First Fishing Report 2026...

 The first fishing trip went off without a hitch. The new boat seats were comfortable, the motor ran like a top, the new Bimini top and frame kept us shady, the new rod holders stored our gear safely away, the fish bit and I looked around just in time to see someone poop over the side of the boat. I think the last time I saw that was when I was in high school. I won't name names of either pooper but I will always wonder the eternal question of who taught them how to do that? 

Ezra scored the first fish of 2026. 

There was a bit of wind but not too much to be dangerous. A good wind usually puts us to slip corking for fish chasing bait on windblown sandbars and in the backs of coves but with wind comes the challenge of seeing the cork and timing the hookset which can be difficult for younger fishermen so we elected to fish near drop offs in 25' to 30' water with the bait dropped over boatside straight down. The action was just fast enough and we landed 17 fat keepers. 

We also threw back a bucket full of this size blue cats. The Sam Rayburn lake record for blue cat is 83 pounds. This blog notes that by mid April spawning blue cats had moved out of shallow water and were being replaced by swarms of egg laden channel cats. None of the fish we caught this trip had eggs so the question is how old is this fish? Maybe 10 months old. If so that means slower growth than I would expect for a fertile southern reservoir or a more recent birth than last February or March.. Maybe the scads of small blue cat are simply a food base for the big double digit fish that we know are there but we rarely catch on rod and reel.   

The lake is still low, maybe lower than our last camping trip. I like it like this for fishing but be forewarned that if you launch the boat with your compadres backing it off the trailer after you park you will get you feet wet as there are no good pull up spots without grounding the boat 5' from shore around the Hanks ramp.  

I'll put off camping till the lake comes up as there is not good access to my favorite camp spots by water but looks like the fishing year is off to a good start.

Those cats are now swimming in our belly. 

More Boat Modifications...

I've often written about those four stages of outdoorism.

Stage 1 is you want to catch all of them.

Stage 2 you want to catch the biggest one.

Stage 3 you want to have nice gear.

Stage 4 is you just enjoy being in the outdoors. 

As I meditate on these four stages, which can be kind of a spiritual thing, I perceive there can be some going back and forth between each one and sometimes a person, like my wife can become stuck (actually I believe she has moved on for now) in that stage where she wants to catch all of them. Today I found myself in that stage where I wanted my gear to be nice so in continuing with boat repairs and modifications I installed rod holders.  

These were not the kind of rod holders that position your pole for the bite but rack style holders to get the pile of rods we always seem to accumulate off the bottom of the boat and out from underfoot. No one is getting any younger and believe me when I say trip hazards are real. I carry so many rods because I'm a fishing opportunist. If it's biting I'll catch it so I needed equipment rigged for various species. I've given some of that up. See stage four.    

 

I installed holders for 9 poles to travel in upright positions. I also bought a new landing net, see stage three which stored like this is a better ready position than how we kept the old one which was tangled in all the rods we used to just throw about on the bottom of the boat. This does reduce storage to 8 rods but the old net had a couple of holes and if your wife has ever lost a fish because the net was tangled and couldn't be deployed or the fish slipped out the holes I say you, my fine fellow have never had a proper butt chewing.  

I have always considered the measure of a good fishing pole being that you could step on it and it wouldn't break. With this new system and poles no longer under foot I might step the old rod budget ( see stage 3) up a price point.  

Weather looks good so maybe some on the water action tomorrow with fish photos to follow. 

I believe the only repair task left is installation of the stern navigation light. I bought a new one but the base if too wide for the rail. I could modify the old base but I think a couple of C-bolts will serve better. Alos not critical for legal operation but the old docking lights on the front are out and before a camping trip they will be a cheap easy replacement.  

My boat looks so nice I really don't care if I catch anything at all so see Stage 4.