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Y'all already know about Hurricane Dolly so I will only address the effects on PINS. There was a heavy impact of sargassum and small debris from Corpus Christi to the 30-mile beach of PINS while south of the 30 there was no sargassum and the beach was swept clean and flat. The downside is that there is substantial fore-dune loss. The beach appears unusually wide and flat; even in the area near the Port Mansfield north jetty where it was becoming extremely narrow pre-Dolly. But what the casual observer doesn't notice is the miles of sheer cut dunes with masses of roots from various species of dune vegetation piled high at the foot of these dunes. The beach is wider because the eastern edges of the dunes washed away and it is sand from them that has re-supplied the beach with sand. Every low spot on the island is full of water; some of it is rainwater and some of it is salt.
I have no details or official confirmation but I have been told that the Corps of Engineers will be dredging at the Port Mansfield channel in the near future. That's all I know and anything else on my part would be pure speculation. Whatever the case; it's wonderful news and long overdue and we just hope that it comes to pass.
Another interesting bit of news is that on Saturday 26 July, the crew of the "Hale Yeah" saw three adult orcas (killer whales) with calves in 6,000 feet of water offshore Port Aransas. This is the second sighting of orcas off the Texas coast that I am aware of. Too cool.
2008 has been an exceptional year for sea turtle nesting. A total of 194 Kemp's ridley nests were confirmed for Texas and this is a dramatic increase from the previous record of 128 nests found in 2007. This marks the fifth consecutive year that record numbers of Kemp's ridley nests have been found. A total of 91 of these were found on PINS. In addition; 4 green sea turtle, 2 loggerhead turtle and 1 leatherback sea turtle nests were found. This brings the number of nests to a whopping 201 and surpasses the previous record year of 137 set in 2007.
It's gotten to the point that it is depressing to me, personally, to even address the issue of drivers speeding on the beaches of PINS. I have been watching and evaluating speeders on PINS closely for a long time and the results of these observations are as confusing as they are disturbing.
While young drivers are a regular percentage of the speeders, they are not the majority. The majority range in age from late 20s to 50s. Often they have wives and children with them and are driving newer model SUVs or trucks. No more than 50% have racks for fishing rods or visible fishing equipment although many appear loaded down with camping equipment and often speeders are traveling in groups of two to four vehicles.
Sadly enough this is also typical of the profile seen at the majority of badly littered camp sites. Multiple, newer model vehicles with lots of elaborate camping gear which often includes a portable generator and structures built for shows and a restroom. Then they just drive off leaving several days worth of garbage and the structures. What is up with that?
Bottom line is we can't lay visitor's trash off on some "Bubba" or some kids in a rusted-out pickup because that's not who is doing it. There seem to be two completely opposite mindsets among beach users on PINS. Included in this article are two pictures taken on the same day on PINS within 3 miles of each other, pre-Dolly. One shows a wonderful gift some very caring and talented person took the time to paint on a washed up weather buoy. The other shows an abandoned camp site resembling a landfill, complete with a shower stall. The third picture shows the mountain of trash picked up by turtle patrollers on UTVs patrolling for nesting sea turtles during a ONE WEEK PERIOD. This is the average amount they picked up and removed EACH WEEK through out nesting season.
So, any who might think the National Park Service personnel don't help with the removal of trash from the beach are very much mistaken. They just don't get all the press for it that organized beach cleanups do. I've been in many a hellhole and known some very rough ol' boys in my lifetime, but the concept and mindset behind these trashed camp sites on a National Seashore continues to elude me.
Just about every July we spend a lot of time fishing for solid speckled trout with topwater lures. And at some point the title of a movie will begin to run through my mind over and over, "White Men Can't Jump" and I follow it up with "and they sure can't walk the dog either."
For decades I am amazed at how many of my customers are determined to "rip" topwater baits all day and seem to find it impossible to slow the forward progress of the lure while maximizing the back and forth motion of it which works so well. Some get the knack of it but many others never do. I try to explain it by saying "you want that lure to swap ends ever time you bump it; as if it were attempting to touch its nose with its tail." The ones who figure it out will catch many more fish than their companions.
When someone asks me how often to sharpen the hooks on lures I always reply "when you lose your second trout on the same lure." Losing one now and then is a fact of life but when two in a row come unbuttoned after being hooked it's time to sharpen hooks. A lure fisherman's best friend is a hook sharpener.
Anglers fishing oyster bars or rocks with soft plastic should constantly be checking hook sharpness and the condition of their hook point. Those catching ladyfish (skipjacks) should likewise be constantly checking for frayed leaders and line and replace them when wear is apparent throughout the day. To overlook these may well cost an angler the fish of a lifetime. This all sounds so basic as to not need to be addressed but the reality of it is that it is the little things that bring an angler to that next level of angling skill we all seek.
If we don't get another Dolly, fishing is moving into the best time frame of the year in the surf zone. September, October and November are the finest. Get out there and get you some.
Be Careful, Be Courteous, Be Kind Capt. Billy L. Sandifer
I have no details or official confirmation but I have been told that the Corps of Engineers will be dredging at the Port Mansfield channel in the near future. That's all I know and anything else on my part would be pure speculation. Whatever the case; it's wonderful news and long overdue and we just hope that it comes to pass.
Another interesting bit of news is that on Saturday 26 July, the crew of the "Hale Yeah" saw three adult orcas (killer whales) with calves in 6,000 feet of water offshore Port Aransas. This is the second sighting of orcas off the Texas coast that I am aware of. Too cool.
2008 has been an exceptional year for sea turtle nesting. A total of 194 Kemp's ridley nests were confirmed for Texas and this is a dramatic increase from the previous record of 128 nests found in 2007. This marks the fifth consecutive year that record numbers of Kemp's ridley nests have been found. A total of 91 of these were found on PINS. In addition; 4 green sea turtle, 2 loggerhead turtle and 1 leatherback sea turtle nests were found. This brings the number of nests to a whopping 201 and surpasses the previous record year of 137 set in 2007.
It's gotten to the point that it is depressing to me, personally, to even address the issue of drivers speeding on the beaches of PINS. I have been watching and evaluating speeders on PINS closely for a long time and the results of these observations are as confusing as they are disturbing.
While young drivers are a regular percentage of the speeders, they are not the majority. The majority range in age from late 20s to 50s. Often they have wives and children with them and are driving newer model SUVs or trucks. No more than 50% have racks for fishing rods or visible fishing equipment although many appear loaded down with camping equipment and often speeders are traveling in groups of two to four vehicles.
Sadly enough this is also typical of the profile seen at the majority of badly littered camp sites. Multiple, newer model vehicles with lots of elaborate camping gear which often includes a portable generator and structures built for shows and a restroom. Then they just drive off leaving several days worth of garbage and the structures. What is up with that?
Bottom line is we can't lay visitor's trash off on some "Bubba" or some kids in a rusted-out pickup because that's not who is doing it. There seem to be two completely opposite mindsets among beach users on PINS. Included in this article are two pictures taken on the same day on PINS within 3 miles of each other, pre-Dolly. One shows a wonderful gift some very caring and talented person took the time to paint on a washed up weather buoy. The other shows an abandoned camp site resembling a landfill, complete with a shower stall. The third picture shows the mountain of trash picked up by turtle patrollers on UTVs patrolling for nesting sea turtles during a ONE WEEK PERIOD. This is the average amount they picked up and removed EACH WEEK through out nesting season.
So, any who might think the National Park Service personnel don't help with the removal of trash from the beach are very much mistaken. They just don't get all the press for it that organized beach cleanups do. I've been in many a hellhole and known some very rough ol' boys in my lifetime, but the concept and mindset behind these trashed camp sites on a National Seashore continues to elude me.
Just about every July we spend a lot of time fishing for solid speckled trout with topwater lures. And at some point the title of a movie will begin to run through my mind over and over, "White Men Can't Jump" and I follow it up with "and they sure can't walk the dog either."
For decades I am amazed at how many of my customers are determined to "rip" topwater baits all day and seem to find it impossible to slow the forward progress of the lure while maximizing the back and forth motion of it which works so well. Some get the knack of it but many others never do. I try to explain it by saying "you want that lure to swap ends ever time you bump it; as if it were attempting to touch its nose with its tail." The ones who figure it out will catch many more fish than their companions.
When someone asks me how often to sharpen the hooks on lures I always reply "when you lose your second trout on the same lure." Losing one now and then is a fact of life but when two in a row come unbuttoned after being hooked it's time to sharpen hooks. A lure fisherman's best friend is a hook sharpener.
Anglers fishing oyster bars or rocks with soft plastic should constantly be checking hook sharpness and the condition of their hook point. Those catching ladyfish (skipjacks) should likewise be constantly checking for frayed leaders and line and replace them when wear is apparent throughout the day. To overlook these may well cost an angler the fish of a lifetime. This all sounds so basic as to not need to be addressed but the reality of it is that it is the little things that bring an angler to that next level of angling skill we all seek.
If we don't get another Dolly, fishing is moving into the best time frame of the year in the surf zone. September, October and November are the finest. Get out there and get you some.
Be Careful, Be Courteous, Be Kind Capt. Billy L. Sandifer