march 2011

STRIPERS:FISH FOR ALLSEASONS

WADEFISHING

COBIA!FLOUNDERSACHILLES HEELACHILLES HEEL

TROPHY QUESTBASS

THE TF&G BASS FISHING QUIZ

SHORT RANGEOPTICSOPTICS

MARCH 2011 | $3.95 | VOL. 26, NO. 11

PRO TOD FAIRCLOTHHOSTS ULTIMATETROPHY QUEST

WINNER DENNIS MITTASCHAT LAKE SAM RAYBURN

Digital EditionMOSSBERG:MADE IN TEXAS

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2 | M A R C H 2 0 1 1 | T E X A S F I S H & G A M E

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.

ROY NEVESPUBLISHER

DON ZAIDLEEDITOR-IN-CHIEF

CHESTER MOOREEXECUTIVE EDITOR

C O N T R I B U T O R S

JOE DOGGETT SENIOR CONTRIBUTING EDITORDOUG PIKE SENIOR CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

TED NUGENT EDITOR AT LARGEBOB HOOD HUNTING EDITOR

MATT WILLIAMS FRESHWATER EDITORCALIXTO GONZALES SALTWATER EDITOR

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LOU MARULLO BOWHUNTING EDITORKENDAL HEMPHILL POLITICAL COMMENTATORREAVIS WORTHAM HUMOR EDITOR

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TEXAS FISH & GAME (ISSN 0887-4174) is published monthly by Texas Fish &Game Publishing Co., LLC., 1745 Greens Road, Houston, Texas 77032. TexasFish & Game Publishing Co., LLC. All rights reserved. Contents may not be reprint-ed or otherwise reproduced without written permission. The publication assumes noresponsibility for unsolicited photographs and manuscripts. Subscription rates: 1year $19.00: 2 years $34.75; 3 years $48.50. Address all subscription inquiries toTexas Fish & Game, 1745 Greens Road, Houston, Texas 77032. Allow 4 to 6weeks for response. Give old and new address and enclose latest mailing addresslabel when writing about your subscription. POSTMASTER: Send address changesto: TEXAS FISH & GAME, 1745 Greens Road, Houston, TX 77032. Address allsubscription inquiries to TEXAS FISH & GAME, 1745 Greens Road, Houston, TX77032. Email change of address to: [email protected] Email new ordersto: [email protected] Email subscription questions to:[email protected].

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48 THE TF&G BASS FISHING QUIZBass fishing is not rocket science, but a littleknowledge can take an angler a long way.Think youre already an ace at finding andcatching bass? Take our Quiz and see...

by Matt Williams

52 MOSSBERG: MADE IN TEXASO.F. Mossberg, one of the worlds leadingfirearms manufacturers, relies on its MaverickCounty, Texas, factory (appropriately namedMaverick Arms) to supply a global market-place.

by Steve LaMascus


MARCH 2011 Volume XXVI NO. 11

FEATURES

22 FISH FOR ALL SEASONSCaught so many black bass that youve lostcount? Take a break from basic black and trysomething in stripes. Winter, spring, summeror fall, from the Red to the Rio Grand, youcan find stripers to tangle with.

by Paul Bradshaw

26 SHORT-RANGE OPTICSEvery common sense-equipped hunter knowsyou never use the scope of your rifle to sighton anything you dont intend to shoot. Butwhat is your best option for non-lethal opticsighting a binocular or monocular?

by Bob Hood

PHOTO

:WILLLE

SCHPE

RPH

OTO

:CHES

TERMOORE

ON THE COVERS:

COBIA ON FOOTImagine wading ashallow-water mid-coastal bay, fish-ing for trout, when

a bragging-size cobia strikesyour lure. Rare, but it does hap-pen, and one of our writers wasthere with a camera whenone did.

by Will Leschper

BIG SAM BASS QUESTPro Angler ToddFaircloth hostedTexas Fish &Games Ultimate

Trophy Quest winner, DennisMittasch of Willis, for a day ofbass fishing on Lake Sam Ray-burn.

by Chester Moore

STORY:

32

www.FishGame.com

STORY:

36

44 THE MENHADEN FACTORMenhaden are a flounders Achilles Heel.Flatfish are ambush-prone opportunists andmenhaden are easy to ambushwhich canlead a floiunder right into its own ambush by acrafty angler.

by Chester Moore


COLUMNS & DEPARTMENTS

COLUMNS

MARCH 2011 Volume XXVI NO. 11

10 Editors NotesThirteenLaughing Gullsby DON ZAIDLETF&G Editor-in-Chief

14 Chesters NotesShootingFlipperby CHESTER MOORETF&G Executive Editor

16 Doggett at LargeSeeingRedby JOE DOGGETTTF&G Senior Contributing Editor

18 Pike On the EdgeDoWe Need MoreFishing Regulations?by DOUG PIKETF&G Senior Contributing Editor

20 TexasWildGood, Bad, andUglyby TED NUGENTTF&G Editor At Large

21 CommentaryGivingBackby KENDAL HEMPHILLTF&G Politcal Commentator

30 Texas SaltwaterThe Front ofthe Shieldby CALIXTO GONZALESTF&G Saltwater Editor

42 Hunt TexasRavens FirstGoose Huntby BOB HOODTF&G Hunting Editor

43 Texas FreshwaterThe Highs and Lows ofRising, MuddyWaterby MATT WILLIAMSTF&G Freshwater Editor

56 Open SeasonStingers

by REAVIS WORTHAMTF&G Humor Editor

DEPARTMENTS

8 LETTERS

12 TF&G REPORT

12 BIG BAGS &CATCHES

40 TRUE GREEN

www.FishGame.com

Taking Issue withHunting Land &Money Letter

THIS IS IN RESPONSE TO A LETTER,Hunting, Land, & Money, by Mr. RyonGrant, published in the January 2011 issue.

In Mr. Grants letter, he complains aboutTexans leasing their land for money. I canonly theorize that in Michigan where he saidhe grew up, the court systems and such aredifferent from ours, since the very thought ofallowing someone to hunt on property that Iown without a lease, a release from liabilitysigned by the hunters, and drawn up by myattorney makes the hair stand up on the backof my neck.

Its nice of Mr. Grant to offer straps,roasts, chopping firewood, or helping to fixmy tractors, but that wont pay the liabilityinsurance that I have to buy every year or theattorney fees that would result in case some-one gets injured or killed on my land;whether they are on it with my permission ornot.

Mr. Grant contradicts himself a bit bystating that when I felt like hunting, all Ihad to do was talk to one of the local farm-ers and they would let me sit on a fence rowor in a plot of woods and I could hunt to myhearts content. Then later states, I wouldnever expect anyone to simply open theirland to someone, especially a completestranger...

Mr. Grant also states that 20 acres issuch a chunk of land. My back yard is 15acres and the front and side yards are anoth-er 15. That might be a chunk inMichigan, but not so in Texas.

He goes on to state that monetary com-pensation for the use of Gods green Earth isa concept that will forever remain foreign tomy understanding. I can only guess thatMr. Grants not a landowner or he wouldknow that you have to pay for it to own it,and then you simply rent it from the govern-ment in the form of taxes each yeartaxes

that lease payments certainly help to pay,especially when the cattle market isnt doingso well.

In any case, I am not trying to tear theman down, but trying to point out somefacts.

As long as there are people willing to payto hunt on private land, there will belandowners willing to lease their land formoney.

You are not in Michigan anymore, Mr.Grant.

Wade WarnerVia email

Old Baits to NewI ENJOYED MATT WILLIAMS TEXAS

Freshwater column on Old Baits to New.I, too, repair a lot of old baits that I find atestate and garage sales. Sometimes at estatesales I find complete tackle boxes full of oldplugs that, after they are washed and newsplit rings and hooks are installed, look likenew and still catch fish.

My biggest find was last year at an estatesale. I was looking in an old dirty closet andfound six fly rods and an old tackle box; thelid was rusty and I could not get it open. Iasked the lady doing the estate sale about theprice for the old rods and tackle box. Shelooked at the dirty rod covers and rusty boxand said, Would you pay $10 for all ofthem?

When I got it all home and worked thetackle box open, in it were five fly reels,about 100 flies, and one old casting reel in abag. I had all of this appraised by a personthat knows old fishing tackle. One of the flyreels was made in England and worth $150.The rods were Eagle Claw and the value forall was $125. Most of the flies were hand-tied and he gave me an off-the-cuff value of$100.

The reels held top-dollar line and the boxhad several leaders in packages. There wasone package of old Crme worms in original

packaging.I have a fishing buddy that gave back a

tackle box he brought at a garage sale. Themans wife had set his good tackle box out bymistake, and it was full of lures!

William C. EdgarBrownfield, TX

If you enjoy making finds like these,keep out an eye for a feature article titled,Trophies in the Attic scheduled for anupcoming issue.

Don Zaidle, editor-in-chief

Viva La RevolucinTHANK YOU FOR KENDAL HEMPHILLS excel-

lent column, La Revolucin, in theJanuary issue. It was the first time I had readanyone telling that side of the problems inMexico.

Being a Texan and having some knowl-edge of the border problems, what Hemphillwrote makes a lot of sense. I am not sure Ieven want to chase the specks and reds downnear Brownsville anymore. I think I willspend more time on Upper Laguna Madre.Thanks for the heads- up.

Don TownsenVia email

Send Your Comments to:

Texas Fish & GameAttn: Letters to the Editor1745 Greens RoadHouston TX 77032

E-mail: [email protected]


Letters to the Editor

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ThirteenLaughingGulls

ON THURSDAY, JULY 29, 2010, THELouisiana Department of Wildlife andFisheries (LDWF) issued a press releasestating: State and federal biologists

today released back into the wild 13 laughing gullsand two royal terns and one sandwich tern rehabil-itated after rescue from oil impacts of the DeepwaterHorizon oil spill. (sic)

Thirteen laughing gulls. And a partridgein a pear tree.

In this space, August 2010 issue, I wroteunder the title Killing is Kindness of thefutility and absurdity of rescuing oiled birds,and advocated euthanasia as more practicaland humane. To recap briefly, I presented datashowing survival of cleaned birds is almost nil;that estimated costs to clean birds vary widelyfrom $600 to as much as $15,000 per bird(estimates for the Deepwater Horizon accidentaveraged $1200); and posited that all suchexpenditures of funds and resources are adeplorable waste with zero return for wildlife.

I was surprised and disappointed to see theusually pragmatic LDWF boasting about itsinvolvement in post-Deepwater Horizon theater,particularly with 13 laughing gulls as the cen-tral prop.

With an estimated continental U.S. popu-lation of 800,000, laughing gulls are hardly

endangeredand even if they were, the datasay post-oiling efforts to save them would befutile.

Thirteen laughing gulls, which equals 6percent of the 211 female laughing gulls pur-posely killed and necropsied in 2001 for areproduction study by the U.S. Departmentof Agriculture.

Thirteen laughing gulls, which breed fromApril through Julyjust when all those birdrescuers were stomping around the marshesand shorelinesand for which disturbance ofnesting colonies is the greatest threat to localpopulations.

One must perforce question why, in theface of all evidence to the contrary, groups andgovernments insist on performing such effortsand claiming they serve a valuable purpose.

I do not know how many charities and

Editors Notes

by Don Zaidle | TF&G Editor-in-Chief


save the animals! groups are making hay outof the Deepwater Horizon accident, but you canbet each groups salaried bigwigs are laughingall the way to bank after rolling in the dona-tions from gullible sympathizers.

I do not know how government bureau-crats and politicians count the value of weresaving the Gulf! publicity, but they areundoubtedly laughing all the way to the politi-cal capital bank.

I do not know why the gulls are laughing;perhaps at the silly humans making all thefuss.

I do know why legitimate scientists, biolo-gists, and other wildlife professionals arelaughing: slapstick and Keystone Cops rou-tines are funny.

Defending ones personal dung heap isnatural and expected, but mounting a defensedoes not make a position defensiblereminis-cent of the man asking the court for leniencyon the basis he was an orphan after killing hisparents.

And what of the outdated data claims?(Notwithstanding that post-cleaning follow-updata from the 1980s and 1990s is hardly

outdated in terms of the body of relevant lit-erature.) When pressed for data from morerecent credible studies, the bird laundererscannot provide itbecause it does not exist.

It seems, therefore, that the massive post-Deepwater Horizon bird-washing effort was aprime opportunity to do just that: Band eachwashed bird, index the band numbers to com-puterized files containing all pertinent data(date and location caught, cleaning methods,date and location of release, etc.), and thencollect survival, nesting, and other data fromband returns. Better still, equip released birdswith GPS tracking and data telemetrydevices, and in no time, a clear picture of post-washing survivability would emerge.

Alas, apparently BP Oils money wasinsufficient to fund such a follow-up program.Here, nigh-on a year after the accident, no fol-low-up data is forthcoming and no programsto collect it in evidenceor if there are, theyare well-guarded secrets.

One must wonder whether such datamight prove inconvenient to fund-raising andembarrassing to save the animals! pundits.

In the interests of offending as many pur-

veyors of ill-conceived wildlife rescue pro-grams as possible, I hereby springboard fromthe preceding twice-chewed cabbage to positthat all wildlife rescue and rehabilitationeffortseven when the objects thereof sur-viveare monumental wastes of money, time,and resources.

Biological realities make onesie-twosiespecies conservation irrelevant in a wild popu-lation, and often in captive situations withsome species.

Rescuing and rehabilitating individ-ual specimens of any species accomplishesnothing for the population, be it hawk, eagle,or owl; mink, ermine, or weasel; or bear,cougar, or coyote (yes, there actually are peo-ple and organizations that rescue and reha-bilitate coyotes).

Delude yourself all you like, but catch-and-release of sustainable fish species does nothingto ensure the genes remain in the popula-tion. It is a feel-good gesture that accomplish-es little, if anything, from a biological stand-point. (Before you write me nasty letters,

Continued on page 13


New LakeAustin BassRecord

T.J. NISSEN OF AUSTIN NOW HOLDS THEbass record for Lake Austin after catching a16-pounds-plus largemouth on January 27.

Nissen was fishing in 4-5 feet of 49-degree water when the 16.03-pound fishtook his crankbait. The fish is 28.25 incheslong and 21.75 inches in girth. Only threeother fish entered into the ToyotaShareLunker program have been that long.

Lake Austin is traditionally drawn downin January,and that poses a problem foranglers, since all the boat ramps are out ofthe water and unusable.

But where theres a will, theres a way.The only way you can get in is with a kayakor a V-bottom boat or a flat-bottom boat,

Nissen said. We bought one a couple ofyears ago specifically for this.

Forethought paid off with a new lakerecord largemouth bass that ranks No. 22 onthe list of 50 biggest bass caught in Texas. I

threw a bigcrankbait upunder a dock,and she ham-mered it onabout the thirdcrank, Nissen

said. It made abunch of runs andshook its head threetimes. We didnt havea net, but luckily Ihad a partner in theboat who was willingto take as many treblehooks in the hand ashe had to to get her inthe boat. Once we got

her in the boat, we just stood there andstared, wondering what to do next.

The small boat did not have a livewell,but Nissen had the next best thing: Friendswho were willing to do whatever it took to


Ryan Bagwell, age 7, caught this 29-inch,8-pound speckled trout while fishing withhis dad out of Port Isabel. The fish wasbig enough to make the STAR leaderboard, but not big enough to win, so Ryandecided to release the big girl. She wasworth more to him alive.

Evan Janson caught this 6-pound large-mouth bass while fishing a private pond inFrisco. He caught the bass using a chatterbait. Evans photo was sent in by Eric D.Janson.

Kent Marze killed this 8 point manage-ment buck, 6 1/2 years old and weighing170 lbs, hunting at Uvalde. He took thetrophy with a Remington Model 700 7mm-08, shooting Hornady Interbonds bullets.

The TF G Report&

BIG BAGS CATCHES&

T.J. Nissen withhis 16.03-poundcatch from LakeAustin.

Record Bass

Private Pond

LargemouthBass

Port Isabel

SpeckledTrout

Uvalde

WhitetailBuck

PHOTO: LARRY HODGE

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keep the big fish alive. I started callingfriends and saying, We need some help. Weneed an ice chest and an aerator. All mybuddies came through, and my wife camedown and brought us pizza while we waitedfor [Texas Parks and Wildlife Department]

to show up. It was fantastic.In the 25-year history of the

ShareLunker program, only 19 fishentered into the program (includingNissens) have weighed 16 pounds or more.Nissens fish ranks No. 22 on the Top 50list because some of the fish on that list werenot entered into the ShareLunker program.

Only five of the 19 (including Nissens)were caught before the end of January, andthree of those catches came during the monthof January. The most recent was the currentstate record of 18.18 caught by Barry St.Clair January 24, 1992. Three 16-pound-plus fish have been caught in the last 10months, and that fact is causing some raisedeyebrows among Texas Parks & WildlifeDepartment fisheries biologists. A 16-pound fish could easily top 18 pounds whenthe eggs it is carrying are fully mature, andthat process is just getting under way aswater temperatures warm and days growlonger. Will we see a new state recordcaught this year? I wonder, saidShareLunker program manager DavidCampbell.

Once we got her to theboat, we just stood there

and stared, wonderingwhat to do next.

On the WebCatch the latest Outdoor News& sign up for Daily Newsblast:www.FishGame.com

please read up on the purpose of slot andmaximum length limits.)

All the millions of dollars and man-hours poured into restoring whoopingcrane and California condor populationswill ultimately prove for naught, becausethe populations are too far below thosespecies sustainability thresholds.

Managing consumable populationswith harvest regulations works because theaffected species are robust and self-sus-taining. Managing or restoring damagedhabitat works because it addresses the tar-get population as a whole, and benefitsother species to boot. There is a name forthese management practices: It is conser-vation.

I close with a reminder to the foolsfrom whom their money has parted: Thegulls are laughingall 13 of them.

Continued from page 11

E-mail Don Zaidle at [email protected].

Editors Notes

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ShootingFlipper

IT WAS SINGLEHANDEDLY THE MOSTbizarre idea I ever heard related to fisheriesconservation.

During the flounder regulationdebate in 2008, someone literally suggestedkilling dolphins as an option.

They are always out there in the passesflipping those flounder out of the water andeating them. The dolphins are getting morepopulous and they eat more flounder than weever kill, so we should enact some dolphinpopulation control.

So, youre saying we should shootFlipper to save the flounder, I asked.

Yes, pretty much.I wrote that off as an isolated incident

and then over the next few months was con-tacted by several people making the samesuggestion.

Somehow the idea of setting up dolphinsharpshooters in our bays and passes did notseem like it would fly with the Texas Parks &Wildlife Commission (TPWC) or the gen-eral public for that matter.

Come to the Texas coast where we blewaway 500 dolphins last year!

Not exactly good Chamber of Commercematerial, is it?

Soon however, the tide turned away fromdolphin eradication to redfish annihilation.

There are just too many redfish. Theyare eating all of the baby flounder. That iswhy flounder numbers are down.

Once again I wrote this off and ended uphearing the same thing from several people.One even suggested doubling the redfish baglimit, dropping the minimum size and end-ing all red drum stocking.

With trout regulations the hot debate thisyear, I have not heard new cries for porpoiseplinking but redfish are back in the

crosshairs. At scoping meetings there havebeen several calls for redfish population con-trol.

The trout are declining because the redsare eating all their food.

The reds are eating everything in theirpath.

This is reminiscent of the late 1990swhen commercial fishermen in Louisianatried to get gill and strike nets legalized forredfish once again because the reds werewiping out the crabs.

A decline in blue crab numbers could notpossibly have been related to the insanenumber of crab traps set in Bayou Statewaters but had to have been redfish, whichas far as we know have been co-existing withcrabs forever.

There is a tendency in fisheries manage-ment to seek scapegoats when there are pop-ulation problems or regulation debates.

These kinds of arguments and others likethem do nothing but move the attention fromthe real issues, taking the fishing publicdown rabbit trails with no end. More impor-tantly it takes the focus off the side of theconservation equation we can control: our-selves.

There is a reason size and bag limits areput in place. Of the myriad factors that gointo management of a species includingdrought, flood, salinity levels and freezes,our take of that resource is the one thing wecan control. TPWC members cannot pass ameasure deeming salinity levels above 60parts per thousand.

Well, they could but it would have zeroimpact.

Changing bag and size limits howeverdoes have an effect and along with stockenhancement are the only cost effectivemechanisms we have to impact sport fishnumbers.

A good, straightforward debate onwhether or not we should make changes andthe value we place on things like trout avail-ability and trophy size is something weshould discuss. However, we should do sowithout relegating redfish back to 1970s sta-tus when their primary purpose was an

ingredient in a Chef Paul Prudhommerecipe. They deserve more respect than that.

For many years I have studied the TexasParks & Wildlife Departments creel, purseseine and gillnet survey results. They are byfar the most thorough of any state in thenation and in my opinion as legitimate anaccount of what is happening in our bays aswe can get. The raw numbers are real or atleast as real as anything else out there.

When the TPWC goes by science, justby the raw numbers they do a good job ofregulating the state. However, we have toremember the Commission is made ofappointees who are usually wealthy folkswho contributed to the sitting governorscampaign. They are accountable to no one.

In the past there has been more than oneoccasion where an agenda of a single com-missioner drove them to enact regulationsbased more on social and special interestwants than on scientific standards. Similarthings have come from within the depart-ment and made their way to official status.

Have there been times when decision wasbasically made before proposals ever made itto the public scoping process? I think so.

And on the other hand I know for a factthere have been times when public commentchanged the agenda and common sense wonout over social regulations and pet projects.If we keep our focus on the science, examineit and question every aspect, then true con-servation usually wins out.

The state and the fishing public owe it toour resource to fight it out over the facts, butsuggesting decreasing one resource to benefitanother does not help trout, flounder or any-thing else.

Neither does ramming regulationsthrough to appease a small contingent ofanglers who just happen to have the ear of aninfluential legislator or other high-rankingofficial.

Both are a disservice to the resource andthe future of our beloved outdoors lifestyle.

E-mail Chester Moore at [email protected].

Chesters Notes

by Chester Moore | TF&G Executive Editor


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Seeing RedThe pleasantst angling is to see the fishCut with her golden oars the silver streamAnd greedily devour the treacherous bait.

William Shakespeare,Much Ado About Nothing

THE BARD OF AVON WAS A VISIONARY OFmodern times and coastal tides when hepenned those words in 1598. He nodoubt was referring to the brown trout

with bold, gold markings native to the rivers ofEngland, but his imagery is well-suited for theback lakes near Port OConnor and the grass flatson the Laguna Madre.

Watching a redfish swirl with goldenoars in shin deep water to grab a plug or flyis one of the great thrills in angling; indeed,the frequent sight casting opportunities onflats and shorelines elevate the red drum inTexas to Tier One status as a gamefish.

Certainly, other inshore sport speciesalong our coast provide visible shotstar-pon, jackfish, black drum, ladyfish come tomind. Even large speckled trout offer legiti-mate presentationsand the bold sight ofan upper 20s sow with gray-black backsliding across a white flat is a guaranteedthumb-fumbler over a casting reel.

But these are random encounters. Theredfish puts Texas on the map as a shallow-water venue. Schools of immature fish in thetwo- to 10-pound class thrive in the bays andestuaries, and favor feeding in mere inches ofwater for shellfish and baitfish. They oftenroot or grub on bottom, with inverted tailsflashing in the sunhigh drama in lowwater for the poised angler.

The tailing and cruising bonefish ontropical tides get more publicity but theTexas reds offer the same experience; in fact,many veteran anglers agree that skinny red-fish can be the tougher of the two.

This especially is true from a skiff drift-ing over a wind-riffled bottom of grass andsand/mud, when sight casting opportunitiesoften are close and fast.

Sight casting opportunities for redfishalong the Texas coast are where you findem, from Sabine Lake to the lower LagunaMadre, but the farther south you go, the bet-ter the odds become. This is because thebays of the middle and lower coast are, onaverage, shallower and clearer.

Regardless of venue, sight casting withplug or fly combines the best of fishing andhunting. The angler is a stalker, seldommaking a blind cast across open water. Assoon as you do, with your lure way off in leftfield (or flat, as the case may be), a dandyred will materialize from nowhere, offeringan ice cream shot at 50 feet at 11 oclock(the clock coordinate with the bow being 12oclock).

Noyou stand cocked and locked, scan-ning with polarized glasses from 9 to 3,ready for a crisp presentation. Remember,this ever-vigilant stance guards against themaddeningly frequent pop-up target inside30 or 40 feet.

The goal is to spot the fish before it sens-es your approach. Wading and pol-ing/drifting each has advantages and disad-vantages.

The wader is lower to the water, reducingthe high image, but the cone of vision acrossthe water is reduced. Wading also is qui-eterwell, assuming you dont bumble overthe back of a giant stingray. And, as long asyou close the gap, you can shuffle left orright to improve the casting angle.

The fisherman standing on the castingdeck of a skiff can see way out there, but fishhave an annoying habit of seeing back. Yourhead and casting arm are perhaps eight or 9feet above the surface, not exactly the bestprofile for a stealth mission. And, with acontrary angle or a gusting wind, the boatcan be difficult and noisy to maneuver.

Regardless of approach, the idea whencasting is not to hit the unaware red betweenthe eyes. Or, worse, on the tail. In short,dont aim at the fish.

Note the direction the red is facing andestimate the speed and depth, then try toplace the cast several feet ahead of andslightly beyond the target. The lead can

be based on several factors but, as a rule,better to overshoot and let the fish close thegap. The exception might be with a subsur-face lure over shallow grass or shell; toomuch lag time can result in a bogged-downbaitalways a major bummer as a big redwaddles past.

If possible, minimize the commotion asthe lure splashes down. A low sidearm castmight help; conversely, a high lob is likely tofall with a jarring chunk.

Fly casting is quieta whisper snakingabove the water to drop close to a shallowfish. For this reason, the long rod is veryeffective. The serious sight caster can mostdefinitely expand his options by including an8-weight fly rod with the usual battery ofcasting rods.

Your casting distance is reduced with thefly rod but the presentation with a light-weight offering is soft and subtle. Its muchsafer to press close with, say, a Seaducerstreamer than a 1/2-ounce Johnson Spritespoon. This can be a real advantage overthick bottom grass. Plus, many of the spe-cialized baitfish, shrimp, and crab fly pat-terns really look good.

Fly casting can be deadly and a compe-tent caster with a proper weight-forwardfloating line can handle the gusting Gulfwindbut pay attention to line managementwhen a close fish is sighted. From a skiff, thismeans glancing down to insure that thestripped line on the deck is not tangled or,worse, adrift under the bow.

While wading, take a moment to pull thetrailing line close for easier shooting andmake certain no strings of grass are clingingto the coils.

Nowput a crisp double haul into theair and nail that sucker!

With plug or fly, seeing red on theTexas coast takes the game to a higher level.It is, indeed, the most pleasant angling.

E-mail Joe Doggett at [email protected]

Dogget at Large

by Joe Doggett | TF&G Senior Contributing Editor


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THE TEXAS PARKS & WILDLIFECommission at its January 26 meetingvoted to leave the coastwide speckledtrout limit at 10 fish per angler per day.

TPWD Coastal Fisheries DirectorRobin Riechers recommended againstchanging the limit from 10 to five coastwide.The limit remains at five within LowerLaguna Madre in all inside waters south ofmarker 21 located inside the area known asthe Land Cut.

Comments submitted to TPWD duringthe scoping period were split 49 to 51 per-cent in favor of no change.

Beyond current length and bag limits, doyou think Texas inshore fisheries would ben-efit from restrictions on how, when, or wherewe fish?

Managers have more cards in their handsthan are being played. In other states, fisher-men face season, location, and gear restric-tions the likes of which would boggle mostTexans minds. Often as not, those rules arenecessary because fisheries and habitats else-where are in such woeful states as to com-mand ultra-cautious harvest regulation.

Here, at least for now, we have plenty offish.

Optimistic Texans point to a successionof favorable state surveys of our two mostpopular inshore sportfish: red drum andspeckled trout. We are flush on both; tie aknot and make a cast. (I wouldnt mind see-ing the trout limit dropped to five and anoth-er inch tacked onto the minimum length, butTPWD overseers see no reason to dropsuch a hammer now.)

Pessimists contend that we are nevermore than a hiccup from some natural ormanmade disaster that will devastate coastalfisheries, and that the more fish we protect,the more will be left to begin a post-dooms-day recovery.

I disagree. TPWD does a good job ofsafeguarding these resources, and I am com-fortably inclined to follow its lead. If badhappens, nature will fill whatever voids arecreated as quickly as habitat and foodsources allow.

TPWD holds the ace of emergencyrule to counter catastrophic events, but I donot think we are anywhere near need for rou-tine area or seasonal closures in our bays.

Offshore fishermen already deal withclosed seasons on red snapper, and itsunlikely that the calendar will reopen fullyon that species in the foreseeable future.Thats because management of that specieswas bungled for years by federal rule mak-ers.

Imagine the outcry if TPWD suggested asimilar season for trout or reds, or if theydeclared certain bays to be artificial lureonly zones, as are some trout streams andrivers up North.

I am all for fishing with lures, but I amnot ready to tell another person what tothrow so long as there are enough fish for theboth of us.

Beyond a major increase in law enforce-ment, which we would all like to see, do weneed more rules to protect our inshore fish-eries into the future?

ON A VERY DIFFERENT YET RELATED NOTE,many anglers pin their catch rates on therods whereby they proffer lures or baits ormagic elixirs.

Fishing rods come in nearly endless sizesand actions, and the subtle differencesbetween them change the way they makelures wiggle or beat the starch out of hot fish.

I have owned or tested hundreds of differ-ent rods during nearly a quarter century inthis business and continue to be amazed athow the industry manages, year after year, to

make improvements.Nothing changed fishing rods more than

introduction of graphite, which was signifi-cantly lighter and stronger than fiberglass.Early graphite rods had problems but still,for most applications, were the better tech-nology. They still are.

Todays rods are lighter by half, in manycases, than same-size and same-action mod-els from not a lot of years past.

Good rods today are better than the bestrods five years ago, and there is no reason tobelieve that technology wont put a new spinon tomorrows rods to make them better yetagain.

So heres my question: Can you really tellthe difference in a $50 rod and a $200 rod?Side by side, no markings whatsoever, couldyou pick the premium stick from the moreaffordable one?

Professionals and serious amateurs, Ibelieve, can pick out the little variables inaction that separate the best rods from allothers. For the average weekend fisherman,however, I see no reason to invest heavily ina premium rod until that angler can explainin detail how the upgrade would be of bene-fit.

Its the same as when high-handicapgolfers ask me about buying more expensiveclubs. When you can tell me why you needthem, I advise, youre ready for the betterequipment.

Until then, buy a good rod, but maybenot the best rod, and spend whatever moneyremains on more lures or bait or a cool cap.Never let money allocated for fishing gear goback into the familys general fund. Sameas with tax dollarsonce its taken away,youll never get it back.

E-mail Doug Pike at [email protected]


Pike on the Edge

by Doug Pike | TF&G Senior Contributing Editor

Do We Need MoreFishing Regulations?

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Good, Badand Ugly

HOLY BACKSTRAPS! WHAT A GRANDhuntseason huh! Best Ive ever, thatsfor sure. Exciting adventure, mind blow-ing critter encounters, fascinating camp-

fires, nerve tingling/wracking challenges, soulcleansing dynamos, incredibly beautiful arrows,rock solid crosshairs, very happy dogs, backstrapsfor miles, wonderful new friendships and spiritfulfillment beyond measure. My memory bankbursts with absolutely amazing and powerful pos-itives, and quite honestly, I suppose I couldntpossibly, nor should I dare, ask for more. But Ithink I will anyway.

I could go on and on and on and onabout the abject joys of yet another glorioushunting season at CampNuge here, thereand everywhere, but instead, I am compelledto scrutinize those less than desirable experi-ences in my ongoing quest for upgrade andimprovement. Im allergic to stagnancy andaddicted to upgrade. Such a dreamer, I.

If I just dwelled on all those outrageousguitar licks that so turn me on, I would neverdiscover new and better musical visions.What would the girls dance to?

Forward motion is my favorite motion, soas I take stock of the massive good that eachand every outing provides my family, friendsand me, it is here now that I wish to sharethe pain and suffering of the bad and ugly, soas to clear the path for more good.

Bad and ugly left unchecked creates areal mess wherever we find it. I give you thestate of the runaway Obama Fedzilla insani-ty as inescapable proof of this truism. Whenbad and ugly wins, good takes a hit, and Iam convinced that it is totally avoidable withbut a modicum of due diligence and intelli-gent dedication.

Of course the poor pathetic souls living inthe eleven states where Sunday hunting isforbidden have a rank bed to sleep in. My

suggestion, make a new bed ASAP. Goodold we the people activism has fixed thisanti-American Sunday hunting ban embar-rassment in numerous other states, and theeleven that accept this goofiness have theirwork cut out for them. The fix is proven andsimple and I would highly recommend it getsPriority One for those who believe in free-dom and individual liberty. Goodluck andGodspeed to you all.

And yes, each of our fifty states and allCanadian provinces have many inexplicablyillogical game laws on the books that need togo immediately, and I wish everyone the bestof luck in beating back the soulless bureau-crats who stand in our way. We are slowlybut surely winning this battle, and the prog-nosis improves somewhat incrementally.Stay on it.

But there are some universal upgradesavailable to all hunters and shooters, and Iwould expect Texas to lead the way, seeingas how Texas is the number one huntingstate in the nation and our hunt/shoot tradi-tion is so solidly entrenched in the fabric ofour Texas lifestyle.

With that being said, why do you sup-pose there are so many Texas hunters whoare barely familiar with their guns and bows?How can it be that so many new, youngshooters are downright clumsy, uncomfort-able and actually dangerous in the mishan-dling of their bows and guns?

If I witness another young shooter showup raring to hunt that is incapable of findinggame in their scope, who can barely struggleto draw back their bow, or that flinchesmaniacally when firing their bow or gun, Ithink I may implode.

Though the majority of parents andfriends are introducing new shooters proper-ly with adequate time at the range gettingefficient with gear, (this would be the good)there are way too many new shooters whoare irresponsibly inept when venturing ontheir first hunt, or maybe 100th hunt.

The only thing worse than failing to intro-duce a newcomer to our cherished shootingsports is the egregious violation of introduc-ing them wrong, incomplete or too quickly.

Finding a stationery target from a benchrest is one thing, a fidgety deer under hunt-ing conditions quite different. Just becausethat new shooter can settle into the scope atthe range does not mean they are ready to godeer hunting. It takes extended and con-trolled guidance to effectively become acapable rifleman, and a few shots from thebench is never enough.

Let that new shooter work the action,shoulder the rifle, smoothly find the targetand dry fire with a trained squeeze over andover and over again so that a level of confi-dence and comfort with the weapon and theshot sequence becomes second nature.

Same with archery tackle. And Im not just talking about youngsters

here. An adult must dedicate themselves tototal familiarization with their weapon beforegoing afield. And Dear God in Heaven,never let anyone shoot without hearing andeye protection. Do use enough gun, but nottoo much gun! Or bow! Really. Please.

Gun handling, archery, hunting, fishingand trapping should all be taught inAmerican schools K through 12. But that isnot going to happen in the predictablefuture, so it is up to us to demand a respon-sible level of efficiency before allowing new-comers or our hunting buddies to actuallyhunt.

There is nothing more enjoyable than theshooting sports and hunting. But while sheerfun, it is also serious business, to be takenvery seriously by all participants. I say weturn up the demand for seriousness so thatthe American hunting army is a better, morequalified, capable army. Then the fun factoris unlimited.

E-mail Ted Nugent at [email protected].

On the Web

For more Ted Nugent writings,visit www.tednugent.com


Teds TexasWild

by Ted Nugent | TF&G Editor at Large

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GivingBackT

HERE HAS BEEN ONE, AND ONLY ONE,honorary veteran of the United StatesArmed Forces. In 1996 congress voted topresent that title to Bob Hope, in appre-

ciation for the 50 years of service he gave ourtroops all over the world, entertaining and boost-ing morale by performing in almost 200 USOshows. Hope brought a little bit of laughter andpleasure into the lives of the people responsiblefor protecting our freedom far from home, and hedid it because he wanted to make a difference.

When told he was being made an hon-orary veteran, Hope said, Ive been givenmany awards in my lifetime, but to be num-bered among the men and women I admiremost is the greatest honor I have everreceived.

Joe Fox, of Marietta, California, spendshis time doing the same thing Bob Hopedid. Not on the same scale, and not over-seas, and not exactly the same way. But, likeHope, Joe Fox makes a difference. Hespresident of the Paralyzed Veterans ofAmerica Outdoor Recreation HeritageFund. Joe gives wounded veterans a chanceto enjoy life again, at a time when many ofthem have decided there is no joy left. Hetakes them hunting and fishing.

Founded in 2001, the PVA OutdoorRecreation Heritage Fund was endowedwith a one time, $1 million governmentgrant made possible, in part, by a couple ofretired U.S. Marine officers, Maj. Gen.Randy Grit West, and Lt. Col. Lou Deal.The Fund has raised an additional$350,000, and the interest from the endow-ment is used to give veterans back a smallreturn on the immense investment they havemade in their country.

These guys think their lives are over,Fox said at a dinner during a Wounded

Warriors hunt in Mason, Texas. Theythink theyll do nothing but sit in a room andstare at the walls from now on. We take themout and give them a chance to enjoy lifeagain.

Enjoying life, for someone who loves tohunt and fish, means getting outdoors andexperiencing the thrill of feeling a hard tugon a line, or watching a deer step into aclearing through a rifle scope. Veterans whohave given arms, legs, eyes, or the use ofthose assets in battle, often consider thatthrill gone forever. One such man, on a blackbear hunt in Alaska, told Fox, Youve givenme my life back.

In an 1863 letter,Abraham Lincoln wrote, We

never should, and I am sure, never shall,be niggard of gratitude and benefaction tothe soldiers who have endured toil, priva-tions, and wounds, that the nation may live.He also said the government has a responsi-bility to care for the veteran who has bornethe battle, his widow, and his orphan.While the Veterans Administration tries totake care of the basic needs of those whohave enabled our nation to live, Fox, andothers, try to provide more to life than meresurvival. And they do it because they care.

Fox travelled to Mason at the request ofCol. Steve Toone, U.S. Army, Retired,who helps arrange hunts in the area for theWounded Warrior Project. The PVAOutdoor Recreation Heritage Fund assistsgroups such as Wounded Warriors throughgrants, which help defray the expensesinvolved in giving our veterans a chance toenjoy the outdoors again.

Also on hand for the Mason hunt wereJake Little and his friend, BrianBeauchamp, who runs the Mid-Americanchapter of PVA out of Miami, Oklahoma.Brians grandfather, Dwight Guilfoil, was awounded veteran who was decorated in1960, by then vice president RichardNixon, as the Handicapped American ofthe Year. Giving, it seems, runs in the fami-ly.

But arranging hunts and taking veteransinto the outdoors can sometimes be danger-ous. Fox was reminded of this on a hunt inAlaska, when he was charged by a grizzlysow. The bear got within fifteen yards beforethe boar slapped her and made her turnaway. Such an event would be exciting foranyone, but may have been more so for aman in a wheelchair. A veteran himself, Foxlost both legs and partial use of his right armin Vietnam. He had a rifleman with him onthe bear hunt, but you never know.

We cant all be Bob Hope. We canteven all be Joe Fox. But we can still help.Without donations from private citizens,those who are directly involved in giving ourwounded veterans a chance to get outdoorsagain could not do what they do.

And these volunteers make more differ-ence than most of us will ever know. Foxsays, What we do is help these guys focuson their abilities, instead of their disabili-ties. Donating a few bucks doesnt pay ourveterans what we owe them, by a long shot,but it lets them know we appreciate their sac-rifices. None of them ever asks for more thanthat.

T E X A S F I S H & G A M E | M A R C H 2 0 1 1 | 21

Commentary

by Kendal Hempill | TF&G Political Commentator

E-mail Kendal Hemphill at [email protected].

Joe gives woundedveterans a chance to

enjoy life again. He takesthem hunting and fishing.

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by Paul Bradshaw

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T E X A S F I S H & G A M E | M A R C H 2 0 1 1 | 23PHOTOS: MAIN, DON ZAIDLE; WINTER, MILLLDA; SPRING, DIMITRIZIMMER, SUMMER, VLADISLAV ROMENSKY; AUTUMN, JODIE LEE


Striped bass are not native Texans, butthey got here as quick as they could.Stripers were initially stocked by TexasParks and Wildlife in 1967 in three reser-voirs, and due to additional stocking effortsthroughout the last four decades by TWPD,anglers now have a chance to catch themfrom the Red River to the Rio Grande.While you have the opportunity to catchthem in more lakes and rivers than everbefore, if you really want to go after consis-tently big fish then you need to hit LakeTexoma, one of the original lakes to receivefingerling in 1967.

While the majority of Texas top 50

stripers came from rivers, Texoma is still thegranddaddy of freshwater striper fishing inTexas. The reason behind this is that, unlikeother lakes in the state, it has a very strongdocumented striper spawn. Texoma doesntrely on TPWD to continually provide itwith stocked stripers but rather produces itown so there is little chance of it running outany time soon.

Now, just because there are a lot of fish inthe lake that doesnt mean they are particu-larly easy to catch and this is where BillCarey, owner of Striper Express (striperex-press.com, 877-786-4477), comes in. Billhas been putting customers on stripers since

1983 so when he recently started talkingabout catching stripers in the spring Ithought it was best to listen, and take a fewnotes.

Bill and his guides pride themselves withputting limits in the boat with artificial baits.Thats not to say that live bait doesnt havea place when chasing stripers but for themartificials are more consistent in the spring.The artificial bait they go to most of the timeis a Blakemore Road Runner of massiveproportions. While I carry 1/16 and 1/8ounce heads for chasing small fish, Bill andhis crew use the one ounce buck-tail versionto bring in big stripers. He also advises that

ODDS ARE THAT MOST OF YOU have lost count of the number of black bassyouve put in the boat but if youre like most Texans you can probably count the num-ber of stripers you caught on one hand. While bass fishing is fun its time to movebeyond your comfort zone, step up to the big boy table, and start chasing somethingwith stripes, because with all due respect a black bass doesnt have anything on astriper when it comes to pulling power.


you can use any color you want as long as itswhite or chartreuse. They tip this with anine inch white grub that you wont find inthe panfish section of your local sportinggoods store.

Sometimes oversized Road Runners andgrubs are hard to come by. If you cant getyour hands on some then the next best thingis a plain one ounce jig head tipped with asix inch glow Sassy Shad. If you have a fewswim baits for bass you can toss those aswell. If you go this route, use one that is bigand light colored.

One ounce jig heads with huge plasticbodies attached make for a massive bait.Tossing bait this size requires some heavyequipment so plan on using a medium heavyaction rod at least six and a half feet longwith a long butt so you can make two hand-ed casts. Mate this with a reel spooled with15 to 20 pound test line and get ready tohave a sore wrist at the end of the day.

Knowing what bait to use is only half thebattle because if you throw it in area wherethere arent any fish then it doesnt reallymatter what you use, now does it. Findingstripers on Texoma in March means concen-trating on main lake structure like humps,points, and the mouths of coves. The key tothe structure is the depth so look for thesehumps and points in water between 12 and30 feet deep.

One tip for fishing points that Billadvised as critical is which side of the struc-ture you fish on. The stripers tend to hangoff the downwind side of the point or hump,theoretically staying out of the wind blowncurrent eating shad blown over the point.Position your boat on the downwind sideand cast onto the point (yes, you will be cast-ing into the wind) and count to five beforestarting your retrieve and the stripers will hitit as you pull in your bait off the point intodeeper water. Once you find one fish youllgenerally find more hanging out with it.

Another way to locate fish is to watch thebirds, but you have to be careful because thebirds can lie to you. If the birds are justdiving down casually and grabbing a fishevery now and then they may be activelyfeeding but there arent any fish beneaththem, Bill pointed out. But if they arereally diving down and hitting the water hardthen there are stripers under them pushingthe bait fish up to the surface.

Now if you make a trip up to Texomathen there are a few things you need to know.Like a lot of the reservoirs on the edges of

the state, the waters of Texoma are shared bytwo states, Texas and Oklahoma. However,unlike lakes like Caddo and Toledo Bend,your Texas fishing license does not grant youaccess to the water in both states. Spend$12 to get the Lake Texoma license andyoull be able to fish anywhere on the lakewithout worrying about if youve crossed aninvisible state line.

The other thing to keep in mind is thatthe length and bag limits are different onLake Texoma than they are throughout the

rest of the state. On Texoma you can keepten fish (instead of five) with no minimumlength limit but can only retain two fish perday over 20 inches.

Texas is known for its black bass fisheriesbut if you really want to get your linestretched by a Texas giant, head to the north-ern border and start tossing big lures for basswith stripes.


26 | M A R C H 2 0 1 1 | T E X A S F I S H & G A M E PHOTO: BARRY BAUGHER

by Bob Hood

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THE

LATE-EVENING

TEMPERATURES hadbegun to cool but the situationahead was about to heat up.

John, a fictitious name Iwill give a fellow hunter,

and I


I anticipated a shot, figuring he had spot-ted a deer I hadnt seen, but John soon low-ered his rifle. Its just a stump, John said.I wasnt sure but its always worth checkingout.

Where are your binoculars? I shotback. As long as you have been hunting, Ifigured you would know to never point yourgun at something you didnt intend to shoot.Binoculars are made for looking, rifle scopesare made for shooting.

Needless to day, my respect for my com-panion quickly leaned to the left, and I wasglad the stump he had seen through his riflescope wasnt a cow, horse or another hunter.

Indeed, parts or portions of deer, turkeyand other game often appear as stumps,yucca, tree branches, rocks, fence posts and

many other things in the woods, but a goodbinocular or monocular are the best andsafest ways to check them out.

Never should a rifle scope be used forthat reason.

So, heres the question: When should youchoose a binocular over a monocular or viceversa? The answer really isnt that difficultto obtain.

Binoculars are best suited for scanning alarge area or a specific area for a long periodof time. Less eyestrain is produced whileusing two eyes to look through a pair ofbinoculars which results in better visual acu-ity.

On the other hand, a single monocular ismuch lighter and is more handy to use thana pair of binoculars, and that makes it a

great hunters choice for short-range optics.After all, who has not gone hunting whencarrying along a pair of heavier binocularshas seemed inconvenient and even burden-some at the time?

In the case of John, my hunting compan-ion, he was going to a box blind high on ahill where a high-powered pair of binocularswould have helped him scan or focus onareas a few hundred yards away or even clos-er. That same pair of binoculars would havetold him the stump he had seen indeed wasa stump. A monocular would have done thesame with the stump but would not have per-formed so well once he got into his blindwhen trying to view long distances.

In Johns case, he had neither a binocularor monocular. A low-cost optic of either

were nearing the preverbal fork in the road where we would split from one another

and work our ways to our separate hunting blinds on a ranch north of Junction. But

just as we reached the fork, John stopped abruptly, raised his rifle and peered through

its scope at something in the woods to the left.


would have been the correct choice forchecking out that stump rather than his riflescope. My choice would have been a monoc-ular.

Monocular optics are great options tobinoculars under close-range situations forseveral reasons, including reliability, accessi-bility and costs.

My monocular of choice is an Alpen8X25. It fits easily in my shirt or coat pock-et , and I have used it for getting quick close-up looks at spring gobblers that I have calledin as well as many whitetail deer, javelina,coyotes, bobcats and other animals I haveencountered within 50 yards or less.

Many hunters are aware of what the num-bers, such as 8X25, on a pair of monocu-lars, binoculars or even a spotting scopemeans. I will explain them in short, easyterms for those who dont know.

The first number on a monocular such asan 8X25 is the magnification of the instru-ment. The 8 is how many times the image isenlarged over normal view.

The second number on an 8X25 is 25mm, which is the size of the front lens in mil-limeters.

One might think that the higher the mag-nification (8 in this instance) and the largerthe lens (25) seems better but not necessari-ly so. The higher the magnification, themore difficult (hold steady and focus) alightweight instrument like a monocular is touse. Also, the larger the lens, the heavier theunit will be.

As a rule of thumb, I think a 5 or 6X30monocular will fill the bill for most hunterswanting something quick, easy and reliableto use, but that doesnt mean it will work finefor everyone. Its all a matter of choice, as isthe price range you want to be in when pur-chasing one.

A wide variety of monoculars are on salefrom about $10 to $175 on up to a few thou-sand dollars, including some that haveinfrared optics for night vision and some thatare waterproof. As anyone knows, betterquality comes with a higher price, so chooseone that fits your needs and pocketbook.

Another short-range optic that manyhunters are learning to take a closer look isthe range-finder.

Like monoculars, range-finders come in avariety of price ranges. While some offercapabilities of determining yards of objectsin distances up to 400 to 1,000 yards ormore, it is those that give the hunter near-accurate measurements out to 30 or 100

yards that are the most beneficial underclose-range situations. Traditional bow andcrossbow hunters, particularly, have much togain from range-finders, especially whenhunting in unknown territories. Bushnell,Leupold, Nikon, Optic-Logic, Zeis, LaserTechnologies and many other companiesoffer great lines of range-finders.

I would never go without a pair of goodbinoculars when hunting in high or opencountry, nor would I go hunting in closequarters, such as hunting spring turkeys, rat-

tling for bucks in thick brush, or hunting foranything in heavy cover along creek bottoms,mesquite flats,and the like without my binoc-ular.

After all, I want all the advantage I canget.

A monocular and most range finders aresmall, easy to use and can identify an objector give you accurate distances in a matter ofseconds.

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The Front ofthe Shield

OK, SO LETS TAKE A MOMENT AND TALKgame wardens.

I cant count the number of timesIve heard fellow anglers complain

and rail about their experiences with war-dens. The talk of woe usually revolvesaround a spot check that a game wardenconducts, and more often than not, it resultsin a ticket.

That trout was 15 inches when I put itin the cooler. He didnt have to give me a

ticket over a lousy 1/4 inch.I didnt know the kids had gotten at my

fire extinguisher and used it up. He didnthave to give me a ticket over an empty fireextinguisher.

I dont know how that extra red got inthe cooler.

My fishing license was in my wallet. Ijust left it in the truck.

The refrains are different, but the song isusually the same. Too many times, the rec-ollection of the experience is not positive,and ends with a ticket. On a handful ofoccasions, an angler say a few positive thingsabout game wardens, some even shake handswhen the boarding is over. More often thannot, the storyteller closes with somethingalong the lines of, dont they have betterthings to do than bother fishermen?

Humph. Youd think what they weredoing was pretty important.

The funny thing is, there is always a rea-son for the ticket, never a trumped-up charge(although there was the one wag who toldme that a game warden took a perfectly legalredfish out of the cooler and flexed andstretched it until it was an untagged 28 inches long). I have never heard of an unjus-tified ticket. I even received a ticket from awarden (I left my boat registration card inyou guessed itmy truck). As much as Ihated to pay it, I cant dispute the writing ofit.

Honestly, I believe that we all need toease up on the job that game wardens do.Plenty of people seem to fail to appreciatewhat they do.

These same men and women who catch


Texas Saltwater

by Calixto Gonzales | TF&G Saltwater Editor

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heat for writing tickets for everything fromshort trout to missing floatation cushions arecharged to enforce not just the game laws ofthe State of Texas, but ALL the laws of theLone Star State. If they stumble on a methlab while inspecting a deer lease, they makearrests. They stumble upon some fugitivewith a felony warrant while conducting asafety check, they make arrests. If they hap-pen upon some lowlife smuggling drugsalong the Rio Grande, they make arrests.

They have all the duties of any other lawenforcement officers, but they dont seem toget the credit. Instead, all too often they getdisrespect, criticism, and derision. Even so,they do their jobs with professionalism,aplomb, and tact. They behave just likeevery other officer of the law.

And they bleed just like other officers.Since 1919, 18 Texas Parks and Wildlifeagents have died in the line of duty. By any-ones tally, that is too many. These men hadfamilies and friends who mourned the loss.To them, these werent nit-picking snoopswho were looking for any reason to write aticket. These were mothers and fathers,brothers and sisters, husbands and wives,best friends and confidants who paid theultimate price while serving on the front ofthe shield. Like all others who dedicate theirlives to public duty, their service cant bemeasured, and no gratitude is enough.

It would be a shame to have to read anews story of a game warden being shot onsome lonely ranch road or drowning whilecoming to the aid of anglers in distress beforewe stop to consider what these men andwomen mean to us all. It's a real shame.

APERSONAL NOTE TO ANY READERS WHOmay be diabetic: take care of your-selves.... I, like you, am a diabetic. ImType II. It can be controlled with exer-

cise, diet, and the appropriate medication. Thosewho know me know Im a huge paranoid when itcomes to this condition, and I try to stick as closeto my regimen as I can.

Even so, the little horrors that come withthe disease do pop up. Im currently battlingdiabetic eye disease, which includes vascu-lar-genesis. My retinas dont get enoughoxygen, and they create extra blood vesselsto make up the deficit. These vessels arefragile, however, and leak. The end result isthat I have blood in the vitreous of the eye,and my vision is compromised.

The prognosis is good, however. A sur-gical procedure called a vitrectomy will cleanout the polluted fluid and, with a little time,my vision should return to normal or close tonormal. It is a surgical procedure, however,and a real pain in the neck.

I cant stress enough how important it isthat every diabetic remain diligent in manag-ing his disease. I see others who have mycondition, who feel that, since they take med-ication, they can put syrup on their pan-

cakes, or eat two breakfast tacos and wash itdown with a regular soda. They couldnt bemore incorrect. Even when you do every-thing right, like I have, you can have prob-lems occur (just imagine if I had ignored mydoctors orders...).

There are people out there who dependon you. Dont let them down.

E-mail Calixto Gonzales at [email protected].

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32 | M A R C H 2 0 1 1 | T E X A S F I S H & G A M E PHOTO: WILL LESCHPER

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I FEEL SAFE IN

stating you canttouch it, taste it, smellit or even see it, butits there looming justbelow the shimmeringsurface.

Call it the greatunknown.

BY WILL

LESCHPER


Its the masked uncertainty dripping withluminous anticipation that drives anglers ofall ages to plumb the depths, longing forconfirmation that our efforts will be reward-ed with a sweeping curve in the rod and theensuing splash and dash at the other end.

Quite frankly, its why we fish.An outing last April reaffirmed

a number of things in my mind,mainly that the greatest aspect ofour angling pursuits is that youstill can plunk an imitation into thewater and bring back a surprisefrom time to time even spectacular onesyou couldnt have envisioned in this lifetime.

The morning that started with promiseand held the potential for topwater tactics inthe stalk of speckled trout and redfish quick-ly morphed into a day that would call foranother approach plucked from the goodiebag. Blustery conditions on an otherwiseradiant, sun-kissed day forced friends RonCoulston, Loy Moe and I to adopt a differ-ent approach as we waded a variety of sandyslopes marked with gesturing seagrass inAransas and Redfish bays. For whateverreason, the specks and reds were finicky for

much of the morning, though we did findpockets of willing trout that thumpedAssassins of the Cajun croaker flavor.

The stage was set for better fishing asmorning gave way to afternoon, especiallysince it appeared the trout bite was turningon and wed found enthusiastic specks aftergliding under the 361 bridge into an areafrequented by a variety of shallow-watercrafts.

After a short run back to the shallows justoff Traylor Island near where wed startedour morning, we decided to again hop out

and stroll the stingray shuffle insearch of increased activity. It tooka dozen casts or so, but we soonfound a couple of chunky troutthat gobbled up our offerings andexceeded 20 inches.

We fanned out in a wider arcin our sweeping exploration formore keeper-size specks. Off tomy left about 50 yards away, Ronsuddenly reared back and set thehook on a quality fish, exclaimingthat fact aloud as the braid on hisbaitcaster shot out in strident

spurts. As is the case when a veteran anglerknows instantly that theyve barbed a hulk-ing specimen sporting shoulders, the otherswading nearby stopped their efforts and tooknotice.

Ron did his best to work the quarry in fora closer inspection, but the critter was morethan a little shy, opting to remain in thedepths at a distance while mocking the drag.A couple of more minutes passed thatincluded witty banter about sharks and por-poises, and as the fish finally rose about 50yards out, a curved brown fin crept into the PH

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Ron Coulston gets a gripon a rare catch... a shal-low water ling (cobia).

Wading for Ling


sun before gliding back down.Speculation at this point ran rampant,

but anything with serious teeth would haveshredded the line amid the pulsing runs, weestablished, and Ron kept working hismagic. Eventually the fish rolled up on itsside and actually woke up applying agenerous splash to the surroundings and aclue to its true identity.

Cobia! was the common call as the lingcontinued to thrash about near the surface,and the excitement only grew as the mostatypical of fish in this locale kept perpetualpressure on the drag. Another couple ofminutes passed before the bruiser got closeenough for a BogaGrip bite, allowing Ronto finally get a handle on the stout fish.

Its safe to say this was one fish tale thatelicited a variety of intriguing questions.

If youve ever headed into the big bluehorizon or earned your stripes at the jetties,youve more than likely either caught ling orbeen in the midst of the curious fish. Lemonfish, as they also are called, are well-knownfor their desire to frequent oil rigs and lurkunder other surface objects in open water.Im also told that the fish are suckers for

shrimp boats, swimming near the surface asscraps and other edibles are dumped duringthe trawl haul.

However, hookingmuch less finding one of these impressive critters in a bay sys-tem while wading in waist-deep water is aonce-in-a-lifetime experience, Im told.

Karen Meador, Texas Parks & WildlifeDepartment Aransas Bay ecosystem leader,and Kyle Spiller, TPWD Upper LagunaMadre ecosystem leader, who have morethan six decades of saltwater fisheries experi-ence, said discovering a nice ling inshoreremains a curious incident.

I think I can count on one hand thenumber of ling Ive come in contact with out-side of the gulf, and those were juveniles,Spiller said. Weve occasionally caughtthem in gill nets during surveys over theyears, but those fish all were a foot or less.

Meador pointed to interesting figuresgleaned from a database containing morethan 30 years of TPWD gill-net surveydata. She said that in that time frame, only20 ling were caught coastwise from PortArthur to Port Isabel in gill-net surveys,including only two in the Aransas Bay

ecosystem. One was caught in 1984 behindMud Island and the other was caught in1996 near Long Reef.

The largest ling caught in gill-net sur-veys came from the Lower Laguna Madre in1979, and that fish was 27 1/2 inches long,Meador said.

Meador noted that offshore fish some-times creep into bay systems when tides arehigh. However, with salinities being fairlylow in Redfish Bay compared to figures inthe gulf, it makes the catch of a hefty cobiaby a wading anglerone measuring 42inchesthat much more baffling.

Are there other unlikely swimmers fre-quenting known hotspots up and down thecoast skulking below just a cast away?

No doubt about it.And while theres nothing better than tar-

geting areas tailor-made for reds, specks andflounder this time of year and into the sum-mer, the great unknown makes things thatmuch more interesting.

Its why we fish, and more importantlywhy you can never have too many witnesses.

And cameras.

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36 | M A R C H 2 0 1 1 | T E X A S F I S H & G A M E PHOTO: CHESTER MOORE

Fishing Sam Rayburn forBass with Todd Faircloth

by Chester Moore

TODD FAIRCLOTH KNOWS Sam Rayburn.The Jasper native and Bassmaster Elite Seriespro has fished nine Bassmaster Classics, wonmore than $1.2 million professionally, andsays he owes much of his success to grow-ing up on Rayburn.

Rayburn is one of those lakes thatalways has something different to offer.It is definitely not one-dimensional and Ithink that fishing a lake that has grass, timber,and a water level that fluctuates frequently hasmade me a better angler, Faircloth said.

And that is why Dennis Mittasch was so excited towin the Ultimate Trophy Quest to fish with Fairclothlast fall.

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This was a unique shot at not only fish-ing with one of the top anglers in the coun-try but to fish with him on his home lake.Living in the Houston area, Rayburn iswithin my reach and definitely a lake I wouldlike to spend more time fishing.

On the day of the trip, Rayburn wasnearly eight feet low with much of the typicalgrass habitat unfishable.

Launching at Twin Dikes, Faircloth ranas across the lake to an area that had somethick grass growing along a deep creek chan-nel near a flat.

Well start off with some topwaters tosee if we can make something happen,Faircloth said.

There were several blowups and eventu-ally a couple of fish but the pro saw what heneeded to see and ran back through the sameroute fishing spinners and worms.

Fishing with quite a few pros over theyears, I have learned they will often startfishing with surface lures to draw strikes. Ifthey can get fish to hit topwaters or buzzbaits(even without committing) they know it islikely they can go back and pick off fish withsomething like a Carolina-rigged worm put

right in front of the fish.After catching a 4-pounder, we stopped

for a photo shoot and then the fishing wasback on, but there was little conversation. Iam one that tends to constantly pick thebrains of the pros I fish with, Mittasch had adifferent approach.

Im watching every move he makes andfiling this all away. Watching what a prodoes, the little things, will hopefully help mebecome a better fisherman, he said.

As we moved from place to place lookingfor big fish, it was evident Rayburns fisherywas healthy. There were lots of 1- to 2-pound fish, especially out along the edge offlats in deeper water. Not surprisingly, theconversation turned to the ShareLunker pro-gram, which seeks donations of bass weigh-ing 13 pounds or more. Over the years,Rayburn has produced nearly two dozenplacing it third in overall ShareLunkersdonated to Texas Parks & WildlifeDepartment hatcheries, and is a must-fishdestination for serious Texas anglers.

You have Lake Fork, which is always soproductive for big fish, and then you haveplaces like Falcon or Ivie that will pop upPH

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UTQ winner Dennis Mittaschgets pointers on landing aSam Rayburn bass from proangler Todd Faircloth.

Big Sam Bass Quest


and give up a lot of big fish all of a sudden,but Rayburn has always held its own. Thislake has never lagged in quality and is aplace anglers have a good shot of catching a10-plus-pound fish, Faircloth said. Its noteasy but those fish are definitely here.

Mittasch said he had no expectations ofnecessarily catching a monster that day, buthoped to be able to get some informationthat would help him catch the bass of a life-time: There are lots of good lakes in easydriving distance of me, like Conroe,Rayburn, and there is always that chance ofcatching a wall-hanger. That makes thingsjust that much more exciting.

Moving into a deep cove with some grass,Faircloth broke out a flipping stick and puton a jig to see if he might produce aRayburn monster.

Year-in, year-out, jigs are the best way tohunt for monster bass. The fishing can be alittle slow and there is definitely an art to it,but for the angler who wants a big one, it isthe way to go, Faircloth said.

In fact, Texas Fish & Game writer PaulBradshaw recently conducted research onwhich lures ShareLunker bass were caught

on, and jigs produced the most (95) andtheir close cousins, the lizards/creature baits,gave up 75. That is out of just over 500 fish.

So, if you arent using a jig you shouldbe, Bradshaw said.

This trip never yielded a really big bass,but Faircloth and Mittasch managed to catchsomewhere between 75 and 00 fish oneverything from topwaters to worms andcrankbaits.

There is nothing wrong with a day offishing like that, Mittasch said. I amthankful for the opportunity to fish withTodd. He was a pleasure to meet and I hopeto see him again, maybe at next years ToyotaBass Tournament, if not sooner. We may nothave caught any giant fish, but numbersmake it just as enjoyable and its a memorythat I will never forget.

A big thanks to Roy and Ardia Nevesand everyone else at Texas Fish & Game formaking this trip possible. I look forward toreading the magazine for information onwhat is going on in the Texas outdoors.

By the time this hits newsstands,Faircloth will have fished the BassmasterClassic, and as anyone familiar with his

work knows, he is a constant contender. Hiswinning would come as no surprise to any-one.

In 2008, Faircloth was narrowly beatenby Kevin VanDam for Angler of Year. Atonly 36 years of age, he still has a longcareer ahead of him to earn that prestigioushonor--and perhaps a Bassmaster Classictitle.

It is a career started on Sam Rayburn,where he gladly shared his knowledge andpassion for fishing with a dedicated anglerand TF&G reader who won what truly wasan ultimate Trophy Quest.

(Todd Faircloth is sponsored by Skeeter,Yamaha, Sebile, Costa Del Mar, CastawayGraphite Rods, Gary Yamamoto CustomBaits, and All-Terrain Tackle.)


On the Web

Watch video of Todd andDenniss Bass Quest, at:www.FishGame.com/video


GREEN

Feral HogControlwithPoisonTHE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE /

TEXAS WILDLIFE SERVICES IS DEVELOPING

A FEED-BASED POISON AND DELIVERY SYS-

TEM FOR CONTROLLING FERAL HOGS.

Last year, feral hogs caused an estimat-ed $400 million worth of damages in thestate. Michael Bodenchuk with TexasWildlife Services said controlling the popu-lation with hunting and trapping is ineffec-tive.

We are not able to take enough toaffect the breeding population, he said.

Bodenchuck said the agency is testingfeed-based commercial poison, Hog-Gone,which contains sodium nitrite, a commonhuman food additive that is highly toxic tohogs and fatal within minutes.

Texas Wildlife Services is testing a spe-cial feed hopper designed so only hogs canaccess the bait.

Theres a bar that has to be lifted witha hogs nose in order to gain access,Bodenchuk said. Its very natural for ahog to do that, very unnatural for any otheranimal. A raccoon couldnt do it if it want-ed to.

The hoppers will be testedwith non-lethal bait for several

months before Wildlife Servicesseeks approval to use poisonous bait.There will always be feral hogs in

Texas. We have passed the point of noreturn, Bodenchuck said. But we believethat we will be able to reduce the popula-tion and reduce the damage that they causesignificantly with this.


ZebraMusselsSpread inTexasWaterwaysTWO ATTEMPTS IN SEPTEMBER AND OCTO-

BER OF 2010 TO CHEMICALLY TREAT SIS-

TER GROVE CREEK FOR ZEBRA MUSSELS

AND KEEP THEM OUT OF LAKE LAVON HAD

MIXED SUCCESS.

Brian Van Zee, regional director of theTexas Parks & Wildlife Department InlandFisheries Division, led the effort to treat thecreek for the invasive bivalve. Without com-plete success, the mussels could still invadeLavon and spread to the Trinity RiverBasin and beyond.

Crews poured potassium chloride,which isnt harmful to humans or animals,into the creek at a specific location in calcu-lated amounts.

The chemical inhibits the mussels abili-ty to breathe. It has been used successfullyto treat still bodies of water, but this wasthe first attempt to use it in a flowing sys-tem. After the treatment, Van Zee said thefirst evaluations of the effort were positive,but as crews examined more locations, theydiscovered mussels that survived the treat-ment.

When youre dealing with a flowingsystem like that, its really difficult to sayyoure getting an equal and even distribu-tion of the chemical youre using through-out the entire stream, Van Zee said.Theres so many facets to a flowing watersystem like that, its just very difficult toachieve.

Zebra mussels were first discovered inthe Great Lakes in 1988. Experts believethey traveled from their native home in

Staff Report TG

There will always beferal hogs in Texas. We

have passed the point ofno return.

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Asia to North America in the ballast waterof a freighter. Often referred to as hitchhik-ers, the mussels made their way down toLake Texoma by attaching to boats or rid-ing in locations like live wells, as well as bytraveling through interconnected water sys-tems. They were discovered in Lake Texo-ma in April 2009, and while Lake Texomadoesnt connect to Sister Grove Creek, awater pipeline used by the North TexasMunicipal Water District connects Texomaand the creek.

The district has voluntarily stoppedpumping betweenTexoma and thecreek and has hired

a firm to study the issue and help develop asolution. But so far, nothing has beendecided.

Zebra mussels attach to almost anyhard surface and feast on plankton in thewater. They can clog water pumps anddeplete oxygen in the water, affecting theaquatic ecosystem.

Van Zee said so far no mussels havebeen discovered in Lake Lavon, but if theyreach the lake they could be introducedinto the Trinity River Basin. Van Zee said

he didnt think the department would tryanother treatment of the creek, but that itwill continue to monitor the situation.

In the meantime, when traileringbetween water bodies boaters should drainbuckets, engines, and live wells; remove anyvisible mussels, vegetation, mud, or foreignobjects; allow the boat and trailer to dry

completely for at least a week; and washthe boat and trailer at a commercial carwash using high-pressure, hot, soapy water.

Staff Report TG

Zebra musselsattach in clumpsto any hard sur-face.

Mussel Bound

PHOTO: WIKKIMEDIA COMMONS

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RavensFirst GooseHunt

THE MARCH WINDS ARE BEGINNING TOpush the last of the geese and ducks out ofTexas and on to their northern breedinggrounds. As they head north, they are

leaving behind some lasting memories for many ofus who have sat for hours in brushed blinds overwater, in coffin-shaped hide-outs dug into WestTexas fields or simply have slipped up behindstock ponds in an attempt to harvest a few ofthese great natural renewable resources.

One day last November, I went to KnoxCounty to join long-time friend Steve Barberof Arlington and others for two days ofgoose hunting in the dusty, dry harvestedpeanut fields which attract specklebelly andCanada geese by the thousands.

Just as with duck hunting, a 15 m.p.h. orso wind is preferred because the geese decoybetter under those conditions but we wouldhave to settle for the slight breeze that was athand on our first mornings hunt.

The pickup trucks whose headlights hadlit up an area in a peanut field as we dug intothe ground were now parked beside a roll ofcotton bails about 300 yards away, and theirowners had returned to join the others intheir semi-underground blinds surroundedby a spread of about 250 silhouette andhalf-shell goose decoys .

The hunt had been set up by StanfieldOutfitters of Knox City, a family-run outfitthat specializes in goose hunting but whichalso offers hunting for ducks, pheasants,deer, hogs, doves and quail. I have huntedwith the Stanfields many times over the pasttwo decades and have watched them growinto one of West Texas top outfitters.

Many of my hunts in the Knox Countyarea have been with long-time friend SteveBarber of Arlington, his family members

and business associates. However, on thishunt, Barber had brought along a hunterwho would be making her first ever goosehunthis two-year-old black lab namedRaven.

Although only two years old and about tohear and see thousands of geese as they lefttheir roosting areas and headed toward us tofeed on left-over peanuts in the huge fields,

Raven wasnt exactly raw at retrieving.Professional dog trainer Ron Stanfield, acornerstone of the Stanfield Outfittersorganization, already had helped putRaven on the right track in obedience andretrieving.

To help conceal Raven when geese wouldapproach out spread of decoys, Barber haddug a special hole for her next to his coffin-like hole except with a dirt platform so shewould be able to exit more easily to make aretrieve.

If anyone had any questions about howRaven would respond when the first gooseor geese tumbled from the sky, those ques-tions were about to be answered quickly. Alone specklebelly was the first to approachthe decoys. Tony Stanfield, positionedbehind the row of hunters, used his geesecalls and a black flag (to add motion to thespread) to coax the speck to within about 30yards from us before calling the shot.

Raven sprinted from her dugout upon hercue and went straight for the downed goose,

her first but certainly not her last gooseretrieve this day. The skies began to fill withthousands of geese, some in singles, pairsand groups of three to six, others in longstrings of honking and cackling birds tonumerous to count.

On this day, little Raven would retrievemore than 20 geese. Her enthusiasm showedwith each single retrieve and carried over to

the second morn-ings hunt whenabout the samenumber of birdswere downed by thehunters.

At just two yearsold, Raven has aways to grow inbody size but Idont think shecould grow muchlarger in heart.Late in the morn-ing of the secondhunt, the huntersseized an opportu-

nity to bag two Rosssgeese and one hugesnow goose, twospecies of geese that

dont often decoy well here.The light geese were bonus birds for

the hunters bags that normally include nomore than four specks and one Canada, butfor little Raven retrieving light geese in addi-tion to dark geese made no difference. Eachbird was a special occasion to her and thatspread to the rest of us who watched closelyas the little dog showed us what she coulddo.

Truthfully, I cannot remember a lot aboutmy first goose hunt, but I always will remem-ber my first goose hunt with Raven. And Ifeel sure Steve Barber and anyone else whohas watched their retriever do so well ontheir first hunt will, too.

E-mail Bob Hood at [email protected].

42 | M A R C H 2 0 1 1 | T E X A S F I S H & G A M E PHOTO: BOB HOOD

Hunt Texas

by Bob Hood | TF&G Hunting Editor

Raven, a two-year-oldblack Lab, retrieves asnow goose duringher first goose huntnear Knox City.

In the Hunt

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The Highsand Lows ofRising,MuddyWater

WHEN TACKLE SHOP CHATTERshifts to the topic of fishing in rising,muddy water, I sometimes reflect onthe eventful weekend John Burk and

I spent running trotlines out of Bills Landing onthe Texas side of Toledo Bend Reservoir.

It was early spring and the water level onthe 181,000-acre reservoir was on a steadyrise thanks to a nasty storm system whichdumped nearly eight inches of rain across theSabine River watershed earlier in the week.

The onslaught of the fresh water hadturned the lakes upper reaches into a frothymix of chocolate, complete with floating logs,trash and other debris flushed from the land

march 2011

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