The Hunt For Reds In October

Redfish action continues to strengthen as we head toward the opening of regular duck season this weekend. Winds have been cranking to near 30 knots with open bays shredded and off color. Shallow upper bays have been running uncomfortably clear through the winds that have deminished today ahead of an approaching cold front. Trout action has taken a back burner to blistering runs of slot and oversized Redfish along with Black Drum to 20". Matagorda Island lakes and back marsh have been holding a significant number of fish from the far back back to the outer lakes near deep water and open bays.

We will be back to a North wind pattern here shortly and probably through the weekend if predictions are correct. From one extreme to the other, that's Texas weather and Texas fishing. Now is the time to start keeping your eyes to the skies.

Youth Duck Hunting Weekend

The youth hunt over the weekend was a big success with the Anderson group kiddo's sporting full limits of puddlers.

Good luck in the outdoors and stay safe out there.

Capt. Kris Kelley
Castaway Lodge, Inc.
1-888-618-4868

 

Backwater Reds, Mid-Bay Trout

The fishing couldn't be any better. From the farthest reaches of the back marsh for Redfish to open bay shell reefs for Trout, it's all been going on strong here in October. The weather has been majestic with crisp mornings; a sunrise that's hard to put into words; great angling experiences for young and old; and, most experienced to least experienced. I would call it "the complete experience". For me, there isn't anything more satisfying than "hooking up" with guests that just don't get much time to fish.

Light winds much of the week were joined by medium low and low water with big falling tides later in the day. Redfish have been working extremely shallow and scattered along the edges of grass lines then falling out into swales and deeper pockets mid-day. I continue to see an encouraging number of Blue Crabs in the back marsh. I'm thinking the Whooping Cranes will be in much better shape come this Winter as there should be plenty to forage on. One thing missing, Black Drum seem to have pulled a big vanishing act this month after being so prevalent this summer. Calmer winds have led to solid Trout action mid bay with Capt. Doug running into solid concentrations over SAB shell reefs with live bait.

Talk about a mid-week cold fronts seems to have deminished with Southerly winds in the 10-15 knot range and gulf moisture building as we head toward next weekend. I think they're talking "our language", good luck and good fishing.

Capt. Kris Kelley
Castaway Lodge, Inc.
1-888-618-4868

Trout On Topwaters, Redfish On Low Water

From wadefishing with artificial lures along back lakes stretches of Matagorda Island to airboat redfishing in the back lakes, October has just been an incredible month. Capt. James fishing with Harland N. and guest wade fished with artificial lures to near limits on Trout catching and releasing an estimated 60 Trout along with half limits of Redfish. Topwaters over grass accounted for much of the early action with soft plastics worked over sand guts taking things to another level "mid-day". Capt. Doug reported solid schools of Redfish located in the back lakes as well. Their location in big pockets of clear water made approaching them pretty tough.

Calm winds, a big tide fall out, and a lot of clear/slick water in the back marsh leveled the playing field with the fish holding a lot of the cards the last few days. Limits to near limits including releases on some slightly oversized fish have been the result of patience, timing, and good old fashioned luck.

Winds are South and building ahead of a weak cold front on Wednesday. Tuesday is probably going to be a near slick-off if predictions are correct with the front approaching, but we can hope for some wind; a little bit of rising water levels; and a strong bite.

Lodge News

We welcomed our third International guests to the lodge last night as Ciaran C. stepped off a plane from Dublin, Ireland to fish with his brother Kevin and wife today. Welcoming guests with close ties to Ireland was fascinating insofar as we share the same heritage. I was fascinated to hear about the country of my origin. Among things I learned, the weather in Ireland is rainy, cold, and depressing much of the time; children pretty much live an "indoor" lifestyle due to the weather; fishing in streams or rivers for Trout is popular but primarily controlled by the elite along with numerous fishing clubs that control access. For the common citizen, fishing is pretty limited to lakes for Lake Trout or the Ocean. Both options seem to be suffering from over fishing and success is primarily poor. The average citizen cannot own a firearm unless there is a documented need and who knows what that means. Farmers can be licensed to own a shotgun, that's about it. Best travel month for tourists seems to be June when the sun actually appears and things warm up. Round trip airfare can be as little as $500 to $800. The country sounds beautiful and the people are reportedly friendly, welcoming, and proud of their homeland.

I had an immediate appreciation for being an American of Irish descent. Its been said often that we "don't appreciate what we have as Americans and we take things for granted". I would certainly fall into that category. When you learn about the day to day lives of people living in foreign countries and the limitations on their personal freedom relative to our own, it is somewhat astonishing how fortunate we are. So when we get a chance, I think we should walk outside and pause for a second breathing in the clean air of freedom. Then we should clinch it with both hands and don't ever let anyone take it, or anymore of it, from us.

Capt. Kris Kelley
Castaway Lodge, Inc.
1-888-618-4868

Cobalt Skies & Auburn Reds

Redfish have been holding tight to grass and working the edges when feeding. The back marsh lakes on Matagorda are in much better shape this Fall compared to last Fall. The ravages of the drought during the summer of 2009 changed the landscape last Fall. With abundant freshwater inflows this year, things are very much approaching "the familiar". Emergent grasses and regrowth is present in many of the back potholes and I'm seeing a lot of Crabs scooting around on the bottom. That's a big relief I can tell you, the health of the back marsh seems to have rebounded nicely. When you add the right ingredients, the fish will come.

We've had some minor fluctuations on water level with the latest fronts and winds from the E and ENE. This direction tends to "clear out" upper bays and Shoalwater and Dewberry Bays were emptied with large stretches of gin clear and fishless water. The back lakes being on the "semi windward" side held more in the realm of "off color" and the fish responded with solid action and an aggressive attitude. With some of the lakes not experienciing grass regrowth, even if fish are present you can pretty much rule out any action. I've seen this time and again after the lessons learned last Fall. During the Fall of 2009, hyper salinity had killed off a lot of grass in the lakes. I quickly learned "no grass, no fish". Even if fish were present they just wouldn't seem to feed. That was pretty much when I learned the gravity of the situation.

Redfish have been concentrated all the way to the dunes lately with them pushing closer to bay ingress/egress Sunday. A small water rise from Saturday to Sunday seemed to have pulled them feeding into the flow and moving closer to the open bays. Once I got a handle on where they had concentrated, it was lights out. Working broken potholes and mud pockets, small patches of emergent grasses, etc. has produced the best results with a variety of baits.

I hope you are getting out and enjoying some of this awesome weather, can you believe it, Fall is here! Best wishes in your travels and stay safe out there.

Capt. Kris Kelley
Castaway Lodge, Inc.
1-888-618-4868