So far there have been a few suggestions for fly fishing the Texas Gulf Coast. On the list as of this writing are Port O’Connor, Christmas Cove and perhaps Aransas Pass. It’s difficult to go too far south with travel expenses being what they are, and the high probability of a return trip to SPI in September. There is some great information on the Costal Bend in the book (I finally found it!) “Wade & Kayak Fishing on the Coastal Bend of Texas” by Ray Crawford. Crawford’s book is, as far as I know, the definitive source on the Coastal Bend of Texas. I found the book (and a couple of more I wanted) at the new digs for Backwoods in Fort Worth, as well as a bunch of different eyes for tying that I have been looking for – including rattle eyes and some basic eyes (not regularly found) for tying Clousers and such.

We hit the upper reaches of the Blue River in Oklahoma Sunday, and other than some very angry Largemouth Bass, there seemed to be the same problem there as everywhere in the region – too much heat. Other than some tubers fishing for catfish, we were the only ones on the river. The northern reaches are walk-in only (take a bike and bike-in), and once you get through the turnstiles, the geography looks like almost like a fake water park – with beautiful rocky falls, holes and technical challenges that will surely be active during the trout (stocking) season. They may not be wild trout, but they are the nearest fix a DFW trout person can get, and I still find the geography of the Blue more interesting than Beaver’s Bend – not nearly as large and not nearly as overrun, but stickier rocks and generally safer water than Beaver’s Bend.

Meanwhile, the heat is still on here in North Texas, with temperatures continuing to be over 100 and no end in sight. The fish, as far as I can tell, are in a state of suspended animation, and I don’t hear of anyone doing much good in the region. So I guess it’s off to Colorado to escape the heat, and who knows, maybe a little fishing – yet to be determined.

Here is the map for the Blue River in Oklahoma, USA. This came from a brochure about the Blue River and is apparently somewhat difficult to find. There is also good information in Barry Shrader’s site and Karl Hungus’ site, the latter of which may still contain this same map. I put Hungus together with Shrader last year, and he did some good on the Blue. If you are interested in an interview with Shrader, please look back in my archives as there is a pretty good and insightful interview about the dynamics of the Blue River.