PBC Fly Festival still fun
A strong cool north wind, heavy cloud cover, and high tides made tough fishing conditions for the contestants in the Port Bay Club annual fly-fishing tournament held Sat., Oct. 7.
The protected areas of the river systems seemed to be the hot spot but there was no clear water in sight, making fish hard to find.
At Port Bay Club events, there is always something unusual caught. And this year might top the list, as one team sent in a photo of a full bottle of breast milk. A husband-wife fishing team thought it would be funny to send a photo of the bottle as an entry because she was having to pump during the tournament. This was their first weekend away from their newborn and they had not had a bite.
Team “Mako My Day” found a good bunch of fish on practice day, but the fish were not in their spot in Mission Bay the next day.
“The low visibility was harsh,” team member Dean Meyer said.
Team “Pump and Dump” said they were drifting near Grass and were blind casting when they hooked a nice flounder.
Team “Tail Earnhardt” fished the marsh and caught a cabbagehead with a crab attached.
Team “Matagorda Mafia” took a long trip to the Nueces River and fished in the industrial complex of Corpus Christi.
“One of the ugliest places on the coast to fish,” David Sams said. “We saw five reds all day and hooked four of them but only managed to land two.”
The Eric Nelson Memorial Fly Fishing Festival was small this year for the eight anglers casting for reds, trout and anything else they could catch. Each group fished for a total-inch stringer of two redfish, one trout and one wild card fish.
Results:
“Matagorda Mafia”
David Sams & Mimi Meyer
Redfish: 49.50
Trout: 10 1/8
Wild card: 8 ½ (sand trout)
Spot Calcutta winners
“Pump & Dump”
Joseph & Megan Anderson
Trout: 9 1/8
Wild card: 15 3/8 (flounder)
“Mako My Day”
Dean Meyer & Rhody Baker
Trout: 12 3/8
Wild card: 8 ¾ (sand trout)
“Tail Earnhardt”
Jonathan Clarkson & Randy Lucas
Trout: 10 5/8
Wildcard: 9 1/2 (sand trout)
Eric Nelson was a true sportsman and longtime member of the 111-year-old club. He left many contributions behind that members of Port Bay Club enjoy.
