Went to the Houston Fishing Show today!

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Dandydon
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Went to the Houston Fishing Show today!

Post by Dandydon »

No, I didn't shop the many kayak booths down at George Brown Convention Center, but Shoffer persuaded me to attend the show. Well worth the $15 entry fee because we got to see 3 informative fishing seminars from the best local fishing guides. Show continues this week.

All the pro guides agreed that April fishing is generally slow as we transition to Summer patterns. They opined that the big Feb. Freeze didn't kill that many gamefish in the Galveston Bay system. But the huge freshwater run-offs caused by our recent floods (especially Hurricane Harvey) purged our bays of most Speckled Trout which escaped to the Gulf or down the coast to salty water.
So we've had to patiently wait for the Trout to return. My own Trout catches have been way below average, causing us to target Redfish. I prefer catching big specks.
Guides Steve Hillman, Jim West, Scott Null, James Plaag & Mickey Eastman all said they're happy to see their customers release some legal Trout. I've been fishing with them all and respect their opinions. We laughed it up after their seminars.
They are embarrassed by the fishermen who lazily soak croaker and keep limits of big specks. Maybe it's a good idea to release some mature fish to spawn rather than pack our freezers.
The good news is that our warming waters are generating bigger baitfish and shrimp. The gamefish are now scattered, but the guides predict better fishing once these cold fronts slack off.
And news is that Trinity Bay is salting up again after years of depressing low salinity. Shoffer and I are planning a fishing trip for next week. Watch for our reports.
The equipment booths were plentiful at the Fishing Show. Shoffer and I bought quality Castaway carbon fiber rods for half-price, and I scored a nice-looking Barbaleto Hot Rod slow- sinker lure. Those Hot Rods and Barbaleto Léle lures have perfect rattles & actions, highly recommended by the guides.
Let's go GET SOME and liven up this board. Yessir. ImageImage

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shoffer
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Re: Went to the Houston Fishing Show today!

Post by shoffer »

We timed it right. No real crowds to speak of, most of the guides we know and/or have used were speaking about our home waters, some good deals on gear (5 bags of Down South Lures for 20 dollars with every color imaginable) and I met some folks I regularly watch on Youtube (Rex Del Ray) and spoke to the vendors who work on my boat (Danielle at Kevins' Boat & Motor Repair) and Chet Marampoodi the GM of the Boat Yard along with Mr. Koshy (the owner of the Boat Yard) and his son JT. Really good folks all around. If it was super crowded like on a weekend, I might be singing a different tune, but it was perfect yesterday. I got to speak to Scott Null for a good long time (an old staple on this board under the Handle "Let's Go" but who retired from being a HPD homicide detective to a full-time fishing guide and now the main draw for the Bite Me Saltwater Podcast).
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Ron Mc
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Re: Went to the Houston Fishing Show today!

Post by Ron Mc »

excellent report and good scores.
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Dandydon
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Re: Went to the Houston Fishing Show today!

Post by Dandydon »

The pro fishing guides were optimistic that our local fishing will improve, but were also sad to see our fishery in slow decline since the Big Freezes of 1983 and 1989.

Our gamefish legal limits have steadily declined since those years, due to natural disasters like floods and hurricanes. But there's more.

The increasing angler population, more boats, better gear, and instantaneous communication has hurt the fishing, too.

Capt. Mickey Eastman ended his talk wondering why so many fishermen strive to display their caught limits of gamefish all over Facebook, Instagram, etc. That's not why I fish.

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Kayak Kid
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Re: Went to the Houston Fishing Show today!

Post by Kayak Kid »

Very first time I've not attended the fishing show. So, I really appreciate the reports.

Miss seeing all my fishing buds at the show.
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Went to the Houston Fishing Show today!

Post by OldTownYakBoi »

Dandydon wrote:The pro fishing guides were optimistic that our local fishing will improve, but were also sad to see our fishery in slow decline since the Big Freezes of 1983 and 1989.

Our gamefish legal limits have steadily declined since those years, due to natural disasters like floods and hurricanes. But there's more.

The increasing angler population, more boats, better gear, and instantaneous communication has hurt the fishing, too.

Capt. Mickey Eastman ended his talk wondering why so many fishermen strive to display their caught limits of gamefish all over Facebook, Instagram, etc. That's not why I fish.

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I’d rather see a single healthy fish pic of a fish that was just pulled out of water, gills all flared and fired up, than see a pile of slimy, warped, gamefish in a cooler any day. Not saying I don’t have some of those pics, and it’s not always possible to get a good pic, but who doesn’t love seeing a nice healthy fish (Even if you will keep it)especially don’t like seeing all the trout being hauled off after the freeze we had. But there’s nothing I can do or say to those individuals following the law, it’s their decision and I will not judge. I just don’t think a lot of anglers understand the amount of pressure on these fish. The freeze really changed my mindset, especially seeing that I’ve only caught a handful of trout in a bunch of trips I’ve taken.

I’m curious to see if the spring tides and warming water will bring a fresh batch of specks back into our bays, our current supply is concerning.


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Re: Went to the Houston Fishing Show today!

Post by OldTownYakBoi »

Speaking on lures I didn’t make the fishing show but picked up a batch with summer beach fishing in mind

Image


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Re: Went to the Houston Fishing Show today!

Post by Dandydon »

Yak Boi, we both agree that full-limit big-dead-speck photos may be legal and ugly at the same time. The Hobie Navy is releasing a few Speckled Trout until they re-populate post-freeze.

And Capt. Shoffer has agreed to give me any he doesn't want to keep... Ha ha. Seniority has its advantages.

As for those lures you scored, I vote big thumbs-up on that black/chartreuse Spook Jr. and the white/red Catch 20...

But thumbs down on the Ratt-L-Traps because I think their internal rattles are a bit too LOUD...

The pro guides at the Fishing Show even touched on that topic when I held up my new Borboleto HOT ROD lure.

They said the Borboleto lure rattles are subtle & perfectly tuned to attract gamefish. But also said the Rat-L-trap rattles often scare fish off.

Now go catch a bunch and get back to us with your results! The Hobie Navy is scheduled to go night-fishing tomorrow night (Monday). Maybe Sea Isle? Come join us if you can.

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Re: Went to the Houston Fishing Show today!

Post by mwatson71 »

So I have a question about the freeze I am hoping someone can answer. Will an angler keeping trout in the upper coast have any effect on the fish populations in the middle and lower regions? I ask because the last couple of outings I have been on there has been no shortages of either reds or trout. At first we were releasing all fish just to be safe, but I kept fish the last two outings because honestly there seemed to be no shortage. And based on the reports, it doesn’t seem like our system suffered much. But if releasing up here will help the populations down south, I’d be happy to CPR. But if it makes no difference, I’ll probably keep a few for dinner.
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Re: Went to the Houston Fishing Show today!

Post by OldTownYakBoi »

mwatson71 wrote:So I have a question about the freeze I am hoping someone can answer. Will an angler keeping trout in the upper coast have any effect on the fish populations in the middle and lower regions? I ask because the last couple of outings I have been on there has been no shortages of either reds or trout. At first we were releasing all fish just to be safe, but I kept fish the last two outings because honestly there seemed to be no shortage. And based on the reports, it doesn’t seem like our system suffered much. But if releasing up here will help the populations down south, I’d be happy to CPR. But if it makes no difference, I’ll probably keep a few for dinner.
Watson that is a good question, And I really couldn’t tell you. It’s just that from what I’ve seen with my 2 eyes during and after the freeze that I decided to not keep trout. If it was me I’d just try to keep Reds and Flounder until we know a little more about our speck population. I could be completely wrong about the speck population but I haven’t heard or seen anything that makes me think otherwise


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Re: Went to the Houston Fishing Show today!

Post by OldTownYakBoi »

Dandydon wrote:Yak Boi, we both agree that full-limit big-dead-speck photos may be legal and ugly at the same time. The Hobie Navy is releasing a few Speckled Trout until they re-populate post-freeze.

And Capt. Shoffer has agreed to give me any he doesn't want to keep... Ha ha. Seniority has its advantages.

As for those lures you scored, I vote big thumbs-up on that black/chartreuse Spook Jr. and the white/red Catch 20... Image

But thumbs down on the Ratt-L-Traps because I think their internal rattles are a bit too LOUD... Image

The pro guides at the Fishing Show even touched on that topic when I held up my new Borboleto HOT ROD lure.

They said the Borboleto lure rattles are subtle & perfectly tuned to attract gamefish. But also said the Rat-L-trap rattles often scare fish off.

Now go catch a bunch and get back to us with your results! The Hobie Navy is scheduled to go night-fishing tomorrow night (Monday). Maybe Sea Isle? Come join us if you can.

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Haha you may be right but I’ve got to try them out. I don’t plan on throwing them in the flats, and I figured in the chaotic, crashing surf that the extra vibration would be an advantage if anything. I’ll have to get back to you on that, beach fishing weather is coming soon. As for a trip Monday night I was eyeing that myself, I’d like to take a trip that noght


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Dandydon
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Re: Went to the Houston Fishing Show today!

Post by Dandydon »

My invitation was to all TKF members, but you (Yak Boi) get special credit for showing up last trip we had at Sea Isle. We missed each other because I separated from the Navy (after catching 8 slot Redfish) and took a long Man-Nap.

Yak Boi, can you send me a TKF Private Message with your email address? These public conversations can drag on forever.

Hope to see you tomorrow night...

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Re: Went to the Houston Fishing Show today!

Post by OldTownYakBoi »

Dandydon wrote:My invitation was to all TKF members, but you (Yak Boi) get special credit for showing up last trip we had at Sea Isle. We missed each other because I separated from the Navy (after catching 8 slot Redfish) and took a long Man-Nap.

Yak Boi, can you send me a TKF Private Message with your email address? These public conversations can drag on forever.

Hope to see you tomorrow night... Image

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I sent you a PM


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