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Fish & Game Photos
THAT QUOTE FROM MARK Twain could not be more fitting as we enter 2022. At the time of this writing lockdowns are occurring globally. Things aren’t exactly the same as in 2020 when all of this began, but it sure is beginning to rhyme.
Confusion, Chaos, Fear—Sound familiar?
All are certainly part of what’s happening around the world at this moment as year three of the pandemic-era begins. So, instead of focusing on the negative, we’re doing what we do best and that is
focusing on the great outdoors.
Texas has an incredible amount to offer whether you started hunting or fishing when the pandemic began or have been at it for years.
Here are our picks for the top outdoors challenges in Texas that best reflect the wide diversity of opportunities the state has to offer. This does not include any migratory birds ( be the subject of a feature of their own down the line, but it does include one avian species:
HOG HUNTING: Deer season is winding down, but we have hog hunting opportunities aplenty, virtually everywhere from the eastern Trans-Pecos to the Louisiana line.
The Texas hog population has exploded and expanded geographically over the last decade. Today, hunters are taking some absolutely huge hogs.
Super-sized porkers are found—not in some remote forest—but in huntable areas near suburbia. Neighborhoods around the state are reporting huge hogs ravaging their neighborhoods.
Setting up a stand next to a bus stop isn’t going to fly from a legal standpoint. However, you’ll find plenty of places where hunting IS legal on the outer edges of communities.
These are great places to bag big boars that are trading between places such as cattle pastures and little league parks.
MEGA-BASS: The bass action on lakes like O.H. Ivie and Sam Rayburn have been tremendous over the last couple of years.
Texans (and many visitors) are catching genuine mega-bass and there’s no reason to think that trend will slow any time soon. With droughts having ended in several parts of the state, lakes are getting the “new lake effect” which occurs when vegetation that has grown during drought conditions is covered by water.
It provides new habitat and gets the bass stirred up.
Lake Fork, Toledo Bend, Lake Austin, Lake Nacogdoches, Bob Sandlin, Tawakoni are among many great places to hang the bass of a lifetime.
TARPON: Last year was an incredible year for tarpon shing on the Texas Coast. ese mysterious sport sh tend to move into our waters in mid-summer and hang around until the rst cold fronts strike in October.
South Padre Island, Port Mans eld and “Tarpon Alley” o of Galveston are top places to score on the silver king. But there are also good opportunities at Port O’Connor and Port Aransas and occasional schools showing up between High Island and Sabine Pass.
Nothing ghts quite like a tarpon and catching one of these special sh is extra special when it’s done in Texas waters.
GUADALUPE BASS: On the complete opposite end of the spectrum is the Guadalupe bass. Native only to a handful of river drainages in Central Texas, these small bass are feisty and fun to catch.
Everyone has caught a largemouth, but how many of you have caught a Guadalupe bass? ese sh prefer streams with lots of current and will ght like a largemouth twice their size. ey’re super fun on y gear and a test for ultralight tackle. Add one to your list of Texas catches and you will not be disappointed.
FREE-RANGING AOUDAD: is one is either free or pricey. Let us explain. Many hunters in Central and West Texas have free-ranging aoudads on their deer lease. Killing one there is a free bonus.
Booking an out er in the TransPecos to hunt aoudad can be a li le expensive compared to the rest of our list. However, it’s the closest thing most hunters will ever get to hunting desert bighorn sheep—and it’s only a tenth of the price.
Aoudads are African animals with an a itude. ey might be the smartest freeranging animal in North America, but even when populations are dense, they are hard to hunt.
Even if you book a high-fenced hunt, expect a great challenge. Aoudads are notorious for being di cult to nd, even in breeding pastures where the only cover is tall grass and a few cedars.
TURKEYS: Texas has more turkeys than any other state. e bulk of these are Rio Grandes, which inhabit the western two-thirds of the state. However, a growing Eastern turkey population can be found in the Pineywoods. Also a small, remote number of Merriam’s turkeys exist in the TransPecos.
If hunters want to take the “Grand Slam” of turkeys (the Rio Grande, Merriam’s, Eastern and Osceola) then Texas is a great place to start. Out ers o er plenty of Rio hunting options, and diehard, serious turkey hunters can slug it out on public land in the Pineywoods to try for an Eastern.
Texas Parks & Wildlife Dept. and the National Wild Turkey Federation released turkeys in Angelina County in 2021.
Jaxon Sloan shows off a Guadalupe bass on the Nueces River.
REDFISH: We would have mentioned speckled trout here, but the freeze of 2021 caused some major die-o s. Fisheries are limited for trout in many areas, but red sh remain in good shape at virtually every location on the coast.
Whether you want to sight cast for tailing reds in the marsh, seek out seagrassloving schools, or ba le bull reds in the nearshore Gulf, Texas has it all.
WHITETAILED DEER: What list of Texas best would be complete without whitetailed deer? Texas, a er all, has the largest deer population. Last year it reached more than ve million, the highest it has been in many years.
One of the coolest things about Texas is that it has numerous subspecies of whitetails. e Texas whitetail dominates most of the state from north Texas to the Mexico line and most in-between. e Kansas whitetail dips down into the Panhandle. is big-bodied deer tends to run quite a bit larger on the hoof than the others. e Avery Island whitetail is the resident of the extreme southeastern corner of the state extending into Louisiana. Body sizes tend to run a li le smaller, and the racks are very basket-like.
Finally, the Carmen Mountain whitetail lives in a few ranges in the Trans Pecos. It’s a small deer, slightly larger, but comparable to the Key deer of Florida. e fact is, if you want biodiversity, Texas has you covered. If you want ample outdoor opportunities, Texas has plenty to keep you focused on positive things, even during confusing times.
Landowners in the Trans-Pecos report aoudad are reporoducing like wildfi re.
CATFISH
Karnes County Five-year-old Emma Neves of Corpus Christi caught her fi rst fi sh, a healthy catfi sh, while fi shing at a pond on her family’s ranch in Karnes County. LARGEMOUTH BASS
Lake Sam Rayburn Caroline, Scarlett, and Bella Daws (left to right) of Beaumont enjoyed catching these largemouth bass on Lake Sam Rayburn with their dad, Malachi.
RED SNAPPER
Port Mansfi eld Monica Stem caught her fi rst red snapper while fi shing out of Port Mansfi eld. BONITA
Key Biscaine, Florida Dana Bailey Mullennix of Irving caught this nice Bonita while fi shing on her very fi rst Deep Sea trip out of Key Biscayne, Florida.
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LARGEMOUTH BASS
Lake Conroe Chris Torry from South Louisiana caught this nice Lake Conroe bass on a Sixth Sense Divine Shakey Sixth Sense Divine Shakey Head during the Louisiana Head during the Louisiana Hurricane Ida Evacuation. Hurricane Ida Evacuation.
RED SNAPPER
Port Aransas Fifteen-year-old Brandon Ayers of Richmond caught this red snapper while fi shing with friends out of Port Aransas. CATFISH
Henderson Nine-year-old Grayson Holland caught this albino catfi sh while fi shing at a friend’s private pond in Henderson.
WHITETAIL
Garrison Landon Peddy took his fi rst buck while hunting with his Dad, Walter, and his brother Hayden at Garrison.
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Statement of ownership, management and circulation 1. Publication title: Texas Fish & Game. 2. Publication number: 7577-70. 3. Filing Date: 10/16/2020. 4. Issue freq: Monthly. 5. No. Issues Annually: 6. 6. Annual subscr. price: $24.95. 7. Complete mailing address of known offi ce of publication (not printer): 3431 Rayford Rd Ste 200-408 Spring TX 77386-3649; Contact Person, Roy Neves; Tel, 281-227-3001. 8. Complete mailing address of headquarters or general business offi ce of publisher (not printer): Same. 9. Full names and complete mailing addresses of publisher, editor and managing editor: Publisher, Roy Neves, 3431 Rayford Rd Ste 200-408 Spring TX 77386-3649; editor: Chester Moore, 3431 Rayford Rd Ste 200-408 Spring TX 77386-3649; managing editor: n/a. 10. Owner: Texas Fish & Game Publishing Co. LLC; See Uploaded Owner File on the PS Form 3526 - Statement of Ownership, Management and Circulation. 11. Known bondholders, Mortgagees, and other security holders owning or holding 1% or more of total amount of bonds, mortgages of other securities: none. 12. Tax status has not changed during preceding 12 months. 13. Publication title: Texas Fish & Game. 14. Issue date for circulation data below: November 1, 2021. 15. Extent and nature of circulation: Total published Avg. no. copies each issue during preceding 12 mos., 79,944; No. copies of single Issue published nearest to fi ling date, 91,697. a. Total number of copies (net press run): Avg. no. copies each issue during preceding 12 mos. 21,848; No. copies of single Issue published nearest to fi ling date, 22,178. b. Paid Circulation (1) Mailed Outside-County Paid Subscriptions Stated on PS Form 3541 (include paid distribution above nominal rate, advertiser’s proof copies, and exchange copies): Avg. No. Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months, 19,662; No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing, 19,832. (2) Mailed In-County Paid Subscriptions Stated on PS Form 3541 (include paid distribution above nominal rate, advertiser’s proof copies, and exchange copies): 0. (3) Paid Distribution Outside the Mails Including Sales Through Dealers and Carriers, Street Vendors, Counter Sales, and Other Paid Distribution Outside USPS®, Avg. No. Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months, 2,132; No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing, 2,290; (4) Paid Distribution by Other Classes of Mail Through the USPS®: Avg. No. Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months, 0; No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing, 0. c. Total Paid Distribution (Sum of 15b (1), (2), (3), and (4)): Avg. No. Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months, 21,794; No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing, 22,122. d. Free or Nominal Rate Distribution (1) Free or Nominal Rate Outside County Copies included on PS Form 3541: Avg. No. Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months, 54; No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing, 56 (2) Free or Nominal Rate In-County Copies included on PS Form 3541 Avg. No. Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months, 0; No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing, 0 (3) Free or Nominal Rate Copies Mailed at Other Classes of Mail Through the USPS®: Avg. No. Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months, 0; No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing, 0. (4) Free or Nominal Rate Distribution Outside the Mail (Carriers or other means): Avg. No. Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months, 0; No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing, 0. e. Total Free or Nominal Rate Distribution (sum of 15d (1), (2), (3), and (4)): Avg. No. Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months, 54; No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing, 56. f. Total Distribution (sum 15c and 15e): Avg. No. Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months, 21,848; No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing, 22,178. g. Copies not Distributed: Avg. No. Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months, 0; No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing, 0. h. Total (sum 15f and g): Avg. No. Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months, 21,848; No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing, 22,178. i. Percent paid: (15c divided by 15f times 100) Avg. No. Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months, 99.75%; No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing, 99.75%. 16. Electronic Copy Circulation a. Paid Electronic Copies: Avg. No. Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months, 58,096; No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing, 69,519. b. Total Paid Print Copies (Line 15c) + Paid Electronic Copies (Line 16a): Avg. No. Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months, 79,890; No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing, 91,641. c. Total Print Distribution (Line 15f) + Paid Electronic Copies (Line 16a): Avg. No. Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months, 79,944; No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing, 91,697. d. Percent Paid (Both Print & Electronic Copies) (16 b divided by 16c x 100): Avg. No. Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months, 99.0%; No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing, 99.0%. 17. Publication of statement of ownership required. Will be printed in November/December 2020 issue of this publication 18. Signature and title of Editor, Publisher, Business Manager or Owner: Roy Neves, publisher, Date 10/16/2020.
