Fishing

Fall Trout Making a Showing at Bay Flats Lodge Resort & Marina

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THE GUIDE REPORT

THURSDAY – Sept 20th

Capt. Stephen Boriskie – Another good day of fishing with the boys, and while the fish eluded us we didn’t wait long before chasing after them. We started out doing what had worked on Wednesday, but around here “yesterday” is about as reliable as tomorrow! So, of course it didn’t work! Going back to what worked a couple weeks ago, I found some fresh mullet that were willing to come along. We gave ’em a good try and ended up with two beautiful Redfish before time caught up to us. Lending a hand to a customer shuttle, we helped bring a couple anglers in off a boat in distress. The cool thing about that was there were three of our guide boats helping one downed boat – all of us keeping the guests safe, and on time back to the dock. It’s just another example of the teamwork we are dedicated to around these parts. So, all these clients smoked the Redfish yesterday, and persevered today with a smaller box, but it turned out being a much better story of the typical team building adventures at Bay Flats Lodge.

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FRIDAY – Sept 21st

Capt. Todd Jones – Tough sleddin’ the last few days. Brandan and David were up for the challenge, and scratched out their limit of reds up to 25-inches. It was David’s first saltwater trip, so he’s off to a good start. I think the highlight of their trip might have been watching the little gator play with a cork! It was a lot of fun watching them catch fish!

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SATURDAY – Sept 22nd

Capt. Billy Freudensprung – A wise man once said, “If it ain’t blowing, we ain’t going”. Well, we went today and it was blowing! Blowing those fish against the shoreline kept Jeremy and Paul busy. They managed their redfish limits and chased a few extra nice-sized drum to top things off! Today turned out positive for these two!

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Capt. ‘Lil John Wyatt – Great day today with these guys! They had limits of reds and drum, to include several oversize reds that were released back into the bay to fight another day. The redfish action has been consistent lately, but the trout are making a slow appearance once again. Some of the guides have gotten into some good ones the last couple days – just another fun item to look forward to as things begin to cool off more around here! Stay tuned to the latest action!

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Capt. Kevin Matula – It wasn’t easy just getting out in the strong winds this morning, but we got out there! These guys stuck with it to the absolute end in an effort to bend some rods. They did alright considering today’s conditions!

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Capt. Steve Boldt – I wasn’t too sure about what sort of outcome we were going to have when we first started out this morning, because we didn’t hit upon the redfish bite like we have been doing quite regularly the past couple weeks. At least the trout cooperated, and they even allowed one of my guys a Texas slam – trout, red, and flounder!

Fishing

Bull Red on light tackle in Port O’Connor!

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My brother Mike and I spent Saturday fishing Seadrift, despite finding bait activity we just never found the fish..  We decided on Sunday to change gears and head to Port O’Connor.

We woke up at 5AM in our favorite little hotel, the Real Time lodge.  I stepped outside and the wind was calm, checked Doppler Radar on my phone and it looked like offshore showers, sweet!.  We headed to Port O’Connor and put in at the Fishing Center, grabbed some live shrimp and dead finger mullet and made our way to Sunday Pass right at first light with lots of bait in the water and thought for sure, “yeah, we are about to get into the fish!”  Well, we had activity but only put on trout in the box.  We decided to head over to Pass Cavello and ran out into the gulf for a few minutes before turning our little 16ft jon boat back in.  Even with just small rollers we understand how the gulf works and it doesn’t give a (blank) about you!  Having grown up on the coast in the boat business and doing some dumb stuff with boats we know the limits of our boat.

Back in we went and we fished the pass for a while with shrimp (hard head catchers), various top waters and soft baits without much success.  We tried fishing the bottom with cut bait but no luck.

Since it was so calm and it’s that time of the year for bull reds we decided to make a run up to the jetties to check it out.  There wasn’t much boat activity at all and we fished the edge of the jetties for a bit, even trying cut bait on the bottom with bait casters and got hung up several times.  We changed strategy and went to spinning rods and lures.  About a 1/3 of the way out Mike spotted feeding near the rocks cast a gold/black Rapalla Broke-Back lure and WHAM! got a hit, I saw a flash of “something big” and could tell it was a beast..

I spent 30 minutes gently trying to wear it out for fear of it snapping the 20lb line.   Any time I put some pressure on it would just start stripping line off the real.  I was working it and trying not to rush the fish..  working the drag and sometimes applying just a little finger pressure to the side of the spool.

I was praying for the line and knots to hold.   We finally saw it roll near the surface and it was a big old bull red!   I continued fighting it without just trying to muscle it in to the boat as I know from experience big fish can see the boat and make a hard head snap and break off.   When we finally got to land it Mike was like “this net isn’t big enough” Just the head went in and we both we wrestled it up into the boat.  It inhaled the lure, I held up by the gills while Mike worked trying to remove the lure so we could put it back into the water fast.

Really happy with my main trout/redfish rig, there were a few times when it ran under the boat and the rod was doubled over!

  • Waterloo Salinity 7’6″ rod
  • 20lb Windtamer braid
  • Berkely 20lb flourocarbon leader
  • Shimano Stradic 3000
Bull Red Port O'Connor
Bull Red Port O’Connor

 

Fishing

Cooler Waters Producing Red Hot Action at Bay Flats Lodge Resort & Marina

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THURSDAY – Sept 6th

Capt. Jason Wagenfehr – Thursday we had to duck and dodge a few storms, but we got lucky and landed on some fish. My thanks go out to Capt. Todd Jones for the use of his boat while he was on vacation – it seems to attract fish rather nicely!

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FRIDAY – Sept 7th

Capt. Stephen Boriskie

– We beat the rest of today’s deluge by limiting out on Speckled Trout early and then calling it a day just in time to once again get the customers under cover from today’s multiple rain storms. Unfortunately, things are probably going to be like this for a while. The next few days will be all about patience and timing until this tropical moisture dries up!

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Capt. Billy Freudensprung – I had a good day with these guys! We looked for the trout and the reds, and we found a couple here and there, but the guys wanted to experience some steady action. They wanted a bigger pull, so we chased a big school of black drum for some rapid C-P-R action. It was a lot of fun for everyone!

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Capt. Garrett Wygrys – Today was an all around amazing day! My crew set their minds to doing their very best, and that’s exactly what they did. They managed their three-man limit of Speckled Trout, as well as Redfish (to include one tagged Red). They topped things off by landing a few Black Drum – it was just icing on the cake!

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SATURDAY – Sept 8th

Capt. Billy Freudensprung – I had another Black Drum kind of day with today’s party, with a Redfish and some cats thrown in the mix. The trout bite just never materialized for us this morning, but the Black Drum were plentiful, which has been the case for the past few weeks now. We saw a nice Red and some cats, which filled the trout gap accordingly, but it would sure be nice to get back into the big trout circle once again. Once this weather blows through, and when things cool off a bit toward the end of the month, we will see some good Speckled Trout and exceptional Redfish action on a much more regular basis each day.

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Capt. ‘Lil John Wyatt – Great day on Saturday with the bachelor party that was part of the Vincent G. group. We actually experienced a rather nice Speckled Trout bite today, landing some of the finest trout I’ve seen all week long. The Redfish also graced us with their presence, and a couple of guys caught some nice ones. The guys had an absolute blast, with lots of fish boxed that led to everyone having a great time!

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Capt. Todd Jones – Back in the saddle after a two-week hiatus, and a much needed vacation. Knocked the rust off on a half-day morning trip with a group of contractors from the Houston area. The trout bite was a little slow for us, but the guys boxed eight solid fish for their efforts. A quick lunch and we were back out again for the afternoon trip. A change of strategy and location kept the guys busy with non-stop action, ending the day with their limits of reds to 27″ and some solid drum to 22″. Half-day on Sunday morning coming up with this group – hope their luck holds out!

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COOLER WATERS PRODUCING RED HOT ACTION

If you’ve been waiting for a break in the summertime heat before coming down to the coast to fish, then you should start packing for a September trip. We’re already seeing temps in the lower 80’s, and we should expect even a little cooler weather later in the month. It’s at this time in the year when the temperatures will begin to slowly drop allowing for milder conditions all along our coastal regions. The waters shall begin their greening process, and some of the season’s initial flights of ducks should start arriving from the upper states. The beginning of autumn will soon be upon us, and you’ll need to be ready.

With higher tides already taking place, Coastal Bend anglers should start looking to the various back lakes on Matagorda Island and to the shell reefs of San Antonio Bay to start producing some of the year’s finest trout action. As for the reds, you might start searching for them in Guadalupe Bay, looking for sand pockets and pushes (wakes) rather than tails. Recent rains have already cooled the water a bit and the reds have reacted quit positively. Maintain your standard summertime routine of starting early in the morning and starting out in some really shallow water.

For the pluggers amongst us, some of the year’s best top water action will soon begin, so start each day tossing small surface walkers like the Skitter Walk Junior or the Super Spook Junior. If they’re not hitting on top, try throwing some plastic tails rigged on either 1/8 or 1/16-ounce jig-heads. Absent of any unexpected tropical weather, area bay waters should remain in good shape, so try some of the more brilliant tail colors until you find one they like. Have fun out there, and be safe!

 

Fishing

DSL Chicken of the C strikes again!

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Good to be back on the water after some much needed rain! With the wind starting low we were able to walk a reef on our fisrt wade, with good numbers of 17-20″ trout.

Once the wind picked up we headed to the sand pockets of the shorelines. There we walked into several trout in the 20+ inch range.

Baits today started off with DSL chicken of the c on the reefs, and blue moon and majic grass on the shorelines.

Plenty of open dates available for this late summer/fall action. Give us a call and let’s go fishin’!

Capt. Nathan Beabout
Cell:(210)452-9680
nmsportsmansadventures.com

Capt. Nathan Beabout
Cell: (210) 452-9680
N&M Sportsman’s Adventures
nmsportsmansadventures.com
AB Kennels
abkennels.com

Fishing

Higher Tides Bring Fall Action at Bay Flats Lodge Resort & Marina

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WEDNESDAY’S SCOUTING REPORT

By: Capt. Chris Martin

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While on a Wednesday scouting session, I dialed-in several areas that needed to be investigated, especially with the bull tides we’re seeing right now. The top water bite was more of the “slap, swing in a miss”, so it was necessary to work the other portions of the water column. Interior back lake drains with swollen tides gave up scores of trout while working 6-inch Gambler flapp’n shad chicken on a chain tipped with 1/8 oz. screw lock jig heads. While scouting sandy shorelines in other areas, I found shrimp jumping nervously out of the water 100-150 yards off the salt grass, which resulted in fast-paced trout action. Norton tequila gold sand eels rigged on a Norton screw lock worked best. The best lure action was away from the shoreline and was a slow, but steady, retrieve – it felt like a heavy weight on the lure, or a slow pull on the line. I hope this helps!

Date – Wednesday, September 5, 2018

Time of Day – 2:30 pm – 3:30 pm

Water Temperature – 84 degrees

Air Temperature – 88 degrees

Wind Direction – Southeast

Wind Speed – 10-15 mph

ES Custom Boats Mercury Marine

THE GUIDE REPORT

TUESDAY – Sept 4th

Capt. Stephen Boriskie – Today was day #2, but it was a shorter day for these gentlemen. They had just as much fun, however, catching today as they did yesterday. Before we called it a day, one of the guys hooked a Gar on a live shrimp on a croaker hook. Imagine that! Anyhow, it was an interesting ending to a couple of fun days on the water with good people. We’re really looking forward to the fall season and the fall fishing pattern – it can’t get here soon enough!

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Capt. Jeremy McClelland – We have had some great fun the past few days with customers from age 6 to 60 – everyone’s been getting in on the action! The fish have been cooperating for the most part, with the most recent activity coming from the Redfish and the Black Drum. The trout are here, and in numbers, but many times we have to go through quite a few before we locate a slot fish. But that all seems to change from day to day, as well, because the other day some of our guests found numbers of nice size trout, even a couple of “Bigs”. Once this heat is broken for good, and the fall pattern sets in, we’ll be looking for greater numbers of larger trout. I can’t wait!

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WEDNESDAY – Sept 5th

Capt. ‘Lil John Wyatt – I have been fishing with different groups the past few days, and the fishing action has been nothing but steady! If things continue at this pace, we’re in for a great month of fishing in September. We’re seeing Speckled Trout, Redfish, Flounder, and Black Drum almost daily. We continue to swap between croaker and live shrimp, but the results have almost turned out the same regardless of the bait. As they bay water starts cooling a little bit later this month, we’ll start fishing more over grass and mud. Fall is always a transition worth waiting for around here – the weather cools off, and the fishing heats up! Get ready!

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HIGHER TIDES BRING FALL ACTION

Twice a year, at the September equinox and the spring equinox, the earth’s equator is aligned with the orbital plane of the earth around the sun. This is when we experience extremely high tidal ranges that generally peak in September, October, and sometimes even into the early part November, with the absolute highest tides occurring a day or two after the full or new moon nearest to the equinox. This is good news for us because favorable fishing conditions commonly exist around higher tides, specifically in coastal marshes, and especially following such extreme slack-tide conditions like those we’ve had here during the last part of the summer.

The trout, redfish, and flounder will suddenly all be able to go places that were previously unavailable to them. The trout, and particularly the redfish, will once again start looking for food on outgoing tides, tides that will dump an assortment of food out of the grassy areas and upon adjacent flats. When this happens, anglers need to be ready to take advantage of some of the hottest action of the year. Toss top water baits for trout during the first hours of light, but later switch to soft plastics, working them slightly above the bay floor. While wade fishing for the trout over grass, place your focus from the middle to the outside edges of the grass, as you’ll often find larger trout to be just on the outside edges where there’s sand.

The next few weeks will offer anglers who may be new to the sport of artificial fishing a fighting chance at boosting their confidence while fishing with lures. This time of the year is truly a magical time in the outdoors, a time that can certainly raise the bar for anglers of all levels wanting to improve their skills

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September’s Speckled Start at Bay Flats Lodge Resort & Marina

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THE GUIDE REPORT

FRIDAY – Aug 31st

Capt. Stephen Boriskie – What a fabulous day with great new customers in the hauling business – crude, fuel, you name it, they do it! Welcome to Texas, and to Bay Flats Lodge, and we hope to host your groups again.

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Capt. Billy Freudensprung – Side-splitting day from laughing and catching with Bo, Bruce and Eric today. These guys kept me rolling all day long, and they were none too bad with the fishing rods either. They filled the box today with trout, redfish, and black drum, and they had a great time doing it!

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SUNDAY – Sept 2nd

Capt. Stephen Boriskie – Relief from the scorching heat all morning as we dodged storms and rain and enjoyed the cloud cover, and we were able to box a three-man limit of Speckled Trout and a bonus Redfish. September is looking good right now, and we hope the good fortune continues without the threat of tropical bullies. God bless and happy Labor Day weekend!

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Capt. Doug Russell – Getting kids addicted one at a time! 12 year-old Holly got all she could handle today, and her parents and I enjoyed watching the show! There’s absolutely nothing more fulfilling than seeing kids enjoying the sport of fishing, especially in such a special place as our own San Antonio Bay system.

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SEPTEMBER’S SPECKLED START

We made it through June and July this year without being scorched to death, but the sun Gods really strapped it to us in August. We didn’t have much precipitation to speak of, and bay water temperatures almost matched that of the air temperature around here. But if there is any truth to the old adage that history does repeat itself, then September should begin to show us a cooling trend toward the later part of the month. That’s right, September marks the month on the Texas coastal calendar when Mother Nature finally considers turning down the heat in her summertime oven.

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We’ll look this month for the Coastal Bend region of Texas to receive this year’s first notable cool front that should, in turn, provide some badly needed rainfall across the state, and to drop daytime coastal temperatures down into the 80’s. Even if it’s not for but a very brief few days, it will be greatly appreciated by all. We should also be able to anticipate some cooler water temperatures and less sunshine as a result of a possible increase in cloud cover.

In addition to a cooling climate, another transition also begins taking place this month. It is in September that we routinely begin seeing a gradual rise in the daily tide levels as we work our way toward October. Because of this, anglers should start looking for September trout and redfish in many of the area back lakes as the higher tides become more prevalent, starting early each morning in shallow water with small top water baits and then moving to deeper water while throwing soft-plastics as the surface bite diminishes. Lately, anglers have located the red bite over soft sand and mild mud, with an occasional mixture of shell provided as structure – key ingredients that can all be found in our back lake areas.

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Recurring mild and brief northern frontal passages along the Texas coast throughout the month of September will not only signal moderate drops in temperature, but also of modest conditions that influence the ever-popular greening effect upon our Texas coastal waters. With the approach of autumn beginning this month, we might very well be looking forward to what could possibly become some of this year’s most remarkable fishing to-date. I hope you’ll join us as we look to enjoy some of the benefits offered by cooler conditions, and the rewards of some heated September action. Good luck, and keep grindin’!

Fishing

Snook in Seadrift!

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Capt. Chris Martin, owner of Bay Flats Lodge, pulled me aside at breakfast and asked if I wanted to hook up on something special.  Yes, I do!  He then introduced me to Capt. Garrett Wygrys who explained that he had located a pod of Snook that had somehow found their way into the Seadrift area.  Snook?  You bet!

Texas snook
Capt. Garrett Wygrys with Snook

Snook are plentiful in Florida and can be found in the Lower Laguna Madre of Texas.  However, it is rare to catch snook in our middle Gulf Coast.  Capt. Garrett found these fish some months back and has been keeping tabs on them ever since.  They are growing about 1″ a month so they could be something truly special in another year if they stay local. Continue reading Snook in Seadrift! →

Fishing

Grinding out the trout bite

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The full moon may have got the better of us this time, but it’s always a fun couple of days when these boys come down.

As expected the bite was on from sun up until about 10:30 for 16-20″ trout, then it died both days. But that didn’t slow us down. We tried many different areas and even managed to chase down a few reds.Texas trout

We have a lot of water in our bays, and I’m hoping it sticks around this time. Because of that the fish have started to move on the shorelines. Finding areas with widely scattered grass beds was key, along with areas that had rafts of finger mullet. Over the two days our bait selection stayed pretty much the same in sandy green water.

We threw pumpkinseed, victorious secret, blue moon, frozen smoke, and even chicken of the c before the sun came up.Texas trout Texas trout

Give me a call to book your fishing trip, from wading artificial, sight casting reds, and bull red trips. We have plenty of availability from September-November.

Capt. Nathan Beabout
Cell:(210)452-9680
nmsportsmansadventures.com

Capt. Nathan Beabout
Cell: (210) 452-9680
N&M Sportsman’s Adventures
nmsportsmansadventures.com
AB Kennels
abkennels.com

Fishing

Trophy Technology at Bay Flats Lodge Resort & Marina

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Bay Flats Lodge Resort & Marina

August 23, 2018

TROPHY TECHNOLOGY AT BAY FLATS LODGE

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Aside from being two terrific men, Jay Madden and Scott Head are the owners and operators of Trophy Technologies, Inc. Trophy Technology has been with us here at Bay Flats Lodge the past few days filming two future shows. Capt. Harold Dworaczyk and Capt. Cody Spencer of Bay Flats Lodge acted as hosts and fishing guides, as well as general lodge experts. You can look for the Bay Flats Lodge episode of Trophy Fish Hunter on CBS Sports Network in the first quarter of 2019.

Founded by avid anglers, Trophy Technology seeks to produce brands that cater to professional anglers, while at the same time provide superior products at a price within reach of the average angler. Headquartered in Trenton, Texas, Trophy Technology is home to these great brands: Castaic, Reaction Strike, the BD Series, Musky Armor, Kitana Hooks, MonsterBass, Throwback, Backstabber, and Bulldawg Rods. Continue reading Trophy Technology at Bay Flats Lodge Resort & Marina →

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Shiny Seduction for Sunup Specks at Bay Flats Lodge Resort & Marina

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Bay Flats Lodge Resort & Marina

August 20, 2018

THE GUIDE REPORT

WEDNESDAY – Aug 15th

Capt. Todd Jones – Family fishing trips always seem to be the most fun, especially when you have a good day of catching. Returning customer Doug got the chance to bring his family down for the first time. His wife Helen, son Daniel, and daughter Nicole enjoyed a rare day on the water together. It was a slow start, but they kept the grind going until we finally got on a solid, fast and furious bite after lunch. It was fun to be a part of all the smiles and laughter. Hope to see all of you again very soon!

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THURSDAY – Aug 16th

Capt. Stephen Boriskie – Today was a tough day for catching fish, at least from a keeper standpoint. However, we did do extremely well in the throwback division! Today’s crew stayed in the game until the very end, as we tried just about every go-to reef and sandy pocket where I typically fish. There were lots of “firsts” today for the newbie, as well as a lot of fun times kicking around on a beautiful day down here along the middle Texas coast. Continue reading Shiny Seduction for Sunup Specks at Bay Flats Lodge Resort & Marina →