Panfish on the San Marcos

Having never fished the San Marcos river and with the current conditions on the Guadalupe river I set out yesterday morning in an attempt to find a place to launch and catch a few fish on the fly rod. After a Google search there appeared to be a campground around Martindale that had a launch for a fee so this is where I set my destionation for.
After paying the five dollars and putting the kayak in the water I proceeded to go down stream tossing a popper and catching a few scattered fish here and there. After a little break I decided to go upriver and check it out. Once I passes the 1979 bridge the water got shallow enough that I tied the kayak off to my arm and proceeded to wade and fish while continuing to go upstream. The results were the same as I made my way to a low water bridge before the Martindale Dam and decided to turn around and fish my way back. Changed the fly out from the popper to a Panfish fly that JW at Dragonfly Angler Flies put together for me for the rivers that I fish and it proved to produce right away. Not only did I start catching fish right away but the size of the fish started to get larger. I didn't catch a bass on this trip but as I explore different sections of this beautiful river i'm sure I will. With it's greenish tinted water and the coolness of it on a hot summer day I can say that it is a nice hidden treasure.

Fishing with the Ladies

I was approached by my oldest daughter in a text message asking if I would take her fishing over the weekend in the kayak. The last time she fished with me was over fifteen years ago due to the fact that she didn't like to go to the restroom on the bank. My youngest daughter decided she would like to come along as well so a trip was made to pick up an extra kayak and plans were made.
I woke them up Sunday morning and we loaded up all of the gear as well as a cooler full of water and gatorade to help out with the extremely hot weather. After a quick stop to get a liscense for the oldest we were soon launching the kayaks on the Guadalupe river. I had them rigged up with some ultra light spinning reels with small spinnerbaits and I was throwing my 4wt Matthews fly rod and Solitude reel with a box full of Dragonfly Angler flies.
We fished for a few hours with very little to show for it. The temperature was around 109 degrees and the bite was extremely slow. With the fishing slow it was time to cool off with a little swim. The advantage of this area is that the springs from the Comal river dump cold water into the Guad at an intersection where they meet and makes for a cool resting place.
It was great to get to spend time with my daughters today, which was also my mom's birthday. I'm sure she was looking down on us smiling today.

Thanks girls

Galveston oh' Galveston

Not a fly fishing trip, but a fishing trip is a fishing trip.
Made it out to Galveston on Saturday with my youngest brother and one of my best friends. I was taking my wife and youngest daughter to my brother's house to visit with him and his wife for the weekend since they would both be going back to school on Monday. My wife would be returning to teach and my daughter would be beginning her Junior year of College (send money).
Before we left Friday afternoon Chris called and said to bring a rod and any salt gear that I had in case we had a chance to fish. It was decided that night to give it a go so I called Ron and asked him if he was in and we all headed out at 4am for the hour and a half drive.
This was the first time for me to fish in the surf. How they talked me into getting in the water (sharks live there, i've seen them on shark week) i'll never know. Not only that but they did a good job humming the theme to Jaws as i'm chest deep in water.
The sunrise was beautiful and the sea was pretty calm as we waded out ready to cast our topwater lures. We chose to use artificials today and watched as most fish were caught on live bait around us. We were able to catch a few fish but it really didn't matter as it was all about the company.

Fishing the Guadalupe

Was able to get out and finally test out the new Matthews Fly Rod on Saturday. I was wanting to try a different section of the river but even with the water as low as it is and the temperature being well over 100 degrees it amazed me how many people were camping and playing in the river. With this section being full I headed to the area where I fish most of the time. Got there and launched the Coosa into a river with it's dark green tinted water. Visibility was only a few feet down which played into my favor making the fish less spooked.
I added a Solitude 3/4 reel to the fly rod and loaded it with some Rio 4wt trout WF line to match the 4wt rod. The rod cast great and I was slinging the fly all over the place. Did good this trip, only lost two flies.
The Solitude reel worked great. The drag system on it does what it's supposed to do and is smooth.I also like the offset mount, it made it more comfortable to hold.
Didn't catch many large fish but I caught a lot of fish, had a lot of fun and saw a lot of big fish cruising around that would probably bite later in the day or early in the morning.
Most fish were caught on a wooly bugger and clouser, that were stipped in at a medium pace.
Don't know about you but i'm ready for some cooler weather.

First Bass from on the new rod and reel

Redfish in the Big Easy

Headed out Friday morning for what would be a 10 hour drive from my home in Texas to my cousin's home in Bay St Louis, Mississippi. Went through some heavy rain showers which was a complete reversal of anything that you would see back home this year. I wasn't even sure if the wiper blades would hold up after the fifty plus day's of 100 degree heat, fortunately they worked.
The way the trip was planned there would only be one chance to get to the marsh in Louisiana and try to catch my first redfish on a fly. Took along the 7wt TFO BVK loaded with 8wt WF line, sixteen pound redfish leader and sixteen pound tippet. Picked up a few shrimp immitation streamers, spoon, and a few topwaters to try out.

Spent the day Saturday visiting with family and attending my Uncle's 80th surprise birthday party.
Woke up Sunday and made the hour drive to New Orleans to pick up my friend Perry for a day of fishing. We made it out to Myrtle Grove by 10:30 in the morning and proceded to take the boat off the lift and load it up to head out. The water was pretty muddy from all of the rain with about 8in of clarity.

Started out throwing a shrimp immitation streamer and had a really hard time getting any distance out of it. Being new i'm really not sure if the setup was correct for tossing this heavier lure. After no action for awhile I went ahead and put on a popper that gets some action when out bass fishing. Was able to throw normal with this smaller fly. Any suggestions on what you think that I might be doing wrong would be appreciated.
The wind picked up with all of the storms around us and we paid close attention to the lightning by moving around to different areas whenever a storm got close. I have a picture of a water tornado that could be seen in the distance but not sure if you will be able to make it out. Pretty cool to see though.
Put the fly rod down and picked up the baitcaster with a jig head and croaker imitation soft bodied lure on it. Didn't take long to get my first keeper in the boat.

Not to long after that one Perry hooked into a nice 27in red and the fight was on.

We struggled to find fish all day, but with an hour of daylight left the tenth redfish went into the cooler. I ended the day with a nice 27 1/2 inch red. Lost a limit during the day and had a huge red fight me for a good five minutes then come off when the hook straightened out. That was a first for me.

Eight of our ten fish limit

My two largest on the day

Want to thank my cousin for putting me up for a few days and thanks to Perry for getting me out on the water. Had a great trip and will do it again next year.