Texas Fish & Game September 2017 by Texas Fish & Game

VOICE OF THE TEXAS OUTDOOR NATION

Fishing Guide with a Cause

September 2017 | $3.95

Teal by the

Fishing at High Tide

Doggett: Awesome Alligators

Choosing a ‘Go-To’ Rifle

Going Public for Archery

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Moon www.FishGame.com

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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.

C R E A T I V E ELLIOTT DONNELLY TECHNICAL ADVISOR

ROY NEVES

SUBSCRIPTIONS

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247

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 RAZOR DOBBS CAPT. MIKE HOLMES DUSTIN WARNCKE STAN SKINNER LISA MOORE

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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 CONTRIBUTING EDITOR CONTRIBUTING PHOTO EDITOR

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TEXAS FISH & GAME (ISSN 0887-4174) is published monthly by Texas Fish & Game Publishing Co., LLC., 247 Airtex Dr. Houston, TX 77090. ©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 $24.95; 2 years $42.95; 3 years $58.95. Address all subscription inquiries to Texas Fish & Game, 247 Airtex Dr. Houston, TX 77090. 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, 247 Airtex Dr. Houston, TX 77090. Address all subscription inquiries to TEXAS FISH & GAME, 247 Airtex Dr. Houston, TX 77090. Email change of address to: subscriptions@fishgame.com. Email new orders to: subscriptions@fishgame.com. Email subscription questions to: subscriptions@fishgame.com. Periodical postage paid at Houston, TX 772679946 and at additional mailing offices. Paid Distribution of over 90,000 Verified by Independent Audit

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Table of

SEPTEMBER 2017 Volume 34 • NO. 5

Contents FEATURES

GOING PUBLIC FOR ARCHERY COVER STORY: Teal by the Full Moon Setting up for teal under a pre-dawn full moon can yield interesting early season action, as these small dabbling (shallow feeder) ducks continue their overnight gorging on crawfish and aquatic bugs under the moon’s light. If you’re stealthy enough, you can catch them on the fly at daybreak.

With deer leases edging higher into crazy expensive territory, a lot of bowhunters are getting priced out of the market. Fortunately, there is plenty of public land available for walk-in hunting—no gate key required.

by Matt Williams

28u

Story by Jeff Stewart

FISHING AT HIGH TIDE Texas may have “skinny tides” by comparison to places like Canada and Alaska, but fishing high water can still frustrate inshore anglers. Here is how one veteran mid-coast guide goes with the flow.

by David Sikes

PHOTO: WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

FISH GAME DIGITAL

HOW I CHOSE MY FAVORITE RIFLE Having a “quick” rifle, a solid, all-around workhorse firearm that can be carried in your truck or on a UTV is important, a go-to gun that is reliable when you need it.

by Razor Dobbs

AWESOME ALLIGATORS

Mobile Editions: iPad Android u Phones u Web u

Kindle

FREE to Subscribers. See your Device’s App Store, or visit:

Alligators share one thing in common with big fish and all snakes—the more the story is told, the bigger they get. And along the Gulf Coast, they get plenty big.

by Joe Doggett

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Inside FISH & GAME

Contents (continued) COLUMNS

by ROY and ARDIA NEVES TF&G Owners

Editor’s Notes

by Chester Moore

TF&G Editor in Chief

The Fountain of Youth

VERY SUMMER FOR THE PAST 25 YEARS, WE have been given a dose of elixir from the Fountain of Youth. Attending conferences for Texas agriculture teachers and their students each year, we always come away reinvigorated with hope that there is indeed a future for fishing and hunting, and the habitat and ecosystems that sustain our sports. The same week in mid-July that most of the fishing industry was packing into the already summer-vacation-packed hotels of Orlando to attend the annual ICAST trade show, some of us—well, one of us—made our way to Corpus Christi to attend the Texas FFA Convention. It was worth noting the coincidence of this overlapping schedule for one big reason—for a long time, the fishing and hunting industries have been lamenting the steady decline in participation and the relentless aging—with the inevitable consequences of age—of those who do participate. The solution to the problem is, of course, obvious: recruit new, younger participants. A lot easier said than done. And yet, here we were, surrounded by thousands of solutions. While half of the outdoor industry was gathering in Florida to promote its new products for next year, possibly wondering who might still be out there to buy what they roll out a few years down the road, we were in a place back here in Texas where such recruitment was not only possible, it was happening. TEXAS FISH & GAME has been tapping a gold mine of such recruits for a full generation. Since back in the early 1990s, we’ve provided our magazine and its growing digital assets to teachers of the very popular Wildlife and Recreational Management class taught by vocational ag teachers in high schools all over the state. Since this course also allows students to earn their hunter safety certification, the class has been a hit with students from all walks of school life, not just the regular ag and FFA kids. The course covers a variety of topics, from habitat management, wildlife biology and safety, to hands-on outdoors skills. They now have a wealth of curricular materials to teach with but, gratifyingly, monthly issues of TF&G continue to be a classroom favorite. Teachers discuss the articles and assign students to do reports on them. Teachers use their growing arsenal of high tech equipment, from digital projectors to school issued lap tops and tablets, to present material from our digital issues and from our website. We send them a special newsletter every week with suggested content and ideas for using our material in class. With such popularity, our classroom subscription program has been very successful. We are used in more than 600 schools and now reach a total of more than 40,000 high school students. But it is expensive. It costs tens of thousands of dollars each year to print and mail the classroom subscription copies of our monthly issues. But in return, we have built lasting relationships with many thousands of young people interested in the outdoors, and many of these kids have gone on the become ag teachers themselves and now teach their classes using TF&G. We have tried for years to get support for the program from within the outdoor industry. But there seems to be a lot more talk about reaching youth than interest in actually supporting a program that is doing just that. So, we have gone outside our direct industry, partnering with American Homestead, a high end pork processor with operations located in Texas. Thanks to this company’s belief in the power of exposing kids to the positive benefits of the outdoors, we’re able to continue growing the program. Next year we’re aiming to reach nearly 1,000 schools. We have learned first hand how this program is reaching kids by spending time at these two conferences and meeting and talking to both the students and their teachers. The FFA convention in Corpus attracted more than 12,000 students. More than a thousand teachers came together at the summer’s second gathering, the Vocational Agrigulture Teachers Association of Texas Annual Conference, held this year in Arlington. During that time we had the opportunity to visit with hundreds of students and teachers, and talked with them about how much impact the simple act of providing classroom subscriptions has had, and how much enjoyment it gives these kids. For a couple of retirement-age outdoors publishers, these gatherings are like an annual pilgrimage to the fountain of youth.

Doggett at Large by Joe Doggett

TF&G Senior Contributing Editor

Pike on the Edge by Doug Pike

TF&G Senior Contributing Editor

by Ted Nugent

Commentary

Texas Saltwater

STATE SECTION

by Calixto Gonzales

TF&G Saltwater Editor

Bare Bones Hunting

by Lou Marullo

TF&G Hunting Editor

Texas Boating

by Lenny Rudow

TF&G Boating Editor

Practical Angler by Greg Berlocher

TF&G Contributing Editor

Bass University by Pete Robbins

Special Correspondent

Texas Guns

by Steve LaMascus

TF&G Firearms Editor

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Email Roy and Ardia Neves at ContactUs@ﬁshgame.com |

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Texas Freshwater by Matt Williams

36 GUIDE WITH A CAUSE

40 TF&G REPORT 40 TEXAS HOT SHOTS

42 TEXAS DEPT. OF DEFENSE

44 TEXAS DEPT. OF CONSERVATION

TF&G Freshwater Editor

46 TEXAS COASTAL

Open Season

56 TEXAS FISHING

by Reavis Wortham

TF&G Humor Editor

INSIDER FISH AND GAME GEAR TEXAS TASTED OUTDOOR DIRECTORY TF&G PHOTOS

by Kendal Hemphill

TF&G Political Commentator

8 LETTERS 79 INDUSTRY

Nugent in the Wild 82 TF&G Editor At Large

DEPARTMENTS

FOCUS

HOTSPOTS

66 PRIME TIMES

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LETTERS to the Editor Kendal vs. Academia

blame others when they get themselves into trouble. As a professional writer, Hemphill should have the skills to phrase his opinions tactfully in public. Based on reading his column and the story he tells in it, he doesn’t. College might provide an opportunity to develop those skills if he can get past the idea that he is above everyone else in the room. Professionalism is expected in the real world those students will enter and, for his information, there will be real world consequences in many businesses for making remarks that insult and alienate coworkers. Hemphill’s attitude that people with years of education and research experience don’t know things about the real world can’t be taken seriously. These same academics he talks trash about study the fish, wildlife, and ecosystems that we all love and depend on. They live in the real world and they also study it; many of them probably know more about it than Hemphill is even capable of recognizing. My comment isn’t about hurt feelings. There’s an ugly stereotype we face as outdoor people—that hunters and fishermen are just a bunch of uneducated, unsophisticated hicks. Columns like the one by Hemphill feed that stereotype and make us all look bad. I worry that his behavior in that classroom gave those students a negative view of outdoor people that they will carry with them throughout their lives. Writing a column about how everyone else is a snowflake just makes it worse. So for the sake of your readers and the whole outdoor community, please encourage your editors to lay off the smug and narrow-minded social and political commentary and focus on the fishing and hunting we are all interested in reading about, and the conservation efforts that we should be recognized for.

I LOVE THE OUTDOOR INFORMAtion in Texas Game and Fish and eagerly await its arrival each month. I usually overlook the occasional political content, but the most recent column by Editor Kendall Hemphill entitled “Sticks and Stones and Snowflakes” was hard to ignore. Hemphill’s attitude is alienating readers, and he’s doing outdoor people a disservice by making us look like anti-intellectual good ol’ boys (a stereotype I’d like to think we don’t deserve). I am what Hemphill calls an academic, so I was interested to read his explanation of what academia is like and how as a college professor I’m not “normal” and I’m not ready for the “real world.” I don’t know where people get the idea that educated people don’t live in the real world, except that those people must not get outside their circle much. Like most of your readers, I work hard (and as a field scientist, I mean I work hard physically with my hands), I pay my bills, mow my yard, fix things in my garage, worry about my family, fish in fresh and saltwater, and hunt deer and ducks. I’ve worked a variety of jobs, and I’ve been close to poverty more than once in my life. I don’t live in some other world that’s not real. Not only do we both live in the same world, but Hemphill has no particular expertise or right to define what the real world is for the rest of us. When Hemphill experienced his opinion being challenged in a college classroom, he too was experiencing the real world outside his own bubble (apparently for the first time). Calling people names like “snowflakes” does nothing useful to further any conversation; however, I might ask who is the real snowflake here? The students who stood up to a remark they saw as inappropriate? Or the grown man whose feelings were hurt so badly that he had to write a full-page column complaining about how he was mistreated by “girls” (as Hemphill refers to his female classmates), and how it’s everyone’s fault but his own for not raising their children to let him say whatever he wants? Another responsibility of good parenting is to teach kids the humility to admit they might be wrong, and not to 8

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David Kilby Dear Mr. Kilby, It’s Texas Fish & Game, not “Texas Game and Fish.” And “Kendal” only has one “L” And by the way, thank you, sir, for making my point. Kendal Hemphill |

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Marine Mammals DEAR CHESTER, THE ARTICLE ON marine mammals was very interesting. I had no idea that the Gulf had so many species like killer whales for example. I appreciate you helping us learn more about the interesting wildlife of the Gulf and giving us a way to help if we see stranded dolphins or manatees. Jessica James Editor: Thank you Jessica. We at Texas Fish & Game believe in good stewardship of our resources and that even nonage animals deserve a helping hand when necessary. A healthy Gulf is good for all parties involved and is an inspiring place to spend time. Now, I want to go find me a Gulf orca!

IS IT TRUE THAT THERE IS A PINK dolphin that travels from Louisiana to Galveston? Rob Foreman Editor: I don’t believe the pink dolphin I photographed in Cameron, La. is the same one that has been seen in Galveston Bay. It is possible but there are likely several in the region.

THANK YOU FOR WHAT YOU ARE doing with the Wild Gulf program and kids. It is inspiring! We need more people promoting wildlife conservation and actually working with kids. Editor: It is my honor and privilege and it is fortunate that I work for Texas Fish & Game, which supports these kinds of things wholeheartedly and gives the space needed to address them. The owners are totally into helping kids and wildlife.

Email your comments to: editor@ﬁshgame.com

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EDITOR’S Notes by CHESTER MOORE :: TF&G Editor-in-Chief

Freedom of Speech Endangered

NDANGERED SPECIES IS A topic I have written on, lectured about and broadcast programs relating to many times. My favorite thing about the industry I work in is that wildlife conservation is continually being pushed to the forefront. Actions we take to aid wild turkey, elk and waterfowl benefit even some of the world’s most endangered creatures. Wisely using resources to benefit all wildlife is a beautiful thing. It is something we as an outdoors community should celebrate. There is something endangered however in the outdoors community itself and no legislation, native vegetation planting or restocking efforts will help. This comes down to the heart. Freedom of speech is endangered in the outdoor community. I would in fact, say it is critically endangered. Let’s go back to endangered wildlife for a minute. I was lecturing on the topic and posted about it on Facebook. Someone who has worked a bit in the industry messaged me and asked whether I were now a member of PETA. Yes, PETA, the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, one of the most extreme animal rights groups in the country. To say I was offended is an understatement. It was an idiotic question—extremely idiotic. Because someone who hunts and fishes talks about efforts in this case to conserve jaguar habitat in South America, someone equates it to PETA. Yes, let me say it was idiotic again, but it was also symptomatic of something I have addressed previously on these pages. Just because someone supports habitat restoration or environmental work that involves clean water, air or helping wildlife that we are not allowed to kill, mount and hang in our living

rooms doesn’t mean they are environmentalist crazies or animal rights activists. The idea in the outdoor community in Texas and most likely beyond our borders is that unless your politics is right of Ann Coulter and you have a “Molon Labe” tattoo, you must be an enemy. Or maybe you just simply state your opinion on guns. Remember the hell veteran outdoor writer Jim Zumbo went through because he (incorrectly) stated ARs were not proper for hunting? You would have thought the guy admitted to murder because of actions of the keyboard warriors as well as opportunists in the industry who saw a chance to take him down and maybe take his place. TF&G was a big part of helping restore him as we published a feature by our late editor Don Zaidle, along with our good friend and editor-at-large Ted Nugent. Zumbo is still around, but I guarantee he’s still shocked at what the community he contributed greatly to over the years did to him because he voiced an opinion, albeit a goofy one. Who can forget the insanity of the fight to ban croaker as a live bait in Texas? It wasn’t that there is anything wrong with people pushing their opinion that the use of croaker is bad for the resource, but that friendships were lost over it. Business dealings were shut down. A couple of other writers and I, on both sides of the issue, were called every name in the book. All the while, dioxins were being put into Galveston Bay and other estuaries— cancer causing agents, mind you. I, and many others, were distracted about their opinions on croaker. The difference is I woke up. Call a public hearing today on banning live croaker and another on dioxins and see which one gets the highest attendance. I would be shocked if you had one third the attendance at T E X A S

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the dioxin meeting. You see, people have come to look at their own little narrow favorite part of the outdoor community as their identity. If they are primitive archers, then quite often anyone who talks about modern equipment is labeled as “unethical.” If you are “artificials only” for speckled trout, and someone talks on their radio program about using croaker, they feel obligated to launch character assassination. It’s no different from the tactics the “mainstream” and “liberal” media use to destroy conservative politicians. At the end of the day, it’s the same political correctness we supposedly despise, but apparently many of us like because they can wrap it in a nice camouflage hook and bullet package. That’s “Hypocrisy” with a capital H. This publication will remain one that covers all aspects of fishing, hunting and conservation. We cover broad perspectives. In fact, I find myself disagreeing with some of our columnists occasionally. That’s all right. Their column is their opinion, and as long as they are not wanting to ban guns, hunting or fishing I have no problem publishing them. It is all right to have many viewpoints on a certain issue. If that offends someone, then so be it. The good ‘ole boy syndicate has done more to hurt the outdoor community than animal rights activists ever have. In fact, the animal rights groups have had little success, but the cliques and rotten attitudes toward anyone who doesn’t fit their mold of an outdoorsman have kept untold numbers out of the deer blind and away from the water. We should fight both with due diligence and refuse to let someone who couldn’t care less about the average outdoor lover dictate what we say or do. Freedom of speech is still alive and well at Texas Fish & Game, even if it’s endangered elsewhere in the outdoor community.

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Email Chester Moore at cmoore@ﬁshgame.com

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DOGGETT at Large by JOE DOGGETT :: TF&G Contributing Editor

Golden Oldie

should be fitted with a stainless split ring or a nononsense snap through the line-tie hole punched in the metal nose. A small swivel helps minimize line twist although if no suitable swivel is handy, it’s not a deal killer. Tying 10- to 12-pound casting mono straight to the hole is a rookie mistake. The stress of a hard cast or a thrashing fish can break the knot against the rough edge. Also, a typical improved clinch knot snubbed against the spoon impedes the side-to-side wobble and flutter—the spoon still works, just not as well. Another option is to rig a two or three-foot “shock leader” of 20- or 30-pound test and secure the spoon with a loop knot (the abrasion-resistant shock leader is a great concept regardless of lure selection). On a gin-clear (here we go again) tide, fluorocarbon is less visible. The spoon has superior ballistics. The solid metal construction provides a compact payload you can really chunk, even into or across a stiff breeze. No jig head fitted with a pinwheeling plastic tail can challenge it. Some aerodynamic dog walker surface plugs might come close, but I’ll still bet on the spoon of comparable weight. Those few extra yards on each cast are a bonus when blind casting to cover water. Drifting a bay flat or wading the surf or walking the rocks—take your pick, but the spoon launched by skilled hands can reach more fish. The spoon is versatile. You can fish it fast or slow, high or low, to maximize potential in a given situation. A longer (7- or 7-1/2-foot) rod held at 45 degrees and backed by a peppy retrieve can skip and bounce the spoon across the surface. This can be a killer technique for reds and specks over shallow grass beds or oyster reefs. When allowed to settle deep in a pass or channel and fluttered along bottom, the same spoon can box a limit of flounders. In this unabashed tribute, I would be remiss in not harping on durability. Going back to the casting ballistics, the spoon is a full metal jacket projectile. There’s nothing flimsy or soft about it, which is more than can be said for the nearest pouch of squiggly plastic tails. Granted, a well-made tail can withstand several maulings from specks and reds, but when

NE OF THE OLDEST SALTwater lures remains one of the best. I am, of course, referring to the simple metal spoon. The modern spoon has been a proven choice for generations yet many of today’s coastal pluggers tend to favor soft plastics or the latest “killer” hard baits. Nothing wrong with either choice under suitable circumstances, but the often-overlooked spoon can dominate a rich tide. Here are several reasons why the old lure deserves top-tray status. First, the typical two- to three-inch inshore spoon is an excellent imitation of a wounded baitfish. The jiving combination of flash and flutter can really reach out to trigger a reflex strike. This is especially true in the sandy-green water of limited visibility common along the Texas coast. For this reason, gold has been the go-to color for decades in the bays. The bright finish radiates through murky water. Frankly, I believe darker copper is even better but for some bottom-line reason, copper spoons are hard to find. Under super-green conditions, silver often gets the nod—although no law says a prowling red or speck won’t smack a gold spoon in ginclear surf. (I dislike using that tired old cliché “gin-clear” but, being partial to Gordon’s and Beefeater, not to mention Bombay, I can attest to its accuracy.) Various other color combinations are available, and all work, but basic gold and silver should cover the nearest fishable tide. Second, the typical spoon is easy to retrieve. It basically fishes itself. A rod flip here and a pause there, probably enhance the allure, and such touches make you feel like you are doing something special. Yet the straight crank of a beginner will put fish on the stringer. The spoon is that good. This is assuming it is rigged properly. Some “out of the box” models are not. The metal lure

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something with cutting teeth zips by—not so good. Chomp, chomp, slice, and time to re-rig with a fresh tail. Pitch a spoon out there amid a school of surf-run Spanish mackerel or bluefish and chomp, chomp, clank! The basic spoon is durable, but I must admit that the shiny finish on some models is cheap. The plating can be quick to wear with contact with the bottom, and tarnish with exposure to saltwater. Regular washing and an occasional rubdown with a polishing agent such as Brasso can bring a lackluster spoon back to temporary glory, but the decay over repeated trips is inevitable. Some hardcore pluggers paint worn spoons in gaudy colors and this surely works, but I tend to just spend several dollars for a bright new one. Or, in traditional outdoor writer style, hold out my hand and hope a manufacturer parts with a few. On the subject of manufacturers, I am reluctant to name products but numerous 1/4- to 3/4-ounce inshore models are on the shelves. Some are relatively new; others have been available for decades. Colorful trailers of nylon strands or bucktails are optional (I tend to prefer undressed spoons. If you opt for a trailer, trimming it back cuts down on short strikes). On second thought, I must give credit where due and acknowledge the venerable Johnson Sprite. Introduced in 1950 (to complement the original Silver Minnow), it is literally, the gold standard for spoons on the Texas bays. Without question, the gold Sprite is a killer. However, the plating is a bit cheesy. So are the treble hooks in the smaller sizes—and the Sprite is packaged without a line-tie split ring. If you change out the riggings and faithfully wash the thing, you have a lure that generations of A-list pluggers have sailed across sparkling tides. Regardless of model, I do believe one thing: Select a suitable spoon for the depth and clarity and you can fish from Sabine Lake to the lower Laguna Madre and still be in the game.

Email Joe Doggett at ContactUs@ﬁshgame.com

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8/9/17 10:10 AM

PIKE on the Edge by DOUG PIKE :: TF&G Senior Contributing Editor

Make Time for Fishing

HE RESPONSE IS: YES, YOU do. Put down your whine. The statement was “I don’t have time to go fishing.” I said as much more than once, probably closer to a dozen times, this past summer. Friends and co-workers who call themselves fishermen would call me or loiter around my desk to boo-hoo about how they hadn’t been fishing in a while because they were so, so, so busy. Quit making excuses. If you want to go fishing, there’s time in anyone’s week to go. Stop telling yourself (and others) otherwise. I’m as busy as anyone and possibly busier than most. Won’t bore you with details, but the plate is full. Then again, it’s not so full that I can’t “go fishing.” I just can’t drop what I’m doing to sling lures at some of the places I’d most like to visit or revisit. The key for me, as it can be for anyone, was to accept my schedule’s limitations and work around them. I can’t race off to the Laguna Madre for skinny-water reds or fly over to Florida to chase snook or blast down to Mexico for striped marlin on a whim—as happened more than once in my past —but I can fish. For avid, driven fishermen, the secret to getting through a time-challenged stretch of life starts with modifying your expectations, not lowering—modifying. Not your standards, your expectations. Fishing is available in some shape or form within relatively short distance of us all. To make sure that’s true, I stuck a push-pin in the middle of a map of downtown Houston. From that point, I identified within a 10-mile radius at least a half dozen places where, with a little determination and potentially a clothespin for your nose, you could catch fish. Not bonefish or tarpon or smallmouths or

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ing a live shiner off the nose of a fat crappie. That’s important to remember. Not everyone may be as fortunate as you or me. Not every fishermen owns a boat or travels with tackle or owns fancy gear. But they—we—are all fishermen. As an “older” fisherman now—except on trips with equally competitive peers— I get great pleasure in helping other people catch more fish. If my lure is working on the Surfside jetty, and the man next me isn’t catching anything, but is doing his best with what he’s got, I’ll offer my plug or jig and show him how to work it. Any time one of my son’s friends confesses to never having caught a fish but wanting to do so, I have just the place. It’s less than an acre of water but absolutely loaded with sunfish. On any day, especially under cloud cover and armed with half a loaf of bread for chum plus vanilla-soaked kernel corn, I confidently can guarantee not only “a” fish for that child, but at least a dozen. Joe Doggett and I used to pass lunch hours (which often turned into lunch afternoons) in rubber boots, standing shin-deep in Braes Bayou and fly-casting tiny popping bugs at white amur. Our snooty friends never joined us, but some real fishermen did. Sight-casting to 20-inch fish in six inches of water is cool wherever you can pull it off. My latest “fishing” hole is an irrigation ditch alongside a country club where I play golf. I’d bet there aren’t six members who realize how many big gar are there, but I do. They’re a blast to tease with little top-waters. The fish are there. You want to fish or whine?

rainbow trout, but fish—on hook and line and lure (or bait, if you insist.) The list of players in these water bodies includes a variety of sunfish, at least two species of catfish and two more of carp, and the occasional longnose or spotted gar that might be a foot long or might be three feet long. I was surprised recently by a gar as long and thick as my leg that rose from the murk of a rice canal, right at my feet, and then submerged and disappeared. Would I eat these fish? Probably not, but I’ve spoken with other fishermen who say they’ve dined on fish from those places for years. I’ve traveled 1,000 miles to catch bonefish, and I didn’t eat any of them. There’s a difference, I know, but the point is valid. The easiest way to find these close-to-home fishing holes is, as you might guess, to open your eyes. If I see water that looks fishy, I look for (legal) ways to access it. If there are signs that say fishing isn’t allowed, I move on. I consider no sign to be a welcome sign. The couple of times I’ve wandered onto restricted shoreline—accidentally, of course - I’ve left as soon as I was asked to do so. In the suburbs, around my home, there’s more accessible water than in the city. Neighborhood lakes, city parks, natural bayous, manmade bayous, irrigation canals—they all have fish. They just don’t have trophy fish. If you want to fish badly enough, it’s easy to accept the sounds of traffic over those of seagulls. On the plus side, heavily so, it’s also nice after a long day of fishing to be five minutes from home and not five hours that includes two hours getting through an international airport. It’s been my good fortune to travel much of the world and catch some of its most exciting gamefish—and call it “work.” I won’t lie and tell you the thrill is the same catching fourinch panfish on rubber spiders as it is getting a permit to slurp a crab fly on a white-sand Honduran flat, but they’re both fishing. So is throwing stinkbait into the middle of a municipal-park pond and hoping for a catfish to call it supper. So is sitting on an overturned bucket, staring at the little cork that’s suspendF I S H

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NUGENT in the Wild by TED NUGENT :: TF&G Editor-at-Large

No Child Before Their Time

often the case that the parent is the one wanting the kid to shoot more than the kid does. Let them watch for as many years as possible until you are confident their little undeveloped brains and bodies can grasp and handle the shooting dynamic. Now I must admit that I baptized my kids as early as 4 years of age, but did it with BB guns under ultra-strict hands-on control in the living-room shooting at proper targets at close range, one shooter and one shot at a time in short duration settings to keep the young minds focused and intrigued. They graduated to single shot bolt-action rifles firing very low dB .22CB caps under the same controls a year or so later. It wasn’t until they proved their fluid, disciplined, 100% safe 100% of the time handling of the rifle that we moved up to .22 shorts, then .22 longs, then .22 long rifle ammo, always with ear and eye protection with total focus on muzzle control and my ready hands always right there. Orange clay birds at 20 or so feet up against a solid dirt backstop goes a long way in learning sight picture, breath and trigger control and instant understanding of where the bullets are hitting. I would highly recommend that it is a rare kid under the age of 10 or 12 that should ever be allowed to shoot a firearm generating recoil more than a .22magnum. Once a parent is certain their kid can handle some recoil, a properly fitted lever action rifle in .38 special is probably the best bet for their next phase when possible. And here’s a great tip I don’t ever hear for moving up to shotguns; a proper fitting recoilpadded .410 with the lightest target loads available, shooting at stationery clay birds sitting on a dirt backstop at 20 yards is the best way to have them learn how a scattergun functions, points and hits. I assure you that the fun factor approached thusly will endear them no end to the joys of safe, controlled blasting away with a shotgun for the rest of their lives. Kids love blasting away! Everybody loves blasting away as long as it is safe and sound.

OO PAINFUL AND NUMERous to repeat here, the horror stories are heartbreaking and endless; a parent wanting desperately to introduce their young son and/or daughter to the joys of the shooting sports before they are truly ready. That is a deadly and dangerous recipe for disaster and the evidence is far too widespread to ignore. I have personally witnessed how some youngsters are ready, with ultra-structured guidance, for the intense discipline of the very serious business of firearms fun as early as their 5th or 6th birthday. But I have also witnessed the life threatening dangers of pushing a 10 year old before they are physically or psychologically capable of handling or processing all that which goes with safe handling and firing of a gun. The undeveloped muscle weakness alone of a small boy or girl, not to mention their childish minds, is almost always enough of a concern to force us to wait a few years. Even with the expert experienced control of a qualified range master, the instantaneous physics of even minimal recoil is a deadly force to reckon with in the wrong hands. A few proven tips that can be beneficial to a smooth, positive, fun, safe first firearm experience can make all the difference in the world in order to make it something they will not only always cherish, but eagerly wish to repeat often in life. It’s not just about recruitment into the shooting sports, but more importantly, retention. First of all, waiting can only be good for them. The young mind is so unsettled that it is 12

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As universal as the “use enough gun” truism is for experienced shooters, so too should the self-evident truth of “don’t use too much gun” mantra be our guiding light when it comes to the shootist baptism procedure. As we plow forward fighting for the return of our precious 2nd Amendment rights in America, nothing is more important than crushing the vicious anti-gun propaganda ministry by introducing as many people as we can to the joys and pragmatism of the shooting sports as often as we can. When done the right way, we solidify the self-evident truth that unarmed and helpless is indeed unarmed and helpless and a very embarrassing irresponsible choice in life. I personally have experienced untold happiness and fulfillment when introducing new shooters to this awe-inspiring activity, sport, discipline, and lifestyle. As important as recruitment is, it is even more important to emphasize the importance of being a member of the National Rifle Association. You can visit tednugent.com to join the mighty NRA at a discount, immediately joining forces in the asset column of freedom in America. Though the 2nd Amendment has absolutely nothing to do with hunting, I believe with all my heart and soul that every hunter in America should be a member of the NRA, as they also fight relentlessly for basic hunting rights across the country. As we enjoy our summer family time in exciting anticipation of the greatest hunting season of our lives, now is the best time for the win-win opportunity to expand our sport, expand our freedom warrior base and better prepare our friends and family for the fun and even life-saving realities of gun ownership and participation. Keep and bear like you mean it. It’s an American thang!

Email Ted Nugent at tnugent@ﬁshgame.com

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TF&G COMMENTARY by KENDAL HEMPHILL :: TF&G Political Editor

RITING AN OPINION column is a lot like accidentally running over your neighbor’s cat—the one that has been leaving nuggets in your children’s sandbox. It makes you feel nice, knowing you’ve made a positive difference in the world. However you can bet someone is going to let you know what a horrible person you are—someone who likes cats, probably, in either case. Not that I have anything against cats, as long as they practice reasonable personal hygiene. I’ve served several cats that lived in or around my home over the years. I could never decide whether they were my cats, or I was their man, but I fear a cursory examination of the distribution of responsibilities would reveal the truth. Recent feedback from a reader with damaged feelings reminded me of a column I wrote several years ago about electric cars. That, in turn, reminded me of a book I read almost a decade ago. The book was called Farewell, My Subaru, by a fellow named Doug Fine. It was the true story of a New York journalist, played by Fine, who decided to find out, first-hand, if it was possible for Americans to actually “live off the land.” He also looked at whether such living, if practiced by all of us, could create what Fine called a “sustainable world environment,” or some such. Fine quit his job, sold out, and moved to a ranch in New Mexico. He proceeded to fix up an old house, capture rainwater, set up solar panels, and gather his own eggs. He concluded, after a suitable period, that a sustainable life was definitely possible, but that it required dedication, commitment, and considerable education, for a city boy. The book, of course, chronicled Fine’s hardships and misadventures along the way. He came up with the title through his decision to

“ It makes you feel nice, knowing you’ve made a positive difference in the world.

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Farewell, My Reality

further depleting resources. Most of the electricity used to build vehicles, and do everything else, in America still comes from coal. Fine may have saved a little bit of the world, and made his experiment feasible, by trading the Subaru for the pickup, but not by a whole lot. There were other little problems with the practicality of Fine’s new lifestyle, but a couple of points glared brightly. They were conspicuously noticeable, owing to the fact he never addressed them. To begin with, Fine had made a respectable amount of money in his previous, ecounfriendly career. As a result, he was able to buy a respectable amount of land in New T E X A S

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Mexico on which to practice his world-saving experiment. Not everyone has that kind of jack, even considering the fact that Fine chose New Mexico because of its cheap real estate. So, to begin with, anyone wishing to become a favored friend of his or her environment must be sufficiently well healed to purchase a pretty good-sized chunk of said environment. Common sense is also necessary in such an endeavor. Although Fine is a reasonably intelligent person; he encountered plenty of problems building his eco-friendly nirvana. Most people aren’t that smart, and city-dwellers who are capable of such an enterprise would need to work fairly hard to figure out how to do what Fine did. I doubt most would be willing to try. There is also the question of landmass. If everyone who currently lives in a large city were to undertake Fine’s quest, I seriously doubt there would be enough land to go around. Most of the acreage in Nevada, Utah, New Mexico, and Arizona, although possibly available, is unsuitable for homesteading. That’s why it’s available. It takes a lot of water to run a ranch, even a small one. Then there is the question of employment. Fine was wealthy enough to live off his substantial means, but most are not. Subsistence living sounds good on paper, but it doesn’t pay much. Actually, it doesn’t pay anything except subsistence. Most people, I believe, would rather do more during their lives than not die. Declaring victory, Fine claimed that anyone, anywhere, could do what he did. I beg to differ. Few, I think, have the time, knowledge, dedication, adaptability, or most of all— money—to turn their lifestyle upside down. Of those who have all those things, most of them doubtless lack the desire. Fine deemed his effort a limited success. I regard it as a complete failure. I guess we’ll have to agree to disagree. As long as he keeps his cats out of my children’s sandbox, I’m happy.

abandon his economical, gas-sipping Subaru in favor of a diesel pickup, which he named the ROAT (Ridiculously Oversized American Truck). He had found that it was impossible to operate his sustainable lifestyle without a vehicle capable of hauling heavy loads and pulling a trailer. The switch was justified by converting the pickup to run on bio diesel. Of course, the larger vehicle had to be built and, at some point, disposed of, which required more resources than the Subaru. It also had to be maintained. Anyone who has ever worked on a ranch knows what a constant job that is, requiring replacement parts, costing time and effort, and

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HE 2017-18 ARCHERY Only season is just around the corner. The season gets underway on September 30 and runs for 35 consecutive days before winding down

on November 3, the eve of the general season in all Texas counties with a legal deer season. It’s a great time to be a deer hunter in Texas, especially if you hunt with a bow and arrow. That’s because the Archery Only season gives bow hunters the opportunity to get into the woods long before all the big boomers do. In fact, excluding rifle hunters with access to a lease under an approved managed lands deer permit program, participants in a special Youth Only season October 28-29 and a limited number of squirrel hunters, archery hunters should pretty much have the woods to themselves over the next month or so. In most counties it is legal to use crossbows to hunt deer during the Archery Only season, as well. However, it would be wise to check the individual county listings in the 2017-18 Texas Outdoor Annual. Make sure the county where you hunt is among them before a game warden tells you otherwise. Fines for hunting violations aren’t cheap. Of course, not every hunter with a compound, recurve or crossbow in the closet is fortunate enough to have private property to hunt on. Deer leases have gotten crazy expensive. As a result, many hunters have been priced right out of the market. Even so, there is gobs of public land available for walk-in hunting with no key to a gate required. Some of the properties fall under the heading of wildlife management areas that are under lease by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

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Public Hunting Directory NORTH TOLEDO BEND WMA (Unit 615) Location: Shelby County Acreage: 2,675 acres

Below is a list of public land that is available for archery hunting: ANGELINA/NECHES/DAM B WMA (Unit 707) Location: Jasper/Tyler Counties Acreage: 12,636 acres

OLD SABINE BOTTOM WMA (Unit 732) Location: Smith County Acreage: 5,727 acres

CADDO LAKE WMA (Unit 730) Location: Marion/Harrison Counties Acreage: 8,128 acres

ALABAMA CREEK WMA (Unit 904) Location: Trinity County Acreage: 14,561 acres

ALAZAN BAYOU WMA (Units 747 E and 747W) Location: Angelina/Nacogdoches Counties Acreage: 2,607 acres

LUMINANT TEXAS (Unit 607) Location: Robertson County Acreage: 1,071 acres

SAN ANGELO STATE PARK (Unit 1166) Location: Tom Greene County Acreage: 2,500 acres

SABINE RIVER AUTHORITY (Unit 630) Location: Panola County Acreage: 8,062 acres

TWIN BUTTES PHL Location: Tom Greene County Acreage: 13,000 acres

MOORE PLANTATION WMA (Unit 902) Location: Sabine County Acreage: 26,455 acres

COOPER WMA (Unit 731) Location: Delta/Hopkins Counties Acreage: 14,160 acres

BANNISTER WMA (Unit 903) Location: San Augustine County Acreage: 25,658 acres

TAWAKONI WMA (Unit 708) Location: Rains/Van Zandt Counties Acreage: 39,125 acres PAT MAYSE WMA (Unit 705) Location: Lamar County Acreage: 8,925 acres IVY UNIT (Unit 2495) Location: Anderson County Acreage: 465 acres WHITE OAK CREEK WMA (Unit 727) Location: Bowie/Cass/Morris and Titus Counties Acreage: 25,777 acres

LOS RINCONES (Unit 2494) Location: Kerr County Acreage: 138 acres

CAMPBELL TIMBERLAND MANAGEMENT (Unit 122) Location: Newton County Acreage: 16,851 acres

CADDO NATIONAL GRASSLANDS LADONIA UNIT (901S) Location: Fannin County Acreage: 2,780 acres

SOUTH SULPHUR UNIT COOPER LAKE STATE PARK (Unit 1155) Location: Hopkins County Acreage: 840 acres CADDO NATIONAL GRASSLANDS BOIS D’ ARC Unit (Unit 901N) Location: Fannin County Acreage: 13,370 acres

Additionally, Corp of Engineers tracts of varied size can be found adjacent to several public reservoirs that are under the authority of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Corps property is especially abundant around 20,300-acre Wright Patman Reservoir in northeast Texas, where more than 54,000 acres of federally owned property is open for free public hunting for deer, turkeys, squirrels, feral hogs, doves and waterfowl. It should be noted that the following is illegal on Texas public hunting lands: • Constructing or placing a hunting blind, stand, tower, or platform within 50 yards of any designated road, marked unit boundary, or designated campsite; • Constructing a permanent blind, stand, tower, or platform. • Leaving a hunting blind, stand, tower, or platform in place for more than 72 hours or using metal nails, spikes, screws, or bolts to attach such structures to the timber.

« draw hunts at the Gus Engling WMA near Palestine, and they were very well run with a limited number of hunters on a high quality piece of property. Draw hunts usually require a small application fee and minimum hunt fee if you get drawn. Other WMA lands are wide open for anyone to hunt all season. The only require-

Many of the WMA’s are open only to archery hunters selected in special “draw hunts,” but you have to enter before the deadline specified by TPWD’s public hunting booklet. It’s too late to apply for archery draws for this season, but it is certainly worth looking into for next year. I’ve participated in a couple of TPWD 16

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ments are that you have an annual public hunting permit and valid hunting license in your pocket when you go. The permits cost $48 and are available anywhere hunting licenses are sold. Additionally, there are thousands of acres of national forest and Corp of Engineers property that are open for walk-in hunt

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archery hunting all season long at absolutely no cost to hunters, provided the property is not listed as a WMA or otherwise specified by a governing agency.

Going Public: Getting a Grip One of the big trade offs to hunting on public lands versus private is you sometimes have to share the land with other hunters that you do not know. That in itself throws up a red flag with many would-be hunters. Others don’t think twice about it. The good ones simply do their homework and keep it to themselves. A common misconception many hunters have about public land is that game is lacking. No doubt the hunting can be tougher on public land than private, particularly in areas that are heavily pressured. But there are some sweet spots to be found out there for those who are willing to invest the time and put forth the effort. I’ve interviewed several hunters over the years who deer hunt exclusively on the TPWD public hunting lands and national

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forest lands. Most are understandably tight lipped about their particular hunting locations, but their advice to other hunters looking to go public is almost always the same:

obvious deer sign such as droppings, tracks, crossings, rubs and scrapes. Finding areas with highly preferred forage also is a plus.

• GET A MAP: Locate a good map of the area you intend to hunt and study it to locate drainages, ridges, creeks, field edges and other places that deer like to travel. Another good option is check out the area on Google Earth on the Internet.

Public hunting opportunities also are abundant in the Sabine, Davy Crockett, Sam Houston and Angelina national forests as well as the Caddo National Grasslands. Hunting is free on these properties, unless the area has been leased to TPWD as a wildlife management area. Free hunting also can be found on certain Corp of Engineers properties. So, what are some of the best public hunting areas the Texas has to offer for walk-in archers next month? What follows is a comprehensive list of hunting areas you might want to check out. Just be sure to read the rules and regulations specific to your hunting unit of choice before hunting. A full list of public hunting lands complete with maps, descriptions, rules and regulations is available online: tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/ hunt/public/.

• OFF THE BEATEN PATH: Many hunters are inherently lazy and always look for hunting spots that are closest or easiest to access from the road. Look for isolated sections of property with limited access located as far from any public road as possible. Preferably, these areas should have relatively thick cover. Deer will often retreat to these kinds of areas to escape the onslaught of early season hunting pressure. • SCOUT BEFORE YOU GO: There is no substitute for getting in the woods early and checking out prospective hunting areas before the season gets underway. Look for

Where To Hunt

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COASTAL ANGLERS COMPLAIN WHEN BAYS ARE swollen with tide, and again when they shrink. It’s as if we’re surprised by these natural cycles. Understandably, extremely high bay levels in Texas are usually associated with tropical disturbances in the Gulf of Mexico. Our skinny tides typically visit seasonally in summer and winter. Tides can equally frustrate and challenge anglers, forcing them to attempt strategies outside their comfort zones. Common refrains include—a sudden surge scatters fish, while a dramatic drop pushes them off the flats. What’s an angler to do? Certainly, not wait until the tide returns to normal—whatever that is. It’s odd that these conversations occupy so much time in Texas, where tides are barely rise or fall most of the time. Imagine Canadian fisherman coping with a 50-foot tidal range in the Bay of Fundi, compared to inches in Texas bays. Along the Texas gulf coast, wind has far more influence on tide levels and movement. That’s an important distinction because around the world, it’s the moon that influences the most extreme tide fluctuations. Yet many Texas anglers believe the myth that associates high tide with a full moon. That’s simply not true, despite last fall’s extreme high water during a rare super moon event. According to George Ward, a research scientist with the Center for Research in Water Resources at the University of Texas, moon phases technically have no direct influence on tides in the Gulf of Mexico. “It’s the moon’s angle from the equatorial plane that creates the tide’s greatest ebb and flow,” he said. 18 |

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Veteran guide Jay Watkins looks for known behavior patterns when facing high water.

a period that extended into November last year because of a coincidence of factors. In mid-November, the moon circled closer to Earth than it has since 1948. This was both a full moon and a supermoon. The moon will not come that close again until 2034. “I expect a lot of people were staring up at the full moon and thinking that was why water levels were so high,” Ward said. “They would be wrong. The supermoon, however, does play a role in our higher water levels. This is because the moon is at perigee (nearest to Earth), so its gravitational effects are

He’s referring to the moon’s elevation above the equator. Ward said a higher spring tide occurs when the sun, moon and Earth are aligned, which happens during a new and full moon. A moderate neap tide occurs when the sun and moon are at right angles to each other. This effect, Ward said, is nominal along the Texas coast and throughout the Gulf of Mexico. By the way, the term “spring tide” in this case has nothing to do with the season that follows winter, though the water level in Texas does rise during springtime. Our highest water levels typically occur in October, 20

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maximal for its orbit.” Ward explained that the gravitation pull was in addition to the moon distance from or angle to the equator. On top of these factors, we had additional depth from our seasonal high water and a southerly wind. A southern breeze tends to raise bay levels around Corpus Christi, while a north wind results in a falling tide. Let’s not discount sea level rise. Historical data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration show a steady rise in our mean water levels during high and low tide. The highs are getting increasingly

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higher, and the lows are not falling as much each year. Without all these factors coming together, angler conversations would not have been dominated by complaints of unusually high bay waters, he said. Although conversations involving high water persisted for weeks to coincide with last year’s unusually high water event, coastal anglers should recognize that each spring and fall will always present frustrating challenges. Veteran Rockport guide Jay Watkins takes high water in stride, as he does most temporary interruptions regarding bay conditions. His approach is analytical when it comes to the variables he faces. Watkins simply looks at the constant aspects of fish behavior to arrive at a reliable angling plan. Some of the most reliable constants of fish behavior involve submerged structure, regardless of how much tide rises above it. Watkins defines structure as oyster reefs, sandbars, scattered shell, shorelines, seagrass and the edges where seagrass ends and a sand or mud bottom begins. Structure also could be color changes in a bay, where a murky tide meets clear water.

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With the exception of the latter, generally these reliable elements do not move much, though seagrass may come and go seasonally and bottom contours may shift. Baitfish instinctively seek shelter and cover to keep from being eaten while seeking nourishment. Obviously, predators forage around structure because that’s also where they find food. If you have ever retrieved a Saltwater Assassin over a sand pocket surrounded by seagrass you’ve probably seen a trout or redfish suddenly appear to ambush your bait. No doubt, it was hiding in the dense seagrass. Under normal or stable conditions, the rule of structure is fairly reliable. Of course, remove the food source, and the rule falls apart. A substantial rise or fall of a tide may force baitfish off their usual haunts, at least temporarily. Watkins said figuring out the threshold that triggers baitfish movement can be tricky. It’s difficult to know or predict with certainty the length of time high water must persist before baitfish return to any given structure. But they will return eventually, followed by predators. These are certainties with subtle variables that confound anglers in changing

conditions. A common misconception is that redfish pour into a typically shallow flat or marshy back-lake when these are inundated by extreme high water. Watkins believes mostly black drum are more likely to follow the tide into previously inaccessible areas. Perhaps the higher water allows drum to more easily root through the sand and mud for food. For some reason, Watkins said, a sudden push of tide tends to force baitfish out of the typically shallow back-lakes of San Jose Island near Rockport. Again, they will return as conditions stabilize. A possible exception to this occurs during the first couple of days following a major tidal influx. Redfish tend to search for food in flooded cordgrass, either along shorelines or in isolated patches. The theory is they are hunting for creatures such as fiddler crabs and insects rendered vulnerable by the high water. Good luck getting a lure or bait into the tangled vegetation. Try luring a redfish out from the weeds with a well-placed fly along the edge. High water poses a special challenge for waders, which is Watkins’s specialty. You’ll

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A common misconception is that high water pushes redﬁsh into marshy ﬂats.

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rarely see him in a boat unless its underway. On days when bays are swollen with a foot or more of tide, he simply wades closer to shorelines or casts his lures near the crest of oyster reefs that are normally exposed. Regardless of water depth, the gaps between reefs remain ambush points for predators when current flows through them. One of the angling benefits of extreme high tides is the energy they produce when the water rises and falls. Although erosion is not generally considered beneficial, it is a natural process within our bays. Anglers around the Coastal Bend noticed that last year’s high water chiseled mud and sand to reshape parts of the bays. One of the more dramatic examples occurred along the backside of San Jose Island, where natural channels allow an exchange of water between the main bay and the back lakes. The rise and fall of tides left these drains, as they often are called, deeper than they were before. The difference seems more pronounced the closer they are to the newly opened Cedar Bayou, which separates San Jose and Matagorda islands. Watkins and others believe this dynamic

will continue to alter the complex maze of back lakes, channels and marshland associated with these barrier islands that separate the bay system from the Gulf of Mexico. It is uncertain what conditions created by the greater water exchanges provided by Cedar Bayou will combine with sea level rise and increasingly more dramatic tidal fluctuations. But Watkins was encouraged by what he saw during last year’s prolonged high water. He noticed improved angling success in the back lakes of San Jose, which became productive pools through which tide passed. This movement improved water quality and created a bountiful predator-prey playground for anglers. He found trout up to five pounds hiding in the thick, dark shoal grass, eager to pounce on a topwater plug. In those deeper drains on the backside of San Jose, he found flounders lining the bottoms during a falling tide. This is another benefit of higher tide, he said. Because what comes up must come down.

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Texas SALTWATER by CALIXTO GONZALES :: TF&G Saltwater Editor

Lighten Up!

NYONE WHO FISHES WITH me for any length of time knows that I can be pretty picky about the tackle I use. Everything must be matched and balanced, or I actually don’t feel comfortable. It should come as no surprise that I have myriad combos in my fishing arsenal, each with a specific role. I have rods for offshore bottom fishing, rods for trolling, live baiting, topwaters, jerk baits, and popping corks. I have combos for light jigs, heavy jigs, big swimbaits, and small swimbaits. I have long rods for long casts, short ones for close work, high capacity reels with smooth drags for fast cosmopolitan fish, low-gear, heavy drags for going knuckle and skull with brute thugs that live in jetties and under docks. I have rods for every season and event. Until recently, however, I kept only one light action outfit, which I used infrequently (usually when I was fishing off a dock or pier for small trout or pinfish for the next day’s offshore trip—only one. My default rods have always been medium power, fast action rods. If I needed finesse in a certain situation, I had a couple of outfits that I’d tuned and balanced for such an occasion, but they were still medium power, fast action. Even when I went on a freshwater adventure for bass and panfish, I never went with a rod that was lighter than my default combos. Anything lighter, I simply didn’t use. My aversion to what was traditionally considered light tackle was simple: I didn’t’ trust it. When I first started out as a “serious” angler (as opposed I guess to the “not so serious angler”), there were plenty of saltwater rods in the medium light and light categories. The rods were whippy little numbers with little backbone, but they could sling a 1/8th ounce or lighter lure as far as the line capacity of the 2000- and even

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a Chronarch Ci4 casting reel (more on that in a moment), and off I went to try and overpower the rod. Let me make that clear—I went out to try and completely overwhelm the rod. I took it along with my friends Anibal Gorena and Dave Rutledge when we went into Port Mansfield’s famed East Cut for some surf-run redfish. On my first cast with the diminutive outfit, I latched into a 28-inch redfish that had no intention of coming in peacefully. I really put as much pressure on that red as I could and waited to see if the rod would explode into a thousand pieces (it didn’t) or turn the fish (it did). The action was rated as “Light,” but the rod had the toughness needed to whip the 11-pound red. I was very happy with the result. The Shimano Ci4 was another example of the improved technology of modern light tackle. Over the past couple of years, the Ci4 has become very popular among Texas anglers, and rightfully so. The reel is smaller than the traditional 200 series, but the guts are sturdy enough and the drag smooth enough to be more than a match for the hostile denizens of the Texas coast. When the next big redfish—a beast over 30 inches—went on a long run, the line paid out smoothly and with no hesitation. When loaded with a quality 20-pound test braided line (I was using Power Pro), the reel matched up well to the Mojo and performed beautifully. I’m still not completely converted to light tackle. My default is still a medium power, fast action rod, but I won’t shy away from grabbing a lighter stick when the situation calls for it. In fact, much to my wife’s chagrin, I may start expanding my arsenal to give the Mojo some company. Time marches on, and even a stubborn fisherman can learn something new.

1000-sized reels would let them. By the very nature of their size, the diminutive spools were loaded with 8- or 10-pound test line—often with as little as 100 yards on the spool before casting. These buggy-whip fishing systems worked great and a lot of anglers caught a lot of trout and redfish on them. The problem occurred when something bigger than the intended quarry grabbed your bait. If you latched into a big jack or an oversized redfish while wading with one of these gossamer-filled outfits, you were, as my students so eloquently put it, SOL. I’ve shared a boat with many an angler who has hooked into an outsized critter with undersized tackle. Rarely has one of these people been able to somehow coax the lunker to the net. No, I was quite happy with my medium tackle and 180 yards of 12-pound line. It might be less sporty with the two-pound trout, but if I latched into a 10-pound redfish or that elusive eight-pound trout, I was less likely to have my heart broken. Time marches on, and technology waits for no man, as they say. Tackle companies such as St. Croix, Shimano, and others have improved what comprises “light tackle” to the point that these systems don’t mean you will be completely out-gunned if you set the hook into a fish of a lifetime. Improvements in technology and materials have mitigated some of my primary concerns with light tackle: the inability to deal with big fish effectively. Take Temple Fork Outfitters, for example. The good people at this rod company proved they knew the needs of saltwater anglers with their line-ups of saltwater-specific rods. All of TFO’s saltwater brands are sturdy, well-built rods that more than live up to the expectations of coastal anglers. The Mojo Inshore still has the sturdy features of its predecessors, but it comes in a variety of lighter actions that Texas inshore fishermen want in a rod. I had the opportunity to use a Tactical Inshore casting model that was designated “Light Power.” Remember, I prefer a medium power and fast action. Joe Montemayor at Joe’s Tackle in Pharr, Texas was certain I’d be impressed with the rod, so I matched it up with F I S H

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Email Cal Gonzales at ContactUs@ﬁshgame.com

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8/9/17 10:18 AM

HE SCIMITAR-HORNED ORYX HAD NO IDEA I was watching him as he grazed 75 yards away. I was set and ready, crouched on my knees behind a mesquite bush, with my .30-06 in my hands. Time dripped by as I waited for him to turn just enough to give me a quartering-away shot. I adjusted my grip on the walnut stock and looked down the open-sights of the CZ model 557. “This is the perfect rifle,” I said to myself. That’s a huge statement to make, but I meant it. For starters, this rifle I was shooting is right out of the box. I’ve never had to do any work or modifications to the trigger, barrel, stock, or any other part of this rifle. All I have done is load it and shoot it. It was perfect from day one, right from the factory and, after three years of hunting with it, it’s still perfect. The oryx had turned a smidgeon to the left, but not enough to get a bullet into his vitals. Then, he turned a little more. “Bingo.” I flipped the safety to fire and lined him up in the open sights. I squeezed the trigger and the bullet screamed downrange at more than 2,900 feet-per-second. The impact alone nearly dropped the 450-pound animal, but the beast quickly found his feet and started to bolt. I chambered another round as I stood. Confused, the oryx turned and ran straight toward me. With the stock pressed into my cheek, and the sights on the running oryx, I squeezed the trigger again. The 168-grain bullet struck the oryx in the neck, stopping him instantly. I’ve hunted all my life and through the years I have accumulated a tall stack of rifles. I’m not a “rifle collector.” I have just bought many different calibers for the purpose of hunting different types of game, and I would like to share how I chose my perfect rifle for all kinds of hunting in Texas and around the world. For starters, it is important for me to have a “ranch gun,” a preferred hunting rifle that is ready to go at a moment’s notice. After all, the ranch is where I spend most of my time. My CZ 557’s precise accuracy, powerful .30-06 delivery, and compact size make it an ideal working gun for everyday carry in my Bronco and UTV. In an instant, I can have the rifle out and ready when necessary. This “quick” rifle has been a real showstopper on fast hogs. Not only that, numerous times I have come across whitetail and axis deer with broken legs, and I was quickly able to get the rifle out and on target before they escaped.

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The author with a Llano buck he brought down easily despite thick cover.

cartridge. You might wonder what exact specifications make this rifle ranch and big game ready. For starters, with its 20.5 inch barrel, it is nice and compact. I personally don’t like long, bulky rifles. I prefer quick, highly maneuverable safari-style rifles. This particular rifle is carbine-sized and is perfect for stalking in the bush and maneuvering inside tight deer blinds and stands. The 557 has a two-position safety that allows the bolt to be cycled while on “safe.” The trigger is also fully adjustable which allows

While hunting at Sandstone Mountain Ranch in Llano with guide and friend Chris Treiber, we came across a giant whitetail buck with a broken back leg. Despite the buck having snapped a femur he was still able to evade us by darting through the thick brush. As we slowly stalked through the thick stuff, the buck jumped up to run. I quickly aimed and punched him in the shoulder with 3,138 footpounds of .30-06. He dropped immediately. There isn’t a deer in North America the .30-06 won’t kill and kill quick, which is one reason it is such a popular and celebrated

African Introduction

CZ 557 FEATURES

• 557 Calibers Available: 6.5x55, .270 Win., .30-06 • 557 short action

I WAS FIRST INTRODUCED TO A CZ RIFLE

while hunting in Africa in 2003. My professional hunter carried one in .375 HH Mag. It was an old riﬂe, with scars and scrapes from years of professional ﬁeld work. That CZ

For years I shot and loved the CZ model 550s (still do). I own and hunt with 550s chambered in .375 H&H Magnum, .458 Lott, 9.3x62, .500 Jeffery and .270 Winchester. Then, in 2014 CZ came out with the model 557. The 557 is a departure from the Mauser-style bolt found in the 550. The 557 has a short extractor and plunger-style ejector. The 557 is a real-world hunting riﬂe that is safari-ready right out of the box. It’s a true working riﬂe that can take

had the look of a safari rifle and it was backed up by field tested design and real world function. It was a real dangerous game rifle and it saved our lives on that safari when we were charged by a very angry elephant.

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the creep, over-travel, and weight to be tuned how you like it. The receiver is machined from steel billet and is paired with CZ’s coldhammer-forged, factory-lapped barrel. All of that comes straight from the factory. I was invited to join a group of hunters to the FTW Ranch in the Hill Country. We were going through the SAAM Hunter Training Program and all of us were equipped with offthe-shelf CZ 557s chambered in .30-06. The SAAM Hunter Training Program took us through two field and classroom programs. The first was extensive training in safari hunting situations which included shooting charging Cape buffalo and elephant targets. The other program was precision shooting. It was in the precision shooting part of the training where I was the most impressed. I was pulling off shots out to 900 yards with a 10x scope. Most of us even hit the 1,000 yard target. That’s just insane! The key in picking a hunting rifle is to study the game you will pursue, match up the right cartridge, and then figure out which rifle can meet all of your other needs. Rifle selection in many ways is a very personal thing, and we all have our preferences. Having the right rifle in your hand can not only help you down big game, but it might just save your life. Make sure you think it out and make the right decision.

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calibers available: .243 Win., .308 Win. • Available in an Americanstyle walnut stock, Manners composite stock and synthetic stock • Push feed action • Square bridge receiver • Cold-hammer-forged barrel • Barrel lapped for accuracy • Integral 19mm scope bases • Adjustable trigger the abuse of a professional hunter, but still has the classic feel and style that will make you proud to sling it over your shoulder.

« PHOTOS: ABOVE, RAZOR DOBBS; BELOW, CZ-USA

8/9/17 10:18 AM

Bare Bones HUNTING by LOU MARULLO :: TF&G Hunting Editor

Pre-Season Prep for Bow Hunting

T’S CRUNCH TIME FOR ANY BOW hunters out there. We are down to one month to make sure we are prepared and ready to bow-hunt for whitetail deer. You do not have room for procrastinating now. So be Santa Claus. Make your list of things to do and check it twice to make sure you don’t leave anything to chance. It is a fact that most bow hunters will choose to hunt from a tree stand this year. If you are one of those hunters, then I suggest you get those stands up, if you have not done so already. For new hunters, you might want to know the best place for a tree stand. Whenever you decide which tree to place a stand on, there are a few very important things you need to look for. Deer sign can vary from droppings to a well-used deer trail. Both are a pretty good bet that you will see deer from these areas. If you find a spot where there is a considerable amount of droppings, look around carefully. Have you accidently walked into a bedding area, or is it just a place where the deer like to stop, feed and do their business? Remember, you do not want to hunt in their bedroom. Near it would be better, but to walk in the bedding area will do more harm than good. If you decide a well-used deer trail is a better bet, then follow it. Find out whether there is a place where two trails intersect. If you find such a place, you have doubled your chances of filling your freezer with venison. Make sure you always respect the nose of that deer and place your stand about 20 yards downwind of the trail. A whitetail can wind you from a long way off. If he catches the slightest human scent, you will learn why they call them whitetails. He will be gone for that day and maybe the entire season. I once watched a nice buck

work a scrape on the opposite side of a field I was hunting. He had to be at least 200 yards from me. I watched him as he climbed on his hind legs to lick a branch above the scrape. All of a sudden he climbed back down and looked right at me. I was camouflaged in a tree and was convinced there was no way he could see me. Yet, he sure knew I was there. I remember thinking he didn’t get that big being stupid. The lesson here is that you should always, always, always keep the wind in your face. If, for some reason, the wind is bad on a particular stand where you were planning to hunt, then hunt someplace else or go back to bed. Also, if you can, you should have at least three or four different stands to hunt from. If you can’t get more stands, hunting from the ground in a natural ground blind will work just as well—as long as the wind is right. Hunting the same spot over and over will do nothing but educate that buck, and he will avoid the area completely. One thing that most hunters do not look for when choosing a tree for a stand, is the area immediately around it. Take a good look at the trees nearby. A tree that looks healthy from ground level may not be. Look up at the upper branches. Do they have any leaves on it like the lower branches or are they bare. If no leaves are present, that’s a sure sign it’s not a healthy tree. Believe me, you do not want to be 18 feet in the air and all of a sudden hear a tree falling near you. I have seen three different stands that were taken out by a falling tree. If that happened while a hunter was up there, it could have been fatal. Trimming any branches or brush from the area should be kept to a minimum. After all, you are in a deer’s living room. If things are different, the deer will notice it. Pay close T E X A S

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attention to the small limbs directly under your stand. Cut them as close to the ground as possible in case you slip and fall while climbing in or out of your stand. I have heard some bad horror stories of hunters that were impaled when they fell on a sharp limb that was cut two feet from the ground. Tree stand accidents happen every year. Even though you are positive that it won’t happen to you, I can guarantee that the hunter it actually happened to thought the exact same thing. There are four times when most tree stand accidents happen:

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1) PUTTING A stand up 2) TAKING IT down 3) CLIMBING IN your stand 4) CLIMBING OUT of your stand I cannot stress enough the importance of having a safety harness with you and using it. Once you are in your stand, you need to attach your safety harness before you do anything else. Before you haul up your back pack, before you haul up your bow, before you put your release on—before you do anything at all, strap yourself in and make sure you are secure and safe. Tree stand accidents happen every year and most of the time it was because someone did not use a safety harness. I, for one, cannot wait for the deer season to begin. October cannot come soon enough for this child. I have been practicing and feel confident with my bow. My broadheads are razor sharp, and my tree stands have been in place for over a month now. Oh yeah, bring it on. Have fun and hunt safe.

Email Lou Marullo at ContactUs@ﬁshgame.com

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INSET: BIRDS & BLOOMS MAGAZINE; BACKGROUND, WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

8/9/17 5:08 PM

OTHING SIGNALS THE BEGINNING OF THE GREATEST time of year better than the sound of gun shots coming from the sloughs and shallows around East Texas. It’s like a starter’s pistol that signals the beginning of the hunting races for the year. Teal season coincides with dove season in early September. It’s the first taste of hunting for waterfowler’s across Texas. Teal are among the smallest of the dabbling ducks. Basically dabbling means they feed in very shallow waters, mainly on sedge and pondweed along with duckweed. They also eat a lot of crawfish and aquatic insects. So if you want to target early season teal, you will need to hit the shallow shorelines and muddy sloughs. This also means you better buy stock in a mosquito repellent company. Waking up four hours before daybreak in September to battle 70-plus degree temperatures and mosquitoes the size of a small single engine aircraft are the norm for teal hunting in Texas. Teal are small and fast. To me, they are some of the prettiest little ducks around. If you can find a good spot to set up, you can almost be assured some great exciting early season action.

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The full moon will cause ducks to feed longer at night. So, be as silent as you can as you make your way into your blind. You may have several ducks already on your spot. If so, just wait for daylight, so you can catch them as they fly off your spot. I generally like to set up on a shallow, marshy slough off the Sabine River. These sloughs afford a great environment for all the things teal like to feed on. They provide an unending supply of insects and crustaceans but also it lends to an excellent place for the plant life such as duckweed to grow. I like a spot only a few inches deep to maybe a foot or so, if I can find it with lots of grass growing in it. I then like to set out a small spread of blue and green-wing decoys mixed with a few wood ducks as well. I prefer to use only 8 or 10 decoys. Ducks are not so spooky in early season and come in just fine. I also like to use anchors on my decoys along with some elastic bands you can buy at any sewing department. I tie about a foot of it between my anchors and my decoys, then tie a length of heavy mono line to my blind. This helps with the action of the decoys. When I pull on them, they have a more subtle and natural action and reaction from the elastic bands’ cushioning effect. Calling teal is an altogether different game from what you might think. I know lots of guys who simply give their best mallard call to draw attention to their decoys and bring birds in for a closer look. I have found over the years that learning the calls of the green- and blue-winged teal is about as important as shooting the right choke or gauge. The calls are as different from one another as a wood duck is to a mallard. The green-wing has a short peep-whistle-type call whereas the blue-wing has a raspy squeal. After opening weekend, both calls, once mastered, can draw in birds that have been educated by the sky buster club. Practice is key. I like to sit in my living room and practice. Warning! This is not popular with the wife so I wait for her to be out with the ladies for a day. Many videos and audio tracks can be found on the net. I love to pull them up and play them, then pause them and imitate what I am hearing. I often record myself and play it back just to see how I sounded. I know this seems a bit excessive, but 30

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Male Blue Winged Teal (Anas discors).

when you have a couple of thousand invested in a boat and another couple of thousand invested in gear, it really sucks to spend too many days on the water bringing home an empty bag. Teal are hard wired for migration, and the weather plays less of a factor than in other species. They head for their winterfeeding grounds at about the same time every year regardless of the weather conditions up north. That being said, a good, hard, cold front in the northland is welcome to push these little beauties our way a bit faster. The great thing about weather and teal hunting is it serves to aid the hunter in his comfort more so than in teal migration. Knowing wind direction is the key to setting-up your spread. I have seen many hunters set up dozens of decoys only to sit all morning with the wind blowing wrong while they listen to everyone else blasting away. Knowing whether you will need that slicker or poncho could mean the difference between a miserable day or a great day. Not much is worse than being wet and cold. You might not think cold is a problem in East Texas in September, but try being soaked at 7 a.m. and see how cold you get, especially on the long boat ride back to the boat ramp. The weather can be used as effectively as a call or a decoy in your teal-hunting |

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arsenal. I guess the last thing that has helped me with my early season teal hunting, is to get to know others and make buddies who like to hunt early season. I first went teal hunting back in the late 80s with a guy named Mikah Griffith, and I was hooked for sure. In the years since, I have hunted with many friends who never minded showing me a few things they had learned along the way. The biggest key to hunting teal, or anything for that matter is—you can’t do it sitting on the couch. It isn’t as expensive as people lead you to believe. A flat-bottom boat or even a kayak, a shotgun, along with a few calls and decoys. A guy can literally get into teal hunting for a few hundred dollars. Most everyone already has a shotgun in 20 gauge or larger and even a fishing boat, so you’re already halfway there. Check out some teal hunting videos on the net. See whether your blood starts pumping, and your mouth starts watering for some hunting action—early September action— which gets you in the field that much earlier. Get off the couch and on the water this September. If you can’t find a hunting buddy, just look me up on social media. I am sure we can find time to give it a try.

PHOTO: WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

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8/10/17 10:37 AM

LLIGATORS SHARE ONE thing in common with big fish and all snakesâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;the more the story is told, the bigger they get. Like many longtime outdoor enthusiasts in southeast Texas, I have seen thousands of rough-scaled, snaggle-toothed, bulbousnosed alligators along weed-choked shorelines of sloughs and ponds and 32 |

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brackish canals. Most were between four and eight feet in length. All were of the same species, the American alligator (Alligator mississipiensis). In North America, the rare American crocodile with its distinctive tapered snout (typical of crocodiles) is native only to brackish or salty habitat in extreme south Florida. Despite campfire and clubhouse embellishments, an American alligator |

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taping longer than an honest 10 feet is not a common sighting. Big Boys topping 12 or 13 feet are downright rare. At least, this has been my observation, and I believe the overall population numbers would back me up. Keep in mind that an alligator twice the height of a full-grown man might be 40 or 50 years old. The odds are slim for such a borderline dinosaur surviving in proximity to the ever-expanding crush of civilization.

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PHOTO: BIGSTOCK

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The occasional mondo-giant ‘gator with exceptional length and prodigious girth does exist. These are the ones that continue to inspire lore and legend—and fact—although the facts sometimes get a bit muddled. Some years ago, a 14-foot, 8-inch, 880-pound brute was killed from Chalk Creek in East Texas. The massive alligator reportedly was documented by officials from Safari Club International.

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In 2013, during a public hunt on the Daughtrey Wildlife Management Area (near Choke Canyon Reservoir), an alligator measured 14-3 was caught. It apparently weighed 800 pounds, and is credited by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department as the official state record. Take your pick, but 14-foot-class ‘gators have been authenticated in Texas. But they are trumped by the behemoth benchmarks of several southern states. T E X A S

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Alabama reportedly documented a 15-9 that scaled 1,011 pounds. Florida has sketchy reports of a long-ago 17-5 from the Everglades, but the official record for the Sunshine State stands at “only” 14-feet, 5/8-inch. Still, Florida being Florida, you have to believe that some awesome alligators have reached full maturity and maximum size in the lowcountry latticework of swamps and rivers. Southern Louisiana is the mother lode.

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Not the best bank from which to ﬁsh, but three different looks at the tapered crocodile snouts.

in the elite 20-foot-plus club. They include the Indian gavial, the saltwater crocodile, and the black caiman. The African (Nile) crocodile might also be in there. Keep in mind that such huge reptiles were more common 100 years ago. Ditmars credits the American alligator at 16 feet, with no mention of the alleged Louisiana monster. However, another wellrespected book published half a century later, A Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians (Roger Conant, 1958), pegs the maximum length at 19 feet, 2 inches, an obvious nod to Vermillion Bay. Well, maybe. That’s awfully big—like a nine-foot man. Regardless of top-end potential, all alligators start as runts, little more than chubby lizards. In fact, the name most likely evolved from the Spanish word, lagarto, for “lizard.” They hatch during late spring and average 9 or 10 inches in length. The female alligator deposits 30 or 40 eggs

Based on a recent survey, the Pelican State boasts more than one million alligators. But Texas can’t be far behind, with alligator numbers increasing dramatically since the reptiles were placed on the state’s protected game species list in 1985. (Harvest limits are strictly regulated during the annual September alligator season. Consult TPWD’s 2017-2018 Hunting and Fishing Regulations booklet available free at license outlets.) Back to Louisiana—rumors persist of a titanic 19-2 scaling approximately one ton that was taken near Vermillion Bay. However, the story of the mega-gator originated in 1890. For all I know, it was conjured up by several Cajuns sitting around a jug of ‘shine. I’d be more inclined to accept such a report if it had been documented by, say, Raymond Ditmars, the famed turn-of-the-century herpetologist at the New York Zoological Park. On the subject of Ditmars, his classic book, Reptiles of the World (1910), substantiates several species of the crocodile family 34

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in soft shoreline loam or sand and builds a large mound to protect them. The babies hatch in about two months. During the incubation period, the scaly, swarthy, snaggly mamma is apt to hover near, guarding the clutch. This is not exactly what the nearest berry picker or bird watcher or perch jerker needs to hear. Worth noting, American alligators, normally, are not as aggressive as crocodiles. The runty Chinese alligator, with a maximum length of approximately six or seven feet, is much more irritable, perhaps suffering from an inferiority complex. I know of this nature first-hand. Once, during a behind-the-scenes tour of the Houston Zoo, an adult Chinese alligator rushed at me with open jaws from an indifferent sunning posture. It banged headlong into the wire-mesh fence of the holding pen about three or four feet away. But, unless you slip and fall into the Yangtse-Kiang River, I wouldn’t overly concern myself about the disposition of the Chinese alligator. Remember, several species of crocodiles are much more prone than alligators to attack humans. Prime among them are the saltwater crocodile and the Nile crocodile. On an African safari to the wilds of Mozambique seven years ago, I was shocked to hear that primitive villages along the nearby Zambezi River reportedly lose 40 or 50 people a year to big Nile crocodiles. Most victims are snatched from banks and shallows while bathing, washing clothes, fishing or gathering water. And, of course, it’s a ghastly way to go, with the hideous monster tearing and rolling with its hapless prey. I cannot absolutely verify this modern-day tally, but the horror stories are backed by common knowledge in the region. Without question, villagers along the Zambezi are killed and eaten on a recurring basis. To put it mildly, the hardships of Africa—I mean, in the real bush—are a long way from what we consider day-to-day living. Unprovoked attacks on humans by American alligators are rare but they do occur. Several fatal encounters (one in southeast Texas, one in central Florida) were documented during the past few years. Frankly, unprovoked attacks may increase as wild alligators living in or near expanding urban areas increasingly lose caution. For example, regularly feeding a big alligator in a neighborhood lake is not a good idea. PHOTO: ABOVE, LEFT, JOE DOGGETT; ABOVE, RIGHT, BIGSTOCK

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American alligators, normally, are not as aggressive as crocodiles.

“Old Fred” the resident ‘gator starts associating people with food. He eases up looking for another handout and maybe gets the wrong idea if a foot is dangling off the dock. Allowing a dog to run free along a marshy or brushy bank known to harbor alligators can be a heartbreaking mistake. This especially is true early and late in the day during the warm-weather months when the coldblooded reptiles are most active. The upcoming September teal season should trigger all sorts of warning signals for

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the owner of an eager retriever. Even during winter, a mild trend can re-juice a sluggish ‘gator. And you really cannot blame the alligator if you allow a pet to roam within its kill zone. The dumb brute is acting from natural impulse to grab an easy meal—same thing with a nutria or a raccoon or a feral hog. Experts maintain that the larger alligators tend to become loners, more territorial, while the smaller one often-congregate more-orless according to size. In other words, if you

see a ‘gator of double-digit length, the odds are good that smaller ones are not in the immediate area. The Big Boy routs them—or maybe eats them. Of course, a sustained flood can reshuffle alligator populations. The aquatic reptiles either wander, seeking new habitat, or they get washed downstream along with trailers, trashcans and other flotsam. The record-breaking rains of May 2015, scattered alligators all over southeast Texas, causing them to show in the most unlikely places. During early June of that year fellow TF&G columnist Doug Pike and I were wading waist-deep in the Quintana Beach surf (near Freeport/Brazos River) for speckled trout. The late-afternoon tide was green. The mullet were popping, and the gulls were wheeling. Everything was looking great—well, until a displaced six-foot alligator popped up about 10 yards in front of us. It floated, drifting slowly, then slowly submerged. The trout left. Come to think of it, so did we.

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CHUCK COBB IS A POLICE OFFICER. HE SERVED his country in the United States Marine Corps. And now he is a fishing guide. A lifelong bass fishermen who specializes in Toledo Bend and Sam Rayburn he said fishing has given him peace during times when peace was hard to come by. “Fishing has always been a way to find balance. It has always been a place to go and forget about the struggles, the ups and downs of life. And it has always been a passion of mine,” Cobb said. That passion has recently found purpose as Cobb has

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founded Veteran’s Guide Service, which will give discounts to active duty military and veterans as well as seek out opportunities to take wounded veterans on trips for free. At the time of this writing he was still ironing out the details of that, but has been looking for a sponsor for a monthly trip for a very special veteran. “I’m a veteran and a police officer so I get the struggles these men and women go through. Fishing is a great way to release and also to bond so I look forward to not only getting out on the water with veterans but also all fishing lovers,” Cobb said. CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE u

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REPORT: NEWS 40 u TF&G OF THE NATION Reported by TF&G Staff

HOT 40 u TEXAS SHOTS Trophy Photos from TF&G Readers

DEPT. OF 42 u TEXAS DEFENSE by Stan Skinner and Dustin Ellermann

44 u TEXAS DEPT. OF CONSERVATION

by Will Leschper and Andi Cooper

46 u TEXAS COASTAL FORECAST

by Eddie Hernandez, Mike Holmes, Mike Price, Chris Martin, Mac Gable, Tom Behrens, Sally Black and Calixto Gonzales

56 u TEXAS FISHING HOTSPOTS

by Tom Behrens, Dustin Warncke and Dean Heffner

66 u SPORTSMAN’S DAYBOOK Tides and SoLunar Data

PHOTO: CHESTER MOORE

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Perhaps the most special part of his guide service is the testimonies. Cobb recently purchased a GoPro and at the end of trips with veterans will take it out for them to share their story with others who may be struggling. “I want veterans to know they are not alone so we will be sharing them on the Veteran’s Guide Service Facebook. It’s important these veterans know they are not alone and I think this is one way we can accomplish that,” Cobb said. Cobb is not only a veteran’s advocate, but also a very good fisherman. With a “local” knowledge of Texas’s top two bass lakes, he plans on spending lots of time there and putting many anglers onto the big bass contained therein. To contact Chuck Cobb visit his website, veteransguideservice.com. veteransguideservice.com

Chuck Cobb records a Memorial Day message for his Facebook audience. He will use his GoPro to record testimonies of veterans to share on social media.

Testiment THE FIRST TESTIMONY IN COBB’S BOAT was of a soldier veteran who is no longer with us. One of Cobb’s West Orange police force colleagues, Dennis Hankins, lost his son, Master Sergeant Timothy Hankins, last year. His story is one of struggle that thousand of veterans are facing and is a powerful testimony that will bring tears to anyone’s eyes. Hankins served in the Unites States Army for 19 years and the Texas National Guard for two years. According to his obituary in the Beaumont Enterprise, his tours of duty include Iraq, Afghanistan, Italy, England, Scotland, Haiti, and others. He served in the 82nd Airborne as a jumpmaster and later became a member of the Green Beret as a Weapons Specialist. “During his service received multiple awards including two Bronze Star Medals, Purple Heart, six Army Commendation

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Master Sergeant Timothy Hankins

Medals, eight Army Achievement Medals, six Army good conduct Medals, National Defense Service Medal with Bronze Service Star, four Afghanistan Campaign

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Medals with Bronze Service Star, three Iraq Campaign Medals with Bronze Service Star, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Armed Forces Service Medal, Humanitarian Service Medal, three Noncommissioned Officers Professional Development Ribbons, Army Service Ribbon, two Overseas Service Ribbons, NATO Medal, Multinational Force and Observers Medal, Right Side Awards, Presidential Unit Citation (Army and Air Force), Meritorious Unit Commendation (Army), Army Superior Unit Award, Combat Infantryman Badge, Expert Infantryman Badge, Master Parachutist Badge, Basic Parachutist Badge, Badge Combat and Special Skill Badge Marksmanship Qualification Badge, Expert, Bar, Weapon: Rifle (Inscription: Rifle), Special Forces Tab, and six Overseas Service Bars. More than that Master Sergeant Timothy Hankins was a father, son and war hero who saw some of the most intense action in the Middle Eastern combat theater.

PHOTOS: TOP, CHESTER MOORE; BOTTOM, COURTESY ORANGE LEADER

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The NATIONAL

Boar Hogs vs. Boar Bears

News of TEXAS

out on bait sites is on the menu. Bear will not only eat the corn from deer feeder, they often will tear up the deer feeders. Bears and Hogs can be seen roaming around in daylight and dark. Hogs have a tendency to be more nocturnal than bears. (Hogs are legal to hunt at night in most states and bear are only hunted in daylight.) A feral hogs sense of smell is outstanding. One sniff of something out of place and they are gone. Trophy Hogs are trap wise and have the ability to recall when a hunter change anything. Boar hogs’ hearing is also supper sensitive to any metallic or foreign noise that does not belong in the woods (or so he thinks). They will make a hasty exit. Bears on the other hand are the top predator in the woods. They are a lot less afraid at bait stations. About the

I HAVE HUNTED BOTH BOAR HOGS and boar bears. Being opportunistic feeders each will feed on what is most easily available. Hogs favorite food is corn from under deer feeders. They will run the deer off from feeders. Hogs will also eat plant roots, berries, different grains, vegetable matter, insects, grubs, and young animals such as fawns and calves. Bear will eat about the same thing. They will also eat grass, sweet honey and bees. In addition corn, oats, sweets, old cooking oil, and beaver put

TURKEY

BASS

Private Land

Canyon Lake

Madison Varga and her mom, Michelle, were successful on a recent turkey hunt, bagging these two nice large toms.

only thing they fear is larger bears. If the bear can’t hear you or smell you they usually ignore you. They may think you’re just dessert. This was fascinating for me to watch. If I did not make any sudden moves or brush tree limbs, I could set up my shot on the bear and take my time to get the kill shot. My brother-in-law, Jessie Doyle, and I drove 2000 miles from Orange, TX to Minitonas, Manitoba Canada, to bear hunt with Scott Smith (Canadian Wilderness Outfitters). This was my second trip and first spring hunt. This was Jessie’s first Bear hunt. He said it was great to see a bear coming to bait. You don’t see that in Texas. He was happy to shoot his first bear. The first trip I shot a bear after one and half hours on stand. I was not in any hurry this trip. I hunted for about five days just enjoying

Wyatt Perez caught this bass while ﬁshing on Canyon Lake with Texas Roy of Texas Boys Outdoors. Wes spent the past year in the hospital with brain cancer. After months of chemotherapy and multiple brain surgeries he is now cancer free.

Visit FishGame.com to upload your own TEXAS HOT SHOTS and Vote for our next Winners 40

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NEWS PHOTO: GERALD BURLEIGHT

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Gerald Burleigh took this bear (left) with a crossbow in Canada. He frequently hunts hogs (right) with his crossbow.

watching the bears and looking for the bear I wanted to shoot. The game warden said there is a bear every square mile in that area.

JACK CREVALLE Costa Rica Tyler Thomas of Houston shows off a jack crevalle caught on a topwater while on a ﬁshing trip in Nosara, Costa Rica.

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won’t come after you but they just don’t have a pronounced ability to eat you. Hunting boar hogs with a crossbow is also great sport. You will need a basket full of patience for hogs. Keep in mind they didn’t get old by being stupid. I hunted a 305 lb. hog on Michael’s Cattle Ranch off and on for about three months both day and night. I finally get setup on the right night and time. He moved in and out of my feeder light several times before I get my shot. He ran 75 yards to a thicket and died. The boar weighed 305 pounds and was the biggest I took with the crossbow. There are challenges to hunting Texas boars and Canadian bears and both have an element of danger. That makes it exciting and draws me back to the wilds of my home state and the Great North. For more information on Canadian Wilderness Outfitters call 204-525-2121.

I hunted with a TenPoint Crossbow Titian Extreme and was ready to shoot a second crossbow bear. We saw numerous bears each day. There are different color phases of black bears from blond to chocolate to black. There was a wide variety of wildlife. You never knew what might cross your path wolves, deer, moose, beaver, or red squirrels. Our guides would take us out about 3 p.m. and pick us up around 10:30. One evening just before dark I shot a bear. Craig soon suggested that we return early the next morning to track it under safer conditions. Mark and Graig Groner, guides for Canadian Wilderness Outfitters, started tracking the bear the next morning. We were not out of site of the bait station when a 200 plus pound bear walked right up to the bait just 40 yd. away. Craig stayed and watched the feeding bear with shotgun while we continue to track my bear. We had only gone about fifty yards though the brush when we found my bear. After a few photos we got him loaded on the four-wheeler. But, we still had the big bear feeding at the bait station. He finally walked away as the fourwheeler got closer. I have never experienced this unsettling feeling while hog hunting. Not saying a boar hog or sow with little pigs F I S H

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—by Gerald Burleigh

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TEXAS Dept. of

:: Self Defense :: Tactical :: Training Tips

by DUSTIN ELLERMANN and STAN SKINNER

:: Gear

Building Your Own AR-15 Lower Receiver

S I’VE MENTIONED PREVIously, shooters have an amazing variety of barrel types, weights and chamberings to choose from when assembling their personal, custom AR-15. In addition, you can choose from (in addition to iron sights) reflex sights, red dot sights, holosights, and a wide array of fixed- and variable power rifle scopes. For night hunting (it’s legal here in Texas), you can mount infrared, light amplification or thermal sights. If you are prepared to deal with the red tape required under the National Firearms Act of 1934, undergo an FBI background check, pay a $200 transfer tax, then wait for nearly a year for approval, you can add a silencer to your new rifle. With subsonic loads available in the .300 Whisper/Blackout chambering and one of the

night vision options mentioned above, you have heap powerful medicine for dealing with the pesky feral hogs that cost Texas ranchers and farmers upwards of $50 million annually. You have lotsa choices, so knock yourselves out. However, I did not mention that you have a few possible lower receiver types to pick from, as well. The first is the common mil-spec aluminum receiver, which is forged from aircraftgrade aluminum and finish machined to final dimensions. This assembles into a very good AR-15 and is generally low-priced, unless you opt for an expensive trademark, such as DPMS, Bushmaster, Ruger, etc. The first five I assembled were this type, and I have used them without any complaint for several years. The second type is a “billet” aluminum receiver. This requires some explanation about

Optimized Battle Riﬂe

the lightest rifle, and being chambered in .308 Winchester it was also more robust. The action was tight, yet smooth. It had the best trigger I’ve ever felt on an AR, and the entire firearm was solid without a hint of rattle. Since then, I’ve been able to spend a lot more time with the OBR and it’s still one of my favorite rifles. I have the 16-inch version and have impressed several other shooters by being able to reach out past 1,000 yards. I mostly shoot 168 grain Sierra Match Kings traveling only 2,400 FPS handloaded

I SUPPOSE YOU COULD SAY IT WAS love at first sight. We were filming the first episode of season three of Top Shot when they brought out the LaRue Tactical 7.62 Optimized Battle Rifle (OBR). Before this my knowledge of LaRue Tactical was limited to their quick throw lever return to zero optic mounts, so I was excited to be able to get my hands on the OBR. With my previous AR rifle experience being low budget mil-spec rifles only, I could instantly see a difference in the OBR. It wasn’t

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what that means. Billet aluminum starts as a solid block of metal. The billet is formed into an AR-15 lower (or upper) receiver by machining away the excess metal, actually carving the receiver out of the aluminum block. This is a significantly more costly manufacturing method, and it is usually reflected in a much higher priced product. The main advantages are a high degree of precision and that the receiver is structurally stronger. The third type is polymer construction. Properly designed with high-strength metal inserts at crucial wear points, a polymer receiver (upper and lower) is extremely light. Mated with a light-weight buttstock group, pencil barrel and a titanium bolt carrier group, it is possible for the finished rifle to weigh just a few ounces over four pounds—that, my friends, is pretty awesome. Just last week, I put together a polymer lower from Kaiser Shooting Products in Tucson, Arizona. I mated it to a polymer upper with a 16-inch pencil barrel from the same outfit. Although my MagPul buttstock was a few ounces too heavy and my relative poverty left me unable to afford a (pretty expensive) titanium BCG, my finished rifle weighed a mere five

on a Redding T7 press. This is rather slow for a .308 since it will transition to subsonic after 800 yards, yet it’s worked for me. At 100 yards, my best groups are around 0.3 inches so it certainly has amazing potential for a semiautomatic rifle. The OBR’s system is further optimized by its Port Selector Technology (PST) gas block that allows the shooter to reduce overpressure (caused by shooting suppressed) by simply flipping a switch. This, in addition to being a finely tuned semi-automatic rifle lends itself to being a very soft shooting rifle. By comparison a .308 wood-stocked, bolt action-hunting rifle is brutal. It’s not unpleasant at all to empty a 20 round magazine out of the OBR. In fact, when a friend shot my suppressed OBR once he actually had to ask whether the gun fired after his first trigger pull.

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The ears at the rear of a stripped mil-spec lower receiver should be supported with a wooden block while you install the trigger guard hinge.

pounds, 2.8 ounces. I am well-acquainted with Kaiser’s owner and proprietor, Mike Beitsch, whom I met while researching an article for another publication. He had loaned me a test rifle that had already fired 40,000 rounds of 5.56x45 NATO without a single malfunction. Out of curiosity, I put a couple hundred rounds through it myself—still no malfunctions. Of course, after 40,000 rounds the rifling was toast. I am here to tell you, however, that 60 rounds from a SureFire hi-cap magazine at intervals of a second or two proved highly entertaining when I inserted my patented barrel cooler into the chamber afterward. This device emits a fine mist of water into the bore to cool the barrel. Instantly, we heard loud crackling sounds while steam shot from the muzzle in big puffs. The LaRue OBR is the most accurate semiautomatic riﬂe I’ve ever tested.

I have my OBR setup with a Bushnell Elite Tactical HDMR with a Horus reticle and also have added a 45 degree mounted Meopta

PHOTOS: ABOVE, STAN SKINNER; BELOW, DUSTIN ELLERMANN

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This went on for a minute or so, until the barrel cooled down enough that no more steam emerged, and only hot water dribbled from the muzzle. Don’t try this at home unless you want to buy a new barrel, toot sweet. After this episode, the rifle continued to function flawlessly, although the ruined barrel produced groups akin to a full choke shotgun pattern. Back to the lower receiver assembly process—Here are a few tips for those of you still brave enough to assemble your own AR-15. NO. 1: The first task you face when you Caption assemble a mil-spec receiver is to install the trigger guard hinge. The hinge pivots between a pair of “ears” at the rear of the trigger guard, and you need to insert a roll pin to install the hinge between the “ears.” The “ears” are fragile. Use a wooden block to support the ears as you tap the roll pin in place or you risk breaking them. If you do break one, your lower receiver just became scrap metal. Most billet and polymer lower receivers have a fixed, oversize trigger guard. If you are assembling either of these, you can omit this step. NO. 2: As mentioned last month, the pivot pin detents are tiny and subject to sudden transport into another dimension. You’ll do well to have some inexpensive spares on hand. However, they are not the only disappearing parts. The buffer retainer pin is larger, but can also be launched into oblivion. A

spare (equally inexpensive) is a good idea. NO. 3: Some parts kits These tiny rice-grain-sized metal cylinders serve as detents to ensure the takedown and pivot pins don’t fall out to be lost while you clean your AR-15 or exchange upper receiver and barrel assemblies.

supply a pistol grip screw with an ordinary slot to tighten it in place. It fits into a hole way up inside the hollow pistol grip. Unless you have really long, skinny fingers, the space is too cramped to easily slip the screw into the hole and keep the slot engaged with your screwdriver. You’d do well to obtain a hex head pistol grip screw (another inexpensive item) if your parts kit doesn’t provide one. If your soul is hardy enough, I haven’t scared you off from assembling your own AR-15. I know it seems involved, intricate, tedious and fraught with pitfalls and problems, but it’s not as bad as I’ve made it sound. After all, I—ham-handed as I am— now have a half-dozen completed ARs to show for my efforts. You can do it, too. The result will be an AR that is truly yours in a way no storebought rifle will ever be. —by Stan Skinner

I took my longest shots while visiting the NRA Whittington Center in New Mexico. The white buffalo target got old pretty quick after being able to hit the 16-inch bullseye time and again at 1,123 yards. However I did have a ballistic advantage with the mountain elevation. The best isn’t the cheap. LaRue rifles start at $1,800, and the OBRs can run over $3,000. But if you want a guaranteed sub-MOA, rock-solid, battle-ready, bet-your-life-on, made-in-thedead-center-of-Texas rifle, your only option is LaRue.

MRAD micro red dot for close quarters work. That’s another wonderful point about the 16-inch OBR. Although it is capable of precise accuracy for long-range engagements, the standard M110 20-round magazine and low recoil make the OBR possible to use in a fast-fire, close quarters situation as well. As I mentioned earlier, at 9.5 pounds naked, this rifle is a bit on the heavy side. Once loaded-up, mine is pushing over 15 pounds, so hauling through the trails on a hog hunt gets old quick. However in a box blind, I’ve taken a whitetail and coyotes out to nearly 300 yards.

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—by Dustin Ellermann

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TEXAS Dept. of :: Edited by WILL LESCHPER

Thinking Dove and Deer

going to be a gap in the 6 ½-year-old age class,” Cain said. “We had a pretty low fawn crop back in 2011 statewide, which was one of the drier years we’ve had in recent memory. You should see a bump with those 7 ½-year-old deer, and we should see a good crop of those four- and five-year-old deer in looking back at the fawn crops from 2012 and 2013, which were above average. “That means you’ll have a good mature age class of bucks in most of the hot spots,” Cain said. “Last year’s fawn crop was about average so it will help with that good distribution of age class that’s always good to see in Texas. In looking at trends, Cain said that one thing has stood out, even in dry years. “I talk with a lot of these ranchers that have been managing deer for a long time,” he said. “They’ll tell you that not in the real bad years, but the years it’s been a little

EPTEMBER HAS MOST Texas hunters thinking doves, but it’s also prime time to talk deer. Thanks to conservation efforts, ongoing scientific research in setting frameworks and a little help from Mother Nature, this should be another season for the books. Alan Cain, the whitetail program leader for the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department, noted that most of the state’s millions of deer came through the winter and early spring in good shape, despite dry conditions in many places. “As far as the age structure goes, there’s

drier—kind of like one of these—that they see antler quality go up. “It may be that it just forces the deer onto the feed, and they’re simply seeing better antler size, but then I’ve also got other places that are just managing numbers and keeping habitat in shape, and they’re also growing good deer consistently year in and year out.” The overall population trend remains stable in most areas of Texas, if not increasing on a regular basis, Cain added. “Our deer population estimate statewide was about 4.2 million in 2016 and that figure has been growing slightly every year. The trend is going up and has been going up for a while,” he said. “Places like the Hill Country obviously have a pile of deer, but you’re also seeing the population start to grow in that Blackland Prairie range, that I-35 corridor area, where

The Texas Prairie Wetlands Project celebrates its Silver Anniversary.

Wetlands Project Turns 25 PRIVATE LANDS CONSERVATION partnership celebrates 25 years Texas Prairie Wetlands Project enhances wetlands, provides habitat For 25 years, private landowners in coastal Texas have been working with Ducks Unlimited and partners to restore wetlands and provide critical habitat for waterfowl and other migratory birds. More than 80,000 acres have been enrolled in the Texas Prairie Wetlands Project (TPWP) since its incep44

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tion in 1991. “Habitat provided by the TPWP occurs along the entire Texas coast and provides up to 15 percent of all available waterfowl habitat in the Texas Mid-Coast, according to Gulf Coast Joint Venture research,” said DU Manager of Conservation Programs for Texas Dr. Todd Merendino. “This is some of the most significant habitat for waterfowl |

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and other migratory birds in Texas because it’s where they need it, when they need it.” Originally developed to deliver the habitat goals of the Gulf Coast Joint Venture, the TPWP is a partnership of private landowners, Ducks Unlimited, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

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is a healthy indicator that populations are going up.” Cain pointed to other regions of Texas that traditionally harbor the most deer, noting that the trend will continue, which may not necessarily be a great thing for some hunters. “You look at the other areas of the state and things are looking good, as usual,” he said. “South Texas has a stable population. In the Cross Timbers up in North Texas, things are looking well. East Texas has a stable population to slightly growing. “In East Texas, there’s a lot of deer, but there’s also a lot of hunters. From a hunter’s perspective, I know it can be frustrating,” he said “because the density may be a deer for every 30 or 35 acres over there, but if you’ve got a hunter for every 50 or 75 acres in that neck of the woods, that’s increasing the pressure. “Deer can change their behavior and go nocturnal, or simply when hunting season opens up, you just don’t see them,” Cain continued. “That being said, there are still lots of good deer over there. Antler restrictions in East Texas and the rest of that area east of I-35 are helping to maintain a good age structure when it comes to bucks.”

Managed Lands Deer Permit Program THIS YEAR WILL FEATURE A change to one popular program that allows for longer deer hunting frameworks on some tracts of land. “We do have new changes this year to the operation of our MLDP (Managed Lands Deer Permit) program,” Alan Cain of TPWD said. “Phenomenal growth in the program over the last 20 years has presented significant challenges for staff to meet the increasing number of requests from landowners for technical assistance and simply administer the program.” TPWD issues more than 300,000 tags annually each year through the MLDP, which began in the mid-1990s and has ballooned. More than 10,000 farms and ranches covering about 26 million acres are enrolled, according to TPWD figures.

This spring the program was simplified to two options, ‘Harvest or Conservation’ from the previous three levels of whitetailed deer MLD, mule deer MLD, and the ‘Landowner Assisted Management Permit (LAMPS).’ “The Harvest option is meant to take a lot of the administrative work off our staff,” Cain noted. “It’s self-serve and you sign up online. There’s even a tag estimator that you can utilize for your tract of land before you enroll. The Conservation option (similar in scope to the previous Level 3 MLDP) comes with customized recommendations based on data you collect from your land, along with assistance from a biologist in accordance with your management plan.”

traditionally there hasn’t been a lot of deer. We’re also starting to see signs of deer and populations growing where we’ve got this fragmented habitat. The deer have been sur-

viving in there, and the hunting pressure has been relatively light. In fact, in some of these areas east of I-35 we’re getting complaints from farmers about deer depredation, which

“It’s important to recognize the conservation investments of private landowners,” said Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Deputy Executive Director Ross Melinchuk. “They not only enroll their property in the program, but they also contribute at least 35 percent of the cost of the project, often more. Without their engagement, the program simply would not exist.” Other project costs are offset by TPWP cost-share, which comes from Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Futch Foundation, Trull Foundation, ConocoPhillips, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, and North American Wetlands Conservation Act grants. “The TPWP is successful because of the unique blend of private, state, and federal partners sharing a vision for the conservation of privately owned wetlands and grasslands along the Texas Gulf Coast,” said USFWS

Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program Regional Coordinator Don Wilhelm. “We greatly appreciate that Ducks Unlimited has served as the consistent and unifying influence on this conservation partnership for this first 25 years.” “Partnerships like the Texas Prairie Wetlands Project highlight the valuable outcomes realized when partners and landowners join together to share knowledge and expertise, funding opportunities and long range resource conservation goals,” said Salvador Salinas, NRCS Texas state conservationist. “Wildlife habitats across Texas’ vast coastal region face big challenges such as population growth. Through programs like TPWP, conservation planning and financial assistance, NRCS continues its legacy of helping private landowners help the land in these essential wetland ecosystems.” “One of the most impressive aspects of T E X A S

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Email Will Leschper at WillLeschperOutdoors@gmail.com

this program is the scale,” Merendino said. “We’re providing waterfowl habitat across the Texas coast, which is one of the areas where waterfowl are facing dramatic habitat deficits. Research is revealing that certain species, such as northern pintails, are really struggling along the Texas coast. Programs like TPWP provide critical, reliable habitat in one of the most important and most threatened landscapes on the continent.” Delivering habitat across a 30-county area, the cost-share program focuses on reconstructing wetlands and providing water and infrastructure for managing wetland units. In addition to critical wildlife habitat, these wetlands provide important flood control and groundwater recharge functions for local communities. —by Andi Cooper

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Coastal Focus: SABINE :: by Capt. EDDIE HERNANDEZ

Sabine In September

more toward fall fishing is gradual. We are usually not quite done with the dog days yet. For that reason, most of our time will still be spent south of the Causeway Bridge working the ship channel and jetties. The early and late top-water bite should remain good for the next few weeks with some very impressive stringers of speckled trout and redfish. Once the sun begins to penetrate the water and the topwater bite begins to taper off, soft plastics bounced off the bottom on a 1/8-ounce jig head, or about 24 inches under a popping cork should keep you on the fish. Proven locations with good bait-holding bottoms and fluctuating depths such as Lighthouse Cove and the LNG Plant are what you want to key on. The abundance of baitfish coupled with very good tidal movement is what keeps these spots among the top of most people’s list. The same holds true for the jetties. We’ve got a few more weeks of very consistent trout fishing there, also. Again, throwing topwaters early, then switching to soft plastics around

NE OF THE MOST EXCITING months of the year for Texas outdoorsmen has made its way to the coast. In September on the upper coast, we’re never really exactly sure what type of seasonal weather we are going to get. A lot of times it’s just an extension of August, and other times it give us a glimpse of the fall months right around the corner. Regardless, this is the month when outdoorsmen across this great state are finally able to switch gears and begin to slowly change their angling strategies. We also can start thinking more seriously about upcoming hunting opportunities. Here on Sabine Lake, the transition from traditional summer patterns to those geared

mid morning should result in some impressive stringers. Skitterwalks and She Dogs in pink/silver, pearl, and black/chartreuse are excellent choices for top-water baits. Soft plastics that are hard to beat include H & H Cocahoe Minnows, Salt Water Assassins and Zoom Super Fluke in glow, LSU and White Ice. If we are lucky enough, a September cool front will pay us a visit. We’ll be quick to switch to fall fishing mode and take full advantage of a much-welcomed change of pace. When we get a rare September cool front, the north wind gives me visions of shrimp and baitfish pouring out of the marsh and the mouths of bayous on the eastern side of Sabine Lake. Fishing the points and mouths of these bayous can be super productive in these conditions. Tidal movement is very important if you’re going to be successful. So check the charts and plan your trip accordingly. Also, don’t forget to look behind you periodically for working gulls. If we do get a surprise cool front this month, we’ll be out there doing our best to jump-start the transition from the dog days to some fantastic fall fishing.

THE BANK BITE LOCATION: South Revetment (Pleasure Island) SPECIES: Speckled trout, redﬁsh, ﬂounder, croaker BAITS/LURES: Live shrimp, mud minnows, topwaters, and soft plastics BEST TIMES: Moving tides, especially early and late.

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8/15/17 4:25 PM

Coastal Focus: GALVESTON :: by Capt. MIKE HOLMES

Make This A September To Remember!

EPTEMBER ON THE TEXAS Coast is often merely an extension of August, with calm days featuring uncomfortable heat. Fishing species and techniques are also usually the same as those that were best in late summer—but, this is a good thing, really. I doubt that I am in a minority as I appreciate an extra month of summer—especially when it is a month after most school years have begun, meaning fewer folks on the water, or the beach, or the pier, or the jetties—or. . . Usually, the weather really does begin to cool off some in September. Wet wading is still comfortable in the surf and on bay flats and reefs and can be very productive. In my experience, August is the month when it really becomes worthwhile to seek bull reds in the surf, whether via a long cast from the beach or a drop off the end of a pier or rock groin. However, September is better. Calm, green surf with large schools of mullet rafting in on every swell or wave has always produced better than the rough, muddy surf some “experts” recommend— although I have caught reds in rough surf. A live mullet of just about any size tethered to the bottom in a gut between sandbars by a good “spider” weight type surf sinker is something a feeding red just cannot pass by. Of course, a fresh dead mullet with either the head or tail—or both—cut off to let juices drift in the current will often produce just as well. Reds are the king in the surf, in my opinion. I rate them above the “silver king,” tarpon, because they are much more common and also can be fine eating. However, there are other levels of royalty. The jack in the deck is the jack crevalle, arguably the hardest fighting fish of its size that can be found in

the surf. Although they’re not a food species, they make excellent cut bait for anything from sharks to red snappers. Bluefish are often overlooked by Texas anglers, but are a hard fighting species that does have some food value. Blues seem to migrate to the Gulf in winter to spawn. We don’t see the huge specimens caught on the Atlantic coast, but I have seen some bruisers coasting in with rafting mullet in September. Although I once caught a nice king mackerel in the surf on a cut mullet meant for reds, this is not a common thing. What can be common is to encounter large schools of Spanish mackerels. Although they’re smaller, they are better eating and have a much more liberal bag limit. Spanish macks will readily hit small jigs on light tackle. When they are in mixed schools with small bluefish and large skipjacks (ladyfish), they can really make a slow day in the surf into a lot of fishing fun. Of course, there are also sand trout, croakers and an occasional gafftop catfish to go in the frying pan. You’ll alsso find sharks from ankle biting sharpnose to hefty bulls and tigers. Another often-undervalued large species is the Atlantic stingray. Reaching weights well over 100 pounds and willing to snatch up a redfish bait, “stinkrays” can be a challenging quarry. When a big one performs its suction cup imitation on the bottom and refuses to move, challenge can turn to frustration. You can try various techniques, such as “twanging” the line or sliding sinkers down to strike the ray, but just putting the rod back in a sand spike and waiting the ray out works as well as anything. Not all rays will hunker down, and when they decide to make a “run”, it will be a powT E X A S

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erful one. The pumping action of the wings are hard to mistake for any other quarry. Rays are also fine eating. My advice would be to ignore all the “legends” of using a cookie cutter to punch out scallops from the wings. Just skin them and cut into bite sized chunks for deep-frying. Offshore, snapper season is closed, and amberjack season closed in March and will not re-open until January 1 of 2018.

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THE BANK BITE LOCATION: In daylight hours, the surf beyond the third sandbar and deeper channels are best. SPECIES: All warm water species will be abundant, specks, reds and flounders inshore, and an almost limitless variety offshore. BAIT: Live bait may be hard to get, and harder to keep alive. It is not a good idea, however, to put ice in your live well to lower the water temperature— unless it is encased in a plastic bag or bottle so the water stays salty. BEST TIME: Early morning and late evening tides are best for inshore, but night fishing is even better, and also good offshore. Lights help attract both bait and fish. In addition, fishermen on an offshore charter boat with two licensed captains who are out overnight and have a receipt to prove it are allowed two-day limits of fish such as king mackerel, ling, and red snapper. Note that this does not apply to overnight trips in state waters, though.

Email Mike Holmes at ContactUs@ﬁshgame.com

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8/15/17 4:26 PM

Coastal Focus: MATAGORDA :: by Contributing Editor MIKE PRICE

Matagorda Hot Spots in the Gulf of Mexico

ARLY SEPTEMBER IS A great time to go offshore or to fish from the beach. In both locations the water is typically calm and clear. For boats going offshore, ling, kingfish, dorado, tarpon, and even sailfish venture to within 25 miles of the beach. On the beach, anglers are treated to a great variety of fish hungrily feeding in the surf. But early September is also when the weather and water are at their warmest, and these conditions bring the possibility of a sudden summer squall, tropical storm or hurricane. We have ample warning when a hurri-

cane or tropical storm threatens, but summer squalls can form quickly and change the Gulf of Mexico from friendly and fun, to ugly and dangerous. When Gordon Bradeen and I surfaced from a scuba dive on a rig 40 miles offshore, the fisherman in the boat next to us said, “I just heard on the weather radio that a big storm is moving toward us from the east. I’m heading in and I suggest you do the same.” Gordon and I started back to Matagorda in calm seas, but soon the wind kicked up accompanied by dark clouds dumping copious amounts of rain. Gordon’s boat was 21

feet long, and the seas were 12 feet high. We had our wetsuits and lifejackets on as neither of us thought that we would make it to safe harbor. At one point a massive wave came over the transom, and we were both concerned about losing the engine, but it continued to run and Gordon handled his boat expertly, quartering into the seas, generally in the direction of the Matagorda jetties. If he had handled the boat in any other way, we would have certainly been rolled and swamped. As we approached the beach, the weather abated, and we did not have far to run along the beach to the entrance of the jetties. We both experienced a huge sigh of relief when we realized that we had made it back safely. If we had ended up in the water, we would have had several advantages: Gordon was wearing a personal EPIRB that would have sent distress signals and our location to the

Spanish mackerel are a popular species to target from the beach.

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PHOTO: CANSTOCK

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Coast Guard, we were both wearing wet suits which would have provided warmth, positive buoyancy, and sun protection, and we had life jackets on. Sudden squalls often show up on the beach, especially in the afternoon, but you will be fairly safe from wind and lighting if you sit in your vehicle. When calm, blue water, loaded with finger mullet, menhaden, and billions of little minnows is up to the beach, it brings in all sorts of predators. I was wade fishing on the west side of the jetties in these conditions when a 24-inch spanish mackerel leaped out of the water in front and to the right of me, arched higher above me, and landed on my left. Spanish mackerel is one popular species to target, but the technique used to catch this fish varies from what you would use to attract other desirable species. Spanish mackerel like shiny, fast, prey. You may want to use a silver spoon attached to a wire leader because their sharp teeth will slice through a fluorocarbon or monofilament leader. Speckled trout cruise the guts between the sandbars in schools, and they will go for a lure from the surface to the bottom. When

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you catch one, put it on the stringer as fast as possible and get your lure back out there, because soon they will move on. Redfish like the trough, so if you want reds, allow your lure to bounce on the bottom. Bluefish are one of several fish that will hit artificial lures and live or dead bait. They are found at various depths. I have never kept one, but Vic Dunaway, author of Sport Fish of the Gulf of Mexico says, “Small bluefish make fine table fare if broiled or pan-fried soon after being landed.” Another common catch in the surf is whiting and they are very good eating. Sand trout move in large schools and they are fun to catch, and are good to eat if cooked fresh. Beach and offshore waters have many calm and clear water days in September. Enjoy these fine fishing opportunities, but keep safety in mind.

THE BANK BITE

of September support that endeavor. Texas law requires a life jacket to be in your kayak, but when you go offshore, it is wise to wear it. Anything that can go overboard, such as your paddle or tackle box, should be attached to a line. Typically a current runs parallel to the beach; figure out which way it is going and have someone drop you off so that you can drift with the current. Make sure you are capable of paddling against the current to return to your launch spot. You might hook into a shark or other big fish that you think might be dangerous or you don’t want to fight, so make sure that you have a way to cut your line in a hurry. When you get one of these exceptionally calm days in your kayak, chances are you will have a special experience. One of my most memorable kayak excursions off Matagorda Beach was when a bottlenose dolphin swam next to me for several minutes, making eye contact.

Email Mike Price at ContactUs@ﬁshgame.com

KAYAKING OFF THE BEACH: There are not very many days that you can safely take a kayak through the surf and ﬁsh, but the calm days

8/15/17 4:26 PM

Coastal Focus: MID COAST :: by Capt. CHRIS MARTIN

September’s Cooling Refreshes Hot Action

E HAVE BEEN SUFFERing from a lot of hot air for months, but it is now time for Mother Nature to turn down the

The end result will be cooler water temperatures and less sunshine, which is usually provided by an increase in cloud cover. Repeating frontal passages along the Texas coast throughout September and October not only signals mild drops in temperature, but also moderate conditions. This influences the popular greening effect upon our coastal waters. With autumn approaching, coastal anglers should anticipate the beginning of what could become some of this year’s most spectacular fishing, as they enjoy the benefits offered by cooler conditions and the reward of some heated action. Summer’s hot weather can make things difficult for coastal anglers, and at times can be downright dangerous. You need adequate hydration to maintain physical activity throughout the day, and you should take precautions to fight fatigue from the extreme heat. One thing you can do to address the heat issue is to break your fishing activities into two separate sessions—a morning session and an evening session. Another is to fish for only a half-day instead of the entire day. However, having to make concessions for the heat will not be necessary the farther we get into September. As September’s temperatures begin to drop, coastal anglers will once again be able to spend the whole day fishing. Conditions will be more comfortable, which means you can spend more time on the water. It also means you’ll have a much greater chance at catching some of what the September fishing period has to offer—heavy trout and broad-shouldered redfish. In addition to the cooler weather, September marks another transition worth noting, and that is a gradual rise in tide levels. Anglers should look for trout in many of the area back lakes as higher tides become more the norm, not the exception. Start early morning sessions in shallow water with a presentation of small top-water baits. You should be able to catch trout on top waters all day

heat. By the end of September, the coastal regions of Texas have already received the year’s first notable northerly frontal passage which typically drops daytime coastal temperatures out of tripledigits and down into the 80s—even if it’s just for a little while.

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long in the latter part of the month. Until then, start out in the shallows early with top waters, then move to deeper water as the surface bite subsides. As you move out deeper, toss plastic tails primarily in brighter colors that will show up brilliantly in clean water. Pretty much any color combination containing chartreuse, white, or even limetreuse works extremely well. Redfish encounters have been about average for this time of the year, but they should only become more heated as the month progresses. September’s redfish anglers will find they are more successful as they search for the red bite over soft sand and mild mud, with an occasional mixture of shell provided as structure. September has historically been a popular time for anglers to engage redfish by sight alone. It’s not uncommon to find groups of redfish telegraphing their position either by creating that well known “mud boil” from their bottom-feeding activities, or by aggressively herding baitfish to the water’s surface. In either of these two scenarios, you could probably toss an empty hook into the pod and recognize immediate results, as the action is fast and furious. If you wade fish in September, begin looking for your trout over grass beds while focusing your casts from the middle of the grass bed to the outside edges of the grass. The larger trout are often found on the outside edges where the sand meets the grass. As for redfish, look for signs of their presence, follow the bait, and use what you’ve learned over the years to outsmart them. If you are new to wade fishing with artificial lures, the fishing action over the course of the next few weeks will offer you a chance to significantly boost your confidence. This time of the year is magical—a time that can certainly raise the bar for anglers of all levels wanting to improve their skills. Until next time, have fun out on the water, be safe, and be courteous.

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

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Coastal Focus: ROCKPORT :: by Capt. MAC GABLE

The Search

HIS PAST SPRING AND SUMmer three boater/anglers went missing. In two of the instances I knew the anglers involved. Two were seasoned veterans of our coastal bay area. If you have frequented my writings, you know I can get quite preachy about safety where boating and fishing are concerned. “Here comes mother mariner; she’s gonna watch out for us all,” is just some of the goodnatured jibing I have received over the years. We are an independent lot, us anglers, and that goes two-fold for guides. I know preaching safety is akin to getting in someone else’s business, but in this case I am compelled to, especially if it can prevent an injury or God forbid another missing angling man/woman. These tragedies have a life lesson for all of us if we will just listen. As one gets the details of an accident it’s usually easy to see where mistakes were made, but in the above cases nothing glaring, or at least nothing I don’t see almost every day here in this boating mecca, stood out. Mysteries often surround a missing boater/angler but when looked at closely it often comes down to over looked safety items. No life jacket, no kill switch (or it was not attached to the boater). One clear theme comes across almost every time—they were out alone. Two of these good souls I knew. I had met them multiple times at tackle shops and bait stands. They were avid anglers, not prone to do anything stupid or dangerous. Neither Homeland Security, the FBI, nor the NSA have anything on serious anglers when it comes to secrecy. When a hot fishing spot is found, we protect it as if it’s our firstborn child. As is often the case we fish these spots alone. It’s just what we do. If you are not an angler, I doubt you would understand. Fishing alone is part of the deal.

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The cell phone was cost more than $700, a good one. They had moved to another cell plan to ensure reception out on the water the angler likes to fish. To heck with pride! The calling starts. The loved one calls the angler, no answer. Calls again, no answer. Sends a text, no answer. It will be dark in less than two hours. Friends are now called to see if they know the whereabouts of the now very late angler. No one knows. The loved one doesn’t want to raise an unwarranted flag, after all this has happened before, but truly never this late. The anger is rapidly fading, and a gnawing fear is creeping in. One must do something even if it’s wrong. Checked the favorite watering holes for famished anglers, but to no avail. The sun is dipping toward the horizon. Fear grows that something has happened, so friends are now called to help. Check the boat ramps. Friends are on it. They know the boat ramps the angler normally uses. The angler’s vehicle and trailer are found at the second ramp. The loved one is now gripped with fear for the wellbeing of their loved one. “It could be motor trouble,” a friend says trying to help. “But there has been no response to any of my phone calls or texts!” “We should call 911,” another friend reluctantly advises. At this point the loved one needs help because they can only think the worst, and they need others to help think more clearly. The call is made; a dispatcher takes the call and starts a line of questions, which seem incredibly NOT relevant. After what seems hours the dispatcher sets in motion a chain of actions that involve the local police, the Coast Guard, the TPWD and EMS if warranted. The gnawing fear is now REAL, and the loved one feels horrible for being angry with the angler. The term “missing boater” is now used when just 10 hours ago the missing was saying, “see you later” as they departed for their

Is it smart? No! Is it safe? No! Is it necessary? No! It just is, and we all do it from time to time. This article is based on data from multiple tragedies, shared with me where missing boaters were concerned and perhaps to look at such tragedies from a different angle. A loved one has scheduled a trip with a friend, but as is the case sometimes, the friend had to back out. A solo trip is now in the making. All the preparations are made the night before and with much excitement the angler is out the door early that morning. The loved one usually knows about what time the angler will return, or as is rarely the case, a float plan has been provided with an estimated return time. No real concern is considered. After all, this angler is a seasoned old salt and knows more about the bays than most. Having never run into trouble in 20 plus years, a level of confidence has been earned. One must live life to the fullest and the angler is no exception—he/she deserves it. This is what they retired for. This is their dream so lead, follow, or get the hell outta the way. As the day unfolds it’s more of an afterthought by the loved one that the angler is safe, as “they always have been.” When the arrival time comes and goes, there’s no need for alarm, but by God they could have at least called! The clock is now ticking, and every hour that goes by means a real butt chewing is inevitable. On one side of their heart and mind they are upset about the lateness, but on the other side there is an unfamiliar fear that is now growing. Could something be wrong, could something have happened? “I hope it wasn’t boat trouble,” the loved one now tells herself. Perhaps he/she went somewhere else after fishing. The angler is now three hours late and it becomes a pride thing as to who is gonna call whom first. There is no excuse for not calling, especially with the supper plans they had made. F I S H

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Forecast: ROCKPORT • Check the weather beyond the duration of your planned trip in case you are delayed. • Have a marine radio. Don’t depend on a cell phone. • Have emergency contact numbers where you can get to them easily. • Have a GPS and hard maps—These do not make one a navigation guru, and underwater hazards are seldom marked on these maps. In my humble opinion, it goes without saying, “LOCAL KNOWLEDGE IS ESSENTIAL FOR SAFE AND SUCCESSFUL NAVIGATION” And Please PLEASE PLEASE slow down. Our bays are not a race track. This article is dedicated to those who have lost their lives in pursuit of that which they loved. May God bless their families.

fishing trip. After many possible scenarios are exhausted, a search is now underway. If hell has a voice it is now one a loved one will hear. Every minute is agonizing, minutes turn to hours. The thoughts keep coming. Is there more the loved one could do? What are they missing? This is a nightmare. They pray someone will wake them, and it will all go away. Friends and loved ones gather for support, and the clock is still ticking. In the deep recesses of a fearful heart they know time IS NOT their friend. Hours now turn to the next day. The search is exhaustive. Please let the phone ring and it be the angler’s voice so all this will go away, the loved one thinks. The Coast Guard, Texas Parks and Wildlife, and local police are all in the search. Days now pass, and the loved one knows some data chart somewhere suggests that after a certain time frame the chances of their loved one being alive are not good. A thought creeps in—maybe even a resolve that this is not going to end well. The rescue teams are tired,and one can tell they have now moved from a rescue to recovery mentality. As a final indication, the rescue teams suspend the search. There is still hope, but it’s just a small part of the will not to give up hope. The days go by. How does one continue to live? Closure is needed one way or the other for the loved one to face reality so life can go on. The phone rings, the angler’s body has been found. The loved one sinks to their knees, and the loss is almost more than they can bear. How could something that started so special turn out so horrible? God, what did we do wrong? the loved one asks. How can... how do I go on? The identification process is a nightmare of its own. The loved one knows their life partner is no longer there. Not to sound like broken record, but listed here are recommendations all boaters who frequent our area would be wise to embrace: • Let someone know where you’re going to be and when you’re to be back (a float plan). • Have and wear a PFD. • Use a kill switch and make sure it’s attached to your body while underway. 52

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• • • SEPTEMBER IS MOSTLY “STILL” A hot month. Based on the summer crowds, the fish have been hotly pursued. Early morning and late evenings are best for those who are still looking for some rod-bending action. Live bait is still the preferred way of putting fish in the box. I have found the scented lure baits such as Berkley work well this time of year. COPANO BAY: Black drum bite is good just off the Bayside shoreline. Fresh dead shrimp on a light Carolina rig is best here. Mission Bay has some nice red action. Finger mullet works best here free-lined. Please use caution navigating this bay. ARANSAS BAY: Drifts down Traylor Island are good for trout using free-lined croaker. The potholes in this area hold fish. Early morning is best. The mouth of Allyns Bight is a good spot for trout and reds using free-lined live shrimp.

CARLOS BAY: The islands around Cape Carlos Dugout is a good spot for trout using free lined croaker. The south side of Cedar reef is good for reds early morning using mud minnows or finger mullet free lined. MESQUITE BAY: Rattlesnake Reef is a good spot on high tide for reds and some black drum using free-lined live shrimp. The west shoreline just off Bludworth Island is a good wade for trout using Berkley Gulp Shrimp, worked just off the bottom. Hop the bait by raising your rod tip. Most strikes come as the bait is falling. AYERS BAY: Ayers Reef late evening on high tide is a good spot for reds using finger mullet on a very light Carolina rig. Second Chain is a good spot for slot reds using cut mullet or menhaden free-lined. Be mindful and respectful for private property and when in doubt ask permission. Wades in this area with Berkley Jerk Shad or free-lined live shrimp can produce trout as well as reds and black drum. Here’s Wishing You Tight Lines Bent Poles and Plenty of Bait.

THE BANK BITE ROCKPORT: A well-kept secret is an area south of FM 881 just off the Rockport down town shoreline. This area is littered with piers and under water reefs, as well as some sand shell.

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

ST CHARLES BAY: Drifts across Little Sharp Point are good for reds using Berkley Gulp shrimp under a bubble cork. Little Devil’s Bayou is a good spot for black drum and reds. Finger mullet free-lined is best for reds here and fresh dead shrimp under a silent cork work well for blackdrum. |

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8/15/17 4:26 PM

Coastal Focus: ARANSAS/CORPUS :: by Contributing Editor TOM BEHRENS

DON’T KNOW IF YOU CAUGHT the information reported by a local Corpus Christi TV station a couple of months back. “The hatchery,” referring to the Corpus Christi Fish Hatchery, “has a way to track the fish to make sure that their hatchery fish are surviving in the wild. The fish are genetically marked in its DNA and RNA strands, allowing it to be located by satellite.” Whoa—how in the world are the folks at the TPWD Corpus Christi fish hatchery accomplishing this scientific feat? I’m constantly amazed by the things that the scientific world is coming up with, but this stretches my gray matter really far. I checked with Ruben Chavez, Natural Resource Specialist at the hatchery, about what they have come up with. Whoops—a mistake by the writer on what Chavez originally said. “We don’t track fish via satellites,” said a chuckling Chavez. “I think he misunderstood what I said. Fish have genetic markers called microsatellites. In the DNA and RNA strand there are unique markers. For example redfish in general are going to have pretty much in general the same genetic makeup, but there are some unique genes to each fish. “We first have to catalog our brood fish to create a genetic map of our hatchery fish. When we pair them up and they produce offspring, they have this unique identifiable mark.” The whole purpose of the identifying mark is to help TPWD fish hatchery people determine what the survival percentage rate of hatchery-reared fish is as compared to native fish reproduced in the bays. It’s hard to keep track of how hatchery reared fish are doing. “We have tried different methods,” Chavez said, “but it’s really

“ I’m constantly amazed by the things the scientiﬁc world is coming up with.

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ment specialists while surveying a bay or from a fish donated by an angler. It has the unique genetic mark noted in the hatchery. Dr. John R. Gold, Texas A&M, a pioneer geneticist in fish genetics. (http://agrilife. org/gold/gold/fish-genetics-laboratory/), has been instrumental in helping TPWD. It’s interesting to note that the DNA and RNA results vary from bay system to bay system. Chavez explains the fingerlings only get released back into the bay system that the brood stock came from mainly for genetic differences. “Some of the bays are not connected and the genetic traits are different from the trout you see from bays that are connected,” he said. “You are not going to see that diverse genetic difference in Aransas and Corpus Christi bays.” T E X A S

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Redfish are more migratory. “We used to stock the whole Texas bay systems, but now since we have the additional hatcheries, stockings are more regional.” The Corpus Christi hatchery stocks more speckled trout than redfish. About 30 million redfish fingerlings were stocked at the beginning. Now redfish stocking is about five million for redfish and about 10 million for speckled trout. The hatchery is working on culturing southern flounder fingerlings. “We’re trying to produce as many of those guys as possible,” said Chavez. “Our yearly quota is about 25 to 50 thousand. We are still learning that species; we haven’t been doing that too long, still in a learning curve.” The biggest success story for the Corpus Christi hatchery has been the redfish. Chavez said the hatchery now is more in a maintenance mode. “Fortunately nothing has happened, but just in case something does happen like a killer freeze or bad red tide episode, the hatcheries are here to replenish the system. Where it takes a few years for a fish population to rebound, we can go back and stock the following spring and replenish bays.” Aransas Bay system is probably the biggest recipient of speckled trout because of the heavy fishing pressure.

hard to mark or tag a fingerling without doing damage to the fish in the handling process.” Remember that a fingerling redfish or speckled trout is about the size of a finger. However, when a marked fish is found, that’s solid evidence that hatchery-stocked fish do survive in the wild, but checking for that mark is like finding a needle in a haystack. Verifying a hatchery-stocked fish is accomplished by taking a scale or tissue from a fish later caught by TPWD fishery manage-

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THE BANK BITE LOCATION: Portland Shoreline SPECIES: Speckled trout, redﬁsh and black drum. BEST BAITS: Live shrimp and mullet BEST TIME: Dawn to late morning

Email Tom Behrens at ContactUs@ﬁshgame.com

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8/15/17 4:26 PM

Coastal Focus: BAFFIN BAY :: by Capt. SALLY BLACK

The End of Summer Begins

result in a big, giant strike, especially if there’s any competition around. Get two redfish swimming together down the shoreline and it’s guaranteed that one of them is going to get the fly. Any shrimp pattern, any crab pattern or clouser will catch a fish. Well, pretty much any fly will catch a redfish if it’s in the “dinner plate” zone, which is a two, or three-foot wide half-circle starting at their eye and going forward, encircling their head to the other eye. A fly, a gold spoon, a Gulp three- or four-inch chartreuse “Swimming Mullet” curly-tail grub, a four-inch “Sugar and Spice” Saltwater Assassin paddle tail on a Black’s Magic 1/32 ounce jig head, whatever is your personal confidence lure, toss it up there and be prepared for the fight. Black drum really don’t like to pursue their food, so to catch one, silently toss your lure or fly across their path by a foot or two, then, drag it where they will find it. Once they come upon it, move it about a half-foot. When their tail comes up, they’ve got it. Set the hook and hang on. Black drum have a great fight in them, with their big side fins that act as “brakes” while reeling them in. Great to eat, black drum in the shallow water are an underrated game fish for all anglers, whether fly or lure. Baffin’s south shoreline is filled with grass, from White Bluff all the way to Penescal Point. It’s ripe for the picking for anyone walking, stalking or poling and looking for a sight casting opportunity. The Upper Laguna Madre, right out of the mouth of Baffin Bay, all the way up to the sand on the back of the Padre Island is holding lots of shallow water fish. They’ll be tailing in singles and groups, patrolling the sand, or laying in the pockets. Feel like an adventure? Take the trip to the Land Cut and walk or pole the west side of the Intracoastal. Look for seagulls hovering over tailing reds. Drifting the flats and tossing to potholes (those round light-colored sand spots in the sea of grass) is very effective, if staying in the boat is your thing. Top waters, soft plastics,

HE SUN IS RIDING LOWER IN the sky and the colors of the shorelines become more vibrant. A few ducks are straggling in and some migratory bird species begin to arrive. That’s the beginning of fall in South Texas and it starts to appear ever so slightly in September. Even though the temperatures are still in the 90s, those little hints of the coming change are evident and signal all anglers and hunters to begin preparing for the next phase of outdoor activities. Besides legendary fall fishing, the opening of dove hunting is upon us. Once the shotguns are out of their cases, duck season is just around the corner. When the guns come out, your Labrador retrievers start going out of their minds with anticipation of hunting, after the long drought between the end of last year’s duck season and the beginning of this year’s dove season. Old dogs already know and young dogs can only imagine as they begin their long lives doing what they were bred to do. It’s “all of the above” that keeps the love of wingshooting alive in all of us. We are just as bad as our Labs, if you think about it. Shallow water fishing is at its peak right now as the bait concentrations and selection becomes overwhelming. Finger mullet, pin perch, shrimp, all kinds of crabs and other snacks fill the grass shorelines and sand strips to attract big predators. It is prime time for fly fishermen as the water is clear and the weather is stable and usually sunny. The only reason for a big predator to be meandering in ankle deep water is to eat. So if you get your fly to the fish, it will 54

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flies, and those same curly tailed Gulps will bring home some delicious saltwater fare. For beginners, drifting the rocks with the Cajun Thunder popping cork and a Gulp “Swimming Mullet” under an 18-inch leader can catch a trout on every cast. Try the rocks at Center Reef, Three Sloughs in Alazan and the “A” Pole for some easy places to drift and catch fish. The Meadows is great for long drifts, as are the flats north of Yarborough near “Little Grassy”. The Nine-Mile Hole is epic most of the fall, but usually only accessed by a boat and is great for drift fishing. Because the water is usually low, it’s important to know where to go avoid getting stuck. It’s a long, long way back to the boat ramp. The much anticipated “end of summer” begins this month and crescendos with the opening of dove season. Even though the weather is still overwhelmingly hot, the end is near. Anticipation of duck season will bring everyone to the sporting goods store to buy big camo jackets, gloves, hats and technical clothes for upcoming cold weather hunting and fishing. It’s how we live—by the seasons of the year, fly fishing season, trophy trout season, duck season, dove season, deer season. You get the picture.

Contact Capt. Sally Black at 361-205-0624 Email: Sally@CaptainSally.com Web: www.BaffinBayRodandGun.com Facebook: Baffin Bay Rod and Gun Twitter: @CaptainSally Instagram: baffin_bay_rod_and_gun

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Coastal Focus: LOWER COAST :: by Saltwater Editor CALIXTO GONZALES

Mangrove Snook

N ASSET THAT MAKES Lower Laguna Madre such a remarkable place to fish is the wide variety of fish available to

anglers. There literally is something for every fishing preference. Besides the usual suspects, speckled trout and flounder, roaming the bay, Mangrove snappers and sheepsheads are milling around structure and waiting to go knuckle-and-skull with anyone who dares flip a live shrimp into the shadows of their dens—or a frozen one; they’re aren’t very picky. Tarpon patrol along the Brazos-Santiago jetties and in the surf. Sometimes they school up and go on wilding parties in the bay itself to terrorize unsuspecting fishermen who may be looking for smaller, more cooperative prey. Spanish and king mackerels are within casting distance of surf- and jetty-bound anglers (the latter of which are partial to large chrome/blue lipless crankbaits). Then there is the snook. Most people think of the snook as summertime fish of July and August. They are correct. Some of the best snook fishing occurs in the heat of summer. However, when dove season opens in Texas, snook season is really starting to pick up. September is still a warm month, and snook take advantage of that by starting to roam more and feed on the congregating schools of mullet and other baitfish that school up in the fall. Snook have become more plentiful over the last decade and are liable to pop up anywhere as far north as the Land Cut. However, if you are looking to pick a fight with a Lower Laguna Madre snook, your best shot is to look to South Bay. South Bay

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twitch-slack line retrieve. The end result is that the bait doesn’t so much walk the way traditional plugs do. It glides two feet in each direction. Whether it is a more natural presentation or simply different from what snook (and trout and redfish, for that matter) have seen, the Wide Glide has gotten some promising results. Of course, natural baits are also very effective for snook. The first choice is a live finger mullet, with large shrimp a very close second. Hook the mullet just above the anal fin, use the smallest weight possible for casting distance, and lob

holds a stable population of snook that takes up residence from mid-spring until the first major cold front in the fall (which could be as late as early December). The mangroves that line the shoreline, grassy flats, deeper channels and boat guts offer ideal habitat for the linesiders. When the tide is up or incoming, snook will gravitate to the cover and forage the mangrove trees provide. Once there, they strafe mullet, pilchard, and small pinfish. When the tide starts moving out, they’ll fall back into deeper water and wait for the current to flush bait off the flats and to them. While fishing around the mangroves, your best bet is to move stealthily into position either by poling or using a trolling motor. Watch for fish holding in the shadows and under roots and overhangs. When you spot one, cast a soft plastic such as a ¼-ounce DOA Shrimp, chartreuse or pearl Bassassin, or a Logic Lures Tandem in clear/glitter. Do not cast directly in front of the fish, or you may spook it. Work the bait past the hidey-hole. Use a 20-pound fluorocarbon leader tied to your line with a uni-to-uni knot or blood knot to prevent a breakoff if your quarry drags you across a limb. Early on calm mornings, you might spot snook chasing bait along the surface near the mangroves. When these fish are actively feeding like that, your favorite topwater can really prove effective. Try a Spook, Jr. or a Saltwater Chug Bug in bone or white. If the fish are missing the plug on the strike, switch to a sub-surface bait such as a Catch 2000 or Bomber Saltwater Grade Badonk-adonk SS, also in bone or white for better hookups. Soft plastics such as the afore-mentioned Bassassins and Logics work well, too. I have also begun playing around with a River2Sea Wideglide, which is a subsurface plug with a unique action. The weight is mostly forward in the head of the plug, which gives it a very wide “walk” when worked on a F I S H

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it towards the mangrove. Popping corks are more a liability than an asset in this application because of the risk getting snared in the limbs of a tree. Moreover, the water averages two feet or less, so a cork is not necessarily effective. If you use a soft plastic or live bait, do not be surprised if you latch into a big flounder. Flatties hide in ambush along the mangroves sometimes. They aren’t averse to taking a shot at a finger mullet or a soft plastic that should meander by. In June of 2011, I had a four-pounder hammer a Spook, Jr. while I was walking it back after missing a big snook that was cruising the tree line. It was my largest flounder of the year. Even when you are looking for a specific target, you can end up with a little variety.

Email Cal Gonzales at ContactUs@ﬁshgame.com |

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FISHING HOTSPOTS Saltwater: n Upper Coast n Mid Coast n Lower Coast Freshwater: n Piney Woods

Freshwater: n Prairies & Lakes n Panhandle n Big Bend n Hill Country n South Texas

UPPER COAST

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.

Everybody Loves Raymond Shoal by TOM BEHRENS

a trout.” Capt. Countz LOCATION: East Matagorda Bay HOTSPOT: Raymond Shoal GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp under a popping cork or soft plastics CONTACT: Capt. Tommy Countz 281-450-4037 tcountz@sbcglobal.net www.matagordafishing.com TIPS: “In August and September I’m fishing with braided line and a real sensitive rod…two of the most important factors, especially if you are throwing artificials.” Capt. Countz

LOCATION: East Matagorda Bay HOTSPOT: St. Mary’s Bayou GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp under a popping cork or soft plastics CONTACT: Capt. Tommy Countz 281-450-4037 tcountz@sbcglobal.net www.matagordaﬁshing.com TIPS: “Just drifting, throwing live bait under a popping cork, or a soft plastic under a popping cork.” Capt. Countz LOCATION: Galveston Trinity Bay HOTSPOT: Jack’s Pocket GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live Croaker CONTACT: Capt. Epi Garza 832-646-9284 epigarza1@yahoo.com www.bookemandhookem.com TIPS: “In September I will be ﬁshing water, 8-9 ft. deep, throwing up tight against the wells.” Capt. Garza

LOCATION: East Matagorda Bay HOTSPOT: Matagorda Beach Front GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp under a popping cork or soft plastics CONTACT: Capt. Tommy Countz 281-450-4037 tcountz@sbcglobal.net www.matagordaﬁshing.com TIPS: “The ﬁsh are going to barely pick the bait up, and sometimes they will start swimming with it.” Capt. Countz

LOCATION: Galveston Trinity Bay HOTSPOT: Sun Gas Wells GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live Croaker CONTACT: Capt. Epi Garza 832-646-9284 epigarza1@yahoo.com www.bookemandhookem.com TIPS: “A lot of the wells are visible and you can hop from well to well. There are some that have been taken out, but the well pad is still there.” Capt. Garza

LOCATION: East Matagorda Bay HOTSPOT: Half Moon Shoal GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Redfish BEST BAITS: Live shrimp under a popping cork or soft plastics CONTACT: Capt. Tommy Countz 281-450-4037 tcountz@sbcglobal.net www.matagordafishing.com TIPS: “A redfish will be a little more aggressive because hot water, cold water doesn’t bother them like

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LOCATION: Galveston Trinity Bay |

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HOTSPOT: Exxon C Lease Wells GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live Croaker CONTACT: Capt. Epi Garza 832-646-9284 epigarza1@yahoo.com www.bookemandhookem.com TIPS: Weekends still crowded on the bay, but croaker season is still the best bait according to Capt. Garza LOCATION: Galveston Trinity Bay HOTSPOT: Trinity Bay Wells GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live Shrimp CONTACT: Capt. Epi Garza 832-646-9284 epigarza1@yahoo.com www.bookemandhookem.com TIPS: “The fish start to transition to live shrimp in their diet…usually about the third week, sometimes the fourth week.” Capt. Garza LOCATION: Galveston Trinity Bay HOTSPOT: Trinity Bay Wreck GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live Croaker CONTACT: Capt. Epi Garza 832-646-9284 epigarza1@yahoo.com www.bookemandhookem.com TIPS: “The trout also start transitioning from the south end of the bay to the northern end.” Capt. Garza LOCATION: Galveston Trinity Bay HOTSPOT: Kemah Flats GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live Croaker CONTACT: Capt. Epi Garza 832-646-9284 epigarza1@yahoo.com www.bookemandhookem.com TIPS: As the trout transition to the north end of the bay you can find some stragglers along the flats. LOCATION: Galveston Trinity Bay HOTSPOT: Texas City Flats GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642)

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FISHING HOTSPOTS SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live Croaker or Live Shrimp CONTACT: Capt. Epi Garza 832-646-9284 epigarza1@yahoo.com www.bookemandhookem.com TIPS: “Use live shrimp under a popping cork with a long leader, 6-7 feet with a little bit of split of shot for weight.” Capt. Garza

SPECIES: Redﬁsh BEST BAITS: Dead Sardies CONTACT: Capt. Lee Wehring 361-658-2717 leewardadventures@gmail.com www.leewardadventures.com TIPS: “Typically at the Port O’Connor jetties they drop dead sardines down to the bottom and just jig them.” Capt. Wehring

LOCATION: Galveston Trinity Bay HOTSPOT: North Flats GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live Croaker or Live Shrimp CONTACT: Capt. Epi Garza 832-646-9284 epigarza1@yahoo.com www.bookemandhookem.com TIPS: “Shell humps in the ship channel will hold some transitioning ﬁsh.” Capt. Garza

LOCATION: Sabine Lake HOTSPOT: Mid Lake 2 GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: MirrOlure Lil Jon or Provokers CONTACT: Capt. Bill Watkins 409-673-9211 4097862018@sbcglobal.net www.ﬁshsabinelake.com TIPS: Capt. Watkins “bread and butter” soft plastic is either a MirrOlure Lil Jon or Provoker with a 1/4 oz. lead head.

LOCATION: Port O’Connor HOTSPOT: Port O’Connor Jetties GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642)

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LOCATION: Sabine Lake HOTSPOT: Mid Lake GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852

(29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: MirrOlure Lil Jon or Provokers CONTACT: Capt. Bill Watkins 409-673-9211 4097862018@sbcglobal.net www.fishsabinelake.com TIPS: “Fish clam shell and oyster reefs. Ship channel should have fish all the way up into the lake.” Capt. Watkins LOCATION: West Matagorda Bay HOTSPOT: Cotton’s Bayou GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp under a popping cork or soft plastics CONTACT: Capt. Tommy Countz 281-450-4037 tcountz@sbcglobal.net www.matagordafishing.com TIPS: “Normally we get into some of the deeper guts that run through the grass flats, or we will fish on the outside edges of the flats, throwing a little deeper water.” Capt. Countz

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FISHING HOTSPOTS LOCATION: West Matagorda Bay HOTSPOT: Green’s Bayou GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout and Redfish BEST BAITS: Soft plastics CONTACT: Capt. Tommy Countz 281-450-4037 tcountz@sbcglobal.net www.matagordafishing.com TIPS: “Normally I’m throwing lead heads and soft plastics, just working the bait nice and easy, just kind of feeling for the fish to take it.” Capt. Countz

CONTACT: Capt. Jim Leavelle 361-537-5540 jim@tarponadventures.com www.tarponadventures.com TIPS: Capt. Leavelle likes to ﬁsh the afternoon tides in September. He also likes a light jig head with the soft plastics. “I get a lot more bites on a light jig head.” LOCATION: Corpus Christi Bay HOTSPOT: Ingleside Point GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Egret wedgetail soft plastics CONTACT: Capt. Jim Leavelle 361-537-5540 jim@tarponadventures.com www.tarponadventures.com TIPS: Wedgetail Egret bait: “I like the vibration that the wedgetail provides.”

LOCATION: West Matagorda Bay HOTSPOT: New Half Moon Reef GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp under a popping cork or soft plastics CONTACT: Capt. Tommy Countz 281-450-4037 tcountz@sbcglobal.net www.matagordaﬁshing.com TIPS: “Tidal movement is real important. If the tide is falling, I’ll be out a little further. If the tide is coming in I’ll be a little closer.” Capt. Countz

LOCATION: Corpus Christi Bay HOTSPOT: Corpus Christi Bay Wells GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Egret wedgetail soft plastics CONTACT: Capt. Jim Leavelle 361-537-5540 jim@tarponadventures.com www.tarponadventures.com TIPS: Capt. Leavelle prefers the darker colors such as the black, red, or a black/chartreuse bait.

LOCATION: West Matagorda Bay HOTSPOT: Matagorda Surf GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live shrimp under a popping cork or soft plastics CONTACT: Capt. Tommy Countz 281-450-4037 tcountz@sbcglobal.net www.matagordafishing.com TIPS: “I like to work where a drain runs through a flat or something because the fish a lot of times use that as an avenue of travel, and that’s where you intercept them.” Capt. Countz

LOCATION: Corpus Christi Bay HOTSPOT: Nueces Bay GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Redﬁsh BEST BAITS: Egret wedgetail soft plastics CONTACT: Capt. Jim Leavelle 361-537-5540 jim@tarponadventures.com www.tarponadventures.com TIPS: “We reel the egret in a straight line a lot, let it fall to the depth we want and reel it in a straight line, no extra action. The bait has a lot of tail action, vibration.” Capt. Leavelle

MIDDLE COAST

Corpus Trout Get the Points

LOCATION: Corpus Christi Bay HOTSPOT: Intracoastal Waterway GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Egret wedgetail soft plastics CONTACT: Capt. Jim Leavelle 361-537-5540 jim@tarponadventures.com www.tarponadventures.com TIPS: “I really like a lighter jig head, get a lot more bites on a very light jig head.” Capt. Leavelle

by TOM BEHRENS LOCATION: Corpus Christi Bay HOTSPOT: Nueces/Indian Point GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Egret wedgetail soft plastics

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LOCATION: Upper Laguna Madre HOTSPOT: Intracoastal Waterway |

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GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Egret wedgetail soft plastics CONTACT: Capt. Jim Leavelle 361-537-5540 jim@tarponadventures.com www.tarponadventures.com TIPS: “In September we favor the afternoon bite. It’s that time of the year. The high tides seem to come in the afternoons, and that’s when you get our best bite. I use an 1/8 oz. jig head.” Capt. Leavelle LOCATION: Upper Laguna Madre HOTSPOT: Packery Channel GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Redfish BEST BAITS: Popping cork with live shrimp or an artificial under a popping cork CONTACT: Capt. Lee Wehring 361-658-2717 leewardadventures@gmail.com www.leewardadventures.com TIPS: “The redfish are going to be on the move to their traditional spawning locations, large schools of redfish, spawning at the passes and letting the current bring their eggs in.” Capt. Wehring

LOWER COAST

Jetty Reds at Port Mansfield by CALIXTO GONZALES and TOM BEHRENS LOCATION: Port Mansfield HOTSPOT: North Jetty GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Redfish BEST BAITS: Big spoons or large lip diving artificial lures CONTACT: Capt. Steve Ellis 956-492-8472 www.getawayadventureslodge.com TIPS: “Fish are schooling, the fish are active, and it’s as good as it’s going to get in September and October. A lot of anglers fly fish off the jetties.” Capt. Ellis LOCATION: Baffin Bay HOTSPOT: ICW Spoils GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Soft Plastics CONTACT: Capt. Cliff Webb 361-215-9906 fishing@cliffwebb.com

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FISHING HOTSPOTS (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Big topwater or long soft plastic lures CONTACT: Capt. Steve Ellis 956-492-8472 None www.getawayadventureslodge.com TIPS: Long soft plastics: “Norton Sand Eel, Kelly Wiggler Willow Tails…I have been known to throw bass plastic worms.” Capt. Ellis

www.cliffwebb.com TIPS: “If I’m jigging deep holes, I like the rat tail soft plastics better, the rat tail Bass Assassin.” Capt. Webb LOCATION: Port Mansﬁeld HOTSPOT: Saucer Center GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Big topwater or long soft plastic lures CONTACT: Capt. Steve Ellis 956-492-8472 None www.getawayadventureslodge.com TIPS: “Fish are starting to school. The shallow water starts turning on because the ﬁsh are eating for the coming winter months.” Capt. Ellis

LOCATION: Port Mansfield HOTSPOT: Mansfield Jetties GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Redfish BEST BAITS: Big spoons or large lip diving artificial lures CONTACT: Capt. Steve Ellis 956-492-8472 None www.getawayadventureslodge.com TIPS: “The good offshore fish will move in close to the jetties…King mackerel, Spanish Mackerel and Tarpon, weather permitting.” Capt. Ellis

LOCATION: Port Mansﬁeld HOTSPOT: Saucer Center GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Big topwater or long soft plastic lures CONTACT: Capt. Steve Ellis 956-492-8472 None www.getawayadventureslodge.com TIPS: “Higher volume of water, high tides, receiving more water into the bays.” Capt. Ellis

LOCATION: Port Mansfield HOTSPOT: East Cut Platform GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Red Snapper BEST BAITS: Squid or cut bait CONTACT: Capt. Steve Ellis 956-492-8472 None www.getawayadventureslodge.com TIPS: “Almost everybody fishes with squid or cut bait, but some days they won’t take the bait. A vertical jigged knife jig, iron jig or the Snapper Slapper are good artificials for snapper.” Capt. Ellis

LOCATION: Port Mansfield HOTSPOT: King Ranch Shoreline GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Big topwater or long soft plastic lures CONTACT: Capt. Steve Ellis 956-492-8472 None www.getawayadventureslodge.com TIPS: “If you want to catch big trout, you want to fish topwater lures or long soft plastics, not necessarily the little fish patterns, but the eel patterns, eel paddle tails.” Capt. Ellis

LOCATION: South Padre Island HOTSPOT: Three Islands GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Live croaker CONTACT: Capt. Hector Guerra 956-346-3148 hgg799@yahoo.com TIPS: “I like to ﬁsh cleaner water using croaker because the like to run for the grass. They want to ﬁnd a place with a muddy bottom, not a lot of grass.” Capt. Guerra

LOCATION: Port Mansﬁeld HOTSPOT: East Cut GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852 (29.7346, -94.7642) SPECIES: Speckled Trout BEST BAITS: Big topwater or long soft plastic lures CONTACT: Capt. Steve Ellis 956-492-8472 None www.getawayadventureslodge.com TIPS: “I don’t mention color as far as the different baits. People ﬁsh the colors that they have had success with.” Capt. Ellis

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Grinding Stumps for Conroe Cats by DUSTIN WARNCKE LOCATION: Lake Conroe HOTSPOT: Main Lake GPS: N 30 28.992, W 95 35.064 (30.4832, -95.5844) SPECIES: Catfish BEST BAITS: Primos Dipping bait CONTACT: Richard Tatsch 936-661-7920 admin@fishdudetx.com www.fishdudetx.com TIPS: “Locate stumps lining the river channel edge and tie off in 20 to 25 feet of water. Use a bag of cattle cubes to bring the fish to you. I will dump a half bag of cubes on two different locations and come back to the first, tie up and get my boat back in the same position. Using a spinning reel with a treble hook, an 1/8 ounce egg sinker and a piece of cut sponge wrapped around it; or start putting some type of fiber in it like cotton; dip it in the bait and drop it to the bottom. Stay in contact with the bottom raising the bait up and down slowly until I feel some resistance then set the hook. You can on most days catch limits of fish in just a few hours. Bank Access: Stowaway Marina” LOCATION: Caddo Lake HOTSPOT: Alligator Bayou GPS: N 32 43.176, W 94 5.4359 (32.7196, -94.0906) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: 6”-8” plastic worms, frogs, punch rigs CONTACT: Caddo Lake Guide Service/Paul Keith 318-455-3437 caddoguide1@att.net www.caddolakefishing.com TIPS: Fish the hydrilla grass in Alligator Bayou and similar creeks like it. Concentrate on the bends and points of the creek. 1 oz. Punch rigs fished in the heaviest mats of vegetation in most any dark color works well here. In the more scattered and thinner grass try a white frog over the top. 6-10 inch Texas rigged 1/4 oz. worms in colors of black/red or Junebug fished on the outer edges of the grass is always a good pattern this time of the year. Areas where active baitfish are working will be where you will also find the bass. LOCATION: Lake Fork HOTSPOT: Main Lake GPS: N 32 51.846, W 95 33.1259 (32.8641, -95.5521) SPECIES: Crappie BEST BAITS: Crappie jigs in chartreuse or light blue CONTACT: Doug Shampine

LOCATION: Port Mansﬁeld HOTSPOT: East Cut GPS: N 29 44.077, W 94 45.852

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FISHING HOTSPOTS 940-902-3855 doug@lakeforktrophybass.com www.lakeforktrophybass.com TIPS: September is a good month to be fishing on Lake Fork. There is a hint of fall in the air, as the mornings will start cooling off and so will the surface temperature of the lake. The crappie fishing will start to improve from the slow month of August and the hot weather. The crappie will start feeding up for the winter, which will be just around the corner. With new brush piles in the lake from the summer months, I look for the crappie fishing in September to be very good. I put out new piles in 22-26 foot of water and park my boat directly over the piles. I use minnows and jigs to catch the big slabs in Lake Fork. Best color of jig us normally one that has chartreuse or light blue in the jig body.

GPS: N 31 44.0339, W 93 50.5679 (31.7339, -93.8428) SPECIES: White Bass BEST BAITS: Rat-L-Traps, tail spinners, slab spoons, shallow diving crankbaits CONTACT: Greg Crafts, Toledo Bend Guide Service and Lake Cottages 936-368-7151 gregcrafts@yahoo.com www.toledobendguide.com

TIPS: The summer is winding down and the whites are starting to migrate back to the north end of the lake. Use your electronics to locate the baitfish on the old river channel sand bars. Use Rat-L-Traps or shallow diving crankbaits when the fish are breaking the surface. When they go down, switch to a slab spoon or drag a tail spinner. The whites will usually school in the same areas around the same time of day. Look for the birds dive-bombing the baitfish that the whites have pushed to the surface.

LOCATION: Lake Fork HOTSPOT: Points, Coves and Creek Channels GPS: N 32 50.4179, W 95 34.683 (32.8403, -95.5781) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Top water lures, spinnerbaits, crankbaits CONTACT: Lance Vick 903-312-0609 lance@lakeforkbass.com www.guideonlakefork.com TIPS: Lake Fork’s water usually turns over in September and that means finding active bass can be a bit hard at times. Overcome this by looking for bass shallow as the deeper water is turning over. Two things to look for are grass and shad around points, coves and creek channels. Grass produces oxygen and draws both bass and shad into these areas during turnover. Top water lures, spinnerbaits and crankbaits are great lures to find bass this time of year. When you find them slow down and fish Texas rigged worms like a Grandebass Airtail Wiggler or Mega Tail in watermelon red and trophy hunter color. Good fishin’! LOCATION: Lake Livingston HOTSPOT: 190 Flats GPS: N 30 44.226, W 95 6.3 (30.7371, -95.1050) SPECIES: White Bass BEST BAITS: Live shad, 1 ¼ oz. white slabs, spoons, Tsunami Holographic 4 inch Swim Shad in hot pink/gold CONTACT: David S. Cox, Palmetto Guide Service 936-291-9602 dave@palmettoguideservice.com www.palmettoguideservice.com TIPS: Bounce baits off the bottom. Best times to fish are early morning and late evening. Watch for surface schooling fish mostly early. Best with a southeast wind less than 10 mph or no wind. This area is a large flat, mostly 12’-15’ with some humps to 11’. When the fish are here they can be scattered all over the flat and at times can stack up on the humps. Fish these flats while moving around slowly with the trolling motor. LOCATION: Toledo Bend HOTSPOT: Bayou Seipe Boat Lane

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FISHING HOTSPOTS TexasOklahomaFishingGuide.com TIPS: For bass, throw spinnerbaits and Rat-L-Traps along the weed line. Crappie are under the bridge this time of year. Minnows and jigs are your best bet right now.

PRAIRIES & LAKES

Somerville Cats Run the Rails

LOCATION: Cedar Creek Lake HOTSPOT: Bridge Pillars GPS: N 32 18.294, W 96 6.738 (32.3049, -96.1123) SPECIES: Crappie BEST BAITS: Jigs, minnows CONTACT: Jason Barber 903-603-2047 kingscreekadventures@yahoo.com www.kingscreekadventures.com TIPS: Fish all bridges and look for suspended ﬁsh around concrete pillars.

by DUSTIN WARNCKE and DEAN HEFFNER LOCATION: Lake Somerville HOTSPOT: Welch Park Roadbed GPS: N 30 19.86, W 96 32.7359 (30.3310, -96.5456) SPECIES: Catfish BEST BAITS: CJ’s Monster Punch bait CONTACT: Weldon Kirk 979-229-3103 weldon_edna@hotmail.com www.fishtales-guideservice.com TIPS: Water drops off here into the roadbed. Use a Carolina rig and fish the bottom. Toss out some chum where you are casting.

LOCATION: Eagle Mountain Lake HOTSPOT: Twin Points humps GPS: N 32 53.155, W 97 29.658 (32.8859, -97.4943) SPECIES: White bass BEST BAITS: Slab with a fly 12” above CONTACT: Johnny Stevens 817-597-6598 johnnystevens@1scom.net johnnysguideservice.com TIPS: This area is three large humps in the middle of the lake. The top of these humps are 24 feet surrounded by 32 feet of water. Work the edges of these humps with your electronics. When fish are located jig up and down with your slab and fly. The humps can be worked by fan casting and hopping your slab and fly just off the bottom to the boat.

LOCATION: Bachman Lake HOTSPOT: Main Lake GPS: N 32 51.1859, W 96 52.014 (32.8531, -96.8669) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass and Crappie BEST BAITS: Bass: spinnerbaits and Rat-L-Traps | Crappie: minnows and jigs CONTACT: Carey Thorn 469-528-0210 thorn_alex@yahoo.com

LOCATION: Fayette County HOTSPOT: South East Trees GPS: N 29 54.948, W 96 43.0619 (29.9158, -96.7177) SPECIES: Catfish BEST BAITS: CJ’s punch Bait CONTACT: Weldon Kirk 979-229-3103 weldon_edna@hotmail.com www.fishtales-guideservice.com TIPS: The trees that are away from the bank are in 20-foot water. Casting will hang up on the trees, so fish straight down. Water has not cooled much yet, so look for fish close to the bottom. LOCATION: Gibbons Creek HOTSPOT: Sulfur Creek- Creek bed GPS: N 39 37.6139, W 96 3.108 (39.6269, -96.0518) SPECIES: Catfish BEST BAITS: Shad or CJ’s bait CONTACT: Weldon Kirk 979-229-3103 weldon_edna@hotmail.com www.fishtales-guideservice.com TIPS: You will be fishing in 16-20 foot water. Fish pass this area going to and coming from Sulphur Creek to main lake. Tight line with an egg sinker here. LOCATION: Granger Lake HOTSPOT: Main Lake GPS: N 30 42.306, W 97 20.9279 (30.7051, -97.3488) SPECIES: Crappie BEST BAITS: Crappie jigs CONTACT: Tommy Tidwell (512) 365-7761 crappie1@hotmail.com www.gotcrappie.com TIPS: People always ask me when is the very best time to catch crappie at Granger Lake. I always tell them that it is September. The crappie have been feeding on shad all summer and gain about a quarter inch in length every 20 days (according to TP&W biologists). So fish that were just short in July will all be keepers in September. The best bait is a 1/32 oz. marabou jig tipped with a Berkley Crappie Nibble. Be sure to tie the jig using a loop knot. This makes a big difference in your catch rate. Fish brush or plastic trees in 4 to 15 feet of water. The main reason this time of year is better than the spring is that the weather is stable and crowds are small with most people hunting or watching football. Good luck and good fishing. LOCATION: Lake Granbury HOTSPOT: Twin humps near town GPS: N 32 26.404, W 97 46.977 (32.4401, -97.7830) SPECIES: White Bass (sandbass) BEST BAITS: Holographic slabs in silver and chartreuse. CONTACT: Michael W. Acosta, Unfair Advantage Charters

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FISHING HOTSPOTS 817-578-0023 TIPS: Look for bait congregated on or near the bottom in around 15 to 20 ft. of water. Work channel ledges and humps near deep water. Summer patterns continue for most of the month. The Texas heat is starting to taper off, but ﬁshing continues to be best early and late. Thermoclines are starting to disappear and lake turnover is starting when the surface is cooling. White bass are located near structure and are feeding on near drop offs in 15 to 20 feet of water. LOCATION: Lake Lavon HOTSPOT: Main Lake Points GPS: N 33 5.5859, W 96 29.1047 (33.0931, -96.4851) SPECIES: White Bass BEST BAITS: “1-18 ft. Chartreuse and white spinnerbaits, creature baits, crankbaits” CONTACT: Carey Thorn 469-528-0210 thorn_alex@yahoo.com TexasOklahomaFishingGuide.com TIPS: “Fish main lake points and humps early morning concentrating in 1-18 foot depths with chartreuse and white spinnerbaits. Fish with creature baits and crankbaits as the sun comes up.”

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LOCATION: Lake Palestine HOTSPOT: Cottonwood Creek GPS: N 32 16.9859, W 95 29.9399 (32.2831, -95.4990) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Mister Twister Pocket Craws in watermelon red, Shimmy Shakers in threadfin shad color, black and blue Big Eye Jigs from Texas Spinnerbait Company in 1/4 oz. to 1/2 oz. CONTACT: Ricky Vandergriff 903-561-7299 or 903-530-2201 ricky@rickysguideservice.com www.rickysguideservice.com TIPS: “Bass fishing is best this time of year in 2-5 feet water up next to grass or weeds. Fish slow for best results. Fish Shimmy Shakers and Big Eye jigs along the creeks and sloughs.” LOCATION: Lake Lewisville HOTSPOT: Main Lake Points and Humps GPS: N 33.110965 W 96.965304 (33.110965, -96.965304) SPECIES: White Bass and Hybrids BEST BAITS: Live shad CONTACT: Tommy Gravley – Lewisville Catfish Guide Service

214-534-9330 www.lewisvillecatfish.com TIPS: Sand bass and hybrid fishing is good right now. Look for schools of fish that are scattered on humps and main lake points. LOCATION: Lake Lewisville HOTSPOT: Main Lake Points and Humps GPS: N 33.110965 W 96.965304 (33.110965, -96.965304) SPECIES: Catfish BEST BAITS: Punch bait, cut shad, live shad, and perch CONTACT: Tommy Gravley – Lewisville Catfish Guide Service 214-534-9330 www.lewisvillecatfish.com TIPS: Channel catfish are good shallow on windblown gravel and clay shorelines on punch bait. Fishing is also decent in deeper timber. Blue Cats are fair on main lake humps and points on cut shad and perch. Blues and channels are good at creek mouths when we get a little rain.

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FISHING HOTSPOTS LOCATION: Lake Palestine HOTSPOT: Kickapoo Creek GPS: N 32.296834 W 95.503931 (32.296834, -95.503931) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Shimmy shakers , spinner baits, and frogs CONTACT: Ricky Vandergriff 903-561-7299 or 903-530-2201 ricky@rickysguideservice.COM www. rickysguideservice.COM TIPS: Fishing is good for Largemouth Bass. Fish pockets around the islands of Kickapoo Creek and Kickapoo Cove. Use Shimmy shakers , spinner baits, and frogs along weed lines.

CONTACT: The Cajun Guide, Johnny Procell 972-814-8942 cajunguide@att.net www.johnnyprocell.com TIPS: Crappie will be under all the bridges and will hold near the bridge supports. As a general rule they will be about two feet from the bottom and will be located in the deepest water. A good spot to try is on the eastern most I-30 bridge. From the east, count three bridge supports and ﬁsh this area, both under the expressway bridge and the railroad bridge, which is immediately north of this location. This spot is where the East Fork ran under the bridges as it travelled south. Small minnows will work but by far the best attractant will be various in one quarter to one eighth ounce colored curly tailed jigs.

LOCATION: Lake Ray Hubbard HOTSPOT: Main Lake Reeds and Shoreline GPS: N 32 51.96, W 96 32.082 (32.8660, -96.5347) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Chugbug, Tiny Torpedos, buzz baits, and spinnerbaits CONTACT: The Cajun Guide/Johnny Procell (972) 814-8942 cajunguide@att.net www.johnnyprocell.com TIPS: Due to the huge amount of water released from upstream (Lake Lavon) all the grass that normally grows in the upper lake was swept away and the river is free of all cover except for the reeds, which grow in great abundance along side the river channel. It is in those spots where big bass lurk and they will hit top water lures. Buzzbaits and spinnerbaits ﬁshed right against the shore will also provoke vicious strikes.

LOCATION: Lake Ray Roberts HOTSPOT: Lake Brush Pile GPS: N 33 24.127, W 97 5.314 (33.4021, -97.0886) SPECIES: Crappie & white bass BEST BAITS: Minnows, 3/4-1oz slabs CONTACT: Justin Wilson 214-538-2780 justinwilson371@yahoo.com TIPS: Still feels like summer out there but the occasional cool nights should start to help lowering the water temps. White bass are still really good. Not seeing as much topwater as the past months but starting to see some big schools off the main lake points in 20-40 feet of water. Once you find them, slabs jigged off the bottom usually make quick work of filling a cooler. The crappie bite is on, still catching quite a few smaller fish but the keeper/throwback ratio has been getting better with the occasional big fish. Look for these fish holding close to brush piles in 25-30 foot of water. Jigs are working but the quality of fish seems to be better on minnows.

LOCATION: Lake Ray Hubbard HOTSPOT: I-30 Bridge GPS: N 32.890766 W 96.486486 (32.890766, -96.486486) SPECIES: Crappie BEST BAITS: Small minnows, various ¼ to 1/8ounce colored curly tailed jigs

LOCATION: Richland Chambers HOTSPOT: Windsock Point GPS: N 31 56.424, W 96 7.194 (31.9404, -96.1199) SPECIES: White Bass

BEST BAITS: Clear Tiny Torpedoes and chrome/ blue 1/4 oz. Rat-L-Traps CONTACT: Royce Simmons 903-389-4117 simmonsroyce@hotmail.com www.gonefishin.biz TIPS: “Early morning and late afternoon are the best times to find acres of schooling white bass on Richland Chambers. Check out the south shoreline from Ferguson Point to Windsock Point. This action is at its peak in August and September and is AWESOME for kids and adults who think like kids! Bank Access: Fisherman’s Point Marina.” LOCATION: Lake Texoma HOTSPOT: Sherwood Shores GPS: N 33 51.6119, W 96 48.5579 (33.8602, -96.8093) SPECIES: Striped Bass BEST BAITS: Slabs, Coho minnow jigs CONTACT: Bill Carey 903-786-4477 bigfish@striperexpress.com www.striperexpress.com TIPS: “Stripers are moving out of the deep water and roaming the flats in September. The lures of choice are slabs and jigs. Vertically jig one-ounce chrome, white and chartreuse slabs along the bottom in 10 to 30 foot depths. Coho minnows in white glow color with a ¾ ounce jig head and a four- inch tail is perfect for these hungry stripers. Cast the jigs and use a medium retrieve. If you find surfacing or swirling fish, cast the jig, hold your rod high and keep the jig sub-surface. Bank Access: Mill Creek Campsites.” LOCATION: Lake Texoma HOTSPOT: Texas Flats and Mill Creek Flats GPS: N 33.822037 W 96.768752 (33.822037, -96.768752) SPECIES: Striped bass Best Striper Baits: Slabs and Coho Minnow Jigs CONTACT: CONTACT: Bill Carey 903-660-5989 bigfish@striperexpress.com www.striperexpress.com TIPS: Stripers are moving out of the deep water and roaming the flats in September. The lures of choice are slabs and jigs. Vertically jig one-ounce chrome, white and chartreuse slabs along the bottom in ten to thirty foot depths. Coho minnow jigs in white glow color with a ¾ ounce jighead and a four-inch tail are perfect for these hungry stripers. Cast the jigs and use a medium retrieve. If you find surfacing or swirling fish, cast the jig, hold your rod high and keep the jig subsurface. Bank Access: Mill Creek Campsites LOCATION: Lake Whitney HOTSPOT: McCowan Flats GPS: N 31 56.886, W 97 24.2699 (31.9481, -97.4045) SPECIES: Striped Bass

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FISHING HOTSPOTS BEST BAITS: 1/2 oz. buck tail jigs with plastic trailers or the Snake Worm from Striper Sniper (www. stripersniper.com) CONTACT: Randy Routh 817-822-5539 teamredneck01@hotmail.com www.teamredneck.net TIPS: The thermocline has set in and the stripers are hanging out on top of it. This time of year turns into a reaction type strike a lot of times. The fish will feed early, late or even at night when it’s cooler. Using down riggers 1/2 oz. buck tail jigs with plastic trailers troll the flats and ledges and edges anywhere from 13’ to 18’ down. Keep in mind the thermocline usually sets in at 22’ on Whitney so keep your baits above it. I ran across a new bait that is producing a lot of fish on the reaction strike and it is the Snake Worm from Striper Sniper www.stripersniper.com. I’m rigging it behind a 1/2 oz. buck tail jig and pulling them behind my down riggers around 18’ to 20’ deep. These supposedly replicate an eel, which is a saltwater stripers favorite food source. I guess it’s in their DNA because they work on fresh water stripers great. I ordered some and the fish have been absolutely wearing them out trolling. Now is the time to come fish Whitney! Hope to see you on the water!

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LOCATION: Lake Whitney HOTSPOT: Striper Point GPS: N 31 54.858, W 97 23.064 (31.9143, -97.3844) SPECIES: Striped Bass BEST BAITS: Cut Gizzard Shad and top water lures and swim baits like the Redﬁn, pencil Popper and chartreuse 3” swim baits and lead heads. CONTACT: Randy Routh 817-822-5539 teamredneck01@hotmail.com www.teamredneck.net TIPS: Don’t go if you have a weak heart! There is nothing like catching big stripers on top water. Run the shoreline casting the big top water baits and swim baits up to the shoreline and work them back to the boat. Just remember DO NOT set the hook when they blow up, wait till you feel the rod load up! After the sun gets up back off to the same type areas and cut fresh gizzard shad and make long cats on main lake points and humps. Leave the reel disengaged with the clicker on. The ﬁsh will pick up the bait and make a run. When it stops set the hook and hang on.

PANHANDLE

Bass on a Ledge at Alan Henry by DUSTIN WARNCKE and DEAN HEFFNER LOCATION: Lake Alan Henry HOTSPOT: Main Lake Flats and Ledges GPS: N 33 2.634, W 101 4.914 (33.0439, -101.0819) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Popr’s, Torpedoes, drop shots, Carolina rigs, spoons, Texas rigs, jigs CONTACT: Norman Clayton’s Guide Services 806-792-9220 nclayton42@sbcglobal.net http://www.lakealanhenry.com/norman_clayton.htm TIPS: “September will find the bass still deep unless several cold fronts start rolling into the area. Bass will be mostly 25 to 35 feet on the deep flats and ledges. Early in the morning should find bass hit-

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FISHING HOTSPOTS ting top water lures. When it gets hot, try drop shots, Carolina rigs, spoons, Texas rigs, and jigs. Look for flats around the mouth of all the creeks on the lake.” LOCATION: Lake Leon HOTSPOT: Main Lake GPS: N 32 21.9264, W 98 40.6302 (32.3654, -98.6772) SPECIES: Channel Catfish BEST BAITS: dough bait, shrimp CONTACT: Michael D. Homer Jr., Texas Parks & Wildlife Department 325-692-0921 michael.homer@tpwd.texas.gov TIPS: Lake Leon has been producing some goodsized channel catfish. Consider using dipbaits, dough baits, chicken livers, and/or shrimp. Fishermen may occasionally catch decent smallmouth buffalo and common carp. LOCATION: Possum Kingdom HOTSPOT: Caddo Bay GPS: N 32 51.234, W 98 32.291 (32.8539, -98.5382) SPECIES: Largemouth, striped & white bass, and crappie BEST BAITS: Live shad, jigs, spoons, slabs

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CONTACT: Dean Heffner 940-329-0036 fav774@aceweb.com TIPS: Look for the stripers to start mixing with the white bass mid-lake. There is still some topwater action too, but live shad is best and next best are jigs tipped with Mister Twister curly tails and slabs. Largemouth bass and crappie will be moving from their deep-water haunts to shallower brush piles to ambush shad and will readily take spoons and jigs. Smaller jigs for crappie and beeﬁer ones for largemouth. This is a great time of the year for a wall hanger or a ﬁsh fry. LOCATION: Lake Leon HOTSPOT: Mountain Branch Point GPS: N 32 21.264 W 98 41.424 (32.3544, -98.6904) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Crankbaits, minnows CONTACT: Dean Heffner 940-329-0036 fav7734@aceweb.com TIPS: Bass like hanging around those shady boat houses too or around the bends of the lake by the grasses and stumps. Throw out your favorite crank bait or big bass minnow and see what you can catch. Lake

Leon is full, and just south of I-20 at Ranger, makes a perfect late-summer vacation. If you come, be sure to pick up your bait at the Barn Too.Remember if you get live bait, keep them in an aerated minnow bucket. If you throw your minnow bucket over the side, they cannot get any oxygen off the top of the water, due to the heat. So sink it a few feet below the surface. LOCATION: Possum Kingdom HOTSPOT: Broadway GPS: N 32 51.89, W 98 32.5 (32.8648, -98.5417) SPECIES: Largemouth & white bass BEST BAITS: Spoons, slabs, crankbaits, topwaters, Little Georges CONTACT: Dean Heffner 940-329-0036 fav7734@aceweb.com TIPS: Use your graph to follow the breaklines and look for ﬁsh stacked up. I start to use slabs and jigs this time of year but live bait is best. Also keep a topwater handy for schooling action as you can see along ways on Broadway and there’s still a lot of topwater activity, especially under the cloud cover. White bass are all over, and easy pickings—remember to back off the big motor and don’t spook ‘em. Largemouth bass are falling prey to spoons, slabs and crankbaits

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FISHING HOTSPOTS and just about anything else you drop on them. In some cases, especially around Sandy Beach, they may school up.

LOCATION: Lake Buchanan HOTSPOT: Dam Area and Middle of Main Lake GPS: N 30 48.402, W 98 26.124 (30.8067, -98.4354) SPECIES: Striped Bass BEST BAITS: Zara Spooks and other topwaters, slabs, jigs, live perch and shad CONTACT: Ken Milam 325-379-2051 kmilam@verizon.net www.striperfever.com.com TIPS: September can be a great month for fishing Lake Buchanan. In years past we have had schools of top water stripers. I hope this year will be one of those years! Watch for seagulls feeding over schooling fish. It could be white bass or stripers and hybrids. One thing’s for sure, have a Zara Spook or some other top water bait handy. Along with that, you can fish slabs or jigs around the dam or the middle of the main lake.

BIG BEND

Amistad Bass Hit the Road by DUSTIN WARNCKE LOCATION: Amistad HOTSPOT: Highway 277 GPS: N29 30.32178, W100 54.9906 (29.505363, -100.91651) SPECIES: largemouth bass BEST BAITS: Zara spooks, Odom football jigs, plastic lizards CONTACT: James Burkeen 830-734-9652 jjburkeen@gmail.com amistadbassin.com TIPS: The hydrilla is scattered in this area but thickening. Use Zara Spooks early, especially on cloudy days, and ﬁsh the points below the highways. At midmorning, move out to the hydrilla where it drops off into deep water and work Odom football jigs in greenpumpkin or Falcon Craw colors. Texas-rigged plastic lizards also work good in the hydrilla.

LOCATION: Lake Austin HOTSPOT: Docks by Deep Water and Over-Hanging Brush GPS: N 30 19.464, W 97 50.316 (30.3244, -97.8386) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Pacemaker Jig, V&M Twin Tail Trailer, V&M Wild Craw Jr, Picasso Shock Blade, Picasso Tungsten Flipping Weight CONTACT: Brian Parker - Lake Austin Fishing 817-808-2227 lakeaustinfishing@yahoo.com www.LakeAustinFishing.com TIPS: September is typically a hot water month, which means these fish want to hide in the shadows. I enjoy flipping the Pacemaker Adrenaline jig with a V&M Twin Tail or Wild Craw trailer to each post of docks or skipping a my jig in the back of the docks. I also like flipping under heavy brush with a Picasso Tungsten Flipping weight (the only polished bore tungsten on the market) with a Wild Craw trailer. The good thing about flipping is you can cover water quickly and effectively by targeting areas that hold fish. If a dock reaches out into the lake, I’ll pick up a Picasso Shock Blade and run it beside the dock pilings for that reaction bite. It’s good to throw at the same pilings more than once to give them another chance if they missed it the first time.

HILL COUNTRY

Mid-Lake to Dam for Stripers by DUSTIN WARNCKE LOCATION: Lake Buchanan HOTSPOT: Mid-Lake to Dam Area GPS: N 30 45.2219, W 98 25.98 (30.7537, -98.4330) SPECIES: Striped Bass BEST BAITS: Live shad, Roadrunner jigs with flirt tails in white/chartreuse CONTACT: Clancy Terrill 512-633-6742 centraltexasfishing@gmail.com www.centraltexasfishing.com TIPS: “Striper can be found early and late mid-lake to dam area. Drift live bait in 30 to 60 feet of water around 20 to 30 foot down, especially over tops of trees. Down rigging with Roadrunner jigs with flirt tails has been good as well.”

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LOCATION: Lake Austin HOTSPOT: Highway 360 Bridge GPS: N 30.350588 W 97.797101 (30.350588, -97.797101) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Pacemaker jigs, Picasso Shakey Heads, Picasso Spinnerbaits, and V&M plastics CONTACT: Brian Parker - Lake Austin Fishing 817-808-2227 lakeaustinﬁshing@yahoo.com, www.LakeAustinFishing.com TIPS: September, October, and November are months of transition for many of the ﬁsheries in Texas because |

T E X A S

F I S H

of the weather changes and feeding cycles. The water temperatures are usually the highest in September, which has the fish, stationed for deeper feeding or feeding around cover. With this in mind, be prepared by throwing the right baits. My success has been with Pacemaker jigs, Picasso Shakey Heads, Picasso Spinnerbaits, and V&M plastics around deep docks and other cover close to deep water. Persistence will reward the patient in September. Tightlines Premium Fishing Tackle and Fisherman’s Corner (aka www. texasbasstackle.com) carry an extensive line of Picasso Lures and V&M baits that have brought me success at Lake Austin. LOCATION: Lake Buchanan HOTSPOT: Shaw Island GPS: N 30.821015 W 98.427477 (30.821015, -98.427477) SPECIES: White Bass BEST BAITS: Top water lures like the Tiny Torpedo CONTACT: Ken Milam 325-379-2051 kmilam@verizon.net www.striperfever.com TIPS: White bass are around the Shaw Island area. Watch for some top water action! LOCATION: Canyon Lake HOTSPOT: Canyon Lake Marina GPS: N 29.909503 W 98.238244 (29.909503, -98.238244) SPECIES: Largemouth bass BEST BAITS: ¼ oz. Shakey Head, Carolina rigged Watermelon flukes (1/2 oz. or ¾ oz. Picasso Tungsten weights), Senko type baits Texas rigged or weightless, use flukes weightless as well. CONTACT: KC’S Bassin’ Guide Service kandie@gvtc.com www.kcbassinguide.com TIPS: Be sure and fish the point near the drop off slowly. Work the shallows early and then move into the deeper depths. Bass are in their later summer homes and, with the weather being warm, are not opt to be aggressive in nature. Use a good rod like KC’s Rodz in Heavy Wt. 7’ for Carolina rigging. This rod can handle anything you get into and then some. Good summer colors include, watermelon red, blue fleck, June bug. If really sunny), try watermelon candy and dip it in chartreuse. Go early and remember to hydrate regularly with water, wear a hat, sunglasses, and sun screen. LOCATION: Canyon Lake HOTSPOT: Turkey Creek Point GPS: N 29 51.7079, W 98 12.948 (29.8618, -98.2158) SPECIES: Striped Bass BEST BAITS: Sassy Shad in pearl color CONTACT: Capt. Steve Nixon, Fishhooks Adventures (210) 573-1230 capt.steve@sanantoniofishingguides.com www.sanantoniofishingguides.com TIPS: Trolling this area with downriggers seems to

G A M E ®

8/15/17 4:26 PM

FISHING HOTSPOTS produce the best catches. Set the downriggers from 40 to 60 feet deep and look for schools of striped bass. When located, vary trolling speeds until the fish strike. Tight lines and fish on! LOCATION: Canyon Lake HOTSPOT: North Park Point GPS: N 29 52.1579, W 98 12.36 (29.8693, -98.2060) SPECIES: Bass and Crappie BEST BAITS: Worms, drop-shot rigs, crankbaits, buzzbaits and topwater baits CONTACT: Teach ‘Em to Fish Guide Service-Barry Dodd 210-771-0123 barry@teachemtofish.net www.teachemtofish.net TIPS: Bass and crappie remain in their summer patters of holding near the thermocline, along deep-water ledges, points and cover. Look for both species along points intersecting with a significant depth change. Also look for vegetation near the main lake. Generally speaking, the best and most comfortable times to fish in this Texas heat are daybreak until 10 AM, after 7 PM and at night. The 1/3 of the lake closest to the dam will supply the best water temperature and oxygen content. There is a brush piles on this point and very good breaks and ledges into deeper water. Watch for schooling fish early.

Dodd 210-771-0123 barry@teachemtofish.net www.teachemtofish.net TIPS: Bass and crappie remain in their summer patters of holding near the thermocline, along deep-water ledges, points and cover. Look for both species along points intersecting with a significant depth change. Also look for vegetation near the main lake. Generally speaking, the best and most comfortable times to fish in this Texas heat are daybreak until 10 AM, after 7 PM and at night. The 1/3 of the lake closest to the dam will supply the best water temperature and oxygen content. Work the inner vegetation very early with buzzbaits, spinnerbaits, topwaters and lipless cranks then move more to the weed line throwing lipped cranks and plastics after about 8 AM.

LOCATION: Falcon Lake HOTSPOT: Big Tiger GPS: N26 43.10676, W99 9.29274 (26.718446, -99.154879) SPECIES: largemouth bass BEST BAITS: Zara Spooks, 3/8-ounce jigs, spinnerbaits CONTACT: Robert Amaya 956-765-1442 robertsﬁshntackle@gmail.com robertsﬁshntackle.com TIPS: The best action in the brush close to the shore will come early unless there is cloud cover, which will extend the action longer into the morning. Fish Zara Spooks or similar lures close to the bank in the pockets between the brush and stickups. Once the sun begins to rise, pitch black-brown or black-blue jigs into the brush and work them slowly. Texas-rigged soft plastics also will work well in and around the brush and stickups.

SOUTH TEXAS

Heat Still on at Coleto Creek by DUSTIN WARNCKE

LOCATION: Canyon Res. HOTSPOT: Canyon Lake Marina GPS: N 29 54.576, W 98 14.2979 (29.9096, -98.2383) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: ¼ oz. Shakey Head, Carolina rigged Watermelon flukes (1/2 oz. or ¾ oz. Tru-Tungsten weights), Senko type baits Texas rigged or weightless, use flukes weightless as well CONTACT: KC’S Bassin’ Guide Service 210-823-2153 kandie@gvtc.com www.kcbassinguide.com TIPS: “Be sure and fish the point near the drop off slowly. Work the shallows early and then move into the deeper depths. Bass are in their later summer homes and with the weather being warm are not opt to be aggressive in nature. Use a good rod like A DENALI rod in heavy weight and 7’ for Carolina rigging. This rod can handle anything you get into and then some. Good summer colors include, watermelon red, blue fleck, June bug, (if really sunny) watermelon candy (dip it in chartreuse).Go early remember to hydrate regularly with water, wear hat & sunglasses, sun screen and snacks.”

LOCATION: Coleto Creek HOTSPOT: Main Lake GPS: N 28 45.732, W 97 11.082 (28.7622, -97.1847) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Zoom fluke in pearl white, small spinnerbaits in white with Colorado blades or gold blades CONTACT: Rocky’s Guide Service 361-960-0566 TIPS: September is finally our last hot month of the year. I like to take advantage of those cloudy and light rainy days and so do the fish. A little wind mixed with this weather can make the spinnerbait action great. Personally I like small white ones with Colorado blades. Usually I always use gold blades but silver can be just as effective. Also I like murky water. And so do the big bass. Early morning I also throw my Zoom pearl white fluke. I throw it weightless with a 3-4/0 worm hook rigged weedless. As the sun comes up I like to dip the little split tail in chartreuse. It just triggers the bite a little better. Take plenty to drink and take a pair of swimming trunks. A little dip in the water sure cools things off and makes the trip a little better. May your bites be big and your fish be healthy.

LOCATION: Lake LBJ HOTSPOT: Kelly AFB Park Point GPS: N 30 33.732, W 98 20.988 (30.5622, -98.3498) SPECIES: Bass and Crappie BEST BAITS: Worms, drop-shot rigs, crankbaits, buzzbaits and topwater baits CONTACT: Teach ‘Em to Fish Guide Service-Barry

LOCATION: Coleto Creek Lake HOTSPOT: Main Lake GPS: N 28 45.054, W 97 11.5799 (28.7509, -97.1930) SPECIES: Largemouth Bass BEST BAITS: Rat-L-Trap Carolina rigged, topwater lures CONTACT: Rocky’s Guide Service361-960-0566 www.coletocreekguideﬁshing.com T E X A S

TexasOutdoorNation-1709-DIG.indd 69

TIPS: “Here we are in the last hot month of the year. Bass should still be deep in the grass. Work the outside edges. Usually hydrilla will grow out to about twelve foot. I like to throw my Carolina-Rigged Rat-LTrap up to where the grass is around ﬁve foot and work it out, or even parallel on the deepest part or the very outside. Early morning should be explosive with top water baits. As always take plenty to drink and have lots of fun.

F I S H

G A M E ®

S E P T E M B E R

2 0 1 7

8/15/17 4:26 PM

Sportsman’s DAYBOOK MONDAY

Sunrise: 6:54a Set: 7:45p Moonrise: 1:18p Set: None AM Minor: 11:28a AM Major: 5:16a PM Minor: 11:50p PM Major: 5:39p Moon Overhead: 6:53p Moon Underfoot: 6:31a

PRIME TIME

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

2:52AM 8:25AM 4:28PM

1.17 ft. 1.27 ft. 0.38 ft.

TUESDAY

6:00 — 8:00 PM

FEET

29 º

PRIME TIME

High Tide: Low Tide:

1:19AM 5:32PM

1.32 ft. 0.34 ft.

1:00 — 3:00 PM

FEET

Sunrise: 6:54a Set: 7:44p Moonrise: 2:10p Set: 12:26a AM Minor: ----AM Major: 6:03a PM Minor: 12:14p PM Major: 6:26p Moon Overhead: 7:39p Moon Underfoot: 7:16a

High Tide: Low Tide: FEET

+3.0

+2.0

+1.0

12a

12p

12a 12a

FRIDAY

Sep 1 High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

PRIME TIME 3:57AM 10:27AM 11:31AM 8:06PM

1.51 ft. 1.34 ft. 1.34 ft. 0.25 ft.

4:00 — 6:00 PM

FEET

12p

12a 12a

SATURDAY Sunrise: 6:56a Set: 7:41p Moonrise: 4:38p Set: 2:38a AM Minor: 2:03a AM Major: 8:15a PM Minor: 2:27p PM Major: 8:39p Moon Overhead: 10:03p Moon Underfoot: 9:39a

PRIME TIME

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

4:15AM 10:06AM 12:50PM 8:43PM

1.53 ft. 1.34 ft. 1.38 ft. 0.23 ft.

5:00 — 7:00 PM

FEET

Sunrise: 6:56a Set: 7:40p Moonrise: 5:23p Set: 3:29a AM Minor: 2:46a AM Major: 8:59a PM Minor: 3:11p PM Major: 9:23p Moon Overhead: 10:52p Moon Underfoot: 10:27a

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: FEET

+3.0

+2.0

+1.0

12a

12p

S E P T E M B E R

TexasOutdoorNation-1709-DIG.indd 70

3p 2 0 1 7

T E X A S

12a 12a

F I S H

12p

12a 12a

G A M E ®

8/15/17 4:26 PM

44p 2:26a : 6:03a : 6:26p

40p 29a : 8:59a : 9:23p

DIGITAL TIDE BUILDER WEDNESDAY

PRIME TIME

High Tide: Low Tide:

3:06AM 6:31PM

1.41 ft. 0.31 ft.

2:00 — 4:00 PM

FEET

THURSDAY

Sunrise: 6:55a Set: 7:43p Moonrise: 3:01p Set: 1:07a AM Minor: 12:36a AM Major: 6:48a PM Minor: 12:59p PM Major: 7:11p Moon Overhead: 8:26p Moon Underfoot: 8:03a

Aug 31 High Tide: Low Tide:

+3.0

+2.0

+1.0

12p

3:37AM 7:22PM

1.47 ft. 0.27 ft.

3:00 — 5:00 PM

FEET

+3.0

12a 12a

PRIME TIME

12a 12a

Sunrise: 6:55a Set: 7:42p Moonrise: 3:50p Set: 1:51a AM Minor: 1:20a AM Major: 7:32a PM Minor: 1:44p PM Major: 7:56p Moon Overhead: 9:14p Moon Underfoot: 8:50a

12p

12a

SUNDAY

PRIME TIME

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

4:34AM 9:55AM 1:50PM 9:18PM

1.55 ft. 1.30 ft. 1.42 ft. 0.23 ft.

6:00 — 8:00 AM

FEET

Sunrise: 6:57a Set: 7:39p Moonrise: 6:07p Set: 4:23a AM Minor: 3:30a AM Major: 9:43a PM Minor: 3:55p PM Major: 10:07p Moon Overhead: 11:41p Moon Underfoot: 11:17a

READING THE GRAPH

= FALLING TIDE = RISING TIDE = DAYLIGHT HOURS = NIGHTTIME HOURS

Moon l Moon Overhead l Underfoot

+3.0

+2.0

Fishing Score Graph

+1.0

Day’s Best Score

Day’s 2nd Best Score

Best Days Overall

MOON PHASES

l = New Moon l = Full Moon º = First Quarter » = Last Quarter «= Good Day by Moon Phase

12a 12a

12p

T E X A S

TexasOutdoorNation-1709-DIG.indd 71

12a

F I S H

G A M E ®

S E P T E M B E R

2 0 1 7

8/15/17 4:26 PM

MONDAY

4«

Sunrise: 6:57a Set: 7:37p Moonrise: 6:49p Set: 5:18a AM Minor: 4:15a AM Major: 10:27a PM Minor: 4:40p PM Major: 10:52p Moon Overhead: None Moon Underfoot: 12:06p

PRIME TIME

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

4:55AM 10:03AM 2:44PM 9:52PM

1.57 ft. 1.23 ft. 1.45 ft. 0.26 ft.

TUESDAY

11:00A — 1:00P

FEET

5«

PRIME TIME

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

5:16AM 10:24AM 3:37PM 10:26PM

1.57 ft. 1.14 ft. 1.48 ft. 0.32 ft.

12:00 — 2:00 PM

FEET

Sunrise: 6:58a Set: 7:36p Moonrise: 7:29p Set: 6:16a AM Minor: 5:01a AM Major: 11:13a PM Minor: 5:25p PM Major: 11:38p Moon Overhead: 12:30a Moon Underfoot: 12:55p

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: FEET

+3.0

+2.0

+1.0

12a

12p

12a 12a

FRIDAY

8«

PRIME TIME

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

6:20AM 12:08PM 6:38PM

1.51 ft. 0.71 ft. 1.49 ft.

2:00 — 4:00 PM

FEET

12p

12a 12a

SATURDAY Sunrise: 6:59a Set: 7:33p Moonrise: 9:24p Set: 9:13a AM Minor: 7:32a AM Major: 1:20a PM Minor: 7:57p PM Major: 1:44p Moon Overhead: 2:56a Moon Underfoot: 3:21p

PRIME TIME

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

12:19AM 6:38AM 12:52PM 7:53PM

0.77 ft. 1.48 ft. 0.55 ft. 1.49 ft.

3:00 — 5:00 PM

FEET

Sunrise: 7:00a Set: 7:32p Moonrise: 10:04p Set: 10:13a AM Minor: 8:27a AM Major: 2:15a PM Minor: 8:53p PM Major: 2:40p Moon Overhead: 3:46a Moon Underfoot: 4:11p

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: FEET

+3.0

+2.0

+1.0

12a

12p

S E P T E M B E R

TexasOutdoorNation-1709-DIG.indd 72

3p 2 0 1 7

T E X A S

12a 12a

F I S H

12p

12a 12a

G A M E ®

8/15/17 4:26 PM

WEDNESDAY

36p 16a : 11:13a : 11:38p

32p 0:13a : 2:15a : 2:40p

PRIME TIME

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

5:38AM 10:54AM 4:32PM 11:02PM

1.56 ft. 1.02 ft. 1.49 ft. 0.43 ft.

12:30 — 2:30 AM

FEET

THURSDAY

Sunrise: 6:58a Set: 7:35p Moonrise: 8:07p Set: 7:14a AM Minor: 5:49a AM Major: ----PM Minor: 6:13p PM Major: 12:01p Moon Overhead: 1:19a Moon Underfoot: 1:43p

7«

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

+3.0

+2.0

+1.0

12p

6:00AM 11:29AM 5:32PM 11:39PM

1.54 ft. 0.87 ft. 1.50 ft. 0.58 ft.

1:00 — 3:00 PM

FEET

+3.0

12a 12a

PRIME TIME

12a 12a

12p

Sunrise: 6:59a Set: 7:34p Moonrise: 8:45p Set: 8:13a AM Minor: 6:39a AM Major: 12:27a PM Minor: 7:04p PM Major: 12:51p Moon Overhead: 2:08a Moon Underfoot: 2:32p

12a

SUNDAY

PRIME TIME

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

1:01AM 6:53AM 1:42PM 9:21PM

0.99 ft. 1.47 ft. 0.40 ft. 1.50 ft.

3:30 — 5:30 AM

FEET

READING THE GRAPH

Sunrise: 7:00a Set: 7:30p Moonrise: 10:47p Set: 11:16a AM Minor: 9:25a AM Major: 3:12a PM Minor: 9:51p PM Major: 3:38p Moon Overhead: 4:37a Moon Underfoot: 5:03p

+3.0

= FALLING TIDE = RISING TIDE = DAYLIGHT HOURS = NIGHTTIME HOURS

Moon l Moon Overhead l Underfoot

+2.0

Fishing Score Graph

+1.0

Day’s Best Score

Day’s 2nd Best Score

Best Days Overall

MOON PHASES 0

12a 12a

TexasOutdoorNation-1709-DIG.indd 73

12p

12a

l = New Moon l = Full Moon º = First Quarter » = Last Quarter «= Good Day by Moon Phase

8/15/17 4:26 PM

Sportsman’s DAYBOOK MONDAY

Sunrise: 7:01a Set: 7:29p Moonrise: 11:33p Set: 12:19p AM Minor: 10:23a AM Major: 4:10a PM Minor: 10:50p PM Major: 4:37p Moon Overhead: 5:30a Moon Underfoot: 5:58p

PRIME TIME

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

1:47AM 7:03AM 2:40PM 11:00PM

1.21 ft. 1.48 ft. 0.27 ft. 1.54 ft.

TUESDAY

4:30 — 6:30 AM

FEET

PRIME TIME

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

2:44AM 7:02AM 3:46PM

1.41 ft. 1.51 ft. 0.17 ft.

12:00 — 2:00 PM

FEET

Sunrise: 7:01a Set: 7:28p Moonrise: None Set: 1:22p AM Minor: 11:22a AM Major: 5:08a PM Minor: 11:50p PM Major: 5:36p Moon Overhead: 6:26a Moon Underfoot: 6:54p

13 » High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: FEET

+3.0

+2.0

+1.0

12a

12p

12a 12a

FRIDAY

PRIME TIME

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

2:54AM 9:43AM 10:16AM 7:18PM

1.75 ft. 1.50 ft. 1.50 ft. 0.04 ft.

3:00 — 5:00 PM

FEET

12p

12a 12a

SATURDAY Sunrise: 7:03a Set: 7:24p Moonrise: 2:19a Set: 4:18p AM Minor: 1:41a AM Major: 7:56a PM Minor: 2:10p PM Major: 8:25p Moon Overhead: 9:19a Moon Underfoot: 9:48p

PRIME TIME

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

3:31AM 9:18AM 12:27PM 8:18PM

1.74 ft. 1.42 ft. 1.51 ft. 0.08 ft.

10:00A — 12:00P

FEET

Sunrise: 7:03a Set: 7:23p Moonrise: 3:21a Set: 5:09p AM Minor: 2:33a AM Major: 8:48a PM Minor: 3:02p PM Major: 9:16p Moon Overhead: 10:16a Moon Underfoot: 10:44p

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: FEET

+3.0

+2.0

+1.0

12a

12p

S E P T E M B E R

TexasOutdoorNation-1709-DIG.indd 74

3p 2 0 1 7

T E X A S

12a 12a

F I S H

12p

12a 12a

G A M E ®

8/15/17 4:27 PM

28p 22p : 5:08a : 5:36p

23p 09p : 8:48a : 9:16p

WEDNESDAY

13 »

PRIME TIME

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

12:41AM 4:46AM 5:45AM 4:58PM

1.63 ft. 1.55 ft. 1.55 ft. 0.10 ft.

1:00 — 3:00 PM

FEET

THURSDAY

Sunrise: 7:02a Set: 7:27p Moonrise: 12:24a Set: 2:24p AM Minor: ----AM Major: 6:06a PM Minor: 12:20p PM Major: 6:35p Moon Overhead: 7:23a Moon Underfoot: 7:52p

High Tide: Low Tide:

+3.0

+2.0

+1.0

12p

2:02AM 6:11PM

1.71 ft. 0.05 ft.

2:00 — 4:00 PM

FEET

+3.0

12a 12a

PRIME TIME

12a 12a

12p

Sunrise: 7:02a Set: 7:25p Moonrise: 1:19a Set: 3:23p AM Minor: 12:47a AM Major: 7:02a PM Minor: 1:17p PM Major: 7:31p Moon Overhead: 8:21a Moon Underfoot: 8:50p

12a

SUNDAY

PRIME TIME

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

4:01AM 9:32AM 1:50PM 9:11PM

1.70 ft. 1.30 ft. 1.55 ft. 0.16 ft.

10:30A — 12:30P

FEET

Sunrise: 7:04a Set: 7:22p Moonrise: 4:23a Set: 5:55p AM Minor: 3:23a AM Major: 9:37a PM Minor: 3:51p PM Major: 10:04p Moon Overhead: 11:12a Moon Underfoot: 11:38p

READING THE GRAPH

+3.0

= FALLING TIDE = RISING TIDE = DAYLIGHT HOURS = NIGHTTIME HOURS

Moon l Moon Overhead l Underfoot

+2.0

Fishing Score Graph

+1.0

Day’s Best Score

Day’s 2nd Best Score

Best Days Overall

MOON PHASES 0

12a 12a

TexasOutdoorNation-1709-DIG.indd 75

12p

12a

l = New Moon l = Full Moon º = First Quarter » = Last Quarter «= Good Day by Moon Phase

8/15/17 4:27 PM

Sportsman’s DAYBOOK MONDAY

Sunrise: 7:04a Set: 7:21p Moonrise: 5:26a Set: 6:38p AM Minor: 4:12a AM Major: 10:25a PM Minor: 4:38p PM Major: 10:51p Moon Overhead: 12:04p Moon Underfoot: None

PRIME TIME

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

4:27AM 9:56AM 3:01PM 9:59PM

1.65 ft. 1.15 ft. 1.58 ft. 0.30 ft.

TUESDAY

11:00A — 12:00P

FEET

19 « High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

PRIME TIME 4:52AM 10:26AM 4:05PM 10:43PM

1.59 ft. 0.98 ft. 1.61 ft. 0.47 ft.

12:00 — 2:00 PM

FEET

Sunrise: 7:05a Set: 7:19p Moonrise: 6:26a Set: 7:17p AM Minor: 5:00a AM Major: 11:13a PM Minor: 5:25p PM Major: 11:37p Moon Overhead: 12:54p Moon Underfoot: 12:30a

20 l High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: FEET

+3.0

+2.0

+1.0

12a

12p

12a 12a

FRIDAY

22 «

PRIME TIME

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

12:01AM 5:56AM 12:10PM 7:08PM

0.87 ft. 1.48 ft. 0.59 ft. 1.59 ft.

2:00 — 4:00 PM

FEET

12p

12a 12a

SATURDAY Sunrise: 7:06a Set: 7:16p Moonrise: 9:19a Set: 9:06p AM Minor: 7:28a AM Major: 1:16a PM Minor: 7:51p PM Major: 1:39p Moon Overhead: 3:15p Moon Underfoot: 2:52a

23 « Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

PRIME TIME 12:38AM 6:13AM 12:48PM 8:14PM

1.06 ft. 1.46 ft. 0.53 ft. 1.56 ft.

3:00 — 5:00 PM

FEET

Sunrise: 7:07a Set: 7:14p Moonrise: 10:14a Set: 9:43p AM Minor: 8:19a AM Major: 2:07a PM Minor: 8:41p PM Major: 2:30p Moon Overhead: 4:00p Moon Underfoot: 3:38a

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: FEET

+3.0

+2.0

+1.0

12a

12p

S E P T E M B E R

TexasOutdoorNation-1709-DIG.indd 76

3p 2 0 1 7

T E X A S

12a 12a

F I S H

12p

12a 12a

G A M E ®

8/15/17 4:27 PM

WEDNESDAY

19p 17p : 11:13a : 11:37p

14p 43p : 2:07a : 2:30p

20 l High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

PRIME TIME 5:14AM 10:59AM 5:06PM 11:23PM

1.54 ft. 0.82 ft. 1.61 ft. 0.67 ft.

1:00 — 3:00 PM

FEET

THURSDAY

Sunrise: 7:05a Set: 7:18p Moonrise: 7:25a Set: 7:54p AM Minor: 5:49a AM Major: ----PM Minor: 6:13p PM Major: 12:24p Moon Overhead: 1:42p Moon Underfoot: 1:19a

21 « High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

+3.0

+2.0

+1.0

12p

5:36AM 11:33AM 6:06PM

1.51 ft. 0.69 ft. 1.60 ft.

1:30 — 3:30 PM

FEET

+3.0

12a 12a

PRIME TIME

12a 12a

12p

Sunrise: 7:06a Set: 7:17p Moonrise: 8:23a Set: 8:30p AM Minor: 6:38a AM Major: 12:26a PM Minor: 7:01p PM Major: 12:49p Moon Overhead: 2:29p Moon Underfoot: 2:06a

12a

SUNDAY

PRIME TIME

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

1:13AM 6:25AM 1:30PM 9:28PM

1.23 ft. 1.45 ft. 0.50 ft. 1.55 ft.

3:30 — 5:30 PM

FEET

READING THE GRAPH

Sunrise: 7:07a Set: 7:13p Moonrise: 11:08a Set: 10:21p AM Minor: 9:10a AM Major: 2:58a PM Minor: 9:33p PM Major: 3:21p Moon Overhead: 4:46p Moon Underfoot: 4:23a

+3.0

= FALLING TIDE = RISING TIDE = DAYLIGHT HOURS = NIGHTTIME HOURS

Moon l Moon Overhead l Underfoot

+2.0

Fishing Score Graph

+1.0

Day’s Best Score

Day’s 2nd Best Score

Best Days Overall

MOON PHASES 0

12a 12a

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12p

12a

l = New Moon l = Full Moon º = First Quarter » = Last Quarter «= Good Day by Moon Phase

8/15/17 4:27 PM

Sportsman’s DAYBOOK MONDAY

Sunrise: 7:08a Set: 7:12p Moonrise: 12:01p Set: 11:01p AM Minor: 10:01a AM Major: 3:49a PM Minor: 10:24p PM Major: 4:12p Moon Overhead: 5:32p Moon Underfoot: 5:09a

PRIME TIME

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide:

1:49AM 6:19AM 2:18PM 10:55PM

1.38 ft. 1.46 ft. 0.51 ft. 1.56 ft.

TUESDAY

10:00A — 12:00P

FEET

PRIME TIME

Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

2:33AM 4:22AM 3:13PM

1.49 ft. 1.49 ft. 0.53 ft.

11:00A — 1:00P

FEET

Sunrise: 7:08a Set: 7:11p Moonrise: 12:53p Set: 11:44p AM Minor: 10:51a AM Major: 4:39a PM Minor: 11:14p PM Major: 5:03p Moon Overhead: 6:19p Moon Underfoot: 5:56a

High Tide: Low Tide: FEET

+3.0

+2.0

+1.0

12a

12p

12a 12a

FRIDAY

PRIME TIME

High Tide: Low Tide:

2:25AM 6:26PM

1.66 ft. 0.56 ft.

3:00 — 5:00 PM

FEET

12p

12a 12a

SATURDAY Sunrise: 7:10a Set: 7:07p Moonrise: 3:17p Set: 1:19a AM Minor: 12:50a AM Major: 7:02a PM Minor: 1:14p PM Major: 7:27p Moon Overhead: 8:43p Moon Underfoot: 8:19a

PRIME TIME

High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

2:49AM 9:59AM 11:22AM 7:17PM

1.68 ft. 1.42 ft. 1.43 ft. 0.56 ft.

4:00 — 6:00 PM

FEET

Sunrise: 7:10a Set: 7:06p Moonrise: 4:01p Set: 2:11a AM Minor: 1:35a AM Major: 7:47a PM Minor: 1:59p PM Major: 8:12p Moon Overhead: 9:31p Moon Underfoot: 9:07a

Oct 1 High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide: FEET

+3.0

+2.0

+1.0

12a

12p

S E P T E M B E R

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T E X A S

12a 12a

F I S H

12p

12a 12a

G A M E ®

8/15/17 4:27 PM

11p 1:44p : 4:39a : 5:03p

06p 11a : 7:47a : 8:12p

WEDNESDAY

PRIME TIME

High Tide: Low Tide:

12:32AM 4:17PM

1.59 ft. 0.55 ft.

12:00 — 2:00 PM

FEET

THURSDAY

Sunrise: 7:09a Set: 7:10p Moonrise: 1:42p Set: None AM Minor: 11:40a AM Major: 5:28a PM Minor: ----PM Major: 5:52p Moon Overhead: 7:07p Moon Underfoot: 6:43a

28 º High Tide: Low Tide:

+3.0

+2.0

+1.0

12p

1:48AM 5:24PM

1.63 ft. 0.56 ft.

1:00 — 3:00 PM

FEET

+3.0

12a 12a

PRIME TIME

12a 12a

12p

Sunrise: 7:09a Set: 7:08p Moonrise: 2:31p Set: 12:30a AM Minor: 12:04a AM Major: 6:16a PM Minor: 12:28p PM Major: 6:40p Moon Overhead: 7:54p Moon Underfoot: 7:30a

12a

SUNDAY

Oct 1 High Tide: Low Tide: High Tide: Low Tide:

PRIME TIME 3:10AM 9:23AM 12:51PM 8:00PM

1.69 ft. 1.38 ft. 1.47 ft. 0.57 ft.

5:00 — 7:00 PM

FEET

READING THE GRAPH

Sunrise: 7:11a Set: 7:05p Moonrise: 4:43p Set: 3:05a AM Minor: 2:19a AM Major: 8:31a PM Minor: 2:43p PM Major: 8:56p Moon Overhead: 10:20p Moon Underfoot: 9:56a

+3.0

= FALLING TIDE = RISING TIDE = DAYLIGHT HOURS = NIGHTTIME HOURS

Moon l Moon Overhead l Underfoot

+2.0

Fishing Score Graph

+1.0

Day’s Best Score

Day’s 2nd Best Score

Best Days Overall

MOON PHASES 0

12a 12a

TexasOutdoorNation-1709-DIG.indd 79

12p

12a

l = New Moon l = Full Moon º = First Quarter » = Last Quarter «= Good Day by Moon Phase

8/15/17 4:27 PM

Texas BOATING by LENNY RUDOW :: TF&G Boating Editor

Getting Stuck

HERE ARE A DOZEN-ODD boats sitting at anchor over the rocky bottom, catching one fish after the next. Another boat arrives, pulls upwind of the pack, and drops down the hook. His anchor line pulls tight, so he shuts off the motor and walks to the stern to get a line ready to cast. When he next looks up, his boat is in the middle of the pack and slowly moving towards someone else’s anchor line.

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The hapless captain throws down his rod, races up to the bow, hauls the dragging anchor up as quickly as possible, races back to the helm, starts the engine, and pulls away just in time to avoid twisting that other anchor line around the prop—except when he doesn’t make it in time. This is a scene many of us have seen play out on the water. Some of us have been on the receiving end, too, shoving off on a drifting boat that didn’t notice their dragging anchor quite soon enough. The problem here is that many people don’t know exactly how to tell (or simply don’t notice) when their anchor is dragging, whether it’s been doing so from the moment they dropped it or it popped free on a big wave. Nine times out of 10, however, the root

of this problem lies in the anchor and ground tackle that’s been chosen to do the job, in the first place. Anchor types are, of course, a major factor. So let’s look at each one in turn. DANFORTH — This type has two flukes that pivot on a shaft, and are very effective in mud, sand, and other soft bottom types. But on rock and packed shell, they tend to skip along without firmly digging in. On wrecks and reefs they may hold if the pointed flukes grab in a lucky spot, but quite commonly, they also become stuck and may be irretrievable. PLOW — Plow anchors look just like, well, a plow. They have similar characteristics to the Danforth and do best in relatively soft

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8/9/17 10:13 AM

Texas BOATING completely ineffective on soft bottoms, but are the best way to snag on hard shell, a jagged rocky bottom, or a wreck or reef. Most are designed so the tines can be bent out by applying some extra pressure with the throttle of your boat, so they can be recovered after use in a snaggy situation. Many handy anglers build their own grappling anchors by welding short lengths of rebar to a pipe then bending them into shape.

bottom types. They aren’t likely to hold on wreck or reef materials and again, if they do, they’ll often become permanent additions to the structure. GRAPPLING — These anchors have multiple tines poking out (think of a giant treble hook but with five or six hooks), and are

MUSHROOM — Mushroom anchors depend almost entirely on their own weight to hold position, so they aren’t usually much good for boats of any real size. Although a 10-pound mushroom works just fine for a jon boat in a lake, the huge sizes needed for bigger boats used in open water,

“ Many handy anglers build their own grappling anchors by welding short lengths of rebar to a pipe.

“ makes them impractical. Still, their easy to stow nature and the fact that they hold equally well on any bottom type makes them a favorite for pond-hoppers, canoes and the like. For many boaters, carrying two anchors is in order—one for soft bottom, and one for holding tight on structure. Of course, you’ll need to make sure each anchor is sized properly for the boat you intend to use it with. Fortunately, this minor detail is usually well marked on the anchor itself, or is on a label when you see the anchor in the store. Even with the proper type and size of anchor, having the appropriate ground tackle is also a must. Rope alone rarely does the trick, 82

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and having a sufficient length of chain between the rope and the anchor is imperative. Just what is that length? It depends on the size of your boat and the depth of the water you usually anchor in, but as a general rule of thumb you’ll want to use at least 10 feet of chain and ideally, the same length of chain as your boat’s LOA. Okay, all the boxes have been checked and all the gear is in good order—what else do you need to know to make sure your boat doesn’t break free? Start with how much scope (extra line) you let out after the anchor hits bottom. At a bare minimum in calm water, a 3:1 ratio to the water depth is sufficient. If the water is 20-foot deep, for example, less than 60 feet of line isn’t likely to be enough no matter how calm it may be. If there’s any real wind, current, or waves pushing your boat this way and that, a scope of 5:1 is probably going to be necessary. And in rough conditions a 7:1 scope is usually minimal. And, just for the record, if you get caught in a raging storm you’ll want to let out every last foot of scope available—the more, the better. One final point: if you want to make 100 percent sure you’re never “that guy” dragging anchor and drifting toward other boats, your own situational awareness is just as important as everything we’ve discussed here. Becoming focused on baiting a hook, tying a knot, or waiting for a bite often distracts an otherwise competent captain. As a result, he or she may not notice that the anchor is dragging or has broken free for quite a while. Then it becomes a mad scramble to haul that thing up, and get the engine started.

Email Lenny Rudow at ContactUs@ﬁshgame.com

G A M E ®

8/9/17 10:13 AM

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8/9/17 10:13 AM

The Practical ANGLER by GREG BERLOCHER | TF&G Contributing Editor

Live Bait Tips

down the Texas coast can hold a quart of shrimp under the right conditions, but it is generally a better bet to limit the amount of live shrimp to a pint. In warm weather, a shrimp’s metabolic rate is much higher and a large number of shrimp will use up all of the dissolved oxygen in the water in the bait bucket in just a few minutes.

ATER TEMPERATURES in Texas bays increase throughout the summer, reaching their zenith in late August or early

ADD SUPPLEMENTAL OXYGEN. When transporting live shrimp from the bait stand to your destination, adding supplemental oxygen to the water in the bait bucket will reduce the number of shrimp that die. Options range from a simple, battery-operated bubbler to a full blown supplemental oxygen system. Live shrimp are expensive, and keeping them frisky is important. When transporting shrimp, the simplest method of adding supplemental oxygen is to get a large container, such as a five-gallon bucket, fill it with fresh saltwater, then submerge the bait bucket. The extra water in the big bucket provides the needed oxygen to keep your shrimp alive. When fishing from my boat, I keep bait in a 10-gallon container outfitted with an aerator. A tiny electric motor sitting outside the tank spins a small impeller inside the tank, creating a torrent of air bubbles that replenish the oxygen level in the water. This a superior approach compared to water pumps submerged in the bait tank that spray water. The problem with this design is the electric motor constantly adds heat to the water in the live well. When investigating live well options, choose one with an electric motor that sits outside the live well.

September. Readings in the high 80s, even low 90s, are common, leaving apex predators grumpier than a homeowner with a broken air conditioner. Lethargic, doldrums, and blue funk are some of the descriptive terms associated with speckled trout and redfish in the late summer. Comfort becomes their number one concern, trumping food as their top priority. Trout and reds still have to eat but they become more selective and refuse to expend a lot of energy chasing a meal over a great distance. During the heat of the summer, catch rates on natural bait are significantly higher than on artificial lures. On a recent trip to San Luis Pass, I watched several young men causally get out of their vehicle, each with a bright yellow bait bucket. Their departure from the vehicle was unhurried. They set the bait buckets down in the sand next to their truck, and began rigging up their rods and checking tackle. The eventually moseyed down to the water’s edge and slowly eased in. Several hours later I had a chance encounter with the two young men, and I causally inquired if they had caught anything. They admitted that they didn’t catch anything because all of their bait was dead when they arrived. I normally don’t give advice to other anglers on the water, but the body language of these guys suggested utter defeat, so I shared a few hints on taking care of live bait.

MILK, WINE, AND LIVE SHRIMP Spoil in the Heat. Heat is the enemy of live bait. When you remove a bait bucket from the water, return it as soon as possible. If you fish the jetties, stop and dunk your bait bucket every few minutes to flush out the heated water. If you fish from a pier, return the bait bucket to the water after getting a new bait. If you transport bait to your fishing destination, getting your bait buckets

AVOID OVERCROWDING. Avoid overcrowding a bait bucket. The ubiquitous yellow bait buckets seen up and 84

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back in the water should be a priority as soon as you arrive your destination. Live shrimp in an oxygenated live well are not immune from heat and will die quickly if not cared for. Changing out the water in the tank periodically with fresh bay water is beneficial for several reasons. Shrimp give off waste products that will eventually foul the tank, thereby increasing the stress level of your bait. Dumping out the old water and replacing it with a few fresh buckets gets rid of the waste products and also keeps the water cooler in the live well. Dropping a frozen bottle of drinking water into the live well lowers the water temperature. As a result, the shrimp will be friskier. LIVE SHRIMP AND SUN SCREEN are a Deadly Mix. Sunscreen is an important part of outdoor life, but it washes off your hands every time you reach into your bait bucket. The residue left behind is death for the shrimp inside. If you store your bait in a bait bucket, wear a sun glove instead of lotion on your next fishing trip. This eliminates the chance of contaminants comingling with your bait. If you keep live shrimp in a live well, always keep your hands out of the water. A long-handled dip net is a much better option. During the heat of the summer, live bait out-catches lures by a serious margin. Keeping your bait alive and frisky is the first step to a successful fishing trip.

Email Greg Berlocher at ContactUs@ﬁshgame.com

G A M E ®

8/9/17 10:04 AM

The BASS University by PETE ROBBINS :: for TF&G and Bass University

Crochet Goes Back to School in the Fall can be a death sentence. That’s why he does as much waiting as he does casting. “It pays to stay quiet the whole time,” he explained. “I’ll watch my Lowrance electronics and when I see the balls of shad, that’s when I’ll slow down even more, because I know it’s a possibility.” He’ll keep his front unit on down-scan, not traditional two-dimensional sonar, especially

“ It pays to stay quiet the whole time...

“

T’S THE ULTIMATE GET-RICHquick scheme on the water. An angler might have nothing in the live-well and rapidly diminishing hopes of filling it, when seemingly out of nowhere bass begin blowing up on bait all around the boat. They’re feeding heavily, and they’re not shy about taking the first lure that crosses their path. This makes for one of the most exciting and fast-paced stories in fishing. Although, it doesn’t always happen exactly that way, Bass University instructor Cliff Crochet has had surface-busting schooling fish help his cause on more than one occasion, and he said that Texas anglers should be on the lookout for them all fall. “I haven’t had a lot of success looking for them,” the Louisiana pro said. “But there have been multiple times when I’ve found them, or when they found me. If you fish where they’re going at that time of year, with the shad moving towards the backs of the pockets, you’re going to run into them.” It’s not necessarily confined to a particular part of the day or a particular part of the fishery. If bass are chasing shad there’s a good chance it’ll happen at some point when they have the bait collected and pinned. In fact, Crochet said he can often sense when it’s about to occur: “You can see the shad schooling before the bass get to them. It’ll be just a little ripple on the water, about half the size of the deck of your boat.” Of course, just because you’ve set your boat down exactly where you’d expect the fish to start feeding doesn’t mean that it’s going to occur that way. Most often, it seems, they start chowing down on the shad just out of your casting reach. Crochet said that it never fails. “If you make a long cast to the right, they’ll blow up on your left,” and since you sometimes only have a brief window when they’re “hot,” that

around grass, because it produces a clearer picture. He’s also a huge fan of the Hydrowave. He keeps it on any time he’s fishing, whether it’s frogging in shallow murky water or dropshooting offshore, but it’s especially valuable when the fish are chasing bait. “If nothing else, it camouflages you, but I truly believe that when fish are schooling it gets them up and keeps them going longer than they would without it. His first choice for Texas schoolers in the fall is a Bill Lewis StutterStep top-water, which he can launch a country mile, and “you can walk it real fast to cover a lot of water.” He described the oddly-shaped lure as “very athletic,” and asserted that the ability to make it dance across the water and otherwise “look like T E X A S

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he’s on his death bed,” will catch the attention of bass that have more than enough to eat in front of them. He’s not a believer in gaudy colors, typically preferring to utilize anything that resembles a shad. He believes that erratic and noticeable motion is the key to getting more and bigger bites. “I typically wouldn’t throw a Senko in this situation,” he explained. His second choice, for when he has trouble getting fish to break the surface or he’s convinced that the bigger ones are hanging deeper, is an old-school Rat-L-Trap. Like the StutterStep, he can cast it into a headwind and still “throw it 700 miles.” With both lures he uses either a 7:1 or 8:1 gear ratio reel. At this time, perhaps more than any other, being able to retrieve line in a hurry can be critical. “You’re fighting against the clock because it lasts only for so long,” he said. If you fire out a cast and the fish blow up in the other direction, you need to be able to recover, reload and hit the hot spot. If a bass misses your lure and won’t come back for it, you likewise need to get back in the strike zone. Because casting distance can be the difference between an empty live-well and five bass in five casts, Crochet tends to rely on longer rods, too, noting that the guy throwing a popper on a six-foot stick won’t have the range of someone throwing a 1 ounce aerodynamic Stutterstep on a longer rod. He uses a 7-½’ Falcon composite rod with 15 pound Seaguar fluorocarbon for the Rat-L-Trap and a fivepower 7- or 7 ½ foot Falcon rod with the big topwater. “You have to have the right equipment if you’re going to take advantage of this situation,” he concluded, noting that a 36 volt trolling motor is another valuable tool for chasing down schoolers. There can be a lot of waiting around for the right conditions to converge, once they do it’s a virtual fire drill, and the angler who misses that opportunity may end up kicking himself at weigh-in time.

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Email Bass University at ContactUs@ﬁshgame.com |

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8/9/17 10:13 AM

Texas GUNS by STEVE LAMASCUS | TF&G Shooting Editor

Shotguns

like station 8 high house in skeet. I hit it dead center and just two wings came wafting down. On the other hand, I once killed a dove stone dead with it at more than 80 steps. My .410 is choked full and modified. I use it on quail with great success. The difference is that the .410’s three-inch shell uses 11/16 of an ounce of shot (1/2-ounce in the 2 1/2-inch), while the 12-gauge generally uses 1 1/8 ounces. The smaller amount of shot and the long, skinny shot string (all things being equal, the shorter the shot string the better the pattern) of the .410 causes a thin pattern on flying game.

RECENTLY REALIZED THAT I don’t write much about shotguns. I guess this is partly because there isn’t as much to discuss with shotguns as there is with rifles and handguns. With rifles you can talk endlessly about accuracy, velocity, bullet weight, caliber, drop at various ranges, size of groups at 100 yards, overall length, wildcats, new cartridges, and many other fine points that are just not important, or do not apply, with shotguns. For instance, when was the last time you heard of a new shotgun gauge being introduced? However, that does not mean shotguns are not interesting. The truth is that I love shotguns very much and have a modest collection of fine guns. I have my old competition shotgun I used for many years when I was shooting NSSA skeet. It is a really sweet Beretta Model 682 Gold Sporting, with 30-inch ported barrels and the best looking smoke and honey-colored stock I have ever seen on a shotgun. I have a full set of Briley Ultra-Light tubes for it, in .410, 28-, and 20-gauge. I also have a very nice Browning Sweet 16, a Browning Citori 20-gauge, a Browning Citori .410, and an SKBmade Ithaca side-by-side 12-gauge with 25-inch barrels, as well as several more of lesser quality and value. In the bad old days not all shotguns were good for every purpose. Today most shotguns have screw-in choke tubes, but they were not widely available until the early ’70s. Older guns were generally had one choke, or two if it was some kind of double barrel. My grandfather LaMascus’s last shotgun was a Stevens single-shot 12-gauge with a 36-inch, full-choke barrel. It was great for ducks and geese, okay for doves, but was a disaster for quail. If you took a quail on a covey rise and hit it center, all you had left were pieces—little pieces. Once I shot a dove at very close range as it came over me from behind a tank dam, about |

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In the bad old days not all shotguns were good for every purpose.

“

Even with the full choke it is good for no more than about 35 yards. From 25 to 35 yards, it’s an okay upland gun. I have killed a lot of pheasants with it, using three-inch, #7 1/2 shells, shooting over pointers on a hunting preserve. That being said, however, it is in no way the equal of any of the other gauges. Most generalists of the old days settled for a modified choke, and many used an improved cylinder in their 12-gauges for doves and quail. Today, with the great improvement in shotgun shells with plastic shot collars, an improvedcylinder choke will pattern about as tightly as an older modified did without modern shot collars, maybe even tighter. My Ithaca 12-gauge is choked modified and skeet, and it is murder on quail over good dogs. The load I use in it is one ounce of #7 shot (not 7 1/2) at about 1,150 feet per second. |

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For many years my father’s favorite shotgun was a Remington Model 870 Wingmaster 12-gauge with a 26-inch barrel, choked improved-cylinder. When Dad was in his prime he was absolutely astounding on quail or doves with his old pump-gun. I have seen him take three bobwhites on a covey rise, with three shots. I shot my first 25-straights in both skeet and trap with an 870. A Wingmaster or 870 Express is still a very fine choice for the upland bird hunter. If you want to use that gun on ducks or geese, you can just screw in a full or modified choke tube and go to town. In my early days of hunting on the rolling plains of north Texas, lead shot was used for everything, including ducks and geese. Where I live these days is desert, and ducks are rare as unicorns. As a result my familiarity with modern shot shell loads for waterfowl is not what it should be. However today, instead of lead, you have to use steel or some kind of non-toxic shot for waterfowl. Steel shot patterns beautifully up close, but loses its energy very quickly. This means that if the waterfowler wants to take shots over about 35 yards he has to use very large shot. Lead shot of about #6, or maybe #4, was great for ducks, today the hunter would have to use #2 steel shot to get the same effective range, or even less. This gave rise to the 3-1/2-inch 12-gauge shell. This means that there are fewer shot in the shell, per volume, which causes the pattern to be comparatively thinner and the shot string longer, meaning fewer hits on the bird at any given range. Because of this, many waterfowl hunters today have even gone to 10-gauges. Goose hunters today are using the same size steel shot that I use in lead shot for bobcats and foxes. Anyway, I don’t write as much about shotguns as I would like, but maybe I can change that. We’ll see. You can help by addressing any questions or comments you might have on the subject to me at the email address below.

Email Steve LaMascus at ContactUs@ﬁshgame.com

G A M E ®

8/9/17 10:08 AM

Industry INSIDER Aguila Shot Shells Now in Academy AGUILA AMMUNITION AND TEXAS Armament & Technology are pleased to announce that Aguila’s line of shotshells are now available in all Academy locations throughout the Southeastern United States. Aguila’s standard velocity game loads are engineered to knock birds out of the sky. They offer high quality, dependability and affordable price. Available in 1 1/8oz loads in 7.5 shot with velocity of 1,200fps. “Academy Sports + Outdoors is the

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home defense - .410 to 12 gauge and everything in between. Aguila Ammunition, founded in 1961, is manufactured in Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico by Industrias Tecnos, S.A. de C.V. As one of the largest rimfire manufacturers in the world, Aguila utilizes cutting-edge technology to manufacture quality rimfire, centerfire and shotshell ammunition. Aguila offers a complete range of products for the self-defense, sport shooting, hunting, law enforcement and military markets. Texas Armament & Technology is the exclusive North American distributor for Aguila Ammunition. Texas Armament & Technology (TxAT) is a veteran-owned business, and is the exclusive distributor of Aguila Ammunition in the U.S. and Canadian markets. TxAT’s mission is to provide technical support and assist in selecting the best ammunition, equipment, and training for customer requirements – ranging from weapons to counterterrorism and national security. TxAT also provides training, consulting services and technical support for clients in the aerospace and defense industries. For more information on Aguila Ammunition, visit the company website at www.aguilaammo.com or contact Kristi Drawe at (615)390-7732, or by email at kristi@tx-at.com.

outdoor leader in Texas and throughout the Southeast”, says Patrick Thomas, Director of Sales for Aguila Ammunition. “We’ve had a longstanding relationship with Academy and we’re happy to see our shotshell product within their store locations.” Industrias Tecnos, manufacturer of the Aguila brand of shotshells, utilizes a lead shot tower 74 meters in height, with a drop of 56 meters between the shot forming metering pans to the chilling bath at the bottom of the tower. Shot towers provide the most spherical lead shot achievable utilizing a historical process that is rarely available today. Tecnos is a fully integrated shotshell manufacturer producing primers, shotshells, lead shot and components. Aguila shotgun shells are redefining the genre. Aguila’s extensive shotshell line has something for everyone – whether the application is hunting, competition, clays or

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8/10/17 11:48 AM

Fish and Game GEAR Beckman is Back!

Trokar Assist Rigs

BECKMAN, ONE OF THE MOST trusted brands in the fishing tackle industry is back! In October of 2016 G. Pucci & Sons, owners of P-Line, acquired Beckman Net Company from PRADCO. At the recent 2017 ICAST Show in Orlando, Beckman introduced a complete lineup of nets which range from small fixed handled nets, to larger nets with oversized hoops made with Y-Bar construction for maximum strength and durability, and a one piece aluminum yoke. The three fixed handled nets will handle most freshwater applications, and will double as a great option for speckled trout or any other inshore saltwater game fish which will fit into a smaller style hoop. These nets feature a 10 MM PVC black mesh with a flat bottom which is ideal for catch and release. Another feature of this series is the EVA foam handles which make them extremely

EAGLE CLAW, THE U.S. MANUfacturer of premium quality fish hooks now offers its patented Lazer Sharp needlepoint and Trokar triplesided Surgically Sharpened hooks in a rigged assist, featuring hand-tied and cemented heavy-duty Kevlar cord, with a red tubing wrap. Regarded as some of the ultimate saltwater competitive hooks on the market, both hooks feature a stronger, high carbon American-Made steel wire with a saltwater resistant finish to keep them fishing day after day without losing sharpness or suffering corrosion. These assist hook rigs are designed to accommodate all variations of vertical jigging and provide an excellent alternative for trebles on many hard-bodied lures. The product includes two pairs of both solid and split ring components, allowing anglers to rig either a single or tandem assist, depending on the application. The final rig is compliant with IGFA rules addressing the use of assist hooks on lures; in particular with respect to the hook type and overall cord lengths required to ensure a safe hook-up. The cord is tied with Kevlar Assist line in 200lb (sizes 1/0, 3/0) and 300lb (sizes 5/0, 7/0) strengths. Its then thread wrapped and cemented with a red shrink tubing overtop, creating a sleek and simply indestructible design. The TK23 Assist Hook features Trokar’s faster, deeper, surer point penetration

Beckman Net

fishermen friendly while protecting your boat’s surface from exposed edges and screws. These nets come with a green anodized hoop and a silver handle. The larger nets which feature the renowned Beckman Yoke, come in 6 different hoop sizes. Any Beckman net which features a yoke will be available with 4 different handle sizes, 4’, 6’ and two telescopic models which range from 4’-7’ and 6’-9’. There are two different bag types on this family of nets, the first is coated polyester with a flat bottom, and the other option is the traditional nylon bags. G. Pucci & Sons is extremely excited about the Beckman acquisition and looks forward to expanding the line with a number of new nets and accessories in the near future. For more information call 800-5372394 or visit beckmanfishingnets.com. 88

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requiring half the pressure of the competition. Manufactured using cold forged high-carbon AmericanMade steel they offer better durability and stronger holds for hard fighting, big game species. The Trokar L2033 feaRigged Assit tures the patented Lazer Sharp wire technology ensuring a sharper, stronger, longer hold than the leading competition. And, its unique point is grinded using Eagle Claw’s own needlepoint manufacturing technique, making them sharper than traditional forged points, leading to faster penetrating power and easier hook-ups.

Keep It Clean! NOW YOU CAN KEEP YOUR FISH mess contained. FilletMaker’s trademarked and patented fish cutting board is lightweight so it allows you to take it with you anywhere; from the boat to the icehouse to your house. This board has been endorsed by professional fishermen, pro-staff, and everyday anglers from around the country. Features include: raised surface for clean

FilletMaker cutting board

cuts, ergonomic design, extra trough for catching waste and allows for ease in picking up, easy to clean, three color choices.

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Made of FDA food grade approved material and top rack dishwasher safe. You can also use it for cutting meats, vegetables, fruits, or as a serving tray. Cleaning fish and cleaning up has never been so easy! Visit www.filletmaker.com or call 605368-9872 for more information.

How the Stop It Was Born GEORGE KOEHL WAS STANDING IN line at the Cabela’s checkout counter getting some last minute supplies for an elk hunt he was taking in Wyoming. He glanced over and saw the Yeti tumblers everybody had been telling him about and he figured he had put off trying one long enough. George hated lukewarm coffee and he knew it was going to be bitter cold in Wyoming, so he grudgingly coughed up $40 and bought one for his trip. Well the first day in the mountains he made his coffee over the fire, poured the blaz-

Stop It, closed, open and off.

ing hot coffee into his tumbler, and within 45 minutes it was lukewarm. Exasperated, he wondered what the heck the problem was. Then he saw it…steam was absolutely pouring through the drinking spout. After he got back home to Texas, he promptly spilled his coffee at church…then

a few days later he took a turn in his truck and his tumbler fell out of the console and dumped all over the floor. Enough was enough. He called up an engineer friend and they set about making a spill proof solution. The Stop It was born. Add this patent pending device to your Yeti tumbler and it prevents spills (seals drinking spout and air vent), keeps hot drinks hot and cold drinks cold longer, holds your lid during refills, and even makes your tumbler float in the pool, lake, river, or ocean. Stop It conveniently opens and closes with a quick flip of the hand. Yet, due to the perfect fit, the Stop It won’t accidentally pop out when you don’t want it to. Drop it, knock it over, or shake up your favorite cold drink mix. Your Stop It will stay in place until you are ready to open it to drink. No more spills. No more cold coffee. Just Stop It. Visit stopittop.com.

provide protection to those that are walking through terrain with heavy brush or briars. Perfect for the avid and active outdoorsman. Another great feature about TurtleSkin SnakeGaiters is you can wear them all year round. They provide water and wind resistance making them a suitable hunting gear solution for all seasons. Since the Gaiters individually weigh less than 6 ounces they are not too hot or heavy in the summer months or warmer climates. With a built in YKK zipper on the back you can easily take the Gaiters on and off. SnakeGaiters are very convenient outdoor gear for a camping or hiking trip as they easily fold up and fit nicely into a small backpack. SnakeGaiters are available in two sizes regular and husky. The built in elastic drawstring design allows men and women of all different builds to fit nicely into them. The Gaiters also feature a reversible design. They are available in Khaki/Khaki, Khaki/ Camo, Khaki/Sage, and Sage/Sage for color combinations. SnakeGaiters are easy to take care of as they can be machine washed (mild detergent) and dried (cool tumble dry). TurtleSkin also makes Chaps, Pants, and Dog Hunting Vests that feature SnakeArmor protective technology. All TurtleSkin SnakeArmor products are proudly made in the USA. To learn more about TurtleSkin SnakeArmor visit www.turtleskin.com or call 603-291-1023.

Armor Up Against Snakes TURTLESKIN SNAKEGAITERS HAVE the protection you need when hiking or hunting through “Snake Country.” The Gaiters feature patented SnakeArmor material that is made from high performance ballistic textiles and offers the lightest snakebite protection on the market. The light and flexible design make SnakeGaiters a comfortable solution for those spending long hours outdoors. The durable SnakeArmor material has been tested on and successfully repelled a diamondback rattlesnake strike. The Gaiters also will T E X A S

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Texas TASTED by BRYAN SLAVEN :: The Texas Gourmet

Bryan’s Texas-Style Salmon and Crab Cakes

Leave to cool. Finely chop the salmon. Place the salmon and the canned milk in a large mixing bowl. Add dill and season with salt and white pepper to taste. Add 1/2 of the lemon juice and blend gently with a spoon. Add 1 tablespoon of the sautéed vegetables and herbs to the mixture.

TEXAS -STYLE FRESH CRAB CAKES have always been a favorite enjoyed by my family. My Nana, from Mobile Bay, taught us the art of crabbing. She emphasized the importance of delicately steaming and cleaning them, and finally how to create those delicate little morsels of seafood delight. I love salmon as well, so I decided to try a combination of the two. The result is a delectable flavor that can be enjoyed either warm at the dinner table, or my favorite, carried on the boat or to the deer camp for a quick and savory snack. I hope you all enjoy as much we do.

Ingredients: 1 1/2 stalks celery heart, finely chopped 1/2 red bell pepper, finely chopped 1 fresh jalapeno, seeded and chopped fine 1/2 medium white onion, finely chopped 1 medium sized ear of corn, cut off the cob 2 bunches of green onions, green part only, finely chopped 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves Salt Freshly ground black and white pepper 1/2 teaspoon dill weed 1/2 teaspoon of oregano leaves 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped 3 eggs, beaten 1 lb. fresh salmon, diced 1 pound Crab claw meat 1 cup canned milk 1/2 lemon, juiced Hot sauce 1 1/2 cups of unseasoned bread crumbs 5 tablespoons corn or olive oil, for frying

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Salmon Crab Cakes

2 tablespoons butter, for frying

Directions: In a big heavy bottomed frying pan (cast iron if you have one), sauté the celery, peppers, white onions, and green onions in butter and oil. Add oregano, thyme, salt and white pepper. Lastly, add garlic and cook until soft. |

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Fold eggs into the mixture. Check the crabmeat for pieces of shell and place in a large clean bowl.

Email Bryan Slaven at bryan@thetexasgourmet.com

PHOTO: BRYAN SLAVEN

8/9/17 9:41 AM

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DFW METROPLEX NEW TF&G APPAREL IS HERE!

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HAPPY LABOR DAY!

COMING SOON www.FishandGameGear.com T E X A S

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Texas FRESHWATER by MATT WILLIAMS :: TF&G Freshwater Editor

Fishin’ Holes: Hey, That Ain’t Your Brushpile!

ODERN ELECTRONICS have forever changed the way the way we fish, away from the bank. Used correctly, innovative technologies from industry leaders such as Lowrance, Garmin, Humminbird and Raymarine combined with quality mapping programs have made it possible to scan a lake’s bottom like never before and locate “sweet spots” in relatively short order. There just aren’t many secrets anymore. And that has helped stir some serious feuds among anglers, particularly when it comes to brush piles. Anglers routinely plant brush piles at strategic locations for the purpose of attracting fish, particularly crappie and bass. Cut the brush, haul it to the spot, outfit it with blocks or sandbags so it will stay put, then dump it overboard. It’s a hard and sweaty drill that takes time and perseverance to accomplish. Tempers sometimes fly when two anglers collide around a brush pile. This is especially true when the guy who planted the brush pile arrives to find another boat sitting on what is perceives to be his spot. Sometimes the anglers are able to hash it out and go about business as usual. Other times they don’t. In some cases the situation escalates into something really ugly. Such was the case in early June when Donald Johnson and his wife, of Deridder, Louisiana, went fishing on Toledo Bend. The couple was reportedly fishing around a submerged brush pile when they were approached by an angler in a different boat, Dean Bullara of Opelousas. A Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries news release says Bullara claimed the Johnsons were fishing in his spot and demanded that they leave. 92

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According to the report, a heated argument followed that eventually led to Johnson pulling a handgun on Bullara. The release says the Sabine Parish Sheriff’s Office arrested Johnson for aggravated assault with a firearm and booked him into the Sabine Parish Correctional Center. Johnson reported that he had pulled his handgun in self-defense on Bullara because he felt threatened by his actions. Bullara was cited for harassment of persons lawfully fishing, the release says. In a separate incident, several east Texas men were fishing for crappie around a brush pile near a lakeside boat dock on Lake Tyler last March when the owner of the dock jumped in his boat and began running tight circles around them. According to reports on easttexasmatters. com, the brush pile in question is somewhat of a community hole and that a lot people catch fish there. Not sure what man was up to, one of the anglers began videoing the boat as it circled their boat at high speed. It became apparent the man was attempting to get the anglers to leave when he began cursing and told them they weren’t allowed to fish in his wife’s crappie hole, the news report said. The video has been viewed by thousands on Facebook (www.facebook.com/ketkcaraprichard/videos/pcb.1474112129318646/14 74110349318824/?type=3). The anglers, who eventually left the scene, reported the incident to authorities and an investigation was launched by Smith County game wardens. The owner of the dock eventually issued a public apology for his actions and privately apologized to the anglers. “Anybody that wants to fish here, my grandkids come here all the time and fish so we have it all fixed up for them, but anybody else, |

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they’re welcome,” he told easttexasmatters. com. That was awful nice of him, but the truth is anglers don’t need his permission, or anyone else’s, to soak a bait around that brush pile, or any other brush pile in public water. Once a brush pile is dumped in a public lake, it automatically becomes fair game for anyone to fish. There is nothing private about boat docks built by homeowners, either. You can fish around them all you want; just don’t touch. If someone tries to tell you different, they are wrong. If they press the issue, they could be in violation of state law. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Code, Sec. 62.-125 contains language related to the Harassment of Hunters, Trappers and fishermen, specifically the Sportsman’s Rights Act. According to part 2c. of that law, “no person may intentionally interfere with another person lawfully engaged in the process of hunting or catching wildlife.” And wildlife includes fish. A person who violates this section commits an offense. An offense under this section is a Class B misdemeanor. Where some folks screw up is when they take the law into their own hands and attempt to settle a nasty situation on their own. It is always best to contact the proper authorities and let them handle the issue before things get out of hand, according to Jason Jones, TPWD Lieutenant game warden. “When a person is being harassed by another they should call the local game warden for assistance,” he said. “It is not recommended to try to resolve the conflict themselves. “Record the incident and write down as much information as possible. Write a brief description of the person harassing, the location of the incident, and if the person has a vehicle or boat try to get as much information as possible.”

Email Matt Williams at ContactUs@ﬁshgame.com

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Open SEASON by REAVIS Z. WORTHAM :: TF&G Humor Editor

September, ’67

ELBERT P. AXELROD stared at the stock tank that was still in the springtime sun. “I’m hot.” Cousin wiped sweat from his forehead. “It’s still September. Of course it’s hot. Dad says it won’t cool off until Halloween, if we’re that lucky.” “Maybe he’ll melt into nothing by the end of the day,” I said hopefully and checked the status of the limp worm on the end of my hook. It was Labor Day weekend; our last free day before school started, and we were thirteen. We’d reached the end of what others called the Summer of Love, but at our age, the love of the outdoors was all we were interested in. I dialed the radio in my pocket to a more noticeable volume to drown out Delbert’s yammering. Grace Slick and Jefferson Airplane pounded out “Somebody to Love.” It didn’t work to cut Delbert off, though. “How about we go swimming?” He pitched a bobber into the pool. The water was so still the concentric ripples touched all the muddy banks. Dirt daubers gathered mud on the crusting edges. “You’ll scare the fish.” “They’re not biting anyway.” He laid the Zebco 33 down on the steaming bank. “That’s because you keep talking.” The worm on my hook hung limp, but still appeared juicy enough to entice a fish. “Dad says you have to be quiet when you’re fishing.” For the first time in my life I understood the things the Old Man said. He’d tell me the same thing when I was jabbering away in the boat. Wait…he wanted me to be quiet. Fishing was supposed to be relaxing. When I talked, it bothered him—just like Delbert now pushing me over the edge. I cast and the bobber splashed. “You should sit here in the shade with us. It wouldn’t be so

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out with a pop and he stepped into the warm, stinking water. “Here I go!” I reeled. “This is a good fish.” Delbert dove forward and disappeared under the water. “This one feels like about two pounds.” “Mine’s about the same!” Delbert surfaced. “Something brushed my leg.” “It was my bobber.” “No, it was slick.” “Get out of the way!” Our lines crossed under Delbert and he paddled toward us. “I can’t get it in!” Cousin reeled, and it finally rose to the surface only inches from Delbert. “Look at the size of that snapping turtle!” “Yaaahhh!” He splashed away, toward my submerged line. I stopped reeling. “Get away!” With the tension gone, my bobber popped back up, and a large snake followed, angry at being hooked. It hissed and undulated toward Delbert, likely intending to climb out onto his back. Delbert frantically dug at the water, kicking up a fountain. “Yaaahhh!” He swam over his red and white bobber and dove under. He came back up with a wild look in his eye. “I’m hooked!” My snake threw the hook at the same time Cousin’s line broke. Delbert swam to the bank and stood in the waist-high water, weeping from the pain. “Come get this hook out.” He pointed, terror in his eyes. “I don’t think it’s in too deep.” We stood there, transfixed until Cousin finally broke the silence and made the statement we remember to this day, fifty years later. “I thought you were using stinkbait, not red wigglers.”

hot.” Delbert frowned and pointed at his still bobber. “I can’t cast to where the fish are from there.” “How do you know that? You haven’t caught one yet.” “I just know. I know everything about fishing.” “What size hook are you using then?” I figured I had him on that point. “One that’s big enough to catch a catfish.” Stymied, I had to study on that answer, because it seemed right somehow. My bobber twitched. “I got a bite.” Delbert inexplicably took that moment to pull off his tee shirt. The whiteness of his skin was more blinding than the noonday sun overhead. “I’m going in.” Cousin couldn’t stand it, so he twitched his bobber to match my own bite. “We’re getting nibbles. Wait.” “You guys are trying to fool me.” Delbert sat and untied his U.S. Keds. “No, I really am getting a bite.” My bobber twitched again and I stood in preparation of yanking the rod and running back up the bank, our tried and true method of bringing a fish up all nicely coated in sand. “Don’t ruin it,” Cousin said at the same time his bobber moved an inch. “I really do have a bite.” Delbert’s jeans went next. “You guys are faking it. I’m going in.” His drawers landed on the grassy bank, scattering yellow grasshoppers. “No! I really have a bite, dummy!” He stepped onto the mud, carefully avoiding a fresh deposit of cow flop. “Hey, cows pee in there.” Cousin watched his bobber, ready to set the hook. “So do fish.” He didn’t listen to either of us. The crust of mud broke and Delbert buried up to his calves in the mud. The odor of a hog pen wrapped us in its sensory glory. “Hey, I can’t get out.” “Good.” I set my hook and the bobber disappeared. Cousin’s line shot across the water toward Delbert, who refused to stop. His foot came F I S H

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REDFISH

BASS

Corpus Christi

Lake Buchanan

Twelve-year-old Asher Kreidel caught his first redfish on a Carolina rig while fishing in the surf with his grandfather near Bob Hall pier.

Eight-year-old Tyler Lane with his ﬁrst bass while ﬁshing with his dad, Travis. Tyler’s bass was the biggest one caught on the boat. He used a live Black Salty.

STINGRAY Galveston Fifteen-year-old Reagyn Pyfer of North Richland Hills shows off a stingray that she caught near the Pelican Island Bridge on a recent ﬁshing trip to Galveston with her family.

CATFISH Lake Conroe Pat Stewart of Montgomery caught this 9.89pound flathead catfish while fishing the Stubblefield area of Lake Conroe. He was using a live shiner for bait.

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SEND YOUR PHOTOS TO photos@FishGame.com For best results, send MED to HIGH quality JPEG digital ﬁles only, please.

Also Enter our PHOTO CONTEST: FishGame.com/texas-hotsots-upload No guarantee can be made as to when, or if, a submitted photo will be published.

TURKEY Undisclosed Hunter Barnes got two turkeys, while hunting on his own on his Grandpa’s land. Hunter called both birds in. One had a 9-inch beard and the other had a 10-inch beard.

BASS Lake Benbrook Ronnie Pace, Sr. caught this 9-pound, 2-oz. bass on Lake Benbrook. He was ﬁshing with a Storm 6-inch swimbait.

PIGGY PERCH Bayou Vista While visiting her great aunt and uncle in the Bayou Vista community, Macy Mosley caught her first fish while fishing with her great Uncle Earl. Here she is posed with her piggy perch. She was so excited to catch her first fish of many!

SHARK Galveston SPECKLED TROUT Port O’Connor

Ten-year-old Jackson Polk of Allen shows off a juvenile blacktip shark that he caught at Galveston.

Grenda Krueger caught this 33-inch trout on a popping cork at the Port O’Connor “big” jetties, using live shrimp.

WHITETAIL Columbus Heather Ray bagged this 14-point buck while bowhunting near Columbus. She downed her buck with a 25-yard shot using an Xpedition bow and Gold Tip arrow.

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