Latest Catch Pics Thread

[T-Billy]

6 hours ago, Choporoz said:

Found some good ones this weekend

Nice fish. Your dog sure looks happy in that second pic.

[Swamp Girl]

3 hours ago, Team9nine said:

Pretty nasty out - temps dropping to the upper 40s with wind chills in the upper 30s, west wind 20+ mph gusting over 30, heavy cloud cover with light sprinkles every now and then - but the bass were chewing. Picked off 35, and the overall quality was above average for this location. It’s also the only lake I fish with water primrose, and a lot of the bass were hanging around the stuff. Here’s a few…

 

 

 

 

 

35. From the shore. In nasty weather. You da man.

[softwateronly]

First 5lb+ of the year.  Shallow mud flat on a cold and rainy afternoon.  The spro chad shad is getting mauled.  Love the ability to twitch hard without it blowing out, drives them crazy.

 

scott

 

 

[bulldog1935]

The plight of TX hill country rivers is population growth, compounded by our 3rd year of drought (only place that can flash flood and still be in drought).  Yesterday, Josh, Will and I had to drive 140 mi to find water, and we had a great trip, great exploring - even fish.  We explored the N. fork of the Llano, which I've never fished, and Josh said he's only made 3 trips this far over the last decade.  Since I came from the east, we drove separately, and met at the first crossing.  After the last two days flooding, we found chocolate water.   We fished the deep water here for 2 hours, all the gear worked great, but the fish weren't cooperating, compounded by N wind.  

Decided to take our exploration farther upriver, hoping to find less-turbid water - less chert in the run-off.  We loaded boats, drove 5 miles up a dirt road. crossed the river 5 times -- two of those on the wet flagstone - and found a wide spot in the flagstone where we could see the structure.  The sun was also breaking, and the fish turned on for us.  

This time it paid off.

My first cast, right after Josh said, "first fish gets a dollar"

Everyone caught fish here, we paddled as far as we could, and got out to explore farther.  A native cichlid here made Josh's day.  

With the long drive home, we were out of time and had to blast back at 1:30.  Josh didn't invite me until 7pm the night before, so I only had time to load - no time for provisions.  Good thing Josh brought IPAs and jalapeno-cheese sausage to share.
Great group and great time.  

A maiden voyage for my new truck. Got to use the 4WD, and the 10-sp transmission was a jewel climbing the divides on the interstate in cruise control.  

[AlabamaSpothunter]

9 hours ago, softwateronly said:

First 5lb+ of the year.  Shallow mud flat on a cold and rainy afternoon.  The spro chad shad is getting mauled.  Love the ability to twitch hard without it blowing out, drives them crazy.

 

scott

 

 

GIB ME CHAD SHAD PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Very nice fish, been trying to get a Chad Shad for a couple months, Bass Pro and a few other retailers had them but they sold out super fast.    

16 minutes ago, bulldog1935 said:

The plight of TX hill country rivers is population growth, compounded by our 3rd year of drought (only place that can flash flood and still be in drought).  Yesterday, Josh, Will and I had to drive 140 mi to find water, and we had a great trip, great exploring - even fish.  We explored the N. fork of the Llano, which I've never fished, and Josh said he's only made 3 trips this far over the last decade.  Since I came from the east, we drove separately, and met at the first crossing.  After the last two days flooding, we found chocolate water.   We fished the deep water here here for 2 hours, all the gear worked great, but the fish weren't cooperating, compounded by N wind.  

Decided to take our exploration farther upriver, hoping to find less-turbid water - less chert in the run-off.  We loaded boats, drove 5 miles up a dirt road. crossed the river 5 times -- two of those on the wet flagstone - and found a wide spot in the flagstone where we could see the structure.  The sun was also breaking, and the fish turned on for us.  

This time it paid off.

My first cast, right after Josh said, "first fish gets a dollar"

Everyone caught fish here, we paddled as far as we could, and got out to explore farther.  A native cichlid here made Josh's day.  

With the long drive home, we were out of time and had to blast back at 1:30.  Josh didn't invite me until 7pm the night before, so I only had time to load - no time for provisions.  Good thing Josh brought IPAs and jalapeno-cheese sausage to share.
Great group and great time.  

A maiden voyage for my new truck. Got to use the 4WD, and the 10-sp transmission was a jewel climbing the divides on the interstate in cruise control.  

Great report, and fish.   Having fishing buddies is priceless.  

[bulldog1935]

20 hours ago, AlabamaSpothunter said:

Great report, and fish.   Having fishing buddies is priceless.  

Thanks friend.  I know Josh was aiming his camera at me.  He owns TKF forum and hosts the redfish rodeo every fall.  But he has 5-m-o twins at home - after he posts his photos, maybe I'll add a couple.  

[Swamp Girl]

@bulldog1935: What a great trip report! I loved every detail and especially driving across the stream. I worry about Texas's drought, shared by Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska. At least states to the west and northwest got some relief. Here's hoping you do too soon. 

[bulldog1935]

@ol'crickety I've been on my soapbox for 20 years about desalination for public water supply - needed 20 years ago.  

In the last census, 20% of the US population growth was in the TX hill country.  

All our rivers are sourced right here, and sprawl of Austin and San Antonio is right into those watersheds.  We get golf courses, a sea of rooftops, and fertilizer run-off at the expense of our rivers.  

[TnRiver46]

1 hour ago, bulldog1935 said:

The plight of TX hill country rivers is population growth, compounded by our 3rd year of drought (only place that can flash flood and still be in drought).  Yesterday, Josh, Will and I had to drive 140 mi to find water, and we had a great trip, great exploring - even fish.  We explored the N. fork of the Llano, which I've never fished, and Josh said he's only made 3 trips this far over the last decade.  Since I came from the east, we drove separately, and met at the first crossing.  After the last two days flooding, we found chocolate water.   We fished the deep water here here for 2 hours, all the gear worked great, but the fish weren't cooperating, compounded by N wind.  

Decided to take our exploration farther upriver, hoping to find less-turbid water - less chert in the run-off.  We loaded boats, drove 5 miles up a dirt road. crossed the river 5 times -- two of those on the wet flagstone - and found a wide spot in the flagstone where we could see the structure.  The sun was also breaking, and the fish turned on for us.  

This time it paid off.

My first cast, right after Josh said, "first fish gets a dollar"

Everyone caught fish here, we paddled as far as we could, and got out to explore farther.  A native cichlid here made Josh's day.  

With the long drive home, we were out of time and had to blast back at 1:30.  Josh didn't invite me until 7pm the night before, so I only had time to load - no time for provisions.  Good thing Josh brought IPAs and jalapeno-cheese sausage to share.
Great group and great time.  

A maiden voyage for my new truck. Got to use the 4WD, and the 10-sp transmission was a jewel climbing the divides on the interstate in cruise control.  

Cool trip, love those fast kayaks 

[bulldog1935]

3 hours ago, TnRiver46 said:

Cool trip, love those fast kayaks 

The 10' Redfish was my daughter's boat - now she's grown and off to med school, so it's my river boat. A lot easier to haul and spin in rivers compared to my 16' coast tarpon.  It also tracks well, is fast even with my weight, low and wind-slippery.  

I solved windcock in coast wind for her by adding a skeg.  The skeg was a champ yesterday, letting me drift the wind without the boat nosing into the wind.  

This was years ago on our local no-motors reservoir, Boerne City Lake.  

[Swamp Girl]

@bulldog1935, you clearly know and love boats. I used to write a column for Canoe & Kayak magazine called, "Rides," where paddlers would explain why they loved a particular boat.

 

I've never heard the term, "wind-slippery," but I love it. My Bell Rockstar solo canoe is like a semi on the prairie, with the wind battering its high sides. On windy days, my paddle is in my hands more than a rod. 

 

However, I don't want to switch to a sit-on-top kayak because my Rockstar is light enough for my 66-year old muscles to still carry. I suppose a kayak with wheels would work, but how would I lift it onto the car? I suppose a trailer might work, but would it survive the logging roads I use? Everything is a compromise. 

 

[softwateronly]

4 hours ago, AlabamaSpothunter said:

GIB ME CHAD SHAD PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Very nice fish, been trying to get a Chad Shad for a couple months, Bass Pro and a few other retailers had them but they sold out super fast.    

Great report, and fish.   Having fishing buddies is priceless.  

Ordered mine from ALF last fall, got it late in the winter.  Really glad I picked it up.  It's like a giant jerk bait if you want it to be, can dance in place practically, nice to sit over the break/cover and twitch it.  A couple slurps, but most have been tagged.  Hardware is really nice.

 

scott

 

 

[PhishLI]

I had a few hours to fish yesterday if I could make it down there by 5am, but my last-minute bait-tweaking OCD made me late yet again. By the time I waded through a creek, up a hill, then through some woods towards the lake it was 5:30, so the rising sun was already illuminating the clouds above the eastern shoreline. The path I chose brought me to a spot where I often like to start, and as I got close enough to sort of see the shoreline, I was disappointed to find a huge flock of geese parked right there, but that wasn't what it was after all. Huge flotillas of fluorescent green algae were set up against the western shoreline from one end to the other. I tried wading through it out to cleaner water, but it was thick as cotton candy right to the bottom, so my game plan needed to change completely.

 

The crazy heatwave we had here 10 days ago quickly gave way back to our typical chilly April overnights, but it left behind consequences. One was this awful algae bloom, and the other was that males had already begun making nests, just as I'd suspected after all the short strikers here during my previous session. However, all the beds I found yesterday were abandoned. It's simply too cold in the shallows now, enough that I wished I'd worn my Long Johns. The bass will be back on beds soon enough, and hopefully the algae will desist long enough for the weeds to take hold. Last year a few typically very weedy lakes farther out east never sprouted as much as a chute where the algae bloom took hold early on.

 

Timing is always important, but with rollercoaster springtime temps it's even more touchy than usual. I couldn't get much going yesterday during the time I had, but I'll take what I can get.

[Woody B]

2 day report.  I'm going to change my name to Catfish (just kidding mods).  I went Saturday afternoon from 3 until 8.   I caught 11 bass, as well as a 18.88 pound Blue Catfish.  I've caught 5 catfish this year bass fishing.   4 have been over 10 pounds.  I don't think that's trophy size cats, but they're fun, and they're a handful on bass tackle.   None of the bass were big enough to measure or weigh.    I was thick into the cats for a while.  A couple followed my lures to the boat.  I also hooked a couple that twisted and got off.  One's I've caught on treble hook baits are usually skin hooked.  I guess the bass size trebles have trouble penetrating their hard mouths.   I suspect being skin hooked helps them twist off.   Right after one of the cats twisted off a 13 inch Spot hit my lure.   I lost a fish and caught a fish on the same cast.  

I went from 8 to 3 today.  No cats.  I caught 16 bass, a crappie and a perch.  Biggest bass was a Largemouth I'd guess to be around 4 lbs.  I've got 14 inch, 18 inch and 22 inch marks on my boat.  This one was a little over 18.  

[Team9nine]

Colder temps, less wind, and a few spits of sleet. I figured the bite would slow, but still found over a dozen up shallow like yesterday, and mostly pretty aggressive. Dark Sleeper continued to do most of the work again, like yesterday.

 

 

 

 

 

[bulldog1935]

9 hours ago, bulldog1935 said:

The plight of TX hill country rivers is population growth, compounded by our 3rd year of drought (only place that can flash flood and still be in drought).  Yesterday, Josh, Will and I had to drive 140 mi to find water, and we had a great trip, great exploring - even fish.  We explored the N. fork of the Llano, which I've never fished, and Josh said he's only made 3 trips this far over the last decade.  Since I came from the east, we drove separately, and met at the first crossing.  After the last two days flooding, we found chocolate water.   We fished the deep water here here for 2 hours, all the gear worked great, but the fish weren't cooperating, compounded by N wind.  

Decided to take our exploration farther upriver, hoping to find less-turbid water - less chert in the run-off.  We loaded boats, drove 5 miles up a dirt road. crossed the river 5 times -- two of those on the wet flagstone - and found a wide spot in the flagstone where we could see the structure.  The sun was also breaking, and the fish turned on for us.  

This time it paid off.

My first cast, right after Josh said, "first fish gets a dollar"

Everyone caught fish here, we paddled as far as we could, and got out to explore farther.  A native cichlid here made Josh's day.  

With the long drive home, we were out of time and had to blast back at 1:30.  Josh didn't invite me until 7pm the night before, so I only had time to load - no time for provisions.  Good thing Josh brought IPAs and jalapeno-cheese sausage to share.
Great group and great time.  

A maiden voyage for my new truck. Got to use the 4WD, and the 10-sp transmission was a jewel climbing the divides on the interstate in cruise control.  

Thanks again guys - I'm back - Josh posted these 3 photos of me

fighting the day's bass

lipping the day's bass

showing off the day's bass

If you note the back of my boat, that's my Meiho 7080 tackle box I bought because it exactly fits this little sternwell and has two add-on rod holders.  

I fished 2 of the 3 kayak rods I took out, but the only one that mattered was my glass ML Smith Super Strike/ Plugger combo, fishing the pink/brown 4-g inline keel spinner.  

 

[Susky River Rat]

I can’t believe I had to resize this ?? I pulled it out of the water on the hook set.

[A-Jay]

Fished in the snow this morning.

Something I haven't done in  awhile.

Paid off.

A-Jay

 

 

[TnRiver46]

2 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

Fished in the snow this morning.

Something I haven't done in  awhile.

Paid off.

A-Jay

 

 

Monsters!!! I’ve always loved fishing in the snow, it’s a lot easier for me because the water doesn’t freeze 

[Jmurphy87]

Well I caught a couple today, had 2.5 hours to go fishing. Second cast caught my first pike of the day on a rapala slim 4, poor thing chocked it. He swam off though, next fish and the best one of the day bested me at the bank. Only had the rear treble in the very edge of the inside of the mouth, gave a dance at the bank unhooked himself and then threw itself onto the bank. I about went in backside first trying to grab it, but he laughed and ran back into the water lol. Took a while to catch my second tiny bass on a demon dt-4. I then caught 2 more pike on the dt-4 and a Rocco. The best bass of the day was probably 2.5-3lbs. That’s fishing though and crank baits, you win some and you lose some but it’s still a blast.

[Drawdown]

Got to mess around on a pond today after Sunday lunch. Tough bite after yesterday’s cooldown, though there were plenty of fish on beds.

Tied on several different baits, both the bass and warmouth came on a Zoom Tiny Brush Hog on a black 1/16th oz jig head.

 

[Bankbeater]

This is a pic from Saturday.  I caught this one on a swim jig before the wind gusts started.

[Cbump]

21 hours ago, bulldog1935 said:

Thanks friend.  I know Josh was aiming his camera at me.  He owns TKF forum and hosts the redfish rodeo every fall.  But he has 5-m-o twins at home - after he posts his photos, maybe I'll add a couple.  

Used to be my favorite forum. Last time I checked the traffic was very low. I need to get back on there more. 
Great fishing report and pictures. 

[bulldog1935]

@Cbump where TKF really shines is inshore and offshore kayak fishing reports (offshore picks up in summer doldrums), and a killer rigging archive that goes back almost 20 years.  

Freshwater fishing reports there are pretty lean.  

[Cbump]

5 minutes ago, bulldog1935 said:

@Cbump where TKF really shines is inshore and offshore kayak fishing reports (offshore picks up in summer doldrums), and a killer rigging archive that goes back almost 20 years.  

Freshwater fishing reports there are pretty lean.  

Back when we had our hobies and I was big into kayak fishing, I would look at the inshore and btb forums all day from work and drool. I never did much kayak fishing in Texas but we used to take them every summer to Florida and fish the lagoons and offshore. Tkf and Pensacola fishing forum kayak sections were my go to.