Amazing freakin' return to fishing

Sorry about the photo quality! These pics are from the mobile. Its funny that when you make a quick trip to catch dinner you leave the camera at the house and then pretty much land a figurative bucket full of big ass fish!  Awesome day today right in my back yard(figuratively speaking). The spots I originally wanted to fish were super muddy due to the 20mph wind roughing up the sand and mud. I sulked into the water at the only place I could. A place I have fished at before but most of the time I would have been fishing for flounder during the run, and on the occasional last resort. I hadn't really done too well here before. Well the day I was about to experience was this spots best. Since hurricane Ike there had been some bottom changes. When protected with bait present, this spot now has the potential to hold more fish than before and also some damn good ones on the right conditions. The only bad thing is that there is only enough room for a couple people to fish in the sweet spot because of the drop off on one side and the rocks on the other. I also think I just got really lucky. The weather was perfect and the little mullet were thick. Three of the biggest trout on a stringer would have been 1/2 lb under 20! 25 1/2", 26", and 27". Wow! All fish were released. No din din, just adrenalin. When can you use the sentence,  "All the fish were too big and beautiful to keep".

Still on the winter pattern, still fishing with corkeys.

 

As much as you or I might fish. 90% of catching fish is being in the right spot. There are more than one "right spots" in any given area usually. But some are better than others and some are better for different tactics. The tactics being applied in the area we have been fishing are slow sinking subsurface plugs. The water depth where we were fishing was about 3 feet deep and with a water temp that was 51 deg when we arrived and about 54 when we left. It was a cold wade fo sho. The wind was constant and ranging anywhere from 10 -20 mph from the SE. Wind and cold help keep people away and so does NFL playoff games. Like deer season, it keeps those away that might get cabin fever, leave their couch, and decide to cut your wade off. The biggest advantage on cold days might be where you fish but it can also be getting an earlier start than the competition. It might be damn cold, but its not steel head fishing in 35 deg rain any if your lucky you could be fishing for more than one big bite. Dress for the morning chill, bring a nice canteen of hot coffee( that's really the secret) and don't be scared to sit and observe when you arrive at your desired location. It always takes a while to get ready to fish with unpacking lure boxes, rods, line, etc. This is where the hot drink comes into play. For someone who isn't getting out of the boat there is no threat of cold,  your own threshold is your only limit. You can layer ALOT, with waders on theres only so much you can put on before one of your nuts has its circulation cut off everytime you get in water too deep. Hell I think people freeze their asses off more when they power all over the place looking for fish. 

Anyways. We got lucky again and caught some nice fish. Dad caught a five pound trout and I caught a 25" redfish that went 7 1/4 on my boga. That fish looked like a freak. Like ralphie may the redfish. Big.I kept a few to eat and we lot the rest go. 

With the day being overcast my best producer was the 808 fatboy. I caught a few on a modified pearl/purple also. The retrieve with such chilly temps was a frozen walk the dog. Just working it fast enough to keep it off the shell but without so much aggressive twitches. They would just pick it up and be there.One of those days where the bite is the mystery and the next tacoed bait could have been the next king dingaling. Still havent broken the 5 lb mark for trout this year, but we have caught five of them. Just need a little luck mixed in for the bigger fish. 

We were listening to the fishing show in the morning on the way to the ramp. Lots of big fish caught the day before. Lots of big fish, lots of fishermen. If only I could fish on weekdays more often. Its a sad day when you realize you could get thrown in with the weekend warrior types. Although weekend or not I still take the one bag and 2 rods. I dont overdo it but I fit the criteria. We might fish too hard. But Its something to do to get a little exercise.

And on the third day,

So this is how it was from DeMatt on Vimeo.


This year has started on the right note for sure. Another typical low tide. Too low to fish the norm. Mud shell shore. Trout Green. When probing our first area, at the end of a 50 yard wade dad turns to get the boat and pick me up. (I am so lucky, I try to offer as much as he will let me to do unspoken fishing duties) While pushing forward at the bend of the shore through the normal muddy half moon where, on an outgoing with higher tides in the evening/afternoon you can stand on and fall off into some large reds and trout... I got a solid thump.I landed the 23" 3 1/2 pounder and put that bitch on my stringer. I wanted trout gumbo. Got it.

I made about 4 more casts in the same area still pushing forward towards the gulf and nothing. Then, just as the gasoline fumes from the 2 cycle smelled wonderfully(no joke) I got another nose. Dad saw me yank. "So, what do you want to do"? Well, this fish was not a loner now. Lets push another 50 yards. Drop anchor, side by side, search. It took another 30 yards before the next fish. Our mud trails behind us merging at the ends and freshly separated at the foot joined with little winter floaty turd-let moss balls. A solid thump and a solid fish. A 5 pound trout. Corky, head first nose in throat. Easy hook out, a few pics and yays and released. Next cast, another 5 pound trout escapes after the third missed boga grab. No playing on a gorilla trout. Straight to the hand pinned on waders with thumb and pointer grip of death. Just a fiver. Play and laugh. Next 3-4 trout 18-20" then all goes silent. We fish for 15 more minutes then slowly move up searching. Dad hooks and lands a red in the 26 or 7" range. Nothing after, push forward. No more trout. I got desperate and switched to the broken back I had so much luck on before with similar conditions and pulled an immediate trout about 19" but the "Oh shit yeah! I told you this shit was the shit"! was donezo in a minute.

We fish for another hour without a look but refuse to break ranks because we were being eye fucked by drifters and the like. Finally I had to take a leak so bad I couldn't take it any longer. I slid up into the shallows and relieved myself and during the journey noticed some flicking bait and the nearly unchanged depth from the water we were fishing to the drop near shore. I let a long cast fly down the drop with a newly tied fatboy and started my retrieve. about 1/4 of the way in I thought I detected a subtle tap but kept with the retrieve. Then three rod lifts and a little panic reeling later I dredged up a nice sweet meat 21" red. There were a couple more to follow and back to the boat to get a bite and take a break before the incoming.

That's how the first half went. Pretty amazing. We went on to make a power wade through 1/2 the original with only one red landed. Then we changed locations and caught 7-8 nice eater fish on devils and gamblers. After that a mean looking cloud line and a daughter that needed pick up spurred the burn off before the big evening bite. Bummer because there were some nice fish in the first area and it wouldn't be out of the question to assume that we could have landed a few with a good warm incoming on our usual sand hump surrounded by mud and shell. Oh there are days ahead saved for greater spoils. Out.

 All the same fish. Trout gumbo. I cant get enough of these kind of pictures.

                                         Turd-let's and good water.

the mighty bend indeed

                                                      Scrappers.

                                                    Fiver love.

Welcome to the last year on earth(before 2012)!

         I doubt many people read this blog. I don't update it often, but I'm also not a professional blogger on a google payroll and I'm not one to have the days to dedicate to a personal blog about fishing that includes fishing trips and flies every week. I cant scour the web for cool things to post. I work, outside the fishing industry. I have a family. I have deadlines. But I try. I hope that I can keep posting fishing trips and random things when I remember to bring a camera. Its fun! Have a great 2011 Y'ALL and WRAP IT BEFORE YOU TAP IT BITCHES!!!!

Happy new years from Chico's Tacos.
 

The plug fish were caught on an outgoing tide the second day. Last week's Tuesday in an area covered up with gnarly live reef that we routinely wade during the coldest months. Normal fish for the spot save one lone 25", 5 lb trout shown in two pics on the boga. A few small reds. Between the two of us probably close to 20 fish in the 17-21" range. An area not unlike the famous Confederate reef that holds many peoples secret spots and special morn and eve's. But with tides running 2 ft low the famous spots are only famous in story. Bay's waters are different animals when the spot you usually fish is high and dry. That's what usually makes the learn-ed angler's skin tingle and when epic pods of stacked trout laying on each others backs are found wading in water that would swallow you up on a normal day. I can remember some of my best days fishing in spots that people typically only drift over during the normal tides. Don't let a determined, shell crunching, hard boot wearing dry leg walk around in your favorite drift line. Lest he find the trout and you catch a buzz. When waters drop out around a group of fish, if they have sufficient water depth nearby they will more than likely relocate and lie around similar structure in similar depth to where they were forced from. An area with water depth most comfortable to them that allows easy feeding. With a little deft observation and a little leg work coupled with the will to learn an area you can create opportunities for yourself that few see and experience. Plus you know what is on the bottom and will find those little underwater interstates that will become hidden goldmines when conditions return to normal.

The last two pictures are of the first day prior. We fished the same general area. Wicked oyster reef, breaks in the spine, extreme low tide dropping lower. Ripping out, flowing through the break with a deeper gut coming from a normally underwater reef lined "pond". A spot we found doing the walkabout. I took advantage of my new fly line and some of the new ep flies I tied that haven't been given away to make room for more. Not much to say. Like river fishing swinging streamers. Only a faux river mouth. This is by far my favorite way to fly fish in the winter. Cast, wait, wait, strip, wait, tap, strike. I only kept 5. Lots of fish released. The larger fish on the boga went close to 23" and about 4 lbs with several other 3+ released when the tide started to wain and the fast water became the deep slow refuge. Usually...but not when I'm around. Good times. 


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coming and going

In the dark.

Nov 19-10 fishing

 I don't get to fish as much as some. Not as much as I want too. But I know etiquette and I know the bay from Galveston to X-Mas like the back of my hand. But most people didn't have a person to show them all the little things that make you a better boat man. That's why I take it easy on guys that love to ram their boats into reefs and run right by you when your wading. Their not stupid. They either don't know or don't care. Or they might just be stupid.

All but the last picture were from the 19th. It was a great day to be fishing! Light winds, a hell of an incoming tide and great water clarity. A ton of bait fish were flipping and being run when we pulled up to our not so secret spot. The bite was a little off. Although the fish were plentiful for a while the bites came from only one lure. The broken back long a. Let it sit after casting. Swim it down quickly to about 2ft then give it 8-10 extremely light walk the dog twitches. Let it float up and repeat. Occasionally nicking the bottom or bouncing off an oyster shell seemed to trigger strikes also. I love fishing these lures but the conditions have to be right. I like to fish it in about 3-4ft of water with good clarity.

The last pic was taken today the 20th. Although I don't have any pictures of fish, the amount of red fish that covered a reef in my home waters of Texas City was impressive. I landed and released 3 undersized about 18" and 7-8 more between 22-25". What an awesome day! I caught most of the fish today on corky devils. A couple on a 4" gambler with a dipped chartreuse tail. This trip was very special. Not only because I smacked the fish but it was also my first trip with my new kayak. What a way to do it!

I also finally received my SA streamer express intermediate line from Cabelas the other day along with some clothes that were on sale and a rod holder. I am done shopping at local fly shops in Houston. Sorry guys. If you don't want to order what I want or keep your lines stocked I wont keep stopping in and being disappointed.

quick

So, when you are super determined to fish a spot you sometimes overlook signs that might make you move over a hundred yards and catch fish. Like this little guy! I am very good at keeping my fish small enough to fit in my basket. Lol. No flounder jumping sessions yet at the mud hole. But another couple cold fronts and its gonna be acrobatics again. Last year I saw over 20 flounder jumping in one evening. I am going to try and enjoy it this time. It will cut down on the frustration that is: Flounders don't bite when their jumping.