December Fishing

Thanksgiving has come and gone and after a great visit with the kids it was time to go to Matagorda and log a night at the condo-on-wheels.

I had heard that the trout were in the river and since the temperature was predicted to be in the low 40's I was hoping to find some hungry specks looking for a free meal.

I set out our new fishing light - four 200W bulbs mounted in a sheet metal enclosure purchased in Bay City from a fellow Colorado River fisherman - and hopefully waited for the bait to find the light. I fished until about 9:30PM with one keeper trout to show for my efforts.

I took a snooze until about 1:30AM and went out to check and the game was on!

I fished until about 4AM and caught several nice trout, four of which ended up on the stringer.

Trout on the Rocks

Party of Five

After the action cooled off in the sphere of my light, I headed to the fish cleaning table. There was another fishing fool up late and I stopped and fished with him a while. The trout were plentiful but just under sized. He caught one nice keeper and as I was continuing on my way to the cleaning table he offered me his one fish.

Six fat trout makes for some nice fillets and Tracy and I had someone in mind for a nice early Christmas present. Everyone seems to like fresh fish!

I had plans on a morning run to McNab to see if the reds were still in the marsh. We had the kayaks but it was still pretty cool when I headed out so Tracy took a pass on this trip. She opted for a cup of coffee and some knitting at the trailer.

The recent west and north winds had blown lots of water out of East Matagorda Bay and the launch at McNab was as low as I had ever seen it. I found enough water for the paddle in but didn't see any signs of fish activity.

I paddled all around the lake from end to end twice and jumped a couple of big fish but couldn't get a bite to save my life. I finally set up a rod with a double Gulp shrimp rig and slowly trolled through the north end of the lake. I was pleasantly surprised when finally at 10:30AM I got a hookup with a nice 23-1/2" redfish.

Low water means exposed oyster reefs.

Marsh Mare
Ditch Donkey
Mud Mule

Whatever you call it this guy gave me quite a ride.

Mug Shot

Sky Writing


These Sandhill cranes seemed to be trying to send me a message.
They were circling far above me as I was kayaking around McNab Lake.

Parallel Lines

Chinese Symbology

The Flag Formation

Crane Profile

We fished in the river after lunch (no luck) and took a drive to the beach for some shell picking before supper. I fired up the grill and we had fresh trout served with taters & onions and grilled corn. We topped off the meal with some toasted marshmallows and headed the Jeep back to Needville.

Thank God for the simple pleasures of life.