AP to Port A (03/02,03/05)

[Kitsune]

The redfish have been up in skinny water sorta waiting for bait to come by. Several big reds hit my topwater on pure blind casting… ( no real sign other than my hope). They were sitting in the grass beds in-between the sand, in groups of 2-3s. Spoons… gold spoons. They chased them like they haven’t seen an injured fish since last fall. Both days I went from 9am-1pm. Clearwater, low crowds, and no duck hunters…a great time to be out there.

I did run into a trot-line on the north side of 361. It was marked with tall white poles with a flag attached ( I thought at first they were trail markers). I have not seen trot-lines marked this way (buoys typically) and it ran a long distance. The hooks had a number of large drum and reds on them along with plenty of hardheads. Trying to wade around two hooked hardheads was more interesting than one would think. The flags on the poles had a first and last name with a date. It didn’t say anything about a study or anything. I talked with a local GW and he wasn’t sure either, he was going to check around. I should have taken a picture but I’m notorious for not wanting to stop fishing. I will take plenty of photos and videos from now on of anything I see.

Nonetheless, I was wondering if anyone came across this or has seen it? I don’t know, maybe a different way of doing trot-lines. Not going to lie, seeing massive drum and reds try to escape the line was a little sad. I waded away from it as soon as I could.

[Neumie]

The trot line should have been marked with buoys and TPWD Trotline Tag (which may or may not have been been on it). Seems like they attempted to be within the law since it had contact info.

Glad you found some aggressive reds.

[Kitsune]

There were no marking for TPWD that I saw and now that I think about it, someone could easily mistaken the white poles for channel markers. Next time I’ll take a picture. Hopefully I’ll be out there chasing the reds next week.

[SWFinatic]

Trot lines are illegal in brackish or salt water in Texas. Report it to a game warden.

[Kitsune]

Trot lines are illegal in brackish or salt water in Texas. Report it to a game warden.

Definitely questionable on how it is constructed, but I do not think illegal in saltwater. Game Warden is aware, if anything is done about it is another situation.

https://tpwd.texas.gov/regulations/outd ... s-for-fish

[SWFinatic]

I didn’t read the link but I know of someone who received a citation for this and Ive also seen a GW write a citation on Lone Star Law for this. A friend of mine who fished a lot on the Brazos river with limb and trot lines was fishing with us in AP last summer. We saw a GW at the boat ramp and he asked the GW about trot lines since he didn’t believe me and they confirmed to him it is not legal. I believe it is against the law based on my experiences.

If they were legal the bays would be full of them. Ive only been fishing Rockport/AP area since late 90’s but I’ve never seen a trot line in the bay. Not one.

[TexasJim]

Saltwater trotlines are legal, with a few geographical restrictions, one of which is Goose Island, and South, down the Rockport shoreline. Not legal on the Gulf shore. This is all in the TPWD Annual booklet. Maximum of 30 hooks. I have and occasionally use a "Sail Line", a Saltwater trotline with a sail on one end, and the other end on shore. A special license is required, $5.00 for each 100 feet. When there's a strong North wind, lots of guys bring out their sail lines and fish on the south side of the JFK Causeway in Corpus. Many GW's aren't very familiar with these. Interesting way to fish, and read your favorite book, sitting in a beach chair. Twelve leaders and hooks with finger mullet can be a chore. TexasJim

[Kitsune]

I didn’t read the link but I know of someone who received a citation for this and Ive also seen a GW write a citation on Lone Star Law for this. A friend of mine who fished a lot on the Brazos river with limb and trot lines was fishing with us in AP last summer. We saw a GW at the boat ramp and he asked the GW about trot lines since he didn’t believe me and they confirmed to him it is not legal. I believe it is against the law based on my experiences.

If they were legal the bays would be full of them. Ive only been fishing Rockport/AP area since late 90’s but I’ve never seen a trot line in the bay. Not one.

I have come across several in my years of fishing the Texas coast. There was one behind Packery channel for a long time. I sat there and watched the guys taking the fish off the hooks. Nonetheless, this one didn’t seem constructed like those and so I questioned it. The GW I spoke with never mentioned anything about it being illegal.

[Neumie]

I didn’t read the link but I know of someone who received a citation for this and Ive also seen a GW write a citation on Lone Star Law for this. A friend of mine who fished a lot on the Brazos river with limb and trot lines was fishing with us in AP last summer. We saw a GW at the boat ramp and he asked the GW about trot lines since he didn’t believe me and they confirmed to him it is not legal. I believe it is against the law based on my experiences.

If they were legal the bays would be full of them. Ive only been fishing Rockport/AP area since late 90’s but I’ve never seen a trot line in the bay. Not one.

Trotlines are legal in saltwater except as noted on TPWD website. Angler's are only allowed 1.

[SWFinatic]

I didn’t read the link but I know of someone who received a citation for this and Ive also seen a GW write a citation on Lone Star Law for this. A friend of mine who fished a lot on the Brazos river with limb and trot lines was fishing with us in AP last summer. We saw a GW at the boat ramp and he asked the GW about trot lines since he didn’t believe me and they confirmed to him it is not legal. I believe it is against the law based on my experiences.

If they were legal the bays would be full of them. Ive only been fishing Rockport/AP area since late 90’s but I’ve never seen a trot line in the bay. Not one.

Trotlines are legal in saltwater except as noted on TPWD website. Angler's are only allowed 1.

You might be right. I know I’ve heard what those who enforce Texas wildlife laws say about it so I’m going along with what those law enforcement officers say. I will say this information is several years old maybe there has been changes since.

[Kitsune]

This is what surprised me the most. Trot-lines are not common and someone who places one should know the ends and outs This person should be knowledgeable and not just someone who picked up a combo rod/reel and accidentally broke a law. It seems clear that it needs to be marked correctly with clear instructions. This is what prompted me to show concern and wonder if it was a study or something new. However, these poles looked like channel markers and not something a knowledgeable researcher would do…but I’ve been surprised by researchers before. This is why I called the GW and also why I should have taken a photo.

[Kitsune]

I went back and the poles were removed and the trot-line gone. I also got skunked…I guess no good deed goes unpunished.