Crappie Fishing – Fun For The Entire Family

January 20th, 2010

100_1214[1]100_1083[1]Lake Conroe has experienced a huge increase in the crappie population the past couple of years. Many that fish for crappie use jigs for bait; however, the bait of choice for many are minnows. The wonderful thing about using minnows for bait is that it makes it possible for the younger fishermen to take part in a fun day on the Lake fishing. We have been getting lots of pics in from families all around the Lake. The temperature is going to start going up a little each day if we don’t get any more real cold fronts. With the warmer water temperature more and more fish will move to the shallows and brush piles in 7 to 12 feet of water. Below is a email I received from one fisherman.

FFA (FISH FILET ASSOCIATION) Report 50 kept- 100- caught—crappie- (1) 15 !/2”—(6) 13”—(7)=12”—(36)=11”——–(16) males—–(34) females—females all have egg roe—no red tail males –should be next week.

Lake Conroe Big Bass Habitat Threatened

January 3rd, 2010
Lake Conroe Big Bass Habitat Threatened

Lake Conroe Big Bass Habitat Threatened

WHEN IS ENOUGH “ ENOUGH” ? After the turn of this century hydrilla, an exotic and invasive aquatic plant species, once again reared its ugly head in Lake Conroe. How it got there has been up for debate, but its presence stoked the fear of many who weathered a similar storm in the early 1980s. 9,000 acres of the plant caused severe recreational restrictions to Lake Conroe users, and was eventually managed with 270,000 grass carp.

At that time Lake Conroe was a nationally recognized largemouth bass fishery, with a healthy base of natural aquatic plants offering protection to all fish species. The grass carp that were stocked in the lake 30 years ago did their job on the hydrilla, as they eliminated all of that invasive plant. Unfortunately, their appetites also led them to turn on the native plants, and they eventually denuded the entire lake of all plant life. The lack of vegetation in Lake Conroe altered the largemouth bass population for the next 10-15 years. As soon as the fry hatched, they were quickly consumed with no way to hide from predation.

The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department dedicated the entire decade of the 1990s to manually planting native aquatic shoreline plants, and the bass fishery slowly rebounded. 10+ pound bass were caught annually on the lake, and anglers from all over the country returned to visit our community. The largest bass of 2009 in the state of Texas was caught out of Lake Conroe in January. The national circuits also returned to fish Conroe’s waters. The Paralyzed Veterans of America made a stop here in which ex-soldiers competed from their wheelchairs that were placed in boats. Many of them caught the biggest bass of their lives from Lake Conroe. The FLW circuit of professional bass fishing held their Texas Tournament Trail Championship here a few years ago. Lake Conroe was on the short list to host the B.A.S.S. BassMasters Championship in 2008. The Professional Anglers Association held their World Championship on the lake this past October, and is looking to return again next year. Each and every circuit that hosts a tournament on Lake Conroe brings in outside money to our local economy. Restaurants, motels, and retail outlets all benefit from this form of tourism.

After the 130,000 grass carp were stocked (2006-2008), the 2,000 acres of hydrilla were eliminated, and the native aquatic plant life was once again decimated. Native plant acreage was reduced from nearly 2,000 acres to 150 acres. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department was forced to start over with the native plant base in the lake, this time with the help of a local bass club who endorsed the hydrilla management program from the beginning. TPWD and the Seven Coves Bass Club are heading into their third year of transplanting native plants into the lake, but no colonization is taking place with the presence of the remaining grass carp population in the lake. The only plant life, of any measurable proportions, are a few patches of water lilies and a scattering of seanie bean bushes. These small areas of remnant native plant life have become the most important tools in the assurance of future bass recruitment.

Without native plants, Lake Conroe’s largemouth bass population is once again in danger of taking a big hit. To compound matters, some people are taking it upon themselves to rid the lake of any of the “beanie” bushes in the water. This has occurred in Atkins Creek, Little Lake Creek, and is currently taking place in the headwaters of Lewis Creek. Most of these “beanie” fields are established in known spawning flats, and without their protection the bass fry will be in big trouble after they hatch.

Although the destruction of native plants in public bodies of water requires a permit from TPWD, and permission from the San Jacinto River Authority is requested to manage plants on Lake Conroe, in many cases this protocol has not been followed. Hydrilla was the main argument in the beginning of both “plant wars” that have taken place on Lake Conroe, but aesthetics and cosmetics have always been the evolutionary ending. It seems that some will not be satisfied until the lake is once again denuded to please the few.

So it’s time for the big question to be asked…”When is enough…ENOUGH ?”

Ron Gunter
Conroe, Texas
Seven Coves Bass Club
Assistant State Conservation Director-Texas B.A.S.S. Federation Nation

Stick!It Catfish Bait

December 31st, 2009

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We have had a lot of email the past few weeks wondering about Stick!It and how the guides use the bait most effectively.

This new bait has many advantages; but, the biggest one is that it attracts catfish and it says on the hook. Stick!It can be use to both cast and to vertical fish into chum.

When vertical fishing, it is best to use a 1/2 oz. bullet weight about 10 to 15 inches above a VMC 9626 4X STRONG TREBLE HOOK #4. These hooks can be purchased at Academy and are very strong. You can use something like a stick of aluminum stick 1/4 X 1/16 that can be purchased at Low’s or any other hardware outlet and cut into 12 to 14 inch sticks. This allows you to punch the hook down into the bait and pull it our with a nice large marble sized ball of bait around the hook. Then drop the baited hook down into the chum and real the slack out of the line so the line is tight. Lay the rod down on the edge of your boat so you can see the tip move. If it dips, set the hook. In the cold weather the bite will be ever so slight and if you don’t watch the tip, you will miss the bite.

When casting, rig the line the same as you do when vertical fishing only this time leave a slight bow in your line after you cast so the fish can pick up the bait without any resistance. When the line begins to straighten out and get tight, set the hook. Then the fight is on. Click here for more information concerning Stick!It

Lake Conroe Big Catfish

December 11th, 2009

Morris Taymon And Michael Dominguez With 73 Pound Blue Catfish

Morris Taymon And Michael Dominguez With 73 Pound Blue Catfish

I just wanted the people of Conroe to know that this past weekend a group of avid cat fishermen from www.FishingAcrossTX.com braved the cold and jugged Lake Conroe hoping to land a big catfish. We gathered at Castaways Campground and RV Park on Weirs Creek, north of FM 1097. The fishermen came from all over the state with the majority from the Temple/Belton area north of Austin. And the furthest angler pulling his boat six hours from the OH Ivie Reservoir area.

It was quite an event with the cold front blowing through Friday and dropping the temperatures to the low 20s. Although the number of fish weren’t counted we, as a group, caught over 400 keeper catfish with the biggest weighing in at 73 pounds on a certified scale. It was caught by anglers Morris Taymon of Katy and Michael Dominguez Of Temple. The second biggest blue catfish was no slough either as it weighed 63 pounds and was caught by Alvin Brown of Conroe. There were also several fish caught in the 30 and 40 pound range. In keeping with conservation and maintaining the great catfish population all large catfish were photographed and released.

Conroe is one of the best if not the best catfishing lake in this great state of Texas. Angles come from afar to catch the catfish in our local lake. And not only is Lake Conroe known for its great catfishing but it is quickly becoming a premier bass fishing lake with four Share Lunkers entered into the Texas Parks and Wildlife Sharelunker program last year, which included the years largest entry at 15.93 pounds by Conroe Angler of the Year Ricky Bearden. Ricky’s sharelunke bass was a new Lake Conroe record. Donald Piper

Storage & Care Of Your Boat In The Winter

November 17th, 2009

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One of the most overlooked problems with boat owners is their tendency to put their boats up for the winter with problems that need to be addressed with the idea, ” We will get it fixed in the Spring”. Realizing the boat will not be used much in the winter, it seems reasonable to put off repairs that need to be done until Spring; but, that usually leads to having the boat in the shop when you want it for “Spring Break” or the first real nice weekend.

Inboard boats should be winterized to be sure there is no serious damage done during the winter in the event of freezing. Temperatures below freezing for several days in a row can cause damage that is very expensive to repair. Often boat owners do not think about this and end up with real problems to deal with in the Spring. Be sure and winterize your inboard or have someone do it for you.

Other things that should be addressed in the off-season are such things as tune-ups, battery exchanges, water pump impeller replacement, damaged or broken propellers, pontoon boat pontoons that leak, electrical gages that are not working properly, bad steering cables, leaking transom boots, etc. If you have any of these kinds of problems, you should put your boat in the shop so that it will be repaired and ready to go in the Spring. Lake Conroe Marine is fully staffed with mechanics and propeller repair personnel during the winter months. If you need any kind of service give them a call at 936-890-0676 to make an appointment for service. If you don’t have a boat trailer, give them a call and make arrangements to have them get your boat at a designated time.

RETURN TO LAKE CONROE FISHING REPORT

53.8 Pound Flathead Catfish On Ultra-Lite Tackle

November 15th, 2009

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Joey Anderson had quite a surprise while crappie fishing in the Marina where he keeps his boat for crappie. His wife handed him her rod while she did some cleaning on their boat and the next thing Joey knew, his line was moving off and he was unable to do much about it. He was using an ultra-lite rod and reel and all of a sudden he had a situation to deal with like he had never had before. He played the fish for over 30 minutes and everyone on the dock got involved. A friend with a boat in the next stall had a gaff and with his help they were able to land a 53.8 pound flathead catfish. Joey said this was the biggest fish he had ever caught and it looked like they would have plenty of catfish to eat for weeks to come. Joey’s wife Becky caught some nice crappie the same day; but, had to admit, Joey’s fish was considerably bigger.

Huge Crappie

November 9th, 2009

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Hey Papa John!

Just found your web site after having a great fishing trip on Conroe this past weekend with my son Taylor.

I had fished on Friday, catching limits of Crappie. He wanted to go with me on Saturday, after two friends and myself went on Friday and caught 3 limits of nice Crappie under the 1097 Bridge.

Saturday we caught another limit, along with this huge White Crappie. The fish measures 16.875 inches long and weighed a whopping 2.13 pounds. Now this is a Lake Conroe Crappie my friend! I have been fishing this lake for many years and Crappie fishing for over 35 years steady.

The joy of catching this fish, and having my 17 year old fishing buddy with me, along with my best friends fishing on pylons next to me will be a fishing memory of a lifetime, and I wanted to share it with all your readers.

Everyone fishing around us thought it was a big bass!

I know men who have Crappie fished all their lives, and have never even seen a Crappie this big. It was a truly memory making day.

I went back on Sunday, the 10th of November and me and Matt, a good friend of mine, caught two limits of crappie in 4 hours!

Happy Fishing My Friend !

Rick Bridges
Magnolia, Texas

Big Crappie

November 8th, 2009

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Crappie fishing continues to be great on Lake Conroe. Carol Lorch caught this nice 16 inch crappie on Thursday fishing under the 1097 Bridge. The 1097 Bridge was fished real hard the first week of November with boats on most bridge pilings. Saturday proved to be a slow day with changing weather conditions. Those fishing brush piles in 12 to 22 feet of water had a fair day on Saturday. This next week has a lot of wind Monday and Tuesday, with clear skies and light wind the rest of the week.

Floating Hazards On Lake Conore

November 3rd, 2009

floatingdebree

With the rains we have had the past few weeks, the lake filling up over pool and the release of water by the SJRA downstream, we have a lot of floating hazards in the water. Loose timber, items on decks that have water come up and cover up the deck, loose bulkhead boards and many other objects will be just under the surface of the water floating down streamand and present a boating hazard to those on the water.

All boaters are reminded to slow down and keep a close eye out for these hazards. Pictured above is a planter box that has drifted from someones dock. When we found the floating planter box, the fisherman with me said I needed to remind fishermen that we usually build crappie habitat by putting the trees under the water.

Crappie have started up real good on the Lake. Click Here to read the current Lake Conroe Fishing Report

Dave Lefebre Wins TTBC

October 19th, 2009

Winner

Congratulations to Dave Lefebre who won the 2009 Toyota Texas Bass Classic World Championship at Lake Conroe. Lefebre led all three days and took home the trophy, $210,000 in cash and a Toyota Tundra. He won by only four ounces over Andy Montgomery and was only one pound ahead of the nearest three competitors.

CLICK HERE FOR REST OF THE STORY.