- Mon Jan 16, 2012 9:11 pm
#1720375
Hey everyone. Unfortunately I didn't get many pics due to me being limited to a cell phone that quickly ran out of battery but I figured I may as well start a thread for reports from this weekend's trip.
CamoBassProwler13 and I arrived in Austin Friday evening just in time to do some last minute shopping and grab some grub before cashing at my brother's place. We arrived at the 183 launch at 6:00 AM Saturday morning to steam coming off the river and 27 degree temps.
I was so excited it didn't phase me but CBP13 was already starting to whine. 
Soon after we began rigging the boats we had company. One by one the faithful began to congregate at the water's edge. We were the first two ready to launch and we waited around for a while so the rest of the group could catch up. Finally launched around 9:30-10:00 with a hanful of guys. We caught some good fish Saturday, enjoyed some picturesque scenery and ideal weather conditions. The only difficult part of the day was a nice little portgage that wouldn't be so bad without the 100 lbs of crap I had loaded in my yak. We arrived at the island with plenty of time to set up camp and gather firewood. Still feeling a bit rowdy after the day's paddle a few of us shared a bottle of Patron by the fire and make sure we were in good shape to sleep for the night...or so we thought. 
After shivering myself to sleep the night before I awoke Sunday morning to a world covered in ice. Everything...from my tent, to my waders, to my boat, everything. The water built up in my boat from the previous day's paddle was frozen, the drinks in my cooler were frozen, I was frozen. But that was nothing a nice fire and some of Texan4ut's famous Cowgirl Casserole couldn't cure. After hitting the water late with CBP13 we were paddling around 10:30. Concerned that we wouldn't make camp by dark the two of us paddled, paddled, paddled, then paddled some more. It was a total of 13 miles, arriving around 4:30, with virtually no fishing done all day. Needless to say by the time we made landfall everyone was beat. Not much socialization went on for my part Sunday night. Just another hearty meal (thanks again for the steak Texan4ut!) and a little bank fishing. I managed to catch three nice bass on a Hula Popper (my first ever topwater catch!) after sunset. Completely exhausted I passed out around 9:30-10:00.
We awoke Monday morning to moderate temps and a little moisture in the air. CBP13 and I skipped breakfast and elected to hit the water early. We fished a bit where there was some depth and we really focused on the rock wall that produced so many fish during our last trip over the summer. CBP13 pulled one bass off the wall and I got nada...we were both puzzled. Tired and ready for lunch we paddled out and headed for Little Web. Not much of a paddle later and we were at the take out and ready to load all 100 lbs of my gear and my boat back into the truck. Boy is that fun after paddling 25 miles and sleeping on the ground two nights in a row!
All in all it was a wonderful trip. Despite the cold I really enjoyed the weather and also the great company. I think we counted 19 boats in all at the launch Saturday. Thanks to all who helped coordinate this massive group of people...I'd say the trip was a success for sure!
Tight Lines!
Chris
CamoBassProwler13 and I arrived in Austin Friday evening just in time to do some last minute shopping and grab some grub before cashing at my brother's place. We arrived at the 183 launch at 6:00 AM Saturday morning to steam coming off the river and 27 degree temps.
I was so excited it didn't phase me but CBP13 was already starting to whine. Soon after we began rigging the boats we had company. One by one the faithful began to congregate at the water's edge. We were the first two ready to launch and we waited around for a while so the rest of the group could catch up. Finally launched around 9:30-10:00 with a hanful of guys. We caught some good fish Saturday, enjoyed some picturesque scenery and ideal weather conditions. The only difficult part of the day was a nice little portgage that wouldn't be so bad without the 100 lbs of crap I had loaded in my yak. We arrived at the island with plenty of time to set up camp and gather firewood. Still feeling a bit rowdy after the day's paddle a few of us shared a bottle of Patron by the fire and make sure we were in good shape to sleep for the night...or so we thought. After shivering myself to sleep the night before I awoke Sunday morning to a world covered in ice. Everything...from my tent, to my waders, to my boat, everything. The water built up in my boat from the previous day's paddle was frozen, the drinks in my cooler were frozen, I was frozen. But that was nothing a nice fire and some of Texan4ut's famous Cowgirl Casserole couldn't cure. After hitting the water late with CBP13 we were paddling around 10:30. Concerned that we wouldn't make camp by dark the two of us paddled, paddled, paddled, then paddled some more. It was a total of 13 miles, arriving around 4:30, with virtually no fishing done all day. Needless to say by the time we made landfall everyone was beat. Not much socialization went on for my part Sunday night. Just another hearty meal (thanks again for the steak Texan4ut!) and a little bank fishing. I managed to catch three nice bass on a Hula Popper (my first ever topwater catch!) after sunset. Completely exhausted I passed out around 9:30-10:00.
We awoke Monday morning to moderate temps and a little moisture in the air. CBP13 and I skipped breakfast and elected to hit the water early. We fished a bit where there was some depth and we really focused on the rock wall that produced so many fish during our last trip over the summer. CBP13 pulled one bass off the wall and I got nada...we were both puzzled. Tired and ready for lunch we paddled out and headed for Little Web. Not much of a paddle later and we were at the take out and ready to load all 100 lbs of my gear and my boat back into the truck. Boy is that fun after paddling 25 miles and sleeping on the ground two nights in a row!
All in all it was a wonderful trip. Despite the cold I really enjoyed the weather and also the great company. I think we counted 19 boats in all at the launch Saturday. Thanks to all who helped coordinate this massive group of people...I'd say the trip was a success for sure!
Tight Lines!
Chris
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- By Ron Mc