Plan B, Redfish

A devastating and unfortunate event the red tide is. Within the past two weeks it has killed hundreds of thousands of fish in the Gulf of Mexico, including redfish, snook, and tarpon. It is considered a natural occurrence, though how can anything but the shaking earth and the falling stars be considered natural in the world we live in today? I had been planning on five day tarpon quest in Port Isabel with Shad Goldston but we had to cancel at the last minute due to this plague. Much of the areas we would have fished have been affected. I expect the conditions to improve by November.

I did however make a small trip to Port Aransas for the weekend. I found that the high tide flooded the usual flats so I had to go to a few high water spots. Would you believe that I took my mother to a backwater labyrinth of mangroves? I put her in my kayak and walked with her as we hunted redfish. I would tell her where to cast and in smaller windows of opportunity I would just cast first. We caught a lot of redfish and had a ton of fun. She had no idea such a place existed much less that we would find redfish there. we covered about five miles and when the tide had fallen significantly, so had the number of fish.

Hill County Floats

Today I joined Marcus Rodriguez (above) for a short float on the San Marcos River, and yesterday I took my 16' canoe out to two other Texas rivers. I first floated to top end of the Comal River and then jumped over to the Guadalupe near Berghiem (below). The San Marcos was flowing well between Pecan Park and Martindale. This is the stretch that Marcus and I did. We caught a bunch of little bass and I introduced Marcus to my ultralite spinning rod. This is the spinning rod built on the 3 weight fly rod blank. I think he wants one now. For the Comal float I took the G. Loomis spinning rod and left the fly rod in the car. Lately I’ve gone back to using both fly and spinning gear. This is due to a few trips out where I only took the fly rods and ended up wishing I had brought both. At the time I was just trying to prove the point that the fly can do it all. Then I came to the conclusion that,“what’s the point?” I once met Flip Pallot after a presentation he had just given at a local fly shop. I told him that I try to practice a principal of his by using all types of equipment (casting, spinning, and fly). He hushed me by saying, “It’s just about being out there.” In other words, I am finished answering theoretical and technical questions for the day... I just want a taco and a beer... Please don’t bother me. I’m sure he is a fine fellow, so I try not to be annoyed about that day I was mistaken for a person that doesn’t know what it’s about.

I got a few chunky Comal River bass on light spinning gear, but I was looking forward to a secluded float down a stretch of wilderness river. On the Guadalupe float I brought my camera box, a sandwich to eat, and a few rods. I ended up throwing the fly a lot more. There was enough action on the foam hopper to stick with it. This was the most beautiful day to be on the water. The temperature was perfect, there was not a cloud in the sky, and do you know what? It was just about being out there. Ha ha!

South Texas Snook

My original plan for this weekend was to roam the offshore rigs near Port Aransas with friends Eric and Bret, but the weather was expected to get nasty and the seas unruly. I went to plan B and called my foul weather fishing buddy Johnny Quiroz. He and I did some time in Alaska and Patagonia, two places with unpredictable weather. We agreed on meeting in Port Isabel, Texas. We first tried bobbing on the twelve foot swells near the end of the south jettie. The few rolling tarpon were not receptive and just too close to the danger zone. We abandon that plan and ran my zodiac to a few known snook spots. Things were slow until the cold front hit. We picked up a few and called it early. The next day was still cooler and the weather dark, "snooky" I told Johnny. We did very well all morning with an occasional odd species on the line. We went back to the island to have lunch and meet a few of JQ’s friends. When I was done with my Wanna Wanna burger I launched the zodiac again. This time alone but with bedding and groceries. I got to the snook spot just as it was getting dark and I sat there a moment thinking about what exactly I was going to do. I had never slept on the zodiac and I was in a kind of strange place to camp out.

I decided to quietly cruise in search of a well lit area that may have fish activity under it. There was plenty of ambient light from the area to see where I was going and I had turned on a green beacon light in lieu of the required nav-lights. There was no wind, a light mist, and it was deadly silent. I hadn’t gone far when I saw a well lit area with a couple of bubble spots that indicated to me there had been activity, and Eureka! It was the spot I was looking for. To make a long fish story a short one, in two hours I hooked and landed over twenty fish, and of six species (snook, tarpon, trout, jack, lookdown, and snapper). That was enough action to send me to bed. Luckily the spot I picked to anchor up for some z’s was well protected yet with a nice breeze. With the exception of a few mosquitoes and an uneven surface to sleep on, I had a good nights rest.

In the morning I saw the little red crabs that hang around the shore there and I took some photos. You can see a few of my better photos from this trip, like the jumping snook, on my friend Captain Kenny's photo blog. I caught a few more fish and then headed back to the boat ramp to end a very memorable few days. Remember: There is no bad weather, just different conditions to catch fish!

A trip to the Medina

Brady and I headed out to the Medina River after all this rain, and It was epic! It was a beautiful day on this Texas river. Overcast and a mist in the air during the morning hours and the sun didn’t peak out until early evening. No bass over a pound and a half but the first two casts of the day hooked up and then steady action all day long. Brady did actually hook and land a three pound bass but it was not healthy. It had the head of an eight pounder and the body of a two pounder. I won’t even show it to you.

When most Texas fly guys and gals head out for the white bass run I usually come here for hybrid stripers. They average two and a half pounds and fight hard as hell. This spring was tough due to the low water levels, but this fall excursion surprised me with the best hybrid action I’ve ever experienced. I absolutely do not keep any of these fish, and that is to ensure good fishing for days ahead. This is something that is hard to teach others depending on what they learned early in life. Our children are our (fishing) future. Oh, and that's a clouser not a moustache!

The carp took a page right out of the redfish book! We saw carp tailing, they took flies readily, and they fought hard. I remember I was some place when I saw some goldfish in an aquarium feeding on the bottom, and I thought “look! They’re tailing!” I have brought a few people to my carp on the fly spot on the Medina River, but not many. Again, what keeps it good is the lack of fishing pressure. The carp here brows the shallows looking for whatever to eat, and this is the only place I’ve seen them actually chase flies. I even caught one on a clouser here once. Brady and I anticipated a good day for carp. from the driver’s seat of the canoe I put him on more than a dozen sight casting shots at carp which he hooked nearly all of them. This is not always the case. Poor presentation here does not produce a hookup. It is as technical as any other sight casting game.