Fishing near Sargent Summer of 2004
We drove all the way from college station to sargent in the pouring rain.
Just before we drove through Bay City we were approached in a gas station
by a woman who had just been in a wreck. She had been driving through the
rain, talking on a cell phone and spun out and the rear of her car completely
nailed a tree. She asked us to follow her home to ensure that the car performed
adequately. Despite just having crashed she still drove much faster in the
rain than I was willing to. We arrived at the beach just as it stopped raining we commenced to drive down that crushed shell/gravel road but in the mud, dark and rain I determined it to be impassible in the night. We camped on the beach several miles down
that road but not yet to the channel, used the 44 about 50 times with the new
re-loads drank whiskey and beer and slept in the cab of the truck. While
setting up camp we saw a white chevy drive down the road we turned around on
and never come back.
The next morning you wouldn't believe it but I was the first person awake
and fishing (yes Me!). I fished artificial lures until my fellow fishermen
slept and following breakfast I tried for two hours to catch adequate bait from
area near drawbridge and other shallow areas. Nothing could be found except tiny
little croakers about 1 inch long at most. Ended up ruining my cast net on
an oyster bed. I will defineately buy a smaller sized one next time so it will
be easier to throw. I gave up and bought one pound of frozen mullet to use
as cut bait.
Drove down the beach to the channel at the end of sargent beach. On the
beach that day we saw a small two-wheel drive toyota completely sunk in the mud.
Upon looking at it buried 25 feet or so from the edge of of the biggest
nastiest mud holes I have ever seen I knew it would take a miracle to
extricate. Later we found that white chevy stuck in the same muddy spot
where we had turned around the night before. Tried to mend cast net and got it to
workfor a while but still same crappy, tiny bait fish. Cast net fell apart
againso I started fishing dead cut bait. Used a sliding egg sinker above
size 2 or3 circle hooks baiting with triangular pieces of cut bait. Water was
nice and warm, wading up to waist deep was not at all uncomfortable. In the
course of about two or three hours, mostly while the tide was coming in the
channel, we caught 2 black drum, and 4 whiting. Upon further examination the fish
proved to be black drum not sheep's head which better rationalizes them hitting
dead cut bait. Tide changed, fishing slowed, storm blew in we left.
First trip to the beach for One of the guys I took. I think he could be
hooked. The 44 was a big hit and catching fish always is more fun than
getting skunked. He refused sunblock just like your asian friend and is now
quite rosey.
Just before we drove through Bay City we were approached in a gas station
by a woman who had just been in a wreck. She had been driving through the
rain, talking on a cell phone and spun out and the rear of her car completely
nailed a tree. She asked us to follow her home to ensure that the car performed
adequately. Despite just having crashed she still drove much faster in the
rain than I was willing to. We arrived at the beach just as it stopped raining we commenced to drive down that crushed shell/gravel road but in the mud, dark and rain I determined it to be impassible in the night. We camped on the beach several miles down
that road but not yet to the channel, used the 44 about 50 times with the new
re-loads drank whiskey and beer and slept in the cab of the truck. While
setting up camp we saw a white chevy drive down the road we turned around on
and never come back.
The next morning you wouldn't believe it but I was the first person awake
and fishing (yes Me!). I fished artificial lures until my fellow fishermen
slept and following breakfast I tried for two hours to catch adequate bait from
area near drawbridge and other shallow areas. Nothing could be found except tiny
little croakers about 1 inch long at most. Ended up ruining my cast net on
an oyster bed. I will defineately buy a smaller sized one next time so it will
be easier to throw. I gave up and bought one pound of frozen mullet to use
as cut bait.
Drove down the beach to the channel at the end of sargent beach. On the
beach that day we saw a small two-wheel drive toyota completely sunk in the mud.
Upon looking at it buried 25 feet or so from the edge of of the biggest
nastiest mud holes I have ever seen I knew it would take a miracle to
extricate. Later we found that white chevy stuck in the same muddy spot
where we had turned around the night before. Tried to mend cast net and got it to
workfor a while but still same crappy, tiny bait fish. Cast net fell apart
againso I started fishing dead cut bait. Used a sliding egg sinker above
size 2 or3 circle hooks baiting with triangular pieces of cut bait. Water was
nice and warm, wading up to waist deep was not at all uncomfortable. In the
course of about two or three hours, mostly while the tide was coming in the
channel, we caught 2 black drum, and 4 whiting. Upon further examination the fish
proved to be black drum not sheep's head which better rationalizes them hitting
dead cut bait. Tide changed, fishing slowed, storm blew in we left.
First trip to the beach for One of the guys I took. I think he could be
hooked. The 44 was a big hit and catching fish always is more fun than
getting skunked. He refused sunblock just like your asian friend and is now
quite rosey.
posted by steven-hoffman | 3:52 PM
4 Comments:
Brian Hosken said
> I fished sargent beach from about 10:30 - 2:30. I didn't catch anything but it looked like the group next to me might have caught a couple of slot reds. One of them was definitely a keeper. They were casting from the beach whereas I was wading out to the second gut. There is some bait to be caught right behind the beach. If you throw the net enough times you can catch finger mullet and horse mullet. The water was pretty cold at first but then not so bad. I didn't need my wetsuit.
I think I just needed more rods and more fishing time. Are we still on for this firday/saturday?
p.s. I took one of the chinese postdocs with me. He drank two beers, fell asleep in the lawn chair and got a sweet sunburn. I tried to tell him to put sunblock on.
The last post was not Steve...it was me...long story...not really worth explaining.
EXCHANGE BETWEEN STEVEN H. AND STEVE T.
Reviewer' Comments,
Remember to mention the attempt catch sharks using the blood Chris Z. brought. It failed but was still a part of the trip. The bay was fresh water due the the recent flooding in the BCS area and the draining of the
Brazos. Need to include total amount of alcohol consumed. Also include identity of each person on the trip in a list.
-Peer Reviewer
MY REPORT FOR SECOND TRIP TO SARGENT IN AN EMAIL TO JEFF
Mr. Ullman,
having resolved another fishing trip to the coast of Texas I feel it is my responsibility to disseminate the knowledge acquired in this the closest thing to a peer reviewed Journal of Redneck Fishing
Drove to the beach on Friday leaving College station about six p.m. only two hours late so not too bad. This departure time ensured us it would be
after dark when we arrived at the beach again. Chris Z. threw the cast net near the drawbridge with a bit of success.
After safely reaching the end of the beach we set up camp and kind of fished for a couple hours but mostly we just camped we found an armadillo there on the beach and drank some whiskey. Woody called on his cell phone and said that he could see our campfire but that he couldn't reach us. A while later he called and said that he was stuck.
So, I broke rule # 1 of beach fishing and drove down the beach at night. I drove past where woody was stuck and tried to drive across the peninsula to pick them up and I got stuck. If you review the previous article below you will see a reference to a small toyota truck stuck in the nastiest hole ever. I was now in the exact same mud hole, turns out it is approximately waste deep and very stinky.
I called chris to pick me up, we went and picked up woody then we went and drank and camped the rest of the night. It was pretty miserable since all my camping gear was in the truck.
I was the first person awake in the morning so I went to throw the cast net. Just as I went to make my second toss Brian drove up in the truck and said he saw a truck alot like mine back a ways down the beach.
We went and hooked up the tow straps and hauled my truck out easily. Bait was caught by casting around the grassy areas at the edge of the bay, and fishing commmenced. Drove woody to his truck in the daylight and decided that he was completely screwed, A towtruck would later require $250 and 380 foot of cable to extract woody's new ford F-150 Lariat.
The wind blew hard all day and night. Everyone got stumbly and Brian forgot where the drop off was and he fell down it a dozen times or so. But the fishing commenced again, the current was horrible, the weed moderate and Chris only caught on big nasty black drum, the rest of us remained skunked for quite some time.
Woody got out in the mid afternoon, then he and chris left with their respective women and then after supper and nightfall Brian hosken and myself each caught one big fish in the surf. His was an even bigger nastier black drum, mine a slot red.
Woke up, fought the weed and current for an hour or so then gave up and called one edible fish a success considering the conditions. Photographic evidence is to follow
-Steven Hoffman
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