Author: Guide

The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Department Dive Team is one of the best group of divers in the state. It is a unique organization made up of 32 members, all of whom have full-time jobs which they leave when a crisis develops. The head of the Dive Team, or the Team Dive Master, is Sergeant Robert Schuster. Schuster has led the team for the last nine years.

The Dive Team is strictly a volunteer group and all the members supply their own diving equipment and pay their own expenses. They are not county employees. They are also all from this area and were trained to dive on Lake Conroe.

“It’s important that the divers are experienced with Lake Conroe because it’s such a dark, murky lake,” says Schuster. “If you’re used to diving in the Caribbean, you won’t be able to dive Lake Conroe. We have to crawl along the bottom and feel out in front in the silt and mud for what we’re looking for in a body of water that has eight to ten inches visibility.”

When Schuster took on the job of Team Dive Master, there was no team. He was the only diver for three years until gradually he started taking on friends and neighbors who could dive Lake Conroe and had other jobs but could still be on call. Now, Schuster has five certified police officers, four paramedics and even six women as part of his team. Joy Ogden, the Directory of Montgomery County Emergency Medical Services, is one of Schuster’s divers.

The Montgomery County Dive Team has been called by every surrounding county to assist in drowning accidents or to look for evidence thrown into a body of water, such as guns, knives, stolen property, cars and boats. The Dive Team has even been called by Harris County, which has its own dive team, because of the skill of the Montgomery County Dive Team in finding what it’s looking for.

The Dive Team has pulled 17 bodies out of Lake Conroe, all of which were drowning victims. According to Schuster, when the Dive Team gets to the scene of a drowning accident, there is little hope that the victim will be found alive. “The body is brain dead in four to five minutes.”

When asked about the gruesome aspects of the job, Schuster replies “it’s a dirty job but someone’s got to do it. What really gets you is when the victim is a child.” In addition to dealing with the limited visibility, you need a strong stomach to do this job. Schuster adds “it’s the same thing you have to deal with as an Emergency Medical Technician”.

In the winter of ’91, an inmate of the Texas Department of Corrections escaped from prison and shot a store clerk and a female customer in San Jacinto County. He then threw the gun in the Trinity River and flew to Florida where he was apprehended. Schuster was called to find the gun and his team got to work. They found the gun in the murky waters of the Trinity River in three hours.

On the day after Christmas in 1990, the Dive Team was called to Patton Village, on the east side of Montgomery County, to find seven empty safes in a private lake. The safes were needed by the City of Mont Belvieu and Montgomery County to make a case against the convenience store robbers who drove into the stores and dragged the safes out. All seven safes were recovered from the snake- and alligator-infested lake.

When Schuster is not diving for Montgomery County or any other county, he repairs ambulances at his specialty shop. It is the only ambulance repair shop in the state and he gets ambulances from Mont Belvieu, Cypress Creek, Montgomery County, Trinity County, Harris County Emergency Corps, and from as far away as Hall County near Amarillo. He gives up many an evening or weekend to repair the these trucks because, he says, when someone needs a truck repaired, it’s only a matter of time before there is a crisis.

Two of Schuster’s employees at the shop are also divers and Schuster says that these two divers are two that he can usually count on to dive when he gets the call because they are almost always available.

Schuster, who is a deputy sheriff, patrols the waters of Lake Conroe much like the Marine Division (see “The Boat Police”) in hopes of preventing a drowning. If you should spot him in a county boat on the lake, say a little prayer. It’s a dirty job, but someone’s got to do it. – Lake Mohave

Well, if you’re looking for some help to answer this question, I have two words for you: BILL CANNAN.

Bill Cannan has been a guide on Lake Conroe and Lake Livingston for over four years. He hails from Conroe and now resides on the north end of Lake Livingston. He drives a Nitro 2000 and, in addition to being this area’s #1 fishing guide, he has proven a worthy competitor in several national tournament circuits.

Last year he fished the Southern Bass and Angler’s Choice Super Team circuits and did quite well. This year, he entered the Central Invitational BASS Tournament Division and recently fished the Arkansas Invitational on Nov. 2-4. He will be fishing the next BASS tournament in February. Cannan is looking forward to the coming year when he’ll be fishing two other trails, Redman and Angler’s Choice Pro-Am. Cannan hopes to qualify for the BassMasters’s Top 100 through the BASS Central Division and he feels very good about his chances.

Cannan’s sponsors include the Family Boating Center, Tracker Marine, Nitro Boats, Fenwick and Mainstream Marketing, which includes Stanley, Top Brass, Sure Life, Bass Assassin and Bandit. He welcomes new sponsorship, both inside and outside the fishing industry.

Cannan is also a proficient hunter. He likes to hunt deer and duck. He has proven to be skilled at sal*****er fishing, too.

I asked Bill what he thought was the most important quality for a fisherman, and he replied, “I think staying in good physical condition is important for tournament fishermen. Being in good physical condition keeps your mind sharp and helps with your mental concentration. It also helps you endure adverse weather conditions, especially the heat.”

Cannan graduated from Sam Houston State University in May of this year with a degree in Agriculture Business. While he was in college, however, he was still guiding full-time. Now that he has completed his studies, he does have more time to fish.

Cannan knows where the fish are. For example, he says the white bass move upstream to spawn in the feeder creeks between January and April. If you have a small aluminum boat or a canoe and can make it up the creek, you’re in for some great fishing.

Between September and December (right now), he likes to take customers to the north end creeks of the lake for the best black bass fishing, he says.

But enough trade secrets. Cannan is available for guide trips on Lake Conroe, Lake Livingston and Lake Raven, which is located at Huntsville State Park, and he’s always got a good story. – Lake Mohave

Eisenhower State Park lies on the southernmost tip of Lake Texoma near Denison. The park was named for the former President of the United States who hailed from Denison. The park offers excellent boating, fishing and camping opportunities.

Lake Texoma ranks the third largest reservoir in the state of Texas with a total area of 100,000 square acres. The lake is so large that even the state of Texas can’t hold it all and must share some of its shoreline with the state of Oklahoma. Only one-third of the famous lake is within the Texas boundaries.

Facilities for boating at the park include two boat ramps, boat parking and a full service marina. Sailing and water skiing are popular activities on the lake.

The fishing on Lake Texoma is excellent. This lake is known for its BIG stripers and BIG catfish. It is also a popular bass fishing lake. Four fishing piers (one lighted) and a fish cleaning shelter with water and electricity can be found at the park. A fish cleaning table with water available is located at one of the boat ramps.

Campsites at the park can accommodate up to eight people and are furnished with a picnic table, a fire ring and a BBQ grill. Restrooms are available nearby, most with hot showers. Campsites range from primitive (with water only) to back-in sites with water and electricity to pull-through sites with water, electricity and sewage connections for RVs. Shelters are also available.

Other activities include swimming in a protected cove of the lake, where swimmers can find a sandy beach, and hiking along a total of 8.2 miles of trails through the beautiful rolling hills of North Texas.

Nature Adventures is a program the park conducts for youth aged 9 through 12. Topics explored between July 10-13 will be the world of insects, the Native American culture, the world of bats and fish identification.

Fishermen can fill their bait and tackle needs near the park at Dave’s Ski & Tackle, located two miles south of Denison Dam. Dave Parkey also has boat storage, archery supplies and groceries. Call Dave at (903) 465-6110.

Pappy’s Bait & Grocery is also located near the park. Lee Marriott serves home cooking at the deli and caters mostly to boat fishermen. Lee can be reached at (903) 465-6769.

The Tackle Box on FM 120 in Pottsboro comes highly recommended for all types of fishing tackle. Steve and Susan also do rod and reel repair and can help you with gas, shad tanks, electronics and propane. Call (903) 786-9010.

Fishermen may want to hire a fishing guide for this lake. The fishing on Lake Texoma is unlike any other lake in the country. Charlie Coder is a striper guide in Denison and can be reached at (903) 463-5035. Another guide in Denison is Dave Beeson of Diamond Dave’s Guide Service. Call (903) 465-5518 for Dave. D.R. “Don” Swink is a striper guide on the south end of Lake Texoma. He has a 28-foot Pontoon and can take up to 8 people. He can be reached at (214) 465-8678 or by the handle “Donald Duck” on CB Channel 13.

The park is located five miles northwest of Denison. Take Highway 75A to FM 1310 and travel 1.8 miles to Park Road 20.
– Lake Mohave

Hydrilla is an exotic plant that multiplies to a point where it can choke a lake, killing other native plants and whole fish populations. It also becomes a nuisance to boaters, water-skiers and swimmers. Developers despise it because it can make otherwise ideal lakefront property unappealing to potential buyers. Eventually, if allowed to grow unchecked, it can kill a lake.

Different measures have been taken to rid Texas lakes of this predator. Shortly after its impoundment, Lake Conroe was invaded by Hydrilla. The aggressive plant restricted boating activities when allowed to grow without restraint. It also reduced water quality and prevented the development of desirable native plant communities. In an effort to provide relief from the overabundance of Hydrilla, Texas A & M University conducted a research project that included the stocking of 270,000 plant-eating grass carp. The Texas Parks &Wildlife Department all too often seeks to solve this problem with total eradication of the nuisance plant with the use of grass carp, which eat the problem plant AND all the vegetation in the lake, or chemical methods, which have proven to cause MUCH more harm than good (causing birth defects, liver disease, cancerous tumors, etc.).

So what’s to be done? Grass carp have been described as “the least acceptable method of non-chemical control,” but there are other methods of non-chemical control, one of which is the use of a Hydrilla Harvester.

The Hydrilla Harvester
Recently, Governor George Bush, an angler of some repute, intervened to postpone the application of chemicals to kill Hydrilla in Lake Bastrop. Bush arranged for the Lower Colorado River Authority to borrow a Hydrilla Harvester from the Tennessee Valley Authority.

Ray Scott, founder of Bass Anglers Sportsman Society, told the Texas B.A.S.S. Federation, “It’s a state-of-the-art machine and costs $150,000-but the TVA will loan it to us for the cost of transportation and the operator.”

Mark Rose general manager of the LCRA, is anxiously awaiting the test on Lake Bastrop, scheduled for June 10-11. If the harvester proves inefficient, Rose says he will have to use the herbicide Sonar to rid Lake Bastrop of the unwanted Hydrilla. Sonar is a pesticide that has received very negative attention when used on other lakes. It has been linked to birth defects, cancerous brain tumors, and various other ailments, in addition to massive fish kills.

This machine reportedly can cut one acre of Hydrilla per hour to a depth of five to six feet. It cuts the vegetation, squeezes the water from it, shreds it, then puts the shredded vegetation back in the water. The harvester does not hurt the fish population either, according to the Department of Natural Resources in Minnesota, where the harvester has been used for years.

The demonstration at Lake Bastrop is not scheduled until June 10 – 11, but Texas officials are already sold on the idea. Dr. Larry McKinney, the Senior Director for Aquatic Resources at the TP&WD, is already considering purchasing a harvester for testing as a partial control of noxious aquatic vegetation. He and Phil Durocher, the Director of TP&WD’s Inland Fisheries Division, plan to discuss purchase of the machine with the Guadalupe-Blanco and Lower Colorado River Authorities. Several Texas Conservation societies have pledged to help in the purchase also.

The harvesters have been around since about 1902, according to Pat McCarty of Texas Black Bass Unlimited. They were created from a need to knock down weeds so that clean ice could be cut from frozen lakes. These massive machines have evolved considerably in the last several decades. By efficiently cutting and removing Aquatic vegetation, harvesting offers an environmentally sound, cost effective and practical solution to the control of excessive plant growth.

Harvesters have been used extensively in the Great Lakes
region and in the northeast, with some very positive results. Mr. B Rendan of Woodbridge, Virginia, is very happy with the harvester his community purchased. “Harvesting is selective for fish management – it leaves habitat available for fish.”

Mr. D. Heise of LaPorte, Tennessee, says, “The quality of fishing has improved [on City Lake since we started using the harvester], and the fishing areas are more accessible now.”

Mr. J. Wardlaw of Dewey Lake in Dewagiac, Michigan, has been using the Hydrilla Harvester for years. He comments, “We have bigger fish of all types now because of reduced cover.”

These harvesters are presently sold by an organization called D & D Products, Inc., located in Wisconsin. John R. Dauffenbach, founder of D & D, began developing equipment to battle water quality problems in the 1950’s. D & D is the oldest manufacturer of aquatic plant harvesters in the world and boasts a customer list that includes the whole of the United States and 40 countries worldwide. A full range of sizes are available to suit every application. The machines have a cutting width of up to 10 feet and weigh up to 14,000 lbs.

The harvester that Dr. McKinney proposes to buy will be somewhat smaller than the machine borrowed from Tennessee for Lake Bastrop. “If we make a purchase, says McKinney, “we’ll need one that can handle bumping into stumps and … other situations….It’s likely the TP&WD will use some of its current vegetation crews as operators.”

Despite the support already in motion for the purchase, McKinney still wants to show some caution. “I want to try a harvester for a year or so at a few smaller state park lakes, and the river authorities can use it where they want. I want to try cutting some ‘lanes’ through grassy areas and study the results.”
McKinney plans to study the effects of the harvester for a year or two.
– Lake Mohave

Mike Hood has built quite a reputation in Houston as the man to see about a boat propeller. He is well known to both sal*****er and freshwater fishermen and boaters.

Mike has been repairing boat propellers for 30 years. He opened Mike Hood’s Marine Propeller Service, located in Houston near Hobby Airport, in 1971. Here he can service the sal*****er boaters from the Galveston area and the freshwater boaters from Lakes Clear Lake, Fayette County, Conroe and Livingston. In fact, through boat shows and word-of-mouth advertising he has attracted customers from all around the country.

In the late 1970’s, Mike tried to bring his famous boat service a little bit closer to the North Houston/Conroe area by opening a second shop in Spring. The timing couldn’t have been worse, he says, and the energy crisis and the general recession that followed forced him to close his doors. “People didn’t have time or the money to enjoy themselves then. It was a hard time for all of us.”

Nineteen-eighty found the Hoods, Mike, his wife Pat and their son, Michael, living on Lake Conroe. They lived near Highway 830 for 14 years until last year when they moved to the Hobby Airport area. All three would brave the Houston traffic every day to go to work at their Telephone Road store.

Mike and his staff of 12 mechanics, salespeople and service technicians provide complete propeller repair, sales and service. They sell and service outboard, inboard and outdrive props in aluminum, bronze and stainless steel. They are a factory authorized dealer and repair station for Volvo, Mercury Marine and OMC Corporation boat propellers. They also sell and service Alumacraft, Tracker and OMC Corporation’s Starcraft and Monarch boats under factory authorization.

The shop also does aluminum welding and repair of aluminum boats and lower units. They straighten shafts on inboard and outboard motors, rudders and struts.

Mike is a distributor of Michigan Wheel, Power Tech and Sierra engine parts. He formed his own distributing company three years ago called Marine Parts Unlimited. Sales Manager John Yager was very instrumental in directing the creation of this company. His wife, Pat, is the President of this company, which is located at the recently purchased property next door. This distributorship does wholesale business only.

Mike helped create the National Marine Propellers Association two years ago. This association was formed to try to improve the quality of boat propeller repair by providing repair certification. A boater in need of prop repair should always look for this certification before dealing with a prop repairperson. Mike currently serves on the Board of Directors of this group.

Mike is also President of the Boating Trades Association of Metropolitan Houston. This group was formed in 1950 and puts on three boat shows in the Houston area each year: the Summer Boat Show held at the George R. Brown Convention Center, the Watergate Boat Show held in Galveston Bay and the January Boat Show held at the Astrohall/Astroarena, which is by far the largest. Representatives of the BTAMH can be found in Austin lobbying for boating issues.

Ken Lovell, the Executive Director of this organization, describes the group: “Our goal is to promote the boating industry in the Houston area. We’re always concerned with safe boating issues along with legislative and regulatory issues that affect our industry.”
I met Mike and Pat at Houston’s January Boat Show. They both were very busy and full of information. I think the show will prove to be a great success for them. According to Pat, “Boat shows are our best form of advertisement.”

Looking back on ‘94, Mike says it was a very good year. “In 1994, I really saw the economy take a turn for the better. And, unfortunately, it has been so bad for so long.”
As for 1995, Mike foresees a great year. “People are happier this year and want to start enjoying their lives. I can see only good things happening for the boating and fishing industries, and our shop in particular.”
– Lake Mohave

Mexico’s newest fishing lake is now open and reporting catches of 100 to 300 bass per day, bass ranging from two to eight pounds.

Located in the Mexican state of Sinaloa east of the city of Los Mochis and one a half hours drive east of El Fuerte, Lake Huites is a deep and fairly clear mountain lake spanning approximately 18 to 20 miles in length. The lake was formed by the conjunction of the Chinipas and Fuertes Rivers.

The lake was stocked with a fast-growing and aggressive strain of Florida hybrid black bass three years ago. The lake was protected to allow the 80,000 bass fingerlings to attain adult size.

Ron Speed, Jr., opened Lake Huites in March and will be managing it as a catch-and-release bass lake. He closed the lake in May for the rainy season and will reopen in October.

This is the “Mystery Lake” of Mexico you’ve been hearing about. Several of Speed’s clients have caught lunkers over eight pounds. He believes eight pounders will be a common catch in 1998 and ten pounders likely in 1999.

“The most important thing that has happened at Huites, and this is a first for the entire country of Mexico, is that commercial netting has been prohibited on the lake,” says Speed. “This is the first pure sport fishing lake in Mexico….They have seen what fishing tourism can do for them and they want to keep it.”

A fishing lodge is under construction for anglers in the village of Techobampo on the shores of Lake Huites. When it opens in the fall, it will accommodate 12 anglers and by 1998 it will be enlarged to house 24 persons. In addition to the best bass fishing on the planet, the area has to offer spectacular bird hunting and Copper Canyon expeditions.

Lake Huites covers about 15 thousand acres and is loaded with brush and cover. Rock shelves and visible brush in abundance hold the bait fish and provide hiding spots for bass.

Set deep in the Sierra Madre Mountain Range, the lake is surrounded by beautiful steep canyons and the view of the Sierra Madres topping over 7,000 feet in elevation is breathtaking. The steep canyons open into quiet bays and coves that offer anglers a variety of fishing options.

Temperatures in this area are tolerable in the fall, winter, and spring, but the summers bring the rainy season. Speed closed for the summer this year and he may close in early May next year to avoid the rains.
Johnny Cotton, a Dallas-area angler, made three trips to Huites between March and May and has already booked two more for the fall. He queries, “What bass fisherman would not enjoy catching and releasing more than a hundred fish a day, most of them weighing three to five pounds?”

The nearby town of El Fuerte is only 90 kilometers from the international airport in Los Mochis. Villa Del Pescador is located in El Fuerte and offers accommodations for 12. This lodge has a fine reputation for providing guests with the best in bass fishing, bird hunting, and Copper Canyon tours. Copper Canyon is one of the more spectacular wonders Mexico has to offer and is located very near the lodge.

Villa Del Pescador offers good food in a relaxed atmosphere. Quaint cobblestone streets provide numerous photo opportunities such as the gardens of the town square, a 100-year old cathedral, and warm smiles of residents of El Fuerte.

This is the part of Mexico you’ve got to see. Book your reservations early for fall!

www.bassadventures.com – Lake Mohave

Kidfish events have had a great impact on urban youth in our state since it began holding its events in July of 1994. The program is designed to give all children the opportunity to participate in the sport of fishing. It is of vital importance to the program’s sponsors to gain a renewed interest in the outdoors among today’s youth.

Jody Jackson of Austin is the director of Kidfish, which has been in operation less than a year. It is a program sponsored by the Share-A-Lunker Foundation, Parks and Wildlife Foundation of Texas and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

Kidfish is a children’s fishing program open to children 16 and younger. Participants are asked to collect sponsorships from friends, relatives and neighbors to win a variety of awards and prizes.

To date, eight Kidfish events have been held in Austin, Round Rock, Cedar Park, San Marcos, Pearland, Lampasas, College Station and Corpus Christi. Since October 1994, Kidfish has stocked about 16,500 legal, catchable-size catfish and rainbow trout, says Jackson. Over 7,000 people have attended Kidfish events since its beginning, including 4,000 children. It is estimated that 30% of those children had never fished before and caught their first fish at the Kidfish event. Some of these kids are exposed to fishing only through Kidfish.

The Corpus Christi event, held on Jan. 28, drew a crowd of 2,500, including 1,000 children who attended the Kidfish seminar during the event.

Twenty-five Kidfish events will be held in the Houston area of Texas during a six week period from April 1 through May 15, 1995. The Chevy First Team Dealers are underwriting the events with a contribution of $130,000.

The weekend of April 1 and 2 will see Kidfish events at seven sites in Houston and surrounding counties. Kidfish will be held at one site on April 8 in the Galveston/Texas City area, three sites on April 15 in the Freeport/Bay City area and four sites on April 23 and 24 in the area west of Houston near Rosenberg and Sealy. Sunday, April 30, the events will move to the area northeast of Houston near Livingston and Cleveland where there are four sites. Moving a little further west to Huntsville and Conroe, the events will be held at two sites on Saturday, May 6, and two sites on Sunday, May 7, in the Brenham/Hempstead area. Saturday, May 13, Kidfish will hold events at two sites near Bellville and the Kidfish Classic is tentatively cheduled to be held June 3 at Sheldon Pond in east Houston.

Twenty thousand catfish ranging from one to seven pounds will be stocked in area ponds for these events. All the equipment needed, including rods, reels, bait and tackle, will be supplied by the sponsors and volunteers will be on hand to help the kids and their parents fish.

Over one million registration forms will be distributed for the events.

Five children from each of the 25 events will be invited to attend the Chevy First Team – Kidfish Classic on June 10. The five will include the top fund-raiser, the child who catches the largest fish and three specially drawn children from each event. At the Classic, the child who catches the largest fish will receive a $1000 savings bond and that child’s school will
receive $5000 worth of computer equipment courtesy of the Chevy First Team Dealers. All the parents of the Kidfish Classic participants will be invited to enter a drawing for a one-year lease of a Chevy truck.

Every participant of the events will receive a T-shirt and a participation ribbon. Additional prizes will be awarded to the top five fund-raisers and to the child who catches the largest fish by length. Contestants who raise $15 or more will receive a Kidfish bass trophy.

A three station 15-minute Kidfish educational course will be held at each event.

Net income from all Kidfish events will benefit the Community Fishing Program of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

The goal of Kidfish is to reach more than 1 million Texas children with Kidfish information and introduce 30,000 new youngsters to the outdoors and the sport of fishing. Kidfish is designed to introduce youngsters to the outdoors and the sport of fishing while raising funds for a variety of programs, including youth outdoor education, conservation, stocking and community fishing, Jackson says. The long-range goal is to one day establish a community fishing program and Kidfish event in every interested Texas city.

One sponsor of Kidfish is the Share-A-Lunker Program. This Program is a subsidiary of the Parks and Wildlife Foundation of Texas and its purpose is to raise funds for the projects of the Foundation. Phil Durocher is the director of the TPWD inland fisheries unit and director of the Share-A-Lunker Program. “For the last ten years or so,” he says, “we have become increasingly concerned with where our constituency is coming from.” He told me of the growing apathy among the younger generations for the outdoors and cites as a reason for this lack of concern the growing cities and urban lifestyles of the state. “Some of these kids have no idea how it feels to reel in a fish.”

Kidfish has been designed to build an appeal for the outdoors among children who don’t have the opportunity to fish. It is a program that has really caught on in urban areas and, hopefully, will help build a love for the Great Outdoors among today’s youth. Durocher says, “if we want to build a new generation of anglers and conservationists, we’re going to have to go them. That’s what Kidfish is about….”

Durocher adds, “it is exciting because most of the effort is being funded by private sources. In these times of tight state budgets, it’s critical that these types of partnerships be formed. This is about people helping themselves, their communities and their state build a bright future for the outdoors.”

Volunteers are needed for all the Kidfish events. Contact Jody Jeackson with questions or for more information at: (512) 918-9497, or for information about the Houston events, contact your local Chevy dealer.

Another way you can help is to sponsor a young angler in these or any other Kidfish events. Let’s help fishing in Texas be as popular in generations to come as it is today!
– Lake Mohave

A multi-talented guy like Pat McCarty is the kind of guy you ‘d be lucky to meet in your lifetime. A tournament angler for 20 to 25 years, Pat is also one of the best fishing guides East Texas has to offer and the publisher of the best fishing and boating publication the state of Texas has to offer. Today, Pat is bringing Texas bass fishing to the World Wide Web in his resolve to keep up with the changing media.

The Texas Sportsguide has grown from a local publication to a statewide circulation of 20,000 in the five short years McCarty has owned it. In 1995, with the growing popularity of the Internet, the Texas Sportsguide began publication on the World Wide Web and expanded to worldwide circulation.

McCarty began his illustrious fishing career when he became involved with B.A.S.S. tournaments held on Toledo Bend Reservoir, Sam Rayburn Reservoir and Lake Livingston 25 years ago. He fished B.A.S.S. for five years and then dropped out of tournament fishing to pursue a successful career in construction in Houston. But the passion to fish brought him back to fishing local tournaments on Lake Conroe where he lives with his wife, Paulette, and daughter, Kelly, in Shadow Bay where he can fish off his back porch in Weir’s Creek every day.

The fishing bug had such a hold on McCarty that he pursued Angler’s Choice Team Circuit titles in the neighboring states of Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana. “I love tournament fishing for the satisfaction I get from competing against other top tournament bass anglers,” he says. “In the Angler’s Choice Pro-Am Division, I get to compete against top national touring pros like David Wharton, Harold Allen, Lyndell Martin and Tommy Martin.” McCarty is a tough competitor, too. He had four top 10 finishes this year in the Angler’s Choice tournaments and was a 12th place qualifier for the Super Team Classic.

McCarty is sponsored by Boots Follmar Marine, Astro Boats, Mercury Motors, Quantum Tackle, Motorguide Trollmotors, Castaway Rods and Lowrance Electronics.

He has been a licensed guide on the East Texas lakes of Lake Conroe, Lake Livingston, Gibbons Creek, Lake Richland-Chambers and Lake Sam Rayburn for 11 years. He is most interested in guiding for black bass, but he also will guide for white bass, crappie and occasionally catfish. He owns Weir’s Creek Guide Service where he advertises “Tournament Tune-ups”. Indeed, thanks to his work as a tournament angler, he is able to read the lakes quite well. McCarty drives a ‘96 Astro Stealth 20DC with a 200HP fuel-injected Mercury outboard and Lowrance electronics.

When McCarty is not guiding or tournament fishing, he publishes the Texas Sportsguide which now has a circulation of over 20,000 in its print version and is, as of this year, on the Internet, giving it a worldwide circulation. The print version of The Texas Sportsguide is distributed to all of the lake areas it covers, which includes Lake Conroe, Lake Livingston, Lake Richland-Chambers, Lake Sam Rayburn, Toledo Bend, Falcon Lake, Gibbons Creek and the Gulf Coast. It is also distributed to individual subscribers throughout the United States.

The Texas Sportsguide is the best publication to have along on a fishing trip, to help plan a fishing trip or to keep informed of environmental issues such
as aquatic vegetation or boating legislation. Some of the best names in East Texas fishing, such as Bill Cannan, Jim Binns and Captain Bill Pustejovsky contribute fishing stories and tips to the magazine monthly. McCarty himself is a professional photographer and the publication is renowned for its excellent photos.

It’s also a great place to advertise your boating accessories, restaurants, hotels or real estate, because East Texas anglers use all of the above.

The Internet version of the Texas Sportsguide also contains the well-written stories of the print version. You can find it on the web at www.texs.com . The advertising that this Internet magazine provides is first-rate, thanks to ImageBuilders Advertising, Inc., another business owned by Pat McCarty, a skilled computer grapjhics artist. (I told you he was multi-talented, didn’t I?)

McCarty became interested in on-line services in the construction industry where he regularly used them as research tools. From that beginning and from authoring his own software programs for his own accounting and estimating and from working with CAD software, he began to develop an interest in personal computers. This and his years of experience in desktop publishing led to his career in publishing the Texas Sportsguide. Today, he not only publishes the Texas Sportsguide in its print and on-line editions, but he designs and lays out advertising for print and on-line media through ImageBuilders Advertising, Inc. The URL of Image Builders on the net is www.ibweb.com .

McCarty also does charity work for an organization he believes in, Texas Black Bass Unlimited. TBBU is a freshwater fishing organization dedicated to the freshwater fisheries of Texas and the anglers who fish them. McCarty assisted TBBU in their last two fund-raisers. In 1993, TBBU raised funds for the Channel-Marking Project on Lake Livingston and in 1994, they raised funds for the Habitat Restoration Project of Houston area lakes. In 1996, TBBU plans to hold another fund-raiser for their Habitat Restoration Project, this time concentrating their efforts on Lake Livingston. For copies of the commemorative programs of the two galas or for membership or other TBBU information, please contact Leonard Ranne at 7880 Carr St. in Dallas, Texas 75227.

McCarty’s plans for the future include continuing his tournament fishing and guiding pursuits and expanding coverage of the Texas Sportsguide print edition in 1996. He plans to further develop the Texas Sportsguide on-line edition to include content from other states and countries around the world. He will continue his advertising endeavors with ImageBuilders Advertising in print, multi-media and on-line advertising.
– Lake Mohave

I hit the snooze button a couple of times before I finally realized that it was actually my alarm clock telling me to get up this morning. My small camper on the back of my truck sleeps well when I am on the tournament trail, equipped with a heater and an electric blanket it is quite cozy so long as I am plugged in at a campground somewhere. I managed to make my way outside and began to adjust to the sudden temperature change, from a nice and warm 70 or so to the cold outside air that was 35 degrees. This was my first day of pre-practice for the Mississippi BassMaster Invitational on Ross Barnett Reservoir.

I was here about 13 months ago for the same tournament last season. The lake was muddy then and it is muddy now. The lake has an enormous amount of bass and proves to be an excellent fishery year in and year out even with heavy fishing pressure. We have just hit it again when the Pearl River is really flowing bringing in run-off and turning the lake off color. There is still some good areas to fish but all the tournament fishermen will be piled on top of each other fishing what clean water is available. These conditions usually make a lake fish small during big tournaments.

When I put my boat in this morning the water temperature was 46 degrees, water temperature of 50 or less should always remind you to be extra patient and fish extra slow, especially when the water is muddy.
I pulled out two rods, one with a 3/8 Stanley Platinum Wedge Spinnerbait (chartreuse) and one with a 7/16 Stanley Jig. I added a pork chunk to the jig and up the river I went. I started looking at pockets off of the river, protected water from the current and also the fresh muddy water the river was bringing down.

The water was cold everywhere, mostly 46 and 47 degrees. I did find some clear water way back in some of the pockets but that also put me back in the woods where there was so many trees that the sun would hardly be able to penetrate to warm the water. I fished the back pockets until around noon and then decided that I could come back to these areas during the official practice just before the tournament.

I went down the river a few miles until it opened up to the lake. I then checked the back of some of the bays where the sun could really pound if it were to ever come out from the overcast skies. I ran flat weeded banks for a couple of hours before I finally caught one on my spinnerbait, the fish was very light in color and weighed about two and a half pounds. Considering the conditions catching one fish in an area could mean there is a whole bunch of fish there. I didn’t catch anymore fish in that bay but I will certainly look at that spot when I come back.

Before I finished out the day I caught two more on the spinnerbait to bring my bass tally to three. Not much for nine and a half hours on the water but believe me it could have been worse. I talked to three competitors on the ramp who all said that they never got a bite all day. Fishing is very tough and if east Mississippi does not get some warm weather before we come back in two weeks it will be a very tough tournament.

Mother Nature always has something to dish out and this particular week it is cold weather and rain. For a very shallow lake like Ross Barnett that is a tough combination. But as usual one of us will figure out how to catch them better than anyone else and will walk away with forty thousand bucks, hopefully me!

The tournament is February 12th, 13th, and 14th. You can check the results daily on the internet by entering BASSMASTER into a search.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

As you well know if you have read anything about Lake Conroe this year is that the crappie fishing is premier. I think that it is safe to say that Lake Conroe is one of the best crappie lakes in the state this year. Many of us Lake Conroe fishermen have spent a lot of time fishing for the papermouths. We have all got our little tricks of the trade honed up for this crappie fishing. There is definitely plenty of ways to load the boat full of crappie and who is to say which way is best. Some of the crappie fulltimers will tell you crappie jigs under the 1097, minnows sunk around timber, or a minnow-jig combination in the creek channels. All of these methods will work. I have spent my fair share of time on the water “crappie guiding” and come up with a rig that works wonders for catching crappie.

The crappie rig that is used on my boat takes several principles and applies them to crappie fishing. Anytime that you are fishing around the bottom, brush, or standing timber the rig you use must be somewhat weedless. If not you will spend all of your time hung up and retying. When fishing off-colored water a noise making devise within a rig will help attract fish. Taking this into mind a crappie rig that is weedless and makes noise most certainly is the way to go.

This rig requires a one ought crappie hook, two 10mm Top Brass glass beads, and a Top Brass 3/8 oz brass weight. To rig it up slide the line through the eye of the hook. Next slide the line through the brass weight, then through both glass beads. Tie the line to the second glass bead. So now you have line through the

hook, weight, glass bead, and the line tied to the second glass bead. Now take the hook and slide it up the line away from the weight and glass beads about a foot. Pull the hook to the side so that it doubles the line. Take the doubled line and tie a knot in it about three inches from the hook. Make this a double knot. Now take the hook and pull it away from the knot. Make another knot between the eye of the hook and the double knot.

To fish the rig drop it down to the bottom or the desired depth. If the hook becomes hung up don’t pull tight on the line simply lower your rod tip and let the weight fall, it will dislodge the hook. The brass and glass when engaged makes a clicking sound that attracts fish. When fishing the rig simply jig it occasionally or shake the rig. Many times your strike will occur immediately after the brass and glass have engaged. The brass and glass clicking resembles a crawfish kicking its tail for propulsion.

This will be a good month to fish this rig since the water is off color due to the flooding. Be on the look out for floating debris or floating logs caused by the floods. Good luck fishing.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

For the past for years Marshall Brown, a top fisherman and former guide of Lake Conroe, has been organizing a fishing school that has helped hundreds learn more about Lake Conroe. This school is designed for amateurs as well as veteran fisherman. Top tournament pros and guides from Lake Conroe come and share many of their secrets of success and convey their knowledge to you in a classroom setting.

Many techniques will be discussed like: Structure fishing, verticle jigging, carolina rigging, cranking deep structure, flipping jigs, reading your electronics, and many more.

These super-informative adult classes will be held for four weeks beginning FEBRUARY 20TH and ending on MARCH 7TH. There will be two classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 7:30 – 9:30 pm. Classes will be held in Willis at the Adult Community Education Center.

For registration call the Director of Community Education, Ruth Castlescholdt at (409) 856-1210.
Registration for the entire four weeks of class is $50.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

How often are you fishing a lure and know that you are not throwing it on the right pound test? Too often probably if you are like me, and simply don’t want to strip all of that line off to replace it with smaller or larger line. If you know the line size is not ideal and you fish it anyway your conscious is at war because it knows that optimum utility is not taking place. Each bait has a line size that allows it to perform with the perfect action, whatever that line diameter is for each bait is what you want every time you fish a different bait.

Before I explain how to choose the correct line size for lures remember that you are looking for long term results by amassing a whole lot of “little things” that characterize your style. No one thing that you do or learn or change is going to make you an ultimate fisherman, but by learning one “little thing” at a time and putting them all together you will become an ultimate fisherman.

A little bait needs little line to be fished properly. Small crankbaits perform best when fished on tiny line because the line does not hinder the lures action. Line creates resistance in the water like friction, the bigger the line the more resistance it has. A small bait cannot compensate for the resistance and looses action because of it. A Model 3A Bomber for example can be fished on 17# test and will dive to about 4 or 5 feet and have moderate vibration. On 12# test the same bait will dive about 6-8 feet and have considerably more action. On 8# test the bait will give you everything it has to offer. Depths of 10 feet or more and more action than with any other pound test. The more action a bait has the more noise a bait makes. Noise because of the rattles and also because of the vibration.

OK so baits perform better with lighter line but what about cover? Well this is where your common sense comes in. If you are fishing shallow timber flats with stumps everywhere you may not feel comfortable with small line. Beef up in this situation then or you can use the small line and accept the fact that you could loose some fish if one wraps you up. You have to weigh the risks. If you think that you will get more bites with lighter line because the bait performs best with small line then fish small line and take the risk of loosing fish in the cover. Remember, you have to get the bites before you break any off. Sometimes line selection is the difference between getting bites and not getting bites, especially in high pressured areas.

Reaction baits don’t need light line to be effective. Vertically presented baits like jigs and crawworms need big line. The object is to drop the bait straight down onto a bass. Heavy line is not going to have much of an effect on the action of a jig falling straight down. Also the fish can only see the bait if the lure is being dropped right onto it and the fish won’t even see the line. Of course heavy line is need here because of the close range hookset and the heavy cover this style is used in.

Here are some matches that I live by in my tactics.

shallow divers 1-3 feet – 8-10#
medium divers 3-12 feet – 10#
deep divers 12 feet+ – 12#, ultra deep depths can be achieved by using 8# or 10# on big crankbaits

spinner baits 1/4 oz – 12#
3/8 and 1/2 oz – 14#-17#
3/4 and 1oz – 17# and up

rogues 10# and 12#

jigs around heavy timber 20#-25#
hydrilla 25#

small jigs (1/4oz) 12# – 17#
topwaters 12#, around hydrilla 20#

carolina rig 17#

I hope this helps you in choosing the right line and catch more fish.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

SPLITSHOTTING
One of the types of finesse fishing for black bass is called splitshotting. This rig is designed for fishing a worm through mossy areas. This rig consists of a worm rigged on a hook without a weight directly on the worm head. Instead of using a worm weight a tiny splitshot weight is attached to the line about a foot and a half above the worm. A splitshot is about the size of a BB. The weight has a split just big enough for the line. The rig can be fished across loose moss and other aquatic vegetation without being entangled and hung. Splitshotting gives a worm a very natural look because there is little weight used the bait has a good fluttering action.

The splitshotting rig should be fished with a spinning rod with eight to twelve pound test line. The rig is very light, weighing less than a quarter of an ounce. The light line is small in diameter and draws little wind resistance when casting. The rod should have a medium action and the hook should be extremely sharp. The light line will not stand up to heavy hooksets so a milder hookset must be used in order not to break the line. If the hook is extremely a mild hookset will get enough hook penetration to land the fish.
To tie the splitshotting rig run the line through the eye of the hook and tie a knot. Next rig the worm onto the hook like it was a Texas Rigged worm. Once this is completed add a splitshot weight about a foot and a half above the worm. Pliers will aid in pinching the weight in place on the line.
Fishing the splitshot worm is very similar to the Carolina Rig. Cast the rig across aquatic vegetation and start to work it back to you with the same rod positioning as the Carolina Rig retrieve. A slow retrieve allowing the rig to fall into the pockets of aquatic vegetation draws the most strikes. Once a strike occurs use a moderate hookset in order not to break the line. The drag setting on the reel should be set so that line may be automatically released before reaching its maximum stretch factor and breaking. Big bass can be landed using light tackle if they are allowed to run and not “horsed” back to the boat. Patience, once again, is the key to landing fish hooked on light tackle

WEIGHTLESS WORM
The weightless worm is very similar to the splitshot worm only this rig has no weight at all. This rig is designed for areas where the aquatic vegetation is so thick that a worm with any size weight becomes hung up. A worm alone will float and even when rigged with a number one or number two worm hook will still have enough buoyancy to be fished weedless across aquatic vegetation.

Dragging the weightless worm across aquatic vegetation has been a successful method of catching fish out of thick grass for years. There are not many techniques that will allow a lure to fished in such heavy cover. Fishing the hard to reach areas is often effective with the weightless worm because the fish in these areas have not seen very many baits. These fish are less likely to be conditioned to any type of lure. The more times a fish sees a lure and is caught or sees another bass get caught the more chances increase for that fish to become conditioned so that it avoids lures. In an area where not many baits have been thrown the chances of the fish in the area to be conditioned are very slim.

FLORIDA RIG
The Florida Rig is identical to the pegged Texas Rig except that the weight is a little different. Instead of using a worm weight and using a toothpick to peg the weight a Florida weight is used. The Florida Rig weight is a normal worm weight with a spring attached to the end of the weight that faces the worm. The spring attached to the weight is used to screw into the worm, holding the weight against the worm. This eliminates having to use toothpicks. The action and techniques to fishing the Florida Rig are identical to the Texas Rig.

DO-NOTHING WORM
The do-nothing worm is a method of worm fishing used when a cold front has occurred or when the fish are not feeding. Do-nothing worms are a finesse worm used when
a bass has little or no appetite and must be “force-fed”. The worm is a four to six inch worm rigged onto a tiny jig head usually weighing less than an eighth of an ounce. This method of worm fishing requires light tackle. Fishing the bait slowly and tight to cover is effective for catching bass even in the worst weather conditions when they are not feeding.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

December is one of the best months of the year to fish Lake Conroe. The lake is practically deserted this time of year which is a little ironic because the fishing is always hot this month. Most of the fish are on main lake humps and ridges that apex in 20-33’ of water.

A 3/4 oz Cobra Jigging Spoon is the number one bait for the deep schools of fish. Black bass, white bass, crappie, catfish, and most other game fish will be holding on the main lake humps and ridges. All of these fish will hit the spoons as it resembles a wounded shad when on the fall. Big bass will be common this month on white and chartreuse Cobra spoons. Every marina around the lake has photographs taken during the month of December of big bass caught on jigging spoons.

The main lake structures are easy to find and there are plenty of them with fish on them. Graph out the bigger main lake points looking for the edge of the point where it meets the river. The most distinctly breaking area of the structure will usually hold the most fish. Anywhere you have a bunch of bigger fish within three feet of bottom on top of a hump or ridge is a good spot to mark and spoon. Fish that are suspended on the edges of the humps say five feet or higher off of the bottom are not as active and harder to catch. There is usually allot more fish suspended out on the edges of the humps but you will usually do better if you fish for the few that you see close to the bottom on top of the hump because they are feeding.

The top of the humps is a constant feeding area for fish. Fish are continuously pushing shad up onto the humps. The lunar tables will prove themselves to you daily if you pay attention the highs and lows in the feeding times. Fish turn on and off to these tables almost like clockwork.

Well this spoon pattern carries all the way into January and will get better daily from now on until then.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

December is one of the best months of the year to fish Lake Conroe. The lake is practically deserted this time of year which is a little ironic because the fishing is alway hot this month. Most of the fish are on main lake humps and ridges that apex in 20-33’ of water.

A 3/4 oz Cobra Jigging Spoon is the number one bait for the deep schools of fish. Black bass, white bass, crappie, catfish, and most other game fish will be holding on the main lake humps and ridges. All of these fish will hit the spoons as it resembles a wounded shad when on the fall. Big bass will be common this month on white and chartreuse Cobra spoons. Every marina around the lake has photographs taken during the month of December of big bass caught on jigging spoons.

The main lake structures are easy to find and there are plenty of them with fish on them. Graph out the bigger main lake points looking for the edge of the point where it meets the river. The most distinctly breaking area of the structure will usually hold the most fish. Anywhere you have a bunch of bigger fish within three feet of bottom on top of a hump or ridge is a good spot to mark and spoon. Fish that are suspended on the edges of the humps say five feet or higher off of the bottom are not as active and harder to catch. There is usually alot more fish suspended out on the edges of the humps but you will usually do better if you fish for the few that you see close to the bottom on top of the hump because they are feeding.
The top of the humps is a constant feeding area for fish. Fish are continuously pushing shad up onto the humps. The lunar tables will prove themselves to you daily if you pay attention the highs and lows in the feeding times. Fish turn on and off to these tables almost like clockwork.

Well this spoon pattern carries all the way into January and will get better daily from now on until then.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

Going from Winter to Summer without having much of a Spring seems to be a common subject among fishermen. The intricate patterns of Springtime fishing were blurred by the prevailing twenty to thirty-five mile per hour winds that blew from the end of February through May. As of this writing(late May) I have counted only four days that the wind did not blow over fifteen or so.

Many portions of the lake have been totally unfishable because of the wind, areas that are in open water like some of the mainlake humps and ridges. Some of the mainlake brushpiles have been untouched due to the swells rolling over the top of them.

Water temperatures were on a quick rise through April, I was already recording temperatures in the eighties the first week of May. The fish have been responding to the warming water as if we were deep into the summer. I have been taking customers out to fourteen to eighteen foot brushpiles and dragging Carolina Rigs for black bass this month and pretending that its summer time. The early morning bite has been on, rocks and breakwaters have been giving up good fish on crankbaits and Texas rigged worms. Even the Caronlina rig has been producing early fish on the rocks and breakwaters. Later in the morning those deeper brushpiles are holding good numbers of bass in and around fifteen feet. Pumpkinseed, smoke/blue, chartreuse pepper, and watermelon colored french fries have been my number one Carolina rigged baits.

The crappie quickly recovered from their spawn and stacked up on the brushpiles. At times during the last few weeks I’ve graphed a brushpiles to mark and there will be so many crappie suspended over them that the depth will change from the bottom to the top of the school of fish. The crappie are so thick in numbers that they collectively have enough density that the sonar cannot penetrate. Unable to see the brushpile for the fish I’ll just throw a buoy upwind of the fish and start fishing. Crappie numbers are high again this year with alot of fish around the eleven inch mark. When measuring crappie or any other fish close the mouth and push it to the zero end of the measuring board and then sweep the tail for an accurate measurement. Also remember that if the fish is barely legal that it will loose a little bit of length when you throw it on ice or if it dies in the livewell.

Looks like we are in for a hot summer so be ready to fish those deeper structures in the lake.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

One of most effective ways of fishing shallow shoreline structures for largemouth black bass is using a Texas Rigged worm. The rig is designed for fishing shallow water with precision and thoroughness. Shallow water structures are any object in the shallow water that will hold bass. Some of these structures include: tree stumps, lay down logs, boat docks, bulk-heading, rocks, hydrilla lines, and drop offs.

The rig is very easy to cast with accuracy which is a must for shallow fishing. When casting at shallow water structure it is very important to lay the bait tight to the cover very quietly. The Texas Rig, when cast correctly, can be cast out near cover and land in the water without making a splash. Landing a worm around shallow water cover without making a splash can make the difference of catching fish or not catching fish. Black bass hide around the structure and will be easily spooked if a worm is not presented to the fish quietly.

Tying on a Texas Rig worm is very simple, however, there are a few tips that will give the bait better action. The rig includes a bullet weight, a number two worm hook, a toothpick, and a plastic worm. Start rigging the bait by running the line through the small end of the bullet weight. Slide the weight up the line and run the line through the eye of the hook. Tie the hook onto the line and clip the excess line with a pair of clippers. Next, take the weight and slide it down towards the hook. Take the toothpick and insert it into the big end of the bullet weight(the end facing the hook). Insert the toothpick as firmly as possibly and break it off in the weight. Use the clippers to remove any splinters that may be left.

Now it is time to rig the worm onto the hook. Take the hook and insert it into the head of the worm about a quarter of an inch. Bring the tip of the hook back out the worm and slide the worm up the shank of the hook. Now insert the tip of the hook into the body of the worm. Make sure that the tip of the hook is not pertruding the body of the worm. This will ensure that the bait is as weedless as possible. When the tip of the hook is protruding the bait tends to hang up on everything that it comes into contact with. Now that the bait is rigged onto the hook take the weight and slide it down to the head of the worm. The weight is rigged with a toothpick so that it is pegged to the head of the worm. With the toothpick inserted it will remain stationary on the head of the worm rather than sliding up and down the line. This gives the bait better action and also makes it easier to cast.

Keeping the weight pegged to head of the worm will make it easier to detect strikes. When the weight is allowed to slide every time the rod is lifted the weight hits the worm and it may feel like a strike at times. Pegging the weight will eliminate the false strikes and when a strike is detected there will no question that it is a fish.
Fishing the Texas Rigged worm requires extreme patience. The Texas Rig, like most other forms of worm fishing, must be fished extremely slow. “If you are fishing the worm slowly you are fishing the bait too fast”, is a phrase often used when teaching a beginner how to fish a plastic worm.

Suppose you just entered a small cove that you intend to fish by boat. In the cove there a several stumps that look as if they hold fish. Position your boat so that you are not too close to the stumps but also so that you are not out of casting range. Make your cast past the stump and let the bait fall to the bottom. Let the bait sit there for eight to ten seconds. Now lift the rod tip very slowly to eleven o’clock without reeling. If a strike is not detected, slowly lower the rod to nine o’clock reeling the up the slack line at the same time. Let the bait settle on the bottom for a few seconds and repeat the technique again. When the bait becomes close to the stump your concentration needs to be very focussed in order to detect a strike. The area around a stump or any other structure where a bass will be hiding is known as the “strike zone”. The strike zone is the area where a strike is most likely to occur. Keeping this thought in mind that fish will hit when the becomes close to a structure will allow you to put emphasis on the action of the bait when it is in the strike zone. When the bait enters the strike zone refocus your concentration on the bait and be very alert.

When a strike occurs a powerful hookset is necessary for landing a fish. Largemouth bass have a tough and hard jaw. A powerful hookset is necessary so that the hook
penetrates and does not become extracted during a battle. To perform a correct and effective hookset there are two rules that must be followed. 1)Reel up any slack 2)Set the hook with plenty of power. When setting the hook you need to reel up the slack in the line and jerk back with the rod away from the fish. The rod must be jerked hard enough so that the hook will get deep penetration.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

Recently I was on the water guiding a father and son party on a fishing trip. We were fishing a couple of main-lake humps down on the south end of the lake and spooning up crappie, white bass, black bass, and yellow bass. The bite was good and even I sort of got caught up in the action. A bank of clouds had rolled in low from the northwest and they covered us before we had a chance to outrun them.

The wind turned from a southerly breeze to a powerful northwest wind and within about three minutes we were bobbing in three to five foot rollers. Quickly getting the tackle stowed beneath the decks I dug out rain gear for the three of us and we prepared for the worst. With life vests zipped and fastened we turned into the wind for the ride back to StowAway.

The waves were to far apart to get on top of them so we just took them one at a time. The Mercury motor groaned as we would climb each wave. To keep the bow up I had to goose it up a wave, let off the throttle and fall into the trough and goose it again for the next wave.

My party was probably thinking that they could have gone offshore and had better conditions than this and I was amazed again at how rough a lake could get. Had we been in anything less than a twenty footer I think we would have had a tough time getting back safely.

We took our time and made our way back up the lake to the marina. My clients were from Houston and don’t get out on the water very often. The afternoon was a real adventure for them and I must admit it was a rush to me as well.

Mother Nature deals out some tricky situations at times that can take you by surprise. Sometimes weather builds up and is easy to spot and avoid but weather can also roll in low and quickly before you are ready for it.

Changes in air temperature and wind direction are definitely factors to take note of when on the water. Especially, when the wind shifts one hundred and eighty degrees. Also clouds patterns can help you make on the spot weather observations. Low rolling clouds, thunderheads, and cloud banks are all indicators of possible bad weather.

Remember to always check the weather when planning a fishing trip. A small radio tuned to one of the many weather stations will also help you avoid unsafe weather conditions.

When fishing in unstable weather, rain gear and lifejackets are a must. Good luck fishing.

Bill Cannan Professional Fishing Guide – Lake Mohave

ROCKPORT, Texas — On Nov. 9, a manatee was spotted just outside of Rockport at an area known as Cove Harbor North, according to Texas Parks and Wildlife Department experts. The manatee was caught on video by some local residents and T.P.W.D. personnel were also on hand to witness this rare sighting. Aransas County Game Warden Danny Flores and Coastal Fisheries Biologist Dennis Pridgen also responded to the sighting.

“The manatee was videoed swimming in the area before disappearing. Sightings of manatees are extremely rare for this area as well as for the State of Texas,” said Capt. Henry Balderamas. A manatee was last seen just South of Corpus Christi several years ago.

“The last time we have seen a manatee (or more than one) was July 2001,” said Karen Meador, of TPWD’s Coastal Fisheries Division in Rockport. “More than one was observed off Galveston, Port Aransas and in Rockport. Before that, we observed one or more manatees during late summer of 1995. What’s interesting in all three instances is that tropical activity in the eastern Gulf of Mexico was above-average. As you know, this summer’s weather could’ve easily blown this animal west of its habitat. There are no resident populations of manatees in Texas,” said Meador.

Deborah Cohea, administrative assistant in the Rockport Law Enforcement office, witnessed the animal’s rare appearance. “Game Warden Danny Flores said they had a manatee sighting and I said ‘Where, I want to see it, I’ve never seen a manatee!’ So I drove down there to Cove Harbor. I lived in Florida and I never saw one the whole time I lived there, it just made my day. We were standing on a dock and he was about five feet out on the water and he was huge, they said no less than 7-800 pounds, and a full grown healthy male. He rolled over and his front flippers came up by his face and it was just too cool!” – Lake Mohave

AUSTIN, Texas — It is said that giving is better than receiving, but why not do both this holiday season.

Persons who order a Texas State Parks Pass gift certificate before Dec. 31 to give to that special someone will receive a Texas State Parks holiday tree ornament just for giving a gift of the great outdoors.

The $60 state parks pass, which debuted on Jan. 1, provides not only a year of free entry to more than 120 state parks and historic sites for members and their guests, but also discounts on camping, state park store merchandise, recreational equipment rentals and other perks. Through October, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department had sold 53,772 park passes, generating $3.3 million to support Texas state park operations.

“The parks pass paves the way for the gift recipient to enjoy a year’s worth of the beautiful Texas outdoors and many of the state’s most important heritage sites,” said Walt Dabney, Texas State Parks director. “The commemorative tree ornament just sweetens the pot.”

You can purchase Texas State Parks Pass gift certificates at your favorite state park or historic site, or by calling TPWD’s Customer Contact Center at (512) 389-8900. The center’s operating hours are: 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday-Friday and 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday.

Pass members also are entitled to receive a quarterly e-newsletter, “The Getaway Planner”; a free copy of the Texas State Park Guide; and an “I Belong in Texas State Parks” decal. For more information about the park pass, visit the Web (http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/parkpass/).

In addition to the parks pass, holiday shoppers can purchase a host of other unusual gift items from TPWD, such as books, videos, conservation license plates, posters, wildlife stamps and more, by visiting the Web (http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/) and selecting the “Great Holiday Gifts” link. – Lake Mohave