# Historic fish kill



## DM3 (Jul 7, 2009)

I remember the 1989 storm and we didn't catch a trout in POC until that summer. I'm afraid this storm will end all fishing this year. The state will probably implement a 5 fish rule state wide now even though catching a limit will be impossible. I feel for the guides and lodges that will have a hard time surviving this. In 1989 there were less fisherman than now and the fish stock was in good shape compared with today. I am so depressed i need to fish and i hate to bass fish.


----------



## spurgersalty (Jun 29, 2010)

Then go crappie fishing, they love the.cold. thinkin bout goin myself


----------



## juanpescado (Dec 22, 2006)

89 was about 1/2 as bad as the 83, the problem with the 89 is that the fishery had just started to fully recover from the 83 freeze, alot of guides hung it up between 83 and 86...


----------



## capt. david (Dec 29, 2004)

we got hit double with the 89 freeze. both 89 and 83 caught many fish off guard with the weather being warm and temps fell fast. places wil loose some fish but nowhere near 83 or 89.


----------



## The Driver. (May 20, 2004)

Pick up a bible and start reading!


----------



## Gilbert (May 25, 2004)

The Driver. said:


> Pick up a bible and start reading!


we are living in our last days


----------



## TooShallow (May 21, 2004)

83 was bad. Several days were it did not get above freezing. Citrus crop/trees were destroyed. I'm sure the snook and mangroves are gonna take a big hit but I don't think this will be near as bad as 83 or 89. I have some pics of nice limits of LLM trout caught in the spring right after the 83 freeze so have faith. We will lose some but it won't be that bad.


----------



## juanpescado (Dec 22, 2006)

Gilbert said:


> we are living in our last days


Its the Mayan calender I tell ya...


----------



## Wading Mark (Apr 21, 2005)

Upper Coast will be fine. In fact, this spring could be one for the ages.


----------



## Momma's Worry (Aug 3, 2009)

Gilbert said:


> we are living in our last days


My prediction....end of the spotted weakfish fishery in Texas as you all know it.......hope im wrong...


----------



## slickfish (Dec 13, 2006)

Does this mean all the midcoast guides are now going to invade the upper coast? This should be an awesome sight to see.


----------



## glennkoks (Jun 24, 2009)

This is not going to be the end of the trout fishery. On average we have had one fish kill per decade. Everything is cyclical and this is mother natures way of culling the herd. Only the stronger specs will survive, the weaker ones wont make it and the result will be a stronger species. We have bounced back from much worse and we will bounce back from this. 

Mangroves were a rare visitor this far up the coast in the 70's and 80's.


----------



## Gilbert (May 25, 2004)

there is a huge fish kill every time I hit the bay


----------



## Bocephus (May 30, 2008)

Momma's Worry said:


> My prediction....end of the spotted weakfish fishery in Texas as you all know it.......hope im wrong...


Obviously you don't remember 1983.....this is nothing compared to 83.


----------



## Bocephus (May 30, 2008)

Gilbert said:


> there is a huge fish kill every time I hit the bay


Take it easy on those hardheads Bro.....:biggrin:


----------



## Wading Mark (Apr 21, 2005)

slickfish said:


> Does this mean all the midcoast guides are now going to invade the upper coast? This should be an awesome sight to see.


Most of the ones I've met won't know what to do up here.


----------



## Sow Trout (Jun 28, 2004)

I pretty much quit fishing after the '89 freeze and started quail hunting. It wasn't long before the quail were gone so I am back to fishing. I hope the fish survive.


----------



## reeltimer (Feb 5, 2010)

This just in a flock of snowbird's were spotted heading from Rockport to Galveston!


----------



## WVNative (Sep 16, 2010)

It's a coming. Watch.....


----------



## saltaholic (Feb 19, 2005)

I really hope your not serious.....Myans dont know ****, just becasue they quit making a calendar doesnt mean a **** thing.


WVNative said:


> It's a coming. Watch.....


----------



## Stumpgrinder (Feb 18, 2006)

Momma's Worry said:


> My prediction....end of the spotted weakfish fishery in Texas as you all know it.......hope im wrong...


Your opinion based upon what ? (other than a WAG and willingness to try and upset folks)


----------



## Momma's Worry (Aug 3, 2009)

Bocephus said:


> Obviously you don't remember 1983.....this is nothing compared to 83.


I have missing fingers and toes from the freeze 0f 83......happened while I was chipping out 12-15lb spec's from the ice in east bay


----------



## gus110 (May 14, 2008)

Apparently we won't make it until 2012 according to this guy

http://may-212011.com/


----------



## CoastalOutfitters (Aug 20, 2004)

my goldfish are still alive in the birdbath

sun and daytime temps should save the bays


----------



## Bocephus (May 30, 2008)

Momma's Worry said:


> I have missing fingers and toes from the freeze 0f 83......happened while I was chipping out 12-15lb spec's from the ice in east bay


WOW ! :spineyes:


----------



## WVNative (Sep 16, 2010)

saltaholic said:


> I really hope your not serious.....Myans dont know ****, just becasue they quit making a calendar doesnt mean a **** thing.


Just interesting. We will see. A whole lot of speculating but nothing we can do about it anyway. Pray it ain't so....


----------



## saltaholic (Feb 19, 2005)

Why dont you go crawl back under a rock on the bluewater board somewhere. Nobody needs your bull **** right now, there are allot of people with allot of money and business based around bay fishing. That means families could be affected all around, so get lost!


Momma's Worry said:


> I have missing fingers and toes from the freeze 0f 83......happened while I was chipping out 12-15lb spec's from the ice in east bay


----------



## Burt (Jan 16, 2011)

The world is coming to an End


----------



## crw91383 (Nov 21, 2008)

Does anybody have any pictures of any of this supposed fish kill? As somebody else stated on another thread earlier mother nature knows what she is doing and this fishery If substantially affected by a fish kill will rebound. Not this one specifically but other threads and forums have left me feeling as if i were watching some over sensationalized 24 hour news network that is spreading fear before all the fact or evidence has been presented . Only time will tell. Also as somebody else stated this has happened before and will happen again. 

Keep warm and stay safe,
Chris


----------



## Cool Hand (Mar 24, 2010)

Bocephus said:


> Take it easy on those hardheads Bro.....:biggrin:


He makes Menudo with them..:spineyes:


----------



## Bocephus (May 30, 2008)

Cool Hand said:


> He makes Menudo with them..:spineyes:


LOL....I wouldn't doubt it a bit !


----------



## Texas Jeweler (Nov 6, 2007)

The bays froze over in '83, nothing like this cold snap.


But ya'll panic of your Game Boy beats you...


----------



## Titus Bass (Dec 26, 2008)

Until some substantiated facts are presented I think the Historic fish kill is BS.....


----------



## bubbas kenner (Sep 4, 2010)

The Driver. said:


> Pick up a bible and start reading!


Amen Amen Amen it has changed my life.I cant keep quite about it .I am so comforted with Gods words you hit it brother .


----------



## A Draper (Aug 14, 2007)

Port Oconnor area January 2010:














Port Lavaca January 2010:


----------



## bubbas kenner (Sep 4, 2010)

I pray for all who depend on the fishery for a living and us that enjoy it for pleasure .Our God has it under controll put it in his hands he created it for us .He is who the wind and sea obey .


----------



## let's go (Nov 14, 2005)

What I see is a lot of concern, not panic. Panic would be people selling their gear to take up golf. The concern is legitimate. We haven't seen this kind of event for 20 years. We've been lucky and those who fished through the aftermaths of past freezes know what it'll be like if it has indeed occurred again. It sucks. 

Yes, the bays will survive and recover. But if this is a major kill there will be thousands of folks affected. The coastal fishing business is huge along this coast and if the most popular species gets hit hard so will the entire industry. Guides and lodges aren't the only ones, boat builders, tackle companies, bait shops, tackle stores and all of their employees would face some lean times. Thinning the trout population means thinning the jobs in the outdoors industry during a time when the economy is already slumping.

The hardcore anglers will still go fishing and will have some success, but the casual anglers will try it a few times and then give up. I know a lot of folks who quit fishing for quite a while following past freezes. When populations are good pretty much everybody can count on going out and catching some fish, but when it's tough they won't be able to do that. 

So yes, a lot of folks are very concerned. I'm a sales rep for fishing tackle and my wife is employed by a large tackle store. There's a lot in play for my household as well as many of my friends.


----------



## Brine Jake (Aug 12, 2005)

A lot of good words on this thread. FWIW a little more anecdotal history--
Warning: may bore many--if that's you, just skip it...

I didn't get in on the '83 freeze. In '83 I lived west, was very busy and rarely fished salt anywhere except the summer surf (and occasionally the jetties, which I'd been doing off and on since the late '50's). Surf trout in the late '70's-early '80's had been stupendous (even before the car bodies), especially at the mouth of the Colorado (before the jetty).

If I recall right, fishing all over UGB, TBay, East Bay in the late '80's was phenomenal. (I didn't fish West Bay much, except the surf at the Pass in summer.) So were the crowds. Everybody was wading (where it was possible), throwing brokenbacks and Jumpin Minnows along with all the old standbys, and slamming the trout. One spring day I passed Hodges and counted 13 boats, each with a party of waders out. Mike Williams articles naming Mirrolure by number in bold caps (*52M752!*) on E shore TBay had been appearing in GCF and elsewhere. The goat pens and Fat Rat had herds of waders that were dropped off and picked up later. In addition to Fishing Inc and Delhomme's, there was a high dollar tackle shop in Highland Village with color-coded chalk report boards of locations with what to throw. KILT radio had a 24-hour phone line fishing report on tape, (I think The Outdoor Show was still on KTRH 740 at the time), etc. You get the idea. Speck fishing mania gripped the upper coast. The UC hard corps had already been in Matty and for a while, and some were fixin' to head for Sabine and Calcasieu.

In the Dec '89 freeze, air temps on the coast reached the low teens, maybe even single digits. Folks' pipes were busted all over town. We've all heard stories about the bays freezing, etc. Guide (the late) Guerry Hahn said that on a recon trip after the kill, there were trout floating the channel thick from Baytown to the Jetties. I don't recall the water temp lows, but they have been posted here in recent years.

I fished with Hahn in late February 1990. He had been on some reds just north of Smith Point, but that spot was blown out by a hard NE wind. (Heheh--I woulda thought he knew better.) We pulled out, parked the trailer and walked in at the Refuge. I hit a nice trout on a Jumpin Minnow. (We weren't measuring much then, but prolly around 25) Hahn said that was the first live trout he had seen since the freeze, and he had been out almost every day for two months. Three of us caught and released 3 trout total. We guessed that they had migrated in from the surf. Just a guess.

One of the West G Bay guides said, "Anybody tells you there's any trout in West Bay is a liar." (It wasn't Frazier or Pepper, but another of the mid-old timers. I could get it on a multiple choice.) Jack Booth at Bastrop suggested in '91 (or '92?) that "if you want to eat fish, go buy ya some sardines."

Obviously fishing got phenomenal again, but it did take a while. By the mid-90's, it was definitely on strong.

I'm drawing no particular conclusions. When people warn about how bad it can be, they are not trying to stir up trouble. It really happened. Although it is not as cold as 83 or 89, and it's still too early to see, I am very concerned. Anyone who has Offats bottom temps, I'd be grateful.

A lot of you who fished regularly know the history much better than I--just reminiscin'.

Hang in there now...we're walking upright, and there ain't nobody shootin' at us.


----------



## shallowist (May 28, 2009)

Here's two interesting pictures for all of you worried about the upper coast. This freeze versus last years January event. I just happened to save a pic from the Eagle Point buoy for reference. Water was slightly colder up here last year. 

Hang in there guys and gals, we are still no where near to the devastating events of the 80's


----------



## reeltimer (Feb 5, 2010)

I just did a tour of the San Leon are boat ramp's and walk in spot's and no shight of dead bait or fish.I did see alot of hungry looking bird's.All the private and public boat ramp have very little water.


----------



## DM3 (Jul 7, 2009)

The reason i started this thread was two fold if i say how bad this fish kill is going to be maybe i will look stupid when it turns out to be not as bad and that will be fine with me i've been called worse lol. What bothers me is how long the water temps have been below 45 it's been close to 4 days. In 89 does anybody know how long the water temp was below 45?


----------



## DM3 (Jul 7, 2009)

One other thing i don't think we have had water temps this low for this many days since 1989. Last year in POC the cold lasted around 24hrs i think before it warmed up and the only fish kill was in pringle lake this is much worse.


----------



## 100% Texan (Jan 30, 2005)

Look here last year we had a fish kill in matagorda they were 2 feet deep and ten yards wide about 20 miles long of dead bait on the south shoreline in east matagorda the smell lasted about 2 weeks the pelicans had a blast eating all that smelly ****.I think we will be ok for now but they are claiming another brutal storm is headed this way next week so the water will be cold from now till then. And that is when I believe we will have to worry.


----------



## shallowist (May 28, 2009)

someone who remembers can confirm, but I believe the air temps didn't rise above freezing for somewhere in the neighborhood of 72 hours. Lows in the teens at night. 

The other factors that made the 80's events so bad was very warm temperatures prior to the fronts, then very rapidly falling temperatures. Our fish had a solid day and a half to two days this time to move to safe waters. 

Last year fish were caught off guard in shallow lakes, possibly stunned by the rapid cold and also low water. Tides were up somewhat and fish had aclimated to the relatively cold temps when the front hit. The wind blew hard dropping water levels faster than the temperatures. 

There's no doubt that this front is cold, but we should probably save the panic until we have a reason. 

Oh yeah, if you go out and see some fish floating, don't mess with them. cold blooded animals can get stunned by low temps and recover.


----------



## The Machine (Jun 4, 2007)

its not a human mishap, nature being nature, The Almighty is in control, relax, n those that believe in the mayan calendar, your ignorant, the good word say no man, nor for that matter the angels know the time or day, so chill and go fish.


----------



## Upchurch85 (Dec 12, 2006)

Thanks 4 the report reeltimer


----------



## mustfish (May 26, 2010)

juanpescado said:


> Its the Mayan calender I tell ya...


Was supposed to be the "end" when Haley's comet came in the 80's too. Hmmmm...we're still here. Still fishin'. Just have Faith. Hope for the best.


----------



## Brine Jake (Aug 12, 2005)

shallowist said:


> Here's two interesting pictures for all of you worried about the upper coast. This freeze versus last years January event. I just happened to save a pic from the Eagle Point buoy for reference. Water was slightly colder up here last year.
> 
> Hang in there guys and gals, we are still no where near to the devastating events of the 80's


Good to know--Excellent comparison snapshot. Great save, Shallowist. Thanks. Data trump memory almost every time.

The concern this year has to do with duration more than trough low temps, so I checked the Galveston average air temps. They match up pretty closely, with this year only slightly colder over the 5 day period. Although the averages don't tell the whole story, this looks encouraging for us, too. Both had lows at or below freezing for 5 days. (No guarantees, and it could be close.)

Galveston air temps daily average
January 2010
http://www.wunderground.com/history/airport/KGLS/2010/1/4/MonthlyHistory.html

Date Avg air temp Jan 2010 last year 
7 ..... 47 
8 ..... 32
9 ..... 33
10..... 36
11..... 42

Galveston air temps daily average
February 2011
http://www.wunderground.com/history...tml?req_city=NA&req_state=NA&req_statename=NA

Date Avg air temp Feb 2011 this week
1 ..... 46
2 .....  31
3 ..... 34
4 ..... 32
5 ..... 42 (forecast from avg of high and low only)

(I wonder what a video of the bottom of Offats would look like right now. Big pile of trout logs. I vote they keep it closed till Monday.)


----------



## Troutslurp (Dec 19, 2004)

As of 3pm this afternoon there are absolutely "No Floaters" in Matagorda Harbor...


----------



## fishdoc1 (May 22, 2004)

Good news the sun is out in POC and the water temp shows to have jumped up to 43. I hope the trout can hold out one more night.


----------



## REELING 65 (Aug 18, 2009)

The fish are all alright..lol, except for a few here n there. Fishing will be great..do not panic..the fish are stayin warm with some hot fresh Colombian coffee. The fish will move into deeper water columns...do not fear the fish are here. :biggrin:


----------



## Salt Water Texan (Oct 1, 2009)

DM3 said:


> The reason i started this thread was two fold if i say how bad this fish kill is going to be maybe i will look stupid when it turns out to be not as bad and that will be fine with me i've been called worse lol. What bothers me is how long the water temps have been below 45 it's been close to 4 days. In 89 does anybody know how long the water temp was below 45?


There were two freezes and fish kills in 1989. In Feb. water temps were below 45 for five days. Later that year in Dec. the water temp was below 45 for nine days.


----------



## REELING 65 (Aug 18, 2009)

Wading Mark said:


> Upper Coast will be fine. In fact, this spring could be one for the ages.


X2!


----------



## IsleSurfChunker (Sep 25, 2009)

This little frost is nothing compared to '83 or '89. In those years, right around Christmas we hit 19 deg that I remember as a low with 10 days in a row where in never got above 32 deg. Heck yeah I remember those years, I was in the plant for both those hard freezes. Had the fire monitors on full blast just so they wouldn't freeze. 
But someone was right, the trout fishing through the mid-80's was pretty slim. Of course we didn't have all the popular artificial's that we have now. I was throwing Mirrolures and the original Touts as well as spoons back then. 
Now the saltwater lure world has exploded, all for the good. 
We'll be fine on the Upper Coast if we can get to March with out a huge freeze.


----------



## Brine Jake (Aug 12, 2005)

shallowist said:


> someone who remembers can confirm, but I believe the air temps didn't rise above freezing for somewhere in the neighborhood of 72 hours. Lows in the teens at night. **
> 
> Galveston daily air temps for the Dec 89 Freeze
> High....Avg ... Low
> ...


----------



## RGV AG (Aug 15, 2005)

This cold spell is a blink compared to the Dec. 83' and 89' freezes. In 83' the LLM basically iced over, supposedly only had happened twice before since folks been keeping track.


----------



## Brine Jake (Aug 12, 2005)

Salt Water Texan said:


> There were two freezes and fish kills in 1989. In Feb. water temps were below 45 for five days. Later that year in Dec. the water temp was below 45 for nine days.


Thanks--now we gettin somewhere.

I didn't remember the Feb 89 fish kill.


----------



## Bayscout22 (Aug 9, 2007)

100% Texan said:


> Look here last year we had a fish kill in matagorda they were 2 feet deep and ten yards wide about 20 miles long of dead bait on the south shoreline in east matagorda the smell lasted about 2 weeks the pelicans had a blast eating all that smelly ****.I think we will be ok for now but they are claiming another brutal storm is headed this way next week so the water will be cold from now till then. And that is when I believe we will have to worry.


Believe it or not, I'm gonna run down and check it out tomorrow. I'll let you guys know what I see. It has been colder the last few days in Matagorda than it has here in Houston. The one coming next week looks to be barely dipping into freezing during the night. I hope we'll be OK.

I'm not sure how many have seen this site posted on another thread: http://lighthouse.tamucc.edu/TCOON/HomePage

It looks like the lower temps are isolated from about POC to Freeport. The lower and upper coast seem to be in much better condition.

Good luck to everyone!


----------



## haparks (Apr 12, 2006)

hell pass me a beer and some popcorn


----------



## juanpescado (Dec 22, 2006)

The Machine said:


> its not a human mishap, nature being nature, The Almighty is in control, relax, n those that believe in the mayan calendar, your ignorant, the good word say no man, nor for that matter the angels know the time or day, so chill and go fish.


BLAH, the mayans did, lol....


----------



## glennkoks (Jun 24, 2009)

Every freeze is slightly different. Conditions before the freeze including temps and tide levels, how cold it gets, duration of cold temps, wind speed and how fast the wind comes around to the south east. Temperature wise this cold snap does not compare to either 89 or 83. However the duration of this sold snap is comparative. When all is said and done Galveston will have spent about 90 consecutive hours below 36 degrees. So I fear that considerable damage has been done. Tonight is going to be the kicker in the mid twenties.


----------



## Haute Pursuit (Jun 26, 2006)

There was ice all the way across parts of West Galveston Bay in 83. It stayed well below freezing for 4 or 5 days if I remember right. I remember seeing garbage cans suffed full of trout netted in the Galveston ship channel along with guys in boats with trout up to there knees. Much worse than this little cold spell is.


----------



## juanpescado (Dec 22, 2006)

Didnt work, go to link below

http://www.raingardens.com/psst/articles/artic03.htm


----------



## juanpescado (Dec 22, 2006)

Heres a link to the info for brownsville 1983 and 1989

http://www.raingardens.com/psst/articles/artic03.htm


----------



## Texas Jeweler (Nov 6, 2007)

Some fish will die now, just like they do on high temperature, low O2 days in mid to late summer.

Very dangerous cold weather kills occur adter 72 hours of sub freezing temperatures.


----------



## McTrout (May 22, 2004)

Negative Jewler Man (and you know we love ya...!) It doesn't matter what the air temp is, but if the water goes below 40F for very long at all we will certainly see some impact. I already have little tarpon, gar and mullet floating here in the PM Harbor. 

Many places have seen well <40F for 36-40 hrs now, with yet another night in the mid/low 20's. Of course I will stay positive, but if they are already seeing floaters in the Brownsville Channel (one of the deepest 'refuge' down here) then I do quite image I'll have to take some pics tomorrow. We are launching and running north to the Land Cut to find out. 

Let's never take for granted the fish we catch...


----------



## jimk (May 28, 2004)

I stole this from TTMB forum...I don't think it's been posted on this thread. I don't know if it's true and I don't know where the data comes from, but if true, it looks like a speck is much hardier than I thought, while snapper, snook and mullet would be the first to go. To convert C to F, multiply by 1.8 then add 32.

http://galvestondailynews.com/story/209398

Here's part of the article:
Water temperatures that are considered lethal vary by species and age of fish. Listed below are several species and the lethal temperature for each.

The temperatures are shown in centigrade readings rather than Fahrenheit. A simple, unscientific conversion method is to take the centigrade or Celsius number and add 32 to it. This should get you to within a degree or two of Fahrenheit.

Spotted sea trout (speckled trout) - loss of equilibrium at 6C; death occurs at 3C for juveniles and 2C for adults.

Red drum - death at 4C; gray snapper - death at 11-14C; snook - death at 9-14C for juveniles and 6-12C for adults; striped mullet - death at 10C; pinfish - death at 3.5C; menhaden - usually about 5C; and flounder, the hardiest of them all, can tolerate the cold water down to freezing before it is fatal.


----------



## Brine Jake (Aug 12, 2005)

Haute Pursuit said:


> There was ice all the way across parts of West Galveston Bay in 83. It stayed well below freezing for 4 or 5 days if I remember right....


The '89 freeze was a killer, too. Air temp in Galveston rose above freezing every day except one. See below.

Galveston daily air temps for the Dec 89 Freeze 
High....Avg ... Low
44 .....40 ..... 36 (not an official freeze day)
34 .....26 ..... 18 
25 .....19 ..... 13
39 .....29 ..... 19 
52 .....39 ..... 26

http://www.wunderground.com/history/...q_statename=NA


----------



## Haute Pursuit (Jun 26, 2006)

Brine Jake said:


> The '89 freeze was a killer, too. Air temp in Galveston rose above freezing every day except one. See below.
> 
> Galveston daily air temps for the Dec 89 Freeze
> High....Avg ... Low
> ...


No doubt that one was bad as well.


----------



## ProSkiff (Jan 2, 2008)

Brine Jake said:


> Guide (the late) Guerry Hahn


I'm pretty sure Mr. Hahn is not late.....I believe he's still living out on Trinity Bay.


----------



## 1sicpup (Mar 16, 2009)

I took a ride to the mouth of the Brazos and then down to Surfside before work this afternoon, no floaters anywhere. Although I didn't make it all the way to Christmas.

In 89 I was working with a Yankee boy from upstate New York. He came to work bragging about his cooler full of cold stunned "redfish" he had picked up in the little bay behind the dunes on Quintana beach. He said he had to hide behind the dunes for an hour to keep the gamewarden from catching him. So we all gather round the trunk of his little Toyota, he pops the trunk and opens the ice chest to reveal some of the biggest mullet I have ever seen. We rode his ***** for years over that one.


----------



## Bigwater (May 21, 2004)

Ha them Trout have Sweaters now...they didn't have 'em back in 83...or 89.

Biggie:biggrin:


----------



## Brine Jake (Aug 12, 2005)

ProSkiff said:


> I'm pretty sure Mr. Hahn is not late.....I believe he's still living out on Trinity Bay.


Yes, in spirit, no doubt. Gold Spoon and all. He will be out birddogging the area, looking after the big ones at first light, through this here freeze.

Guerry introduced me to brokenbacks. I didn't know him well, but a friend who did used to trade him a bird hunt for a fishing trip now and then. I got to jump aboard a few times. I never got to fish with him and his dad together--heard some good stories about those trips.


----------



## Greg E (Sep 20, 2008)

I watched the CC weather this afternoon. They were calling for temps in the mid to low 20's. It's 4:45 saturday morning. The air temp in the middle of San Antone bay is 37.


----------



## ProSkiff (Jan 2, 2008)

Brine Jake said:


> Yes, in spirit, no doubt. Gold Spoon and all. He will be out birddogging the area, looking after the big ones at first light, through this here freeze.
> 
> Guerry introduced me to brokenbacks. I didn't know him well, but a friend who did used to trade him a bird hunt for a fishing trip now and then. I got to jump aboard a few times. I never got to fish with him and his dad together--heard some good stories about those trips.


No.....seriously....he lives in a house on Trinity Bay. Still telling fish stories, he speaks fondly of his 'ol Johnson Sprite Gold Spoon!


----------



## baldhunter (Oct 8, 2004)

I think we dodged the bullet on this freeze.One thing that helped,was the warm spell before this hit.The water temps.were up and that gave us an extra day or two reprieve from the cold water temps.this storm brought us.We were very close to a major disaster,but I think we will be alright.Maybe a few kills,but nothing like the 83 and 89 freezes,not even close.This next system coming is going to be cold too,but it's not going to last long enough to hurt us.Now if we had a repeat of what we just had,we would be in trouble.


----------



## Silvermajek (Mar 5, 2008)

Brine Jake said:


> Yes, in spirit, no doubt. Gold Spoon and all. He will be out birddogging the area, looking after the big ones at first light, through this here freeze.


Brine Jake,

Guerry is still living out on Trinity Bay just south of Anahuac. Hell, just a few weeks ago I sat down and listened to lots of good ole fishin and huntin stories over a few cold Shiners with him.


----------



## kenny (May 21, 2004)

Burt said:


> The world is coming to an End


I just hope it's before April 15th. so I won't have to pay taxes.......


----------



## Cool Hand (Mar 24, 2010)

Hey Cedar bayou is open!



adults $15.00, kids under 10 free with proof of lifetime membership to CCA or you may mail your payment to CCA :spineyes: you may also stop the fish kill with a 100.00 donation or more.


----------



## waterhaunter (Jan 28, 2008)

*Water Temps Upper Laguna*

I have been monitoring surface water temps behind my house in Padre Isles (upper Laguna Madre). Water temp has been slowly dropping from 47 on Thursday afternoon to a low of 45 this morning at 8:30. I have a good thermometer. Fishing after the 1989 kill was so bad in Port Mansfield we stopped making trips that year. By 1991 it was fair. After that my trips were good, and got better every year. Fortunately I have a good log book, because my memory is only fair.


----------



## master (May 9, 2006)

McTrout

Please let us know what you find. We are planning on running to the cut from the north end tomorrow. We were going to go today but decided to let it warm for a day to let them come up and float if they are going to


----------



## Brine Jake (Aug 12, 2005)

*Guerry Hahn*



silvermajek said:


> Brine Jake,
> 
> Guerry is still living out on Trinity Bay just south of Anahuac. Hell, just a few weeks ago I sat down and listened to lots of good ole fishin and huntin stories over a few cold Shiners with him.


OK guys, how old a fellow are we talking about?


----------



## dirt dog (Feb 3, 2010)

this cold spell was nothing compared to the 83 cold spell. the other thing folks have foregotten we had a red tide in the late spring or early summer of 84 that was the icing on the cake. we took it on the chin 2 times in the Matagorda bay systems in less than a year.


----------



## REELING 65 (Aug 18, 2009)

dirt dog said:


> this cold spell was nothing compared to the 83 cold spell. the other thing folks have foregotten we had a red tide in the late spring or early summer of 84 that was the icing on the cake. we took it on the chin 2 times in the Matagorda bay systems in less than a year.


Yep...in my opinion,Red Tide is by far way worse.


----------



## ProSkiff (Jan 2, 2008)

Brine Jake said:


> OK guys, how old a fellow are we talking about?


82ish....? He's my cousins grandad, and silvermajeks sisters grandad. Maybe you speak of his father?


----------



## Silvermajek (Mar 5, 2008)

Brine Jake,

My bad, you must have been refering to Guerry Jr.


----------



## Triton22 (Jan 22, 2011)

I am hoping the extreme low tides that we had all of last week chased the trout from the marshes and shallow water into the deeper bay


----------



## Sea-Slug (May 28, 2004)

I used to fish a few honey holes in Corpus Christi Bay every summer starting in the mid 70's all the way up to 1992 with my father. The spec fishing was absolutely phenominal from 75 to 84. I remember a few off years in the mid 80's but we still caught a few specks in the old gafftop hole off of Shoreline Dr. But when we went in 1989 or 1990 up till 1992 you could not buy a trout. We used to stay 2 weeks and fish hard every day. I remember there were lots of hardheads but that was when I really noticed the croaker were in trouble. I do not think they ever recovered in Corpus Christi Bay after 89. I think we caught 2 trout the worst summer over off the rocks by the old Corpus Christi Convention Center, and those were the only 2 we heard of. And they were both big trout. I thought it would never recover, but it did. Corpus Christi Bay will never be the fishery it was in the 70's, but it is better now than the early 90's by far. Heck- I am old enough to remember when Redfish were almost all gone in Corpus Christi Bay. With good management and a little help from mother nature, the specs will recover. The other species may get it even worse, especially the mangrove snapper and snook who have moved all the way North to Freeport. It will all work out. I have saw this cyclicle trout number thing twice before.


----------



## Brine Jake (Aug 12, 2005)

silvermajek said:


> Brine Jake,
> 
> My bad, you must have been refering to Guerry Jr.


Pro, Silver,
Thanks to you both for the update. No bad--I never knew that he was Junior--I didn't know his father's first name--or if I did, I'd forgotten. As I said, I didn't know Guerry (Jr) well. I had the impression that they were really close, though. Very sad loss for all.

I'm glad to hear that Guerry Sr. is still around, having some fun, telling stories. I had no idea.

We also fished with Guerry Jr's/(your?) cousin Mike Hahn once when Guerry Jr had to cancel. He told some pretty good stories himself. Mike was fond of long boat rides...heheh--we bought the gas (prolly at about 80c a gallon).

Thanks again, guys--any other news is welcome.

BJ


----------



## Brine Jake (Aug 12, 2005)

Hopefully all's well with the trout. I heard Capt Eastman this morning, and everyone on the upper coast is confident about it. I sensed some concern about other areas, but not a lot. As for forecasts on the incoming cold snap next week, it's not expected to last as long as this one.


----------



## CoastalOutfitters (Aug 20, 2004)

matagorda sunny and warm around 60 degrees next 3 days, this will help alot


----------



## trouthammer (Jan 24, 2009)

DM3 said:


> I remember the 1989 storm and we didn't catch a trout in POC until that summer. I'm afraid this storm will end all fishing this year. The state will probably implement a 5 fish rule state wide now even though catching a limit will be impossible. I feel for the guides and lodges that will have a hard time surviving this. In 1989 there were less fisherman than now and the fish stock was in good shape compared with today. I am so depressed i need to fish and i hate to bass fish.


Looks like we made it through another sky is falling historical disaster of epic proportions....barely. Now if we can just make it through that Mayan thing:walkingsm


----------



## master (May 9, 2006)

Ran all over from Flour Bluff to south of Bird Island. Found. A few dead baitfish and saw some dead turtles. So far no dead gamefish.


----------



## reeltimer (Feb 5, 2010)

Ran all over West Bay no dead fish or bait did here of a dead turtle sighted early am.It's was awesome today!


----------



## Specks&Spots (Aug 26, 2007)

Ran the north end of Sabine today and didn't see any floaters. The water temperature was between 45 and 47 degrees.


----------

