“Thanks To The Fishing Industry, Bubba Is Becoming Bilingual!”

  By: Don J. Hampton

  When speaking to Bubba one needs to pay close attention and listen very closely. If you are ever going to put in print and quote what Bubba has to say, the first step is turning off your spell check.

  Some of Bubba’s favorite words cannot be found in Webster’s Dictionary, or at least not the way he pronounces them. And, as we all know, that is just stuff you have to accept with Bubba.

  His and Bubbette’s favorite word is fer. This particular word is used quite often in both of their vocabularies. I can only assume this is how it is spelt because of the way they pronounce it.

  I believe it all began long ago when Bubba had long hair (or should I say “had hair”), everything then was “Fer Out”. If it were raining, that would be “Fer Out”. If Bubba hit his thumb with a hammer well, that would be “Fer Out” too! (Just pronounced a little stronger with a couple of added words.)

  Bubba grew out of the “Fer Out” stage in life, but he kept the “Fer”, maybe “Fer Good Measure”, but anyway now it has multiple meanings.

  This word is most important in Bubba and Bubbette’s life when it is combined with numbers. They both love 2 fer 1. It doesn’t matter if they need the items or not. If it is 2 fer 1, you can bet they will be having a couple! That just means one of whatever it might be is free and they both love “Free Stuff”!

  Let a restaurant advertise chicken fried steaks 2 fer 1. Bubba will have his camping stuff set up in the parking lot waiting fer them to open. He wouldn’t care how fer he had to drive and ferda more, he wouldn’t care! The only thing in his world that could beat out good vittles would be “Fishing Stuff 2 Fer 1”! Then Bubba would have a bunch of stuff and he’d be giving Bubbette excuses and reasons, 2 fer 1. Bubba would say, “Well Sugardumplin’, I need it fer this and fer that!”

  Now thanks to the fishing industry Bubba has been extending his vocabulary and in some cases has even become bilingual! In this case, you can’t help but laugh because he even puts the ethnic accent on the words.

  Bubba doesn’t do too bad when he tells you about his Shimano reels. The accent isn’t too pronounced, but when he starts telling you about his Gamakatsu hooks and his Yamamoto Senko, try to keep a straight face if you can!

  Every time he tells me of a big bass he caught on “Yamamoto Senko with a Gamakatsu hook” I lose it. Instead of a fishing story it sounds more as if he is trying out for the lead roll in the “Last Samurai”!

  There is no listening to Bubba with a straight face when he is talking about his Wave Worms. There must be some tropical island off the coast of Louisiana , because his impression of the Tiki Man sure has a Cajun ring to it.

  Bubba does better when he is talking about his Terminator Lures. He does a pretty good imitation of Arnold Schwarzenegger.  If he misses a fish on one of these his last words are always, “I’ll be back!”

  Bubba is good at putting his feelings into his words. When he speaks of his Lockhart Lures he adds passion because he thinks it is spelled h-e-a-r-t, and his feelings on this lure should come from that direction. When he refers to his Rebel lures, he sounds like a “Rebel Without A Cause”! Remember the old song “ Norman ”? Well, when he is tying on one of these lures he is always singing that song!

  One redeeming grace to Bubba’s character, what he has to say he says with meaning and conviction and isn’t misunderstood, even when he is laying down the “Why Fer!” 

Vegetation control plans for Lake Fork

  By Kevin Storey

Texas Parks & Wildlife Department

Inland Fisheries Biologist

  Have you ever heard (or said it yourself) “Wish we could have a good hard freeze on Lake Fork to kill some of these shad”?   The concern had been that with the abundant “balls” of shad it’s hard to imagine why bass would bite artificial baits.  It seems these wishes and prayers were answered this last winter but the beneficiary was not the shad population, but Lake Fork ’s water hyacinth.  This spring, Lake Fork anglers have noticed water hyacinth has been severely knocked back.  Although the vast areas that were commonplace in problem areas like Birch Creek are gone, since the weather has warmed up small plants are starting to “pop” up.

  We’ve seen a steady increase in water hyacinth distribution and coverage which peaked last fall with 400 acres or more of this troublesome invader.  A series of mild winters had enabled the plant to continue growing at a low level throughout the cold months.  In the spring, as the plants started to “wake up” and grow, they were spread further afield by Lake Fork ’s frequent springtime winds and occasional thunderstorms.  Despite annual herbicide treatments conducted by the TPWD Aquatic Habitat Enhancement crew from Jasper using chemical purchased by SRA, the plants continued their rampage on Lake Fork .

  The situation came to a head last fall and everyone came to the conclusion that something needed to change.  The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department worked with the Sabine River Authority to create a Nuisance Aquatic Vegetation Management Plan for Lake Fork which laid out the framework for a treatment plan which involves treating the water hyacinth with herbicide.  Staff presented the Department’s plan at the “State of the lake” public meeting held at the Land’s End Fire Department on February 4, 2010.  The treatment plan is to be underwritten using funds provided by the SRA ($50,000) TPWD ($25,000) and the Lake Fork Sportsman’s Association.  A contractor has been selected and plans are afoot for treatments to begin by the beginning of next month.  TPWD staff were out on the lake during the week of June 16 to review the status of the plants.  The areas that will be targeted first are the traditional nursery areas and trouble spots in the backs of creeks like Birch, Coffee, Glade and Running.  This year the treatment period will extend through the summer in order to tame this invasive.    As we get further into the summer there are proposed plans to enable property owners to contact the contractor to report untreated areas.

  Kevin Storey is a 25-year veteran of TPWD, the last 10 years of which he has been District Management Supervisor of District 3B which includes responsibility for Lake Fork .  He can be contacted at (903) 593-5077 or Kevin.storey@tpwd.state.tx.us.

2^nd Annual Yantis Catfish Classic

By Don Hampton

  On July 24th and 25th the Lake Fork Sportsman’s Association in association with Ken Freeman Outdoor Promotions presented the 2nd Annual Yantis Catfish Classic.

  Local catfishermen were joined by anglers coming from as far away as Virginia , Mississippi , Tennessee and New Mexico for a total of 410 anglers to compete for the guaranteed prize money of $26,000.

  The two day tournament consisted of seven hourly payouts each day. Each hour paid four places for the heaviest catfish brought to the scale. Anglers each hour were competing for $400 for 1^st place in the hour, $300 for 2^nd; $200 for 3^rd;  and $100 for 4^th.  Every angler competing was hoping to catch the heaviest catfish during the tournament to win one of the grand prizes. Seven places were guaranteed for a “Grand Prize” for the heaviest weights overall.

   On Saturday afternoon after the first day of competition, the City of Yantis held its annual parade and fish fry. The parade began at the Community Center and proceeded to the school’s cafeteria. There the Yantis Volunteer Fire Department held their catfish dinner consisting of fried catfish, hush puppies, fries, and dessert. Donations were accepted with proceeds going toward the purchase of new equipment for the fire department. “We fed approximately 850 people,” said Yantis Mayor Jerry Miller. “With the fish fry and raffle tickets sold we have raised over $9,000 thanks to the tournament.”

  During the course of the tournament the Wood County 4H Club volunteers did an excellent job carrying all the angler’s catches to the Sportsman’s Association Live Release Boat. Approximately 95% of the catfish caught during the tournament were released alive and in good condition back into the lake to be caught another day.

 The 2nd Annual Catfish Classic was concluded on Sunday afternoon with the last hour being the 1:00 to 2:00 o’clock hour. Lennie Haxton from Lindale , Texas   was sweating it out but his catch on the first day of a channel cat weighing 10.80-pounds won him top prize and $6,400 in prize money for his efforts. Ernest Harrison from Quitman and Cody Hunt from Como tied for the 2^nd heaviest weighed in during the tournament and split the prize money for 2^nd and 3^rd place giving them an extra $2,000 each for their catch of a channel cat weighing 10.65-pounds. Roger Stroman from Emory won 3^rd and 4^th places with his heavy cats caught during the tournament. Securing 3^rd Place was a 10.35-pound cat he weighed in during the 8 to 9 o’clock hour of the first day and securing 4^th place was a 9.85-pound cat he weighed in during the 8 to 9 o’clock hour on the second day. These two places gave Roger an additional $700 to take home. Carol Young from Carrollton won 6^th place with a catch of a 9.50-pound channel cat worth $200 but also secured her the Bonus Award of “Top Female” and a check for $250. Seventh place and taking home with her $100 for her catch of a channel cat weighing 9.15-pounds was Cora Barker from Alba. Winning in the Bonus Award for Top Youth and earning him a check for $250 was Trent Jennings from Alba with a catch of 7.30-pounds. Phillip Laswell from Lufkin won the Bonus Award for Senior Angler (65+) Bonus Award and a check for $250 for his catch of a channel cat weighing 7.35-lbs.

  “I think the tournament was just a tremendous success. The numbers of entries were down some but overall it was a good turn out,” said Michael Rogge, LFSA President. “We’ve tentatively scheduled our 2011 Catfish Classic for the last full weekend in July.”

  The Lake Fork Sportsman’s Association now begins work on their Annual Crappie Tournament on Lake Fork to be held October 2^nd and 3rd. For more information on this tournament visit their website; www.lakeforksa.com

Know Your Grass

  By Aaron Jubar

TPWD Fisheries Biologist

  Fishermen have learned over the centuries to identify the prey species of the sport fish they are targeting. Largemouth bass anglers, in particular, can usually distinguish between gizzard and threadfin shad, and they can differentiate between bluegill, redear and longear sunfish (the three are often lumped as sunfish or “bream”). The ability to identify prey fish is important to big game anglers since we choose lures and baits that mimic those food sources. As an educated angler, you should not only know your prey fish, but you should also learn to know your grass.

  Bass fishermen often use the word “grass” as a general term to describe submerged aquatic vegetation. “I caught my fish on the edge of grass beds” or “rip your lipless crankbait through the grass” are typical statements made by anglers around Lake Fork . The trouble is, there are literally dozens of species of aquatic vegetation in Fork and they aren’t all equal in the way they attract bass and prey fish. In this month’s column, I will identify three common species that anglers most often lump together as “grass”.

  Lake Fork features numerous species of vegetation that could be referred to as grass. Most times, however, anglers who use the term grass are talking about one of three species: coontail (Ceratophyllum demersum), Eurasian watermilfoil (Myrio-phyllum spicatum, aka milfoil), or hydrilla (Hydrilla verticillata).  Of these three, only coontail is native to East Texas waters. Both hydrilla and milfoil are invasive plants, but unlike other reservoirs, Lake Fork has never been adversely affected by these species. If anything, hydrilla and milfoil have been a boon for fishermen at Fork.

  These three submerged plant species have some similarities in both form and function; however, they vary in their effectiveness at congregating fish. In Lake Fork , thick stands of each of these species can be found scattered throughout the reservoir. The three plants also coexist, with many areas featuring a mixture of each along with some other, less-dominant, vegetation. During late summer, when the plant densities reach their peak and may even “top out” in some areas, individual species can be quickly identified by the trained observer.   

  Coontail is most easily identified by the crowded tips of its branches which give it a “coontail” appearance. The leaves are somewhat stiff and contain many forks and small teeth along one side. This species often appears greenish brown in East Texas lakes, and some plants may look sickly even though they are perfectly healthy. Fish will utilize coontail as habitat, but seem to prefer other stands of vegetation if avail-able.

  Eurasian watermilfoil features multi-branched stems that exhibit a rusty or reddish color. The leaves are clumped in groups of 3 to 5 around the stem, which each leaf divided into at least 12 pairs of thin leaflets. Milfoil leaves are much less stiff than those of coontail. Although invasive and potentially threatening to the lake environment, milfoil has rarely reached problematic levels in Fork. It seems to hold fish better than coontail, which it mixes with freely.   

  Hydrilla, the third or our featured “grass” species, is perhaps the most sought after vegetation by bass anglers on Lake Fork . This plant is usually bright green and sports 4 to 8 blade-like leaves coming off the main stem. The leaves feel rough due to small tooth margins on the underside. Healthy stands of hydrilla will often top out in the summer. Both bass and prey species are attracted to hydrilla due to its dense and complicated structure that provides small fish with places to hide and gives predators places to lay in ambush. In some large reservoirs (for example, Lake Con-roe ), hydrilla has expanded to the point where it threatened the aquatic ecosystem and inhibits recreation. Thankfully, this has never occurred on Lake Fork , with historic levels of hydrilla ranging from several thousand to just a few dozen acres. Coverage of hydrilla in Lake Fork is unpredictable and varies from year to year.

  Learning about the habitat preferences of largemouth bass is just as important as knowing the prey fish in the reservoir. By getting to know your grass, you can focus your effort on the best habitat available and, with any luck, land more fish.  

  For more information and additional images of coontail, milfoil and hydrilla, please visit the Texas Agrilife Extension Service website: http://aquaplant.tamu.edu/ or check us out at: www.facebook.com/twpdif3b

  Aaron Jubar is a fisheries biologist with TPWD Inland Fisheries District 3-B. You can contact Aaron with questions and comments at: 903-593-5077.

“The Moon Report”

Hot Weather Crappie Excitement

By Terri Moon

  Have you decided – “It’s just too HOT to fish”? (I’m sure a lot of you have!) But, for those of you that decided to come fishing anyway – “GOOD MOVE”! We’re having some incredible fishing! It’s been great – we’re starting early so we can finish early before it gets real hot. Surprisingly there has been the perfect breeze blowing before lunch making the mornings quite lovely! But, the most exciting part is how good the fishing has been and also how much I’ve enjoyed fishing with all of you this past month! We had some fun didn’t we!

  I’m so proud of all the kids who came fishing with me this month. They were all on their “best behavior” and amazed me how quickly they absorbed how to handle a spinning rig and what to do when they felt a bite! Best of all – “they all caught their biggest fish ever!” How cool is that? Big thanks to all you parents and grandparents for taking the time to continue this summertime ritual with your family! I even got to spend some time fishing with my mom and cousin Ardyth! We had a great time – (I’m so glad the “love of fishing” was passed down through my family!)

  As a matter of fact, it’s really hard to sit here and write this article – all I can think of is “I’d sure like to be out there fishing” and if I was out there, I’d be double rigging 1/16 oz. jig heads with “Trophy Tackle’s new Live Baby Shad” baits! My goodness – the crappie are eating these up! We are putting the “shad” colored one on the top and the “blue pearl” on the bottom. Drop these to the bottom and hang on! This blue pearl color has produced some monster crappie this week. I have a feeling this is going to be the “Bait of Choice” for the upcoming crappie tournament on Fork. We are lovingly calling these our crappie “stinkbait”! Yes, they are impregnated with scent but I guess that’s one of the reasons the fish like it so well along with its incredible action. We have tried different presentations of this bait and right now a slower subtle approach has been working the best. We are targeting 25 to 30 ft. depths and watching the Lowrance to see how far off the bottom we need to fish.

  The full line of these colors can be seen at Trophy Tackle in Emory and it’s a great lineup of color combinations.

  Well, I’m headed out fishing – hope you all have a great month!

“Pack of Knowledge” Punching Grass Mats

  By Tom Redington

    Heading into late summer, hot temperatures and limited rain normally produce dropping water levels in Texas lakes.  Meanwhile, abundant sunshine and clearer water produce the most prolific weed-beds in our lakes at the same time.  The combination of lowered water levels and exploding weed growth results in huge fields of matted grassbeds on Lake Fork .  This placid looking flotilla of hydrilla, milfoil, and other submerged vegetation belies the labyrinth of tunnels beneath the surface where bass are actively feeding on bluegill and shad.  From late summer through fall, flipping matted grass can make for outstanding shallow water fishing for big bass, even on the hottest and sunniest days of the year.

  Based on the density of the cover, this is one technique where loading for bear is usually more productive than finesse tackle.  Start with heavy 50 lb or larger braided line.  Braid line cuts through dense weeds much better than other types of lines and affords you the power to handle big fish in the slop.  To make your line less visible to the fish, simply use a black marker to darken the last 3’ or 4’.  On the business end of the line, I’ll use either a heavy Texas rig or an outsized jig.  Big ½ or 3/4 oz MPack jigs with Fork Craw trailers work very well for pitching small holes in patchier grass; how-ever, heavy Texas rigs are more streamlined and often fall through the thickest of grass more consistently.  For the Texas rig, I use a ¾ or 1 oz Mega Weight tungsten bullet sinker.  The smaller size of tungsten provides a slimmer profile and the insert in the Mega Weights won’t cut your braided line like other unprotected tungsten weights will.  I attach this to a 3/0 to 4/0 hook with a Lake Fork Tackle Flipper or Craw Tube and rig it weedless.  The Craw Tube is especially effective for this rig, as evidenced by Kelly Jordon’s wins in the FLW Tour at Okeechobee and in the Bass Elite Series on the Potomac River using it to flip matted vegetation.  Finally, the weight of a big 1 oz sinker and the impact of jarring hook sets at close range necessitate a stout rod.  Although flip-ping sticks will work ok, I upgrade to the Dobyns Champion 805 FLIP/PUNCH rod.  Broom handles like this rod allow you to quickly get control of big fish and get them coming towards you before they bury up and get off. 

  Once you’re rigged up, it’s time to start fishing.  Deciding where to start can be a daunting task on lakes with expansive weed flats.  I start by looking for points and inside turns in the grassbeds, along with high and low spots, ditches, or any other irregular feature.  In the summer, I typically do best in areas that are on the main lake or close to deep water inside major coves; whereas in the fall, I catch good fish on this pattern back in the creeks as well.  Many days, the bass will be scattered across the flats in what appears to be random locations to us anglers.  In most cases though, once one bass is caught there are likely to be several more in the area, so fish thoroughly around any place that produces a bite.  In general, I do better in hydrilla than milfoil or coontail and I look for hydrilla that is at least 4’ tall.  Hydrilla tends to grow in a pyramid shape, so seeing a few strands near the surface is often the tip of a rather large weedy iceberg below.  Finally, fish typically bite best in matted grass during the middle of the day, while the nearby weededges and the water over submerged grass often produce better early and late.

  The fishing technique is rather simple, with a few nuances.  Make a short flip or pitch to a mat or clump of grass and feed the bait slack line.  If your lure doesn’t immediately break through the mat into the water below, a few jiggles of the lure will help it fall through.  If not, reel back in and make another pitch or switch to a bigger weight if your bait routinely won’t break through.  Once it breaks through, the slack line will allow your bait to freely fall straight down and many strikes will occur on the initial drop.  Depending on how the fish are positioned in the grass and their mood, you’ll want to experiment and see which of the following retrieves work best.  If the fish are very active, I’ll simply let the bait fall to the bottom, jiggle it a couple of times, then pull it out and pitch it again a few feet away from my last cast.  Frequently, you’ll do much better by yo-yoing the bait in the open water below the mats or by steadily shaking your bait on the bottom.  In a few cases, bass are apparently feeding up on suspended bait or bluegills.  In this instance, let your bait fall to the bottom, then steadily raise it to the underside of the weed canopy.  Once there, jiggle your bait in place just under the bottom for about 5 seconds before casting to the next spot.  Bites are typically light, so if your bait feels slightly lighter or heavier than normal, set the hook!         

  If you grow tired of deep water fishing this summer or just like catching big bass, give flippin’ shallow matted weeds a try.   If I can be of assistance, please contact me at 214-683-9572 or e-mail me through my website, www.LakeForkGuideTrips.com. 

  Tom Redington is a full time bass guide on Lake Fork & a FLW Tour pro.  He is sponsored by Lake Fork Trophy Lures, Dobyns Rods, Ranger Boats, Evinrude, Diamond Sports Marine, Lucky Craft, Costa Sunglasses, & Minn Kota.

“Strollin’ With Stroman” on Lake Fork

By Dean Stroman

  Hot weather bass fishing in August can be very rewarding if you are after big bass. In order to consistently catch older-age class bass, you must understand the relationship bass have with baitfish and other sources of food. You will know where their hang outs are and what type of forage they are most likely to be feeding on. Find the bait and you will find the bass. Their most common food is shad & crayfish more than any other creature that they can get in their mouths. 

  During late summer most larger bass will be targeting the roaming schools of shad. The hottest part of the day has the biggest shad movement. Now is the time to tune your electronics and start looking for the big schools of shad roaming deep water areas on Fork. Deep water humps, ridges and roadbeds are some good feeding areas. Look for humps and ridges twenty to twenty-five feet deep that fall off into deeper, forty to fifty foot shelves. This is when possessing a good locator and knowing how to interpret what it is telling you is a big advantage. The key is to find baitfish on these humps and ridges. When you find baitfish, bass will not be far behind. Deep cranks in shad patterns and Carolina-rigged plastics are top lure choices for these deep water bass.

  One thing you can count on when fishing deep water structure during the dog days of summer is feeding time. When you start catching bass at certain times of the day, you can count on that spot producing the same time the next day. Most of August will be windless days but when the wind does start blowing, the windier the better. Find the windiest point you can. Wind pushing plankton and other micro-organ-isms over these points draw shad bait fish from around the area to feed. Every bass in the vicinity will be feeding on these points during the day. Shallow - running cranks in shad pat-terns are hard to beat when fishing these wind-blown points.

  When you start catching a few bass off any wind-blown main lake or secondary point, don’t be in a hurry to go to another fishing spot.  Fish that area thoroughly. Bass will use windy points as feeding stations with different groups of bass feeding at different times during the day. 

  If you are planning a trip to Lake Fork and need a guide, general fishing information or an updated fishing report to make your Lake Fork fishing experience a good one, you can call me at 903-850-5083 (cell) or 903-383-7214 (land line) or you can email me at dstroman@peoplescom.net. Bookings are available for fall trips.

  Dean is sponsored by Legend Boats, Mercury Marine, Mossy Oak, Century 21 Lake Country, Gotcha Distributing Co., Sebile Innovative, Arkie Reaction Innovation, Cast-away Rods, Brass/ Blades Lures, and Gene Larew.

Catfishing The Fork With Stan The Man

By Stan Kuhn

  The “Dog Days of Summer” are here and the fishing has been great. I seem to be having better luck when the wind is blowing and there is some kind of cloud cover. When the wind is calm, the bite can be tough.

  The Yantis Catfish Classic is over and over 400 anglers came to Lake Fork to try and win some of the $26,000 in prize money.

  I was very surprised to hear that most of the catfish were being caught in shallow water. The first cat weighed in on Saturday morning was a 10.65 lber. The 2^nd one was an 8.56 lber caught in 14 inches of water on Danny King’s Punchbait by Carson Pennington. That fish won him $400 for the 2^nd biggest of the hour.

  Carson and I are both sponsored by Danny Kings Punch-bait. If there is a catfish tournament going on somewhere, Carson and the Danny King Team will be in it. He fishes all over the country for big catfish.

  The shallow water cats have got me all confused. I have been catching all my catfish in 32 ft. of water. We have had a fantastic month of July as the boat has brought in 419 catfish with a week to go.

  On July 18^th I took my wife out fishing to try and put some catfish back in my freezer. I was getting low on fish as my customers have been eating some pretty good catfish lunches. On the 18^th the fish just stopped biting. I tried about 5 different areas where we had been catching them and they would just not bite. We caught only 5 cats all morning.

  On Tuesday the 20^th, same thing, LOCKJAW… 9 fish … on  Wed. 21^st, 9 fish. The bite had just stopped. But then on Thurs. the 22^nd, they came back and we put 31 in the boat. The next day my customers caught another 39 that weighed 88 lbs. The biggest one was a 9 lber.

  I guess the barometer changed because the fish sure turned on. The weather can sure affect the fishing. That’s one thing I have no control over. I try my best to put my customers on some catfish, but every day out there is different.

  One thing for sure…never give up! You have to have patience and a little bit of luck. Until next month, fish friendly and I hope you catch the big one! 

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This site last updated on Monday, August 09, 2010 02:37:28 PM