January 25, 2013 - Lone Star Outdoor News - Fishing & Hunting

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January 25, 2013 Texas’ Premier Outdoor Newspaper Volume 9, Issue 11

Offshore varietyAnglers catching tuna,

other species. Page 8

Eye in the skyBy Mark EnglandLone Star outdoor newS

Capt. Jim Ranft loves to fl y. He enjoys the sensation of being thou-

sands of feet above the ground. What he most enjoys, though, is what he can see up in the air. The veteran law enforce-ment offi cer with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department calls the agency’s aircraft “The Truthsayers.”

“They tell you what’s really going on,” said Ranft, who oversees the Waco-area district in Region 9.

He sums up the importance of aircraft to law enforcement with an analogy.

“Let’s say you’re a game warden in an average-size county,” he said. “Sitting on the highest hilltop, you can watch a stretch of road. But the longer you sit there, the more you wonder, ‘What’s going on

The quest

❘❚ LSONews.com

❘❚ CONTENTSClassifi eds . . . . . . . . . Page 11 Crossword . . . . . . . . . Page 20Freshwater Fishing Report . Page 10For the Table. . . . . . . . Page 20Game Warden Blotter . . . . Page 12Heroes. . . . . . . . . . . Page 18Outdoor Datebook . . . . . Page 22Outdoor Business . . . . . Page 18Products . . . . . . . . . . Page 16Saltwater Fishing Report . . Page 14Sun, Moon and Tide data . . Page 20

Inside

Poacher shoots big buck, caughtimmediately.

Page 4

Big loss❘❚ HUNTING

North, East Texas water levels rising.Page 8

Recharging rains

Lots of ducks up north, coast not seeing as many.

Page 4

Duck season ending

❘❚ FISHING

TPWD using aircraft to fi nd poachers

Trevor Brittingham has been around big bucks his entire life.

And while he’s taken some really big bucks, one buck in particular managed to elude him for fi ve seasons.

The buck, named Indigo, was fi rst seen in 2003-04 on the Rancho Encantado where Brittingham hunts when the buck was already 5 years old.

“I’ve seen him on the hoof three times in the past fi ve years,” Brittingham said, “and two of them were this past weekend when I fi nally got him. The other was when he was 10 and I had him in bow range. I recall thinking how old his face looked, but his body was small because of his age and he looked like that of a

By Conor HarrisonLone Star outdoor newS

Granbury professional angler Cody Bird never understood what the fuss was all about.

Early last year, the Alabama rig — a multi-hook bait patterned to mimic schooling baitfi sh — took the fi shing world by storm. Anglers and manufacturers hailed it as a miracle bait that would magically put fi sh

in the boat.And for a while it looked

like they were right.Then reality set in.“Well, I never really

cared for it,” Bird said. “I get a three-day prac-tice before a tournament and I never wanted to waste a day throwing the Alabama rig. It is more of a winter bait and there aren’t many tournaments in the winter.”

Bird said the rig became a headache for tourna-ment directors who had to make sure every angler knew the rules regarding multiple hooks for what-ever state the tournament was being held.

“It was a hassle for them and it never really played

a factor for me,” he said. “I experimented with it on Amistad, but I never caught anything big with it. But my buddies in Oklahoma were killing them on it, so I guess it has its place.”

What began as a small craze in Alabama quickly spread to other parts of the country, and other bait manufacturers.

“We are a licensee, so we make the bait and sell it,” said Lanny Deal of Mann’s Bait Company in Eufala, Ala. “There are about 50 companies cur-rently making them, so the bait is going to be around for years. The

Alabama rig’s popularitywaning 1 year later

See CRAZE, Page 15

LUSTER LOST? After a year that saw huge hype surrounding the Alabama rig, professional anglers and tackle manufactur-ers have said demand for the bait has slowed down. Photo by Steve Fogle.

End of the craze

FLYING HIGH: TPWD is using planes to target poachers using spotlights at night, while directing game wardens on the ground to their location. Photo by Chase Fountain, TPWD. See SKY, Page 15

LIKE AN OLD FRIEND: Trevor Brittingham poses with Indigo, the buck he had been hunting hard for the past fi ve seasons. The buck had been seen periodically on the ranch for at least 10 years. Photo by Trevor Brittingham. See QUEST, Page 17

Hunter shoots 14-year-old buck after

long pursuit

Trophy fi sh not showing up in numbers yet, though.

Page 9

Nice trout in Laguna Madre

Page 2 January 25, 2013 LoneOStar Outdoor News LSONews.com

LSONews.com LoneOStar Outdoor News January 25, 2013 Page 3


HUNTING

Above-average year for deer hunters


After battling drought and poor ant-ler quality the past two seasons, Texas deer hunters finally caught a break and, by most accounts, had a pretty successful year.

According to Alan Cain, white-tailed deer leader for Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, antler quality was average to above average, especially in the Oak Prairie Region from Bastrop to Houston.

“That area has antler restrictions and the total number of harvested deer was down, but antler quality was really good,” Cain said. “We also had good antler quality in South Texas and the Hill Country. Harvest was highly variable, but nobody said it was a horrible year,”

Cain said a tremendous acorn crop in East Texas was the best he has seen in 15 or 20 years.

“There are still acorns out there and the deer had no reason to come to feeders,” Cain said. “In the Hill Country, it picked up after Thanksgiving.”

Cain said lower numbers of harvested bucks bodes well for next year.

“It helps the young and middle-aged bucks get bigger,” he said. “It definitely helps down the road.”

Cain also said recent rains across much of the state will give deer, especially bucks, a head start on next season.

“We got good rain in South Texas and the Hill Country,” he said. “Even the Trans-Pecos region got some. It will help promote winter forbs, which is really helpful in the postrut. I hope that trend continues.”

Cain also said North Texas saw some tre-mendous bucks this season.

“There were a good number of 140- to 160-

inch deer killed up there,” he said. “And a couple of real big bucks from low-fenced places, also.”

In the Rocksprings area, TPWD biologist Ryan Schmidt said the deer harvest was way up over the past few seasons.

“Edwards and Val Verde County had harvest numbers that were up signifi-cantly,” Schmidt said. “There was a lot more age and antler weight. It was an aver-age year for antler quality, but the deer are recovering from the drought, so that was predicted.

“But we did have some good deer come through.”

Internet reports on hunting forums saw a large number of hunters complaining about deer not coming to corn because of the abundance of acorns, but, overall, most were happy with the deer they were seeing.

In the San Angelo area, biologist John McEachern said overall quality was up in his area.

“I didn’t hear about any monster, native deer, but overall quality was up across the board,” he said. “Most hunters were pleased about what they saw. The deer didn’t rebound as much as people would have liked (from the drought), but antler quality was up and body weights were up.”

McEachern said the area received a cou-ple of decent rains throughout the sea-son, and hunters didn’t have to compete against mountains of acorns like some parts of Texas.

“We have pockets of live oaks out here, but not as many as parts of East Texas or the Hill Country,” he said. “Those rains did give a bump to winter forbs, though, and that did make it a little harder for hunters to draw deer to corn.”

Big buck poached in South TexasBy Antonio VindellFor Lone Star outdoor newS

One of the biggest white-tailed bucks killed this season in Willacy County wasn’t bagged by a hunter, but by a man shooting in the dark of night on the outskirts of

Port Mansfield.The 12-point buck,

described as perhaps the biggest among the scores of deer seen around the port, weighed more than 200 pounds and scored 177 1/4 Boone & Crockett.

The poacher shot the buck at about 11:15 p.m. on Dec. 29. Oscar Castaneda, a game war-den with Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, happened to be nearby after he spotted several

suspicious-looking pickup trucks around the area where the officer had spot-ted the same deer a few minutes earlier.

The accused poacher is from Buda and was staying at his brother’s house in Port Mansfield. According to Casteneda, the man appeared to have been drinking the night he shot the buck.

The game warden said he was checking out the area and, after seeing the

trucks parked along the side of the road, waited to see what if anything would happen.

“I went to get some ice at the office and saw a deer behind a doe with its tongue out,” said Castaneda, an eight-year veteran warden. “The hunting season has been real slow, so I went to make a round that night.”

Regular deer season asuccess in most regions

See POACHED, Page 7

A SHAME: This buck, photo-graphed alive during the season, was well-known to residents. He was poached one night last month. Photo by Antonio Vindell, for LSON.

Duck season ending on high note for some


Although it is just now get-ting cold enough in places like Colorado and South Dakota to push huge numbers of ducks into Texas, many hunters were report-ing good shoots the weekend before the season closes on Jan. 27. In North Texas, guide Jeff Elder

with Silver Creek Guide Service said this season has been great on the properties he hunts in Tarrant and Parker counties.

“We’ve seen a lot of ducks the

past three days,” Elder said, “espe-cially gadwalls. There are quite a few grey ducks here, and more coming daily. The guys are going to be mad when the season closes, because ducks are still coming down.”

Elder said during most seasons, he can’t hunt a hole more than once a week because of the pres-sure causing ducks to move.

“This year, I have been hunting the same hole three times a week

Lots of birds west of Metroplex,

not as many in East Texas, coast

See DUCK SEASON, Page 7

GREAT UP NORTH, NOT GOOD DOWN SOUTH: Hunters like these two in areas of North Texas saw lots of ducks as the season came to a close, although reports from the coast were less than stellar. Photo by LSON.

GREAT SEASON IF YOU AVOIDED THE ACORNS: Hunters reported above-average racks this season in many parts of Texas, despite deer avoiding feeders because of an abundance of natural browse. Photo by David J. Sams, LSON.


Groups join forces for quailBy John R. MeyerFor Lone Star outdoor newS

Northern bobwhite quail don’t lack support from the general popu-lation; they have dedi-cated followers across the country.

The upland bird is nonmigratory, so con-servation work has tra-ditionally been put forth by local agencies and groups. The resultant efforts, just like quail habitat, end up frag-mented.

Unfortunately, what these groups are working against in terms of quail obstacles are forces on more of a national scale. With continued declining numbers of quail over time, it became apparent that isolated, unconnected efforts were simply falling short.

In 1995, the Southeast Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies began a transforma-tional shift in philosophy to address this insufficiency. That was the year they formed the Southeast Quail Study Group to address the long-term decline of the northern bobwhite on a regional level.

By 2002, the SEQSG had finalized their regional bob-white recovery plan in the form of the National Bobwhite Conservation Initiative.

“Many of the problems are caused on a national level or could be solved at a national level ... opportunities can also be seized in a big way on the [that] level,” said Don McKenzie, the current NBCI director.

McKenzie uses grasslands as

an example when he points out that, for decades, plants such as bermuda and fescue have been emphasized on a national level due to their popularity for cat-tle. These aggressive, non-native plants are unsuitable for wild-life and have eliminated count-less acres of prime quail habitat. Alternatives are available that would provide necessary ingre-dients for both livestock and quail benefit.

“We are not looking for total conversion,” he said. “Across the country we are looking for about a one-third pasture area conver-sion to native forages. That can only be fostered and enabled on the federal level.”

Twenty-five core states encom-passing the heart of northern bobwhite range are currently involved with the NBCI. A half-dozen others with land on the periphery of the range partici-pate as well, along with the Midwest and Northeast associa-tions of fish and wildlife agencies. The Southeast Quail Study Group

eventually changed their name to the National Bobwhite Technical Committee to better reflect their impact on a national scale.

Texas is well repre-sented due to both its amount of habitat as well as its high population of hunters. Well-established groups such as the Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute in Kingsville, the Rolling Plains Quail Research Ranch near Roby, the North Texas Quail Corridor Initiative from the University of North Texas and Quail

Tech Alliance at Texas Tech University are regular contribu-tors to the NBCI. Texas Parks and Wildlife Farm Bill Coordinator Chuck Kowalowski is the chair elect of the NBTC.

NBCI is driven by the idea of helping promote quail range health on a national scale by providing momentum and sup-port for existing organizations. The nature of NBCI’s function precludes individuals from actu-ally joining as members, though.

McKenzie urges instead, that people align with an existing quail organization or take other actions to provide support.

“We need the support of quail hunters. I would like the aver-age person in Texas to call Texas Parks and Wildlife and ask ques-tions, express an interest,” he said as a way to bring more focus, and, ultimately, resources, to aid the plight of bobwhites.

McKenzie is energized by the sheer volume of potential quail habitat that is already out there.

DSC announces lion positionThe Dallas Safari Club announced a formal position statement defining

the ideal, huntable male lion. “The ideal huntable male lion is at least 6 years of age and is not

known to head a pride or be part of a coalition heading a pride with dependent cubs.”

DSC is encouraging safari operators and hunters across Africa to use this definition within their own conservation ethos.

For its part, DSC adopted a new club policy: “No DSC member will be eligible for any DSC recognition or trophy award unless the member’s lion trophy submission is a fully mature lion as determined in the sole discretion of the DSC awards committee.”

“Research shows that hunting male lions at least 5 years of age has no negative effect on populations,” said Ben Carter, DSC executive director. “We adopted a 6-year rule because we recognize the difficulties in judg-ing age, especially in field conditions, and we chose to err on the side of caution. Hunters have always led the charge for conservation. This is one more example.”

DSC President Allen Moore also weighed in.“DSC and conservation authorities across Africa are concerned about

the developing possibility of reduced harvest quotas on lions,” Moore said. “If that happens, the resulting loss of revenue from lion hunters would be a significant setback for conservation, not only for lion popula-tions, but also for other species such as buffalo and plains game.”

Urging hunters to self-impose harvest restrictions is seen as a better alternative.

— DSC

Common errors made by deer breedersThe Exotic Wildlife Association released a statement on common errors

made by deer breeders found by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department in hopes that such errors will be eliminated in the future.

This first list of common errors includes both reporting errors and those frequently seen “on the ground” in the facilities by TPWD Wildlife Division and Law Enforcement staff.

• Not maintaining accurate, current, and complete records.• Not activating transfer permits to move deer. • Not completing transfer permits after they are activated. • Not verifying the unique ID of deer that are transferred. • Re-tattooing deer with a different unique ID instead of with the origi-

nal unique ID assigned to the deer. • Tagging deer in the facility by March 31st with correct and legible

information. • Duplicating unique IDs. • Delinquent reporting (including facility closures). • Not testing eligible mortalities for CWD.• Not entering the death date in the ODBS prior to submitting a CWD

test result, or not including the unique ID on a CWD test result.

— EWASee more at LSONews.com

Photo by LSON.



The rutting buck came charging in, looking for the fi ght he had just heard.

When the buck was less than 20 yards from the two hunters, he stopped, antlers shining in the morning sun.

He wasn’t what we were looking for, so we decided to get some video of the deer before he bolted back into the brush.

Upon our return to the camp house, a quick look on the computer led us to disappoint-ment. Even at 20 yards, the buck looked little bigger than a tan spot through the Contour model 1529 camera we were using.

Several follow-up tests confi rmed this cam-era’s limits. It might be great for mounting on a helmet for mountain biking or attached to a fi shing rod to record a fi sh pulling, but for serious hunters looking for a small, light-weight camera, this isn’t the one.

Our issues with this camera for outdoors-men were several. First, the camera has an annoying (and loud) beep when it is turned on. Then it beeps twice in quick succession when it begins to record. When an animal is in range, this beep is clearly audible. You can supposedly turn this feature off by downloading an app from Contour’s website, but this wasn’t an option on a ranch in West Texas.

Second, there is no zoom fea-ture. If you are videoing some-thing at less than fi ve yards,

this camera will work. Farther

than that, you are looking at a dot

where a deer should be.Finally, battery life is not what we would

consider adequate for long-term fi lming.To be fair, Contour markets these cam-

eras as helmet cams for bikers or mountain climbers, and they probably do an admira-ble job for those two disciplines. However, for fi lming wildlife at any distance, this camera doesn’t cut it.

On the positive side, this camera is very small, compact and lightweight. Contour sells a variety of mounts that lets the person fi lming attach it in a multitude of places.

The 270-degreee rotating lens is great when placed in a camera mount that isn’t fl at and the camera has several high-defi ni-tion modes for a clear picture.

In the right instance, this camera could work for someone. Videographers look-

ing for a point-of-view camera or looking to shoot “B” roll material could very well fi nd this camera useful. But in our experience, this isn’t a viable option for seri-

ous outdoor video.

Contour camera fails to deliver in woods

The rutting buck came charging in, looking for the fi ght he had just

When the buck was less than 20 yards from the two hunters, he stopped, antlers shining

He wasn’t what we were looking for, so we decided to get some video of the deer before he bolted are looking at a dot

where a deer should be.

decided to get some video

this camera will work. Farther

than that, you are looking at a dot


He said he went past a horse stable less than a quarter of a mile from the port, parked his truck and sat there for a while. A few minutes later, Castaneda saw a white pickup truck followed by another four-door white truck.

“I heard some talking and waited to see what would hap-pen,” he said. “I heard a big loud bang and it lit up the vehicle.”

The game warden quickly approached the vehicle, where the apparent poacher admitted his mistake.

“I shot a deer,” the poacher said. “I shot a deer.”

Castaneda said the poacher’s nephews, who were with him in the truck, told him not to shoot the buck, but he did anyway.

Castaneda said the man shot the buck less than 25 yards away as the deer stood on a grassy area on the south side of Texas Highway 186.

The game warden took the man’s .30-06 rifl e away and told him to sit on the grass. After talking to the two juveniles, he cited the hunter with multiple citations including shooting in a non-hunting area, shooting at nighttime, illegal discharging of a fi rearm and improper tagging of a deer.

The hunter gave a voluntary statement and Castaneda said the case is now pending.

Four years ago, a hunter killed a 195 B&C buck near a Texas air-port and it cost the hunter more than $20,000 in fi nes and resti-tution, Castaneda said.

According to Castaneda, the deer killed in Port Mansfi eld will probably cost the man more than $12,000 in fi nes and resti-tution.

Castaneda said the monster buck the man killed caused a stir at the legendary El Sauz Ranch.

“They told me they have not seen a deer like this one at the ranch,” he said of the El Sauz folks, where hunters pay thou-sands of dollars in annual fees to be a club member. “They esti-mated the age of the deer was about 8 years old.”

Castaneda said he never thought the deer was that big until he saw the buck on the ground.

“The buck weighed 180 pounds fi eld-dressed,” he said. “That is a huge deer for this part of South Texas.”

He said his fellow game war-dens are now calling the deer the “ice bag buck.”

“If it wasn’t for that bag of ice you went to get, this would never happened,” Castaneda has been repeatedly told. “Probably nobody would have known or found out what hap-pened that night if it wasn’t for that bag of ice.”

PoachedContinued From Page 4

TOUGH LOSS: The big buck’s demise was at the hands of a poacher. Photo by TPWD.

and we’ve been killing limits every time,” he said. “And I don’t mean one person limits, I’m talking three or four people.”

Elder said the hunting has been stellar on the west side of the Metroplex, but in talking to guides east of Dallas, they haven’t had the number of ducks they normally see during a good year.

“It has been slower in East Texas,” he said. “I’ve talked to a lot of guys around Bonham and they don’t seem to have anywhere near the ducks they normally do.”

This was backed up the weekend before the season ended when several of the LSON crew hunted in Hopkins County and reported slow action, with only a few gadwalls taken.

Other LSON members hunted near Hubbard and had a great shoot with gadwalls, pintails, green-winged teal, wigeon and ring-necks all plentiful. Easy limits were taken and birds continued to fl y after the shooting was done.

On the coast, the action has slowed down considerably since early in the season.

“It has been really slow lately,” said Rockport-area guide Dillon Radminksy. “In fact, I would actually call it poor the last few

weeks. We’ve taken a few redheads and a few blue-bills, but that is about all.”

Radminsky said a lack of food was the culprit.

“I just don’t think we have enough food for them to stay,” he said. “There just aren’t a lot of birds in this area.”

Elder said every north wind this season has pushed ducks down, no matter how insignifi cant the wind has been.

“I think the whole rea-son we saw a lot of birds this season is because every time a north wind blew, it might as well have been called a front,” he said. “It was banner shoot-ing for us each time the wind blew a little bit out of the north.

“I also think a bunch of birds pushed off of the Metroplex lakes and came this direction this season.”

Duck seasonContinued From Page 4

BLIND WITH A VIEW: A lack of wind hurt hunting this past week, but plenty of ducks are still around. Photo by Lone Star Outdoor News.



Offshore anglers are catching a multitude of species along the mid-coast from between 30 and 50 miles offshore from Port Aransas.

According to Nancy Groening of Dolphin Docks, the fishing the past few weeks has been good when the weather allowed boats to get out.

“The fishing has been pretty good,” Groening said, “but it has been slow getting trips out because of

the weather. We did have three trips last week and they caught good num-bers of kingfish, grouper, amberjack, African pom-pano and sharks.

“There was also some vermillion snapper, yel-lowfin tuna and blackfin tuna.”

The baits of choice were cut mullet, squid and dead shrimp. Groeing said the trips averaged running 45 miles offshore.

At Deep Sea Headquarters, Marsha Walker said the boats

have been catching lim-its of yellowfin and black-fin tuna on their 48-hour offshore trips.

“On the last 48-hour trip, they caught limits of amberjack, yellowfin tuna and blackfin tuna,” Walker said. “On the last 24-hour trip, the group caught amberjack and more than 100 blackfin tuna.”

Walker said the boats are running to rocks and ledges from 30 to 50 miles offshore on the shorter trips.

“We are also catch-

ing vermillion snap-per, kingfish and large sharks,” she said.

For tuna, the trips are running to rigs anywhere from 80 to 100 miles off-shore.

At Fisherman’s Wharf, a manager said the wind has been blowing too hard to get out much the past several weeks, so they have been fishing state waters.

“Our private boats have been fishing in state waters and doing really well on red snapper,” he said. “Other than that,

we haven’t been out much.”

Online reports have the tuna bite going strong at places like Gunnison offshore from Freeport.

Anglers are having con-sistent action at night on top-waters and jigging. The closer to the rigs the better when chunking for yellowfin tuna.

Several wahoo have also been reported troll-ing offshore, along with big red snapper, although all of the snapper caught outside of state waters must be released.

FISHING

By Craig NyhusLone Star outdoor newS

East of I-35, Texas lakes reaped the benefits of heavy rains that blan-keted much of North and Central Texas. But even though some areas received more than 5 inches of rain during the week of Jan. 7, most lake levels only inched up.

A few factors were cited in why lake levels didn’t rise faster.

“It has to do with the soil moisture content,” said Jamie Gudmestad, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Fort Worth. “A lot of the rain got absorbed by the soil, and also all of the plants were very dry and absorbed moisture.”

Smaller private lakes captured water as well — good news for ranchers and wildlife managers. But a great deal of water didn’t

make it to the larger reservoirs.In North Texas, Lake Fork was

down 4.51 feet before the rains. On Jan. 21, it was 4.15 feet low. Lewisville, Ray Hubbard and Grapevine rose more than a foot. Richland Chambers, near areas that received the heaviest rains, rose almost 1.5 feet.

The next rains are expected to bring more rapid runoff.

“With the more moist soil con-ditions, the runoff will be bet-ter with the next rains, especially if they come soon,” Gudmestad said.

Farther east, lakes rose even more. Sam Rayburn Reservoir rose from 4.59 feet low to 3.12 feet below pool. Toledo Bend Reservoir rose more than 1 foot and stands less than 2 feet low.

To the west and south, though, fishermen and marinas are still

praying for rain. O.H. Ivie remains more than 34 feet below pool, Amistad is more than 39 feet low, Falcon is 35 feet down and Choke Canyon is more than 17 feet low. Lake Travis remains in dire need of water at 49.17 feet low.

The U.S. Drought Monitor still shows most of Texas in some level of drought, but areas of extreme drought have been reduced, with areas in South Texas and the Panhandle remaining the driest. Nearly all areas west of I-35 remain in moderate or severe drought conditions.

Unfortunately, forecasters say this year could be a repeat of last, where lakes reached near-full levels in the winter, but lack of moisture throughout the rest of the year left them parched.

“We are expecting the next few months to be drier than normal,” Gudmestad said. “So it could be a repeat of last year. We des-perately needed the water we received, but it looks like we may be going back into a dry cycle.”

TUNA BITE IS ON: After catching live bait, anglers braving the high winds to get offshore have been rewarded with lots of different catches, including yellowfin tuna. Photos by David J. Sams, Lone Star Outdoor News.

Rains help North, East Texas lake levels

Multiple speciesOffshore boats catching wide range of fish

FILLING UP: Anglers are enjoying the benefits of fresh rains replenishing ponds, lakes and rivers throughout the state. Photo by LSON.

South and West still parched


A lot of action, just not a lot of big trout

Garrie and Triana take Bass Champs on Sam Rayburn

Bass Champs new, three-fish limit has been a success early in the tournament season.

Bass Champs kicked off the 2013 East Region on Sam Rayburn Jan. 19, and the Nacogdoches team of Jonathan Garrie and Wayne Triana won the inaugural event weighing in more than 20 pounds, which included a 10-pound kicker.

Thirty out of the 200 teams went home with a check.According to Bass Champs, the team’s biggest bass was put on the

scales and hit the double-digit mark at 10.01 pounds, taking the lead for big bass. As their other two fish were added, their total weight locked in at 20.23 pounds.

“We headed to a deep ledge that dropped from 12 to 50 feet by the main river channel,” Garrie said. “The morning bite was great — we had our biggest three fish by 8 a.m.”

This included their 10-pound kicker. “When she took the bait, she nearly yanked the rod right out of my

hand,” he said. “She didn’t want to come in easily. As I was working on getting her in, she jumped, tail danced, tried to throw the bait — she really gave us quite a show.”

For complete results, go to basschamps.com. — Staff report

Permits needed on Devils RiverBeginning Feb. 1, any paddler planning to put in or take out of the

Devils River on public lands managed by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department in Val Verde County must first obtain a permit from TPWD.

The new Devils River Access Permit is a key component of a pilot pro-gram designed to provide opportunities for responsible, resource-compatible public use of the Devils River, while respecting private landowner rights and protecting the ecological health of the river and its fragile ecosystem.

TPWD will issue up to 12 day-use launch permits and 12 overnight-use launch permits per day. Before launching a kayak or canoe on the Devils River, each paddler must obtain a permit, although the trip leader of a paddling group may obtain all permits for members of the group. Permits will cost $10 per person and may be obtained 11 months in advance.

Permits will be needed by any paddler planning to access the river at either of the two Devils River State Natural Area units, as well as Baker’s Crossing.

— TPWD

Hill Country Rivers Trout Days a successOn Jan. 25, Hill Country Rivers hosted its Annual Trout Days Fishing

Tournament at Park Chalk Bluff on the Nueces River. Attendance was up this year, and the winners were:1st Place youth — Tanner Bowman, Uvalde1st Place spin cast — Prabir Chaudhuri, San Antonio1st Place fly rod — David Beck, San Antonio

— HCR


Capt. Ken Griffiths has been catching a ton of trout lately from his home near Port Mansfield.

Unfortunately, many of them have been of the smaller variety.

“There are lots of little trout,” Griffiths said. “I haven’t found any congregations of decent-sized trout. The bait is scattered but the water is in great shape, just a little chilly.”

Griffiths said water temperatures are in the low 60s. He recently returned from a day of fishing that

highlighted the recent action.“On Friday morning, we caught between 300 and

400 trout,” he said. “But only a few big ones were caught. There were lots of 15-inch fish. One place did have lots of bait, but there were 30 boats stacked in that one spot.”

Griffiths said the bigger trout should be moving into the area, following the bait and smaller trout.

“Those smaller trout usually arrive a few days before the bigger ones,” he said. “Hopefully, they show up

BIG ONES ARE COMING: Bigger trout should be showing up in the Laguna Madre for anxious winter trout anglers. Photo by Scott Sommerlatte, for LSON.

See TROUT, Page 15


ALAN HENRY: Water lightly stained; 48–56 degrees; 10.26’ low. Largemouth bass are slow. Crappie are fair on live min-nows. Catfi sh are fair to good on prepared bait.

AMISTAD: Water clear; 58–62 degrees; 39.29’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on watermelon spinner baits, crankbaits and soft plastic worms. Yellow catfi sh are good on trotlines and droplines baited with live perch.

ARROWHEAD: Water off-color; 49–54 degrees; 12.07’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on white crankbaits, spinner baits and Texas rigs. Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs. White bass are fair to good on slabs. Catfi sh are fair on prepared bait.

ATHENS: Water clear, 47–51 degrees; 2.90’ low. Largemouth bass are slow on football jigs and Carolina rigs along deeper points. Crappie are good on minnows and jigs.

BASTROP: Water lightly stained; 62–66 degrees. Largemouth bass are good on lipless crankbaits and chartreuse jigs. Crappie are good on minnows over brush piles.

BOB SANDLIN: Water clear; 46–51 degrees; 5.36’ low. Largemouth bass are slow on lipless crankbaits and square bills. Crap-pie are fair on jigs. White bass are fair on slabs. Catfi sh are good on trotlines and cut bait.

BRAUNIG: Water clear. Largemouth bass are fair on watermelon spinner baits, crankbaits and soft plastic worms. Striped bass are fair on liver and shad. Redfi sh are fair on tilapia, crawfi sh, perch and shad near Dead Tree Point.

BRIDGEPORT: Water clear; 46–50 degrees; 14.85’ low. Largemouth bass are slow on shaky heads with green pumpkin fi nesse worms around docks in 6–10’. Drop shots with Xcite worms are working as well. Crappie are slow on minnows.

BROWNWOOD: Water lightly stained; 58–62 degrees; 10.23’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on watermelon spinner baits, crankbaits and lipless crankbaits over brush piles.

BUCHANAN: Water stained; 58–62 degrees; 27.82’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on Carolina-rigged watermelon lizards, Rattlin’ Rogues and blue fl ake Whacky Sticks on jigheads in 10–20 feet.

Crappie are good on minnows over brush piles in 12–18 feet.

CALAVERAS: Water clear. Largemouth bass are fair on char-treuse crankbaits, spinner baits and lipless crankbaits near the dam. Striped bass are good on lipless crankbaits and chicken livers along the shoreline. Chan-nel catfi sh are excellent on liver, shrimp and nightcrawlers. Blue catfi sh are good on stinkbait and nightcrawlers.

CANYON LAKE: Water lightly stained; 61–65 degrees; 8.68’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on chartreuse hair jigs with Pebble Craw trailers, Carolina-rigged lizards and Texas-rigged blue fl ake worms along break lines and ledges. Striped bass are good on white striper jigs, Pirk Minnows and Spoiler Shads. Smallmouth bass are fair to good on smoke/red fl ake tubes over rock piles in 10–20 feet.

CEDAR CREEK: Water clear; 46–50 degrees; 2.84’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on shallow crankbaits around docks. Smaller black and blue fl ipping jigs are effective as well. Hybrid striper are good on live shad. Crappie are fair on minnows. Catfi sh are good on prepared bait.

CHOKE CANYON: Water clear; 65–69 degrees; 17.37’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on heavy jigs and large crankbaits over grass. White bass are good on small spinner baits. Chan-nel and blue catfi sh are good on punchbait.

COLEMAN: Water lightly stained; 62–66 degrees; 13.40’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on chartreuse spinner baits and crankbaits. Hybrid striper are fair on silver striper jigs. Crappie are good on minnows. Channel cat-fi sh are fair on shrimp and liver. Yellow catfi sh are slow.

COLETO CREEK: Water clear; 2.93’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on watermelon crankbaits. Striped bass are fair on chartreuse striper jigs. Crappie are good on minnows and white tube jigs. Channel and blue catfi sh are fair on trotlines baited with live bait. Yellow catfi sh are fair on trotlines baited with live perch.

COOPER: Water clear; 47–51 degrees; 6.75’ low. Largemouth bass are slow on lipless crankbaits and suspending

jerkbaits. Crappie are fair on jigs. White bass are good on slabs. Hy-brid striper are fair on live shad. Catfi sh are fair on cut bait.

FALCON: Water murky; 65–69 degrees; 34.70’ low. Largemouth bass are good on chartreuse spin-ner baits and lipless crankbaits.

FORK: Water clear; 46–51 degrees; 4.09’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on black/blue jigs along channel bends. Deep-water bite sporadic on football jigs. Yel-low bass are slow on jigs. Crappie are good on minnows around the bridges.

FT. PHANTOM HILL: Water clear; 47–54 degrees; 11.16’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on lip-less crankbaits, Texas rigs, jigs and spinner baits. Catfi sh are fair to good on nightcrawlers.

GIBBONS CREEK: Water clear. Largemouth bass are good on silver/blue lipless crankbaits. Crappie are good on minnows and white tube jigs. Catfi sh are good on frozen shrimp and liver.

GRANBURY: Water stained; 56–60 degrees; 5.12’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on chartreuse soft plastics, spinner baits, crankbaits, and lipless crankbaits. Crappie are good on minnows.

GRANGER: Water stained; 52–56 de-grees; 0.15’ low. Largemouth bass are slow. . Blue catfi sh are good on prepared baits and on juglines baited with cut bait and soap.

GRAPEVINE: Water clear; 46–50 degrees; 6.01’ low. Largemouth bass are slow on football jigs around main lake points. Texas-rigged soft plastics and fi nesse jigs are best later in the day. Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs. Catfi sh are fair on cut shad.

HUBBARD CREEK: Water off-color; 47–54 degrees; 20.1’ low. Largemouth bass are fair to good on top-waters, shad-pattern crankbaits, Texas rigs and jigs. Catfi sh are fair to good on nightcrawlers and prepared bait.

JOE POOL: Water clear; 47–51 degrees; 1.93’ low. Largemouth bass are slow on Texas-rigged soft plastics. Crappie are good on jigs. Catfi sh are good on prepared baits.

LAKE O' THE PINES: Water lightly stained; 47–52 degrees; 3.18’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on lipless crankbaits and bladed jigs around grass and shallow cover.

Crappie are good on minnows.

LAVON: Water lightly stained; 47–51 degrees; 8.69’ low. Largemouth bass are slow on black/brown jigs around cover. Some deeper fi sh being caught off main lake points on football jigs. White bass are fair on slabs. Catfi sh are good on cut shad.

LBJ: Water clear; 60–64 degrees; 0.29’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on green pumpkin tubes and pumpkinseed drop-shot worms along docks and seawalls. Striped bass are slow. White bass are good on Spoiler Shad and silver Pirk Minnows near the power plant. Crappie are good on min-nows over brush piles.

LEWISVILLE: Water clear; 46–50 degrees; 5.55’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on shaky heads around marinas and football jigs along main lake points. Hybrid striper are good on slabs. Catfi sh are good on prepared bait and cut shad.

LIVINGSTON: Water fairly clear; 60–64 degrees; 0.49’ high. Largemouth bass are fair on black/silver spinner baits and crankbaits. Striped bass are good on white striper jigs. White bass are fair on minnows. Crappie are good on minnows and chartreuse tube jigs.

MARTIN CREEK: Water clear; 62–83 degrees; 3.44’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on lipless crankbaits around shal-low cover. Crappie are good on minnows and jigs. White bass are slow on slabs. Catfi sh are good on prepared bait and cut shad.

MONTICELLO: Water fairly clear; 48–52 degrees; 0.62’ high. Largemouth bass are good on Tex-as-rigged soft plastics and black and blue jigs around stumps. Square-bill crankbaits are good midday. Crappie are good on min-nows. Catfi sh are fair on cut bait.

NAVARRO MILLS: Water lightly stained; 57–61 degrees; 0.27’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on watermelon lipless crankbaits. White bass are slow. Crappie are fair on chartreuse tube jigs at the marina. Channel and blue catfi sh are fair on liver and stinkbait. Yellow catfi sh are slow.

O.H. IVIE: Water stained; 48–54 degrees; 34.46’ low. Largemouth bass are fair to good on lipless crankbaits, Texas rigs, chatterbaits and shaky heads.

Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs. White bass are fair on slabs. Catfi sh are fair to good on nightcrawlers and prepared bait.

OAK CREEK: Water stained; 48–53 degrees; 17.46’ low. Largemouth bass are fair to good on chrome lipless crankbaits, Texas rigs, shad-pattern crankbaits and shaky heads. Crappie are good on jigs and live minnows over brush piles. Catfi sh are good on chartreuse (use Worm–Glo) nightcrawlers.

PALESTINE: Water clear; 46–51 degrees; 0.95’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on black/blue jigs and shaky heads around docks. Finesse worms in watermelon blue are best. Crappie are good on minnows. Hybrid striper are good on slabs. Catfi sh are good on prepared bait.

POSSUM KINGDOM: Water fairly clear; 49–54 degrees; 9.81’ low. Largemouth bass are fair to good on shallow-running crankbaits, Texas rigs, jigs and drop-shot rigs. Crappie are good on minnows. White bass are fair on slabs. Striped bass are fair on live shad. Catfi sh are fair on prepared bait and nightcrawlers.

RAY HUBBARD: Water clear; 47–52 degrees; 3.07’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on Texas-rigged plastics around deep rocks. Football-head jigs and deep-diving crankbaits are effective as well. Catfi sh are good on cut shad.

RAY ROBERTS: Water clear; 46–50 degrees; 3.78’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on lipless crankbaits and Texas-rigged soft plastic baits along edge of grass lines. Carolina rigs are effective as well. Crappie are good on minnows. White bass are slow on slabs. Catfi sh are fair on prepared bait.

RICHLAND CHAMBERS: Water clear; 47–51 degrees; 3.81’ low. Largemouth bass are good on weightless soft plastics and shaky heads around docks. White bass are fair on slabs. Hybrid striper are good on slabs. Crappie are good on minnows. Catfi sh are fair on prepared bait.

SAM RAYBURN: Water lightly stained; 60–64 degrees; 3.51’ low. Largemouth bass are good on watermelon soft plastics and lipless crankbaits. White bass are slow. Crappie are fair on minnows

and blue tube jigs. Bream are good on worms. Catfi sh are good on frozen shrimp and stinkbait.

STILLHOUSE: Water stained; 58–62 degrees; 5.64’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on chartreuse soft plastic worms and spinner baits. Channel and blue catfi sh are good on shrimp and stinkbait.

TAWAKONI: Water stained; 48–52 degrees; 4.34’ low. Largemouth bass are slow on white bladed jigs and California 420-color fl ipping jigs around docks — midday bite has been best. Crappie are fair on minnows. White bass are slow on slabs. Striped bass and hybrid striper are good on slabs. Catfi sh are fair on cut bait.

TEXOMA: Water clear; 46–50 degrees; 5.57’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on medium-diving crankbaits and suspending jerkbaits along main lake points. Good numbers of fi sh reported on lipless crankbaits as well.

TOLEDO BEND: Water lightly stained; 60–64 degrees; 2.01’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on watermelon and chartreuse spinner baits and crankbaits. Crappie are good on minnows and chartreuse tube jigs over brush piles. Bream are good on worms. Channel and blue catfi sh are good on liver and stinkbait.

TRAVIS: Water clear; 57–61 degrees; 49.14’ low. Largemouth bass are good on chrome spoons, black worms and chartreuse crankbaits in 20–35 feet. Striped bass are fair on shad crankbaits in 30–50 feet. White bass are good on minnows and white grubs in 30–50 feet.

WHITNEY: Water lightly stained; 57–61 degrees; 8.44’ low. Largemouth bass are slow. Striped bass are slow. White bass are fair on minnows and pet spoons. Catfi sh are good on frozen liver, nightcrawlers and stinkbait.

— TPWD

TEXAS FRESHWATER FISHING REPORTSpoons on Travis

LAKE TRAVIS — Guide Allen Christenson said the white bass bite is going strong, along with a surprisingly good largemouth bite.

“The deep-water bite has been excellent for white bass on jigging spoons,” he said. “We’ve also caught some surprising largemouth bass. We caught a 6-pounder the other day. But mainly we are catching about 40 to 60 white bass per trip.”

Christenson said the white bass have all been good sized, up to 15 or 16 inches. He looks for balls of shad near the bottom on his sonar and moves to keep up with the bait.

“Silver and gold jigging spoons have been working, and the large minnows are also catching fi sh near the river channels,” he said. “There are some bass that hang out below docks in 12 to 20 feet of water. It isn’t huge numbers right now, but it is enough to keep the largemouth anglers happy.”

Christenson said green pumpkinseed plastic worms are catching good quality bass.

To contact Allen Christenson, call (512) 261-3644.

Calling the crappieCADDO LAKE — The crappie bite is going strong as the water levels rise on Caddo Lake,

according to guide Dennis North.“The rain we had two weeks ago brought the lake up 18 inches, so the bass bite has been a

little off, but I expect that to stabilize and get back to being good here shortly,” he said. “The crappie have been real good on 16-ounce jigs in electric chicken and black/chartreuse colors.”

North said to focus in the river down from Johnson’s Ranch and near the Pine Island Pond in 7 to 12 feet of water for crappie.

He said jigs and wacky worms were working for largemouth bass.To contact Dennis North, call (903) 930-5460.

— Staff report

spoons,” he said. “We’ve also caught some surprising largemouth bass. We

SEE MOREn Saltwater fi shing reports: Page 14

“Silver and gold jigging spoons have been working, and the large minnows are also North said to focus in the river down from Johnson’s Ranch and near the Pine North said to focus in the river down from Johnson’s Ranch and near the Pine


Boat sales on the riseThe U.S. recreational boating industry began to see the tide turn for new power boat

sales with an estimated 10 percent increase in 2012, according to the National Marine Manufacturers Association.

Early projections indicate the industry will see additional increases in 2013 by as much as 5-10 percent. This level of growth in 2013 will depend on a number of factors including continued improvement in economic conditions that impact recreational boat-ing — namely consumer confi dence and the housing market — and sustained increases in Americans’ participation in outdoor recreation.

“Improving economic conditions and what seems to be a resurgence in Americans’ love for the outdoors, helped fuel steady growth in new power boat sales in 2012,” noted Thom Dammrich, president of NMMA. “A 10 percent boost at retail in 2012 is signifi cant, as this is the fi rst time since the recession we saw healthy growth across the powerboat mar-ket, which will create momentum in 2013.”

Another factor that’s contributing to new boat sales is the creation of innovative, more versatile and accessible boats that appeal to a variety of interests and budgets and fall within the 15-26 foot range.

In 2011, boating participation increased 10 percent to 83 million – the largest propor-tion of adults (34.8 percent) who went boating since 1997 (35.8 percent).

— NMMA

State-Fish Art Contest open for applicationsAspiring artists from kindergarten through high school should get ready to draw some fi sh.The 2013 Wildlife Forever State-Fish Art Contest, is open to all students in public, pri-

vate or home schools. Entry deadline is March 31.Contest rules, guidelines, entry information and details about the contest can be

found at www.tpwd.state.tx.us/fi shart.The Texas fi rst-place winner in grades 10-12 wins $1,000; second place $750;

third place $500. Prizes in the 4-6 and 7-9 grade levels are $100 for fi rst; $75 for second; $50 for third.

Funding from the Toyota Texas Bass Classic also provides a travel allowance for fi rst-place Texas winners and their families to attend the national State-Fish Art Expo, which will be held July 12, at the Go Fish Education Center in Perry, Georgia. Texas winners will compete with winners from other states for national awards at the Expo.

One outstanding piece of artwork each year is selected for the Art of Conservation Award, and a commemorative stamp featuring the artwork is produced for sale. Proceeds from sales of the stamp are used to fund conservation projects.

Educators who wish to have their students enter the contest can download the free “State-Fish Art Contest Lesson Plan” at www.statefi shart.com.

— TPWD

Edward Parten named to TFFHFAnother big name in Texas bass fi shing will take his place among the legends on June 1.Edward Parten of Kingwood has been selected as the 2013 inductee into the Texas

Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame.He will be formally inducted into the Hall of Fame at a banquet at the Texas

Freshwater Fisheries Center in Athens on June 1.“I am extremely honored and humbled at receiving this prestigious award,” Parten said

of his selection for induction into the Texas Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame. “It has been my great pleasure to be allowed to work with some of the greatest fi sheries people in the country to help protect our environment, air and water quality, preservation of habitat, fi sh-eries and leave behind a legacy for those generations of people who will follow us.”

— TPWD

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FOR SALE 32 total signed and num-bered state prints and stamps from around the country12 state fi rst; Louisiana, Vermont, Arizona,Kansas, Rhode Island, Kentucky, Connecticut, Idaho, Virginia, Nebraska, Canada, Australia. 10 from South Carolina. All unframed.Great art work for any water fowlers offi ce wall or hunting camp. Call and ask for David.

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FRIENDLY CONVERSATION LEADS TO ADMISSION OF VIOLATION

Polk County Game Warden Ryan Hall was having dinner at a local res-taurant when a resident approached and struck up a conversation. Hall asked if he had any luck on his prop-erty this deer season. The man replied that he had already killed two pretty good bucks, a 10-point and an 8-point on his property, both of which had inside antler spreads greater than 13 inches. The man failed to realize his mistake and was cited for exceeding the annual bag limit in Polk County. Case pending.

SHORTCUT TO MEXICO BRINGS TROUBLE

At the Pecos River High Bridge boat ramp, Val Verde County Game Wardens Isaac Ruiz and Aaron Willoughby watched a vehicle with a boat trailer. At 11 a.m., an airboat occupied by three subjects pulled up to the ramp. It was determined the subjects were hunters who that took a shortcut to the Mexican ranch where they were hunting. A quartered deer was located in an ice chest. After meeting with U.S. Customs at the Del Rio point of entry, the hunt-ers were found to be in violation of multiple import and declaration rules. The wardens issued citations for illegal import of wildlife from Mexico, and the case was turned over to Customs and Border Protection for further investigation.

HUNTING ACCIDENT WHILE CROSSING FENCE

Presidio County Game Warden Zachary Moerbe responded to a ranch where a nonfatal hunting accident had occurred. Moerbe learned that the hunter had been in the process of crossing over a fence when his loaded shotgun fell from its rest and discharged, resulting in the injury. The 21-year-old victim had not taken a hunter education course, which is

unfortunate since this very scenario is covered as part of that course.

MULE DEER HUNTERS FORGOT SEASON WAS OVER

Val Verde County Game Wardens Tyler Stoikes and Allison Hatten checked a hunting camp that had three mule deer hanging. The war-dens informed the campers that the mule deer season ended Dec. 9 and that mule deer does were by permit only. Cases are pending and restitu-tion filed.

MORE MULE DEER MISHAPSCottle/Motley Game Warden

Matthew Cruse received a call from a man who was looking at a ranch that was for sale. While riding the back fence on a four-wheeler the man found two gut piles, a mule deer buck’s head with the antlers cut off and a full-body, skull-caped mule deer buck. Cruse found out who had been hunting the prop-erty earlier in the week and caught up with the hunters. After checking one of the hunter’s legal white-tailed deer, Cruse discovered in the bed of a Polaris Ranger a skull-capped 7-point set of mule deer antlers and two sawed-off antlers that appeared to have been cut off of a young mule deer buck. The man soon confessed that he and another man killed the

two mule deer bucks earlier in the week and dumped the bodies, wast-ing the meat. Also, two white-tailed bucks were taken off the property illegally. A total of four men were cited for multiple violations.

PRANK PLACING DEER AT SCHOOL DOORS A POOR CHOICE

Nolan County Game Warden Jake Simmering received a call from the Roscoe Chief of Police stating a deer had been propped up against the doors at Roscoe High School. Simmering located the deer and observed a clean, pass-through bul-let wound on the 9-point buck. The elementary school principal had found the deer earlier that morning and provided Simmering with pic-tures of the deer when he found it. The deer had numerous beer bottles outlining it, a can of Copenhagen on its shoulder, and a cigarette in its mouth. The next day, Simmering received information about the three subjects involved. Simmering, and Fisher/Stonewall County Game Warden George Pasley interviewed two of the subjects. They stated that another man on a ranch had killed the deer and given it to the uncle of the one of the subjects. The uncle then gave it to his nephew to pro-cess. The nephew had then tried to give the deer to his peers at work.

No one had wanted the deer, so the subjects decided to play a prank and put it at the high school. The sub-ject who originally ended up with the deer still had the tag with him. Upon receiving the tag, Simmering recog-nized the name of the individual who killed the deer. After advising the person who had killed the deer of what happened, he was extremely upset that the subjects had wasted the meat. Several cases and restitu-tion filed.

PLACING DEER BLOOD ON TRUCK A BAD IDEA

As Garza/Lynn County Game Warden Drew Spencer was refueling at a gas station, he saw a pickup with a large white-tailed deer rack sticking out of the bed. The truck had blood across the hood, down the fenders and bed rails. The truck passed by and immediately turn into a residen-tial area. Spencer quickly stopped the pump and followed. The truck eventually circled the block, giving Spencer the impression that they wanted to parade the deer back by him. Spencer saw the two men act disappointed when they returned to not find the game warden, but sur-prised when they saw him in their rear view mirror. After checking the licenses, deer, and tags, multiple citations were issued. Spencer asked

the men why they had splattered and poured blood all over their truck. The men said that they thought it would look cool. The men also received a lesson in hunting ethics.

TRESPASSERS TAKE A BIG “DUCK”Titus County Game Warden Jerry

Ash responded to a trespass call on a large ranch. Two hunters from the neighboring ranch were located and admitted to trespassing and said that they were jumping ducks on the area ponds. One hunter stated that they had only shot one duck while trespassing. Ash asked for the duck and was told that it was not retrieved because it fell over the high fence inside the deer breeder pens. The bird was recovered from the pens and discovered to be a cormorant. Citations were issued for hunting a protected waterfowl, criminal tres-pass, shooting across property lines and no hunter’s safety.

ROAD SHOOTER SENDS BULLETS AROUND HUNTERS

Capt. Pat Canan received a call from a hunter who had been shot at in Archer County. The individual doing the shooting was shooting at a pig from the road as the hunter observed the bullets hitting all around him. The hunter provided a description of the vehicle and the individual. After call-ing landowners, Canan determined the identity of the shooter and con-tacted Archer County Game Warden Richard Key and Wichita County Game Warden Luett McMahan. Key knew who the suspect was and con-tacted the local police to look for the vehicle, while Key went to the sus-pect’s ranch. Key interviewed the suspect and McMahan met with the hunter and found and collected the casings. The suspect admitted to shooting from the road. Key arrested the individual for deadly conduct and booked him into the Archer County Jail. Case pending.

GAME WARDEN BLOTTER

A ranch foreman called Garza/Lynn County Game Warden Drew Spencer regarding a headless white-tailed buck that had been dumped alongside a two-track road inside the ranch. As Spencer was responding to the area, the foreman called again and said that he believed it to have been shot by one of the hunting lease holders and that the carcass was no longer at the initial site. Spencer arrived on the ranch, and after a short search, found the initial dumpsite and carcass at a second location. Spencer loaded the deer, drove the

ranch in search of the hunter, and found him shortly thereafter. Spencer spoke with the man, a previous wildlife rules violator, at the back of the man’s truck. A severed deer head was in the bed of the truck with an incompletely filled out tag on its antlers. The man was then led to the back of Spencer’s truck. Spencer low-ered his tailgate, revealing the wasted carcass. Without provocation, the man asked, “Unless you’re making hamburger, do you realize how hard it is to cut up all that meat?” Multiple citations were issued.

SEVERED DEER HEAD IN TRUCK BED A DEAD GIVEAWAY



NORTH SABINE: Trout and redfi sh are fair while drifting mud and shell. Waders have taken better trout on the Louisiana shoreline on slow–sinking plugs.

SOUTH SABINE: Redfi sh are fair on the edge of the channel on mullet. Sheepshead and black drum are good at the jetty on live shrimp.

BOLIVAR: Trout are fair to good on the south shoreline on slow–sinking plugs. Black drum and redfi sh are good at Rollover Pass.

TRINITY BAY: Trout are fair for drifters working pods of shad and mullet, and better in the channels. Redfi sh are good at the spillway on crabs and mullet.

EAST GALVESTON BAY: Trout are fair to good on the north shore-line on Corkies and MirrOlures. Whiting and sand trout are good on the edge of the Intracoastal on fresh shrimp.

WEST GALVESTON BAY: Trout are fair in the mud and shell on MirrOlures and Corkies in the afternoon. Sheepshead, redfi sh and black drum are good at the jetty on shrimp and crabs.

TEXAS CITY: Redfi sh are fair to good in Moses Lake on natural baits. Sand trout and redfi sh are fair along channel drop–offs on shrimp.

FREEPORT: Sand trout and sheepshead are good on live shrimp on the reefs. Redfi sh are fair to good at San Luis pass on cracked blue crabs. Redfi sh are fair to good at the mouths of drains on scented plastics and shrimp.

EAST MATAGORDA BAY: Trout are fair on the shorelines in the afternoon on slow–sinkers. Redfi sh are fair to good on the edge of the Intracoastal and at the mouths of drains on scented plastics and jigs tipped with shrimp.

WEST MATAGORDA BAY: Redfi sh are fair to good on the south shoreline in the guts and bayous. Trout are fair on shell on soft plastics and fi nger mullet.

PORT O'CONNOR: Trout and redfi sh are fair on Corkies over soft mud in waist–deep water in San Antonio Bay. Redfi sh are fait at the mouths of drains on shrimp.

ROCKPORT: Trout are fair on the edge of the ICW on glow DOA Shrimp. Redfi sh are fair to good in California Hole on mullet and shrimp.

PORT ARANSAS: Redfi sh are fair to good on the ledges of the channel on mullet. Sand trout are good on shrimp in the channel.

CORPUS CHRISTI: Redfi sh are good in the Humble Channel on crabs and table shrimp. Trout are best on the edge of the fl ats on live shrimp, scented plastics and DOA Shrimp.

BAFFIN BAY: Trout are fair to good in mud and grass on Cork-ies and Catch 2000s. Trout are fair to good in the guts along the King Ranch shoreline on Corkies. Redfi sh are fair around spoils on live bait.

PORT MANSFIELD: Redfi sh are fair to good on DOA Shrimp and scented plastics under a popping cork around grass holes. Trout are fair to good on mud along the edge of the ICW on Corkies and MirrOlures.

SOUTH PADRE: Trout and redfi sh are fair to good on the edge of the Intracoastal on DOA Shrimp and scented plastics. Redfi sh, black drum and mangrove snapper are fair to good in the channel on shrimp.

PORT ISABEL: Trout are fair on the edge of the fl ats on soft plastics under popping corks. Redfi sh are good in the holes and guts on scented plastics and shrimp.

— TPWD

Sponsored by

TEXAS SALTWATER FISHING REPORTBlack drum run

INDIANOLA FISHING MARINA — With the cold fronts coming in the black drum have been running. Several have been reported from 30 to 50 inches weighing up to 50 pounds whiting, sheepsheads and redfi sh also are being caught on dead shrimp, crab and mullet. Anglers have not seen to many trout though.

The tides have been their normal low in the past weeks but are getting higher. The north wind is blocked by the store building, so fi shing off the deck is awesome. The pier is excellent for fi sherman of all ages to have a great time out of the sun or rain with the covered deck, with a bathroom just steps away. Reports of fl ounder have been good all month, with anglers getting their limits.

To contact Indianola Fishing Marina, call (361) 552-5350.

Reds aboundSEADRIFT — Extreme low water conditions have

bunched up the redfi sh on shorelines near Seadrift, accord-ing to Capt. Kris Kelley’s report on 2coolfi shing.com.

Lures and bait were bringing in the fi sh.“Just look for a big push of humped-up water coming down the

shoreline like a freight train and that’s them,” he wrote.Other reports are also solid around the San Antonio Bay area, with

good catches of redfi sh and trout being reported. Scented plastics and shrimp are eliciting bites.

To contact Capt. Kris Kelley, call (361) 648-3474.

Oversized drum at nightCORPUS CHRISTI — The black drum have been biting at night,

according to Cos Cavazos at Cos Way Bait & Tackle.“They have been catching a lot of black drum, both keepers and oversized, at

night on the falling tide,” Cavazos said. During the day, the catch has been limited to whiting and sand trout.“The anglers are catching sand trout during the day pretty heavy and a few whiting along

with it, but that is about it,” he said.For bait, dead shrimp has been the ticket, along with Fish Bites.“Live shrimp is also working, but it has been really tough to get,” Cavazos said.To contact Cos Way Bait & Tackle, call (361) 939-7513.

— Conor Harrison

according to Cos Cavazos at Cos Way Bait & Tackle.“They have been catching a lot of black drum, both keepers and oversized, at

night on the falling tide,” Cavazos said. “They have been catching a lot of black drum, both keepers and oversized, at

Reds aboundbunched up the redfi sh on shorelines near Seadrift, accord-

ing to Capt. Kris Kelley’s report on 2coolfi shing.com.ing to Capt. Kris Kelley’s report on 2coolfi shing.com.


elsewhere?’ It’s a crapshoot being there. By comparison, I can make three trips across a county in an airplane, and I’ve covered most of it in a limited time. I don’t have to wonder.”

Asst. Chief Lee Finch heads Air Operations. He said TPWD has five pilots, two helicopters and “two and a half” airplanes — two Cessna 206s and a Partenavia P68.

The Partenavia P68 needs two new engines, which Finch esti-mated will cost almost $200,000. At a time when legislators are boasting they’ll cut taxes — despite whacking most state agencies’ budgets the previous two legislative sessions — it’s not likely the third plane will be fly-ing anytime soon.

TPWD uses its aircraft to do everything from wildlife surveys to checking for hydrilla in lakes and Red Tide in the Gulf to search and rescue operations.

Whether a helicopter or air-plane is used depends on what’s being done, Finch said.

“If we want to know how many bald eagles are living in Texas, that pretty much calls for an air-plane,” said Finch. “Eagles are at the top of the food chain. They aren’t easily intimidated. We can slow down, drop the flaps, and tell you whether there’s one egg in the nest or two.

“Mule deer live in a rougher habitat. If we want to check on them, that requires a helicopter. If we used a plane, we’d never get into the breaks because we’d always be climbing trying to miss the hills on the other side.”

Sophisticated technology helps keep game wardens in the air on course — day or night.

“If we’re using night vision (which magnifies reflected light) and a GPS, we can follow the road system like everyone else.”

Night vision also lets TPWD track culprits on foot in the dark.

“If they’ve been walking, they’ve beaten down the grass,” Finch said. “It’s a different color. It reflects light differently. I’ve fol-lowed people’s trails for miles. It just takes a little knowing.”

Ranft isn’t a pilot, but Finch calls him one of the best wing-men in the department.

“He’s as savvy as they come in the use of aircraft in law enforce-ment,” Finch said.

Like Finch, Ranft believes you need all the experience you can muster in the air. Flying at night particularly makes it easy to get turned around.

“You’re going east at 5,000 feet and 30 seconds later you’re going west,” Ranft said. “Meanwhile, you’ve got one game warden on the ground going south and another going north. And both want you to tell them where to go.”

Even so, flying has become a vital part of Ranft’s crime-fight-ing arsenal.

Aircraft are invaluable in detecting illegal hunters, he said. Once Ranft and Finch spotted a small car with two men driving suspiciously in an area known for spotlighting. Night hunters usually employ trucks in order to load up poached animals quickly.

On a hunch, the two game war-dens followed the car.

“We watched and one of them went into a field,” Ranft said. “We could see his spotlight, but he didn’t shoot. There was no flash. We gave their coordinates to game wardens on the ground. It turned out they were two convicted fel-ons. That’s why they were using a car rather than a truck. They didn’t think anyone would figure out what they were doing.”

While an ambassador for put-ting crime fighters into aircraft, Ranft has one inviolate rule: Don’t fly with him if you don’t like flying.

“It’s like grade school up there,” he said. “If one person hurls, everyone’s going to. And I might not be too happy when we get on the ground.”

SkyContinued From Page 1

craze has died down, because so many peo-ple are making them and selling them.”

Deal said the rig is meant to be thrown in the winter or the dead of summer.

“Fish are on the same pattern twice each year,” he said. “This bait isn’t meant to be thrown all year long. It is primarily a fall/win-ter bait. We’ve added to it with some new mod-els with three big spin-ner baits on it. We also have models for wall-eye and salmon.”

Locally, Texas bait shops said they have seen a big slowdown in anglers looking for the Alabama rig.

“No, we haven’t

sold nearly as many as we did last year,” said Robin Johnston of Needmore Tackle near Sam Rayburn Reservoir. “We sell three different varieties and the fever is over, in my opinion. It’s a good bait, but it’s not a miracle bait, which is what every-one believed.”

Johnston said guides on the lake don’t use it a lot, either.

“I am personally not aware of any guides who are super hot on it,” she said. “There was a lot of hype around it, but you’ve got to work it into your tackle box.

“It also has to be the right time, conditions and fishing style, like any other bait.”

on (Jan. 24), which is when I have my next trip. They should have been here now.”

Griffiths said the big trout will move in from the deeper channels to feed on active baitfish.

“They haven’t made a move yet because of the lack of bait,” he said. “It will be in the 70s all week, which should get some bait active.”

Angler John Ramirez fished the Laguna Madre recently near Port Mansfield and reported good action throwing scented plastics.

“The trout bite was good and I caught a cou-ple of decent-sized fish,” he said. “The biggest went about 24 inches. The really big fish have been tough to come by, but I think it will start picking up soon.

“The wind has been blowing a little bit, but the fish are biting when I’ve gotten out.”

Internet reports have indicated that chatterbaits and scented plastics thrown into muddy water are getting bites. Most anglers are saying something similar — lots of good trout, with the occasional big fish, but they are few and far between right now.

Capt. Ken Griffiths, (713) 817-6244

TroutContinued From Page 9

CrazeContinued From Page 1

Photo by Steve Fogle.


PRODUCTS

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(800) 800-1020www.garmin.com

Garmin has introduced its latest combination fi shfi nder and high-perfor-









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has introduced its latest combination fi shfi nder and high-perfor-




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MEOPRO 3.5-10X44 REDZONE RIFLESCOPE: Meopta USA’s new rifl escope is for hunters who want the perfect

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SPLINTER: This colorful Johnson spoon will slash through the water. With its black nickel swivel and hook, plus an asymmetric fl at profi le that facilitates a rhythmic

darting action, it is designed to catch fi sh in any waters. Anglers can cast and retrieve the Splinter, jig it, or fl utter it through a fi sh’s haunt. The lure

comes in seven colors: Chrome, Gold, Chrome Trout, Chartreuse Pearl, Firetiger, Nickel-Nickel Blue and Perch. Available in 1/12-

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AWS MODULAR STABILIZER: Limbsaver’s new stabilizer features a skele-tonized stabilizer design, featuring their proprietary NAVCOM

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Carter's Country11886 Wilcrest DriveHouston, Texas 77031

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This picture shows 8-year-old HUDSON HARRIS’ fi rst buck. It was shot north of Hondo in Medina County at his Poppi’s ranch. He took it with his .243 Remington he got for his birthday. The buck was a 6.5-year-old mainframe 10-pointer with a total of 16 score-able points. He was guided by his dad, Chad, who said he will not be able to shoot another buck like that again until he is 16!

4-year-old buck, so I didn't shoot.”

Brittingham videoed the deer and took it to the ranch manager, Cade Green, who looked through the archived footage and found him as a 5-year-old (during the 03/04 season) feeding in the same fi eld.

“His sheds that were picked up when he was 7 are two of the most unique antlers I've ever seen,” Brittingham said. “And while they are certainly his, you'll see why I was con-fused as to which deer he was. His antler confi guration changed from when he was 7 to when he was 10.”

The deer disappeared for several years, but late this season, Brittingham got word the buck was still alive.

“I planned to come down at the earliest week-end available after hearing that Cade’s father watched him skirt the far brush line across the fi eld at 530 yards for over 20 minutes,” he said. “I drove down Thursday night and hunted twice on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Friday eve-ning, he did exactly what Cade’s dad described.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t prepared for that long of a shot. During the middle of the day on Saturday, I switched rifl es and dialed in Cade's Remington Sendero .25-06 with Burris BDC optics for 500 yards. After three successive hits on the gong at that distance, I was ready to try him again.

“He didn’t show Saturday evening, so it was down to

Sunday.”Brittingham snuck into the

same blind Sunday evening, but time was quickly running out to fi nd the old buck.

“At that time, I gave up on the idea that I’d get a shot at Indigo and turned around to the feeder 100 yards east of the tower blind,” he said. “There were several bucks at the feeder and a few bucks and does nearby in the fi eld, but no sign of Indigo.

“I waited until the last few minutes of legal shoot-ing light, and then I packed my camera and binocs into my pack, and started to unload the gun.”

Brittingham glanced back

into the fi eld and caught the outline of a buck walking 10 yards inside the food plot's fence line.

“I could only tell he was a buck by the way he walked and bobbed his head aggressively,” he said. “I felt as if his movements were surprisingly similar to how Indigo had postured and moved while chasing doe fawns around this exact blind fi ve seasons ago. I dug the binoculars out of my bag and tried to get my eyes to focus in the dimming twilight. I wasn’t able to see much in the fi xed 10-power binocs, but as he crossed in front of me, I caught the refl ection of light off of his

extremely curved G2’s.”Things quickly sped up

for Trevor, including his heart rate.

“At that point my heart rate spiked, and I grabbed for the rifl e,” he said. “I stopped him at 50 yards with a grunt call and watched as the crosshairs danced around and across his vitals. Unable to calm myself down from the chance to fi nally shoot the elusive Indigo, I jerked the trigger harder than I ever have before. Luckily, Cade’s Sendero had been upgraded with a Jewel Trigger set at roughly 5 ounces, and the bullet had left the barrel as my fi nger was still tighten-ing on the rifl e.

“However, I could have sworn that I pulled low and either missed or grazed the buck. I watched his dark fi gure spin 180 degrees and run back where he had come from.”

Brittingham began beat-ing himself up for blowing the shot.

“My heart sank to the fl oor and I began kick-ing myself for blowing a 50-yard rifl e shot on the buck I’ve been after for fi ve years,” he said. “On any average buck, I could have made that shot with my bow, but here I was, con-vinced that I had lost any chance of ever getting my hands on Indigo. I scram-bled for my headlamp and an extra bullet and nearly fell out of the blind trying to rush down to where he stood during the shot.”

Brittingham found a lit-tle bit of blood, and at least knew he had hit the deer.

“At the very beginning of his trail, I found a little drop

of dark red blood smaller than a dime,” he said. “I was certain now that I grazed him. I knew I would never see him again and that my quest was over. I followed the tracks and minimal blood in the darkness for 75 yards, when I looked up to see the faint shape of an object in the fi eld that was too big to have been there before. I looked a little closer and saw what appeared to be two white cheeks and a black tail separating them.”

To say there was some relief would be an under-statement.

“I ran the last 30 yards to the downed buck and, the second I saw him, I began saying over and over, ‘Oh my God, it’s him. It’s really him.’ I just couldn't believe it. It didn’t seem real to me that I had just taken this 14-year-old ghost, who I’ve chased for so long. I sat down in the dirt next to him thanking God and crying tears of joy.”

Brittingham found he had hit the deer well, but also noticed another hole in the old buck’s side.

“I was confused at fi rst because he had a large bloody spot the size of my hand on the left side of his belly,” he said. “After further inspection, he had just come from a fi ght where he took a tine to the stomach and was bleeding signifi cantly.”

Brittingham grabbed Cade to go look at the old-est buck either one of them had ever seen.

“When Cade walked up on Indigo in the head-lights, his fi rst comment was, ‘Wow, I’ll never see a deer this old again in my lifetime.’”

— Staff report

QuestContinued From Page 1

Lone Star Outdoor News, ISSN 2162-8300, a publication of Lone Star Outdoor News, LLC, publishes twice a month. A mailed subscription is $30 for 24 issues. Newsstand copies are $2, in certain mar-kets copies are free, one per person. Copy-right 2013 with all rights reserved. Repro-duction and/or use of any photographic or written material without written permission by the publisher is prohibited. Subscribers may send address changes to: Lone Star Outdoor News, P.O. Box 551695, Dallas, TX 75355 or e-mail them to [email protected].

Advertising Call (214) 361-2276 or email mhughs@lone staroutdoornews.com to request a media kit.

For home delivery subscriptions www.LSONews.com(214) 361-2276

Executive Editor

Managing Editor

Associate Editor

Graphics Editor

Business/Products Editor

Operations Manager

Accounting

Website

Founder & CEO

Craig Nyhus

Conor Harrison

Mark England

Amy Moore

Mary Helen Aguirre

Mike Hughs

Ginger Hoolan

Bruce Soileau

Mike Nelson

David J. Sams

National Advertising Accounts Manager

ContributorsKyle CarterDavid DraperShannon DraweWilbur LundeenAaron Reed

Erich SchlegelDavid SikesScott SommerlatteChuck UzzleRalph Winingham

WAVY HORNS: Like many old deer, Indigo grew strange wavy horns in his older years. Photo by Trevor Brittingham.


HEROES

DFW-area hunter TRACY CROISANT headed to the Vernejo Park Ranch on Nov. 17, where he harvested this trophy mule deer.

SHARE AN ADVENTUREn Want to share hunting and fishing photos with other Lone Star Outdoor News readers? E-mail them with contact and caption information to [email protected]. High-resolution original jpegs only. Mail prints to Heroes, Lone Star Outdoor News, P.O. Box 551695, Dallas, TX 75355.

HUNTER SCHMIDT, 14, of Bulverde took this limit of ducks on the youth hunt-

ing weekend with his dad, Chris, and grandfather, Rocky Goodman, near

Baffin Bay.

Nine-year-old REESE WILSON took her

first deer, an 8-point buck, with her dad,

Shane, and little sister, Taylor, at her Paw Paw’s ranch in

Medina County.

COLE WAYNE DIVIN, 8, of Magnolia,

harvested his first deer while hunting with his Paw Paw

in Uvalde. The big 9-point was taken

with one shot at 160 yards.

KONNER SMITH took this rutted-up mule deer buck in Floyd County with his great-grandfather’s old rifle, a Savage model 99E .243 — the same rifle his dad, Kyle, used to shoot his first deer.

Coppell hunter CAITLYNN HARGROVE, 8, took this springbok while hunting with her dad, Tom, in Namibia.

San Antonio angler KATHY HESS caught this 38-inch, 17-pound redfish near the JFK Causeway on North Padre Island.

OUTDOOR BUSINESS



NewFeb. 10

Solunar | Sun times | Moon timesMoon Phases

FOR THE TABLEOUTDOOR PUZZLER | By Wilbur “Wib” Lundeen Solution on Page 22

Legend: Major=2 hours. Minor=1 hour. Times centered on the major-minor window. F=Full Moon, N=New Moon, Q=Quarter > = Peak Activity. For other locations, subtract 1 minute per 12 miles east of a location, and add 1 min-ute per 12 miles west of a location.

Sun Moon Tides| |

2–3 goose breasts, skinnedCorianderCuminCayenne pepperSea saltFresh ground black pepperMrs. Dash seasoning, yellow labelHickory or mesquite chips

Wash and dry the goose breasts. Place

the skinned side up. Season to taste with the spices. Put on a nice even coat. Place in smoker on low for 1 hour.

Turn smoker up to 200 degrees and smoke another 5-6 hours or until cooked to medium. Make sure to keep the smoke even throughout. Remove from smoker and slice into thin slices. Serve with cheese and cracker.

— Backwoodsbound.com

6 striper fi llets (about 1/2- to 3/4-pound each), skinned2 cups unsalted butter1/2 cup fresh lemon juice2 tbsps. dried thyme2 tbsps. dried basil1 1/2 tbsps. coarse ground black pepper2 tsps. red pepper fl akesSalt to tasteChopped fresh parsley (garnish)Lemon wedges

Melt the butter in a medium-size sauce-pan. Stir in the lemon juice, thyme, basil, black pepper, red pepper and the salt. Cook over low heat for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and pour into a shallow dish. Dip both sides of each fi llet into the butter mixture

to coat thoroughly. Place the fi llets on a plate, cover with plastic wrap, and refriger-ate until cold, at least 1 hour. (The success of this technique depends on having well-chilled fi sh and a very hot skillet. Be prepared for smoke.) Reserve any remain-ing butter mixture. Heat a large cast-iron skillet over high heat until a drop of water sizzles in the pan. Place 2 fi sh fi llets in the skillet and cook quickly on each side to blacken, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Repeat with remaining fi llets. When all the fi llets are cooked, add any remaining butter mix-ture to the pan and scrape up the browned bits stuck to the pan. Spoon over the fi sh fi llets and garnish with parsley. Serve immediately with lemon wedges.

— Easyfi shrecipes.com

Blackened striper

LastFeb. 3

FullJan. 27 First

Feb. 18

Texas Coast TidesSabine Pass, northDate Time Height Time Height Time Height Time HeightJan 25 12:48 AM 1.0H 8:14 AM -0.6L 4:06 PM 1.1H 8:43 PM 0.8LJan 26 1:24 AM 1.0H 8:50 AM -0.6L 4:27 PM 1.1H 9:13 PM 0.7LJan 27 2:03 AM 1.0H 9:25 AM -0.6L 4:49 PM 1.1H 9:48 PM 0.6LJan 28 2:46 AM 1.0H 10:00 AM -0.5L 5:12 PM 1.1H 10:29 PM 0.5LJan 29 3:36 AM 1.0H 10:36 AM -0.3L 5:35 PM 1.0H 11:13 PM 0.3LJan 30 4:33 AM 0.9H 11:14 AM -0.1L 5:58 PM 1.0HJan 31 12:01 AM 0.2L 5:42 AM 0.9H 11:54 AM 0.1L 6:20 PM 1.0 HFeb 01 12:54 AM 0.0L 7:06 AM 0.8H 12:38 PM 0.3L 6:42 PM 1.0 HFeb 02 1:51 AM -0.2L 8:48 AM 0.9H 1:31 PM 0.6L 7:08 PM 1.0HFeb 03 2:52 AM -0.4L 10:37 AM 0.9H 2:38 PM 0.8L 7:44 PM 1.0HFeb 04 3:54 AM -0.5L 12:06 PM 1.1H 4:04 PM 0.9L 8:41 PM 1.1 HFeb 05 4:55 AM -0.7L 1:11 PM 1.2H 5:28 PM 0.9L 9:57 PM 1.1HFeb 06 5:53 AM -0.8L 1:59 PM 1.2H 6:32 PM 0.9L 11:14 PM 1.2HFeb 07 6:49 AM -0.9L 2:40 PM 1.3H 7:23 PM 0.8LFeb 08 12:24 AM 1.2H 7:41 AM -0.8L 3:16 PM 1.3H 8:10 PM 0.7L

Galveston Bay entrance, south jettyDate Time Height Time Height Time Height Time HeightJan 25 12:10 AM 1.2H 7:53 AM -0.9L 4:21 PM 1.2H 7:57 PM 1.0LJan 26 12:54 AM 1.2H 8:23 AM -0.8L 4:42 PM 1.2H 8:28 PM 0.9LJan 27 1:39 AM 1.2H 8:53 AM -0.8L 5:05 PM 1.2H 9:06 PM 0.8LJan 28 2:28 AM 1.1H 9:25 AM -0.6L 5:27 PM 1.2H 9:48 PM 0.7LJan 29 3:23 AM 1.0H 9:57 AM -0.4L 5:48 PM 1.1H 10:33 PM 0.5LJan 30 4:31 AM 0.9H 10:31 AM -0.2L 6:07 PM 1.1H 11:22 PM 0.3LJan 31 5:55 AM 0.9H 11:08 AM 0.1L 6:23 PM 1.1HFeb 01 12:16 AM 0.0L 7:35 AM 0.8H 11:48 AM 0.4L 6:36 PM 1.1 HFeb 02 1:16 AM -0.3L 9:26 AM 0.9H 12:35 PM 0.7L 6:48 PM 1.1HFeb 03 2:20 AM -0.5L 11:16 AM 1.1H 1:38 PM 1.0L 7:05 PM 1.2HFeb 04 3:27 AM -0.7L 12:45 PM 1.3H 3:26 PM 1.2L 7:44 PM 1.3HFeb 05 4:32 AM -0.9L 1:44 PM 1.4H 5:35 PM 1.3L 9:08 PM 1.3HFeb 06 5:34 AM -1.1L 2:28 PM 1.5H 6:29 PM 1.3L 10:37 PM 1.4HFeb 07 6:32 AM -1.1L 3:05 PM 1.5H 7:09 PM 1.2L 11:55 PM 1.4HFeb 08 7:26 AM -1.1L 3:38 PM 1.4H 7:50 PM 1.0L

San Luis PassDate Time Height Time Height Time Height Time Height Jan 25 12:40 AM 0.7H 8:49 AM -0.5L 4:51 PM 0.7H 8:53 PM 0.6LJan 26 1:24 AM 0.7H 9:19 AM -0.5L 5:12 PM 0.7H 9:24 PM 0.6LJan 27 2:09 AM 0.7H 9:49 AM -0.5L 5:35 PM 0.7H 10:02 PM 0.5LJan 28 2:58 AM 0.7H 10:21 AM -0.4L 5:57 PM 0.7H 10:44 PM 0.4LJan 29 3:53 AM 0.6H 10:53 AM -0.3L 6:18 PM 0.7H 11:29 PM 0.3LJan 30 5:01 AM 0.6H 11:27 AM -0.1L 6:37 PM 0.6HJan 31 12:18 AM 0.2L 6:25 AM 0.5H 12:04 PM 0.1L 6:53 PM 0.6HFeb 01 1:12 AM 0.0L 8:05 AM 0.5H 12:44 PM 0.3L 7:06 PM 0.6HFeb 02 2:12 AM -0.2L 9:56 AM 0.6H 1:31 PM 0.4L 7:18 PM 0.7HFeb 03 3:16 AM -0.3L 11:46 AM 0.7H 2:34 PM 0.6L 7:35 PM 0.7HFeb 04 4:23 AM -0.4L 1:15 PM 0.8H 4:22 PM 0.7L 8:14 PM 0.8 HFeb 05 5:28 AM -0.6L 2:14 PM 0.8H 6:31 PM 0.8L 9:38 PM 0.8HFeb 06 6:30 AM -0.7L 2:58 PM 0.9H 7:25 PM 0.8L 11:07 PM 0.8HFeb 07 7:28 AM -0.7L 3:35 PM 0.9H 8:05 PM 0.7LFeb 08 12:25 AM 0.9H 8:22 AM -0.7L 4:08 PM 0.9H 8:46 PM 0.6L

Freeport HarborDate Time Height Time Height Time Height Time HeightJan 25 8:05 AM -0.5L 4:16 PM 1.4HJan 26 8:37 AM -0.4L 4:37 PM 1.3H 11:11 PM 0.8LJan 27 1:34 AM 0.9H 9:08 AM -0.4L 4:57 PM 1.3H 11:20 PM 0.8LJan 28 2:30 AM 0.9H 9:38 AM -0.3L 5:16 PM 1.2H 11:27 PM 0.7LJan 29 3:31 AM 0.8H 10:11 AM -0.1L 5:35 PM 1.2H 11:39 PM 0.5LJan 30 4:37 AM 0.8H 10:47 AM 0.0L 5:54 PM 1.1HJan 31 12:02 AM 0.3L 5:53 AM 0.8H 11:29 AM 0.3L 6:11 PM 1.0HFeb 01 12:37 AM 0.2L 7:20 AM 0.9H 12:20 PM 0.5L 6:26 PM 1.0HFeb 02 1:23 AM 0.0L 8:59 AM 1.0H 1:35 PM 0.8L 6:36 PM 0.9HFeb 03 2:19 AM -0.2L 10:44 AM 1.1HFeb 04 3:23 AM -0.4L 12:18 PM 1.3HFeb 05 4:30 AM -0.6L 1:27 PM 1.4HFeb 06 5:35 AM -0.7L 2:19 PM 1.5HFeb 07 6:37 AM -0.7L 3:02 PM 1.5HFeb 08 7:34 AM -0.7L 3:38 PM 1.5H 9:35 PM 0.9L

South Padre IslandDate Time Height Time Height Time Height Time HeightJan 25 7:42 AM -0.4L 5:08 PM 1.3HJan 26 8:15 AM -0.4L 5:20 PM 1.2HJan 27 8:47 AM -0.3L 5:27 PM 1.2HJan 28 9:20 AM -0.2L 5:33 PM 1.1H 10:40 PM 0.9LJan 29 1:55 AM 0.9H 9:55 AM -0.1L 5:37 PM 1.0H 11:05 PM 0.7LJan 30 3:24 AM 0.8H 10:34 AM 0.1L 5:38 PM 0.9H 11:38 PM 0.4LJan 31 5:03 AM 0.8H 11:16 AM 0.3L 5:38 PM 0.9HFeb 01 12:20 AM 0.2L 7:00 AM 0.8H 12:03 PM 0.5L 5:33 PM 0.8 HFeb 02 1:09 AM -0.1L 9:26 AM 0.8H 1:02 PM 0.8L 5:19 PM 0.9HFeb 03 2:06 AM -0.3L 12:01 PM 1.0HFeb 04 3:07 AM -0.6L 1:31 PM 1.2HFeb 05 4:10 AM -0.7L 2:24 PM 1.3HFeb 06 5:12 AM -0.8L 3:07 PM 1.4HFeb 07 6:11 AM -0.9L 3:40 PM 1.3HFeb 08 7:07 AM -0.8L 4:06 PM 1.3H 8:32 PM 1.1L 10:59 PM 1.1H

Port O’ConnorDate Time Height Time Height Time Height Time HeightJan 25 10:48 AM -0.7L 11:57 PM 0.1HJan 26 11:27 AM -0.7LJan 27 1:09 AM 0.1H 12:03 PM -0.6LJan 28 2:23 AM 0.1H 12:36 PM -0.6LJan 29 3:41 AM 0.0H 1:07 PM -0.5L 10:23 PM -0.1HJan 30 1:16 AM -0.1L 5:07 AM -0.1H 1:34 PM -0.4L 8:28 PM -0.1HJan 31 2:09 AM -0.2L 7:10 AM -0.1H 1:55 PM -0.3L 7:47 PM -0.1HFeb 01 2:59 AM -0.3L 7:03 PM -0.1HFeb 02 3:53 AM -0.4L 6:59 PM 0.0HFeb 03 4:53 AM -0.5L 7:03 PM 0.1HFeb 04 6:00 AM -0.6L 7:24 PM 0.2HFeb 05 7:10 AM -0.7L 8:07 PM 0.2HFeb 06 8:19 AM -0.7L 9:09 PM 0.2HFeb 07 9:23 AM -0.7L 10:30 PM 0.2HFeb 08 10:21 AM -0.7L

RockportDate Time Height Time Height Time Height Time HeightJan 25 1:49 AM -0.1H 11:54 AM -0.4LJan 26 2:29 AM -0.1H 12:30 PM -0.4LJan 27 3:08 AM -0.1H 1:01 PM -0.4LJan 28 3:48 AM -0.2H 1:30 PM -0.4LJan 29 4:38 AM -0.2H 1:56 PM -0.4LJan 30 5:56 AM -0.2H 2:17 PM -0.3L 9:45 PM -0.2HJan 31 3:22 AM -0.3L 8:10 AM -0.3H 2:24 PM -0.3L 9:13 PM -0.2HFeb 01 4:36 AM -0.3L 8:58 PM -0.2HFeb 02 5:34 AM -0.4L 9:00 PM -0.2HFeb 03 6:31 AM -0.4L 9:24 PM -0.1HFeb 04 7:29 AM -0.4L 10:06 PM -0.1HFeb 05 8:29 AM -0.5L 10:58 PM -0.1HFeb 06 9:29 AM -0.5L 11:56 PM -0.1HFeb 07 10:28 AM -0.5LFeb 08 12:56 AM -0.1H 11:21 AM -0.4L

Houston2013 A.M. P.M. SUN MOONJan-Feb Minor Major Minor Major Rises Sets Rises Sets25 Fri > 3:31 9:43 3:55 10:07 07:14 05:51 4:53p 5:55a 26 Sat > 4:17 10:28 4:40 10:52 07:13 05:52 5:48p 6:36a 27 Sun F 5:03 11:15 5:26 11:38 07:13 05:53 6:43p 7:14a 28 Mon > 5:51 ----- 6:14 12:03 07:12 05:54 7:39p 7:50a 29 Tue > 6:41 12:29 7:03 12:52 07:12 05:55 8:36p 8:25a 30 Wed 7:32 1:20 7:55 1:43 07:11 05:56 9:33p 9:00a31 Thu 8:24 2:12 8:48 2:36 07:11 05:57 10:32p 9:36a 01 Fri 9:18 3:05 9:43 3:30 07:10 05:58 11:34p 10:14a 02 Sat 10:13 4:00 10:39 4:26 07:10 05:58 NoMoon 10:56a 03 Sun Q 11:09 4:55 11:37 5:23 07:09 05:59 12:37a 11:42a 04 Mon ----- 5:50 12:05 6:20 07:08 06:00 1:41a 12:34p 05 Tue 12:31 6:46 1:01 7:16 07:08 06:01 2:44a 1:31p 06 Wed 1:25 7:40 1:55 8:11 07:07 06:02 3:45a 2:33p 07 Thu 2:19 8:34 2:49 9:04 07:06 06:03 4:42a 3:37p 08 Fri > 3:12 9:27 3:41 9:55 07:06 06:04 5:33a 4:43p 09 Sat > 4:05 10:19 4:32 10:46 07:05 06:04 6:20a 5:49p 10 Sun N 4:58 11:11 5:24 11:37 07:04 06:05 7:01a 6:52p 11 Mon > 5:51 11:34 6:15 12:03 07:03 06:06 7:40a 7:53p 12 Tue > 6:44 12:32 7:08 12:56 07:02 06:07 8:17a 8:52p 13 Wed > 7:37 1:25 8:00 1:49 07:02 06:08 8:53a 9:50p

Port Aransas, H. Caldwell PierDate Time Height Time Height Time Height Time HeightJan 25 7:43 AM -0.9L 4:44 PM 0.9HJan 26 8:16 AM -0.9L 4:59 PM 0.9HJan 27 8:48 AM -0.9L 5:11 PM 0.8H 10:30 PM 0.5LJan 28 1:05 AM 0.6H 9:21 AM -0.7L 5:21 PM 0.8H 10:48 PM 0.4LJan 29 2:26 AM 0.5H 9:55 AM -0.5L 5:30 PM 0.8H 11:15 PM 0.3 LJan 30 3:51 AM 0.5H 10:33 AM -0.2L 5:37 PM 0.8H 11:50 PM 0.1LJan 31 5:28 AM 0.6H 11:14 AM 0.1L 5:41 PM 0.8HFeb 01 12:32 AM -0.1L 7:26 AM 0.6H 12:02 PM 0.4L 5:40 PM 0.8HFeb 02 1:21 AM -0.3L 9:50 AM 0.8H 1:10 PM 0.8L 5:29 PM 0.9HFeb 03 2:16 AM -0.5L 12:01 PM 1.1HFeb 04 3:16 AM -0.7L 1:13 PM 1.3HFeb 05 4:17 AM -0.9L 2:03 PM 1.4HFeb 06 5:17 AM -1.0L 2:45 PM 1.4HFeb 07 6:14 AM -1.1L 3:20 PM 1.3HFeb 08 7:08 AM -1.1L 3:49 PM 1.2H

San Antonio2013 A.M. P.M. SUN MOONJan-Feb Minor Major Minor Major Rises Sets Rises Sets25 Fri > 3:44 9:56 4:08 10:20 07:26 06:04 5:06p 6:07a 26 Sat > 4:29 10:41 4:53 11:05 07:25 06:05 6:01p 6:48a 27 Sun F 5:16 11:27 5:39 11:50 07:25 06:06 6:56p 7:26a 28 Mon > 6:04 ----- 6:27 12:15 07:24 06:07 7:52p 8:03a 29 Tue > 6:53 12:42 7:16 1:04 07:24 06:08 8:49p 8:38a 30 Wed 7:44 1:32 8:07 1:56 07:23 06:09 9:46p 9:13a 31 Thu 8:37 2:25 9:00 2:48 07:23 06:10 10:45p 9:49a 01 Fri 9:30 3:18 9:55 3:43 07:22 06:11 11:46p 10:27a 02 Sat 10:26 4:12 10:52 4:39 07:22 06:11 NoMoon 11:09a 03 Sun Q 11:22 5:08 11:49 5:35 07:21 06:12 12:49a 11:56a 04 Mon ----- 6:03 12:18 6:32 07:20 06:13 1:53a 12:47p 05 Tue 12:43 6:58 1:13 7:28 07:20 06:14 2:57a 1:45p 06 Wed 1:38 7:53 2:08 8:23 07:19 06:15 3:58a 2:46p 07 Thu 2:32 8:46 3:01 9:16 07:18 06:16 4:54a 3:51p 08 Fri > 3:25 9:39 3:53 10:08 07:18 06:17 5:46a 4:57p 09 Sat > 4:18 10:31 4:45 10:58 07:17 06:17 6:32a 6:02p 10 Sun N 5:10 11:23 5:36 11:49 07:16 06:18 7:14a 7:05p 11 Mon > 6:03 11:47 6:28 12:16 07:15 06:19 7:53a 8:06p 12 Tue > 6:56 12:44 7:20 1:08 07:15 06:20 8:30a 9:05p 13 Wed > 7:49 1:38 8:13 2:01 07:14 06:21 9:06a 10:02p

Amarillo2013 A.M. P.M. SUN MOONJan-Feb Minor Major Minor Major Rises Sets Rises Sets25 Fri > 3:57 10:09 4:21 10:33 07:50 06:06 5:09p 6:32a 26 Sat > 4:43 10:54 5:06 11:18 07:50 06:07 6:06p 7:11a 27 Sun F 5:29 11:41 5:52 ----- 07:49 06:09 7:04p 7:47a 28 Mon > 6:17 12:06 6:40 12:29 07:48 06:10 8:03p 8:21a 29 Tue > 7:06 12:55 7:29 1:18 07:48 06:11 9:02p 8:54a 30 Wed 7:57 1:46 8:21 2:09 07:47 06:12 10:02p 9:26a 31 Thu 8:50 2:38 9:14 3:02 07:46 06:13 11:04p 9:59a 01 Fri 9:44 3:31 10:09 3:56 07:46 06:14 NoMoon 10:35a 02 Sat 10:39 4:26 11:05 4:52 07:45 06:15 12:08a 11:14a 03 Sun Q 11:35 5:21 ----- 5:49 07:44 06:16 1:13a 11:59a 04 Mon 12:02 6:16 12:31 6:46 07:43 06:17 2:19a 12:49p 05 Tue 12:57 7:12 1:27 7:42 07:42 06:18 3:24a 1:46p 06 Wed 1:51 8:06 2:21 8:36 07:42 06:19 4:25a 2:48p 07 Thu 2:45 9:00 3:15 9:30 07:41 06:20 5:20a 3:54p 08 Fri > 3:38 9:53 4:07 10:21 07:40 06:21 6:10a 5:02p 09 Sat > 4:31 10:45 4:58 11:12 07:39 06:22 6:54a 6:09p 10 Sun N 5:24 11:37 5:50 12:03 07:38 06:23 7:33a 7:15p 11 Mon > 6:17 12:04 6:41 12:29 07:37 06:24 8:09a 8:19p 12 Tue > 7:10 12:58 7:34 1:22 07:36 06:25 8:43a 9:21p 13 Wed > 8:03 1:51 8:26 2:14 07:35 06:26 9:16a 10:21p

Dallas2013 A.M. P.M. SUN MOONJan-Feb Minor Major Minor Major Rises Sets Rises Sets25 Fri > 3:37 9:49 4:01 10:13 07:25 05:51 4:53p 6:06a 26 Sat > 4:22 10:34 4:46 10:58 07:25 05:52 5:49p 6:46a 27 Sun F 5:09 11:20 5:32 11:43 07:24 05:53 6:46p 7:23a 28 Mon > 5:57 ----- 6:20 12:08 07:24 05:54 7:43p 7:58a 29 Tue > 6:46 12:35 7:09 12:57 07:23 05:55 8:41p 8:32a 30 Wed 7:37 1:25 8:00 1:49 07:22 05:56 9:40p 9:05a 31 Thu 8:30 2:18 8:53 2:41 07:22 05:57 10:41p 9:40a 01 Fri 9:23 3:11 9:48 3:36 07:21 05:58 11:43p 10:17a 02 Sat 10:19 4:05 10:45 4:32 07:20 05:59 NoMoon 10:57a 03 Sun Q 11:15 5:01 11:42 5:28 07:20 06:00 12:48a 11:42a 04 Mon ----- 5:56 12:11 6:25 07:19 06:01 1:53a 12:33p 05 Tue 12:36 6:51 1:06 7:21 07:18 06:02 2:57a 1:30p 06 Wed 1:31 7:46 2:01 8:16 07:17 06:03 3:58a 2:32p 07 Thu 2:25 8:39 2:54 9:09 07:17 06:03 4:54a 3:37p 08 Fri > 3:18 9:32 3:46 10:01 07:16 06:04 5:45a 4:44p 09 Sat > 4:11 10:24 4:38 10:51 07:15 06:05 6:29a 5:51p 10 Sun N 5:03 11:16 5:29 11:42 07:14 06:06 7:10a 6:56p 11 Mon > 5:56 11:40 6:21 12:09 07:13 06:07 7:47a 7:58p 12 Tue > 6:49 12:37 7:13 1:01 07:12 06:08 8:22a 8:59p 13 Wed > 7:42 1:31 8:06 1:54 07:11 06:09 8:57a 9:58p

Smoked goose breast

*email LSON your favorite recipe to [email protected].

ACROSS1. Grouse hunters are

____ shooters 4. A trout 8. The wolf predator 9. A type of camp

fi replace11. An underwater

growth13. Used for hunting

fi sh at times14. A deer’s domain

marking16. Worn to keep peb-

bles out of shoes18. A Northern fl atfi sh20. A wood used in ar-

row shafts21. Stream fi shermen

do this25. Angler’s name for a

large perch27. Wild turkey sound29. Good item for the kit32. When lure gets

stuck on a log34. An insect or illness35. The archers’ ammo39. This boat can be

folded up

40. A game pathway41. Color worn by

hunter for safety42. Appendages on

turkey feet43. The dall is one

DOWN1. A type fl y lure

2. A burrow dweller 3. Loner is a term for

a very ___ gobbler 4. Term for fi sh that

spawn upstream 5. A name for the

chinook salmon 6. To analyze a track

for freshness 7. Should do this to

hunting routes10. Oil keeps gun parts

from getting _____11. Worn by stream

fi shermen12. Large on the muley15. Act of fi sh hitting

a bait16. A Florida hunter’s

prey17. A cover for small game

19. A very good walleye bait

22. To point at a target23. Good item to have

in a blind24. Brings a catch into

the boat25. A young gobbler26. A dinghy28. Old gobblers that

stay to themselves31. An action on a

repeating gun33. A type of deer drive

to hunters36. A good bear trap bait37. The female bear38. To treat a hide39. A good lure color to

attract fi sh



To advertise in this section, call Mike Hughs at (214) 361-2276 or email him at [email protected].

LONE STAR MARKET

January 24-27San Antonio Boat and Travel Trailer ShowThe Alamodome(512) 494-1128sanantonioboatshow.com

January 25Hallettsville Knights of ColumbusBig Buck Contest, Wild Game Supper and Outdoor ShowHallettsville Knights of Columbus Hall(361) 798-2311

January 25-27East Texas Outdoor ExpoMaude Cobb Activity Center, Longview(903) 237-4000easttexasoutdoorexpo.com

January 26Kayak Angler Tournament SeriesDecker Lake(512) 203-9849fi shkats.com

January 31-February 2Wild Sheep Foundation2013 Sheep ShowGrand Sierra Resort and Casino, Reno(307) 527-6261wildsheepfoundation.org

February 2Ducks UnlimitedMexia Dinner(254) 625-1111ducks.org

February 7Dallas Safari ClubYPG Happy HourDave and Busters(972) 980-9800biggame.org

Ducks UnlimitedTomball DinnerTomball VFW(713) 724-2639ducks.org

February 9Delta WaterfowlFlower Mound/Highland Village Dinner2380 FM 407(214) 929-1996deltawaterfowl.org

February 15-17Troutfest 2013Guadalupe river(512) 413-3301grtutroutfest.org

February 16-17Texas Gun and Knife ShowGillespie County Fairgrounds, Fredericksburg(830) 285-0575texasgunandknifeshow.com

February 21-24Austin RV ExpoAustin Convention Center(512) 404-4000austinrvexpo.com

February 23Dallas Woods and Waters Club34th Annual Banquet and FundraiserPlano Centre(214) 570-8700dwwcc.org

Kayak Angler Tournament SeriesLake Bastrop(512) 203-9849fi shkats.com

February 28Dallas Safari ClubMonthly MeetingRoyal Oaks Country Club(972) 980-9800biggame.org

DATEBOOK

Puzzle solution from Page 20

Tomball DinnerTomball VFW(713) 724-2639ducks.org



Documents

January 25, 2013 - Lone Star Outdoor News - Fishing & Hunting