HUNTING - LATE SEASON QUAIL

QUAIL – HUNTING THE LATE SEASON
By Jim Foster

The morning dawned cool with a slight breeze coming from the Laguna Madre. There were signs the day would warm quickly as the sun rose higher in the cloudless sky. When more rain would fall was the topic of conversation as we uncased our shotguns and collected our gear. In south Texas moisture is always important, and it was dry.

We would be doing a bit of walking today and the mention of snake chaps and boots reminded us all an encounter with a rattler this time of year is not uncommon. As always I was hoping the diamond-backed critters would keep to themselves today.

Dropping a handful of 28 gauge shells into my vest and we were off. The hunters moved in behind the dogs, shotguns were loaded and held at port. All we needed now was the guests of honor, a covey of quail.

We didn’t have long to wait before a solid point. The point was followed by a wild flush and shotgun fire. My hunting buddies had been on the far right side of the covey and reported the birds were running like blues in front of the dog. The pup stood his ground. It must be confessed; the shooting on that first flush left much to be desired.

A running bobwhite quail has become common over the last ten years and has suggested the idea that the bobwhite are interbreeding with the blue or scaled quail. It has been proven in some areas that this has happened but here along the southern Texas coast blues are not available. So what is going on?

Several quail experts have another theory. They believe that what has happened is this, the quail that have the “tendency” to fly are being killed and those with the “tendency” to run are surviving to breed and passing the “tendency” along to their young. Whatever the reason some bobwhite quail are not being the “gentlemen” they have been called.

Late season quail hunting can be great. However, in many places the quail have been hunted all season it may prove a bit more challenging. After dealing with man and dogs they are getting much better at avoiding both. It is also thought by some biologists a late season die-off reduces the populations and is the cause for smaller covey numbers in January and February.

Over the years there has been some discussion to shorten the Texas quail season. It might help but most experts don’t believe hunting has much more effect on quail populations than do predators or other natural causes. The numbers show 80 percent of quail will not live a year.

As the morning progressed we found several more coveys on the property. I was pleased with way the dogs worked in spite of the warm and dry conditions. My shooting was off (excuse: I was shooting a new shotgun) and I trimmed a few trees with my little double 28 swinging on a well-pointed single.

The morning ended way to soon. Prior commitments, and a magazine deadline on my part mandated we only hunt during the morning. It had been a great hunt.

It sure beats sitting in the office.

If you have comments or news for Jim Foster please e-mail him at: jim@jimfosteroutdoors.com

WORKING OUTSIDE

(This column ran in the Port Isabel Press / San Benito News.)

LOOKING FOR A JOB?
By Jim Foster

If you love the outdoors and are looking for a job where you can make a difference in conserving Texas’ natural and cultural resources, the Texas Parks and Wildlife (TPW) may have just the job you’re looking for.

Entering 2008, TPW had 50 job postings and was expecting to post even more during coming weeks. The majority of those job openings are within the State Parks Division, which is looking to fill job slots in Austin, its field offices and in many of the 93 state parks.

These jobs are due to recent retirements of park employees and additional appropriations from the Texas Legislature last year to increase staffing in state parks by more than 200 employees.

"The combination of retirements and new positions is making for the best state park career opportunities that we’ve seen in 20 or more years," said State Parks Director Walt Dabney. "For people who love the outdoors, like working with park visitors and doing something that makes a different in their quality of life, this is a wonderful time to consider a parks career."

Dabney says state park job openings cover everything from clerk slots to major maintenance jobs to interpretive and peace officer positions. There are some excellent opportunities, too, he said, for college graduates with no parks experience to come into the agency as park trainees, where they can learn on the job and forge a state parks career.

At present, the State Parks Division has approximately 100 job openings, many of them ranger positions. Some of them are entry-level positions for which many people might qualify, but the majority requires special skills and experience, so applicants need to look closely at the job descriptions to make sure they meet minimal qualifications before applying.
Other employment opportunities exist, as well, in wildlife, fisheries and other TPW divisions, according to Al Bingham, director of the Human Resources Division.

"There are a variety of jobs at our Austin headquarters," Bingham said, "but because we are a field-based organization, we are looking to fill jobs throughout the state. A number of vacancies exist in rural areas, where our positions are competitive with the local retail market."

Applicants must submit a completed State of Texas job application for each position of interest. Copies of applications will be accepted as long as the different job posting number and location preference are identified.

Job seekers may stop by the TPWD headquarters, 4200 Smith School Road, in Austin to view the job postings and apply, or they can review employment opportunities on the agency’s Web site. Interested job candidates also may call the Human Resources Division at (512) 389-4545.

If you have comments or news for Jim Foster please e-mail him at: jim@jimfosteroutdoors.com

FISHING - GETTING YOUR DOLLARS WORTH

(Photographs - Texas Coastal Fisheries Director Larry Mckinney fishing with South Padre Island guide Capt. Herbert Bode and drift boats and guides on the Snake and Bighorn Rivers.)


LET’S HIRE A GUIDE
By Jim Foster

One of the questions I am asked, is to recommend a fishing guide. I don’t recommend a guide unless I have first hand knowledge about that guide’s service and how he conducts his business. I believe that’s fair.

Making sure you get the most from your recreational money is important. Although it’s a rare guide who will get rich fishing for a living guides fees can seem expensive.

On a recent guided trip on the Lower Laguna Madre my guide said he had been asked not to fish on a recent charter. He explained his reasons for fishing, but his client still asked him not to fish. So, he ran the boat and sat and watched. Fair? Yes, I think so. It was his client’s trip. Did the client do well? – Nope.

Different areas of the country have different guide client relationships.

In many places guides don’t fish. Fly fishing guides spend much of their time poling and spotting fish for their clients. Trout and salmon guides in the Northwest rarely ever fish. They are busy handling the oars of the drift boat and keeping the customers lines rigged and fish netted.

On several drift trips on the Kenai River in Alaska the guide stays busy keeping the boat in “good water”. On one bear infested stretch of river my guide never put down his rifle. In the high country of Montana and Wyoming guides will follow along the bank, run the drift boat, make suggestions, give fishing tactics, but rarely fish.

I won’t even get into the discussion of freshwater bass guides. I have never had a bass guide offer me the front of the boat, nor fail to be the first one to cast his lure into a fishy spot. Not one. At least in some states they must buy a more expensive license. There may be exceptions but in over 30 years I haven’t found one.

Several things an angler should expect from the guide is; have reliable equipment, obey all fish and game laws, be the guide you booked NOT another person running his boat, a friendly and helpful nature, a knowledge of the fish and the water, and be willing to help his clients catch fish. These are just the basics, much more is involved.

One of the most important aspects of hiring a guide is to first tell him or her what you hope to accomplish. Then be honest about your level of skill. If you want to bring your own tackle, tell the guide what you have. If it won’t do the job it’s the guide’s job to tell you.

If you don’t have tackle, tell the guide that too because most guides have loaner tackle on their boats for customer use. Again, ask what type of tackle is furnished. If you can’t or don’t want to use that type of tackle then bring your own.

For best results, ask questions and let the guide know what you expect and want to do. There are many guides that specialize. If you don’t want to fish their specialty then find a guide who will do what you want, it is your trip.

However, I feel there should be a warning inserted here. You are spending good money hiring a guide. Listen to what the guide suggests and recommends. If you know better, why hire a guide?

Some guides may flinch and not agree when they read the next paragraph, but no truer words were ever written.

Everyone will have a bad day. Even to the best of the best. It happens, which is why you should be enjoying yourself without a fish on the line. Then when a fish strikes it’s an enjoyable bonus. Hiring a guide can improve your chances of catching fish but there are no guarantees. Bad days will happen.

Hiring a guide can be costly, but in some ways it can save you some time as well as money. Let’s say you fish 3 times a month on a regular basis. Three half day fishing trips cost quite a bit less than the combination of boat payments, insurance, tackle, maintenance, fuel, and other little expenses that can and will add up.

Plus one big advantage, somebody else cleans up the boat.

If you have comments or news for Jim Foster please e-mail him at: jim@jimfosteroutdoors.com

FISHING SALTWATER - THE LURE

(THE PHOTO -A trophy redfish caught on a Berkley GULP)

THE LURE OF FISHING
By Jim Foster

If you were to listen in on conversations of fishermen the number one question asked on the dock or in the tackle shops would be, "What did you catch them on?" The answer just might be, a lure.

There are basically four types of artificial lures. These are the soft plastic baits that include, shrimp tails, touts, and similar offerings, the topwater bait (floating), the lipped or diving/floating lures and the old standby the spoon. The best part is they all catch fish.

The soft plastics are the most numerous offering the most choices. Tackle shops will have displays of hundreds of different shapes, sizes, and colors to choose from. A rule that has proven true over the years is there will always be something "hot". All types are fished on a weighted jig-head hook.

These soft plastics are now made in many shapes but the basic two would be the shrimp tail and the shad designs. These designs are found everywhere and in a confusing array of colors. Of the two, the easiest to fish for someone just starting would be the shad type design. The shad type bait has built in action and a steady retrieve back to the angler is all that is required. The new GULP bait by the Berkley Company has been one of the most popular.

Topwater lures have always been popular in saltwater, with a multitude of shapes and sizes to choose from. Casting large topwater plugs for trophy trout has been this writers favorite for many years.

Some of my favorites are the Chug Bug by the Storm Lure Company, the Ghost, and the Top Dog Jr. by the Mirror Lure Company. These lures are fished in a "walk the dog" retrieve or a steady retrieve with lots of stops and chugs or pops. Speckled trout, redfish, and other saltwater species can be "lured" into hitting these hard baits.

The next group is also a hard bait type but these are lipped, floating/diving baits. This lure has had diminished popularity in salt water but the bait is still a worthwhile addition to your tackle box.

The lure that has remained constant over the years is the spoon mostly in gold but the silver variety is a good choice. These lures are some of the oldest and at times the most productive of all the different types of lures. Ask any redfisherman and the subject of the spoon will come up.

I am sure I have missed some lures that catch fish from time to time but these four basic groups. Selecting the right bait for the right time and condition is another story.

So from the splash of a topwater lure to the quiet swimming attraction of a soft plastic tout, lure fishing is an interesting and exciting way to spend the day. As I have said many times, fishing is a personal thing and how you accomplish your sport is up to the individual. Fishing with artificial lures does not make a person a better angler than one who chooses bait.

Like an old “lures only” friend of mine used to say, "If they can't take a joke, I don't want to play with them." Good Fishing!

If you have comments or news for Jim Foster please e-mail him at: jim@jimfosteroutdoors.com

JIM'S GEMS - MORE WORKMAN BASHING

(PHOTO: How would you like to be seconds away from these?)

THE GRIZZLY AND THE MAN
By Jim Foster

Who might Betsy Robinson be? I looked it up and found she is a wildlife biologist who lives in Bozeman and is a founding member of Wild Things Unlimited - a group that may or may not do any good. No one I know has ever heard of them. Her latest rant was published in the West Yellowstone News, an on-line publication.

Now let’s see, a biologist, maybe like the wolf biologist caught trespassing on private property in order to release wolves into the wild. Or, the biologist caught red-handed falsifying and planting phony evidence during a lynx study. Now this biologist tries to take on Vic Workman a man who, it is my guess, knows more about the grizzly than “biologist” Betsy Robinson.

Robinson did use a few actual facts when she said, “Hunting in grizzly country can be nerve-wracking.” The sport of hunting was never intended to be nerve-wracking. Hunting is a great pleasure just getting out and spending time in the wilds and enjoying the surroundings. Are there dangers? Yes, but nerve-wracking? I think not, at least not until animals became more important than people.

Robinson makes some broad statements that are just not based fact but widely spread by a contingency of biologists, many of these working for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. They use studies (mostly computer models) and a few facts to wreak havoc among the populations. The grizzly bear has been delisted (Endangered Species List) within Yellowstone National Park but no delisting has occurred only a few feet outside the park where the hunting takes place.

In her article Betsy wrote, “After Workman's encounter there was a wounded grizzly bear wandering around the forest during hunting season…”. The fact is the bear was NOT wounded and officials who examined the area found no trace of the bear even being scratched much less “wounded and wandering”.

In truth there have been several accounts of grizzly bear attacking humans and the results could hardly be said to have ended happily. Vic Workman’s encounter could have had a bad ending but thanks to his quick thinking and a gun in his hand he walked away unharmed. Silly me, I have the nerve to believe that people are more important than animals.

And, whether the “biologists” like it or not his remarks were right on the mark and he has thousands of supporters. Montana sportsmen need more men like Vic Workman on the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Commission.

Take a test, put a can of bear spray on your belt under your coat. Now try to get it uncased, safety off, and ready to fire. Have someone time you. Now, Sling your rifle over your shoulder, do the same thing with the rifle then compare the results. Which one would you feel safer using? I know, now you find out.

I wrote on this subject last December on one of my JIM'S GEMS, take a look.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

2008 - HERE WE GO AGAIN
By Jim Foster

It could be my age but – wow, is time rushing by or what?

Spending time on the Lower Laguna Madre rates at the top of my list of things I want to do over and over again.

It is true that Texas bay fishing is competing with hooking a scrappy brown trout in a clear stream on Mount Kenya or a high country elk in the Rocky Mountains but the choice is a no brainier. The Lower Laguna Madre is a great place to spend time with either a fishing rod or a camera.

On a cool morning last spring I stepped aboard Capt. Herbert Bode’s bay boat and away we went. Less than a half hour later we coasted to a stop and made casts in the direction of an unseen bar downwind of our drift.

Two casts later neither of us had even felt a piggy perch. However, when things changed they changed fast. I felt a slight tap-tap - then a solid weight on the line. Setting the hook a better than average spotted sea trout broke the surface launching a ring of spray over the bucket sized boil.

The big trout had taken the Berkley Gulf without a thought and in her mind had just had breakfast. The tug on her jaw caused to turn away into a powerful run. The trout took me around the boat twice making me think I might have hooked a light colored redfish. Then she came back to the surface shaking her head her yellow mouth making the identification process complete.

The fish tired and was brought to the boat, netted, photographed, and released back to spawn and fight again. I never get tired of that feeling on the end of my line.

Ths is first year the Lower Laguna Madre has been under special regulations requiring that all but one trout over 25 inches must be released. The reduction of personal limits to 5 trout and guides not allowed to keep fish was passed to promote larger and increased numbers of speckled trout. In several conversations with Dr. Larry McKinney he has assured this writer that Texas Parks and Wildlife (TPW) Coastal Fisheries is monitoring the situation and have confidence that the new regulations are working.

On a personal note, I have known Larry for many years and he, unlike some TPW personnel, has been completely straight with me. His concern and knowledge of the fishery is well documented.

Remember this month there will be a series of public input meetings in Port Arthur, Dickinson, Port Aransas and Port Isabel to discuss possible changes to the way fishing and fisheries are regulated along the Texas coast. Coastal fishing guides will also be on the agenda as TPW looks into the possible creation of a Texas Saltwater Certified Guides Program.

The meeting for the South Padre Island – Port Isabel area sportsmen will be held on January 10, 2008 at the Port Isabel Community Center, 213 Yturria, Port Isabel, TX from 7 till 9 PM. For more information, contact Art Morris at art.morris@tpwd.state.tx.us or (361) 825-3353.

If you have comments or news for Jim Foster please e-mail him at: jim@jimfosteroutdoors.com