# Rockport 1/5/18 Post-freeze report



## pocjetty

I went for another walk-in this afternoon. (Still don't know where I stand on the boat.) The air temp was around 55 degrees, and the water temp was around 52-53 degrees. I went to a shoreline with mud and shell. The water was "winter clear", but not gin clear. Water level is very low after the strong north winds we've had.

I listened to some of you and strung my new Concept Z with 30 lb. braid. If you've bought one, do NOT make a cast without moving the brake control inside the cover to at least 2. It comes set on 0, and I was expecting it to be free-wheeling, so I was ready to feather it with my thumb. Not quickly enough to prevent a big ugly tangle on my first cast. And my second. 

While I was putting on my waders, a young man on a bicycle came riding up carrying poles. Nice enough guy, but chatty, and I really wanted to get out and fish. So when I got my waders on, I wished him luck and took off. Without my wading belt, stringer, spare tackle, pliers, net, etc. I got out to a drop-off I wanted to fish before I noticed. Not wanting to slog back, and then wade all the way back out, I decided to C&R today. I had one jig head, and one tail - a strawberry and white that I tied because of a comment on another thread about how we used to fish with them so much "back in the day". 

The mud hadn't shown me anything on the way out, and the drop off didn't bring any instant success. There's a bit of shell reef that extends out perpendicular to the shore, and I quick-waded down to it. Standing in about 3 feet of water, and casting out to about 4 1/2 feet off water off the end of the reef, I hooked up on a nice trout which I released. The next cast I brought in another very nice trout. Often in these conditions, when you find one, you find them all. And I really didn't want to tell this story without pictures, so I yanked the draw-string out of the bottom of my windbreaker, poked a hole with the hook, and tied it to a ring on my waders.

I caught 10 fish before heading back. I usually keep the first 5 legal fish I bring in. Sometimes that means the pictures aren't as good, if I catch bigger fish later, but that's the way it is. I released the fourth fish, because it was bigger than I normally like to keep. The seventh was too big for me to tell about, without having a picture. I'll just say it was the biggest trout I've caught in the last five years.

Someone in the "most obnoxious phrase" thread said that he hates the term "solid trout". He'll have to give me something better. These fish were all very respectable size, and heavy - almost like surf trout. Maybe they were down in the bottom of the Intracoastal gorging on stunned baitfish. But they obviously haven't been starving recently. I was bumping the jig, but not painfully slow. They all hit hard - every one of them. Most came to the top and gave some impressive head-shaking on the way in. There was nothing sluggish at all about these solid trout. I think it's a good sign for the condition of the fish after the recent freeze.

Once I hung up on a big piece of shell. Lacking any other lures to fish with, I waded out, tippy-toed, and managed to get it loose so I could keep fishing. And so that I could keep stringing fish on the drawstring to my windbreaker. All things considered, it was a VERY fun late afternoon wade.


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## lite-liner

very nice...


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## WillieT

Great report, as usual. Nice catch too.


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## richg99

Nice, detailed report. 

Great to know that the red and white "touts" that I still have will catch some fish. Never really doubted it. Good lures get replaced by "what's hot" but they still work and probably always will. 

richg99


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## Blk Jck 224

Nice...I'll be out there Sunday


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## caddis

Fatties!


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## bowmansdad

Nice catch! Strawberry/white tail was 1st tout I used to catch trout on, still good today!


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## Demtx

Nice catch and thanks for report. Good to see the trout look to have weathered the cold snap just fine , and it was a bit cooler up your way. Was there deep water near by?


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## tealslayer

Great job POC. How were you working your soft plastic? I fished yesterday and ended with 2 big reds but couldnâ€™t buy a trout bite. Thinking I was working it too fast and maybe too heavy of a jig head(3/8 oz). Appreciate your detailed reports


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## pocjetty

Demtx said:


> Nice catch and thanks for report. Good to see the trout look to have weathered the cold snap just fine , and it was a bit cooler up your way. Was there deep water near by?


No, I should have mentioned that. Not near the Intracoastal, or any kind of harbor. No especially sharp drop to mid-bay depth. Just "normal" shoreline.

No question, though, that the reef was a collection point for the fish. And since the reef was shallower than the surrounding bottom, there was a more drastic drop-off from off the end of it, into about 4-4 1/2 feet of water. But most weren't up hard against the shell. I was standing on the edge of it, and caught most of the fish maybe 15-20 yards off of it. The really big girl was out almost at the end of my cast.

Mostly I just wanted to confirm that there are fish moving back up into shallower water, and actively feeding. I was really sweating this freeze, and hoping that we didn't have a fish kill. I hope you guys up the coast will be seeing the same things.



tealslayer said:


> Great job POC. How were you working your soft plastic? I fished yesterday and ended with 2 big reds but couldnâ€™t buy a trout bite. Thinking I was working it too fast and maybe too heavy of a jig head(3/8 oz). Appreciate your detailed reports


1/4 oz. jig head, and a small-ish cocohoe type paddle tail. I was getting it down to the bottom and sort of double-tapping the bounce. But I couldn't keep it all the way down too much, because I would get hung up on shell. Slow, but not mind-numbing slow. A couple of times I experimented with just swimming it in. I got bumps, but no hookups that way.


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## Sportsman3535

So nice to see a positive report from our area. PM sent


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## TxMav

Great report. Great info. Canâ€™t wait to get back out there. 


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## Hawglife

Great report, as usual! Good to know they are doing OK down your way after this freeze!
I'm gonna be down south next weekend to see if I can't pull me a few fat girls out. I'll have to throw a STRAWBERRY /white tail, it is new years after all, and those fat girls gotta lose some weight! 

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## mccain

way to go w/the windbreaker string.....adapt and overcome


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## Flats Mark

Wonderful report...


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## Tetonguy

Great report .... thanks for sharing.


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## barronj

Happy for you on the big trout! Always a good report.


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## Txredfish

POCJETTY - Great report. Keep them coming.


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## pocjetty

I walked in and waded the two days after this report (1/6 and 1/7). I got my trout, but they were neither as large nor as plentiful as the day of the OP. It was pretty much a grind, and I didn't find any two fish together. I didn't keep anything smaller than 17", but I didn't catch anything bigger than about 20"-21". And I caught some that were right around the minimum 15" mark, and a few that were undersized. The first day I didn't see any that small.

I wanted to follow up, because all three days I never caught a single fish in water less than about 4 feet deep. I saw quite a few other fishermen wading and casting in about 3' of water, and they all came in empty handed - even the ones fishing live bait. The water temperature has risen steadily since Friday, which is why I wanted to mention the depth. I don't know about other places, but everywhere I've been the fish have been reachable, but not in skinny water.


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## Moochy

I?m glad to see you are out doing your thing and bringing home some nice fish. Maybe I will be able to knock the dust off the boat in the next month and come down and fish. There will be a open seat for you if you want to go to the other side of the bay.


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## pocjetty

StabbinFlatties said:


> I?m glad to see you are out doing your thing and bringing home some nice fish. Maybe I will be able to knock the dust off the boat in the next month and come down and fish. There will be a open seat for you if you want to go to the other side of the bay.


I started to call you a couple of times today, and got sidetracked. That's no excuse for not doing it, though. A month from now is probably going to be the ultimate dart throw in weather, but if you get a chance come on. I may not go straight across the bay with you if it's as rough as a couple of those trips this summer, but hopefully we won't have to.

Someone decided they needed my breathable waders more than I did, so I'll be wearing my gigantic neoprenes the rest of the winter. It's almost like having an extra person in the boat, so you might want to re-think that invitation.


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## pocjetty

I don't like starting new threads unnecessarily, so I'll just dump this here. The bait showed back up today - at least where I've been fishing. I saw little minnows for the first time, in ankle deep water. And some good schools of finger mullet out in calf deep water. Absolutely the first time I've seen any of that since the freeze.

I don't think it's a coincidence that the small trout showed up, too. I hadn't been catching any small fish, and today I couldn't keep them off the line. The sun warmed the mud flats up nicely, and I saw some good fish come in out of waist deep water. I only caught a couple, mostly because I was too hard headed and thought I would find them deeper, if I kept looking.

This time of the year, the only thing consistent is change. We've got another front coming in this week, though the temps are only supposed to get down to 34 or so. But for the next day or two, the mud should be warm enough to fish shallow again.


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## Haynie21T

Very nice Poc, good report and great fishing day! Fat trout for winter time as you noted in your report.


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## Puddle_Jumper

I always enjoy reading your reports..... Makes ya feel like yer there  Thank you for sharing !


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## Aggieangler

Tip on rethreading the windbreaker drawstring....straighten out a coat hanger and use that to feed the drawstring back through the channel. I guess you could thread a stringer through there instead, so that you would be more prepared next time said emergency arises!!


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## barronj

Thinking about your wader theft while working outside today, I thought "I'd stab someone in the *** cheek if I found them wearing my stolen waders", then I processed a little more and realized that might not be something I'd want to come out and say on a public forum, coloring peoples opinions of me and such. I'm not saying I'd do it, but I thought about it earlier today.

Understand, I'm still in recovery, so thoughts of this sort, while not what a prosperous and rational individual might ever give purchase to, they still showed up front and center in my deliberations today.


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## pocjetty

barronj said:


> Thinking about your wader theft while working outside today, I thought "I'd stab someone in the *** cheek if I found them wearing my stolen waders", then I processed a little more and realized that might not be something I'd want to come out and say on a public forum, coloring peoples opinions of me and such. I'm not saying I'd do it, but I thought about it earlier today.
> 
> Understand, I'm still in recovery, so thoughts of this sort, while not what a prosperous and rational individual might ever give purchase to, they still showed up front and center in my deliberations today.


Heh. I sure everyone will be shocked, but I've had the odd dark thought once or twice. I'm afraid that stabbing someone in the *** cheek is sort of like Mister Roger's Neighborhood by comparison. Ego te absolvo.

Yeah, I think the post-Harvey freebies are beginning to run out down here in Rockport. They appear to be coming out in force to supplement their dwindling resources. I bought a pair of Magellan waders at a clearance price a while back, and they're still in the box. I'll make it through this winter, at least, before I have to think about shelling out for another expensive pair.


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## pocjetty

Aggieangler said:


> Tip on rethreading the windbreaker drawstring....straighten out a coat hanger and use that to feed the drawstring back through the channel. I guess you could thread a stringer through there instead, so that you would be more prepared next time said emergency arises!!


Now that's funny. I'm such a tightwad, I was actually thinking about re-stringing that windbreaker. It's 20 years old, and it was given to me by a company I did some consulting work for, and it was cheap when it was new. Perfect for nasty fishing trips. You got me pegged with that suggestion.


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## leftyfisherman72

Hi POC. Thanks for your report. I'm so glad to hear that the freeze didn't get all of our fish. Congratulations on the big girl. 

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## leftyfisherman72

Btw, you helped us a lot right after the hurricane. I'm glad to see you getting to fish again. 

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## Deer30

How is the tide in St Charles bay?


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## captain sandbar

any info on how this nasty freeze impacted the fish in the Rockport area?


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## pocjetty

I can only tell you about Aransas Bay. It was almost as low as I've ever seen, a couple of days before this last front. Now it's the lowest I've ever seen. I'm sure someone else may have seen it lower, but not me. The wind has dropped, and now that the waves are down, I'm seeing rocks that I've never seen before.

I'm not even trying to figure out the fish kill yet, because I think the worst is ahead of us still. The temperatures won't be as cold as last night, but it's about how long the air temp stays down in the low to mid 30's. The good news (assuming there is any) is that I haven't seen a single barge running today, and I'm looking out at the mid-bay Intracoastal. Hopefully the wind laying down some will make for less wave action mixing the water.

The next couple of days will tell.


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## TxMav

pocjetty said:


> I can only tell you about Aransas Bay. It was almost as low as I've ever seen, a couple of days before this last front. Now it's the lowest I've ever seen. I'm sure someone else may have seen it lower, but not me. The wind has dropped, and now that the waves are down, I'm seeing rocks that I've never seen before.
> 
> I'm not even trying to figure out the fish kill yet, because I think the worst is ahead of us still. The temperatures won't be as cold as last night, but it's about how long the air temp stays down in the low to mid 30's. The good news (assuming there is any) is that I haven't seen a single barge running today, and I'm looking out at the mid-bay Intracoastal. Hopefully the wind laying down some will make for less wave action mixing the water.
> 
> The next couple of days will tell.


I know I haven't been around RP as long you and many others, but it's the lowest I've ever seen it. I wondered if it's ever been any lower.


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## Jeff SATX

pictures?


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## specktout

I live just off St Charles Bay in Lamar, and the tides are pretty low especially after this last front, the boat tramp is open, but probably difficult to get around in some parts of the bay due to the low water conditions. it looks like about 2' below MSL


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## RockportRobert

Crossed Cavasso Creek yesterday afternoon, and the little launch area was mud.


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## Deer30

not what I wanted to read! I was trying to fish Saturday in St Charles! Hope the tide gets back up, I don't wanna get stuck on another reef! May just hit Baffin if it doesn't get back to normal in the next few days.



specktout said:


> I live just off St Charles Bay in Lamar, and the tides are pretty low especially after this last front, the boat tramp is open, but probably difficult to get around in some parts of the bay due to the low water conditions. it looks like about 2' below MSL


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## TxMav

Jeff SATX said:


> pictures?


Snapped a couple pics today. I think itâ€™s actually up a little since a few days ago























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## Deer30

That 2nd pic little bay?


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## TxMav

Deer30 said:


> That 2nd pic little bay?
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Yes.

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## Deer30

Deer30 said:


> That 2nd pic little bay?
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


any water in the boat ramps?


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## TxMav

Deer30 said:


> any water in the boat ramps?


Didnâ€™t make it to any boat ramps. Pretty sure cove harbor is ok. Itâ€™s fairly deep there. Not sure about the others in the area.

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## EIGHTSKATE

Wife came back from Rockport Wednesday and said they were dredging the boat ramp at the causeway on Copano it had silted in from the hurricane. I had already bumped the bottom on low tide before hurricane. Don't know how long it will take but good to hear.


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