Redfish good...trout slow....regulatory meeting confusing!

I feel certain that not being on the water every day over the past week or so has had something do with it, but I have struggled with the trout catching lately.  I have been fighting the same cough and fever crud that a lot of folks have and I was pretty much just going through the motions when I was fishing.

Calcasieu has been far more consistent for the past two weeks.  The redfish are as crazy over there as they are here, but they have been catching a lot of 14 to 19-inch trout as well.  The big trout have been scarce, but I do know of a 10 that is now on her way to the taxidermist and a 30-inch fish that was released.  There have also been enough 7-pound plus fish to keep you on high standby every cast!

The recent overnight downpour dirtied up Sabine, but I think it will help with the trout bite if it doesn't get any worse.  The water, especially along the La. shoreline, is dirty in patches and that can clear up or get a little worse over night depending on the wind.  It looks like we have some pretty cold weather headed our way next week, but by yesterday afternoon the surface temps had climbed from 47 that morning to 58 degrees.

I only fished 4 or 5 hours checking out some spots for Saturday and for the most part the redfish were still there.  They were in very shallow water and we caught most of our fish on 5-inch Assassins and Red Killers in stinky pink, roach, and morning glory.  We didn't catch any over sized fish, but we did catch a lot of rat reds mixed in with the slot fish.

I made it over to the trout regulatory meeting in Pt Arthur Tuesday night and the concerned angler turn out was pretty decent.  There was little doubt that the general consensus of those in attendance was that Parks and WIldlife had already made up their mind, which may or may not be true, but it has at least appeared to work that way in the past.  The straw vote overwhelmingly opposed any change.

Aside from the possible limit reduction of 10 trout to 5 trout as proposed by the TPWD, basically every other potential solution to the perceived problem came from the fishermen.  The representative walked us through gill net surveys conducted along the entire coast that they felt supported the declining trout theory in at least some bays.  Even if you question the accuracy because you fish a given area nearly every day and possibly see things a little differently, their data does contain the only numbers on record.

Mickey Eastman, who guides and hosts a popular radio show, drove in for the meeting and shared the perspective of guides and anglers from all over the coast that have contacted him.  He also offered up the possiblity of a slot limit system that I think most fishermen would be more than happy with.  He added that he felt like an excessive number of guides and tournaments really had the most negative impact on the trout fishery from the middle coast to Laguna Madre.

We do not see that problem here as there are very few tournaments and the guide population is held down in part due to the additional $1000 Louisiana fee.  Buying both Texas and la. fishing and guide licenses each year is a significant investment.

Not surprisingly the graphs indicated that the fishery is out the top here on Sabine and no one in the Galveston area was complaining either. When shown that information, the entire group rallied around the possibility of regional changes rather than one that blankets the entire coast.  In more simple terms, "If an area ain't broke...don't fix it."

That sounds good initially, but what if they did decide to reduce the limits everywhere, but Sabine.  You would not be able to find a place to park most days at the few landings around the lake.  If they opt to regionalize, we better hope they lump Galveston in with us for better or worse.  Calcasieu would get crowded in a hurry as well if we go it alone.

If it comes to pass that I can never keep another fish and can never guide another day in order to save the fishery I can live with that as long as we can continue to share the anticipation of one more strike with our children and grand children for years to come.  At the same time, I do not want to be deprived of an occasional fish fry or sold a bill of goods that best serves the interests of a smaller more powerful group.  

You have an obligation to have your voice heard, but it is a little scary when you take the time to make an informed decision and you still don't know if you are going to win and get something you reallly didn't want.  As we are quickly learning, however, It is even more frustrating when you are just trying to hang onto what you already have!

 

 

Comments

[Todd Matherne]

Good report Dickie. Hope you shake the crud soon. (try some nasal saline solution - that stuff is a good preventative) Anyhow, I CPR a lot now and only occasionally keep fish. It is the outing with friends and the fight that matters. The 'meat haul' days are only bragging rights and I bet more fish get thrown out due to freezer burn than people would like to say.