What a day. Started early, arriving at the ramp around 5:30. Two motorized yaks were already launching and a few empty trailers in the parking lot. The dead trees were everywhere. Only one lane of the two-lane ramp was available. I waited for a couple more boats to launch then dropped in.
Finally making my way up the 2-mile jaunt on the ICW to the entrance of Jones Lakes.
Several barges parked on the bank. Some had their containers pressed up on the bank and had their tugs in gear holding them in positon. I saw this one time before, last year. It can be treacherous passing behind one of those with their prop wash stirring up the water.
I’m minding my own business and see a barge actually running up the ICW slowly. I cut across and “park” in front of one of the other barges that is pressed on the bank to let the guy go by. He is going slow…maybe 2.5 mph. As he gets alongside me, he starts yelling at me and motioning for me to get on down the ICW, so I did. It turns out that he wanted to park in the spot where I was sitting, trying to get out of his way. I just can’t win with these barges. All I want to do is stay as far away from them as possible. Do they monitor a certain VHF channel?
Finally made it through the floating trees and into the Jones Lake complex. Tide was high.
Hit a couple of my favorite spots with no luck. High tide means that the fish should be way back. I then went way back. A place I had once poked my head into, but never ventured too deep. Well today I went DEEP. 1.5 miles deep to be exact. A very narrow passageway that no boat would ever fit through. It was about 2.5’ deep, but narrow. As I made my way through the meandering channel, I made a cast here and there. So many twists and turns so it was hard to make a long cast. Then the first of several small lakes appeared before me. I saw a big splash. I made my cast. I hooked a big Redfish. After a short fight, it spit the hook. This turned out to be the story of my day. I lost five fish today. Three of them were certainly big Redfish. Bad luck? Dull hook? Rusty? Other than a tuna trip, I haven’t been fishing in 6 weeks. I don’t know. After the 5th spit hook, I tied on a new jighead. Never had another bite.
At one point, I saw the back of a Redfish come out of the water 10-15’ away from the yak. I made a quick backhand toss and he took the paddletail. Short fight and he spit it.
Another time I got stuck behind a brushy point and let my line go slack trying to maneuver the yak. Another lost fish.
I did manage one 16” Black Drum. Even he spit the hook just as he went into the net.
My chartplotter map card slot is broken so I use Google Maps for navigation. I was 1.5 miles deep into this place and couldn’t figure out how to get out. I did drop 2 pins on my way in…not enough. For a while, I thought about having to spend the night out there. Wondering how long my iPhone battery would last. I was scared. It’s really hard to use Google Maps on your phone when the sun is out and your hands are wet. I spent 30 minutes going in a complete circle. I finally made it out by going short distances, stopping and looking at the map to see where I moved from and to. Luckily the ground was relatively hard packed and I got out of the yak and drug it while watching the map to see what direction I was going. Lesson learned!
I have a big 23aH battery. I’m going to look for a wiring system that will let me charge my phone from it.
14 miles traveled (a new record) on the water and one small black drum to show for it. Maybe I should stick to tuna? I got my personal best 140# Bluefin a couple weeks ago.
Dave
Got going and was ready to take the obligatory morning photo when I realized I left my phone in the truck. Back to the ramp.Jones Lakes 8-Jun-2024
- Music Man
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- Location: Missouri City Lightning Nomad, Kraken 13.5, Trident Ultra 4.3
Re: Jones Lakes 8-Jun-2024
Thanks for the report. I'm anxious to get on the water, but am still nursing the Mrs. after her surgery.
This is what I use for charging on the water:https://nocqua.com/product/dual-port-usb-adapter-2/
I have it attached to a Pelican case with two of their 20Ah batteries. Use this to power my depth finder as well.
Nathan
This is what I use for charging on the water:https://nocqua.com/product/dual-port-usb-adapter-2/
I have it attached to a Pelican case with two of their 20Ah batteries. Use this to power my depth finder as well.
Nathan
Re: Jones Lakes 8-Jun-2024
Tow boats should be on channel 69.
- Ron Mc
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- Location: downtown Bulverde, Texas
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Re: Jones Lakes 8-Jun-2024
sorry, Channel 69 is Non Commercial (us), along with 68 and 71.
Tow boats should be on a Commercial channel
One thing that's kind of a pain, shipyards and construction are frequently on our Non-Commercial channels, when they should be using a Commercial channel.
Tow boats should be on a Commercial channel
One thing that's kind of a pain, shipyards and construction are frequently on our Non-Commercial channels, when they should be using a Commercial channel.
Last edited by Ron Mc on Mon Jun 10, 2024 11:14 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Jones Lakes 8-Jun-2024
Channel 16 is the international hailing channel for commercial ships. It is the emergency channel and all commercial ships monitor it. Channel 16 is your go to channel... In some places, like around a port or say the locks in Matagorda, people use channel 14 so the emergency channel stays clear. Channel 9 is the recreational boaters hailing channel, but in practice, I rarely hear anyone on it. 68/69 are recreational channels that have occasional traffic. If you are out with your buddies and you all carry vhf radios, these are the channels you would use to keep in touch.
Re: Jones Lakes 8-Jun-2024
Thanks. I found a small portable battery pack that has been sitting unused in a draw for years. I'm going to carry it with me as it will fully charge my phone twice.Music Man wrote: ↑Sun Jun 09, 2024 7:02 am Thanks for the report. I'm anxious to get on the water, but am still nursing the Mrs. after her surgery.
This is what I use for charging on the water:https://nocqua.com/product/dual-port-usb-adapter-2/
I have it attached to a Pelican case with two of their 20Ah batteries. Use this to power my depth finder as well.
Nathan
Dave