2018 Fishing - Year of the big one

[El Diablo 4232]

Trout with one big toof like that are the norm, I think. On the cast net a 5 foot net is plenty big. When I was young I could throw a big net but not so much anymore. I think I lost my "oomph". 

[fattyflattie 4640]

1 hour ago, Lurch said:

I bought a cast net, but can’t seem to get the hang of it. Anyone have good instructions? I’ve seen a few videos but nothing I’ve been able to apply successfully

Just takes practice. And slow down and think your way thru it. I only use one a few times a year before heading offshore but it’s like riding a bike. Also, I guess I should ask, what size?  Anything above 6’ for a beginner is probably pretty difficult. 

[Lurch 5949]

I got a 6’.

I’ll try this tomorrow
http://www.calusa.com/videos/

He makes it look simple

[Lat22 4070]

10 hours ago, Lurch said:

I bought a cast net, but can’t seem to get the hang of it. Anyone have good instructions? I’ve seen a few videos but nothing I’ve been able to apply successfully

 

Edited May 10, 2018 by Lat22

[El Diablo 4232]

Thanks for the instructional videos, I think I got my "oomph" back.

[Pescado_Rojo 19556]

I haven't fished with bait in years, but that's about all we did when I was a kid. My grandfather had a pretty big net, but also had a small one...maybe 4', that he had custom made by a Port Arthur firefighter who made them on the side. It was made out of shrimp boat net with nylon cord and big egg sinkers. Pretty much indestructible, and much less tangle-prone than a monofilament net.  Anywho...that net was awesome for throwing in drainage ditches and small marsh drains. Most of the time, we'd start looking for drainage canals or ditches on our way to fish and be full up on bait before we even got to where we were going. The best part was you could throw that thing a mile up a little marsh drain and the baitfish would never even know you were there. 

Even though I don't bait fish, I've still got that net...it's one of my most prized possessions from my Grandfather. 

[krevo 142]

Alright - we're road tripping in one of those Sprinter van RVs to Destin FL next Tuesday.  Will be there 6 days.   I need some advice on where to fish.   I've heard there are some piers around that area which we will probably fish at night if possible.  If I wanted to just wade or fish the surf, are there any places that won't be completely blanketed in tourists?  Any good fresh water lakes around the area?

Edited May 10, 2018 by krevo

[Stros 153]

make sure your trout are at least 15" if you plan on keeping them.

[El Diablo 4232]

4 hours ago, Pescado_Rojo said:

I haven't fished with bait in years, but that's about all we did when I was a kid. My grandfather had a pretty big net, but also had a small one...maybe 4', that he had custom made by a Port Arthur firefighter who made them on the side. It was made out of shrimp boat net with nylon cord and big egg sinkers. Pretty much indestructible, and much less tangle-prone than a monofilament net.  Anywho...that net was awesome for throwing in drainage ditches and small marsh drains. Most of the time, we'd start looking for drainage canals or ditches on our way to fish and be full up on bait before we even got to where we were going. The best part was you could throw that thing a mile up a little marsh drain and the baitfish would never even know you were there. 

Even though I don't bait fish, I've still got that net...it's one of my most prized possessions from my Grandfather. 

I had an uncle that lived in Lolita, he fished Lavaca a lot. I think he worked at a dairy farm in the area but they were pretty poor and he made nets and sinkers/weights to sell for supplemental income. I still have a lot of the weights that he made. Big honkin' things that we had no use for in fresh water. Most of them have turned white with oxidation. One of my cousins, this uncles grandson has a bunch of his stuff still. He lives in Ohio and so has no real use for the weights either but he treasures them.

[bigshark88 388]

Topwater reds this morning. Also landed two cobia on the duck boat. Limit of trout brought home for the grease as well.

[Judge Roybeanbag 11856]

I never thought I’d nut to a cast net video.  Thanks Jessica.  

[4th and 5 4995]

20 hours ago, bigshark88 said:

Topwater reds this morning. Also landed two cobia on the duck boat. Limit of trout brought home for the grease as well.

[atomheartbevo 90542]

Went to Jenson Fishing Tackle up on Parmer. 

It’s a fucking time machine that takes you back decades. 

I mean that in the best way possible. 

[Dbeasy 15526]

Well, after 20+ years of doing little to no fishing, I’m going to get started again. I’m only in Houston for a little while longer so the wife and I were thinking about starting with one of those party boats out of Galveston. Thoughts?

[El Diablo 4232]

I'm not a fan but that's just me. Limits on snapper are so restrictive now that it's hardly worth it for a half day offshore trip. That said, I've had friends who went out for 36 hour trips and they said the haul was worth it as they'll get into tuna and some other species. 

If I didn't have a lot of time and just wanted to go catch some fish I'd probably get a guide and do either bay or jetty fishing. 

[llanoflash 151]

waded #55 for about an hour. fish all around and i couldnt catch any.

[Dbeasy 15526]

I'm not a fan but that's just me. Limits on snapper are so restrictive now that it's hardly worth it for a half day offshore trip. That said, I've had friends who went out for 36 hour trips and they said the haul was worth it as they'll get into tuna and some other species. 
If I didn't have a lot of time and just wanted to go catch some fish I'd probably get a guide and do either bay or jetty fishing. 

Interesting idea. Might go that route.

[atomheartbevo 90542]

Speaking of snappers, there is a decent sized snapping turtle in the main pond near Central Market on North Lamar (looked to be Common and not Alligator).  Saw him come up near the bridge, looked to be easily 20 pounds+.  Not as big as the snapping turtles around Barton Creek/Springs/Town Lake, but some kid is going to be surprised one of these days when they are down there catching minnows, especially with all of the growth on the water hiding a lot of things.

Hopefully nobody takes a hammer to it

[Mac8111 2129]

waded #55 for about an hour. fish all around and i couldnt catch any.

What did you throw at them ?

[llanoflash 151]

7 hours ago, Mac8111 said:

 

What did you throw at them ?

 

Threw a Paul brown corky type deal, various soft plastics and even tried a gulp shrimp under a Mansfield mauler. It was about 330 when I got there not the best time but there was lots of fish all around. 

[Lat22 4070]

Sunrise. Gotta be there at sunrise. It’s usually blown out by 3:30 but that doesn’t look terrible. 

[solamente73 1143]

So, while at the coast a couple of weeks ago, I cleaned out an old tackle box.  At the bottom, I found that some items had "melted."

Each of the "melted" areas was either on top of an old soft plastic or had an old soft plastic on top of it.  Also, the "melted" areas on the spool and plastic bobber were soft to the touch.  Some crazy chemistry stuff happening there.  In case you were wondering, no, the box was never exposed to extreme heat or anything. 

Edited May 15, 2018 by solamente73

[atomheartbevo 90542]

Yeah I’ve been slowly sorting through my old tackle boxes, some of which haven’t been opened in 20+ years. Same thing with worms and jigs. 

Also experiencec this with rubber bands.  Had one melt a parachute from an old G I Joe jet I dug out for my son. 

Sucks. 

[krevo 142]

49 minutes ago, solamente73 said:

So, while at the coast a couple of weeks ago, I cleaned out an old tackle box.  At the bottom, I found that some items had "melted."

Each of the "melted" areas was either on top of an old soft plastic or had an old soft plastic on top of it.  Also, the "melted" areas on the spool and plastic bobber were soft to the touch.  Some crazy chemistry stuff happening there.  In case you were wondering, no, the box was never exposed to extreme heat or anything. 

Soft plastic baits and other "plastics" don't do well together.  Especially over time.

[El Diablo 4232]

That's been happening since the invention of plastic worms. The solvents used in them don't do well in contact with many types of plastic. Tackle box manufacturers have gotten smarter over the years but used to be common to find one melded to the box. Or a tire.

[wreckatx 141]

On 5/13/2018 at 3:02 PM, atomheartbevo said:

Went to Jenson Fishing Tackle up on Parmer. 

It’s a fucking time machine that takes you back decades. 

I mean that in the best way possible. 

That place is great. Guys know what they are talking about, too. Beats the hell out of going to academy.

[joe dirt 285]

On 5/13/2018 at 3:02 PM, atomheartbevo said:

Went to Jenson Fishing Tackle up on Parmer. 

It’s a fucking time machine that takes you back decades. 

I mean that in the best way possible. 

haven’t been there in over 10 years. used to stop by for live bait to fish out the creek that i think is now covered by parmer villas or some such nonsense. 

i’ve passed by this retention pond deal in falcon pointe (derkaville) errday for the last 4 years. i’ve always wondered what’s in there, and finally made it down to find out. caught me a couple bass the other day off some rooster tails. now i’m on a mission to fish the rest of the endless retention ponds in all these neighborhoods around me.  

[T-shirt Sip 2187]

1 hour ago, joe dirt said:

haven’t been there in over 10 years. used to stop by for live bait to fish out the creek that i think is now covered by parmer villas or some such nonsense. 

i’ve passed by this retention pond deal in falcon pointe (derkaville) errday for the last 4 years. i’ve always wondered what’s in there, and finally made it down to find out. caught me a couple bass the other day off some rooster tails. now i’m on a mission to fish the rest of the endless retention ponds in all these neighborhoods around me.  

You can catch some decent sized large mouth bass at the little pond at the entrance to Villages at Hidden Lake. A coworker lives there and the bastard is always sending me show off pics of his catches. 

[atomheartbevo 90542]

2 hours ago, joe dirt said:

haven’t been there in over 10 years. used to stop by for live bait to fish out the creek that i think is now covered by parmer villas or some such nonsense. 

Almost guarantee that the shop hasn’t changed, and they are still using the same tanks for the minnows. 

[Brisketexan 106610]

13 hours ago, atomheartbevo said:

Almost guarantee that the shop hasn’t changed, and they are still using the same tanks for the minnows. 

Can verify.

I still go there to get my reels serviced, and when hitting the white bass run with the kiddos, that's where we get our minnows.

[DefinitelyNotHollywoodColt 12301]

what beer do y'all drink on the water? i'm a bit of a beer snob but i'll be damned if a banquet isn't the perfect beer on the water.

[Chewbacca 7827]

what beer do y'all drink on the water? i'm a bit of a beer snob but i'll be damned if a banquet isn't the perfect beer on the water.

Banquet or bourbon.

[DefinitelyNotHollywoodColt 12301]

19 hours ago, Chewbacca said:

20 hours ago, DefinitelyNotHollywoodColt said:

what beer do y'all drink on the water? i'm a bit of a beer snob but i'll be damned if a banquet isn't the perfect beer on the water.

Read more  

Banquet or bourbon.

I keep a flask of bourbon in the boat but usually only take a tug if I can’t get the skunk off.

[BearSchlong 8229]

You can catch some decent sized large mouth bass at the little pond at the entrance to Villages at Hidden Lake. A coworker lives there and the bastard is always sending me show off pics of his catches. 

I've got a friend that works at our Austin branch on mopac at duval that catches some real hog bass on his lunch hour. He wont tell me where.

[Pescado_Rojo 19556]

1 hour ago, BearSchlong said:

On 5/15/2018 at 5:51 PM, T-shirt Sip said:

You can catch some decent sized large mouth bass at the little pond at the entrance to Villages at Hidden Lake. A coworker lives there and the bastard is always sending me show off pics of his catches. 

I've got a friend that works at our Austin branch on mopac at duval that catches some real hog bass on his lunch hour. He wont tell me where.

Pescado now spends the rest of the afternoon on google maps...

[bigshark88 388]

Duck boat reds again. Super hot with no wind.

Also caught a nice flounder which was invited home. Gonna cook him up a la picata.

[bigshark88 388]

what beer do y'all drink on the water?

Natty light. Less than 50¢ per can so there's no regrets if one gets hot or kicked over. Depending on the plans I pack 6-18 per angler. It's half the reason I am out there.

[SuckitKevin 979]

Just got back from Corpus before the Babes on the Bay madness hit. Had an outstanding day of fishing 26,23.5, and 22.5” trout and on the same shoreline limited out on reds. We threw 4 oversized back with the biggest being 33”. I’m too technologically disadvantaged to post pics.

[huge 3824]

Well then. Suckit Kevin

[ShaggyBevo RIP 3873]

On 5/18/2018 at 7:10 PM, Pescado_Rojo said:

Pescado now spends the rest of the afternoon on google maps...

So, which of the four possible spots is it?

[Sam Lin 3587]

A GPS tracker tucked behind his bumper would answer your question pretty easily. Fishing spots, serious bidness.

[Pescado_Rojo 19556]

11 hours ago, ShaggyBevo RIP said:

So, which of the four possible spots is it?

I think the only way to be sure is to fish them all. 

[Mac8111 2129]

Alright, got back from the Chandeleur Trip last night.  Absolutely exhausted.  My shoulders ache from three days of casting and my ankles are swollen from wading so much. 

 

We had a really good time.  Was on the Backdraft with DMJ charters. They ran a great trip.  I forget which one of you said they have a trip coming up with them. Message me and I can give you some insight with them. 

 

We ended up with 75 keepers.  I definitely expected the numbers to be a little bit higher, but we had a couple of things that worked against us. The wind screwed us two of the afternoons. The first afternoon it was blowing 20mph+ and stirred everything up.  I actually managed to swamp the skiff coming back from The Houseboat area. One of the other charters had a center console the Captain uses and he came to get us.   I am sure I will be referenced in all future orientation talks for new guests.  The second afternoon they called us all back in dues to high winds and a storm on the horizon.    The third day ended up being perfect and we managed to get into some nice fish. 

 

I noticed that we never really had that feeding frenzy that you see here on the TX coast.  We picked up one or two here and then nothing.   Then go to another spot and catch one.   Go to another spot and nothing.  That was probably the most frustrating part. 

 

What we lacked in numbers, we made up for in size.  Man there are some monsters out there.  We had side pots going for Biggest Red and Biggest Trout daily as well as for the trip.  The two biggest reds were caught less than an hour before sundown.  I watched my old man reel in a 39 incher and then his buddy pulled in a 41 1/2 incher right as we needed to load up our skiff and head back to the boat.  Biggest trout was also caught the last afternoon we were there. 

 

Biggest trout ended up being 25 1/4 ".   We had a 24 1/2 " on the boat and a lot in that 20-22"  range.   We had six reds over 30 inches. 

 

One buddy did end up with a bacterial infection on his ankle and it had a bunch of swelling and fever.  Make sure if you have any cuts or nicks on you, you use liquid band aid. 

 

I managed to get my phone soaked when I swamped the skiff, so I lost a lot of my photos.  I will post some of the ones I got from others on the trip. 

 

This first trip definitely was a learning experience and most certainly plan on going back next year.  

[Mac8111 2129]

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Mac8111 2129]

Two more I found.




Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Pescado_Rojo 19556]

Shit Mac, I think I accidentally negged you. Stupid iPad 

[krevo 142]

Holy shit Mac, nice haul.  

 

I just got back from Fort Walton/Destin family trip.   Would highly recommend the South Walton area (30A) over anywhere near Destin.  That place is a madhouse.    Caught an overslot pomp in the surf, a few slot reds, a couple rays, and a myriad of other species.  (Sea Robin, Bluefish, Ladys,)  Was able to fish the brackish inlets, the surf, and the flats on the other side of the jettys.   That place is a fishing paradise.  Only thing I regret is I didn't get to catch a Florida largemouth in one of the many ponds and lakes in the area.  If anyone is headed that way soon, PM me and I'll fill you in on what baits and lures worked, where the fish were, etc.

Edited May 22, 2018 by krevo

[DefinitelyNotHollywoodColt 12301]

CO peeps...supposedly the salmonflies are coming off on the upper colorado...i'm going to try and hit it this saturday. it'll be a shitshow with the recreational boaters on the holiday weekend but salmonfly. if i float by a dude ripping a panther martin through a salmonfly hatch i'm assuming it's chewie, pulling over and chunking rocks in his water.

[Mac8111 2129]

Just wondering -  is there any real chance of catching a tagged redfish in the surf?   Taking the kids to Port A this weekend and might kill some time in the surf.  Wouldn't mind winning a new boat and truck while I am at it.   Seems like several are caught that first weekend of the contest.   I know I could probably go wade Brown & Roots flat, but then the ferry line would be a nightmare getting back across on holiday weekend. 

[atomheartbevo 90542]

Probably better videos out there, but this one from a few days ago popped up when I was looking at some Possum Kingdom stuff. Somebody did a little diving and ran into a school of bluegill.