# Big Weather Basics



## Capt. Kris Kelley

*Castaway Lodge Seadrift Report
By Capt. Kris Kelley

Ghost Writer Free - Authentic Mid-Coast*

*Sponsored by: Mercury Marine; Air Ranger Airboats; Haynie Bay Boats; Baysport Marine Victoria; Coastline Trailers; JL Marine; CorrosionX; Pure Fishing; and, Bob's Machine Shop.*

*Primetimes - Advance Booking*

*Airboat Redfishing Trips - February to April Primetimes*

Take a look at fishing like you've never seen before with these high octane adventures in the back reaches of our marshes and environs. Hop aboard our custom Air Ranger Airboats and let the fun begin! These trips are in high demand, consider booking well in advance.






*Spring Wade Fishing Special *

*Free Lodging - Trophy Quest or Load The Boat Special* - We're offering free lodging for wade fishermen on trips booked between now and January 31st good for trips in the months of February, March, and April. So get out your calendar and come experience wadefishing artificial Lures with the best guides on the water in search of Trophy Trout & Redfish on the bays and Back Lakes environs of San Antonio Bay.






This stretch of the coast fishes on hard wind and weather during the Spring like no other and that makes for explosive encounters with feeding catalyst driven schools of solid fish. Experience personalized instruction and techniques, tips and tactics for any location. Relax at the lodge and enjoy some of the best dining and relaxation available on the Gulf Coast. Come join us at huge savings! Mention Promo Code *TROPHY2COOL*!






*February Special* - Button up for big savings, drift boat or wade fishing for Trophy Class Fish. Go big or go home! Get your dates on the books by January 31st and save big time $$. Click *HERE* for details. Follow us on Instagram. Call us to make a reservation at [888-618-4868] or inquire* HERE*. Stay in touch by following us on* Facebook*.

*Flounder Gigging Trips - Off Peak Heading to Warm Up*

We've been gigging some solid fish off and on since the season re-opened. The neat thing about the cooler Winter months is water clarity making fish much easier to spot. These trips are a neat add-on to any schedule.






*Fishing & Waterfowl Report*

Water levels again become a big concern as we've been trending on the low water side ahead of this strong front with big Northerly winds. We're expecting a big loss of water and we don't have much to lose right now. That's going to make for treacherous pre-dawn runs and complicated logistics. Redfish are being seen along shorelines that are deeper and near or adjacent to deep water. We ran a pretty good stretch yesterday noting fish pushing and mud boiling along the way.

Today was a smashfest on the bays with guides pushing back the envelope and taking heavy straps of Teal, Gadwal, Pintail, Wigeon, Redheads, Black Jacks and some Bull Shoves. Capt. Jeff Garner picked up a nice banded Pintail for guests from Georgia as well. Capt. James Cunningham says these aren't weather driven birds, they're fresh birds finally making they're way to the mid-coast. That's welcome news with lots of eager inbound guests from all over the State and Nation.

*A Safety State of Mind*

When things get dicey with big weather, poor visibility etc. it's best to put any time schedules you're maintaining mentally on the back burner. Similar to a pilot making a decision to slow play or delay in iffy weather. These conditions are a red flag warning for you to do things differently. We're fortunate on the Texas Coast to not deal with waterfowl that moves on daylight or darkness. That takes timetables and "in the duck blind before daylight" pressures out of the equation. Adapting and making adjustments to pre-conceived notions of game plan execution automatically puts safety in higher priority and gets things started on the right foot.

Fog is something we deal with more at times than others. I'm always amazed to hear the lumbering and stuggling drone of airboats making a run in zero visibility. You can tell by the sound of the boat that the operator is struggling greatly. Well I've got GPS, well that's great, it will get you from point A to point B but what about the other guy? GPS isn't radar and the absolute scariest thing that will chill you to the bone is seeing a boat wake when you're behind the stick in zero visibility. You know someone else is out there but you can't see them and they can't see you. Our ducks don't fly in the fog worth a darn so why risk it just to put life and limb on the line to sit in a blind and stare at the fog? It's better to slow play the schedule and make a move when visibility improves.

*Big Anchors *- In my opinion this is the most important safety item in a boat this time of year next to a life jacket bar none. If the engine goes down while running leaward waters, you've got to get that boat stopped and not drifting out to sea. A dead airboat is like a big sailboat when the power goes down. Being tail heavy makes them a watercraft you don't want to be in out in 3-5' chop mid-bay without power.

*No Such Thing As A Straight Line* - In big weather on the bays, there's never such a thing as a straight line and especially not in an airboat. There's a lot that goes into running strong cold fronts safely. One, you've got to know how to get from point A to point B the long way around. That's going to require knowing your boats capabilities in no and low water. Grounding out and beaching a rig in a distant stretch of the bays will find you spending the night occasionally and that's dangerous. Plan your routes according to the weather and if a straight line is involved, just automatically know that there will be problems. There have been times that I've run miles in the wrong direction intentionally in order to set up a big water crossing in order to run side slip to waves rather than head on.

Shallow water rigs can be a must because the routes that protect the transit can have very little water. A cold front can absolutely blow the water out of certain bays that may be your plan of travel. I know some folks with airboats that make a decent living posting up in these areas and pulling beached craft to deeper water. It used to be rare but, now it seems to be an all the time occurrence which is crazy.

If you don't have lots of days running big cold fronts on the bays, I'd make sure somebody on the boat knows what they're doing or don't risk it.






It's getting pretty ducky out there, this cold front is a good one, nasty. From Cast & Blast combinations to all combinations of waterfowl and hog hunting that we offer, our schedule is very full heading for the heart of the 2nd Split. We would like to thank everyone for making us a top destination on the mid-coast.

*Capt. Kris Kelley
Castaway Lodge
1-888-618-4868 
www.seadriftbayfishing.com

Advance Booking/Great Combination Venues*

*Alligator Season* - September 10th to the 30th join us for hunting Wild Texas Alligators on the mid-coast. Two time winner of Gatorfest in Anahuac, join the largest wild alligator hunting outfit in the State as we celbrate our heritage harvesting big Texas Size Lizards! A to Z services including post harvest packages for leather goods; Trophy Skinning and taxidermy; Hornback Skins; Green and Euro Skulls; finished meat and all the trimmings! Read More About It *HERE*






*Grain Season Hog = Safari Style High Rack Night Vision & Thermal* - Hit a nerve did we? Oh yes, join us in mid-August for Hitari Style high rack hog patrol as we drive local farms and ranches taking advantage of the harvest as hogs bee line for the fields. This is a shoot and move approach designed for maximum effect.


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## Capt. Kris Kelley

Ducking around....


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## Capt. Kris Kelley

a good one.


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## Capt. Kris Kelley

*Better Have It Strapped Down Tight!*

Upper marshes have gone dry; extra treacherous on the bays at this time; be very careful out there.

Reports from the field varied from limits shoots to light straps on water losses; afternoon is looking good with Capt. James Cunningham and Capt. Jeff Garner shuttling in a half dozen shoots into the mangrove lakes. Lots of birds showing up on the island; Redhead traffic has been between 4:15 and 5:30 with puddlers doing their business before 4:30 including Pintail, Wigeon, Gadwal and Teal.

Stay safe out there!


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## Capt. Kris Kelley

*Red Flag Warning*

Should be extra special on low to no water in the am. We'll be targeting Bull Cans and buffed out BWT Drakes in the morning with collector groups from NC & MI.


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## Capt. Kris Kelley

Doing The Whomp Whomp


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