A Time to Reflect, a Time for Change

I had a question posed during a long and not so eventful wade that really made me reflect on my life as a fisherman. The question was aimed at my opinion of our trout population and the current limits and regulations that are in place today. These regulations are there to insure that all anglers have a healthy resource to pursue.

For those of you that know me, you know that I stick mostly to the meat and potatoes part of my job. I instruct information hungry anglers on better ways to find and catch fish. It is the pursuit of the fish that excites the hunter in us all. The catching, at least for me, is often anticlimactic. Formulating the winning game plan is ultimately the most rewarding part of our fishing.
In my opening statement I mentioned reflection on my life as a fisherman, not a fishing guide; I was an angler long before I ever considered becoming a guide.

I did not start out fishing from a $30,000 or $40,000 boat; we didn't even own a boat until I was nearly out of high school. Nor did I have any of today's luxuries such as tackle, clothing, sunglasses or sunscreens. I did not own my first pair of polarized sunglasses until I was over 18 years of age.

My first rod and reel outfit was a hand-me-down from my dad. The reel was a GARCIA Ambassador 5000 A. The first lures I ever threw were the Tony Accetta H-5 with a yellow bucktail and Mirrolure TT-51's and 52M28's.
I waded in cutoff Wrangler jeans and wore Converse-All Star basketball shoes that Dad and I got out of the trash every year when the school threw them away. They could not give them to us but since Dad was a coach he knew when they would be thrown away.

My dad was my best-ever fishing buddy. We loved wading the bog in Port Bay on early summer mornings or late afternoons. My dad coached during the school year and worked a summer job on a construction crew for the company that my mom worked for to help make ends meet.

We fished not only for fun but also for food. I remember my dad telling me one time that limits should be up to the individual; take what we need and leave the
rest. He by no means meant that there should not be laws in place to help conserve the resource, but we as anglers can do much more by simply keeping only what we needed at that time. I think my dad knew that if we only kept enough for a meal or two each time we went we would inevitably get more kitchen passes.

Somewhere along the line my ego suppressed that well-taught lesson and numbers of fish became my standard. I stand here today needing to admit to all of you that this was wrong. We need a change and we need to enact it ourselves. If the powers that be see fit to follow suit that is terrific, if not, the fish will still be saved in the process.

There are already a handful of guides along the coast that are asking clients to restrict the numbers of fish they keep each day. These fine examples of true conservationists deserve our thanks, so thanks to every one of you that had the courage to stand alone.

Here's a look at today's trout fishery - from Jay Watkins' viewpoint.

I do not have all the numbers to quote, and even if I did I would probably chose not to include them. I remember my late friend Howard Brown every time the word "numbers" comes up. We were having breakfast at Kline's Caf and a guide friend of ours was using a pocket calculator to figure how many fish were caught each season. Howard said he could make the numbers do whatever he wanted them to. "Hell my four year old niece can spell SHELL OIL on one of those things," was his comment.

I think that fishing pressure on ALL of our area bays is at least 10 times what it was 10 years ago. I may be underestimating the fishing pressure on the low side, but even if I am, it still works in this context.

If 10-percent of the trout population is over the 15-inch minimum length (that figure is probably high but it works) and 100-per cent of the fishing pressure is being placed on that 10-percent; then shouldn't we have an adjustment in the number of trout we can keep each day? Think about it - if the fishing pressure on that given resource has increased 10 times since the present bag limits were set, has the resource expanded tenfold also?

If fishing pressure is not an issue, why do we need surveys tabulating the number of fishermen and of number of fish caught per boat, per day? I think it should be easy for all of us to say that we do not catch the numbers of quality trout that we did ten years ago, or even three years ago for that matter. And yes, I am taking into account that there are windows each year when trout fishing seems as good, or better, than it has ever been.

Today's anglers as a whole are much better informed and equipped than ever before. There is an information network out there that is unbelievable. Cliff Webb can catch a big trout off the Bad Lands in February and almost before he weighs, photographs, and releases her, fifty people across the state know about it. Heck, I have an internet fishing club that I update everyday, telling those willing to pay for the information exactly where I fish everyday. I do it for the income and to help further educate the masses of anglers coming to my area.

It is now time to take the education to another level. Yes, we catch some awful big trout today during peak big trout seasons, but overall the catch per angler is down. There are so many factors to consider and so many of these factors we as fishermen cannot control. It is only important for us to control what we can. We have TOTAL CONTROL when it comes to keeping fish.

I can tell you that I am still of the opinion I was five or so years ago when asked by the late Tom Nix with the Saltwater Angler what I felt TPWD should do with the current speckled trout limits. My feeling was a five fish limit at that time, and I still feel we should drop the limits to five fish. The elimination of guide's limits and the 25-inch law are good things so we have made strides in the right direction.

Now we can get down to some numbers that I do know a good bit about and these numbers are mine. I have always been a stickler when it comes to numbers. I keep good records of my catches and can tell you the exact number of trout I have caught over the past 27 years. It is almost nasty to think of how many fish I have taken out of the waters of Aransas Bay.

In the past three years our numbers have declined drastically. This season, not only are our slot-sized trout numbers down; our undersized fish count is down as well. Surely, some of the fault lies with the lack of rainfall and excessive water temperatures, but in years past these same conditions did not have the effect they are having today.

A few years back I remember having an annual daily average of over 30 fish per day. I think I would be lying to you if I said it was more than 25 per day now. Subtract 5 fish per day over a 250-day fishing year and that's 1250 fewer fish. I do want you to understand that not all the fish we counted in our daily creels were killed. For the purpose of accurate record keeping, I count all fish that are of legal size, even those released, as part of my daily catch but it is falling each and every year.

I fear at the rate our annual average is declining, many may soon be inclined to fish only during the prime months of the year. This could equate to a general decline in the numbers of people wanting to fish in the future and that will be bad for fishing in general. I need only to look in the mirror to see one of the reasons for the demise of trout in my own bay system. I will take some of the blame for my part in what has happened and I will also take measures to change the attitudes of those I come in contact with.

In summation, we have tons of people fishing everyday; tons of guides entering and exiting the business each year. More tournaments than you can count both public and private, all of which bring more people and more pressure to our bays. We have better methods of finding fish and way better tackle than we have ever had in the past. We have lines that will not break unless you have a foul-hooked a small GM truck. We have more styles and colors of lures both soft and hard and even some that smell just like a crab, shrimp, menhaden or all of the above and even those that shake rattle and roll when twitched. We have rods so sensitive that you can tell when a fish simply swims by your bait. We have boats that carry close to a hundred gallons of fuel and approach speeds of 80mph. We can go a long way in a short time and have all the tools to catch the fish we are targeting in record time once we get there. We've got cell phones, I won't even go there!

I hope you understand that my concern is not about the effects of our trout decline on my business, I am genuinely concerned about our trout fishery. I have spent 27 years concerned about my business; it is now time for a change. I will not insist that my clients keep only five trout, but I will strongly encourage all to do so in the future.