From Tears to Cheers — 88 Fish, Ft. Hood SKIES “Fishing 101” Trip

After a cold morning chasing hybrid over on Belton, this Saturday afternoon was spent in pursuit of white bass over on Stillhouse with Mr. Ryan Brandenburg and his almost-7-year-old son, Aaden.

IMG_1732

Aaden and his dad, Ryan, both celebrated their April birthdays on the lake today catching white bass.

IMG_1729

Ryan Brandenburg is a U.S. Army infantryman and a Chicago-area native — and not a bad fisherman, either!

Ryan’s wife, Clare, booked this trip for “the boys” through the Fort Hood SKIES Unlimited program.

As I welcomed Ryan and Aaden onto the boat and got right down to business with a safety briefing, followed by instruction on vertical jigging, I looked over to my right where Aaden was and found him nearly in tears.  All of this was so new to him, that he was a bit overwhelmed and just needed some reassurance that things would be okay.

So, Ryan and I did our best to give Aaden peace of mind each step along the way, from pushing off from the dock, to throttling up, to slowing down, to positioning over the first batch of fish we found, and so on.

Fortunately, of the first two areas I searched with sonar, the second was loaded down with hungry white bass, so, Ryan and I were into fish in no time, which allowed Aaden, who was seated well away from the gunwale and not fishing at this point, to see that catching fish was enjoyable.  He perked up a bit when I showed him the features of a couple of our caught fish close-up.

Next, when I hooked another white bass, I offered to let Aaden reel it in.  He did so, and, for the first time since stepping on the boat, he cracked a smile.  Things rapidly improved from that point to where he was fishing independently and doing very well.

All of the fish we caught this evening came on slabs from out of 32-37 feet of water.  We experienced solid fishing from 4:15 to 6:00p, a lull from 6:00 to 7:00p, then a resurgence of activity as the light began to fail from 7:00p to 7:45p.

As we turned the key to crank up and head to the dock, my father-and-son team had put together a catch of 88 fish consisting of 87 white bass and 1 short largemouth.  Most of the fish were in the 2-year class, and right at 12.25 inches with good body condition.

SKIES Unlimited stands for School of Knowledge, Inspiration, Exploration and Skills. SKIES Unlimited classes are open to children of active duty military personnel, retirees, Department of the Army civilians, and to Department of Defense contractors.  To enroll in SKIES Unlimited activities, children must be registered with CYSS at Building 121 on 761st Tank Destroyer Avenue (right across from the Chili’s restaurant).

There is no charge for registration; parents must bring an ID that shows their affiliation with the military, the child’s shot records, and the report from a recent physical exam. While the SKIES Unlimited programs are not free, many military families are eligible for sizeable credits toward SKIES Unlimited activities. There is a $300 “Army Strong” credit available to each child when their parent is deployed.

TALLY = 88 FISH, all caught and released

CLICK TO RETURN TO FISHING GUIDE’S HOME PAGE

CLICK TO RETURN TO FISHING GUIDE’S FACEBOOK PAGE

 

TODAY’S CONDITIONS/NOTES:

Start Time: 4:15p

End Time:  7:45p

Air Temp. @ Trip’s Start: 70F

Water Surface Temp:  65.1F

Wind Speed & Direction:  WNW9-11 the entire trip

Sky Conditions:  Fair, cloudless skies.

Water Level: 622.86 and falling with 622.0 being full pool.  Water being released at 1131 cubic feet per second.  Lake fell 0.0190 feet in the past 24 hours

Other: GT= 0

 

AREAS FISHED WITH SUCCESS:

**Area 1720 strong slab bite
**Area 805 strong slab bite
**Area 1720 strong slab bite (on return visit after first bite here died)
 

 

Bob Maindelle

Owner, Holding the Line Guide Service

254.368.7411 (call or text)

Website: www.HoldingTheLineGuideService.com

E-mail: Bob@HoldingTheLineGuideService.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/bobmaindelle