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With the Guadalupe below Canyon Lake reduced to a trickle and the Medina River not much better, I was wondering if anyone is still fishing around the Hill Country and having success. I was thinking about driving out to the Nueces or Frio. Then again it's a good drive from San Antonio, so I thought I would consult the membership for advice. What about the Upper Guadaupe, Llano, San Marcos, Pedernales, or any favorite stream/river, anybody been fishing these lately? Jimbo

upper Guadalupe has been fishing fine.
little spotted bass are piled up in the bottoms of pools and anywhere the water is making noise. The narrow quick water is definately fishing the best.
(Mike actually has a little largemouth there)







the biggest problem is that Kendall county has removed the public right of way from roads following the river, so its more difficult to find parking near bridges. Typically, you have to park on a major road and hike in - bringing a bicycle wouldn't be a bad idea at all.

Man you take great photographs. That water looks mighty good even at these flow levels. My right hand/wrist is still sore but it's been two weeks and I've got to fish! Jimbo

stand in the chute and troll a sinking line won't hurt a bit....

the water is inviting. The eutrophic conditions that were making all the green algae seem to be settling down and the water is clearing up...

look at this shellcracker that Ewell caught in the still water

pretty much the same story on the Pedernales (except there are no trees)

follow the ruts in the granite and look for plunges that are knee-deep to waist deep with the water making a bit of noise at the head

(photo credit to EC)

I was wrong about this - at least downriver. Fished above Canyon yesterday and there was so much ammonia coming off the water I could smell it.

So what't the deal with Kendall County limiting access? I live in Boerne and I was thinking about going out early Friday morning to fish a little before it gets too hot. Am I going to run into trouble? In years past, I have mostly fished the Medina around now, but I hear that it is really low, so I thought I would try the upper Guadalupe, west of I10. Can I still get to the river from the bridges out past Comfort?

Charlie

hey Charlie, I think it's in Kendall Co., anyway, but talking about Zoeller Lane, Waring-Welfare, and both River Bends - these are all between Comfort and Waring. Unfortunately, that's 7 crossings total. There are fences blocking what used to be public right-of-way at the bridges, and the constables patrol these roads.

I've been fishing these crossings for 30 years...

I haven't been fishing there that long, only the last 6 years, but those are nice places to get into the river. Has there been any explanation for the change? I once stopped and asked (who I assumed was a landowner) if I could park off the road and walk across the field inbetween Waring and Zoeller Crossing. The guy was very nice and said yes.
What about the crossings upriver from Comfort? Any change there?

Charlie

pm to you Charlie.

Access is getting to be a huge issue as land owners get more protective of "their river" from the disrespectful littering masses. Just look at the lower Guad below canyon after a summer long tube hatch....

Has anyone been on the Perdenales river near the new Travis County Milton Reimers Ranch Park. Is there any water? I'd like to make a trip to Austin and wade fish the river at the park just for grins and giggles and to scout the area for a club trip in the spring.

was fishing down from a bridge access yesterday - then up to an impoundment that had always been the end of this wade.

A landowner came out to chat - chatted with him before, and he gave us permission to hike the bank - this opened up the top end of the impoundment, three plunge pools, and a large natural flagstone pool that together was a quarter-mile of all new water.

Looks like you have a new reel. What is this one called? By the way I finally found a San Miguel 2 and it's a "Cast for the Cure" 12/100 with an extra spool. I am very lucky! Jimbo

that's a J Austin Forbes Aerial. The components were all made in the UK by JW Young before they closed shop. JAF is a US venture and the reels are assembled here. (of course, it's modeled after an 1890 reel designed by a bicycle mechanic.)
New reel, but old rod. Curt Gowdy Signature Para/Metric made in the US by Berkley, c. 1972. 6'3" 5/6-wt. glass. The first rod taper designed using a computer. (that's the intended color of the cork, btw)
The oiriginal owner's name is engraved on a plaque in the reel seat spacer. Wonderful little rod for this fishing. I caught 3 bass larger than that one yeterday, and 20 smaller, and four of the biggest yellow-bellies I've ever seen.

Your San Miguel is a great find.

That's one pretty reel and the name sounds familiar, but I don't remember seeing one before. Speaking of fiberglass rods, a friend of mine has a sweet little 7 1/2' 4 wt. Shakespear white wonder rod. It's one cool little rod. He doesn't fish with it much but he won't sell it to me because it was his Dad's, so he's not letting go of it. Kinda reminds me of a an early Fenwick fiberglass Feralite rods, but none survived my youth, too bad. Jimbo