Freeport Nov. 1st.

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karstopo
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Freeport Nov. 1st.

Post by karstopo »

The water was low, not crazy low, but low enough to concentrate some fish was the thought, this at 0930 when I launched. Wind was out of the north, reasonable for the time being, although it did not stay that way. After a shortish paddle, I staked out along on a broad channel with some fringing reef and commenced to fishing. Tide was turning or not moving much at this stage. A peddle powered kayaker came along and got within talking distance. He had been killing it on something with gold in it and shrimpy looking, this he told me. I had on a tan shrimpy looking borski slider, close enough was my assumption. He began to peddle off someplace else, just as I was catching my first redfish.

I caught several on the tan slider. They almost all were in the Louisiana keeper size range. Previously, I’ve lent out my kayak and every time I have it comes back without a measuring board. Screw it, I now have gone boardless, ruler-less, without a reliable measure, other than my abilty to estimate. But, that presents a problem with borderline fish. Err on the right side of the law say I. Yesterday, that might have cost me a redfish or two. I did keep one that turned out to be 21” when I got back home to clean it, whew.

If the first part of the trip was about redfish, the second part was about flounder, chasing flounder and the now very noticeable wind. I saw a flounder breaching in a little seam in the shell that a bit of water was moving. The tide was coming in. The wind was on the rise and getting more east in it. I had since switched to an olive redfish crack, with gold in it. The borski slider was a little beat up. Seems like I went through holy h*ll trying to position the kayak to get this flounder I saw breach. But, the target was only about 3’ wide at best and nearly completely protected by exposed reef. I dropped that redfish crack in there about six times before I got the thump.

This fish zoomed out into the deeper water and I thought did I make a mistake and hook a redfish? No way could a quality red be hidden in that tiny spot without me seeing it. It wasn’t a quality redfish, it was instead a quality flounder, 18” as it turned out. Did all the great floundery things like avoiding the net three or four times.

The rest of the late morning was spent in the search of the second flounder. I saw others breaching. I cast to them, I hooked them, none got to the net. The freaking wind I will blame. It was making everything infinitely more difficult, padddling, the stalk, the cast, line management, the hook set. I gave up at 1300. Freeport at the channel recorded winds around 15 knots, gusting to 20 knots or more. I wasn’t far from the channel. That’s just too much for this old guy.

I came home with a couple of fish, a slight sunburn, and a desire for another trip.
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shoffer
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Re: Freeport Nov. 1st.

Post by shoffer »

A stupendous report, Karstopo. If I had not seen on my trusty Windy app the forecasted beginnings of the reinforcing cold front, I would have considered a trip myself. If the wind is more than 12 sustained, I just don't feel the need to go out and fight it.
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karstopo
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Re: Freeport Nov. 1st.

Post by karstopo »

I had looked at the NOAA marine forecast and it stated 5-10 kts in the morning, 10-15 in the afternoon. I figured I could get in a few licks before the afternoon wind got too ridiculous and 10-15 wasn’t going to be the end of the world. The forecast speed and timing was off though, 15-20 isn’t 10-15 and 10:30 or 11am isn’t the afternoon. Such are wind predictions, in my experience. If I lined up the calm days to synchronize with the time available days, there would not be any fishing at all.
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Ron Mc
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Re: Freeport Nov. 1st.

Post by Ron Mc »

I haven't measured the last dozen fish I put on my stringer, at least not until I got curious.
When you're holding a thick fish, you can gauge their shoulders and tell they're well over lower slot.
Come to think of it, the last fish I can remember measuring was a 20" red 2 years ago. I know I throw back 15" trout - you can just look at them and tell when they're worth filleting.

Thanks for the report - good to hear and see you're on the water.

shoffer, for the water I like to drift-fish, 12 kt is right where I like it, and will launch at 16-18-kt if the wind isn't supposed to get worse. I know I've fly fished above 15-kt, but the fly rod is definitely choice in wind below 10 kt.
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Re: Freeport Nov. 1st.

Post by karstopo »

I put up with a lot yesterday. The wind got to be where it was about impossible to keep the stripped off line in the kayak, even when I hunkered and stripped way down low. The fish were all shallow, like < 1-2 feet shallow, but the fly line tended to scud along with the wind making a decent presentation indecently difficult. My shock cord tethered to the stake out stick was piano wire tight, tuned to high C. I was getting waves crashing over the sides in a spot with 100 yards of fetch.

For every doubling of the wind speed, there’s a corresponding quadrupling of the force exerted on the kayak. A 20 knot wind is 16 times more forceful than one at 5 knots. When it comes to the wind and wind forecasts, there’s a ton of very local factors at play and spots only miles apart can get substantial variations. I wouldn’t have dared to go to an open water spot with an iffy forecast or already forecast to be a marginal kind of wind day. Anyone that kayaks and relies on a wind forecast to be dead on accurate is looking for trouble.

Always plan a trip with the what ifs in mind and know one’s limitations. Fall and winter get a lot of kayakers, especially new kayakers, in serious trouble with their reliance or expectations for unassailable accuracy regarding weather/wind forecasts or apps.
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Re: Freeport Nov. 1st.

Post by Ron Mc »

in a condition like that, a sinking line would be superior - thinner, it cuts the wind better; then, it sinks below the surface film rather than sail in it.
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Re: Freeport Nov. 1st.

Post by Cityfisher »

Nice report! I was there myself yesterday. The forecast was for the wind to pick up around noon to 1ish. Seems like it started howling around 10 am I think. Fishing the same structure and probably same bay as you I was able to land a 16" flounder on dead shrimp under a popping cork and a small drum. Speaking of not measuring your fish. We had a friend with us that guessed his little trout and was an inch short and the game warden was waiting on us at sunset at the launch Saturday evening. I told him it looked small to me but he insisted on keeping it . Yep, he got a ticket!
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Re: Freeport Nov. 1st.

Post by karstopo »

As much as I have fished, I never see a game warden.

I really need to replace my measure board. I like redfish around 20”, wish it was 18” like in some other states, so for me, a just over 20” red is prime table fare. I have a lot of confidence in my ability to judge the length of fish down to about 1/2 inch, but there are a lot of 20 and 1/4 inch reds out there. I don’t generally keep trout or flounder until they hit 16” or so I think got those down without the measure board, but the redfish I like as close to 20” as I can get.

Ron, I do have a teeny line or two. I might have even had a reel with the line with me. I had three fly rod set ups all rigged with floating line. I fished this area a 1,000 times and just like the floating line. I used the ultra fast 7/8 weight g.Loomis short stix 95 percent of the trip. The other rods were a glass 6 weight and the 7/8 weight CGR. That last hour of fishing was see a flounder flip up on this shallow shelf and then try to mark it for a cast. I might have been better served taking the time to re rig, but I was in a bloodthirsty and battle mode and I was getting takes and it’s hard to disengage from the fight. At one point, I did notice my hook point was damaged by a shell strike and that might have cost me at least one fish. I had my hone and fixed the hook point. I had flounder follow the fly, they seemed to be a little slow to commit and I’d get a hit just as I moved the fly, sometimes with a very visible mud boil in spite of the wind and waves. Water was cool enough to remain somewhat clear at least in places.
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Ron Mc
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Re: Freeport Nov. 1st.

Post by Ron Mc »

kars, Teeny lines are excellent, especially in deep still water or fast current, but I was thinking about slime line - really neutral density line that gets just half-a-foot under the surface with a slow retrieve, and if you count down 15 seconds, you're still fishing 4' down. I've mentioned they're my go-to-lines at the coast. I'll use the floater in skinny grass, and the Teeny in fast deep tide current and channel slopes.
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Re: Freeport Nov. 1st.

Post by Cityfisher »

karstopo wrote:As much as I have fished, I never see a game warden.
After I don't know how many years of fishing this area that is the first time I ever saw a game warden there. He pulled up just as we were dragging the yaks onto the bank and that big ol full moon was coming up in the east. I told him that and he said he is there all the time. ???? loI Super nice guy. He thanked us for being courteous and honest after checking all our fishing licenses and fish. :D
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Re: Freeport Nov. 1st.

Post by mwatson71 »

karstopo wrote:As much as I have fished, I never see a game warden.

I really need to replace my measure board.
A friend and I were pulling out of GISP one day when the warden came up to us as we were putting paddles and gear into the SUV and asked how we did. We had each caught a couple of trout that were in the 16-17" range and still on the stringer in the water tied to the yaks. We told him we each caught a few and told him they were still tied to the yaks. He didn't ask for our licenses or to see the fish, said he was just curious and told us a few spots where he had heard some good catches were coming out of. We both had our licenses of course and our fish were legal. Maybe he could just sense that, I don't know. That was my second run in with a game warden and neither time resulted in a request for a license or to see the fish.

Instead of a measuring board, I have marked the sides of my yaks with Sharpie at 15, 20, 25 and 28" as the only fish that I keep need those measurements. The Waterloo Salinity is also marked at 15, 20, 25, and 28".
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Ron Mc
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Re: Freeport Nov. 1st.

Post by Ron Mc »

I have them marked on my boat with a yellow paint pen

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