Corpusfishing.com

[Prof. Salt]

This one is a bit late, but since I didn't spend much time on the water in the last couple of days maybe a late report isn't the worst thing:

I was hoping to paddle offshore on Saturday, so I took Friday off to chase redfish. I got to my starting point well before daylight, so I pulled up onto a sand bar where fish sometimes hunt. I just sat and listened. After it calmed down I could hear a few fish chasing bait around me. As the sky began to lighten up a bit I made out the shape of a fish moving not far away. I tossed the bait beyond the fish and pulled it back with quick but light jerks, trying to imitate a shrimp fleeing. The line went tight and I thought by the fight it was a drum ...but realized it was a sheepshead as it came into the net. As I held it with one hand and removed my phone from the hatch for a photo, the fish began to flop with all spines erect (as sheepshead will do). I juggled the fish trying to keep the stickers out of my legs, and caught several of the dorsal spines right in my wrist. Oh well, we got a photo together and the convict was released before it could do any further damage. I straightened out the bait and waited. When I could see enough to move ahead, I made my way into the first lake on my list. It had mullet along the shorelines, and near the end of circling the lake I finally I saw a nice redfish tailing right against the grass. It was only about ten feet from the kayak when I saw it, so the cast was short and accurate. The blow-up was noisy and the 30" fish tore out across the lake, spooking anything else nearby.

I quickly made my way to the second lake and there was very little activity there - so I worked back out and headed to a long grass shoreline with good drains at each end. I expected to find some roving schools working the edges, and this shoreline did not disappoint. The fish looked like submarines tearing along the shores, leaving wakes that would be visible on Google Maps. Yes please! I pursued the first group and managed to remove five reds before the school broke up. I was throwing the little Z-man TRD Craw in pumpkin green, and it might as well have been candy. When the grass ended and there was a hundred yards of mud shoreline, I spotted a drum working along, back slightly exposed. He found the craw tempting too. Then I paddled the opposite shoreline back in the direction I had come from. No fish on that side, so I turned around and ran the first shoreline again ...and wouldn't you know it, I found another couple of schools. These were mostly oversized reds, but I wasn't going to complain. By the time 10:00 rolled around, I had caught 13 reds, a drum and a sheep, and I was ready to head home and do something else.

Saturday morning called for thunderstorms, so I decided not to try paddling offshore. Instead I headed back to see if I could play with the reds one more time. After all, Friday had been fantastic. The winds were very calm, and fish were resting or moving quietly. The fish I did see were being very sneaky in the relatively high water levels. It was still and beautiful though, and a great time to be enjoying the scenery. I worked the two lakes again, and only found one decent red there willing to play along. He was playing the sneaking game, but at one point as I watched the slight swirling, I spotted his tail break the surface and I knew it was game on.

I left the two lakes to try the shoreline again. Surely I wouldn't get that lucky again... would I? What I found wasn't quite as busy at the previous day, but it was good fun as I worked a much less agressive school. They were working much slower, and I worked hard to pick fish off the back edge in hopes of leaving the group together as long as possible. It worked for several fish. After the school broke up, I worked back to a protected stretch of reeds on my way out. I saw a tail and judged the fish to be mid-slot. The lure landed right on top of the fish (oops) and spooked it. About 50 yards down I found a similar tail gently waving. I put the lure about 8" away from the fish and let it sink before giving it a few gently and short twitches. The line went tight but the fight was all wrong. Oh well, I landed the smallest ever red on the craw. He must have been shadowing the larger fish and got to the bait first. Well played little one, well played. The rains were visible but held off and remained closer to the coast, and they hadn't rumbled with thunder once. So I made my way around to a larger set of lakes, figuring that the morning crowd would have already left that area. Sure enough, I was the only paddler around, but fish were again playing hard to find. I worked four more miles in these lakes before finally finding a good redfish. He was sneaking beside some reeds leaving a barely noticeable wake. I watched for a minute and realized it wasn't just another mullet and my first cast was met with a strike.

The winds had picked up quickly, and I turned around to realize that the showers were getting close. Their downdraft had kicked up and the shallow lake was beginning to whitecap, so I turned to work up the other side and get back to the truck. There still wasn't any lightning but I had two good fish on board and wasn't feeling that desperate to finish a limit. As I turned back I hadn't realized that a new cell right above me had been building. That full-brimmed hat kept me from seeing what was overhead until lightning struck the water inside of 200 yards from the kayak. Youch! I stowed to of the rods quickly and hunched low as I paddled for the exit. Whitecaps were rolling over the front of the kayak and lightning was suddenly striking often and close as the rain unleashed. I was nearing the exit when a seagull shot across in front of me and circled back, hovering just over the whitecaps. Right there 25 feet away were several dozen big redfish tails waving like they didn't care at all about the storm. I grumbled and thought "I only need one keeper fish and I'll stow the rod and get out of here". The cast was short and the line began to sing as a big orange redfish tore run after run out across the mayhem. After about five runs I could see it was way beyond the legal slot, and I was glad when the hook pulled. I quickly straightened the bait and paddled ten more yards to get closer to the tails that had circled back around in front of me. The winds had slacked off and the rain stopped giving me a brief break to get the job done. This time the fish that hit the bait was legal and I got it in quickly before stowing the gear to run for the truck. Working across the open bay was hairy, and twice lightning struck not far away - once with with impressive crackling and echoes, and once it just flashed and sounded like a pistol went off. I paddled fast into the wind and covered the mile and a half as quickly as possible. Of course as I pulled up to the truck the sky began to brighten and the storm moved off. Winds came down and by the time I was getting into the truck it was still again. After 12 miles I was not tempted to play again today. I drove home ready to clean up and work on something a little less exciting.

[ziacatcher]

Scary to be out on the water when that lightning's around. I have that happened to me when I was on the leak in New Mexico once. Couldn't get to shore fast enough

[Prof. Salt]

[TexasJim]

I was dodging lightning once on Port Bay, after laying all my rods down. When I got to the launch, I noticed my Flagstaff, made of an old carbon fiber rod, was standing up proud. Doh!
Looks like you've got the new yak properly slimed. TJ
_________________
TexasJim
"Time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time"

[awesum]

Good job Glenn!