monitor the taking of these species closely and believe it has minimal impact on their populations under the very conservative current provisions, if it has an impact at all.

Enjoy the gift of being able to hunt pintails and remind government officials along with groups like Ducks Unlimited and Delta that you want to see their populations get back to their long-term average no matter what it takes.

These ducks need our support so that our children’s children will be able to hunt them 50 years from now.

There are problems in pintail paradise but we should not let them get in the way of enjoying our duck season. We should use it to inspire us to do more to conserve habitat and treasure every encounter with this majestic waterfowl.

PHOTOS: MIKE LANE, CANSTOCK

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Bare Bones Hunting

by Lou Marullo | TF&G Hunting Editor

Late Season Tactics

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O NOT PUT THOSE BOWS AND RIFLES away just yet. You still have a tag to fill and in some parts of Texas, deer hunting is still going on strong. To be successful at this time of year just means you have to use different tactics than you did a few weeks ago.

Late season hunts can be frustrating at times. However, if you do find a buck in your sights in January, it is more than likely a nice big bruiser. At least you will know that this is one smart buck that has avoided the many hunters in the woods and it is high time he met his maker!

The rut, for the most part is just about over by now. There will be a few does that have not been bred yet and will go into estrous for a second time, but not too many. Although rattling for deer can be fun, it would prove fruitless this late in the season. Concentrate more on their food source. Both bucks and does are back in survival mode now and they need to feed their belly to prepare for the winter months ahead.

Hopefully, during the past few months, you have located a food source that is hidden in the woods. The whitetails have been spooked by bow hunters and gun hunters for a while now. They will prefer to use the cover of the woods to feed rather than the open field. Many of the crops will have already been harvested by now anyway. In order to survive, they will seek out alternative food sources.

An apple orchard set in the middle of the woods is perfect. Remember, by now acorns will be hard to find. Apples, berries and browse may be the only food that is available.

I have been told that an adult deer consumes about five pounds of wet browse every day.

That is a big apple orchard!

To have success in the late season, you should avoid the open fields and pay more attention a little deeper in the woods.

Whitetails will search for food along the edges of fields…about 30 yards or so away from the open field.

You also might want to try your luck in the strangest of places; places that other hunters would never think of hunting. Did you ever think the buck of your dreams would be spending his daylight hours along a hedgerow?

Once, late in the season, while on my way to the big woods, I walked past a small patch of brush. It was about 30 feet square. Now, that is small! I have no idea why, but something told me to walk close to the edge and try my luck…just in case.

Sure enough, when I stopped and peered into that brush pile, two does stood up and locked eyes with me. I am not sure whose eyes were wider, mine or the two does. In any event, to say I was surprised is the understatement of the year.

The whole encounter only lasted about five seconds before they bolted for the bigger woodlot. Then, to my amazement, a huge buck decided not to hold his ground any longer and bolted after his does. My rifle was still resting in a cradle carry as I watched the deer run full speed away from the danger. I have no idea what he was afraid of.

Before I could think of a decent shot, I had to take the time to get my pants back up it wasn’t a call of nature, they just scared the pants off of me!

Late in the season will also find deer in or near their sanctuary. A sanctuary is the one place on your hunt property that is left alone. It is the one spot that should be void of humans and human odor.

When hunted hard, the whitetails will retreat to this golden place to feel secure. I would first set up near this hot spot which you keep your scent to a minimum. If, after a while, you still have a tag to fill, then I would not hesitate to quietly invade this sanctuary for a short time.

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and you should be able to fill your tag and your freezer no problem at all. Get in and out as quickly as possible. By the time hunting season arrives the following year, the deer will have forgotten about your little invasion and go back to their normal routine.

A great way to fill your late season tag is to drive the deer. Unlike gun season where you try to spook the animal into next week, you simply need to “bump” the deer along. It works and works well with two or three guys.

Choose a small woodlot. Your best shooter is on stand on the known escape route with the wind in his face. Then you and another buddy use your radios to communicate with each other. Once your shooter is in position, the other two hunters walk on the outside of the woodlot talking loudly to each other as they walk toward the end of the woods.

Let the shooter know you have cleared the woods and are heading back. This time on the way back, not only are you talking, but you are spraying WD 40, Old Spice anything that would be foreign to the nose of that deer. Be generous and spray it on the branches as you walk back to where you began.

Now you both start to slowly zig zag through the woods. Did you catch the adjective “slowly”? Any bedded deer will soon get up to move to avoid the hunters walking towards them. They will not be able to go right or left because not only did they hear the hunters there, they can also smell them.

The only place for the whitetails to move is on the escape route where your best shooter is waiting.

So you can see that different tactics are a must to fool a late season bruiser, but it can be done. Believe me, it works and when you tell the story of how you shot such a magnificent animal late in the season, no one will believe you!

Good luck and hunt safe out there.

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Texas Department of Defense Trigger Control

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O SHOOT A HANDGUN ACCURATELY requires trigger control. My old firearms instructor from the Border Patrol Academy, John Ketsler, Sr said you only needed to develop two skills to shoot a handgun, trigger control and sight alignment.

It really isn’t quite that simple, but in the end that pretty much sums up the skills required. If the sights are perfectly aligned and the trigger is operated correctly, without

disturbing the sights, the result will be a bullseye.

Trigger control comes in many forms. At the front of the line is the surprise break. This means that the trigger is squeezed so slowly and gently that when the gun fires, it is a surprise to the shooter. That’s just fine if you are shooting in a slow-fire match, but if you are in a combat situation where you have less than a second between your shot and your death, then a surprise break is not very practical.

At the end of the line is what the shotgun shooters call the slap or press. That works fine for a shotgun, which depends on a large

| Self Defense | | Concealed Carry | | Tactical |

by Steve LaMascus & Dustin Ellermann pattern of shot to get the job done, but is not very satisfactory for a rifle or handgun.

Believe it or not, it is possible to compress the trigger squeeze into almost no time at all.

Such trigger control is called many things, such as a press or compressed squeeze, but whatever you call it, it is a trigger squeeze, not a jerk. That is, it is a trigger release that does not cause the shot to be thrown out of the group or off the target.

I first learned this skill when shooting in revolver matches back in the 1970s. The first string of fire in the match was six rounds fired in six seconds at seven yards. To be competi-

A LaRue OBR outfitted with a Meopta 4-12x optic and 45 degree Meopta red dot sight for close range work.

Competitive Innovation IF YOU WANT TO SEE THE MOST ingenious and creative approach to shooting, just watch the competition circuit. Competitive shooters will do anything that will shave hundredths of a second off of their score furthermore it has to be dependable.

Of course, competition dependability is not as vital as it is with law enforcement, military and defensive weapons because lives do not depend on how fast one can shoot holes in paper. However, if a firearm fails the stage is lost.

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I’ve even seen it marketed for the tactical arena as well. The basis behind 45 degree offset sights comes from the 3 Gun tactical optics classification where the shooter can run a dot or magnified optic.

If the optic’s lowest power is above 1x, it might not be the fastest for close quarters shooting. Some stages can have rifle targets beyond 500 yards. Then it’s just a matter of a few feet before the next firing point.

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If your optic is on its highest magnification, the transition from long-range to close targets will take time off the clock while you zoom out your optic.

Otherwise, you must find the center of the target with high magnification.

Offset sights give you the option of simply rotating your rifle 45 degrees and using the set of iron sights on the side.

This speeds up the transition to just a slight roll of the rifle. Although the conPHOTO CREDIT: ROBERT MORGAN

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Texas Department of Defense tive you had to put all the shots in this string in the 10 ring, and it was a lot better if you could put most of them in the X-ring.

Believe it or not, you really can learn to put six rounds into a surprisingly tiny group at seven yards and do it in six seconds or less.

The trick is to keep the wrist firm and straight and grip the gun firmly, not loosely. Pull the trigger as straight down the line of the wrist and arm as possible. Use only the trigger finger rather than milking the grip with the whole hand as you squeeze the trigger.

If you grip the gun loosely, recoil is going to make trigger control and recovery for successive rounds more difficult. If you squeeze with the entire hand you will not put the shots where you are aiming.

Generally, when using such techniques the shooter does not carefully align the sights, but looks just over the top of the sights and places the front sight on the target. This

works at ranges up to about 15 yards; it works with handguns and firearms like the AR-15 or MP-5. This is the epitome of “aimed but not sighted” fire.

Some pretty amazing groups can be fired using this technique at close range. It can even be used at night, using the muzzle flash from the firearm to catch sight of the target and the front sight. This was the technique we were taught for our yearly night-fire qualification, and it works.

Trigger control requires that the trigger finger is the only part of the hand that is moving. For right-handed shooters, if you squeeze the grip along with the trigger, you are doing what is called “milking” the gun. This will cause the shots to be low and left.

If you are pushing the bottom of the gun with the heel of your hand you are doing what is called “heeling,” which will cause the shots to be high and left. If you are jerking the trigger rather than squeezing, the bullets will strike low and right. To get the

maximum from your handgun, especially a double-action revolver, the only part of the trigger finger that touches the gun is the first joint, not the tip of the finger. The gun should be so well-controlled that when it is dry-fired with a coin balanced on the front sight, the coin will not fall as the hammer strikes the firing pin.

It may take some practice, but believe me, it can be done. If you are firing a single-action revolver or a semi-auto with a good, singlestage trigger, you might fudge this a bit and use the first pad of your index finger. Find the way that works best for you and then practice, practice, practice.

So, you see, you need to get that trigger control down to an exact science do it the same way every time and do it the right way.

Then, and only then, will you be on your way to becoming a “sheep dog,” a person to be feared by the wolves and coyotes who prey on the sheep of society.

—Steve LaMascus

Story Jump t Continued from cept looks odd at first,page withxx a little practice it becomes natural and makes perfect sense when speed is of the necessity for varying ranges.

To transition this to the defensive shooting world, it’s as simple as upgraded backup iron sights. No matter what weapon system you use, redundancy is never a bad idea. Folding back up iron sights are mounted on almost every one of my defensive ARs. If my optic fails, there is a possibility I would have to remove the optic before being able to use my iron sights. The time required to remove the optic could cost you your life in a defensive situation. The use of 45 degree offset sights would allow

an instant transition to use them as backup iron sights.

There are several routes to take, the easiest is dedicated 45 degree sights that are built to mount on your AR rail and display on the side. Sometimes, mounting rails at 45 degree is a possibility such as the case on my Adams Arms rifle with Samson rail. Diamondhead offers the coolest option with folding 45 degree sights that mount on the top rail, but they run more than $200.

Then there is also the possibility of mounting a red dot optic on a 45 degree which is what I did on my LaRue OBR. Now having an electronic dot isn’t quite T E X A S

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as fail proof as irons, yet it does add redundancy and speed.

My OBR setup is contained on the scope in an effort to have a swappable optic system to use for other rifles as well.

It’s my preferred heavy rifle for defense and hog hunting because with the high magnification of the 12x Meopta I can have precision, yet for fast-moving close targets I can swap to the Meopta M-RAD. It’s the best of both worlds.

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12/8/14 3:34 PM

Canoes, Kayaks and Aluminum boats: Getting where others can’t

By John N. Felsher

PROBABLY MORE FISH IN HISTORY HAVE HIT THE DECKS OF a canoe than any other watercraft.

Many people with big boats and big engines would rather run than fish. I think some people just want to impress their club members with their horsepower numbers.

I’ve heard bass anglers brag that their boats can reach speeds exceeding 70, 80 or even 90 miles per hour, but I’ve never once seen anyone catch a fish going that fast. How many fish do they pass up when converting fuel into debt and noise?

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then, run for home before the scales close. Why do bass anglers launch at Marina A and run 50 miles to fish the docks at Marina B on the other side of the lake? Meanwhile, anglers fishing a tournament from Marina B run 50 miles to fish the docks at Marina A. People with small boats fish, not cruise.

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Aluminum Boats for bass and bay

I don’t often enter bass tourof gasoline. In some of these naments, but years ago, I fished ponds, big, hungry bass comtwo annual tournaments orgapeted to gulp anything hitting nized by the Men’s Ministry the water. In some of those I HAVE AN XPRESS BOAT. THESE BOATS ARE ALLdepartment of the church I places, I’m sure many fish died welded and will let an angler get just about anywhere. I have a attended at the time. In the first of old age without ever seeing semi-v that I take flounder fishing and even to the jetties. one, I fished from a 16-foot Bass fishermen, particularly those on a budget, might want a lure to consider some of the Xpress line of aluminum bass boats that canoe. The following year, I In marshes, I often paddled have all of the amenities of a fiberglass boat at a fraction of the fished from a 10-foot aluminum pirogues through trenasses so price. flatboat that didn’t even have narrow that I could jump across Xpress has the Striker, Xplorer, Hyper Lift and X-Clusive an electric motor, just a paddle. them—and I was certainly no series giving bass fishermen many options from a basic setup to I won both events, much Olympic athlete even back something more “X-Clusive.” to the chagrin of anglers who then. Frequently, I could only Among the advantages of an aluminum boat are that it is spent $100 in gasoline to comcast straight ahead of the boat generally lighter than fiberglass and that repairing aluminum is pete for a $5 trophy. I won into the channel. Water often easier. not because I’m such a better measured barely two feet deep, fisherman than the others. I but some of these places held ANOTHER ALUMINUM INNOVATOR, RANGER, IS won because I threw more casts making available to the public a saltwater-equipped edition good fish. of its highly acclaimed 1862CC aluminum center console that than the others. Fish simply Moreover, small boats was formerly available only as a prize boat for winners of IFA can’t hit lures or baits if they’re SHOULD limit the amount Redfish Tour events. The very affordable new 1862CC IFA not in the water. of equipment people can carry, Special is priced at under $26,000.

After all the big boats although that doesn’t always launched and blasted off to the work. How many people carry other side of the lake, I threw three tons of lures on a fishing my boat into the water. My first trip just to use the same five cast landed next to the launch favorites each day? Guilty as ramp. I fished the docks of charged! the marina for eight hours and A small, flat plastic box of never ventured more than 100 lures carefully chosen to fish yards or so from the launch. that particular water body and Ranger 1862CC IFA My last cast landed next to the one or two rods should prove Measuring 18 feet, 4 inches in length and rated for 90 horselaunch ramp. sufficient for most fishing trips, power, the 1862CC IFA Special is built on a proven running In contrast, the other comeven when using big boats. surface that utilizes a solid, foam-filled hull and wood-free conpetitors spent the first hour of Small boat anglers don’t struction to ensure a quiet, ultra stable boat that’s comfortable the morning, the best fishing usually fish for money, honor in skinny water. It comes standard with a Ranger Trail trailer. time on a hot summer day, tryor prizes.

They fish mostly for The only kind of boat I have ever owned is aluminum, and I ing to beat the other anglers to fun and relaxation.

They fish don’t intend to own anything else. their “secret” honey holes. At in kayaks because they could go For more information go to www.xpressboats.com and each hole, anglers made a few where others could not. www.rangerboats.com.

—CHESTER MOORE casts before declaring no fish in If an angler needs or wants the area and running to another power in a more compact packhot spot several miles away. I doubt age, a number of manufacturers they threw 10 percent of the casts that I these isolated ponds. Although perhaps only such as AlumaCraft, G3, Tracker, made that day. a few hundred yards off a major waterway or Ranger and Xpress (see sidebar) make Small boats simply can’t reach as many highway, these routes-less-traveled seemed johnboats and more fully rigged aluminum spots as boats propelled by 225 horses. like wilderness in the middle of the Amazon boats under fifteen feet that can be outfitted However, small boats can enter some areas where no human had ever trod. Only occa- with single-digit up to higher double-digit where big boats can never venture. Growing sionally, I shared a spot with a fellow small horsepower outboards, with all the trimup in south Louisiana, I fished small boats. I boater. mings that a Bassmaster might need. could penetrate into tiny swamp streams and Pirogues (the Cajun version of a canoe), Often, I enjoyed watching wildlife in fish waters that seldom saw lures. kayaks and canoes grant access to even these seldom-used channels as much as the Larger boats could never venture into smaller areas. Often, I threw my wooden fishing. That’s something I can’t do wearing these places, so they remained largely home-built pirogue in places where no boat a crash helmet and rocketing 50 miles across unfished. Sometimes, narrow ditches actual- launches existed and few other people ever a choppy lake at 75 miles per hour in a bass ly led to “lost lakes,” wider, deeper openings dreamed of fishing. boat. If I caught small bream, bass, catfish, in the swamps that few people ever fished.

I could thoroughly fish a pond measur- garfish or anything else, that just added to Thinking I discovered something out of ing just a few acres or a small creek, gliding the experience The Lost World, I spent many hours fishing along silently without burning an ounce 40 |

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PHOTO: RANGER BOATS

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2015 HOUSTON INTERNATIONAL BOAT, SPORT & TRAVEL SHOW • Jan 2-11 • NRG Center Fea 4-SmallBoats.indd 41

12/10/14 2:27 PM

Edited by Will Leschper

Unnessary Legislation WITH MOST HUNTING SEASONS in the books, hundreds of thousands of Texans have headed outdoors to pursue duck, deer, goose and quail from Stratford to San Antonio.

None of them has a constitutional right to do so.

And they don’t need one.

Nowhere in the U.S. Constitution does it articulate that you or I have a “right” to hunt any game animal, nor does it say that fish and wildlife “belong” to us, but some states have taken it upon themselves to address the issue in their own constitutions.

The overriding sentiment from legislation authors and those who have lobbied for the measures that already have or are

Willow Lake Marsh Restoration Completed DUCKS UNLIMITED CONSERVAtion staff has completed work on a 500-acre marsh restoration project in the Willow Lake Unit of the McFaddin National Wildlife Refuge.

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These man-made features have caused the lakes to transition from productive fresh/intermediate marsh habitats to brackish/salt marsh types that do not provide optimal forage for waterfowl and other wildlife, and have limited productivity as fishery nursing grounds. Because of increased salin-

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attempting to sneak hunting and fishing protections into state constitutions is that the dwindling pursuits are under attack from interest groups and lawmakers with enough clout to somehow severely restrict or – gasp! – outlaw them.

Nothing could be farther from the truth.

There are states where the animal-rights credo has gained traction and is taken somewhat seriously by lawmakers, and where hunters have reason to worry, at least a little. However, I think most Texans certainly aren’t shaking in their boots about whether their kids’ kids will be allowed the same freedoms that fall squarely under “the pursuit of happiness.” These freedoms have remained legal here and elsewhere as long as there has been game to pursue.

Generally, the hunting and fishing measures that manage to make it through the legislative process are aimed at expanding our opportunities or at least making it easier to partake in what we’ve got. Most if not all are adopted only after those who enjoy outdoor pursuits either have sought the alterations or have been given plenty of opportunity to let their remarks be known.

The Texas Parks & Wildlife Department already handles the duties of conducting scientifically-based research to make wildlife management and conservation recommendations whenever there is a need to consider new approaches to laws, bag limits, seasons and more.

Continued on page 44 u

ity, the plant communities—especially submerged aquatic vegetation (an important food for waterfowl)—have been greatly impacted within the system.

DU and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service partnered to construct approximately 20,000 linear feet of earthen terraces within a portion of Willow Lake where marsh vegetation had been lost. The terraces will reduce shoreline erosion, restore marsh vegetation, increase the productivity potenContinued on page 44 u

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Hunting Rights t Continued from page 42 If the data calls for any kind of modification to frameworks in place, the issue runs up the chain of command, not only to gauge the enforceability of revisions, but also to keep tabs on what independent outside stakeholders have to say about how changes would affect their interests.

Those are the guys and gals writing the big checks that help many of our politicians keep their offices. They bank on the status quo, and for the most part, what’s good for them is good for you and me when it comes to our outdoor pursuits.

That will never change.

After all this, our wildlife management agency gathers public input from across the state made easier since recommendations are accepted online. The agency then weighs the biological and future impact of any changes.

It then presents the issues to our state game commission, a nine-member panel appointed by the governor with Senate consent. There is even another public discourse period after all of this before the commission actually makes final regulation changes.

There are no knee-jerk reactions. There are no surprises.

The basis for Texas’s wildlife laws and

those of other states can trace their deep roots back to ancient Roman law, including the ideas that wild animals neither belong to, nor are owned by anyone and that landowners have the right to exclude hunters or anglers from their private property.

Roman leaders also had the power essentially to set seasons and bag limits.

Once any game was taken, it was made clear that the bird, fish or animal belonged to the person who captured, killed or caught it.

There’s too much invested in hunting and fishing on a national level to worry that someday you and I will wake up and find these freedoms stripped away.

Case in point: The last viable figures collected by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 2011 show that hunting and fishing expenditures contributed almost $89 billion to our national economy.

You’re still talking big bucks in this day and age that ultimately end up going back into conservation efforts and state wildlife agency budgets.

Similar protection debates in Texas

ended up in the form of a House joint resolution back in 2001 that quickly died, probably because most legislators recognized that hunting and fishing pursuits simply need no further legal protections.

That’s what I would like to think.

I also would like to think that the average voter and policymaker realizes the obvious: Adding hunting and fishing protections to constitutions doesn’t change anything about the freedoms we currently enjoy, which no one seriously disputes.

So why add clutter to an already bogged-down litany of amendments, which would open the door to a variety of lawsuits that ultimately could lead to changes?

Do you really think judges and lawyers have your best interest at heart?

—by Will Leschper TG Will Leschper’s work has won state and national awards. Contact him at willleschperoutdoors@gmail.com

Here is a terrace planting crew perimeter planting marsh grass along the edge of the terraces. The grass will “tiller” or spread across the terrace to help hold the soil in place and provide cover for nesting birds and other wildlife.

Willow Lake t Continued from page 42 tial of coastal fisheries and submerged aquatic vegetation.

This provides potential nesting locations for various bird species, and increases shoreline-to-water transitional areas for juvenile fish species.

DU staff also designed and installed a low-crested weir within a tidal channel to reduce the inflow of saltwater to restore fresh/intermediate salinity levels within this marsh.

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DU provided professional services including engineering, contracting, and construction oversight. Project funding was provided by the Coastal Impact

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Assistance Program through the Texas General Land Office and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

—Andi Cooper TG

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HE TRANS-TEXAS CORRIDOR (TTC) WAS a proposal for a transportation network in Texas that was in its origins to be composed of a new kind of transportation modality known as “supercorridors.”

According to Wikipedia, it would have been composed of a 4,000-mile network of supercorridors up to 1,200 feet wide to carry parallel 46 |

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links of tollways, rails, and utility lines.

The tollway portion would have been divided into two separate elements: truck lanes and COMPOSITE ILLUSTRATION: TF&G

12/10/14 2:28 PM

Story by Steve Shaffer lanes for passenger vehicles. Similarly, the rail lines in the corridor would have been divided among freight, commuter, and high-speed rail.

So, why is this information being published in an outdoor magazine?

The original plans would have destroyed approximately 580,000 acres of wildlife habitat outright and had the potential to increase development along the corridor, potentially taking

out millions more acres over time.

There were originally two branches of the corridor. One would have paralleled Interstate 35 (I-35), from Gainesville to Laredo and passing the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, Austin and San Antonio.

The other would have been an extension of the proposed I-69 corridor, generally following US 59, from Texarkana past Houston to either Laredo or the Rio Grande Valley.

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Two additional high priority corridors would have paralleled Interstate 45 from Dallas to Houston and Interstate 10 from El Paso to Orange according to the Corridors of America: Trans-Texas Corridor Survey.

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The original plan would have cut a 4 football field-wide right of way along I-35 from Mexico to Oklahoma.

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In 2009, officials with the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) announced the department would recommend the “No Action Alternative,” which effectively ended the efforts to develop the I-35 corridor through the TTC vision. This effectively ended the project, at least for a while.

But as with anything that has the potential to spread around billions of taxpayer dollars, there is still interest and the plan still has support in some circles.

According to NBCDFW the Texas Department of Transportation made a 50-year deal with a Spanish company to add private, for-profit toll lanes along Interstate 35 north of downtown Fort Worth in October 2012.

“This is a major step forward and a day to celebrate for those who drive that Interstate 35 corridor every day,” said Texas Transportation Commissioner Bill Meadows, of Fort Worth.

According to the article, the deal is with NTE Mobility Partners Segments 3 LLC, which is a subsidiary of Cintra, a Spanish company that builds similar toll roads around the world, including several in North Texas.

Critics such as state Rep. Lon Burnam, D-Fort Worth, say Texas is selling its future.

“I’m against toll roads,” he said. “But I’m even more strongly against privately owned toll roads, and that’s what we’re confronting here. And frankly, the way it’s being presented is, ‘My way or the highway.’”

Since tollways are a major part of the TTC vision, this project throws up red flags, warning of an incremental implementation of the TTC. An article published by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) back in 2005 hints at this.

“TxDOT officials hope to identify sections of the final routes for the two proposed corridors sometime MAP: CORRIDOR WATCH.ORG

12/8/14 3:16 PM

PHOTOS: CORRIDOR WATCH.ORG; 35W COALITION

While the grand TTC plan may have been scrapped, pieces of it, such as Interstate 69, the 130 Tollway around Austin, and private toll roads in Fort Worth have continued to develop.

between 2007 and 2010. Once all required Federal studies are completed and the Tier 1 Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) has identified a final alignment for the proposed corridor, Tier 2 studies will be prepared before construction of projects selected

by TxDOT and the developer can begin.”

“The two-tiered process is designed to allow us to make decisions at appropriate times,” says Sandra Allen, I-69 environmental manager for FHWA. “It allows us to work in stages. If we were to try to do a 1,000-mile project using the standard NEPA process, it would be much harder to reach a decision.”

Taking a deeper look at concerns over this project and any other kind of large-scale toll road conglomeration shows many warning signs.

These notes are from the site corridorwatch.org: “This plan doesn’t reduce pollution, it simply pushes vehicle pollution away from the large urban district into rural Texas. In doing so it increases the number of travel miles required to reach and leave the corridor from urban areas which in-turn increases the generation of air pollutants by inducing travel. One analyst has conservatively estimated that an additional annual 5.4 billion vehicle miles will be induced by the TTC over the long run.”

“TxDOT projects the Trans-Texas Corridor alignments to require 580,000 acres. That is a land area six times greater than the Big Thicket National Preserve in Texas. The National Resources Inventory released by the Natural Resources Conservation Service in 1999 lists Texas as having the highest land consumption rate of any state. The TTC and ancillary developments will certainly accelerate Texas’s land consumption rate.”

Another issue addressed by the site is habitat fragmentation, which is starting to become a huge issue for wildlife in Texas, including quail.

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across vast areas of Texas. The effect could be a reduction in the diversity of species.”

Another major concern of this process is property rights which often have been trampled when highway or reservoir construction has been the goal.

It is doubtful the TTC will happen under its original name. However, there is a very strong likelihood that over time the exact kind of “supercorridors” that spooked many in the early 2000s will show up on the radar.

It is easy for sportsmen to get behind stopping a reduction in deer or fish bag limits, yet something like this stands to cause far more damage in the long run.

We should keep an eye on our government officials and become engaged in all processes involving Texas land, wildlife habitat and property rights.

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FOR BAGGING HOGS WITH MORE HOGS ARE killed in Texas than whitetail deer. We documented that last year when we ran the Texas Agrilife stats that reveal some 750,000 hogs killed in the Lone Star State annually versus 600,000 whitetails.

Much of that hunting comes in late winter as the deer season winds down and the hog opportunities are available. Pursuing hogs with bows and crossbows is super fun, and it can be a challenging and effective way of taking out some wild pork.

On the next page, you will find 10 hog arrowing tips you won’t find elsewhere.

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BOWS AND CROSSBOWS

STORY BY CHESTER MOORE T E X A S

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SHOOT WHEN THEY EXHALE — Hogs are heavy breathers and the bigger the hog the more it gasps for air. If you think about it, the same is true of people, so just envision a big person you know running through the woods and suddenly stopping to eat. They would be winded for sure. I have trained myself over the years to release the arrow when the hog exhales if it is possible to discern its breathing patterns. The less oxygen the hog has in its lungs, the quicker the animal will die.

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LUBE YOUR ARROWS — Herb York, former owner of York’s Archery in Buna, Texas gave me a great tip on hunting hard to penetrate animals such as hogs.

Just before I went on a bison hunt in 1996, Herb told me to take a small dab of oil and rub it down the length of the arrow.

He was careful to say not to put more than would fit on the end of a Q-tip. The idea is that as the arrow penetrates, the lubricant will help the shaft slide through the body more easily. I used it on the bison and after taking a quartering shot blew through the heart, broke through the opposite shoulder and the arrow stuck out about an inch, which was seriously impressive.

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SCOUT FREQUENTLY — When hunting hogs you want to scout frequently. Hogs are very mobile and will move in and out of an area at the drop of a hat. This is especially true if you are hunting public land where baiting is prohibited. It is crucial to locate food sources the hogs have fed on in the last 24 hours, which is admittedly very hard to gauge, but remember to focus on fresh sign and hit areas that are not too far out in the open.

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TUSK MARKS — Boars will often rub trees to sharpen their tusks and mark territory. This is a great way to tell how big the hogs are that are in your given hunting area since the bigger the hog the higher the tusk mark will be. Some hunters like to target big boars by searching out these hog rubs. The best way to find them is to focus your efforts on aromatic trees like cedars for example since hogs much like whitetail deer prefer rubbing on them. It is not an exact science but it is a great guide for beginning your trophy hog scouting.

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NATURAL GROUND BLINDS — I have taken many animals from ground blinds but have found that in some areas hogs will avoid commercially produced ground blinds like the plague. I think it has something to do with them looking too “boxy.”

If you use these blinds, dress them out with brush to give it a more natural look.

For hogs, if I am forced to hunt from the ground, I prefer hunting from natural ground blinds, made from cutting brush and making a natural concealment from the hog’s native environment. It works great and best of all costs absolutely nothing.

These types of blinds are perfect places to use crossbows because you won’t get busted drawing back. You can squeeze the trigger on a hog before it knows what happened.

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BLOOD TRAILING — Hogs can be very difficult to blood trail since their thick hide and fat can plug up an arrow hole quickly, letting the blood drain into the body and not onto the ground where you can find it.

If at all possible and legal in the area you hunt, use a trailing dog to help find your animal. If not, make a 100-yard circle from your area and move slowly in 10-yard increments so you cover all of the ground within this range. If you wait at least 30 minutes to pick up the trail, the hog will die if the hit is solid.It will probably fall within 100 yards without you spooking it.

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STALK LOW — If you intend to stalk hogs, discipline yourself to stalk low. That means crouch down as low as you can get and hold your bow out in front of you to break up your outline.

Stalking into the wind and keeping a low profile will allow you to get surprisingly close to hogs if the wind is in your favor.

You will appear more like one of them than a human predator. Make sure to position yourself close to some brush so you can draw back the bow slowly without the hog busting you.

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GAME CAMERAS —The use of game cameras has revolutionized hunting in many circles by allowing hunters to figure out what time animals are moving and feeding. Most hunters use these devices on their feeder, which is fine. Also if possible, set up one on a trail used by hogs, especially if you are looking for big ones.

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STAND HEIGHT — Many hunters set up too low for hogs. I believe that hogs are slowly learning that we shoot them from stands in pressured areas.

So do yourself a favor and put yourself 15 feet in the air when using a stand. Not all hogs look up, but those that do will rarely bust you if you are this high.

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LET THEM EAT — Small to medium size hogs will usually run right in and start eating. Mature boars and sows will be more cautious.

A bowhunter should not get over eager to take a shot and let the hogs start feeding before drawing back to take a shot. If they are comfortable eating and are focused on gobbling up whatever is on the ground they will be less focused on any sounds or movements you make, allowing you to make an easy, clean shot that translates to wild pork in the freezer.

When hunting hogs from a stand, the higher, the better.

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PHOTO: GERALD BURLEIGH

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Open Season

by Reavis Wortham | TF&G Humor Editor

Midnight Fear

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R. DAN EDMONDS WAVED TOWARD his four-door pickup. “Y’all climb in. We’ll take my old truck, ‘cause it’s all scratched up anyway.”

The Hunting Club members drifted through the darkness and put our gun cases in the truck bed. The yard in front of the old ranch house was so dark Doc tripped over Belle, Mr. Dan’s German shorthaired pointer.

“I can’t hardly seem my hand in front of my face,” Doc said. He leaned over and rubbed Belle’s ears. “Sorry old girl.”

She stood and put both paws on Doc’s chest. He loved on her and rubbed her ears.

“The dark’ll make hunting easier,” Wrong Willie said, flicking on his ten trillion candlepower red spotlight. A pair of eyes reflected beyond the fence. The heifer calf blinked and snorted at all the activity impacting her rest.

“I appreciate you boys coming out here to help.” Mr. Dan clipped a leather leash on his dog and pulled her away from Doc. “Sorry, Doc.” “No problem. I love dogs.”

“Well, she needs to stay here, and to learn some manners about getting up on people.

Let’s go shoot some varmints.”

I dumped a few .243 rounds into my coat pocket and we climbed into the pickup.

“How many cases of rabies did y’all have out here?”

Mr. Dan started the truck and drove us into his huge west Texas ranch. “Worst I’ve seen since the fifties. You’d think this cold weather would have helped, but I ain’t seen much difference from when it was warm.

“We killed a few skunks that weren’t acting right, and several coyotes. It got so bad Billy Roy Johnson had a calf come down with it. He’d been keeping it in a pen by the house and had to take the rabies shots himself.”

We shivered in the crowded truck with all

four windows wide open to admit the chilly night air. I was in the middle of the front seat.

Willie hung the spotlight out the passenger window. In the back seat, Doc, Jerry Wayne and Woodrow rode shoulder to shoulder.

Mr. Dan parked on a slight ridge overlooking a wide pasture full of mesquite and prickly pear cactus. “Rabies is the disease that scares me the most, so y’all thin out the skunks and coyotes for me.”

“We’ll do our best.” Willie reached out, put a speaker on the roof, and passed the red beam across the dark landscape. Nothing returned the spotlight’s gaze. He turned on a shrieking predator call.

I cleared my throat. “Uh, don’t a couple of us need to get in the back with a rifle?”

Willie laughed. “It’d probably be a good idea, but I just wanted to see if anything responded to the call before we got into some serious hunting.”

Doc started to add something to the conversation, when I sensed more than saw a shape rushing through the darkness, directly toward the truck.

Before I could comment, a large varmint flew through the air and into Willie’s lap.

Rabies!

Willie shrieked, and swung at the animal like an elementary school girl in a slap fight.

He dropped the spotlight outside.

Shrieks!

Curses!

The varmint that had grown to the size of a Hereford calf hit me in the side of the head, knocking my cap over my eyes. A sharp pain erupted in my leg, and on my arm. I was bitten!

Mr. Dan flailed with his hat, and tried to curl up in the floorboard. The hairy creature dug in my shirt pocket for a better hold. In an effort to save myself, I shoved my elbow into Willie’s ear.

Willie, in turn, did his best to crawl up underneath me. A cacophony of bellows, yells, and a few hollers turned into an outright din when the hairy monster the size of a bear dug its back claws into my lap and went completely over my head and into the backseat.

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but Mr. Dan had inadvertently pushed the Child Locks, securing everyone inside with a varmint full of rabies.

More shrieks!

Slaps.

A somewhat rhythmic drumming on the floor that in hindsight, was twelve sets of feet running in place.

Gaaahhh!!!

Woodrow hung like a limp cat halfway out of the truck window.

Two people got religion, and three swore off drinking at least for a while.

We finally coordinated a response, and the six of us ran around the inside of the cab in a brisk attempt at escape. Willie finally fell out of the window and landed with a thump on the largest rock he could find.

Woodrow squeezed himself into a threeinch ball in the corner of the cab, and I huddled on the dashboard.

In a shockingly calm voice, Doc gained our attention. “Y’all hold it.”

“WHATTT!!!”

“Light. Gimme some light.”

Safely outside, away from teeth, hair, and rabies, Wrong Willie flicked the gazillion candlepower light to life and directed it into the cab to find… …Belle, sitting in Doc’s lap and licking her new best friend with enthusiasm, her chewed leather leash dangling out the door.

“Don’t shoot!”

Mr. Dan uncurled himself from under the front seat. “Go ahead and shoot her. That dog ain’t got no manners at all. Anybody hurt?”

I dabbed at a couple of scratches from Belle’s claws. “I’m fine.”

Willie winced and leaned against the truck, holding his bruised shoulder and breathing hard. “No, if it weren’t for the pain, I wouldn’t hurt at all.”

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Email Reavis Wortham at ContactUs@fishgame.com

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The Latest Bling for Boaters by lenny rudow

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HETHER YOU’RE AN ANGLER, a hunter, a water sports enthusiast, or just a regular old boat nut, there are plenty of new-for-2015 boats and boating goodies to make this a banner year. In fact, this model year marks

something of a watershed.

Whichever segment of the industry you look at, there are breakthroughs and developments that deserve the terms “groundbreaking,” and “game-changing.”

You don’t believe it? I don’t blame you one bit. But reserve judgment, until you’ve heard about these developments.

boat design

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PHOTO: WIMBELDON

How often does an entirely new class of boat appear on the market?―not very.

We’ve seen a new genre of center console boats hit the water this year, coming from multiple builders―the center console yacht, or CCY. Admittedly, we just made that term up, but it’s dead-on accurate.

These new models from the likes of Boston Whaler, Everglades, and Intrepid are still the center console fishing boat we’ve come to know and love. They have 360-degree fishability, bow and stern cockpits, livewells, and rodholders galore. They also have cabins befitting express cruisers, with features such as berths, settees, full galleys, and enclosed heads.

Even more important to anglers, these models also boast a completely new development not seen in any 2014 model year center consoles―second-row helm seating. That means a half-dozen anglers can sit in a comfortable, protected seat aft of the helm, instead of half the crew standing and holding onto pipework while you cruise. These models even maintain center console performance, thanks to racks of triple or quad outboards on their transoms.

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New center consoles, like this Boston Whaler 420 Outrage, are more like yachts than boats.

Another interesting development in center console boat design is the advent of the forward-facing bow seating, made possible by removable or convertible pop-up backrests. Five years ago they were unheard-of.

A couple of years ago they were few and far between. Today they’re on oodles of boats.

Cruisers have something new to look for, too. An influx of European styling and flair has crossed the Atlantic. Along with the attractive styling, many of the cabin boats feature increased window size and overhead sunroofs for 360-degree views and plenty for fresh breezes. In larger models cabin size has been enhanced, too, thanks to the advent of pod drives.

No matter what type or size of boat you’re looking at, also expect to see more and more joystick controls. These have become prevalent on all sorts of boats with all types of power systems, from multiple outboard rigs to stern drives to inboards. If you haven’t tried docking via joystick just yet, trust us, it’s a huge improvement over the old methods.

PWC fans have something to celebrate, too. Last year the Spark came onto the market, giving people the chance to enjoy personal watercraft at a fraction of the cost of a traditional PWC. This model year hasn’t changed much in form, but it has triggered a price roll-back through some other segments of the market.

Today, you can actually buy some brand new PWCs for less than the exact same model cost in years past.

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ELECTRONICS A few years back, side-scanning sonar hit the market and dazzled us with the exceptional fish-finding ability it gave us. One by one almost all of the major manufacturers added some form of side view to their systems, usually via a special transducer and an add-on black-box.

Then imager-scanners came along, radically boosting detail levels in 300 feet of water, or less. Again, one manufacturer after another added this capability to existing systems with a black box and/or a transducer.

CHIRP multi-spectrum units also came into the mix, first on high-dollar units and then in singlechannel, lowcost versions.

And then,

360-degree scanning (from Humminbird) and directed “spotlight” scanning (from Lowrance) was introduced. So, what could electronics manufacturers possibly dream up for this year?

The answer is all of the above. Now, instead of being add-on features you adapt to your existing MFD via black-box, these features are built right into many of the new head units.

True, to take full advantage of all this

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technology you have to completely upgrade your system. But it also greatly simplifies installation, lowers overall cost as compared to adding technology in a pieces-parts fashion. Also, by shrinking the number of separate electronic units on the boat, the new technology reduces the chances of failure.

One other new feature common in marine electronics more and more systems are Wificapable, and more and more can interface with your phone and/or tablet via apps. You can see radar on your iPad, change fishfinder modes from your phone, and in some cases, even remotely monitor your boat’s systems from afar.

ENGINES There’s big news from the world of outboards this year, as well. Some new fourstroke engines have slimmed down to the point that they’re as light or nearly as light as their two-stroke competitors. Others have been enhanced to accept digital controls and gauges. But the biggest news among outboard enthusiasts is, without question, the introduction of Evinrude’s second generation G2 E-TEC two-stroke outboard.

We don’t have the time or space to get into the specific technical details of the G2 here. However, you can learn all about it in Texas Fish & Game, and on our web site—including a run-down of our hands-on testing found on the fishgame.com blog.

Suffice it to say, these engines are like nothing currently on the market. That goes for performance, and appearance, both.

Cruisers will be interested to hear about the prevalence of more triple-pod rigs on the express and sport cruiser markets. Pod drives have made huge inroads on the market since their introduction, and many builders are now utilizing them in larger and larger cruisers, by installing triple engine rigs.

Even you pontoon boat fans have something to cheer this year. Several engine manufacturers, including BRP, Mercury, and Yamaha, have been paying more attention

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Evinrude E-Tec G2

to this genre of boat.

They have introduced engines with lower gear ratios and/ or long shafts designed to account for the turbulent water a pontoon boat leaves in its wake.

Mercury’s Command Thrust gear case, for example, which can swing a prop with additional blade area, can now be had on the FourStroke 90 and FourStroke 115 modMercury’s els. Note also that the New Four-Stroke new 115 is both lighter and more powerful than previous models.

Yamaha is also making waves this year, by introducing no less than six new outboards. They’ve greatly expanded the V Max SHO line-up of high-performance engines, with 115, 175, 150, and 250 models. Though the 150 and 250 horsepower engines were previously released, for the first time, they’re available in 25-inch shaft lengths. Also new for 2015 are the F150B (with a redesigned cowl, pan and clutch dog) and the F8 (which now weighs just 88 pounds).

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Yamaha’s VMax SHO

new offerings, too. The DF200A posts a 69 pound weight loss compared to their old 200-hp V6, and it’ll be available with driveby-wire Precision Control and a keyless ignition. If smaller engines are what you need, check out the new DF25/30. These models have a 489cc powerhead with battery-less EFI and Suzuki’s Lean Burn system.

of course, gear manufacturers are happy to oblige.

Look around the show, and you’ll discover a number of significantly advanced items lifts that no longer depend on those cranky, troublesome spools and wheels, but instead run on hydraulics; bilge pumps that no longer leave a skim of water.

(Instead they pump out Suzuki virtually every drop); DF200A battery-powered folding electric bicycles that stow easily in a boat even coolers that do double-duty as air-conditioners.

The bottom line? This is going to be a great year for boaters. Take advantage of your area’s 2015 boat show to soak up the new technology and boat models and take in what 2015 has to offer.

ACCESSORY GEAR We boaters need stuff—lots of stuff—to go along with our pride and joy. Yes,

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Texas Boating

by Lenny Rudow | TF&G Boating Editor

Boating Pop Quiz!

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UST HOW GOOD A BOATER ARE YOU? Are you safe, secure, and sensible in your seamanship? If the answer is yes, you’ll enjoy a long life as a boater. If the answer is no, however, there could be property damage, injury, or worse in your future. How do you know just where you rank on the Competent Captain scale?

Simply take our basic seamanship pop quiz.

We’ll score you at the end, so think carefully before you choose your answers. Ready?

Let’s get started.

1. YOU SHOULD NEVER, ever use a stern cleat to secure: A. A swim ladder or rope used to get into or out of the boat B. An anchor line C. A rodholder or downrigger mount D. Any line bearing weight, or an item that weighs, 10 or more percent of the boat’s displacement

2. WHEN MEETING LARGE waves with a common V-hull powerboat, the safest common angle of attack is: A. Zero degrees; you want to meet the waves as close to head-on as possible.

B. 25-degrees C. 45-degrees D. 90-degrees; it’s actually safest to prevent the bow from smashing into the waves, and instead let them hit the side of the boat 3. IF YOUR BOAT has trouble getting on plane, you may be able to help it out by getting a prop with more: A. Pitch B. Blades C. Cup D. All of the above

sudden, violent storms when you see this type of cloud forming: A. Anvil-shaped clouds B. Puffy clouds, that look like cottoncandy C. Cirrocumulus clouds D. Any clouds that are dark in color 5. EVERYONE KNOWS what a “mayday” call heard over the VHF radio means.

But what’s the call you need to make when you’re in a situation that’s a bit dicey, not life-threatening, but could get worse?

A. Emergency B. December C. Maverick D. Pan-pan 6. IN A LIGHTNING storm, putting your passengers belowdecks will provide them with some level or protection. True, or false?

7. YOU’RE TROLLING, and a sailboat is motoring along near-by off your port side. It turns and suddenly you’re on a collision course. But since it’s a sailboat, you will have to get out of its way. True, or false?

8. YOU SHOULDN’T jump from boat to boat in open water, but if it becomes absolutely necessary to transfer people between boats in open water or rough seas, you should keep both boats headed directly into the seas, and under power. True, or false?

9. IN ORDER TO reduce the chances of pitch-poling when running an outboard-powered boat head on into heavy seas, you should ___________ the boat’s __________ up.

10. WITHOUT LOOKING, what is the weight carrying capacity of your boat as shown on the manufacturer-installed capacity plate?

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VHF, are they integrated for DSC capabilities? If your boat is used in protected waters where these items may not be considered necessary, do you have some form of emergency signaling/communications device— other than a cell phone—onboard?

12. DO YOU KEEP a bucket or some other form of emergency bailing device onboard, in case your pumps fail?

13. YOU’RE MOTORING along slowly in the dark, when you see another boat’s lights getting closer and closer. There’s a green in the front, and a white light behind it. Who has the right-of-way, and who has to give way?

14. IN ADDITION TO all of your USCG-required safety gear, do you also keep a first-aid kit onboard?

15. A FATHOM is equal to _____ feet.

16. A KNOT IS equal to ____ MPH. 17. ATHWARTSHIPS means: at right angles to the boat’s _______________.

18. HOW MUCH SCOPE should you put out when you need to anchor in extremely rough conditions?

19. TO PUT A LOOP into the end of a mooring line, mariners use a _______ knot.

20. WHICH LINE is better for your anchor rode: polypro, or braided nylon?

Bonus Question:

YOU’RE ZIPPING across the lake and suddenly put your boat into a hard turn.

You hear the prop “howl” as it grabs air, and loses its “bite” on the water. Is the proper technical term for this phenomenon “cavitation”?

ANSWERS ON PAGE 62 (NO PEEKING!)

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Texas Boating Pop Quiz Answers: 1. B. Anchoring your boat from the stern is exceptionally bad seamanship. Boats are regularly swamped or sunk when waves hit the stern, while its ability to rise with the waves is restricted by a taut anchor line.

2. C. 45 degrees is the commonly agreed upon angle; a lower angle increases the chances of burying the bow, and any higher angle increases the chance of rolling the boat.

3. D. Which is best suited to your needs depends on many variables, but all of these factors can help a boat get on plane more quickly.

4. A. These are indicative of building thunderheads.

7. FALSE. In the eyes of the law, a sailboat that’s moving under power is a powerboat. That said, if a collision becomes imminent it is still, of course, up to you to avoid it.

8. TRUE. Keeping headway with the bow into the seas provides you with the most control, and keeps the two boats rising and falling simultaneously.

9. TRIM the boat’s ENGINE up. This forces the stern down and the bow up, helping to prevent the bow from digging in as it hits waves. (TRIM the boat’s BOW up is also an acceptable answer).

10. IF YOU can make an educated guess that’s within 10 percent, mark this question correct. If you know the exact figure off-hand, give yourself double points.

5. D. The call “pan-pan” is used to alert the authorities and near-by boats where there’s a potentially dangerous situation, but it’s not yet life-threatening.

11. A “YES” answer to either question gets you a point.

6. TRUE. While there are no guarantees, it’s safer than being exposed on deck.

13. YOU HAVE the right of way, and the other boat has to give way. The green

12. YES gets you a point.

light indicates that you’re looking at the starboard side of the other boat, and the vessel to the right has the right of way.

14. YES gets you a point. If you don’t have all your USCG-required gear onboard, by the way, you automatically fail the entire quiz.

15. SIX 16. A KNOT is about 1.15 MPH. (1.151, to be exact).

17. CENTERLINE. 18. AS MUCH as you have. (An answer of 9:1 or higher is acceptable. But in reality, you’re best off putting it all out).

19. BOWLINE—but you only get half credit, if you don’t know how to tie one.

20. BRAIDED nylon; polypro floats.

BONUS QUESTION: No, this is ventilation. Cavitation occurs when low pressure areas around the prop’s blades cause the formation of air bubbles.

Score:

20+ correct – We’d sail to the ends of the Earth, with you at the helm.

15 + correct – You’re a competent captain.

10 – 14 correct – It’s time to brush up on your nautical know-how.

Under 10 correct – You’re a real Gilligan—we hope your insurance is paid up.

Email Lenny Rudow at ContactUs@fishgame.com

Get more boating tips in LENNY RUDOW’s Texas Boating Blog at www.Fishgame.com/blogs 62 |

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Texas Guns

by Steve LaMascus | TF&G Shooting Editor

What is a Custom Rifle?

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HAVE SEVERAL RIFLES THAT HAVE BEEN rebuilt into different and even wildcat calibers. Mostly they still wear the standard factory stock. They may or may not have an after-market trigger, but you can bet that the trigger is adjusted to my satisfaction.

Nothing is more important to good shooting than a good trigger and nothing can spoil a good rifle like a gritty, balky, too-heavy trigger.

I like the Ackley Improved series of cartridges. Two of my favorite rifles are a .222 Remington Magnum Ackley Improved that is made on an older Remington Model 700 short action, and a .243 Winchester Ackley Improved that is made on a post-64 Winchester Model 70 XTR action. Both are capable of sub-minute of angle accuracy, but neither of them is really a custom rifle.

The Model 70 has had a bunch of accuracy work done on it by Ted Borg of Ted’s Custom Guns in Weatherford, Oklahoma, wears a match grade Hart barrel, and will average three shots in a half inch or less, but it is not really a fully custom gun. A whale of a lot of work can be done on a rifle and still not make it into a custom gun.

The truth is that almost any factory rifle can be made more accurate by a good gunsmith. Part of this work may involve a new stock to replace the factory stock. I have a couple of guns that wear such after-market stocks, and they shoot brilliantly, but, again, they are not custom rifles.

For a gun to qualify as a true custom gun it must be built from the action up to the specifications of the owner. The action must be squared and trued; the barrel must be

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replaced by a custom made barrel; the stock must be replaced by a quality stock made by a stock maker to the needs of the owner; and the trigger must be either replaced or fitted, finished, and adjusted to the exact specifications of the owner.

All of this work is exacting; most of it is hand work and time-consuming, and it is expensive. A quality custom rifle will run a minimum of $2,500, and if the stock is made of high-grade walnut or some other highly figured wood, it will be more than that maybe a lot more. These days just having a new barrel fitted to your gun can run upward of $500, so you can see where a custom gun will cost a princely sum.

At one time there were a lot of inexpensive surplus military rifles available that were satisfactory as the basis of a custom rifle. That is no longer true. You can still pick up the occasional 1903 Springfield, 1917 Enfield, or Model 98 Mauser, but you can bet your IRA that they will not cost $20, like they did in the 1950s.

Today it is generally best to start the project with a commercial action or (if you are lucky enough to find a good one for a reasonable price) a used rifle. The most commonly used action for a custom rifle today is the Remington Model 700, but you can still get Model 98-style actions made by Fabrique Nationale in Belgium. I personally like the FN Mausers, but I am a throwback. The Remington actions are probably just as good and are, I am told, easier to work with.

The most important part of your custom rifle is the barrel, and that is where you will probably spend most of your money. A really good barrel will start at about $500 and go up from there. Take my advice and don’t scrimp here. Buy the best you can afford, and it will pay dividends later.

As for a stock, I love good wood, but if you want a good, all-weather rifle, one of the modern synthetic stocks is better.

Synthetics will not soak up water when you have to hunt for two weeks in the rain on the Alaska Peninsula and will not warp in

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the 120-degree heat of Baja or the Sahara.

Synthetics are also cheaper than a good blank of highly figured Circassian walnut.

Today your gun will probably be pillar bedded. The stress points and the recoil lug should be glassed and the bolt lugs should be fitted perfectly to the receiver. The trigger should be one of the best commercially available, such as Jewell or Timney. The stock should be perfectly matched to your build and the length of your arms. Fitted this way, it allows you to have a firm weld between your face and the comb when you bring it to your shoulder.

Last but by no means least, the scope rings and mounts should be fitted and lapped and should wear a high quality scope. Don’t scrimp on the scope. The best gun will not shoot well with a poor scope and a cheap scope is much more likely to go haywire at the most inopportune time.

Is a custom gun worth the price? That depends. If you are building a gun for a special trip of a lifetime, then yes. If you are wanting just one gun that is built exactly to your specifications, that can be worth the price, also. If you love beautiful rifles that shoot brilliantly, it is probably worth the price.

If all you want is a rifle to hunt deer with once a year, then it probably isn’t worth the money.

In the end, it is up to you. For me, I think every one of my custom guns was worth every penny I spent. But, then, I am a gun lover from way back. I love beautiful guns and believe they are works of art. And I am not alone.

Email Steve LaMascus at ContactUs@fishgame.com

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Texas Tested Minn Kota Ulterra: Power Up YOU WANT THE ULTIMATE IN bow-mounted trolling motors? One candidate is going to be Minn Kota’s new Ulterra.

That’s especially true if you have a bad back, because with the Ulterra, there’s no more bending and stooping to wrestle with the motor when it’s time to deploy it, or haul it up. Nope—instead, you just press a button or click the foot pedal.

The Ulterra’s a self-deploying motor, which not only goes in and out of the water automatically, it can even be power-trimmed.

Naturally, a new model with a hot new feature like this also comes with the high-end features found elsewhere in Minn Kota’s line-up.

That includes autopilot, which allows you to lock in a heading and leave the hard stuff (like countering wind and current, or “hovering” the boat in a specific location) to the motor. Or the I-Pilot and I-Pilot Link, which allow you to enjoy features like controlling the

Minn Kota Ulterra

motor remotely, and digitally connecting your motor with a Humminbird, to retrace previous paths or follow contours.

The Ulterra’s shaft is composite, poundfor-pound is stronger than steel, and flexes so it won’t bend or break if you ram a log

or run aground. An integrated dual-beam transducer is incorporated in the lower unit housing, with 200/83-kHz beams. And the standard prop is a Weedless Wedge 2, which has flared blades that can cut through the thick stuff without killing your batteries.

Speaking of batteries, this model also utilizes Minn Kota’s Digital Maximizer to conserve battery power and extend running time. Plus, this is all backed by a two year warranty.

The big remaining question is, of course, just how powerful this motor is: it’s available in two sizes, an 80-lb thrust version, which runs on 24-volts, and a 112-lb thrust version which runs on 36 volts. 45-inch and 60-inch shaft lengths are available. Speed control for all models is variable, and maximum amp draw is 56 for the 80-lb thrust version and 52 for the 112-lb thrust version.

So, is this really the “ultimate” in bowmounted electric trolling motors? You make the call. But one thing is for sure—your aching back will think it is. For more information, visit www.minnkotamotors.com.

—by Lenny Rudow

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Industry Insider Saltwater Engines Need More Care FRED LESTER OF RED WING Boats, 836 S 75th St, Houston, TX, says many of the problems encountered in outboard engines operated in saltwater can be traced back to lack of maintenance. “When anglers start having problems with their outboard engines it’s because they don’t necessarily maintain the engines and things get corroded. They start thinking about replacing the engine.

“A customer has a good boat, but it has some age on it and the engine is starting to show its age, or having some problems.

Sometimes it’s a bigger horsepower need; they didn’t buy enough to start with. It’s not always hours on the motors because the motors will last longer than most people run them. They start spending a little money on it.”

Common maintenance problems that cause wear and tear on a saltwater engine: “Fishermen don’t use them often enough, or they don’t clean them, maintain them after use,” continues Lester.

Flush a saltwater motor regardless of the brand, every time after use. Changing lower unit oil, pulling the prop off to make sure there is no fishing line behind the prop that damages the seal, all help prevents problems on the water.

If a motor or other operating aspects of a motor are giving problems, Lester and his maintenance crew at Red Wing Boats have over 50 years of experience of correcting problems, including repowering a boat.

“Our Company does over 150 repowers a year, including twin engine set-ups on the off-shore boats. I have been doing it for years.” Red Wing Boats was a Robalo dealer for 30 years, with many of these boats set up with twin engines. Red Wing now sells Parker off-shore boats.

Red Wing can handle any of your engine repair needs, from trailer work to boat work, steering to fixing aerators and bilge pumps. If a customer wants to repower, they have their choice of Evinrude

With 50 years experience, the crew at Redwing Boats stands ready to assist with all your boating needs.

Outboards from 135 to 300 hp. For the bay boats, Lester strongly recommends the Evinrude E-TEC 2 stroke engines.

The E-TEC 2 stroke engines first

Red Wing’s Fred Lester recommends 2 Stroke outboards like the Evinrude E-TEC for bay boats.

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scheduled maintenance on new engines is three years or 300 hours. “In most cases it’s three years because people don’t get that many hours. Four-stroke engines are good motors, but they don’t have “hump” or torque to get up fast in shallow water, a necessity for a bay boat. Evinrude has so much power on the low end, which is what you need to pop a boat up on plane,” explains Lester. “The E-TEC engines are clean running and give great fuel economy.”

Red Wing Boats specializes in bay boats. Product lines include Gulf Coast, Frontier, Black Jack and Sea Skiff. “We have been a Gulf Coast dealer since they brought out their first boat,” says Lester.

If a customer is looking for a new lake boat, he carries the South Wind boat line, a deck boat that has a fiberglass boat hull instead of pontoons.

Since 1962 Red Wing Boats has provided quality boating products and service.

Clyde Lester originally began selling fishing tackle and molded plywood boats that he built himself. Clyde passed on in 2004, but his family, Fred, Ralph and Barbara continue to provide excellent service and boating products.

Check out www.redwingboatco.com or call (713) 921-0656 for more information.

Red Wing Boats is located at 836 S 75th St., Houston, TX 77023.

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Fish and Game Gear King Sailfish Mounts FOR MORE THAN 20 YEARS, KING Sailfish Mounts of Fort Lauderdale, Florida has been helping anglers bring their greatest catches to life.

KSM offers a complete line of both fresh and saltwater gamefish mounts. Each mount is individually made, without using any part of the actual fish.

Their mounts are handcrafted, made completely out of fiberglass and hand painted by staff artists.

By sending in photos of your catch, King Sailfish Mounts artists can actually “authenticate” the mount, adjusting the

shape and coloration to match the Angler’s trophy.

KSM is dedicated to helping anglers preserve memories that last a lifetime.

To see the latest and greatest, visit the King Sailfish Mounts Facebook page or www.KingSailfishMounts.com.

mYcore Turns Up the Heat INTRODUCING THE WORLD’S first heated hooded parka and jacket with patented My Core Control Personal Thermal Control technology inside that gives the wearer the ability to actually change their 68 |

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core body temperature measured orally on demand.

How? By strategically providing heat to the pulse point area of the inner wrists and utilizing the heart as the pump, the blood as the coolant, and the circulatory system as the radiator.

As the heart beats, heated blood is pumped throughout the entire body. The microprocessor controller provides three temperature settings to adjust the warmth to fit your comfort and activity level.

Batteries re-charge in 6 hours and are rechargeable for over 500 cycles. Solid state heated wrist devices and button are waterproof.

Internal highly water resistant battery pouches with PU zippers keep batteries

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The parka/jacket features Mossy Oak Break-Up Infinity Pattern camo. The My Core Control Personal Thermal Control Technology has three levels of adjustable heat. It provides up to 12 hours of performance (six hours on the high setting).

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Lifetime guarantee on electrical when proper care is given. Includes two rechargeable 3.7 volt lithium-ion batteries with a combined 7500 MAH of power and charger.

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Hotspots Focus: Upper Coast

by Capt. Eddie Hernandez | TF&G Contributor

2015: New Memories

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S WE CLOSE THE DOOR ON YET another year and welcome a brand new one with open arms, we cherish the memories and look forward to the new ones that will be made in 2015.

We definitely had no shortage of them last year. Here’s hoping this year will be no different. It’s January, so we will start making those memories by seeking out big, cold water trout on the flats of Sabine Lake.

There are a few things to remember if you are going to be successful in bringing solid winter sows to the net. First of all, these big girls prefer to feed on bigger fish rather than smaller shrimp.

Because of their size and the fact that their metabolism slows with the cool January water, they tend to be slower than normal.

They are also wary and less aggressive.

They want a big easy meal with the least amount of effort possible. Therefore, bigger baits worked slower than normal will typically equal better results.

Speckled trout will eat larger shrimp in the winter months but they prefer finfish like mullet and even smaller trout. For this reason, slow sinking plugs like Mir O Lure, Catch V, and Catch 200 as well as Corky Fat Boys and Devils are excellent choices.

These trout will occasionally go for long periods between meals, sometimes even a few days, so it is very important to work your lure slowly and cover the water thoroughly.

Wading is always a good option in January because it allows you to do this with more stealth and precision.

There is no doubt you can cover the water more thoroughly wading than you can drifting. The wade fisherman has a better chance of getting the big bite because there is more opportunity for the lure to get close enough to the fat, lazy trout and entice a strike.

Although wading is the preferred method for a lot of anglers seeking wintertime trophy trout, drifting the shallow flats is not a bad second choice at all. Drifting can at times, be just as effective, if not better, for scoring the big bite and big numbers.

I actually do more drift fishing than wade fishing with clients in the winter because a lot of people aren’t willing to spend hours wading and casting repeatedly, waiting for that one big bite. By drifting we cover a lot more water much quicker. When someone gets a bite, we stick the power pole and work that area over thoroughly before moving on.

Even in the cold winter, we will at times come across schools of very solid trout. By drifting and covering more water quickly, the chances of that happening are much better.

If mullet imitation, slow-sinking plugs and top waters are not getting the job done, don’t be afraid to throw long, soft plastics such as Assassins or Zoom Super Flukes on 1/4 oz. or 1/8 oz. jig heads. Some of our best memories from 2014 came from doing just that.

THE BANK BITE LOCATION: Mesquite Point (south end of Sabine Lake at the Causeway) SPECIES: Whiting, Croaker, Reds and Black Drum BAITS/LURES: Fresh dead shrimp, cut bait BEST TIMES: Moving tide

Contact Eddie Hernandez at ContactUs@fishgame.com

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12/8/14 11:34 AM

Hotspots Focus: Galveston

by Capt. Mike Holmes | TF&G Contributor

Cold Comforts

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LTHOUGH JANUARY IS GENERALLY going to be the coldest month on the Texas coast–or at least it has the potential to be–in most years we will see enough calm, sunny days to get fishermen excited about being on the beach, bay, or Gulf.

It is enough to simply be able to enjoy getting out in a break from harsh weather conditions. However, there are fish available to stretch an angler’s line and come home for dinner.

The fish species found in our waters are not really known for long distance migration.

If they disappear from their usual haunts during a spell of cold weather, chances are they did not travel very far.

Speckled trout and redfish will choose deeper water to buffer the cold, so they will probably be found in deep holes in bays or coastal streams, channels cutting across a bay, and deeper water near a jetty or a short distance offshore in the surf.

Fish normally feed less often in cold water because their activity level is so low they don’t need to eat as much. They will also often seek a bigger baitfish that can be digested over a longer period of time–again reducing the need to feed as often.

Natural baits that produce a fresh scent will draw these fish if the baits are worked slowly in those deep areas. Artificial lures should also be worked slowly, and near the bottom. Soft lures are most effective in this manner.

Flounders are generally considered to move to deeper water in the Gulf during the coldest periods. After catching flounders around oil rigs 20 miles offshore in winter and talking to divers who have seen large numbers of the flatfish on the bottom offshore, I firmly believe this is true.

However, some of the largest flounders I have ever seen were taken as by-catch in shrimp trawls pulled in the Intracoastal Waterway in winter. Because this seems to happen every year, it is safe to assume some flounders–especially the larger specimens– seek their deep water haven inshore.

It has long been accepted that king mackerel move as far as the very deep water off the Louisiana coast. Grand Isle has been fairly famous as a spot to target large kings in winter months.

Not as widely known is that there seems to be a fishable concentration of kings each winter around the Claypile Bank off Galveston, and sometimes around Stetson Rock as well. These are also usually larger fish than normal, leading some fishermen to speculate that older kings tend not to migrate with the younger fish.

Sharks are known to be warm weather creatures, avoiding water temps much below 70 degrees. Still, not much is known about where they might move to in cold weather.

Some shark fishermen of my acquaintance

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hold that sharks, too, simply go to deeper water in the Gulf, where the temperature does not vary much between the seasons.

Sharpnose sharks are not uncommon catches around rigs and over bottom structure in winter. It has become fairly common to catch mako sharks off Padre Island in winter.

Of course, deep water fish such as snappers and groupers might actually move farther inshore during cold weather. Species such as bluefish that are common along the Atlantic coast, get numerous in the northern Gulf in winter.

So, there are fish to be caught–at least potentially–in our winter Gulf, but do we want to try for them? I am a cold weather sissy myself, but even I can bundle up enough to brave the cold wind for a fishing trip now and then.

On those warm sunny days I mentioned earlier, it is not only more comfortable to fish, but also more productive. Shallow flats warm up fast under even a winter sun, and if there is deep water nearby, fish will probably be prowling, looking for baitfish to feed on.

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Hotspots Focus: Matagorda

by Mike Price | TF&G Contributor

Half Moon Rising

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NE OF MATAGORDA’S FAVORITE restaurants, Spoonbills, closes in January. Owner Edie Pruitt and her staff take the month off to go scuba diving in the clear, warm waters of the Caribbean. Although so few fishermen visit Matagorda in January that Edie closes her restaurant, the fishing can be excellent, but as always, it is challenging.

Last January Alan Berger and I went fishing on a day when the water level in West Matagorda Bay was low. Water had been pushed out by north winds and low tides. I decided to fish Shell Reef on the north side because we had a light northeast wind.

When we arrived, the water was very clear, and so low that much of the oyster reef was exposed. We fished for an hour with no hits, so it was time for a change and this is where

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I made an error.

I decided to fish Oyster Lake and the Old Intracoastal Waterway that leads into Oyster Lake from the present Intracoastal Waterway.

I have had good fishing there in January.

However, on that day the water in Oyster Lake was so low that we couldn’t even take kayaks into the lake, and the Old Intracoastal trench had murky water and a very strong current. We caught only one 19- and a 21-inch redfish.

I had considered going to the south shore of West Matagorda Bay. I have had good fishing there on other days in January with similar conditions water temperature 57°F, low water, weather partly cloudy and air temperature 60°F. I like to fish areas along the south shoreline that have deep holes adjacent to flats. When the water warms later in the day, fish will leave the deep water and forage the flats in search of prey. Some fish can also be found in the deep areas, especially trout.

When I got back to Matagorda Harbor I talked with Captain Coach Floyd Ciruti.

Coach is a guide, but on this day he had

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been out fishing for fun with Eddie Douglas the inventor of the very effective lure, the ED Special. They went to the south side of West Matagorda Bay and Coach said, “We caught trout in the holes and redfish on the flats.”

This year Matagorda Bay fishermen have a new reef that should hold fish in January, because it is near deep water and has great habitat. Half Moon Reef is southwest of Palacios Point. It has been on maps for years, but was not productive because its habitat, oysters, had been dredged to be used for road building, leaving just a shoal.

The idea for restoration of Half Moon Reef came from Matagorda County Extension Agent, Bill Balboa. Balboa suggested the project to Mark Dumesnil, associate director of Coastal Restoration for Nature Conservancy Texas. Dumesnil helped make the project happen along with help from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. fish and Wildlife Service, and the Texas General Land Office.

An article about the restoration of Half Moon Reef on the Nature Conservancy website says, “A healthy one-acre reef filters approximately 24 million gallons of water daily.” The new reef is 45 acres.

Eddie Vacek has fished in this area all of his life. Eddie told me that before Half Moon Reef was dredged and reduced by time and weather, there was a small house on it and the reef was very good fishing.

I fished the new Half Moon Reef with Eddie in 2014 on a day when we had a bit of a chop and off-colored water. We caught seven trout on that day. Eddies boat hull scraped against the cement pieces that the reef is made of a couple of times because the tide was 1 ½ feet to 2 feet lower than normal (a condition that is possible in January). So when we set up a drift we would circle around the outside of the reef to avoid hitting the reef, and then raise the engine and drift through.

The reef is marked with buoys. Eddie said this reef will be best on very calm days.

On another day in 2014 I fished Half Moon Reef with Matagorda guide, Charlie Paradoski. The water was very calm and

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GALVESTON FOCUS clear, and the tide was incoming. We started at N 28°33.853 and W 096°14.480 on a light south wind, and the trout were feeding.

Four fishermen caught 27 trout between 16 and 20 inches. The best producing tackle combination was Gulp and Pro’s Choice popping cork made by Robert Sirvello from Port Isabelle. Charlie said, “This popping cork is my favorite because it is the noisiest.”

Then he added, “When you pop it, stop it.

You’ve got to give them a chance to come and get it.”

Look for a day when the wind is calm and fish an area that is close to deep water. Be conscious of low water conditions caused by low tides and north winds. Remember, you don’t have to stop fishing in January, you can still get out in East and West Matagorda Bays and catch fish.

THE BANK BITE PIERS NEAR THE MOUTH OF THE OLD COLORADO RIVER There are two piers close to the mouth of the Old

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t CONTINUED FROM PAGE 71 Even top water artificials can pay off under these conditions. I have caught, or seen caught, “bull” redfish in the Galveston surf in every month of the year, and once saw a good-sized tarpon in late December.

When conditions are right–which normally means bait species roaming the guts of the surf–large predators will be pursuing them.

Of course in winter, I have been known to travel to Boca Chica beach at the southern tip of Texas to fish. Some folks journey to the Midnight Lump off Venice, Louisiana to try for yellow fin tuna and wahoo that school there in colder weather, so your options are open should you choose to migrate to the fish.

Colorado River that have parking and easy access.

The Old Colorado River is the portion of river that goes from the locks and bridge in the village of Matagorda into the Gulf of Mexico. One pier is next to the Matagorda Bay Nature Park and RV Park. The second pier is about a half-mile north.

Both of these piers provide the opportunity to catch

THE BANK BITE LOCATION: Deeper water within casting distance of shore, jetty, dock, or pier.

SPECIES: Speckled trout, redfish will be joined by some puppy black drum and croaker BEST BAITS: Dead shrimp, cut small baitfish, live finger mullet or mud minnows caught “on the grounds”.

BEST TIMES: If you can catch a warm day inviting fish to feed on a shallow reef or flat that can be reached by wading, go for it. Otherwise, bundle up and fish at night under a light.

Contact Mike Holmes at ContactUs@fishgame.com. trout and redfish when water temperatures are low because the fish like deep water, which is a little warmer.

Contact Mike Price at ContactUs@fishgame.com

12/10/14 2:29 PM

Hotspots Focus: Upper Mid Coast

by Capt. Chris Martin | TF&G Contributor

Reel-In the New Year Slowly

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HERE WILL INEVITABLY BE COLD days in January, but that shouldn’t stop saltwater anglers from getting out on the water if they want to.

Some of the year’s nicest fish are caught during the coldest times of the year, and 2015 should be no exception.

All that you coastal anglers will need

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for wintertime bay fishing is a slight change in the way you work your lures and a small dose of patience. Painstakingly slow retrieves, mental composure and diligence can become key items for cold-water success over the course of the next few months.

When bay waters get cold, so do the fish.When the fish get cold they tend to slow down (considerably). This means that anglers will need to slow down the presentation of their baits. Granted, some of these wintertime methods may sound boring compared to spring and summer techniques, but they have proved to be quite effective.

For those who are willing to spend time becoming proficient in these slower techniques, good catches of wintertime trout and redfish should no longer be out of the question. Many baits discussed here may already be part of your tackle box, but if not they should be added just for the year’s cold months.

Before we get to the lures, however, let’s talk a bit about the rest of your equipment.

Winter conditions call for a degree of skill and finesse. Not only will you need to slow things down right now, you also need to downsize things as well.

This means a rod that’s a bit more limber and a reel that’s loaded with lighter line in the eight to ten pound range. Some anglers prefer a spinning reel for tossing lighter lures because they are known to handle lighter lines better than other types of reels.

It is important for you to feel even the slightest bump at the end of your line, so consider some of the newer polymer and braided lines over that of monofilament simply because they don’t stretch nearly as bad as monofilament does.

You may not spend a lot of time tossing top water baits this time of the year, but they are my favorite type of lure, and I just can’t help myself. Some top producers are Rapala’s Skitter Walk Junior and Heddon’s Zara Spook and Zara Puppy. It’s difficult to fish for trout in the winter without some of the more traditional suspending and slow-sinking plugs such as the Corky,

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the 51M MirroLure, the Catch 5 and the Catch 2000.

If it’s soft plastics you prefer, try those with a straight tail instead of a paddle tail.

Some favorites this time of the year include TTF’s’ Texas Flats Minnows and Texas Trout Killers, and the Norton Sand Eel and Sand Eel Juniors. Many of the old, standard shrimp tails work just fine, too.

If you’re really having a hard time drawing a strike with your plastics, try rigging a couple of them in tandem. Right now, when the fish are cold and lethargic, they’ll often see the first bait on the tandem rig, but will generally strike the second one.

When working surface walkers in cold water, let the bait sit motionless atop the surface for a solid count of five seconds before twitching it ever-so-slightly a few times, then let it rest again. It’s hard to imagine this technique working, but it’s a method that’s been proven over and over again.

For your suspending and slow-sinkers, try a simple twitch and pause similar to what you would use on a plastic tail, but much slower. You can also walk-the-dog with them, just like a top water bait. Just do it beneath the water’s surface and make it purely a “slow walk” versus a “trot” or a “run.”

For soft plastics, try simply dragging the lure across the bay floor just as slow as humanly possible the colder it gets, the slower you should reel.

This is not an all-inclusive list of things to persuade picky wintertime fish to bite.

However, I hope this has given you a new plan to catch some really nice trout or redfish while you’re waiting for things to warm up a bit. Happy New Year, and keep grindin’!

Contact Capt. Chris Martin at bayflatslodge@gmail.com or visit bayflatslodge.com

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12/8/14 11:34 AM

Hotspots Focus: Rockport

by Capt. Mac Gable | TF&G Contributor

OMG What’s that Noise?

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HAD TWO CLIENTS OUT IN MID-NOVEMber.

A few days before they had called and asked if any fish were biting. Although the fishing wasn’t stellar, I had found some black drum that were perfect eating size, and my clients jumped at the chance.

We used very light Carolina rigs on medium action spinning reels. I had three types of bait live but very lethargic shrimp, fresh dead shrimp, and some squid cut into small pieces.

The morning was brisk with the temperature in the 50s, and we were what I like to call “slow soaking” (bottom fishing) for the tasty Pogonias cromis or black drum.

The action was steady, and the couple were quickly approaching their limit, sipping coffee eating some warm apple fritters and watching the wildlife.

The lady turned to me and said, “This is so relaxing and enjoyable, no TVs no cell phones, no cars or honking. This is what it’s all about!”

Suddenly, out of nowhere came a sound that was all too familiar for me. It sounded like rolling thunder, but without the much appreciated rain clouds. The sound rapidly got louder and louder.

“OMG!” the man said. “What is that horrible noise?”

“Well,” I said, “it’s not a bird, it’s not a plane and it ain’t Superman welcome to Rockport. It’s an air boat!” We could see the dark hulk making its way toward us; and as if on cue, three more air boats appeared in a

line just behind the first.

I told my clients it would be best to hold their ears shut as they went by. The air boats went right across the reef we were fishing and we could feel it on my boat.

My clients were NOT happy to say the least. I told them once they (the air boats) were gone, the fish would return (I hoped) and we could settle back down (I prayed) into the quiet morning we were enjoying. The lady, now fit to be tied, said “Will there be any more?”

“Probably yes, ma’am,” I said. “It is duck season, and they are coming back from the morning hunt.” “Capt. Mac, can you take us somewhere they won’t be?” “I can try and get away from them,” I said, “but there may not be any fish.” “We don’t care,” the couple said, “we DO NOT want to listen to that racket!”

The truth is, out of 10 clients maybe one or two like air boats. The rest don’t like them, don’t want to be around them and think they should be outlawed. In the little community of Lamar where I live, they are a fact of life.

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Those who live here have either gotten used to them or grew up with them or like the others, they simply hate them because of the noise.

Some air boats are quieter than others, and I have found that the operator has a lot to do with the way they are perceived. So how loud is too loud? Well, like most other things in life, that depends on the person. Some research has been done in this area.

Sound is measured in decibels (dB) as many know. What you may not know is that the research has gone the extra mile. Now we know not only how loud most things are, but just how much exposure will cause damage to our much needed ears.

Noise-induced hearing loss and tinnitus are the two main hearing loss disorders, so not only is noise aggravating it can and does do damage. Think of noise and decibels as equivalents. That is, zero decibels equals the weakest sound, 60 to 65 dB equals normal conversation, 85 dB equals city traffic (inside a car), 98 dB equals a hand drill. Around 125 dB, you begin to feel pain.

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Rockport Focus Prolonged exposure to noise levels above 90 dB is proved to lead to significant and permanent hearing loss. With most air boats producing noise levels from 80 to 90+ dB (conservatively), there is cause for at least some concern. Add to that the decibels of open headers and glass pack mufflers and the range is significantly higher depending on the cubic inches and horse power of the air boat motor.

It is, however, hard to nail this down as air boats, like many other fossil fuel burners, have a wide array of configurations. This is the thing though I have seen and been around air boats that are much quieter.

I have found that most believe it’s the prop that produces the obnoxious noise.

But, if ole bubba is running open headers and a 500-plus-horsepower big block and a standard prop, then all are culprits in the noise category.

The quieter air boat I experienced was loud, but tolerable. It had very expensive mufflers that were angled in such a way to deflect the exhaust noise away from the occupants and those around the boat.

It also had an expensive carbon fiber four-blade prop that the owner swears cut the prop noise almost in half. I talked to some air boat builders, and they swear they can get the noise level down where a normal conversation is possible while the boat is up on plane.

Unfortunately the changes necessary to lower the noise level that much would affect performance enough that the boat would not live up to the expectations of the customer.

No, you won’t be able to run a 500 to 800 hp motor or go 60 to 80 mph but as I understand it our coastal waterways are not a race way!

Most folks I know who run air boats use ear muffs, and if they are duck hunters they wrap their dog’s ears up as well. There is a reason for that, and it ain’t just to keep bubba’s and rover’s ears warm.

This is the funny thing–listen closely next time you are close to an air boat on plane.

You will hear two distinct noises, one from the motor and one from the prop. Which one is louder depends on the person listening. Some eardrums are more sensitive to the lower frequency of the motor, while others find the higher frequency of the prop to be louder.

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In case you think this is a one-sided argument against air boats, please stay tuned. I have friends who own air boats and use them as a tool in their trade. Not once in my years as a guide have I ever had an issue with one of these guys/gals. They are respectful and motor a good distance away from the boat ramp before throttling up.

They can load and unload their boats in mere seconds without the eardrum-breaking noise of the less experienced who tend to whine and thunder away for what seems hours trying to do the same.

We locals shake our heads when this happens because we live here with air boats; and we, too, don’t like the excessive decibels any more than anyone else.

I’ve seen fights break out because a newbie’s prop soaked people sitting in their boats at the boat launch. Air boats have their purpose. In the hands of an experienced operator or professional, they are indeed a useful tool.

Further, they don’t create prop damage to our shallow water estuaries.

But, as more people make their homes here in our coastal heaven, they are simply not going to tolerate the noise these machines create. I see a time in the not too distant future when the loudly rigged, misused and misunderstood swamp buggy (at least in current form) either evolves to newer quieter, friendlier levels or their use here comes to an end altogether. Electric air boats anyone .... hhhmmmm?

January is just flat cold, it but offers some opportunities to those who don’t mind prowling for deep water egresses that our bays offer.

If there is ever a time to fish the ICW this month is made for such a time.

••• COPANO BAY - The old fishing pier is a good place for sheepshead using small kahle hooks tipped with squid. Use braided line as the pilings are brutal on mono. Find some keeper reds on cut mullet and mud minnows at the mouth of Mission Bay on a light Carolina rig. High tide or a falling tide is best here. Italian Bend wades are good for trout using Berkley Gulp Jerk Shad in morning glory color.

ARANSAS BAY - When the north wind blows hard and the tide is falling, the mouths of the back lakes near Jay Bird Reef

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are good for trout and a few reds using live shrimp or Berkley Gulp shrimp. Free-lined works, VERY slowly off the bottom. On high tide the back of Dunham Bay is a good place for reds using mud minnows either free-lined or on a light Carolina rig.

ST CHARLES BAY - The Twin Creeks area is good for black drum using peeled shrimp on a fish finder rig. A moving tide is best here, and patience is necessary. Little Devil’s Bayou is good for reds using finger mullet or mud minnows free-lined or on a light Carolina Rig. The cut between St Charles and Aransas Bay is the place to be on the colder days. A Berkley Jerk Shad in new penny color is best. Work the current that runs here, twitching your rod up and down.

CARLOS BAY - Drifts across Carlos Lake are good for trout and reds using Berkley Jerk Shad in new penny and nuclear chicken colors. Carlos Trench is good on the coldest days using live shrimp or DOA shrimp rigged to run deep.

MESQUITE BAY - Black drum is good in the Brays Cove area using peeled shrimp on a light Carolina rig. Look for drums feeding, then sight cast just in front of them. Beldons Cut is good for reds using cut mullet or menhaden on a medium Carolina rig.

AYERS BAY - Ayers Reef with a north wind is good for reds and trout using live shrimp or DOA shrimp under a clear bubble cork. East shoreline is good for reds and black drum using large frozen shrimp.

The key here is to take your time looking for feeding fish, then cast just in front of the direction they are feeding.

Here’s Wishing You Tight Lines Bent Poles and Plenty of Bait.

THE BANK BITE A SHORT WADE TO the cut between Aransas Bay and St. Charles Bay is the place to be on the colder days. Soft plastics in new penny and morning glory colors are best. Live shrimp is good here, too; but might be hard to find.

Contact Capt. Mac Gable at Mac Attack Guide Service, 512-809-2681, 361-790-9601 captmac@macattackguideservice.com

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12/8/14 11:34 AM

Hotspots Focus: Lower Coast

by Calixto Gonzales | TF&G Saltwater Editor

January Resolutions

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HEN THE CLOCK STRUCK MIDnight on January 1st, you resolved that you were going to make a serious effort to get more fishing in than in previous years.

No more canceling at the 11th hour because of weather or whatever, you say.

From now on, you were going to put on your man pants and get on the water, come what may. You’re going fishing, dammit!

You get out of a warm, soft bed, hitch on those man pants, grab your gear, and drive down to the ramp. For the first time in weeks, the weekend weather is actually mild, with sunny skies, temperatures starting in the mid-50s and promising to creep into the 70s.

Even if the wind is still out of the north, it’s a veritable breeze compared to the howling gales usually waiting for you on a Saturday morning in January. You stop at Quick Stop, and you’re happily surprised to find that they have live shrimp—which can be hard to come by in this time of year—and you get yourself a pint. Heck, you buy a quart because you feel lucky. You gas up, putter your way out of the finger channels and turn your boat north to find some trout and redfish.

Three hours later, you’ve whipped the water into lather, and you still have a quart of shrimp, less about a dozen or so. There are no fish in the box, and you’re starting to smell the skunk that is hiding somewhere on the boat.

Now what?

A nice January day like yours is not a complete loss, especially if you’ve used the gas to get up north. If the trout and redfish are not cooperating—as is their wont this time of year—you can turn your attention to the schools of black drum that are prowling around the spoil islands in winter.

Over the past few years, giant schools of the noisy, silver and black fish have aggregat-

ed around Unnecessary Island north of Port Isabel. These are solid 3- to 8-pound fish, and they provide some great and underrated sport on trout and redfish tackle.

Much like freshwater carp, the drum has often been looked down upon as a fish that lacks the sophistication and erudition of its spotted contemporaries. But these fish can be quite wily.

Fishermen who want to catch more than a single fish here or there have to exercise the same care and attention to strategy as they would for trout or redfish. On calm, clear days, a pod of feeding drums is easy to spot, especially if they’ve been grubbing around on the bottom, feeding on crabs, shrimp, and worms (when they’ll leave mud boils as their calling cards). Anglers can’t simply blast their boats up onto the pod, however. A smarter strategy would be to circle the school and set up a drift that will bring you within easy casting range.

The same baits you brought along for trout and redfish will always work with drum.

The venerable shrimp/popping cork combo is more than enough to dial in on a feeding black drum. Fish it a little more slowly than normal, with an occasional jerk to get the cork to pop. Drums are more gustatory and olfactory-oriented than audio, and will “smell” themselves to your bait. The cork serves the function of keeping your shrimp in the drum’s face.

Since drums are more scent feeders, artificials such as the Gulp! Shrimp also work, especially when the fish are actively feeding.

You can use either one under a cork, like live shrimp. Or you can bottom bounce them.

Use a ¼-ounce round jighead with the Gulp! Shrimp for best results. Cast ahead of the feeding drum, and bounce it along the bottom when the fish gets close. If he sees or smells it, he’ll eat it.

If you didn’t make the run north, but you’re still finding some tough fishing, you may want to focus your attention on the old Causeway. Winter means sheepshead are holding to the pilings.

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winter spawn, which begins in earnest in March. They are fairly aggressive, and will take either a live or fresh-dead shrimp. Many fishermen prefer to free-line the bait around the pilings, but savvy anglers use floats to suspend the bait and as strike detectors. If the bait moves off to the side or toward the pilings, set the hook hard.

Sheepshead are also very plentiful around Dolphin Point during January’s occasional calm days. The great thing about Dolphin Point is it is provides access to boat and shorebound anglers, both (the latter via Isla Blanca Park on South Padre Island).

The fishing can be very productive for ground-pounders. Many fishermen focus on the visible structure of the jetties around the point, but fishermen who back their boats up and fish deeper rocks or the drop-off, find some larger fish in greater numbers.

The standard shrimp/cork combo works well here, too, especially if you want to keep your bait off the rocks. Fortune, however, can favor the bold. On one trip, my wife, son, and I fished live shrimp with ½ ounce egg sinkers in 20 to 25 feet of water. It was a snotty, drizzly day, but we ended up with a triple limit of sheepshead ranging from 4 to 9 pounds.

At one point the three of us each had a good borrego on the line, which made for a real fire drill on my boat.

Trout and redfish will occasionally take a winter nap, but that doesn’t mean fishing is over. If you want to have a pole bent and a line stretched, there are other accommodating fish that won’t let a little bad weather get in the way. After all, they’re already cold and wet.

THE BANK BITE LOCATION: Dolphin Cove GPS: N26 4.02, W97 9.42 SPECIES: Black Drum, sheepshead.

TECHNIQUES: Fish with shrimp or crab on a bottom rig. Use heavier tackle if you’re after drum.

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Texas Hotspots

UPPER TEXAS COAST

West Bay Specks Whistling Dixie

by TOM BEHRENS LOCATION: Galveston West Bay HOTSPOT: Confederate Reef GPS: N 29 15.7549, W 94 55.177 (29.2626, -94.9196) SPECIES: Speckled trout BEST BAITS: Shrimp under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-723-1911 www.galvestonguides.com TIPS: “Get out of the boat and wade for the best chance to catch a big trout.” Capt. Mike Williams LOCATION: Galveston HOTSPOT: Jetties GPS: N 29 21.2141, W 94 42.645 (29.3536, -94.7108) SPECIES: Redfish BEST BAITS: Soft plastic shirmp tails CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-723-1911 www.galvestonguides.com TIPS: Don’t forget the jetties in January. The state record redfish was caught off the Sabine Jetties at this time of the year.

LOCATION: Galveston West Bay HOTSPOT: Mouth of Swan Lake GPS: N 29 20.139, W 94 53.694 (29.3357, -94.8949) SPECIES: Speckled trout BEST BAITS: 51MCHG MirrOlure CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-723-1911 www.galvestonguides.com TIPS: January is prime time to catch a trophy trout. Wading is the preferred method to fish.

LOCATION: Galveston West Bay HOTSPOT: Cow Bayou GPS: N 29 11.1799, W 95 4.7569 (29.1863, -95.0793)

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GPS COORDINATES are provided in two formats: “Decimal Degrees” (degrees.degrees) and “Degrees and Minutes” sometimes called “GPS Format” (degrees minutes. minutes). Examples (for Downtown Austin): Decimal Degrees: N30.2777, W97.7379; Degrees and Minutes: N30 16.6662, W97 44.2739. Consult your manual for information specific to your GPS device.

SPECIES: Speckled trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp on a #6 treble hook under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-723-1911 www.galvestonguides.com TIPS: Drift the open water

BEST BAITS: Soft plastic shirmp tails CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-723-1911 www.galvestonguides.com TIPS: Chartruese/pearl is probably the number one bait with a 1/4 ounce jig head LOCATION: Galveston West Bay HOTSPOT: Snake Island Cove GPS: N 29 9.565, W 95 2.215 (29.1594, -95.0369) SPECIES: Speckled trout BEST BAITS: Soft plastic shrimp tails in pearl/ chartreuse CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-723-1911 www.galvestonguides.com TIPS: “Fish either the north or south shoreline, whichever ones is out of the wind, for trout.” Capt.

Mike Williams

LOCATION: Galveston West Bay HOTSPOT: The Pocket GPS: N 29 17.538, W 94 53.917 (29.2923, -94.8986) SPECIES: Speckled trout BEST BAITS: Soft plastic shrimp tails in pearl/ chartreuse CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-723-1911 www.galvestonguides.com TIPS: West bay is the shallowest of the bays in the Galveston Bay complex, and warms the fastest.

LOCATION: Galveston West Bay HOTSPOT: Bird Island Flats GPS: N 29 6.1279, W 95 8.7259 (29.1021, -95.1454) SPECIES: Speckled trout BEST BAITS: 51MCHG MirrOlure CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-723-1911 www.galvestonguides.com TIPS: “Best baits for a trophy trout are lures that imitate some kind of finfish…mullet, piggy or croaker.” Capt. Mike Williams

LOCATION: Galveston West Bay HOTSPOT: Jones Bay Shoreline GPS: N 29 18.6839, W 94 55.555 (29.3114, -94.9259) SPECIES: Speckled trout BEST BAITS: Shrimp under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-723-1911 www.galvestonguides.com TIPS: January is one of the top months to catch a trophy trout.

LOCATION: Galveston West Bay HOTSPOT: Gangs Bayou GPS: N 29 20.3299, W 94 53.569 (29.3388, -94.8928) SPECIES: Speckled trout BEST BAITS: 51MCHG MirrOlure CONTACT: Capt. Mike Williams 713-723-1911 www.galvestonguides.com TIPS: “The number one color in a hard plastic bait is gold/chartreuse.? Capt. Mike Williams

LOCATION: Galveston West Bay HOTSPOT: North Shoreline GPS: N 29 14.3149, W 95 0.6769 (29.2386, -95.0113) SPECIES: Speckled trout

LOCATION: Matagorda HOTSPOT: Colorado River GPS: N 28 40.5419, W 95 58.08 (28.6757, -95.9680) SPECIES: Speckled trout

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BEST BAITS: Norton Sand Eels in Tequila Gold CONTACT: Capt. Walt Schelle 979-240-5187 walt@matagorda-bay.com www.matagorda-bay.com/kingfisher TIPS: Drift the river from Selkirk Island to the Gulf LOCATION: Matagorda East Bay HOTSPOT: Oyster Farm Reef GPS: N 28 42.1219, W 95 46.7609 (28.7020, -95.7794) SPECIES: Speckled trout BEST BAITS: Norton Sand Eels in Tequila Gold CONTACT: Capt. Walt Schelle 979-240-5187 walt@matagorda-bay.com www.matagorda-bay.com/kingfisher TIPS: Schelle says color is a matter of personal choice. His favorite color in January is normally a darker color.

LOCATION: Matagorda East Bay HOTSPOT: Brown Cedar Flats GPS: N 28 44.4079, W 95 42.088 (28.7401, -95.7015) SPECIES: Speckled trout BEST BAITS: Corkys in yellow/chartreuse CONTACT: Capt. Walt Schelle 979-240-5187 walt@matagorda-bay.com www.matagorda-bay.com/kingfisher TIPS: “You want a slow sinking bait for big trout.”

Capt. Walt Schelle LOCATION: Matagorda East Bay HOTSPOT: West End GPS: N 28 39.882, W 95 55.7209 (28.6647, -95.9287) SPECIES: Speckled trout BEST BAITS: Bass Assassins in Texas Roach CONTACT: Capt. Walt Schelle 979-240-5187 walt@matagorda-bay.com www.matagorda-bay.com/kingfisher TIPS: “In the wintertime a 1/4 oz jig head works best with soft plastics.” Capt. Walt Schelle LOCATION: Matagorda East Bay HOTSPOT: Cleveland Reef GPS: N 26 39.9829, W 95 51.982 (26.6664, -95.8664) SPECIES: Speckled trout BEST BAITS: Norton Sand Eels and Bass Assassins CONTACT: Capt. Walt Schelle 979-240-5187 walt@matagorda-bay.com www.matagorda-bay.com/kingfisher TIPS: “Slow your retreive for big trout.” Capt.

Walt Schelle LOCATION: Matagorda East Bay

HOTSPOT: Boiler Bayou GPS: N 28 38.67, W 95 54.066 (28.6445, -95.9011) SPECIES: Speckled trout BEST BAITS: Norton Sand Eels and Bass Assassins CONTACT: Capt. Walt Schelle 979-240-5187 walt@matagorda-bay.com www.matagorda-bay.com/kingfisher TIPS: “If high winds make fishing the Bay impossible, move to the Colorado River.” Capt. Walt Schelle LOCATION: Sabine Lake HOTSPOT: East Pass GPS: N 29 59.0269, W 93 46.5619 (29.9838, -93.7760) SPECIES: Speckled trout BEST BAITS: Pink Corkies CONTACT: Capt. Adam Jaynes 409-988-3901 amjaynes@gmail.com www.justfishsabine.com TIPS: Besides his choice of Corkies, Jaynes carries along a couple Heddon Super Spooks and several Maniac Mullets as he wades.

LOCATION: Sabine Lake HOTSPOT: Johnson Bayou GPS: N 29 51.055, W 93 47.293 (29.8509, -93.7882) SPECIES: Redfish BEST BAITS: Soft plastic tails in Go-Glow and red shad CONTACT: Capt. Adam Jaynes 409-988-3901 amjaynes@gmail.com www.justfishsabine.com TIPS: Jaynes says you can redfish until you get tired in January on Sabine Lake. Look for scattered shell reefs.

MIDDLE TEXAS COAST

Shamrock Reds on Corpus Bay

by TOM BEHRENS

LOCATION: Corpus Christi Bay HOTSPOT: Shamrock Cove GPS: N 27 45.4369, W 97 9.717 (27.7573, -97.1620) SPECIES: Redfish BEST BAITS: Corkys CONTACT: Capt. Tommy Countz T E X A S

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281-450-4037 tcountz@wcnet.net www.matagordafishing.com TIPS: Redfish in the eel grass can provide some good action in January.

LOCATION: Port Aransas HOTSPOT: Brown & Root Flats GPS: N 27 51.2359, W 97 6.172 (27.8539, -97.1029) SPECIES: Redfish & black drum BEST BAITS: Live shrimp CONTACT: Capt. Frankie Eicholz 361-701-7711 captfrankie@just1moreoutfitter.net just1moreoutfitter.com TIPS: Eicholz likes to free line live shrimp. “If you need a little weight, pinch on a split shot.” Capt.

Frankie Eicholz LOCATION: Port Aransas HOTSPOT: Lydia Ann Channel GPS: N 27 52.218, W 97 2.886 (27.8703, -97.0481) SPECIES: Redfish & black drum BEST BAITS: Live shrimp CONTACT: Capt. Frankie Eicholz 361-701-7711 captfrankie@just1moreoutfitter.net just1moreoutfitter.com TIPS: “Concentrate on the deeper channels and shorelines. If live shrimp are not available, use Gulp” Capt. Frankie Eicholz LOCATION: Port Aransas HOTSPOT: South Bay GPS: N 27 52.8169, W 97 5.92 (27.8803, -97.0987) SPECIES: Redfish & black drum BEST BAITS: Live shrimp CONTACT: Capt. Frankie Eicholz 361-701-7711 captfrankie@just1moreoutfitter.net just1moreoutfitter.com TIPS: Eicholz likes to use 30 lb.test braid line: “It’s stronger and has better sensitivity to a fish biting.”

LOCATION: Port Aransas HOTSPOT: Shrimp Boat Channel GPS: N 27 53.691, W 97 4.765 (27.8949, -97.0794) SPECIES: Black drum BEST BAITS: Fresh dead shrimp CONTACT: Capt. Levi Price 830-613-1865 Captlevi@tstar.net www.thefishtx.com TIPS: Fish the drains, the edges where the fish fish can drop off into deeper water on low tides.

LOCATION: Port Aransas HOTSPOT: Light House Lakes

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Texas Hotspots GPS: N 27 50.4, W 97 4.32 (27.8400, -97.0720) SPECIES: Black drum BEST BAITS: Soft plastics CONTACT: Capt. Levi Price 830-613-1865 Captlevi@tstar.net www.thefishtx.com TIPS: Price likes to throw soft plastics if the winds are calm and fish are up shallow.

LOCATION: San Antonio Bay HOTSPOT: Carlos Bay GPS: N 28 8.2175, W 96 53.2656 (28.1370, -96.8878) SPECIES: Black drum BEST BAITS: Cut mullet CONTACT: Capt. Levi Price 830-613-1865 Captlevi@tstar.net www.thefishtx.com TIPS: When the fish are deep, Price uses a Carolina rig with a 1/4 oz egg sinker.

LOCATION: San Antonio Bay HOTSPOT: Mesquite Bay GPS: N 28 8.817, W 96 50.733 (28.1470, -96.8456) SPECIES: Black drum BEST BAITS: Cut mullet CONTACT: Capt. Levi Price 830-613-1865 Captlevi@tstar.net www.thefishtx.com TIPS: “The fish move shallow to feed when the sun is up, but go deep whenever the weather is cold.” Capt. Levi Price LOCATION: Upper Laguna Madre HOTSPOT: North Pure Oil Channel GPS: N 27 32.698, W 97 19.683 (27.5450, -97.3281) SPECIES: Speckled trout BEST BAITS: Corkys or Norton Sand Shad CONTACT: Capt. Tommy Countz 281-450-4037 tcountz@wcnet.net www.matagordafishing.com TIPS: “We wade in January throwing mainly Corkys and big paddle tail soft plastics like the Norton Sand Shad.” Capt. Tommy Countz

LOWER TEXAS COAST

Head South for Laguna Trout

by CALIXTO GONZALES

LOCATION: Lower Laguna Madre HOTSPOT: South Bay GPS: N 26 1.548, W 97 11.023 (26.0258, -97.1837) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Topwaters in Bone, red/white, soft plastics in red/white, Dark patterns.

CONTACT: Captain Jimmy Martinez 956-551-9581 TIPS: Fish the area known as the Table Top. Topwaters are good on warm days. If the weather is cooler, fish with lightly weighted soft plastics along deeper edges. Watch for sunning fish.

LOCATION: Baffin Bay HOTSPOT: Badlands GPS: N 27 18.2279, W 97 24.3379 (27.3038, -97.4056) SPECIES: Speckled trout BEST BAITS: Norton Sand Shad CONTACT: Capt. Tommy Countz 281-450-4037 tcountz@wcnet.net wwww.matagordafishing.com TIPS: Nuclear Chicken or Electric Chicken are two of Countz’s favorite colors in January.

LOCATION: Baffin Bay HOTSPOT: Cat Head GPS: N 27 18.382, W 97 26.263 (27.3064, -97.4377) SPECIES: Speckled trout BEST BAITS: Norton Sand Shad with a 1/8 oz lead head CONTACT: Capt. Tommy Countz 281-450-4037 tcountz@wcnet.net www.matagordafishing.com TIPS: “Throw it as far as you can, let it fall, and just kind of hop it off the bottom.” Capt. Tommy Countz LOCATION: Baffin Bay HOTSPOT: Tide Gauge Bar GPS: N 27 18.2479, W 97 27.5929 (27.3041, -97.4599)

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SPECIES: Speckled trout BEST BAITS: Corkys or Norton Sand Shad CONTACT: Capt. Tommy Countz 281-450-4037 tcountz@wcnet.net www.matagordafishing.com TIPS: “In the wintertime if you can see bait working, that’s a good starting spot for fishing. You won’t see a lot of them jumping, but if you can find bait flicking around, there should be fish.” Capt.

Tommy Countz LOCATION: Baffin Bay HOTSPOT: Kennedy Shoreline GPS: N 27 14.5669, W 97 25.459 (27.2428, -97.4243) SPECIES: Speckled trout BEST BAITS: Corkys or Norton Sand Shad CONTACT: Capt. Tommy Countz 281-450-4037 tcountz@wcnet.net www.matagordafishing.com TIPS: “With a south wind, fish the Kennedy shoreline.” Capt. Tommy Countz LOCATION: Baffin Bay HOTSPOT: Penescal GPS: N 27 15.973, W 97 25.377 (27.2662, -97.4230) SPECIES: Speckled trout BEST BAITS: Corkys or Norton Sand Shad CONTACT: Capt. Tommy Countz 281-450-4037 tcountz@wcnet.net www.matagordafishing.com TIPS: “The key to working a bait in the wintertime when the water temperatures get cold is work the bait slow. The fish are sluggish. Sometimes they are just going to pick it up and start moving with it.”

Capt. Tommy Countz LOCATION: Baffin Bay HOTSPOT: White Bluff GPS: N 27 14.902, W 97 35.7169 (27.2484, -97.5953) SPECIES: Speckled trout BEST BAITS: Corkys or Norton Sand Shad CONTACT: Capt. Tommy Countz 281-450-4037 tcountz@wcnet.net www.matagordafishing.com TIPS: “We start out working edges of some of the sand bars. Work the bait slow.” Capt. Tommy Countz LOCATION: Lower Laguna Madre HOTSPOT: Dolphin Point GPS: N 26 4.044, W 97 9.712

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(26.0674, -97.1619) SPECIES: Sheepshead BEST BAITS: Live shirmp, fresh shrimp CONTACT: Quick Stop 956-943-1159 TIPS: Fish the dropoffs with live bait or fresh shrimp. Use long shank hooks and lighter weights.

If the tide is high and sheepsead are tight to the rocks, try using a float rig to get above the snags.

LOCATION: Lower Laguna Madre HOTSPOT: Port Isabel Turning Basin GPS: N 26 3.3614, W 97 19.482 (26.0560, -97.3247) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp, soft plastiics in red/ white, New Penny, LSU. CONTACT: Captain Jimmy Martinez 956-551-9581 TIPS: Trout stack up off the edges of the shoreline after a cold front. Fish the dropoff with live shrimp under a popping cork or on a freeline rig.

If shrimp are hard to come by after a cold front, break out a Gulp! Shrimp. Use a 1/4 ounce head and fish along the bottom.

LOCATION: Lower Laguna Madre HOTSPOT: Unnecessary Island GPS: N 26 12.672, W 97 16.333 (26.2112, -97.2722) SPECIES: Black drum BEST BAITS: Live Shrimp, fresh shirmp, Gulp!

Shirmp in New Penny, Molt.

CONTACT: LG Outfitters 956-371-0220 lgonzales@lgoutfitters.com www.lgoutfitters.com TIPS: Drum can be so thick in this area they’ve earned the nickname “Tatanka.” Fish with live shrimp under a popping cork. Watch for muddy or disturbed water to cue you into where a school of drum are foraging.

LOCATION: Lower Laguna Madre HOTSPOT: Three Island GPS: N 26 16.684, W 97 15.106 (26.2781, -97.2518) SPECIES: Redfish BEST BAITS: Live shrimp, topwaters, soft plastics in LSU, Morning Glory, gold spoons.

CONTACT: LG Outfitters 956-371-0220 lgonzales@lgoutfitters.com www.lgoutfitters.com TIPS: Work the edges of potholes to tempt on the east side to find redfish that lie in ambush for whatever prey they can nail. Watch for them lurking around algae clumps, or cruising the grass between potholes.

LOCATION: Lower Coast HOTSPOT: Boca Chica Jetties

GPS: N 26 3.904, W 97 8.738 (26.0651, -97.1456) SPECIES: Sheepshead BEST BAITS: Live shirmp, fresh shrimp CONTACT: Quick Stiop 956-943-1159 TIPS: Fish near the rocks on the channel side of the jetties on calm days. A regular freeline rig is fine, provided you make them with 30 pound leader. Use a tight drag and stout tackle to horse these fish out of the rocks. Bring plenty of hooks and sinkers.

PINEY WOODS

Toledo White Bass Out on the Ledge

by DUSTIN WARNCKE

LOCATION: Toledo Bend HOTSPOT: Main Lake River ledges (Huxley River area) GPS: N 31 45.81, W 93 49.5659 (31.7635, -93.8261) SPECIES: White Bass BEST BAITS: Slab spoons, Rat-L-Traps, and tail spinners CONTACT: Greg Crafts, Toledo Bend Guide Service and Lake Cottages 936-368-7151 gregcrafts@yahoo.com www.toledobendguide.com TIPS: The White Bass are bulking up and feeding big time before making their annual run up the river to spawn. Work the north end river channel sand bars with the above lures and use your electronics to locate the bait fish. Once you do, you’ll locate the White Bass. You better bring a big cooler to hold all the fish you’ll catch!

LOCATION: Caddo Lake HOTSPOT: Big Cypress River GPS: N 32 42.3305, W 94 5.9072 (32.7055, -94.0985) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Chatterbaits, medium diving crankbaits, Alabama rigs CONTACT: Caddo Lake Guide Service -Paul Keith 318-455-3437 caddoguide1@att.net www.caddolakefishing.com TIPS: Fish the bends and cuts of the Big Cypress Bayou. Start shallow on the edges and then drop deeper.

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LOCATION: Lake Conroe HOTSPOT: Main Lake GPS: N 30 25.428, W 95 35.55 (30.4238, -95.5925) SPECIES: Hybrid Stripers BEST BAITS: Live shad, Storm Swim Shad CONTACT: Richard Tatsch (936) 291-1277 admin@fishdudetx.com www.fishdudetx.com TIPS: The fish are schooling around ledges along the river channel. Find the schools of shad and you will find the Hybrids. This time of year they will run shad up on these ridges during the day they will move deeper around the area. Find the depth the bait are in and you will find the fish. They will be in the 30 to 40 foot depths. Live shad will be the bait of choice in deeper water but the swim shad will work as long as you can control your retrieve to keep the bait in the depth the fish are going to be in. The depths will vary from one day to the next as it all depends on the schools of shad.

LOCATION: Lake Conroe HOTSPOT: Main Lake Channel Edges and Ledges GPS: N 30 25.134, W 95 34.5899 (30.4189, -95.5765) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Shad colored baits, Carolina rigged.

CONTACT: Richard Tatsch (936) 291-1277 admin@fishdudetx.com www.fishdudetx.com TIPS: This is a good time of year to find black bass schooled up feeding along channel edges and ledges. Once you find them they should be big. Carolina rigs worked extremely slow should do the job.

LOCATION: Lake Livingston HOTSPOT: River Bend GPS: N 30 53.4018, W 95 19.1759 (30.8900, -95.3196) SPECIES: Catfish BEST BAITS: Fresh Carp, Buffalo or Tilapia filleted and scaled CONTACT: David S Cox, Palmetto Guide Service 936-291-9602 dave@palmettoguideservice.com www.palmettoguideservice.com TIPS: Carolina Rig with a ½ - 1 oz egg sinker, drift baits on bottom from 12 foot of water to where the old river channel drops off to 45 foot.

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Texas Hotspots PRAIRIES & LAKES

Fayette Cats Hog the Trees

by DUSTIN WARNCKE and DEAN HEFFNER LOCATION: Fayette County Res. HOTSPOT: Hog Pond Trees GPS: N 29 55.2779, W 96 43.23 (29.9213, -96.7205) SPECIES: Catfish BEST BAITS: Shad, CJ’s punch bait CONTACT: Weldon Kirk 979-229-3103 weldon_edna@hotmail.com www.fishtales-guideservice.com TIPS: Fish stumps in the area. North winds are blocked here by the trees. Fishing a tight line due to winds this time of year helps keep bait in prime area. Lots of brush, so get fish to boat as soon as possible.

LOCATION: Cedar Creek Lake HOTSPOT: Boat Docks in Coves GPS: N 32 15.852, W 96 6.1559 (32.2642, -96.1026) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Small shallow running crank baits CONTACT: Rodney Stuart, Go Fish Guide Service 817-675-8062 Fishingrod38@aol.com TIPS: Fishing is best around the boat docks in the coves all around the lake in 2 to 5 feet of water.

LOCATION: Cedar Creek Lake HOTSPOT: Main Lake Points and Humps GPS: N 32 22.3679, W 96 10.0319 (32.3728, -96.1672) SPECIES: White Bass and Hybrids BEST BAITS: Small slabs and jigging spoons CONTACT: Rodney Stuart, Go Fish Guide Service 817-675-8062 Fishingrod38@aol.com TIPS: Fishing is good on the main lake points and humps in 10 to 25 ft of water.

LOCATION: Cedar Creek Lake HOTSPOT: Main Lake Points GPS: N 32 16.0278, W 96 8.6039 (32.2671, -96.1434)

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SPECIES: Catfish BEST BAITS: Cut bait CONTACT: Rodney Stuart, Go Fish Guide Service 817-675-8062 Fishingrod38@aol.com TIPS: Blue cats are excellent drifting any main lake points in 27 to 33 feet of water with any type cut bait.

LOCATION: Cedar Creek Lake HOTSPOT: Main Lake Bridges GPS: N 32 19.686, W 96 10.9619 (32.3281, -96.1827) SPECIES: Crappie BEST BAITS: Jigs and Minnows CONTACT: Rodney Stuart, Go Fish Guide Service 817-675-8062 Fishingrod38@aol.com TIPS: Fish the around the main lake bridges using suspended minnows or jigs for some excellent crappie action.

LOCATION: Gibbons Creek Res. HOTSPOT: North EaglePoint GPS: N 30 38.118, W 96 3.0779 (30.6353, -96.0513) SPECIES: Catfish BEST BAITS: CJ’s punch bait, shad CONTACT: Weldon Kirk 979-229-3103 weldon_edna@hotmail.com www.fishtales-guideservice.com TIPS: Lake is full. Gibbons Creek comes close to shore here.Tight line this area for Blues and Channels. Kahle hook with Shad or treble hook with punch bait.

LOCATION: Lake Granbury HOTSPOT: Striper Alley GPS: N 32 24.15, W 97 41.232 (32.4025, -97.6872) SPECIES: Striped bass BEST BAITS: Soft Plastic Jerk baits (Glow, white or Chartruese) and Jigging slabs near schooling fish.

CONTACT: Michael Acosta, Unfair Advantage Charters 817-578-0023 www.unfairadvantagecharters.com TIPS: Work the soft plastics using dead sticking techniques near schools of baitfish near channel ledges. Best action is typically around 20 to 25 feet down. Look for bird action or just hovering birds.

Granbury levels continue to be low and the levels continue to fall, so call to make sure access is available. Currently access is only available at the

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LOCATION: Lake Palestine HOTSPOT: Cades Lake Area GPS: N 32 16.542, W 98 28.542 (32.2757, -98.4757) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Texas Spinnerbait Top Shelf tandem in Gold Willow, Chartreuse/white spinnerbaits, Shimmy Shakers in Threadfin Shad color, Big Eye Jigs in 3/8 oz in Black/Blue CONTACT: Ricky Vandergriff 903-561-7299 OR 903-530-2201 Ricky@Rickysguideservice.com www.Rickysguideservice.com TIPS: Fish the drainages near the river and dam of Cades Lake. Fish slow for best results.

LOCATION: Lake Palestine HOTSPOT: South Main Lake Creeks GPS: N 32 8.6939, W 95 26.9579 (32.1449, -95.4493) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Texas Spinnerbait Top Shelf tandem in Gold Willow, Chartreuse/white spinnerbaits, Shimmy Shakers in Threadfin Shad color, Big Eye Jigs in 3/8 oz in Black/Blue CONTACT: Ricky Vandergriff 903-561-7299 OR 903-530-2201 Ricky@Rickysguideservice.com www.Rickysguideservice.com TIPS: On the south end of the lake, fish the back of main lake creeks such as Cobb Creek, Saline Creek, and Flat Creek. Fish slow and cover any brush or stumps you can find in these creek areas.

LOCATION: Lake Ray Hubbard HOTSPOT: I-30 and George Turnpike Bridges GPS: N 32 52.848, W 96 30.516 (32.8808, -96.5086) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Large flutter spoons, heavy jigs with pork rind trailers CONTACT: The Cajun Guide/Johnny Procell (972) 814-8942 cajunguide@att.net www.johnnyprocell.com TIPS: Fish the deeper water under the bridges near the river or creek channels. Look for the deepest water near the bridge supports. Expect very light hits and keep an eye on the line for any movement. Once one bass is caught in an area stay put. There are more in the same area.

LOCATION: Lake Ray Hubbard HOTSPOT: Dam Area GPS: N 32 48.726, W 96 30.9 (32.8121, -96.5150)

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SPECIES: White Bass and Hybrids BEST BAITS: Small silver or white spoon CONTACT: The Cajun Guide/Johnny Procell (972) 814-8942 cajunguide@att.net www.johnnyprocell.com TIPS: Fish will be down the lake near the dam in the deepest water available. Try the big cove below the power plant and watch the electronics.

This is the time to try out the “hammering method”.

If you do not believe it works just come to Ray Hubbard and see about ten to twenty boats beating as if to destroy their boats. Do not move the lure more than a few inches from the bottom until a fish or two is caught.

LOCATION: Lake Ray Hubbard HOTSPOT: I-30 and George Turnpike Bridges GPS: N 32 52.068, W 96 33.1979 (32.8678, -96.5533) SPECIES: Crappie BEST BAITS: Small tandem rigged jigs in red/ white CONTACT: The Cajun Guide/Johnny Procell (972) 814-8942 cajunguide@att.net www.johnnyprocell.com TIPS: Fish will be in the same areas as the bass but likely not in deep water. Start at the second or third support and work your way towards the old channels.

LOCATION: Lake Ray Hubbard HOTSPOT: South of Chandler’s Marina GPS: N 32 52.476, W 96 28.9439 (32.8746, -96.4824) SPECIES: Catfish BEST BAITS: Fresh shad and punch bait CONTACT: The Cajun Guide/Johnny Procell (972) 814-8942 cajunguide@att.net www.johnnyprocell.com TIPS: “Catfish are going crazy and can be caught form 2-30 feet.The best bet is to drop a cup full of soured corn or maze in several spots and then return and fish those spots later. I like to bait a couple of two feet spots a ten to twelve and one or two in twenty feet of water. The area just south of Chandler’s Marina is good and it is also protected from the hard south winds.

LOCATION: Lake Ray Roberts HOTSPOT: State Park Cove GPS: N 33 21.8941, W 97 1.8165 (33.3649, -97.0303) SPECIES: Largemouth bass BEST BAITS: Jerkbaits, Alabama rigs CONTACT: Dannie Golden, Get Bit Guide Service 817-228-5999 www.get-bit.com TIPS: I mainly throw two baits out there in

January. A suspending jerk bait and an Alabama rig. Make sure you fish the jerkbait plenty slow enough. Long pauses between jerks. Most of the time the fish will take the bait on the pause.

It will almost feel like a worm bite. Firetiger and Sexy Shad are good colors to start with. On the Alabama rig I am using a Gene Larew Sweet Swimmer in Dream Shad. That little swimbait has a ton of action. I am targeting main lake rocky points or main lake rocky banks. The state park cove area has a lot of both.

LOCATION: Lake Ray Roberts HOTSPOT: State Park Area GPS: N 33 21.632, W 97 4.24 (33.3605, -97.0707) SPECIES: White bass BEST BAITS: Slabs CONTACT: Dannie Golden, Get Bit Guide Service 817-228-5999 www.get-bit.com TIPS: The white bass fishing will be slower as well. There are still some to catch but you really have to watch your electronics. A lot of times they will literally be sitting on the bottom. I will use the zoom on my graph to help see them. With the fish holding so close to the bottom, fishing your slab the right way is important. Most of the time we are barely lifting the slab off the bottom, a couple inches at times. Also we try to not jerk the bait off the bottom, but more like a slow lift. You need the bait right in front of the fish for them to get it. This time of year they just don’t chase as much. Last winter at the time is was very tough. The extreme winter caused a huge shad kill. Lets hope this winter is easier on us.

LOCATION: Lake Richland Chambers HOTSPOT: Heavy Timbered Areas in the RC Arm GPS: N 32 3.252, W 96 12.312 (32.0542, -96.2052) SPECIES: Catfish BEST BAITS: Danny Kings Punch Bait CONTACT: Royce Simmons 903-389-4117 simmonsroyce@hotmail.com www.gonefishin.biz TIPS: Find any timbered areas where the Cormorants roost. Fish in 15’-25’ feet of water.

Use a # 4 Treble Hook with Punch Bait. Keep a net handy as you’ll catch LOTS of 1 to 3 lb. fish but you’re also subject to hooking a MONSTER Blue Cat! LOCATION: Lake Somerville HOTSPOT: Big Creek Park Shoreline GPS: N 30 19.2419, W 96 34.908 (30.3207, -96.5818) SPECIES: Catfish BEST BAITS: Shad or cut bait T E X A S

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CONTACT: Weldon Kirk 979-229-3103 weldon_edna@hotmail.com www.fishtales-guideservice.com TIPS: Good area to drift fish. Drift 1/2 mph. Use 4/0 hook, 3 foot leader, and a 1 oz no roll weight.

Also a good area for jug lines this time of year for big cats.

LOCATION: Lake Texoma HOTSPOT: Paw Creek and Willis Bridge GPS: N 33 53.9879, W 96 53.796 (33.8998, -96.8966) SPECIES: Striped Bass BEST BAITS: Road Runners and Sassy Shad jigs CONTACT: Bill Carey 903-786-4477 bigfish@striperexpress.com www.striperexpress.com TIPS: TIPS: Large stripers up to 20+ pounds will hold on structure. A 7-foot medium heavy Castaway Rod with 20-pound test is recommended. The 1-ounce White Road Runner jigs with a white 7-inch worm will produce fish located on main lake points, the mouths of creeks and humps with deep water nearby. Pay attention to the weather forecast and dress warm. Our charters depart at 11:00 a.m. in the winter. The fish will bite all day and the solar heat can help keep you warm.

Keep your eyes on the seagulls; they can be your best fish locator.

LOCATION: Lake Whitney HOTSPOT: State Park Area GPS: N 31 55.074, W 97 21.816 (31.9179, -97.3636) SPECIES: Stripers and White Bass BEST BAITS: 3” chartreuse swim baits from RSRLures.com and chartreuse Bass Assasins CONTACT: Randy Routh 817-822-5539 teamredneck01@hotmail.com www.teamredneck.net TIPS: The water is cold, the bait fish are lethargic, and are not moving as fast as normal so when you think you’re fishing slow enough, slow down even more. Swim baits cast out behind the boat slow trolled with the trolling motor covers a lot of water and presents your baits to more fish. Watch your graph and when you do come up on a school of bait and fish, mark the fish, stop the boat and switch over Bass Assassins. Drop them down to just above the fish then “DO NOTHING”. Hold the bait dead still (dead sticking). Ever so often raise your rod tip slowly then drop it back down slowly and get ready for a quick hook set.

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Texas Hotspots PANHANDLE

Island Hopping for PK White Bass

by DUSTIN WARNCKE and DEAN HEFFNER LOCATION: Possum Kingdom HOTSPOT: Costello Island GPS: N 32 54.57, W 98 27.939 (32.9095, -98.4657) SPECIES: White bass BEST BAITS: Live bait, RatLTraps, crankbaits, jigs and slabs CONTACT: Dean Heffner 940-329-0036 fav7734@aceweb.com TIPS: January is time to break out your rattle traps and crankbaits to catch the biggest sandbass of the year, but don’t skimp on line weight or a striper just might spool you!We are still working the birds and fishing in front of the cold fronts but you can cheat a lot this time of year and just troll/ flatline rattle traps and crankbaits. If you can get it, live bait is best. And next would be jigs and slabs. Stay in the riverbed unless you see action on the sand flats. If flood waters are coming, head upstream and all species will stack up at choke points.

HILL COUNTRY

Move on Up for Buchanan Crappie

by DUSTIN WARNCKE

LOCATION: Lake Buchanan HOTSPOT: Upper End of Main Lake GPS: N 30 53.208, W 98 27.492 (30.8868, -98.4582) SPECIES: Crappie BEST BAITS: Chartruse jigs or small live minnows CONTACT: Clancy Terrill 512-633-6742 centraltexasfishing@yahoo.com www.centraltexasfishing.com

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TIPS: Crappie prospects are good in the mid to upper end of the lake in 10 to 20 feet of water.

Fish around trees and near rock piles.

LOCATION: Lake Buchanan HOTSPOT: Main Lake Ridges GPS: N 30 45.8519, W 98 24.8759 (30.7642, -98.4146) SPECIES: Stripers BEST BAITS: Live Shad CONTACT: Clancy Terrill 512-633-6742 centraltexasfishing@yahoo.com www.centraltexasfishing.com TIPS: Best chance to catch fish would be early morning on ridges with live bait in 15 to 20 feet of water. Also try around what few lighted docs that are available at night as another option.

LOCATION: Lake Buchanan HOTSPOT: Main Lake GPS: N 30 46.014, W 98 27.084 (30.7669, -98.4514) SPECIES: Catfish BEST BAITS: Cut shad and punch bait CONTACT: Clancy Terrill 512-633-6742 centraltexasfishing@yahoo.com www.centraltexasfishing.com TIPS: Catfish prospects are excellent right now.

Fish any way you wish using rod and reel or jug lines.

LOCATION: Lake Buchanan HOTSPOT: Garret Island GPS: N 30 50.4239, W 98 24.6719 (30.8404, -98.4112) SPECIES: Stripers and Hybrids BEST BAITS: Live shad, perch, large minnows CONTACT: Ken Miliam 325- 379-2051 kmilam@verizon.net www.striperfever.com.com TIPS: Fish are moving to the upper end of the lake and will be best caught in 15 to 25 feet of water on live bait.

LOCATION: Lake Buchanan HOTSPOT: Upper End of Main Lake GPS: N 30 51.114, W 98 25.7519 (30.8519, -98.4292) SPECIES: White Bass BEST BAITS: Live shad and slabs CONTACT: Ken Miliam 325- 379-2051 kmilam@verizon.net www.striperfever.com.com TIPS: Fish heading towards Silver Creek and

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Paradise point from around Garret island using live bait or slab lures.

LOCATION: Lake Buchanan HOTSPOT: Trees along the Old River Bed GPS: N 30 46.0824, W 98 26.1959 (30.7680, -98.4366) SPECIES: Catfish BEST BAITS: Cut shad, carp, or perch CONTACT: Ken Miliam 325- 379-2051 kmilam@verizon.net www.striperfever.com.com TIPS: Catfish are biting on the river side of the tree line along the old river bed. .Fish on the bottom or a few feet off the bottom for best results.

Use any thing that is bloody for bait such as cut shad or perch as well as carp.

LOCATION: Canyon Lake HOTSPOT: Main Lake GPS: N 29 51.8292, W 98 11.8379 (29.8638, -98.1973) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Missle Baits mini-jigs, white small crankbaits, Senkos, Shaky Heads, Drop Shots, Uncle Josh pork trailers CONTACT: KC’S Bassin’ Guide Service 210-823-2153 kandie@gvtc.com www.kcbassinguide.com TIPS: “Fish upriver, working vertical timber and stumps along 6-15 foot breaklines on southerly facing bluffs and along bluff walls inside of secondary points.

For deeper bluff areas use Drop shot ¼ oz Tungsten weight, on a good 6’10 MH like KC Kustoms drop shot rod. Useful colors are green pumpkin, Magic, Watermelon Candy, Watermelon Purple, Watermelon Red, Blue Flec.”

LOCATION: Canyon Lake HOTSPOT: Main Lake GPS: N 29 52.38, W 98 14.874 (29.8730, -98.2479) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Slow rolling spinnerbaits, hard jerkbaits, drop-shots, and jigs CONTACT: Teach ‘Em to Fish Guide ServiceBarry Dodd 210-771-0123 barry@teachemtofish.net www.teachemtofish.net TIPS: Water temperature is cold and the bass and crappie are in their winter patterns. Most fish are deep off sharp drop-offs with ledges and brush. The best fishing occurs just before frontal

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passage and then a couple days after when the winds return from the south. The fish do not need to eat as often because the cold water slows their metabolism. Slower lure presentations work best this time of year.

LOCATION: Canyon Lake HOTSPOT: North Dam Bluffs GPS: N 29 52.212, W 98 12.276 (29.8702, -98.2046) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass & Smallmouth Bass BEST BAITS: Slow rolling spinnerbaits, hard jerkbaits, drop-shots, and jigs CONTACT: Teach ‘Em to Fish Guide ServiceBarry Dodd 210-771-0123 barry@teachemtofish.net www.teachemtofish.net TIPS: This area is protected by the north wind.

There is not vegetation in this area but it is deep and the bluffs hold warmth. I like to fish this area for bass using drop-shot and jigs. Besides largemouth, there are a good number of smallmouth to be caught in this area. The water is extremely clear on this end of the lake so downsizing line and bait size is important. One additional thing, smallmouth like bright colors.

LOCATION: Canyon Lake HOTSPOT: River Channel GPS: N 29 53.8979, W 98 17.676 (29.8983, -98.2946) SPECIES: Striped Bass, White Bass, Crappie BEST BAITS: Radar 10 in chrome blue or chartreuse CONTACT: Steve Nixon, Fishhooks Adventures 210-573-1230 steve@sanantoniofishingguides.com www.sanantoniofishingguides.com TIPS: Troll the Luhr-Jensen Radar 10 in the main river channel from the rapids of the river to the mouth of the lake until you locate the fish and then fish the area of the river you find them in. This is one of my favorite times of year on Canyon Lake, on any cast you may catch a White Bass, Striped Bass, Largemouth Bass, Crappie or even Catfish.

LOCATION: Lake LBJ HOTSPOT: Main Lake GPS: N 30 33.984, W 98 21.1559 (30.5664, -98.3526) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Slow rolling spinnerbaits, hard jerkbaits, drop-shots, and jigs CONTACT: Teach ‘Em to Fish Guide ServiceBarry Dodd 210-771-0123 barry@teachemtofish.net www.teachemtofish.net TIPS: Water temperature is cold and the bass and crappie are in their winter patterns. Most fish are deep but bass seem to never leave the comforts

of oxygen rich vegetation. The best fishing occurs just before frontal passage and then a couple days after when the winds return from the south.

The fish do not need to eat as often because the cold water slows their metabolism. Slower lure presentations work best this time of year. Look for feeding birds and also fish the areas with the most sunshine and out of the wind as much as possible.

LOCATION: Lake LBJ HOTSPOT: Bell Tower Point GPS: N 30 33.5039, W 98 21.24 (30.5584, -98.3540) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Slow rolling spinnerbaits, hard jerkbaits, drop-shots, and jigs CONTACT: Teach ‘Em to Fish Guide ServiceBarry Dodd 210-771-0123 barry@teachemtofish.net www.teachemtofish.net TIPS: This area is a good location this time of year. There is lots of deep water with rock and some deeper vegetation. The rocks hold some warmth and the fish naturally gravitate to that warmth. Many times the long point gives a good wind break.

SOUTH TEXAS PLAINS

Falcon Bass Make Their Mark

LOCATION: Falcon Lake HOTSPOT: Dam Area GPS: N 26 33.648, W 99 9.738 (26.5608, -99.1623) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Flukes, Senkos, deep diving crankbaits, Brown/Orange jigs CONTACT: Bassin Billy’s Guide Service and Lodging 281-928-1133 billy34@gmail.com www.lakefalconfishing.com TIPS: Rocks are holding fish. Approach them with a texas rig or carolina rig and fish very slow.

When throwing the crankbait make sure you are digging into the rocks and pause often. The fish should be moving to the back of creeks by now in preparation of the spawn.

DIGITAL EXTRA: Tap GPS to view Hotspots on Google Maps

by DUSTIN WARNCKE

LOCATION: Falcon Lake HOTSPOT: Channel Marker 9 and 10 GPS: N 26 39.018, W 99 10.746 (26.6503, -99.1791) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: 1/2 oz. Jo Baby jigs and 3/4 ounce Jo Baby spinnerbaits CONTACT: Jim Behnken 210-414-8048 jimbehnken@hotmail.com www.fishlakefalcon.com TIPS: Slow roll the spinner bait around house foundations and laydowns and pitch the jig to isolated trees.

NEW 2015 EDITION

LOCATION: Coleto Creek HOTSPOT: Main Lake Weed Beds GPS: N 28 43.3979, W 97 10.074 (28.7233, -97.1679) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Zoom Pearl White or Bubble Gum colored fluke dipped lightly In chartreuse, rigged T E X A S

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weedless and weightless.

CONTACT: Rocky’s Guide Service 361-250-3959 www.coletocreekguidefishing.com TIPS: The first hour and half after daylight and last hour and half before dark is the most productive time to fish. Fish fluke weedless and weightless. Just throw it out there and jerk it along . I focus a lot on weed bed edges. Throw it on top of the weeds jerk it a little on the retrieve and when it hits where the grass drops to open water, let it sink about a foot deep then jerk it lightly.

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www.FishandGameGear.com

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Sportsman’s Daybook JANUARY 2015

Tides and Prime Times

USING THE PRIME TIMES CALENDAR

The following pages contain TIDE and SOLUNAR predictions for Galveston Channel (29.3166° N, 94.88° W).

T12

T4

T11

T10

TIDE PREDICTIONS are located in the upper white boxes on the Calendar Pages. Use the Correction Table below, which is keyed to 23 other tide stations, to adjust low and high tide times.

T9 T8 T7

SOLUNAR ACTIVITY is shown in the lower color boxes of the Calendar pages. Use the SOLUNAR ADJUSTMENT SCALE below to adjust times for points East and West of Galveston Channel.

T17

TIDE PREDICTIONS are shown in graph form, with High and Low tide predictions in text immediately below.

SOLUNAR ACTIVITY data is provided to indicate major and minor feeding periods for each day, as the daily phases of the moon have varying degrees of influence on many wildlife species.

T13 T5

T14

T15 T16

T6

T3 T2 T1

AM & PM MINOR phases occur when the moon rises and sets. These phases last 1 to 2 hours.

T18

AM & PM MAJOR phases occur when the moon reaches its highest point overhead as well as when it is “underfoot” or at its highest point on the exact opposite side of the earth from your positoin (or literally under your feet). Most days have two Major Feeding Phases, each lasting about 2 hours.

T19

T20

PEAK DAYS: The closer the moon is to your location, the stronger the influence. FULL or NEW MOONS provide the strongest influnce of the month.

PEAK TIMES: When a Solunar Period falls within 30 minutes to an hour of sunrise or sunset, anticipate increased action. A moon rise or moon set during one of these periods will cause even greater action. If a FULL or NEW MOON occurs during a Solunar Period, expect the best action of the season.

T21

TIDE CORRECTION TABLE

Add or subtract the time shown at the rightof the Tide Stations on this table (and map) to determine the adjustment from the time shown for GALVESTON CHANNEL in the calendars.

KEY T1 T2 T3 T4 T5 T6

PLACE Sabine Bank Lighthouse Sabine Pass Jetty Sabine Pass Mesquite Pt, Sab. Pass Galveston Bay, S. Jetty Port Bolivar

HIGH -1:46 -1:26 -1:00 -0:04 -0:39 +0:14

LOW -1:31 -1:31 -1:15 -0:25 -1:05 -0:06

KEY PLACE HIGH Galveston Channel/Bays T7 Texas City Turning Basin +0:33 +3:54 T8 Eagle Point +6:05 T9 Clear Lake +10:21 T10 Morgans Point T11 Round Pt, Trinity Bay +10:39

LOW +0:41 +4:15 +6:40 +5:19 +5:15

KEY T12 T13 T14 T15 T16 T17

PLACE Pt Barrow, Trinity Bay Gilchrist, East Bay Jamaica Beach, W. Bay Alligator Point, W. Bay Christmas Pt Galveston Pleasure Pier

HIGH +5:48 +3:16 +2:38 +2:39 +2:32 -1:06

LOW +4:43 +4:18 +3:31 +2:33 +2:31 -1:06

KEY T18 T19 T20 T21 T22 T23

PLACE San Luis Pass Freeport Harbor Pass Cavallo Aransas Pass Padre Island (So. End) Port Isabel

HIGH -0.09 -0:44 0:00 -0:03 -0:24 +1:02

LOW -0.09 -1:02 -1:20 -1:31 -1:45 -0:42

SPORTSMAN’S DAYBOOK IS SPONSORED BY:

NOT TO BE USED FOR NAVIGATION T22 T23

KEYS TO USING THE TIDE AND SOLUNAR GRAPHS TIDE GRAPH:

Yellow: Daylight

12a

Tab: Peak Fishing Period

6a

12p

6p

AM/PM Timeline

12a

Light Blue: Nighttime

BEST:

5:30 — 7:30 AM

Green: Falling Tide

Gold Fish: Best Time

Blue: Rising Tide Red Graph: Fishing Score

Blue Fish: Good Time

MINOR Feeding Periods (+/- 1.5 Hrs.) Time Moon is at its Highest Point in the Sky

SOLUNAR ACTIVITY:

12a

AM/PM Timeline

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AM Minor: 1:20a

PM Minor: 1:45p

AM Major: 7:32a

PM Major: 7:57p

Moon Overhead: 8:50a 6a

12p

12a

Moon Underfoot: 9:15p

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MAJOR Feeding Periods (+/- 2 Hrs.) Time Moon is Directly Underfoot (at its peak on opposite side of the earth)

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SYMBOL KEY

= Peak Fishing Period

BEST:

7:45-9:40 AM

= FALLING TIDE = RISING TIDE = DAYLIGHT HOURS = NIGHTTIME HOURS

Fishing Day’s Best 2nd Score Graph Score Best

TUESDAY

29 º

30

Sunrise: 7:12a Set: 5:29p Sunrise: 7:12a Moonrise: 12:48p Set: 12:52a Moonrise: 1:31p

WEDNESDAY

Dec 31

Set: 5:29p Set: 1:53a

Sunrise: 7:12a Moonrise: 2:14p

Set: 5:30p Set: 2:53a

THURSDAY

Jan 1, 2015 2

Sunrise: 7:13a Moonrise: 3:00p

Set: 5:30p Set: 3:51a

FRIDAY

Sunrise: 7:13a Moonrise: 3:48p

SATURDAY

Set: 5:31p Set: 4:48a

3

Sunrise: 7:13a Moonrise: 4:39p

4

Set: 5:32p Set: 5:41a

Sunrise: 7:13a Moonrise: 5:30p

Set: 5:33p Set: 6:31a

AM Minor: 11:50a

PM Minor: -----

AM Minor: 12:12a

PM Minor: 12:38p

AM Minor: 12:59a

PM Minor: 1:24p

AM Minor: 1:44a

PM Minor: 2:10p

AM Minor: 2:30a

PM Minor: 2:56p

AM Minor: 3:18a

PM Minor: 3:43p

AM Minor: 4:06a

PM Minor: 4:31p

AM Major: 5:37a

PM Major: 6:02p

AM Major: 6:25a

PM Major: 6:51p

AM Major: 7:11a

PM Major: 7:37p

AM Major: 7:57a

PM Major: 8:23p

AM Major: 8:43a

PM Major: 9:09p

AM Major: 9:30a

PM Major: 9:56p

AM Major: 10:18a

PM Major: 10:43p

Moon Overhead: 7:18p

12a

Tides and Prime Times for JANUARY 2015

6a

12p

6p

Moon Overhead: 9:01p

Moon Overhead: 8:09p 12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

6a

12p

6p

Moon Overhead: 9:53p 12a

6a

12p

6p

Moon Overhead: 11:35p

Moon Overhead: 10:44p 12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

6a

12p

6p

SOLUNAR ACTIVITY

SOLUNAR ACTIVITY

MONDAY

 = New Moon º = First Quarter  = Full Moon » = Last Quarter  = Good Day  = Best Day SUNDAY

DIGITAL EXTRA Tap for Customized Tide Charts

NOT TO BE USED FOR NAVIGATION

Moon Overhead: None

12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

FEET

FEET

Moon Underfoot: 6:53a

+2.0

-1.0

TIDE LEVELS

0

BEST:

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

BEST:

6:00 — 8:00 PM

4:54 AM 11:42 AM 4:06 PM 10:10 PM

-0.05ft.

0.75ft.

0.56ft.

0.95ft.

Moon Underfoot: 8:35a BEST:

6:30 — 8:30 PM

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

5:49 AM 1:27 PM 5:51 PM 10:40 PM

-0.28ft.

0.87ft.

0.74ft.

0.94ft.

Moon Underfoot: 9:27a BEST:

4:30 — 6:30 PM 10:00A — 12:00P

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

6:41 AM 2:48 PM 7:20 PM 11:27 PM

-0.48ft. Low Tide: 7:31 AM 0.99ft. High Tide: 3:39 PM 0.80ft. Low Tide: 8:35 PM 0.95ft.

T E X A S

1501 ALMANAC.indd 87

Moon Underfoot: 10:19a BEST:

F I S H

&

Moon Underfoot: 12:00p

BEST:

11:00A — 1:00P

-0.57ft. High Tide: 12:03 AM 1.03ft. Low Tide: 8:14 AM 0.86ft. High Tide: 4:26 PM Low Tide: 9:28 PM

Moon Underfoot: 11:10a

0.96ft.

-0.66ft.

1.07ft.

0.88ft.

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

G A M E ®

|

12:42 AM 8:54 AM 5:05 PM 10:03 PM

+2.0

BEST:

11:30A — 1:30P

12:00 — 2:00 PM

0.97ft.

-0.69ft.

1.08ft.

0.88ft.

High Tide Low Tide High Tide Low Tide

J A N U A R Y

1:23 AM 9:32 AM 5:40 PM 10:29 PM

2 0 1 5

TIDE LEVELS

+1.0

Moon Underfoot: 7:44a

0.97ft.

-0.68ft.

1.05ft.

0.86ft.

|

+1.0 0 -1.0

87

12/8/14 11:34 AM

Sportsman’s Daybook

NOT TO BE USED FOR NAVIGATION = FALLING TIDE = RISING TIDE = DAYLIGHT HOURS = NIGHTTIME HOURS

Fishing Day’s Best 2nd Score Graph Score Best

5

Sunrise: 7:13a Moonrise: 6:23p

Set: 5:33p Set: 7:18a

TUESDAY

6

Sunrise: 7:14a Moonrise: 7:16p

WEDNESDAY

7

Set: 5:34p Set: 8:00a

Sunrise: 7:14a Moonrise: 8:09p

8

Set: 5:35p Set: 8:39a

THURSDAY

Sunrise: 7:14a Moonrise: 9:01p

FRIDAY

9

Set: 5:36p Set: 9:16a

Sunrise: 7:14a Moonrise: 9:52p

SATURDAY

10

Set: 5:36p Set: 9:51a

11

Sunrise: 7:14a Set: 5:37p Sunrise: 7:14a Set: 5:38p Moonrise: 10:43p Set: 10:24a Moonrise: 11:34p Set: 10:58a

AM Minor: 4:55a

PM Minor: 5:19p

AM Minor: 5:45a

PM Minor: 6:08p

AM Minor: 6:35a

PM Minor: 6:58p

AM Minor: 7:24a

PM Minor: 7:46p

AM Minor: 8:13a

PM Minor: 8:34p

AM Minor: 9:01a

PM Minor: 9:22p

AM Minor: 9:47a

PM Minor: 10:08p

AM Major: 11:07a

PM Major: 11:32p

AM Major: 11:57a

PM Major: -----

AM Major: 12:24a

PM Major: 12:46p

AM Major: 1:13a

PM Major: 1:35p

AM Major: 2:02a

PM Major: 2:24p

AM Major: 2:50a

PM Major: 3:11p

AM Major: 3:36a

PM Major: 3:58p

Moon Overhead: 12:25a

12a

Tides and Prime Times for JANUARY 2015

6a

12p

6p

Moon Overhead: 2:00a

Moon Overhead: 1:13a 12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

6a

12p

Moon Overhead: 2:45a

6p

12a

6a

12p

Moon Overhead: 4:10a

Moon Overhead: 3:28a

6p

12a

6a

12p

6p

SOLUNAR ACTIVITY

SOLUNAR ACTIVITY

MONDAY

 = New Moon º = First Quarter  = Full Moon » = Last Quarter  = Good Day  = Best Day SUNDAY

Tap for Customized Tide Charts

= Peak Fishing Period

BEST:

7:45-9:40 AM

SYMBOL KEY

12a

6a

12p

6p

Moon Overhead: 4:53a 12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

FEET

FEET

Moon Underfoot: 12:49p

+2.0

-1.0

High Tide Low Tide High Tide Low Tide

2:06 AM 10:08 AM 6:11 PM 10:52 PM

0.95ft.

-0.63ft.

1.02ft.

0.81ft.

MONDAY

12 »

Sunrise: 7:14a Moonrise: None

High Tide Low Tide High Tide Low Tide

BEST:

2:48 AM 10:43 AM 6:40 PM 11:20 PM

0.92ft.

-0.55ft.

0.97ft.

0.75ft.

High Tide Low Tide High Tide Low Tide

3:31 AM 11:15 AM 7:09 PM 11:56 PM

14

Set: 5:39p Sunrise: 7:14a Set: 5:40p Sunrise: 7:14a Set: 11:32a Moonrise: 12:27a Set: 12:09p Moonrise: 1:21a

Moon Underfoot: 4:31p

BEST:

7:00 — 9:00 AM

15

Set: 5:40p Sunrise: 7:14a Set: 12:48p Moonrise: 2:17a

16

Set: 5:41p Set: 1:31p

0.60ft.

0.70ft.

-0.16ft.

0.86ft.

FRIDAY

Sunrise: 7:13a Moonrise: 3:14a

Low Tide High Tide Low Tide High Tide

1:36 AM 6:17 AM 12:46 PM 8:30 PM

0.50ft.

0.61ft.

-0.00ft.

0.82ft.

Set: 5:42p Set: 2:18p

17

Sunrise: 7:13a Moonrise: 4:13a

10:00P — 12:00A

Low Tide High Tide Low Tide High Tide

SATURDAY

2:36 AM 7:49 AM 1:16 PM 8:53 PM

18 

Set: 5:43p Set: 3:12p

Sunrise: 7:13a Moonrise: 5:11a

Set: 5:44p Set: 4:10p

AM Minor: 11:17a

PM Minor: 11:40p

AM Minor: -----

PM Minor: 12:03p

AM Minor: 12:23a

PM Minor: 12:49p

AM Minor: 1:09a

PM Minor: 1:36p

AM Minor: 1:57a

PM Minor: 2:25p

AM Minor: 2:48a

PM Minor: 3:17p

AM Major: 4:22a

PM Major: 4:43p

AM Major: 5:06a

PM Major: 5:29p

AM Major: 5:51a

PM Major: 6:15p

AM Major: 6:36a

PM Major: 7:01p

AM Major: 7:22a

PM Major: 7:49p

AM Major: 8:11a

PM Major: 8:39p

AM Major: 9:02a

PM Major: 9:31p

6a

12p

6p

12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

6a

12p

Moon Overhead: 9:43a

Moon Overhead: 8:47a

Moon Overhead: 7:55a 6p

12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

6a

12p

6p

Moon Overhead: 10:40a 12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

FEET

FEET

Moon Underfoot: 5:57p

+2.0

Moon Underfoot: 6:42p

BEST:

-1.0

3:36 AM 9:40 AM 1:48 PM 9:12 PM

BEST:

11:00P — 1:00A

TIDE LEVELS

Low Tide High Tide Low Tide High Tide

0.25ft.

0.49ft.

0.33ft.

0.78ft.

Low Tide High Tide Low Tide High Tide

TIDE CORRECTION TABLE

4:27 AM 11:33 AM 2:27 PM 9:28 PM

Add or subtract the time shown at the rightof the Tide Stations on this table (and map) to determine the adjustment from the time shown for GALVESTON CHANNEL in the calendars.

KEY

0.10ft.

0.55ft.

0.49ft.

0.79ft.

Moon Underfoot: 8:21p

Moon Underfoot: 9:15p

BEST:

BEST:

11:30P — 1:30A 12:00 — 2:00 AM

Low Tide High Tide Low Tide High Tide

PLACE

5:12 AM 1:11 PM 3:25 PM 9:43 PM

-0.07ft.

0.66ft.

0.64ft.

0.81ft.

Low Tide High Tide Low Tide High Tide

HIGH

LOW

KEY

T1

Sabine Bank Lighthouse -1:46

-1:31

Galveston Channel/Bays

T2

Sabine Pass Jetty

-1:26

-1:31

T7

T3

Sabine Pass

-1:00

-1:15

T4

Mesquite Pt, Sab. Pass -0:04

-0:25

T5

Galveston Bay, S. Jetty -0:39

T6

Port Bolivar

+0:14

PLACE

BEST:

1:00 — 3:00 AM

5:55 AM 2:18 PM 4:58 PM 10:04 PM

-0.25ft.

0.80ft.

0.76ft.

0.85ft.

HIGH

LOW

Low Tide High Tide Low Tide High Tide

6:38 AM 3:04 PM 6:38 PM 10:44 PM

Moon Underfoot: 10:11p

Low Tide High Tide Low Tide High Tide

3:00 — 5:00 AM

7:21 AM 3:44 PM 7:49 PM 11:40 PM

-0.61ft. Low Tide 8:06 AM 1.01ft. High Tide 4:21 PM 0.87ft. Low Tide 8:39 PM 0.95ft.

KEY

PLACE

HIGH

LOW

KEY

PLACE

HIGH

T12

Pt Barrow, Trinity Bay +5:48

+4:43

T18

San Luis Pass

-0.09

-0.09

Texas City Turning Basin+0:33 +0:41

T13

Gilchrist, East Bay

+4:18

T19

Freeport Harbor

-0:44

-1:02

T8

Eagle Point

+3:54

+4:15

T14

Jamaica Beach, W. Bay +2:38

+3:31

T20

Pass Cavallo

0:00

-1:20

T9

Clear Lake

+6:05

+6:40

T15

Alligator Point, W. Bay +2:39

+2:33

T21

Aransas Pass

-0:03

-1:31

-1:05

T10

Morgans Point

+10:21 +5:19

T16

Christmas Pt

+2:32

+2:31

T22

Padre Island (So. End) -0:24

-1:45

-0:06

T11

Round Pt, Trinity Bay +10:39 +5:15

T17

Galveston Pleasure Pier -1:06

-1:06

T23

Port Isabel

-0:42

+3:16

+2.0

BEST:

2:00 — 4:00 AM

-0.43ft.

0.92ft.

0.84ft.

0.90ft.

Moon Underfoot: 11:10p

TIDE LEVELS

0

Moon Underfoot: 7:30p

BEST:

10:00A — 12:00P

+1.0

0

SUNDAY

PM Minor: 10:54p

Moon Overhead: 7:06a

+1.0

-1.0

0.39ft.

0.52ft.

0.16ft.

0.80ft.

AM Minor: 10:32a

Moon Overhead: 6:20a

+2.0

BEST:

9:00 — 11:00 PM

0.79ft. Low Tide 12:42 AM -0.31ft. High Tide 5:09 AM 0.89ft. Low Tide 12:17 PM High Tide 8:04 PM

THURSDAY

Moon Underfoot: 5:14p

BEST:

8:00 — 10:00 AM

0.87ft. High Tide 4:17 AM -0.44ft. Low Tide 11:46 AM 0.93ft. High Tide 7:37 PM 0.68ft.

WEDNESDAY

13

Moon Underfoot: 3:49p

BEST:

6:00 — 8:00 AM

TUESDAY

Moon Overhead: 5:35a

12a

Moon Underfoot: 3:06p

SOLUNAR ACTIVITY

SOLUNAR ACTIVITY

BEST:

11:30P — 1:30A 12:00 — 2:00 AM

TIDE LEVELS

0

BEST:

Moon Underfoot: 2:22p

TIDE LEVELS

+1.0

Moon Underfoot: 1:37p

+1:02

-0.76ft.

1.08ft.

0.86ft.

+1.0 0 -1.0

LOW

NOT TO BE USED FOR NAVIGATION 88 |

J A N U A R Y

1501 ALMANAC.indd 88

2 0 1 5

|

T E X A S

F I S H

&

G A M E ®

12/8/14 11:34 AM

1501 ALMANAC.indd 89

12/8/14 11:34 AM

Sportsman’s Daybook

SYMBOL KEY

 = New Moon º = First Quarter  = Full Moon » = Last Quarter  = Good Day  = Best Day SUNDAY

NOT TO BE USED FOR NAVIGATION = Peak Fishing Period

BEST:

7:45-9:40 AM

= FALLING TIDE = RISING TIDE = DAYLIGHT HOURS = NIGHTTIME HOURS

Fishing Day’s Best 2nd Score Graph Score Best

19 

Sunrise: 7:13a Moonrise: 6:08a

Set: 5:45p Set: 5:13p

TUESDAY

20 

Sunrise: 7:13a Moonrise: 7:01a

21 

Set: 5:45p Set: 6:19p

Sunrise: 7:12a Moonrise: 7:51a

THURSDAY

22 

Set: 5:46p Set: 7:26p

Sunrise: 7:12a Moonrise: 8:38a

Set: 5:47p Set: 8:33p

23

FRIDAY

Sunrise: 7:12a Moonrise: 9:22a

SATURDAY

Set: 5:48p Set: 9:39p

24

25

Sunrise: 7:11a Set: 5:49p Sunrise: 7:11a Set: 5:50p Moonrise: 10:05a Set: 10:43p Moonrise: 10:47a Set: 11:46p

AM Minor: 3:42a

PM Minor: 4:11p

AM Minor: 4:39a

PM Minor: 5:08p

AM Minor: 5:39a

PM Minor: 6:07p

AM Minor: 6:40a

PM Minor: 7:08p

AM Minor: 7:42a

PM Minor: 8:09p

AM Minor: 8:42a

PM Minor: 9:09p

AM Minor: 9:41a

PM Minor: 10:07p

AM Major: 9:56a

PM Major: 10:26p

AM Major: 10:54a

PM Major: 11:23p

AM Major: 11:20a

PM Major: -----

AM Major: 12:26a

PM Major: 12:54p

AM Major: 1:28a

PM Major: 1:55p

AM Major: 2:29a

PM Major: 2:56p

AM Major: 3:28a

PM Major: 3:54p

Moon Overhead: 11:39a

12a

WEDNESDAY

6a

12p

6p

Moon Overhead: 1:36p

Moon Overhead: 12:38p 12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

6a

12p

6p

Moon Overhead: 2:33p 12a

6a

12p

6p

Moon Overhead: 4:21p

Moon Overhead: 3:28p 12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

6a

12p

6p

Moon Overhead: 5:14p 12a

6a

12p

6p

SOLUNAR ACTIVITY

SOLUNAR ACTIVITY

MONDAY

Tides and Prime Times for JANUARY 2015

12a

FEET

FEET

Moon Underfoot: None

+2.0

-1.0

TIDE LEVELS

0

BEST:

4:30 — 6:30 AM

High Tide Low Tide High Tide Low Tide

12:41 AM 8:52 AM 4:58 PM 9:25 PM

1501 ALMANAC.indd 90

BEST:

5:30 — 7:30 AM

0.98ft.

-0.86ft.

1.10ft.

0.81ft.

High Tide Low Tide High Tide Low Tide

1:43 AM 9:38 AM 5:33 PM 10:11 PM

Moon Underfoot: 1:08a

BEST:

6:30 — 8:30 AM

1.00ft.

-0.88ft.

1.09ft.

0.72ft.

High Tide Low Tide High Tide Low Tide

2:48 AM 10:25 AM 6:08 PM 11:00 PM

Moon Underfoot: 2:05a 7:30 — 9:30 AM

0.99ft.

-0.83ft.

1.05ft.

0.58ft.

High Tide Low Tide High Tide Low Tide

3:56 AM 11:12 AM 6:41 PM 11:54 PM

Moon Underfoot: 3:01a BEST:

8:00 — 10:00 AM

0.93ft. High Tide 5:10 AM -0.68ft. Low Tide 11:59 AM 0.99ft. High Tide 7:13 PM 0.41ft.

Moon Underfoot: 3:55a BEST:

+2.0

BEST:

9:00 — 11:00 AM

0.84ft. Low Tide 12:54 AM -0.47ft. High Tide 6:33 AM 0.92ft. Low Tide 12:47 PM High Tide 7:45 PM

Moon Underfoot: 4:48a 9:30 — 11:30 AM

0.22ft.

0.73ft.

-0.20ft.

0.87ft.

Low Tide High Tide Low Tide High Tide

1:59 AM 8:07 AM 1:36 PM 8:16 PM

TIDE LEVELS

+1.0

BEST:

Moon Underfoot: 12:09a

0.03ft.

0.64ft.

0.08ft.

0.82ft.

+1.0 0 -1.0

12/8/14 11:34 AM

SYMBOL KEY

= Peak Fishing Period

BEST:

7:45-9:40 AM

= FALLING TIDE = RISING TIDE = DAYLIGHT HOURS = NIGHTTIME HOURS

Fishing Day’s Best 2nd Score Graph Score Best

26

Sunrise: 7:11a Set: 5:51p Moonrise: 11:30a Set: None

TUESDAY

27 º

WEDNESDAY

THURSDAY

28

29

Sunrise: 7:10a Set: 5:52p Sunrise: 7:10a Set: 5:52p Moonrise: 12:14p Set: 12:47a Moonrise: 12:59p Set: 1:47a

Sunrise: 7:09a Moonrise: 1:46p

Set: 5:53p Set: 2:44a

30

FRIDAY

Sunrise: 7:09a Moonrise: 2:35p

SATURDAY

Set: 5:54p Set: 3:38a

Jan 31

Sunrise: 7:08a Moonrise: 3:26p

Set: 5:55p Set: 4:28a

Feb 1

Sunrise: 7:08a Moonrise: 4:18p

Set: 5:56p Set: 5:15a

AM Minor: 10:37a

PM Minor: 11:03p

AM Minor: 11:30a

PM Minor: 11:56p

AM Minor: -----

PM Minor: 12:20p

AM Minor: 12:42a

PM Minor: 1:07p

AM Minor: 1:28a

PM Minor: 1:53p

AM Minor: 2:13a

PM Minor: 2:37p

AM Minor: 2:57a

PM Minor: 3:21p

AM Major: 4:24a

PM Major: 4:50p

AM Major: 5:17a

PM Major: 5:43p

AM Major: 6:07a

PM Major: 6:33p

AM Major: 6:54a

PM Major: 7:20p

AM Major: 7:40a

PM Major: 8:06p

AM Major: 8:25a

PM Major: 8:50p

AM Major: 9:09a

PM Major: 9:33p

Moon Overhead: 6:06p

12a

Tides and Prime Times for JANUARY 2015

6a

12p

6p

Moon Overhead: 7:50p

Moon Overhead: 6:58p 12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

6a

12p

6p

Moon Overhead: 8:41p 12a

6a

12p

6p

Moon Overhead: 10:21p

Moon Overhead: 9:32p 12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

6a

12p

6p

SOLUNAR ACTIVITY

SOLUNAR ACTIVITY

MONDAY

 = New Moon º = First Quarter  = Full Moon » = Last Quarter  = Good Day  = Best Day SUNDAY

DIGITAL EXTRA Tap for Customized Tide Charts

NOT TO BE USED FOR NAVIGATION

Moon Overhead: 11:09p 12a

6a

12p

6p

12a

FEET

FEET

Moon Underfoot: 5:40a

+2.0

0 -1.0

TIDE LEVELS

+1.0

BEST:

Moon Underfoot: 6:32a BEST:

4:00 — 6:00 AM

Moon Underfoot: 7:24a

Moon Underfoot: 8:16a

BEST:

5:00 — 7:00 AM

BEST:

6:00 — 8:00 AM

Moon Underfoot: 9:07a BEST:

6:30 — 8:30 AM

7:00 — 9:00 AM

Moon Underfoot: 9:57a BEST:

8:00 — 10:00 AM

Moon Underfoot: 10:45a BEST:

+2.0

9:00 — 11:00 AM

+1.0 0

Low Tide High Tide Low Tide High Tide

3:09 AM 9:55 AM 2:30 PM 8:48 PM

-0.16ft.

0.61ft.

0.35ft.

0.80ft.

Low Tide High Tide Low Tide High Tide

4:20 AM 11:53 AM 3:47 PM 9:22 PM

-0.34ft.

0.67ft.

0.57ft.

0.79ft.

Low Tide High Tide Low Tide High Tide

5:26 AM 1:45 PM 6:16 PM 10:02 PM

-0.48ft.

0.78ft.

0.70ft.

0.79ft.

Low Tide High Tide Low Tide High Tide

6:26 AM 3:00 PM 7:57 PM 10:50 PM

T E X A S

1501 ALMANAC.indd 91

-0.59ft.

0.87ft.

0.75ft.

0.80ft.

Low Tide High Tide Low Tide High Tide

F I S H

&

7:19 AM 3:46 PM 8:51 PM 11:44 PM

-0.65ft. Low Tide 8:05 AM 0.91ft. High Tide 4:19 PM 0.76ft. Low Tide 9:21 PM 0.82ft.

G A M E ®

|

-0.67ft. High Tide 12:39 AM 0.92ft. Low Tide 8:47 AM 0.74ft. High Tide 4:45 PM Low Tide 9:39 PM

J A N U A R Y

2 0 1 5

0.84ft.

-0.65ft.

0.90ft.

0.71ft.

|

-1.0

91

12/8/14 11:34 AM

Texas Tasted

by Bryan Slaven | The Texas Gourmet PHOTO: BRYAN SLAVEN

Speckled Trout with a Crawfish Topping

W

HETHER YOU ARE CHUNKING A Mirrolure or fishing with live shrimp and a popping cork, catching speckled trout is always fun and great to eat. This recipe is quick and easy to prepare, but the simplicity allows the delicate flavor to be enjoyed as well. I hope you enjoy it.

INGREDIENTS

6 speckled trout or redfish filets flour 2 oz. butter 2 Tbs. olive oil Texas Gourmet’s Sidewinder Searing Spice Topping 1 lb crawfish tails 2 oz butter 1 Tbs. olive oil 1/4 cup green onion tops 3 teaspoons – capers 2 teaspoons of chopped celery 2 cloves of garlic, chopped coarse Texas Gourmet’s Sidewinder Searing Spice

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2. To make topping; first, in a medium cast iron skillet, heat olive oil and add butter.

3. When no longer foaming, add green onions, onion, celery, capers and garlic and sauté for 3 to 4 minutes, then add the craw92 |

J A N U A R Y

1501 ALMANAC.indd 92

2 0 1 5

|

fish tails. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes and keep stirring until crawfish are heated through, but don’t overcook.

6. Remove from heat but keep on warm part of stove-top.

7. Dust fish on both sides with Texas Gourmet’s Searing Spice 8. Dredge in flour and remove excess.

9. Heat oil on medium-high heat in ovenproof skillet large enough to hold all fillets, and add butter.

10. When no longer foaming, add fish.

11. Cook on one side for two minutes, then flip and cook for one minute.

12. Transfer the fillets to a pan and place in a preheated oven at 400 degrees and cook for six minutes.

13. Remove from oven, top with crawfish and serve immediately.

Serves six

NOTES

T E X A S

You may substitute fresh shrimp for F I S H

&

the crawfish. Use medium to small shrimp (30 to 40 count) and sauté shrimp slightly longer.

Email Bryan Slaven, “The Texas Gourmet,” at bryan@thetexasgourmet.com

CHECK OUT OUR ONLINE STORE for many of the seasonings and other ingrdients used in TEXAS TASTED recipes.

Visit

FishandGameGear.com

G A M E ®

12/8/14 11:34 AM

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OUTDOOR SHOPPER

MIDDLE TEXAS COAST

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ORDER NOW

www.FishandGameGear.com T E X A S

1501 ALMANAC.indd 93

F I S H

&

G A M E 速

|

J A N U A R Y

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AMBERJACK Matagorda Jordan Kelton, age 16, caught this 47-pound amberjack while fishing with guide Emil Krejct out of Matagorda.

SPECKLED TROUT San Antonio Bay Kaily Zumwalt of Gonzales caught these two nice trout while fishing on San Antonio Bay.

WHITETAIL Franklin Greg Stem killed this 20-inch 8-point buck while hunting at Franklin.

BLACK DRUM Palacios Cindy Howard, a recent immigrant from Oslo, Norway, with her first fish caught in America, a black drum off a pier in Palacios.

FLOUNDER Packery Channel Matt Hillman of Gonzales caught this nice 20-inch flounder early one morning at Packery Channel.

BASS Sam Rayburn Nicolas Stuchly, 15, of Houston caught this 3.5pound bass while fishing with his mother, brother and Grandpa at Sam Rayburn with guide Larry King of Broadus.

REDFISH South Padre Island Eleven-year-old Caitlyn Stone sizes up a redfish she caught while fishing at South Padre.

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MAIL TO: TFG PHOTOS 1745 Greens Rd, Houston TX 77032 NOTE: Print photos can not be returned.

EMAIL: photos@FishGame.com

For best results, send MED to HIGH quality JPEG digital files only, please.

No guarantee can be made as to when, or if, a submitted photo will be published.

WHITE BASS

REDFISH

Lake Livingston

East Galveston Bay JoElla Martin of Liberty caught this 30-pound redfish on Middle Reef in East Galveston Bay.

Sammy Scott caught his first white bass while fishing off his grandparents’ pier on Lake Livingston.

SPECKLED TROUT Port Mansfield Marisol De La Garza of San Juan caught this 24-inch trout at Port Mansfield while wadefishing with artificial bait.

REDFISH Aransas Pass Brooke Barton, Kelley Hann, and Madison Hann caught and released these three oversize reds at the same time while fishing in Redfish Bay out of Aransas Pass.

FERAL HOG Rusk County Brayden Dear, 11, from Jacksonville shot his first big game animal while hunting with his grand-daddy Charles Dear in Rusk County.

Brayden bagged the hog with a Remington .222.

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REDFISH San Bernard Bobby Nairn, center (emptyhanded), with grandsons Ross Nairn, left, and Matthew McIntosh, right, after catching these nice reds in the mouth of the San Bernard River.

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