Russell Tinsley.

JULY/AUGUST
Offshore Fishing & Tarpon
When it comes to saltwater angling, my expertise -- limited as it may be -- is confined to redfish, trout, and the occasional flounder.

That’s something I hope to change this year as my family and I make another pilgrimage to the Texas Gulf Coast. There are many piscine treasures waiting in briny water found offshore rather than inshore.

For the angler willing to brave seasickness on a journey dozens of miles offshore, there is the thrill of blue water angling for species like marlin, sailfish, yellowfin tuna, dorado, and wahoo, to name but a few.

Closer to shore, there are the oilrigs that provide great fishing for red snapper, the hard-fighting kingfish, and other saltwater species.

And finally, there are increasing numbers of tarpon showing up each year from the deep-water tarpon near Galveston to the shallow-water silver kings that delight conventional and fly-fishing anglers from Port O’Connor to South Padre Island.

SEPTEMBER
Striped Bass
Most summers, you can find me somewhere on Lake Texoma targeting line-ripping striped bass.

Last year however, when a massive early-summer flood inundated the Red River Valley, Texoma was unfishable during the prime months of summer as floodwaters receded from submerged boat ramps and marinas.

By the time I got back on the water in September and fished with Steve Hollensed, it had been a few months since I had been on the lake.

What I found when I did get back was topwater feeding blitzes that would rival anything the Atlantic Seaboard can dish up -- minus the boat traffic, that is.

On a warm early-autumn day, we enjoyed several hours of run-and-gun fishing: casting to and catching stripers weighing between 3 and 5 pounds. And those were the ones we actually hooked -- on several occasions a linesider blew up on our poppers but somehow remained free.

For those interested in giving this angling game a try, Hollensed suggests 7-, 8-, or 9-weight fly rods rigged with either a floating line or at times, a shooting head ranging from 300 to 500 grains. To the floating line he suggests tying on a white foam popper, while to the sinking line he’ll tie a chartreuse streamer or a Clouser minnow.

For conventional tackle enthusiasts, he recommends medium- to heavy-weight baitcasting or spinning gear coupled with a Pop-R in white or bone. Sassy Shads in chartreuse, pearl, and white are also good bets.

Whichever method of angling floats your boat, be sure to bring along nerves of steel. “It can get pretty darned crazy,” Hollensed said. “The water is boiling everywhere and fly lines are whizzing in the air. I’ve often heard it said that fly-fishing is a quiet and contemplative sport. Well, this definitely isn’t it on Texoma during a blitz. It’s fast and extreme -- if you get into one of these great blitzes once, you’ll be hooked for life.”