lone star outdoor news 012326

23, 2026

More than just birds

Friends keep annual winter dove hunt tradition alive

By Nate Skinner

For Lone Star outdoor newS

For many hunters, traditions are important. Such is the case for Joe Link, Ryan Welch, Brandon Skinner, and Nathan Brooks, who all gather at a friend’s property in Kosciusko each January for a winter dove hunt. Regardless of the weather conditions or what bird numbers are looking like, the group of buddies always make a point to keep their annual tradition alive.

This year was no different. They spent three days hunting together recently, despite the breezy, cold conditions from the passage of a frontal system. The dove were spotty and scattered at best. Dry

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Slow retrieves in deeper water

Target drop-offs and points for largemouth bass

By Nate Skinner For Lone Star outdoor newS

Wintertime patterns are holding steady for largemouth bass across the inland

lakes of Texas. Most of the fish are staging and relating to deeper water, or areas with deeper water nearby. Slow moving retrieves and bait presentations have resulted in the most strikes.

Lake Travis Capt. Wyatt Rae said the winter pattern is in full swing for largemouth bass right now. Texas-rigged worms

Milestone for The Duck Man

By Tony Vindell For Lone Star outdoor newS

A Houston hunter, known to many as “The Duck Man,” has reached a milestone.

After 55 years of chasing these fast-flying birds, David Gerhart decided to put the numbers together and came out with a whopping number of 10,012 ducks he has har-

vested, thus far.

That was on Dec. 19 and current season runs in the South Zone through Jan. 25.

“I usually hunt now four days a week,” said Gerhart, after one of his latest hunts in late December. “I am close to 200 this season.”

And even though this has been one of the slowest duck seasons in recent memory, he

still goes out to his favorite spots from Rockport to Sabine Pass to chase birds.

Duck hunting guides along the Lower Laguna Madre said this year’s ducks aren’t what they used to be: one day they are here and the next one they are gone.

However, recent cold snaps brought some relief as guides spotted quite a few birds.

and soft plastics on a drop-shot rig fished slowly around main lake points and drains have been producing the most consistent action.

“Flooded brush in these areas in 15- to 40-feet of water has been holding the most fish,” Rae said. “You have to bounce around and cover some water, but once you find

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HUNTING

By Joseph Richards For Lone Star outdoor newS

Like many young hunters, Walker Herman had a longing to hunt an exotic species in Texas.

After several years applying, the 15-year-old Somerville native had no idea the chance would come when he was selected for his firstever drawn hunt for the 2025 youth antlerless deer hunt at the Chaparral Wildlife Management Area near Cotulla.

“After 9 years of putting into the youth doe hunt, I had finally been drawn and I was ecstatic,” Herman said. “My dad and I celebrated and were excited for the weekend to go out to the Chap.”

On the last day of the drawn hunt, the young hunter and his dad waited in a ground stand in the early morning. The sit didn’t disappoint with Herman harvesting a white-tailed doe shortly before another hoofed animal appeared from the brush line.

“I had just shot a doe, and we were waiting for a hog or javelina to walk out. About five minutes later, my dad caught a glimpse of something to the right and said ‘Warthog.’”

Only BLM land in Texas takes a draw for hunters to access

By Conor Harrison Lone Star outdoor newS

Unlike most western states, if you want to hunt the only piece of public Bureau of Land Management land in Texas, you have to draw a permit through the TPWD public hunt draw. But you might want to think twice, as the prop-

Not that public

erty is tough to access and tougher to hunt.

One of the more unique public draw hunts available through the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s drawing system is the piece of federally-owned BLM land just north of Amarillo in the Panhandle in Potter County.

Despite the only access being through a riverbed, the Cross Bar Management Area is offered as an archery-only hunt for whitetailed deer, with several more hunts being drawn for archery

mule deer. Many of the posted season dates were taken up by the draw hunts, and no other hunting is allowed, despite being federally owned.

The property sits several miles from the nearest public road, with no current easement to drive a vehicle on the hunting area. With a side-by-side, however, hunters could navigate to the fenceline and walk from there. That is exactly what local hunter Casey Hastings and his 14-year-old son did after being drawn for a post-

Christmas hunt Dec. 26-28.

“I came to know the Cross Bar about 10 years ago,” Hastings said. “You could go to the BLM office in town and you could go hunt. It was always limited to bow only during the whitetail and mule deer seasons. It’s now fully on a draw system. I think they had three to five hunters per week. I drew the second whitetail season and we jeeped in down the riverbed to a spot where we could get close.”

After hiking another three

Unexpected Exotic

“The warthog came out of the brush right by the road. He seemed curious and faced us head on. I turned and put my crosshairs on his chest. When I pulled the trigger, the warthog dropped,” Herman said.

One of the most common plains game species en countered by visitors to the wildlife reserves of Africa, warthogs at the Chap are like ghosts, with sightings few and far between. Clas sified as an exotic animal in Texas, warthogs are unpro tected, and there is no sea son or bag limits (but a valid hunting license is required).

Despite having few natu ral predators, warthogs are currently not widespread in Texas.

The warthog set the tone for the whole experience.

“In the moment, I was shocked, but after it was pure excitement and joy. We were jumping up and down and hollering! The warthog was old and heavy with big tusks,” Herman said. “Getting to harvest the warthog meant a lot to me. As soon as that warthog hit the ground, I was so excited because I knew just how rare these animals were at the Chap.”

Herman and his dad were the only hunters to cross

Hunting trip of a lifetime

By Meghan Jackson For Lone Star outdoor newS

Sometimes the world of the outdoors works in mysterious ways. For Larry Feeler, it was through a trail ride that would change his family’s life forever.

As a survivor, Roy Grant Toomey was around seven years old when the Make-A-Wish Foundation gifted him a horse and hosted an event to raise money for cystic fibrosis. He was unaware that he would also be gifted a godfather through this process. “Grant and his father came riding up on a horse, and before I knew it,

we were talking about how I liked to go hunting and Grant was immediately excited,” Feeler said. “The event lasted four to five days and we were all inseparable.”

Feeler said his son was less than a year younger than Toomey, and in an instant, they were all planning a trip to Disney World that would lead to more adventures.

“I took Grant on his first deer hunt a few years after the trail ride and fast forward to now, he is 43 years old, and we have had many successful hunting trips together,” Feeler said. “I have watched him overcome many things and in the midst of it all, his response is that he

is just a different person when he is outside.”

According to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, this genetic disease is progressive, meaning it will get worse the more time passes.

Feeler said that as a little boy, Toomey’s life expectancy was estimated around 17 years old. He had both lungs replaced and then, eventually, lost his kidneys.

“He is probably one of the oldest surviving patients and the way he admires the world despite everything he has been through is inspiring,” Feeler said. “He rides horses, looks at the moon, admires the trees, and has an appreciation for

Excellent extravaganza

TTHA/SCI show returns

By Conor Harrison Lone Star outdoor newS

Texas Trophy Hunters Association, in conjunction with Safari Club International, held their 2026 Outdoors Extravaganza in Dallas Jan. 9-11, and by most accounts, the show was a big success. Thousands of people walked down the aisles of the event held at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center, speaking with outfitters and shopping for outdoor products.

the

walk

Saturday easily saw the most crowds for the 3-day event. With a heavy slant toward African outfitters this year, many companies LSON spoke with were having a good show with some bookings, and many were very happy to be back in the Dallas market.

Lucky lady

$10 Buck Hunt raffle winner takes great deer

By Conor Harrison Lone Star outdoor newS

Vivian Leopold didn’t give much thought when she purchased several $10 Buck Hunt raffle tickets at the LSON Foundation Wild Game Night to help support the foundation. She had no idea her name would be pulled several weeks later on the opening day of deer season as the winner of a trip to the Three Amigos Ranch near Breckenridge.

Despite an impressive hunting resume that included two trips to Africa, she did not have a white-tailed buck for her wall. She set out to change that in late December.

“I was battling a bad cough. I came armed with DayQuil and cough drops hoping I wouldn’t cough in the stand and scare the animals off,” Leopold said. “I hadn’t shot my rifle, a .300 Weatherby Win Mag, since 2013. I’d been on a few elk hunts in Colorado since the last Africa trip but saw nothing to shoot at. I was grateful my aim was still intact for this deer hunt.”

She shot the gun when she got to the ranch on the first day and it was still dead on after all this time.

Frank Marino at Three Amigos Ranch met and hosted Leopold. The first day conditions were very windy and warm, and they didn’t see many deer. They saw one

nice buck but thought they could do a little bit better.

“Frank Marino, one of the Three Amigos, was my guide and he was very patient with me,” Leopold said. “I passed on the first nice buck that appeared so I would have some basis of comparison.”

The next morning, the group rolled out of the Polaris to a 67-degree morning and clear light winds. The group saw fallow deer, scimitar-horned oryx and whitetails around the blind called “Honey Hole.”

A mid-morning drive around the ranch told the hunters many of the deer were bedded in the higher temps, although several big bucks were seen — too big for she to shoot on this hunt. The $10 Buck Hunt raffle was for an 8-point management buck, but Leopold had actually upgraded to the next class of deer. She practiced getting steady on the sticks and looking through the scope at the giant buck, which contributed to her success later in the hunt.

The evening hunt proved to be the successful one. A nice buck appeared in the last 30 minutes of shooting light, and with less than 15 minutes before sunset, Leopold made a perfect shot, downing a great 10-point buck.

“Wow — such hospitality! My hunt was a warm and welcoming experience, from the comfortable ranch house, the fabulous meals to the beauty of the 800-plus acre property with whitetail deer and exotics,” she said. “I was the only hunter at the ranch for my deer hunt mid-December.”

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More than a hunt

conditions had resulted in very little growth from seed bearing weeds to attract the birds. The camaraderie and antics in the field were top notch.

“We’ve had some downright excellent hunts during the winter in years past during the passage of a cold front, but this year that just wasn’t the case,” Link said. “There was a decent number of birds in the area, but there was zero consistency to their flight patterns.”

Link said the dove were active during the morning hours and barely moved during the afternoon hours.

“It was almost like they went to roost early,” he said. “In the mornings they would fly for a few hours, but they were not concentrated in a specific area. They were scattered, which made harvesting more than a handful in each spot we tried difficult.”

Link said they were able to harvest five or six dove each, at best, on their hunts during their trip.

A group

of

buddies gathered for an annual dove hunt earlier this month. The wing-shooting opportunities were scattered at best, but a good time was had by all.

“The trip really isn’t about the birds at all, though,” Link said. “It’s about getting together with good friends, sharing stories, cooking good food at hunting camp, and enjoying the outdoors. Some years we shoot limits and some years we don’t, but we always have a great time.”

In recent years, they have started bringing their kids along on the annual hunting trip.

“It’s a trip I look forward to taking my son on every winter,” Skinner said. “Even if the dove aren’t thick, we find other ways to enjoy the time in the outdoors. We spend time hunting varmints, predators, and hogs, and have fun passing on the traditions to our children.”

Brooks said he always considers the annual hunt a success.

“It’s so nice to just break away from the chaos of everyday life, and hang out outside with your buddies,” he said. “If I can harvest a few birds, that’s just icing on the cake.”

68th WILD GAME DINNER

Thursday, February 26th, 2026

Dickies Arena, Fort Worth, TX

Presented by:

Guest Speakers

Taya Kyle

Widow of U.S. Navy SEAL, Chris Kyle, bestselling author, military family activist, and outdoor enthusiast.

Colton Kyle

Son of “American Sniper”, Chris Kyle, entrepreneur, motivational speaker, and avid outdoorsman.

Duck

man

But for the 64-year-old retiree, nothing seemed to stop him from going after what he calls the fire burning inside him.

“I used to hunt deer, elk and other game animals,” he said, “but I lost the desire to hunt them.”

Duck hunting has been his passion and he enjoys it more than anything else.

“This is one of the toughest times I have ever seen for duck hunting,” he said. “But I walk all over until I find them.”

And that walk takes him through many coastal marshes — a place he describes as God’s country.

On one of his recent trips, Gerhart said he saw what appeared to be a 10-foot-long alligator heading toward him. He said the gator got closer and eventually ducked under water. Seconds later, the big gator lurched up, holding a duck decoy in its mouth, which it then tried to swallow. Gerhart said he wished he had a camera to snap what he described as a photographer’s dream. Unfortunately, the “picture worth a thousand

Vivian’s hunt

Continued from page 5

words” chance did not materialize.

Gerhart said he and his family enjoy eating ducks about once a week, mostly chicken fried. The rest he gives, cleaned and packed, to people who like to consume these birds. He also gives out bags of meat to a church where they make gumbo.

Gerhart said he started hunting ducks on public land at a place then known as Barrow Ranch. The ranch was owned by Ralph J. Barrow, and was renamed as Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge. Today, it is known as the Jocelyn Nungaray NWR.

Gerhart said he now hunts with his son, John.

Asked what kinds of ducks he has harvested throughout his duck hunting career, Gerhart said practically every species in North America, except some of the sea ducks.

“I have shot all of the puddle ducks,” he said. “I have also shot 10 to 12 cinnamon teal in the last six years.”

Leopold expressed her gratitude and good fortune making the trip to Dallas for the LSON Foundation event.

“I was very fortunate to win this whitetail hunt at Three Amigos Ranch (and a separate duck hunt at Port Bay Club in Rockport) by attending Lone Star Outdoor News Foundation’s fundraiser and purchasing raffle tickets,” she said. “The event is a chance to mingle with like-minded sportsmen, eat wild game appetizers and have a drink. Whether you win a prize or not, it helps support the Foundation’s mission to provide hunting and fishing opportunities to youth and people who otherwise wouldn’t be able to experience the outdoors. And we need continued generations of outdoorsmen (and women) to ensure our 2nd Amendment rights.”

Wahoo

Offshore bite strong for winter species

By Cory Byrnes

For Lone Star outdoor newS

The wahoo season has arrived in the Gulf of America.

Capt. John Hughes, owner of Come and Take It Sport Fishing charters, reports the water temp in the Gulf is 72 degrees and the bite has turned on.

“It seems that wahoo really like to chew more consistently once the water temperature reaches 72 degrees. Since we have had a lack of cold fronts in South Texas this year, our Gulf water has stayed warm thus far, and the wahoo fishing has been incredible this year so far,” Hughes said.

He is looking for blue water and structure when offshore.

“We are looking for one, water color, two, water temp, and three, structure where the fish that wahoo like to eat are,” Hughes said. He and his clients are trolling at around 5 to 6.5 knots for the most part, but he has also been successful trolling at anything above 10 knots.

“We do more of the standard trolling in order to give our customers a chance to have multiple hook-ups and land them,” he said. He has been having good luck between 20 to 50 feet of water.

“The top-secret color, top secret, and now it’s not, pink and purple,” he said with a laugh. “We do so well I got into a fight with a mako shark trying to get a pink Nomad back because we need that sucker in the tournament; it was our last one. And I don’t mind admitting the mako

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Stacked up on the coast

Tides have dropped out along Texas’ coastal bays, causing a variety of species of fish to stack up in guts, channels, drop-offs, and deeper areas near shallow flats. Anglers down south have been catching hefty speckled trout and redfish while wade fishing with artificial lures. Further up the coast, natural baits have been producing consistent bites from redfish and black drum.

By Cory Byrnes For Lone Star outdoor newS

the edges of shallow flats that fish will fall off into during extreme low tides have become key hotspots,”

Aguirre said. “Finding active baitfish has been essential to catching fish.”

Aguirre said he won’t stop to wade fish a stretch of water unless there are baitfish present.

“If I see more than three or four mullet flipping or jumping along the surface, then I’ll stop and fish

Mild is good

treetops, but they have also been in a transition.

glers have been catching have been feeding in thigh- to waist-deep water. Grass beds with muddy potholes and areas with softer bottoms have held the highest concentrations of specks. Slow sinking and suspending mullet imitation twitch baits and large soft plastics are producing the most bites.

Aguirre said he and his anglers have caught and released speckled trout up to 32.5 inches in length,

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The Texas winter has been mild, which has made for great crappie fishing during the traditional winter bite.

On Lake Fork, “even though the weather is kind of the way it is, you know, they are still going through their process,” said Donny Fleenor with Crappie Freaks Guide Service. “We’re fishing anywhere from 40 to 55 feet roughly. The fishing has been phenomenal.”

Fleenor and his clients have been finding crappie hanging out on submerged

“Over the last couple of days, they haven’t been as thick out there,” he said. He believes they are starting to make their move into the creeks and feeders on the north side of Lake Fork.

If you can’t find them deep, look for them in the transition zone with 15- to 20feet of water or back in the deeper pockets of the creeks.

“I am using jigs, usually 2- or 3-inch baits right now because they are hitting bigger baits,” Fleenor said. “Colors like chartreuse, chartreuse and monkey milk, and

chartreuse and white have been the most productive. But you can catch them on other colors.”

Over the next couple of weeks going into February, anglers should start targeting structures in the creek. If you do not have a boat, find a section of bank with a deep pocket of water and fish that transition a little slower and with downsized tackle. On Lake Conroe, Jerry Ward has been consistently finding

on

pilings.

“It has been really good for the past 3 or 4 weeks,” Ward said. “The fish, I guess you could say, are schooling up.”

Paddling for big bass

New kayak fishing tournament trail begins

By Cory Byrnes For Lobe Star outdoor newS

Texas kayak tournament season has kicked off.

NBTX Kayak Fishing Tournaments, a new kayak fishing tournament trail, opened its season January 10 on Lake Dunlap. In May of 2019, Lake Dunlap had a major failure of the dam. Dunlap lost a lot of water during that time until the completion of the repairs in 2023. Texas Parks and Wildlife Department stocked the lake in recent years with a Texas strain of bass, and the lake is making a fine recovery.

“What I have noticed since the lake has come back up is a lot of fish in the lake. A lot of smaller fish, you’re seeing a lot of 14- to 16-inch fish right now,” said JR Mocaby, who placed first in the tournament. “Occasionally, there will be a big one caught. I brought in a 6-pounder during the tournament.”

The tournament was a shotgun-style launch from the 35-foot boat ramp.

“Knowing that we can only launch from there and it’s not a road runner-style event, your planning is a lot easier because you can’t think about other parts of the lake because of timing,” Mocaby said.

This tournament does allow the kayak anglers to use a motor.

“Basically, I knew I wanted to hit a couple of stretches in the mid-section of the lake because that part of the lake is going to get pressure as the day goes on and then move further away from the launch as the day goes on,” Mocaby said. He focused on high-percentage areas like points, secondary points, and creek arms. As a kayak angler, even with a motor, an angler’s mobility from spot to spot is not the same as out of a bass boat. Mocaby’s game plan worked for him.

“I used a lot of moving baits and a lot of reaction baits,” he said. “I used a 1/2-ounce chatter bait, and that’s pretty much what I did all my damage on.”

He caught 15 fish, with his largest being the 6-pounder he found during the day.

“For that particular fish, it was on the backside of an island. I was just going back into this creek, and there was a seawall that came into a point, and I knew this is everything that is needed for a big bass to be present,”

Rough day for red snapper

Anglers hang tough in challenging conditions

By Tony Vindell For Lone Star outdoor newS

It was supposed to be a good day for red snapper fishing in state waters off Port Mansfield.

But instead, it turned out to be a rough expedition for the seven anglers who ventured out some 17 miles from the tip of the jetties to the first spot after they left the port harbor at about 10 a.m. on January 15.

The anglers were greeted with temperatures that felt cooler than the 70 degrees and rough seas, with some of the waves close to six feet high.

The boat, captained by Malachi Oxford of Harlingen, leaped out of the water and landed hard as anglers hopped up and down.

“Hang tough,” one of the anglers said. ”It was not supposed to be like this.”

Nearly two hours later, the boat slowed down and came to a stop as it swung back and forth like a clock pendulum.

“Drop them,” Oxford said. “They are down there.”

But as the lines went straight under, they all moved on a nearly horizontal formation away from the boat due to the strong current

TEXAS FRESHWATER FISHING REPORT

ALAN HENRY: 46 degrees; 5.20’ low. Crappie are fair on minnows.

AMISTAD: Water stained; 58 degrees; 63.18’ low. Largemouth bass are good on soft plastics and crankbaits. Catfish are fair on cut bait. Crappie are fair on jigs and minnows.

AQUILLA: Water stained; 56 degrees; 1.31’ low. Largemouth bass are good on spinnerbaits. Crappie are good on minnows and jigs. White bass are fair on jigging spoons. Catfish are good on prepared baits.

ARLINGTON: Water slightly stained; 61 degrees; 0.88’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on crankbaits. White bass are good on jigs and spinners. Crappie are fair on jigs and minnows. Catfish are fair on cut bait and shad.

ARROWHEAD: Water stained; 50 degrees; 2.67’ low. Catfish are good on fresh cut shad and punch bait.

ATHENS: Water stained; 60 degrees; 0.34’ high. Largemouth bass are good on soft plastics on Texas rigs, drop shots, Carolina rigs, and umbrella rigs. Crappie are good on jigs and minnows.

AUSTIN: Water stained; 58 degrees; 0.38’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on dropshots and Texas-rigged soft plastics.

BASTROP: Water stained; 60 degrees. Largemouth bass are fair on soft plastics and crankbaits.

BELTON: Water stained; 60 degrees; 0.67’ high. White bass and hybrid striped bass are fair on slabs. Catfish are good on fresh shad.

BENBROOK: Water stained; 53 degrees; 1.77’ low. Crappie are fair on live minnows. Hybrids are fair on live bait. Catfish are good on stink bait and cut bait.

BOB SANDLIN: Water stained; 56 degrees; 1.34’ low. Crappie are good jigs and minnows.

BOIS D’ARC: Water stained; 56 degrees; 2.49’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, and jerk baits. Crappie are slow.

BRADY: Water stained; 55 degrees; 0.27’ low. Largemouth bass are slow. White bass are slow. Crappie are slow.

BRAUNIG: Water stained; 69 degrees; Redfish are slow. Catfish are fair on cut bait and stink bait.

BRIDGEPORT: Water clear; 50 degrees; 4.59’ low. Crappie bite is good on jigs. Largemouth bass are good on crankbaits, Alabama rigs, and swimbaits. White bass and hybrids are fair on slabs and trolling with deep crankbaits. Catfish are good on cut bait and chicken liver.

BROWNWOOD: Water stained; 54 degrees; 2.85’ low. Largemouth bass are good on jigs, crankbaits, and soft plastics. Crappie are good on minnows and jigs. White bass are good on slabs. Catfish are slow.

BRYAN: Water stained; 60 degrees. Largemouth bass are slow.

BUCHANAN: Water slightly stained; 59 degrees; 1.94; low. Striper are good on live bait and slab spoons. White bass are fair on jigging

spoons. Hybrids are good on jigging spoons and live bait. Crappie are fair on minnows. Catfish are good on cut shad.

CADDO: Water stained; 57 degrees; water level at 168.77. Largemouth bass and white bass are good on Rat-L-Traps, underspin, swimbaits, crank baits, spoons, and Alabama rigs.

CALAVERAS: Water stained; 75 degrees; Redfish are fair on shrimp and Fishbites. Catfish are good on punch bait.

CANYON LAKE: Water stained; 60 degrees; 20.49’ low. Largemouth and smallmouth bass are good on finesse jigs and weightless plastic worms. Striped and white bass are good on jigging spoons and heavy underspins.

CEDAR CREEK: Water slightly stained; 55 degrees; 3.54’ low. Hybrid striped bass and white bass are good on spinnerbaits and slabs. Catfish are good on cut gizzard shad.

CISCO: Water stained; 59 degrees; 16.46’ high. Largemouth bass are fair on spinnerbaits and squarebilled crankbaits. Catfish are good on cut shad and punch bait. Crappie are fair on minnows.

COLEMAN: Water stained; 55 degrees; 3.19’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on small finesse worms. Crappie are good on jigs and minnows.

COLETO CREEK: Water stained; 62 degrees; 3.24’ high. Largemouth bass are fair on soft plastics.

COMANCHE CREEK: 68 degrees; 0.56’ high. Largemouth bass are good on soft plastics. Catfish are good on prepared baits.

CONROE: Water stained; 60.4 degrees; 1.13’ high. Largemouth bass are good on deep-diving crankbaits. Crappie are good on jigs and minnows. Striper are fair on slabs, spoons, large minnows, and shad. Catfish are good on liver, worms, and punch bait.

degrees; 2.96’ low. Largemouth bass are slow. Crappie are good on minnows and jigs.

FT PHANTOM HILL: Water stained; 56 degrees; 5.40’ low. Crappie are fair on jigs and minnows. Hybrid are fair on jigs and shad. Catfish are fair on shad.

GEORGETOWN: Water stained; 61 degrees; 9.05’ high. Largemouth bass are fair on shad imitation baits, top-waters, and spinnerbaits. White bass are fair on slabs and jigs.

GRAHAM: Water stained; upper 60 degrees; 4.02’ low. Largemouth bass are good on soft plastics and cankbaits. Crappie are good on minnows. White bass and hybrids are good on jigs and crankbaits. Catfish are good on cut shad.

GRANBURY: Water stained; 57 degrees; 0.34’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on soft plastics and crankbaits. Striped bass are good on live bait and jigs. Crappie fair on jigs and minnows. White bass are fair on slabs and spinnerbaits.

GRANGER: Water stained; 54 degrees; 0.46’ high. Largemouth bass are slow. Crappie are slow. White bass are fair on jigs and spinners. Catfish are good on shad, Zote soap, and live bait.

GRAPEVINE: Water slightly stained; 57 degrees; 0.33’ low. White bass are good on slabs and swimbaits.

GREENBELT: Water stained; 44 degrees; 51.14’ low. White bass are good on minnows. Crappie are slow.

HAWKINS: Water slightly stained; 52 degrees. Largemouth bass are fair on small poppers.

HOUSTON: Water clear; 59 degrees; 0.01’ high. Largemouth bass are fair on Texas-rigged worms. Crappie are good on jigs and minnows. White bass are good on slabs and crankbaits. Catfish are fair on fresh shad.

COOPER: Water stained; 53 degrees; 4.26’ low. Crappie are slow.

CYPRESS SPRINGS: Water stained; 53 degrees; 0.79’ low. Crappie are good on jigs.

DUNLAP: Water stained; 63 degrees. Largemouth bass are fair on soft plastics, Texas rigs and crankbaits. Catfish are good on stink bait and cut bait.

EAGLE MOUNTAIN: Water stained; 56 degrees; 2.02’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on spinnerbaits and jerkbaits. White bass are fair on slabs. Perch are good on nightcrawlers. Carp are fair on manufactured bait. Catfish are good on cut shad and live perch. Crappie are good on jigs and minnows.

FALCON: Water stained; 62 degrees; 45.40’ low. Catfish are good on cut bait and stink bait.

FAYETTE: Water slightly stained; 65 degrees; full pool. Largemouth bass are fair on Rat-L-Traps, crankbaits, and dropshots.

FORK: Water stained; 57

and soft plastic minnows. Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs. White bass are good on slabs, swimbaits, and jigs. Catfish are good on cut bait.

LBJ: Water stained; 62 degrees; 0.27’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on Alabama rigs, underspins, and minnows. Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs. Catfish are good on punch bait.

LEWISVILLE: Water stained; 55 degrees; 0.20’ low. Hybrid striper and white bass are slow. Crappie are fair on minnows. Catfish are fair on cut shad.

LIMESTONE: Water clear; 55 degrees; 1.93’ low. feet below pool. Largemouth bass are fair on chatterbaits, Rat-L-Traps, and Texas rigs. White bass are fair on slabs. Crappie are fair on minnows. Catfish are fair on cut bait.

LIVINGSTON: Water stained; 55 degrees; 0.21’ high. Largemouth bass are fair on crankbaits, spinnerbaits, and soft plastics. White bass and hybrid striper are fair on slabs, spoons, and live bait. Catfish are good on punch bait, cut bait, and worms. Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs.

NAVARROW MILLS: 57 degrees; full pool. Crappie are good on jigs and minnows. Catfish are good on cut shad.

O H IVIE: Water stained; 55 degrees; 19.31’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on deep diving crankbaits, underspins, swimbaits, and Alabama rigs. White bass are fair on jigging spoons and Alabama rigs. Catfish fair on shad.

OAK CREEK: Water lightly stained; 57 degrees; 22.63’ low. Crappie are fair on jigs and minnows.

PALESTINE: Water stained; 50 degrees; 0.12’ low. Largemouth bass are good on jigs. Crappie are good on minnows and jigs. White bass and hybrids are good on swimbaits. Catfish are good in on cut shad.

PALO PINTO: Water stained; 55 degrees; 0.56’ low. Largemouth bass are slow. Crappie are fair on minnows. Catfish are slow.

MARBLE FALLS: Water stained; 60 degrees; 0.52’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on soft plastics and topwaters.

MARTIN CREEK: Water slightly stained; 57 degrees; 2.01’ low. Largemouth bass are good on swimbaits, chrome Rat-L-Traps, and Texas-rigged worms. Crappie are fair on jigs and minnows. White bass are good on slab spoons. Catfish are good on live and cut bait.

PINKSTON: Water stained; 53 degrees. Largemouth bass are fair on swimbaits and jigs. Crappie are good on jigs. Catfish are slow. POSSUM KINGDOM: Water stained; 53 degrees; 2.54’ low. Striper are slow. White bass are fair on slabs. Catfish are fair on cut shad.

PROCTOR: Water stained; 53 degrees; 2.72’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on soft plastics. Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs. Hybrid are fair on slabs and live bait. Catfish are fair on cut bait and stink bait.

n Saltwater reports Page 19

TAWAKONI: Water lightly stained; 53 degrees; 1.82’ low. Largemouth bass are good on Texas- or Carolinarigged soft plastics, and crankbaits. Hybrid striper and white bass are good on swimbaits and flukes. Crappie are good on jigs. Catfish are good on fresh cut gizzard shad.

TEXOMA: Water stained; 53 degrees; 0.10’ high. Striper are fair on live bait and swimbaits. Crappie are good on jigs and minnows. Catfish are good on cut bait.

TOLEDO BEND: 56 degrees; 4.12’ low. Largemouth bass are good on square-billed crankbaits, lipless crankbaits, swim jigs, Carolina rigs, and spoons.

TRAVIS: Water stained; 60 degrees; 13.52’ low. Largemouth bass are good on soft plastics and jigs.

TWIN BUTTES: Water stained; 53 degrees; 35.52’ low. Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs. Catfish are good on punch and cut bait.

TYLER: Water stained; 55 degrees; 1.29’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on spinnerbaits and trick worms. Crappie are slow. Catfish are slow.

WACO: Water stained; 55 degrees; 0.49’ high. Largemouth bass are fair on soft plastics. Crappie are slow.

HOUS -

TON

COUNTY: Water stained; 53 degrees; 0.08’ high. Largemouth are fair on reaction baits.

HUBBARD CREEK: Water Stained; 55 degrees; 14.34’ low. Largemouth bass are slow. Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs.

INKS: Water stained; 57 degrees; 0.67’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on drop-shot-rigged finesse worms and jigs.

JACKSONVILLE: Water stained; 58 degrees; 0.11’ high. Largemouth bass are fair on jigs, soft plastics, and Alabama rigs.

JOE POOL: Water stained; 57 degrees; 0.43’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on soft plastics on Texas and Carolina rigs, and crankbaits.

LAKE O’ THE PINES: Water stained; 53 degrees; 0.04’ high. Largemouth bass are fair on jigs, crankbaits, and jerkbaits. Crappie are good on jigs and minnows. Catfish are slow.

LAVON: Water stained; 51 degrees; 2.07’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on crankbaits, jigs, jerkbaits,

MEREDITH: Water stained; 46 degrees; 43.81’ low. Largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, and white bass are good on top-waters, chatterbaits, and spinnerbaits. Crappie are slow. Bluegill and perch are good on worms and corn. Walleye are good on jigs. Catfish are fair on frozen shad and stink bait.

MILLERS CREEK: Water stained; 47 degrees; 3.85’ low. Largemouth bass are good on spinnerbaits, crankbaits, and buzzbaits. Crappie are good on minnows.

MURVAUL: Stained; 57 degrees; 0.79’ low. Largemouth bass are slow. Crappie are good on jigs and minnows. Catfish are good on minnows and jigs.

NACOGDOCHES: Water stained; 52 degrees; 2.10’ low. Largemouth bass are good on Carolina rigs and deep diving crankbaits. Crappie are good on jigs. Catfish are slow.

NACONICHE: Water stained; 53 degrees; full pool. Largemouth bass are good on square-bills, jerkbaits, glide baits, top-waters, and deepdivers. Crappie are good on jigs and minnows. Catfish are slow.

NASWORTHY: Water slightly stained; 58 degrees; 0.88’ low. Largemouth bass are fair flipping soft plastics. Crappie are fair on jigs. Catfish are fair on cut bait and stink bait.

RAY HUBBARD: Water stained; 56 degrees; 1.59’ low. White bass are good on slabs. Crappie are fair on jigs and minnows. Catfish are fair on cut bait.

RAY ROBERTS: Water slightly stained; 54 degrees; 1.04’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on swim jigs. Crappie are fair on jigs and minnows. White bass are fair on live bait and slabs. Catfish are good on cut bait.

RICHLAND CHAMBERS: Water slightly stained; 57 degrees; 2.28’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on crankbaits. White bass and hybrid bass are fair on slabs. Catfish are good on cut bait.

SAM RAYBURN: Water muddy; 54 degrees; 9.30’ low. Largemouth bass are good on Alabama rigs, Carolina rigs, dropshots, and crankbaits.

SOMERVILLE: Water stained; 58 degrees; 2.97’ low. Largemouth bass are slow. Crappie are fair on minnows. Catfish are fair on minnows and punch bait. Bluegill are slow.

SPENCE: Water stained; 53 degrees; 51.40’ low. Catfish are good on punch and cut bait. Crappie are fair on live minnows and jigs.

STAMFORD: Water stained; 58 degrees; 1.51’ high. Crappie are good on jigs. Largemouth bass are good on square-billed crankbaits. Catfish are fair on shad.

STILLHOUSE: Water stained; 58 degrees; 1.46’ high. White bass are good on slabs and jigs.

WALTER E LONG: Water stained; 64 degrees. Largemouth bass are fair on lipless crankbaits, spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, jerkbaits, Texasrigged worms, and creature bait soft plastics.

WEATHERFORD: Water stained; 55 degrees; 5.76’ low. Largemouth bass are slow. Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs. Catfish are slow.

WELSH: Water stained. 61 degrees. Crappie are fair on minnows and jigs.

WHITE RIVER: Water stained; 65 degrees; 19.04’ low. Walleye are fair on cut carp.

WHITNEY: Water stained; 56 degrees; 1.55’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on soft plastics. Striped bass are good on live bait and swimbaits. Crappie are fair on jigs and minnows. White bass are slow. Catfish are good on punch bait.

WORTH: Water normal; 56 degrees; 1.79’ low. Largemouth bass are slow. Crappie are good on minnows and jigs. White bass are good on slabs. Catfish are good on cut shad.

WRIGHT PATMAN: Water stained; 53 degrees; 3.13’ high. Crappie are good minnows and jigs.

—TPWD

Start things off with our Conservation Kickoff Banquet & Auction on Thursday, then continue the fun at this massive, 3-day expo featuring top outfitters, gear manufacturers and conservation partners – plus banquets, auctions and special events, like the Life Member Appreciation Breakfast and the Ladies Luncheon & Auction. Bring the whole family, 1-Day passes start at just $35 and kids (16 and under) are FREE! Register now to be a part of the future of hunting and conservation.

Winter bass

Continued from page 1

the bass, you can catch quite a few of them in a small stretch.”

Rae said most of the fish have been in the 2- to 3-pound range, with a handful of bass pushing 5 pounds or better mixed in.

“You really have to fish slow right now to get bit,” Rae said. “Retrieves with long pauses have been working the best, along with dead-sticking techniques.”

Michael Post has been targeting bass on Lake Waxahachie, where he’s been catching fish on shallow points that are 2- to 3-feet deep and have steep drop-offs on both sides.

“I recently had a trip where I caught 8 bass,” Post said. “Four of them were in the 2- to 3-pound range. I did get one bite in about 12 feet of water off the end of a dock, but the rest of the fish were holding tight to the points.”

Post caught all of the bass on blue and chrome lipless crankbaits.

“A slow and steady retrieve produced the most strikes,” Post said.

Dillon James has been having some success on Lake Nasworthy, where he’s been flipping jigs around brush. He’s been catching good numbers of bass, with the largest about 7 pounds.

“Soft plastic swim baits have also been working well in areas with brush,” James said.

Canyon Lake fishing guide Tyler Stanley said there are plenty of bass in the 1- to 4-pound range to be caught in grass in 12to 13-feet of water. Slow presentations have been rendering the most strikes. Weightless worms have been eliciting the best bites.

“Consistent weather has been the key to having successful days on the water,” Stanley said. “When the weather changes drastically due to a cold front or a sudden warm up, the action shuts down for a day or two. Regardless of whether it’s been cold or warm, the best bite has occurred during multiple day stretches of consistent weather patterns.”

Stanley said deeper stretches of grass in 20- to 25-feet of water have been holding some larger bass in the 5-pound range or heavier.

“There aren’t near as many fish out deep, but that’s definitely where the bigger bass are staging right now,” Stanley said. “Heavy jigs and Texas rigs have been the ticket for targeting the larger fish over deeper grass.”

Lifetime hunt

Continued from page 4

life that most people ignore.

Toomey said his philosophy is simple; you can either let it keep you down or keep you up. There is no point in changing something you don’t have control over.

“He doesn’t ignore the doctors, but he doesn’t let challenges bring him down,” Feeler said. “And that was evident when he harvested his biggest buck this season.”

Feeler said they went last season to get this deer at a low fence ranch near San Angelo, but did not have the best luck. While on another hunt himself, he saw the buck and called Toomey immediately.

“I told him he needed to come down here, and he said he will come as soon as possible,” Feeler said. “Mind you, he was recently in the hospital and was not going to let that interfere.”

They arrived about an hour and a half before daylight and Feeler said the deer showed up within 30 minutes. They watched him in the dark for some time and even witnessed the arrival of many other deer.

“Our buck was the main man running everyone off and it was a fabulous show,” Feeler said. “Because he was sick, he used a crossbow instead of his bow and when the time was right, he shot the deer, and he dropped in an instant.”

Toomey said the stars completely aligned for him that morning because they normally put in a lot of work on their hunting trips.

“He was calm the entire time and patient, waiting for the perfect moment,” Feeler said. “He admitted to feeling nervous after the hunt was a success and I told him he had nothing to be nervous about now!”

When reflecting on their friendship, Feeler gets emotional because he knows a lot of people do not pay attention to nature the way Toomey does.

“He is always smiling, making people laugh, and finding the good in all things,” Feeler said. “You would never know about the things he has endured, and he has a true appreciation of life.”

Toomey believes the key to life is to learn how to adapt. No matter what challenge you may face, being able to do this brings forth experiences of a lifetime.

Jeff Crane recipient of DSC’s Capstick Award

Dallas Safari Club announced Jeff Crane as the recipient of the 2026 Peter H. Capstick Hunting Heritage Award, one of the organization’s most distinguished honors recognizing exceptional dedication to wildlife conservation and the preservation of hunting heritage.

“Being selected for the Peter Hathaway Capstick Hunting Heritage Award is an extraordinary honor,” Crane said. “It connects me to the legacy of a man whose writings, passion for big-game hunting, and respect for wildlife and wild lands embody the spirit of conservation and hunting heritage. This recognition represents not just individual achievement, but the dedication of the entire team at the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation, our partners like Dallas Safari Club, and sportsmen and women who work tirelessly to protect our traditions. I am humbled and even more committed to advancing this shared mission.”

Crane joined the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation in 2002, where he has worked alongside multiple administrations and bipartisan leaders in Congress and state legislatures to advance policies that protect fish and wildlife conservation while preserving America’s sporting traditions. He has also served as chairman of the Hunting and Shooting Sports Conservation Council, chairman of the American Wildlife Conservation Partners, and co-chairman of Legislative Policy for the Alliance for America’s Fish & Wildlife.

The Peter H. Capstick Hunting Heritage Award will be presented during the Saturday evening banquet at the DSC Convention and Sporting Expo in February 2026.

Crappie

Continued from page 8

He has been fishing around the FM 1097 bridge columns.

“You have to pattern them. Sometimes they’re on the north columns, sometimes they are in-between,” Ward said. “Don’t be afraid to move columns. If they’re not biting, then you got to go.”

He has been finding fish at 20- to 25-feet of water with minnows and jigs.

“For me, I have had more success with minnows versus the jigs. I have heard mixed, but for me personally, it’s been minnows,” Ward said.

When fishing a jig, he uses black and chartreuse.

“They will probably stay down through the end of the month, and then they will move up into the feeders and creeks,” Ward predicted. When that happens, anglers will have to search for what depth they are at on the flooded timber.

On Lake Bois D’ Arc, the fishing has been excellent. This is a newer fishery for Texas anglers.

“It was put in right next to the city of Bonham and Honey Grove. It’s only 2 years old,” said Dan Langston with River Bottom Boys Guide Service.

“It seems that the black crappie have really taken off,” he added. Right now, he and his clients are focusing on deeper water in the main river channels.

“Deeper meaning anywhere 30- to 50-feet of water in either the river channel or secondary channels and on timber,” Langston said. “There are some populations of fish that have moved into the creeks, but the majority of the fish are in the main part of the lake in the river channels.”

He has been fishing jigs and minnows.

“If an angler is a little bit less experienced, I would recommend bringing minnows because black crappie can be a little finicky of a bite,” Langston said. “If you are fishing with jigs, stay natural with your color choices. Something that’s natural like grays, silvers, blues, light yellows, or something like that or a combination of them.”

As a new lake, Bois D’ Arc is fairly clear. Langston recommends using 2- to 6-pound fluorocarbon with a 1/16-ounce jig head and fish it over the timber. If the fish are deep into the timber, “you have no choice but to use a long rod like a 16foot and vertical jig them,” Langston said.

With such a mild winter, the fish have already started moving back into the creeks.

“The fish are going to migrate based on the length of day,” he said. “They’re not pouring into it, but they have started. My concern with it is they migrate based on the length of day, but they spawn based on temperature. The water temp is already 53 degrees. They may not stage long before they go do their thing. Unless we can cool off, we are going to have an early spawn this year.”

Offshore

Continued from page 8

won.”

Hughes will fish for wahoo through March and into April, depending on the water tem perature and what the fish are doing.

Clay Moats with Jellyfish Offshore Charters reported, “This time of year it is awesome. It is the beginning of our wahoo season and one of my favorite times to fish.”

He and his clients have been focus ing on structure, as well.

“Our wahoo fish ery is pretty struc ture-based. We fish a lot of oil rigs and oil rig adjacent,” Moats said. “We find our most suc cess around current oil rig structure or old remnants of them.”

To target these fish, he trolls large Nomads, DTX minnows, and biglipped divers that can get down to the fish.

“It’s 95% trolling. Every now and then, we live bait,” he said. “We have had the most success with shiny colors. In reality, wahoo are still just mackerel, so they like shiny. Everything that swims when they’re hungry, they will eat.”

Anglers can expect a by-catch of kingfish and barracuda.

“Even when the wahoo bite is at its best, we will still see a jack or two or a cuda or two,” he said. “You could high-speed it to get rid of some of the by-catch, but it doesn’t get rid of 100 % of the by-catch.”

TEXAS SUN, MOON AND TIDES

Good on coast

Continued from page 8

including five fish that measured 30 inches or more, and several in the 28- to 29-inch range during the month of January.

“Almost all of these larger trout have been caught right after the passage of a cold front when the water temperature dropped,” Aguirre said. “There have been plenty of fish in the 3- to 4-pound range mixed in, as well.”

There have also been solid numbers of redfish feeding in the same areas where Aguirre has been finding speckled trout. He said many of the trophy caliber specks have come from areas that were seemingly loaded with redfish.

Capt. Wyatt Foster has been guiding anglers out of Port Mansfield, where he said the best trout action has been taking place on cooler days when the water temperature drops below 65 degrees.

“Areas with a bowl, slight depression, or a little bit deeper water have been the best bet with the low tides we’ve had lately,” Foster said. “Wherever the most bait fish are concentrated at in these deeper areas is where you want to focus your efforts.”

Foster said wade fishing with slow sinking and suspending mullet imitation twitch baits has produced specks in the 5- to 9-pound range, with plenty of 3- to 4pound fish mixed in.

“There’s also been lots of upper slot redfish feeding alongside the trout,” Foster said.

Rockport area Capt. James Hinton said redfish and black drum have been stacked up in ditches and guts along the edges of shallow flats with the prevailing low water levels.

“We’ve been catching redfish and drum of all sizes,” Hinton said. “From lower slots to oversized fish, and everywhere in between — They’re piled up in just about any deeper gut that is surrounded by skinny water.”

Hinton said free-lined jumbo, fresh dead shrimp has been the ticket for catching reds and drum.

“The bigger the shrimp the better,” he said.

Red snapper trip

Continued from page 9

going west.

“I got one,” said Mike Page of Kerrville. “It feels like a good one.”

The first stop produced one fish.

Oxford told the group to reel them up as he was going to make another round. The same thing repeated several times, with the group trying to catch a fish in 90 feet of water proving to be an uneasy task. Two anglers on board could not put up with the weather conditions and sat on the back of the boat shivering.

“Have they been deep fishing before?” an angler asked.

“They have,” answered Tim Stewart. “But not like this.”

As Oxford kept moving around, four of the anglers kept on fishing.

Thad Pearson of Kansas fought a red snapper and reeled up a 25-inch long whopper.

It was the biggest one of the trip, earning him bragging rights.

Tim Stewart, also from Kerrville, caught the second biggest one. A 20-inch-long snapper was also brought aboard by another angler.

The rest of the fish caught were all in the 16- to 18-inch length.

Pearson said it was a good day, nevertheless. He said he went on a trip a few days earlier on a head boat off South Padre Island and caught his four-fish limit in state waters. But practically every fish barely made the legal size of 15 inches long.

“I saw one good one a fisherman caught,” he said. “The rest were about the same sizes.”

Two and half hours later, Oxford said it was time to go back.

“We are going back against the waves,” he said. “So hang tough. Its going to be rougher.”

LONE STAR OUTDOOR PUZZLER

Solution on Page 22

ACROSS

1. The gentleman bird

7. Halloween-sounding plastic worm color

8. Hub for rutting deer

10. Poor man’s tarpon

12. Catfish with large dorsal fin

13. Stingrays are a concern while doing this

15. Common shallow-water salt gamefish

17. Small outboard on front of the boat

18. Very end of a fishing pole

19. Winding fishing line

21. Group of quail

23. Season opened Dec. 15

24. Common panfish

27. Maximum number

28. Piling dweller

31. State record came from Lake Meredith

32. Tasty part of deer

33. Game bird similar to pheasant

34. Rigid plate on fish skin

35. Mechanical, cut on contact are examples

DOWN

2. Adjustment of bullet flight

3. Sonar is one example

4. Coastal anglers follow this

5. Captain’s nightmare

6. $200 tax went away on this item

9. Check this on your shotgun shells

11. Saddle hunters do this

14. Area of coastal fish habitat

16. Deer ranch managers friend

20. Deer ranch managers enemy

21. Undesirable

22. Poor man’s bighorn

23. Bird dogs are used for this

24. South Texas topography

25. Blue or ruffed

26. Can be boiled, friend, lemon peppered, etc ..

27. Casting nightmare

29. An ethical standard for hunting

30. Looking for fish or a date

31. The island party spot

Christensen Arms adds CRO

Christensen Arms announced JP Fischer’s appointment as chief revenue officer to oversee revenue-generating functions and strengthen dealer partnerships. Fischer, who previously served as vice president of sales at Retay USA, returns to Christensen Arms to drive integrated revenue strategy.

CCI

names CEO

Thomas Thacker has been named chief executive officer of Azimuth Technology, effective January 12, succeeding co-founder Len Zaiser IV. Thacker, a firearms industry veteran with 30-plus years of experience, previously served as chief operations officer and held senior positions at Ammo Inc., Armalite, and FN America.

WOOX announces national sales manager

WOOX, an Italian-made gunstock, axe, and knife manufacturer, announced Brian Matthews as national sales manager. Matthews will oversee domestic sales.

Dillon named CEO

Tim Dillon has been appointed CEO of BERSA USA, bringing over 40 years of firearms industry experience. Dillon previously held senior leadership roles at Christensen Arms, Noveske Rifleworks, STI International, and Brownells Inc.

WATCHTOWER Defense to Texas WATCHTOWER Defense, led by founder and CEO Jason Colosky, is relocating to a new state-of-the-art facility in Tomball, providing a 50-percent increase in production space. The veteran-founded firearms manufacturer will optimize operational layouts and embrace 21st-century manufacturing practices to better serve military, law enforcement, and civilian customers.

Hamner joins Skeeter

Professional Bass Angler Justin Hamner, the 2024 Bassmaster Classic champion, joins Skeeter’s Pro Team for 2026 alongside Austin Cranford, Jace Lindsey, and Tyler Campbell. The anglers will compete in Skeeter FXR boats powered by Yamaha V MAX SHO engines throughout the season.

Quail with mushrooms

1 Tbsp. olive oil

2 Tbsps. unsalted butter

4 quail, spatchcocked

salt freshly ground black pepper

1 pound wild mushrooms, cleaned and thinly sliced

1 shallot, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves

1 1/4 cups beef stock

1/4 cup heavy cream

Heat olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter in a skillet over medium-high heat until the butter is melted. Pat the quail dry; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add the quail to the pan, breast side down. Cook until browned, about 2-3 minutes, then remove from the pan and set aside.

Add the mushrooms to the pan in a single layer and cook undisturbed for 3-4 minutes so they can develop a nice, crispy browned texture. Stir in a pinch of kosher salt and continue to cook, stirring every 3 or 4 minutes, until the mushrooms are browned and reduced. Stir in the remaining tablespoon of butter, along with the shallot and garlic, and cook for 30 seconds. Return the quail to the pan. Add the beef stock and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium low, cover, and cook for 20 to 25 minutes, until the sauce has darkened and thickened slightly. Uncover and add the cream. Cook, uncovered, up to 8 minutes more until the sauce thickens.

—Staff report

2 pounds spotted seatrout fillets

2 Tbsps. minced onion

1/4 cup stick unsalted butter melted

2 Tbsps. fresh lemon juice

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. paprika

2 tsps. red pepper flakes black pepper

1 Tbsp. capers

Heat oven to 350 F. Grease a glass casserole. Lay the fish in a single layer. Whisk the melted butter, lemon juice, minced onion, salt, paprika, red pepper flakes, black pepper and capers until well blended. Pour the sauce evenly over the fillets.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes.

—Staff report

TEXAS SALTWATER FISHING REPORT

REDFISH BAY: 65 degrees. Redfish are fair on cut mullet and dead shrimp. Black drum are fair on dead shrimp.

SAN ANTONIO BAY: 60 degrees. Redfish and speckled trout are fair on slow-sinking and suspending twitch baits.

SABINE LAKE: 65 degrees. Speckled trout and redfish are fair on live shrimp under a popping cork. Flounder are fair on live shrimp and soft plastics.

BOLIVAR: 65 degrees. Redfish and speckled trout are fair on finger mullet, mud minnows, and soft plastics.

TRINITY BAY: 65 degrees. Speckled trout are good on soft plastics and live shrimp. Redfish are good on soft plastics and live shrimp. Black drum and sheepshead are fair on live shrimp.

EAST GALVESTON BAY: 59 degrees. Redfish are good on live shrimp, finger mullet, imitation shrimp lures, and soft plastics under popping corks. Speckled trout are fair on top-waters, soft plastics, and suspending jerkbaits.

GALVESTON BAY: 65 degrees. Speckled trout are fair on soft plastics and live shrimp. Redfish and black drum are fair on cut bait, mullet, shad, and halved live crab. Sheepshead are good on live shrimp.

WEST GALVESTON BAY: 65 degrees. Speckled trout, redfish, and flounder are fair on soft plastics.

TEXAS CITY: 65 degrees. Bull redfish, speckled trout, and flounder are fair on live shrimp and finger mullet. Black drum and sheepshead are fair on live shrimp.

FREEPORT: 65 degrees. Redfish and speckled trout are fair on soft plastics. Black drum and sheepshead are good on live and dead shrimp. Flounder are fair on live shrimp and live mullet.

EAST MATAGORDA BAY: 65 degrees. Redfish and speckled trout are fair on soft plastics, top-waters, and slow sinking and suspending twitch baits.

Kayak tourney

Continued from page 9

Mocaby recalled. “I rolled that chatterbait through there, and there she was.”

That fish would anchor his 5-fish limit.

“I caught all of my fish in 6 feet or less of water,” he added.

Other anglers slowed down with jigs and worms and were successful.

WEST MATAGORDA BAY: 65 degrees. Redfish and speckled trout are fair on soft plastics, top-waters, and slow-sinking and suspending twitch baits.

PORT O’CONNOR: 68 degrees. Speckled trout are good on live shrimp and soft plastics. Oversized and slot redfish are good on blue crab. Sheepshead are fair on shrimp.

ROCKPORT: 65 degrees. Speckled trout are good on live shrimp and soft plastics. Redfish are good on shrimp, mullet, and perch. Black drum are good on live and dead shrimp.

PORT ARANSAS: 65 degrees. Sheepshead are good on live shrimp. Redfish are good on live shrimp and cut mullet. Oversized redfish are good on cut crab and cut mullet. Speckled trout are good on live shrimp. Pompano are fair on live shrimp. Black drum are good on live shrimp.

CORPUS CHRISTI: 67 degrees. Pompano are good on live shrimp. Black drum are fair on shrimp. Redfish and trout are fair on soft plastics.

BAFFIN BAY: 64 degrees. Speckled trout and redfish are fair on soft plastics, top-waters, and slow-sinking and suspending twitch baits.

PORT MANSFIELD: 65 degrees. Speckled trout and redfish are good on soft plastics, top-waters, and slow-sinking and suspending twitch baits. Flounder are fair on soft plastics.

SOUTH PADRE: 68 degrees. Black drum are good on cut bait and shrimp. Redfish and speckled trout are fair on soft plastics and swim baits.

PORT ISABEL: 68 degrees. Black drum are good on cut bait and shrimp. Redfish and speckled trout are fair on soft plastics and swim baits.

—TPWD

“With kayak fishing, no, you can’t bring everything out there, so having a game plan and sticking to it is important,” Mocaby said. “Stick with your confidence baits.”

He recommended slowing down your presentation, not necessarily changing baits. Macoby won with a total length of 86.5 inches for his bass. Jeremiah Smith took second place with 84 total inches.

New cobia, tripletail study

The Center for Sportfish Science and Conservation will join a newly announced, Gulf-wide research project sponsored by the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission to conduct fisheryindependent research on cobia and tripletail along the Texas coast.

The project is slated to begin in March, and CSSC researchers will tag cobia and tripletail in South Texas from Matagorda Bay to Port Isabel. The CSSC will tag 50 of each species with acoustic transmitters and four of each species with pop-off satellite tags to track movement and migration patterns across the Gulf.

Researchers will also collect 100 cobia and 100 tripletail through dockside sampling to study age and growth, reproduction, and genetic population structure.

The $5 million collaborative effort is led by Dr. Sean Powers of the University of South Alabama and brings together eight universities to help provide critical data on population exchange rates, along with genetics and responses to environmental changes.

LOUISIANA Whistling duck season

Louisiana took an important step in getting its first special season for black-bellied whistling ducks.

The Louisiana commission meeting included a vote for this special season to run Oct. 3-11.

The vote came during the usual January offering of the proposed dates, bag limits and other regulations for the upcoming hunting seasons made by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries’ Wildlife Division.

It was an important second step in the process of creating a new season. The first step was asking the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for a season to take whistling ducks, a species with an expanding population across south Louisiana. The special season dates need to be approved by the USFWS, which appears to be a formality at this juncture.

Other news for duck hunters is a second straight nine-day special teal season – Sept. 19-27.

ALABAMA

Former Classic champ dies

Dion Hibdon, 58, the 1997 Bassmaster Classic champion, passed away on Monday, Jan. 12 after a brief illness.

The young Hibdon grew up in the shadow of his father, Guido, until taking the spotlight after winning the Classic and later the 2000 FLW Cup. Both remarkable achievements underscored Dion’s upbringing and how bass fishing was a family affair involving his father and mother.

IDAHO Popular YouTube hunter charged

A popular hunting YouTube personality has been charged with multiple hunting violations. Ryan Lampers, 51 of Montana, known online as “STHealthy” has been charged with felonies for grand theft and unlawful killing, possessing or wasting wildlife; along with misdemeanors for unlawful taking of game animals, two counts of not having a game tag, unlawful possession of wildlife, and two counts for stealing, mutilating or falsifying public records.

According to court documents, Lampers allegedly shot and possessed a mule deer buck on Dec. 1, 2024, in the Cove Creek Drainage, which is a Big Game Management Unit of the Salmon River. At that time of year, the deer hunting season was closed.

Reports from the Idaho Department of Fish and Game state that Lampers has multiple violations in connection with taking of the mule deer, a mountain lion and a wolf.

If convicted, Lampers could face up to 27 and a half years in prison, and a lifetime revocation of his hunting, fishing, and trapping licenses.

MISSOURI Coyote season changes

Guido won the 1988 Classic along with the exceptional feat of winning Bassmaster Angler of the Year in 1990 and 1991. He competed in 10 Classics and won five B.A.S.S. events. Hibdon is a 1998 Bass Fishing Hall of Fame inductee.

The Classic titles set the Hibdon’s apart as the only father-and-son duo to win the world championship of bass fishing. —Bassmaster.com

The Missouri Department of Conservation is reminding hunters they can now use artificial light and other methods for an extended period during the coyote hunting season. Regulations changes approved by the Conservation Commission in fall 2025 allow the use of artificial light, night vision, and thermal imagery equipment from Jan. 1 through Sept. 30, excluding the prescribed spring turkey hunting season. The changes took effect Jan. 1, 2026. During this extended period, coyotes may not be chased, pursued, or taken during the daylight hours from April 1 through the day prior to the beginning of the spring turkey hunting season. Coyotes, except as otherwise provided in the Wildlife Code of Missouri, may be taken by hunting, and pelts and carcasses may be possessed, transported, and sold in any numbers throughout the year.

TPWD files residency requirement for licenses

On January 12, 2026, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department filed proposed amendments to the department’s rule regarding proof of residency requirements for issuance of recreational hunting and fishing licenses and permits with the Texas Secretary of State. The proposed amendments would require a person to produce, at the time a license is purchased or obtained, a driver’s license or personal identification certificate issued by the state or territory of the United States of which the person is a resident that complies with the REAL ID Act of 2005.

Additional documentation options are provided for residents of a state or territory of the United States including a United States passport or passport card, United States military identification card, immigration-related documents issued by the United States Government, or a certified birth certificate; and for residents of Texas a concealed handgun license.

If the person is a resident of a foreign country, the person must produce a driver’s license or personal identification certificate issued by the person’s country of residence, accompanied by a valid foreign passport and other documents required for entry into the United States.

Daughtrey WMA hunt numbers

The first week of January kicked off the James E. Daughtrey WMA final deer hunts for the season; the Gun Deer- Either Sex hunts for the Wildlife Management Areas and Choke Canyon State Park- North Shore Unit, as well as the Gun Deer Management hunt for Choke Canyon State Park- Calliham.

TPWD hosted a total of 14 hunters on the Daughtrey WMA, eight hunters on Choke Canyon - NSU, and two hunters on Choke Canyon - Calliham. Seven bucks were harvested during the WMA hunts and three does and one feral hog were harvested during the Choke Canyon State Park- Calliham hunt.

Success rate:

Daughtrey WMA, 36 percent

Choke Canyon- NSU, 25 percent

Choke Canyon- Calliham, 50 percent

The week of Dec. 19, the Daughtrey WMA hosted the Youth Gun Deer Either-sex hunts for the WMA and Choke Canyon SP- North Shore Unit. TPWD hosted a total of 11 youth hunters on the Daughtrey and 4 on Choke Canyon. A total of 1 doe, 10 bucks, and 2 feral hogs were harvested during the hunt.

Cross Bar hunt

Continued from page 4

miles from the Jeep, the hunters set up camp near a water source close to the park headquarters.

“We pitched a tent and hunted for four days,” Hastings said. “We only ran into one other hunter — a firefighter from Dallas. He hiked in about 8 miles from 287. He was a beast.”

Hastings said the hunting area holds good numbers of deer, both whitetail and mulies, but the whitetail he was after were very spooky.

“We got within 30 yards of some mule deer bucks, some big ones,” he said, “and we saw whitetail bucks, but they were running. It’s rough country, it’s loud to move around and there just isn’t a lot of cover. There are canyons, but not a lot of elevation. It’s a tough place to stalk.”

Hastings said he enjoys the chal lenge and getting to hunt a place in Texas that feels like hunting farther west.

“We can backpack in, not see any one and have it feel like Montana or Wyoming,” he said. “There is a group working on setting up an easement and making this an actual park, but as a hunter, I like it how it is.”

Hastings said on years when the water is high in the river, it is an almost impossible place to hunt because the walk in is so far. That means anything shot by hunters will have to be packed out, as well. There are loads of hogs on the property, but Hastings said the logistics of packing a hog out on your back made him think twice about shooting one.

“They want you to kill hogs,” he said. “But I wasn’t carrying one out.”

Other hunters reported on message boards that the hunt was not fun and not worth drawing.

“My son and I went on our hunt there and backpacked in,” one hunter wrote on a report for Texasbowhunter.com. “Let me tell you this, I will never put in for that hunt or do that again. Access is terrible. Only way to make it less painful is to use a side-by-side or four wheeler and that will get you closer, so you won’t have to walk so far. That’s not a hunt that they want you to be successful, they want it to be as hard as it can be so no one will want to hunt there. If you want to hunt whitetail deer of any size they are there, but you will never get close enough for a mule deer with a bow. Also the bottoms are so thick with cover, sunflowers mostly. They could bed anywhere and you couldn’t see them. Hogs were everywhere. I wouldn’t shoot anything that wasn’t a monster because the pack out would kill you. All I can say is that it was an experience we will never forget.”

The BLM representative on the property would not answer any questions from LSON, advising he could not speak with the media due to instructions from his boss.

Warthog

Continued from page 4

paths with a warthog on that particular weekend. So rare are warthogs on the Chap, that Herman’s boar was the first warthog that Bobby Allcorn, Project Leader for the Chaparral WMA, had seen in person since he started working at the WMA.

“The thing about warthogs is, they dig. They are naturally burrowing animals, so a high fence doesn’t mean much to them. That’s how we believe they got here using an existing burrow or one they made themselves,” Allcorn said. “When warthogs show up at the Chap, we’re glad for our hunters to help manage their numbers through harvesting. Luckily, warthogs are not as prolific as wild pigs. They haven’t taken off and exploded in numbers.”

Warthog sows tend to raise litters of two to five piglets that are born underground. There they remain for six or seven weeks until they can follow on foraging excursions.

“We don’t see warthogs all that often, but they show up from time to time on remote camera or during helicopter surveys. They are pretty infrequent visitors to the WMA,” Allcorn said.

For Walker Herman and his dad, the hunt at the Chap will be a lasting memory – the warthog boar providing an exclamation point to Herman’s first drawn hunt. Herman’s dad emphasized for the warthog to come out when it did was a real blessing.

“This doe hunt was my first drawn hunt ever. That made it special — my dad and I got to camp and had good bonding time,” Herman said. “I’m very grateful for the Chaparral and the opportunity that I had to hunt. I’ll be putting in for the drawn hunts again. Hopefully I’ll get selected again. We’ll see.”

TTHA show

Continued from page 5

One gentleman who stopped by the booth to talk revealed he had traveled from Michigan specifically to come to the show. Many others attended from across the North Texas region.

Another interesting aspect for outfitters LSON spoke with was the changing dynamics of the hunters and anglers spending money. The demographic has shifted to a younger generation, with the majority of hunts being sold to the 30- to 45-year-old demographic.

“They have money, and they are very cautious with how they spend it,” said one outfitter. “But we are for sure seeing a younger generation than before buying hunts. The market has changed in the past five years.”

However, all did not go smoothly for some outfitters. The booth next to LSON’s was occupied by an Alaskan outfitter who splits time each year in the Hill Country. He had his truck stolen out of the hotel parking lot the first night.

At Saturday’s banquet, Representative August Pfluger (TX-11) was presented with the SCI/TTHA Lone Star Wildlife Champion Award in recognition of his efforts to defend and advance hunting, conservation, and the outdoor heritage that defines Texas.

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