Solid fishermen yielded solid results over late week and through the weekend. A variety of approaches served our guests well working mud/grass and shell in ESB/SAB and shallow bays and back lakes. The big bull tides of this Full Moon brought dividends and counteracted some ills with water conditions especially on Sunday.

Late Week

Thursday was a quick and brutal barrage of Trout banging the deck with Steve S. and guest taking full limits by 1030 a.m. Friday we welcomed Jed H. and nephew Clay in for a run at the fish. Night and day was the best description I could come up with. The fish had pulled way off of primary structure and were working out deep and scattered. We struggled to come up with a half dozen working “hot zones” from the day before. Finally, I pulled the plug and took a look at some back up Trout which surprisingly cooperated to 24.5” over mud/grass. We laid it all on the line and dug in like a pit bull to come up one Trout short for the effort. Any lesser fishermen and the day would have ended poorly. We wish Clay the best as he transitions from dorm life to the big time…best wishes!

Saturday’s Optimism

We had high hopes for the weekend as we welcomed a bachelor party headed by Hunter W. and the guest of honor Clint along with return guests Impact Fire Safety. Our hopes turned into reality at the right approaches; in the right hands; matched with the right guests; bent the boards. Trout to 23” and solidly centered in the 18” range continued to hang on secondary contours out deeper. Southeasterly wind directions found Capt. Doug on the phone early pulling a half dozen solid Trout on the first half of his drift. That narrowed the focus and we pretty much went deep in the numbers and long on size. Doug put it on them taking limits with Clint and Hunter W. and guest. I managed a solid half limit with really pretty fish before the activities of the previous evening caught up with everyone. Capt. James E. worked a variety of angles including taking some nice Redfish out of back lake mud pockets and grass beds. Capt. James C. dug in on a grass line working scattered fish before they schooled up and broke out with some fast action to 23”. Capt. Chris C. found solid action shallow by airboat working grass lines and mud pockets in the upper bays. He said the fish were solid and making some dramatic runs.

Leads to a Sunday Ambush

Sunday tried to surprise us with a big conditions meltdown, except Mother Nature forgot that we’d been there and seen that one about 200 times. We hit the water on a slick off first thing after a big wind pop overnight which gutted the bays with off color water. We immediately abandoned strong Trout real estate in search of Redfish and all managed a few while we were looking for some guidance from the wind and water. Sure enough we picked up a little pop out of the North and pushing 15-18 knots. We worked with it for a while with Capt. James C. breaking into a half dozen fish first thing on a slow grind. That wind and direction backed down in velocity and advanced around the compass going East and then Southeast. With the big tide on the charts I knew some good water would be pushing for the “hot zones” and we bugged out of the back country and made a bee line. First drift we took Trout to 20”. We stayed on them working a stair step approach over oyster shell along streaking water changes and managed solid Trout the entire way. We finally broke to primary structure as the Southeasterly direction ramped up into the middle teens. The bull tide still managed to penetrate dirty water zones leaving us with “all the cards” in our favor. First primary structure drift produced 8 Trout to 18”. Capt. Doug and Capt. James E. were working the same patterns in different areas with similar results.

All in all it was a great string of days with a great bunch of guests. As always, we hope the start of the week is a good one for everybody. Come see us when you get a chance!

Like us on Facebook we promise to “love you back”!

Capt. Kris Kelley
Castaway Lodge
1-888-618-4868
www.seadriftbayfishing.com

Jed. H. fishing with Castaway Lodge in May, 2012.

25th Annual Port Lavaca Rotary Golf Challenge

Benefitting Rotary Scholarships & Other Non-Profit Community Projects

Saturday, June 2, 2012

Tee Time 1:00 p.m.

Hatch Bend Country Club, Port Lavaca

Entry Fee: $200 per Team; $60 Individual

Includes: 4 Person Scramble, Cart, Green Fee. Hospitality providing soft drinks, beer & food & the chance to win cash prizes

361-552-6313 or 552-1919

Chief Flight Instructor-Rotocraft, Toni McCarthy, explains to the students how the flight controls affect the helicopter blades.

Port Lavaca, TX — Calhoun County Airport hosted its annual Kid’s Aviation Day on Friday, May 7th. Over 315 students from Travis Middle School and Seadrift School visited the fixed base operator (FBO) ready to learn about the aerospace community and differences between various planes.

“This year we were able to give the children of Calhoun County the most comprehensive aviation experience yet; we had more volunteers at more stations than any year prior.” said FBO manager, Steve Plunkett. “I cannot express my thanks enough to everyone who came out and supported this fantastic event.”

The students rotated around sixteen different stations: the National Weather Service, Cessna 172, Cessna 182, Calhoun Air Center flight instructor, Hawker-Beechcraft Premier Jet, Robinson R44, Maule MX-7-180, Air Tractor, Civil Air Patrol, Precinct 2 Commissioner, PHI Air Medical Helicopter, Mid-Coast R/C Flyers, Experimental Helicopter, Flight Simulator, U.S. Coast Guard, Sailplane and Port Lavaca Fire Department.

“The kids really enjoyed themselves,” Travis Middle School teacher, Chris Scroggs commented. “They learned about the wonderful world of aviation. We appreciate Calhoun Air Center’s hard work in putting together such a wonderful event.”

The day is made possible by a group of pilots that are eager to share their passion for flying and their knowledge with the students. The students were able to sit in the aircraft and learn first hand about the principles of flight and aircraft operations.

“We really enjoyed having the opportunity to interact with the Calhoun students. They were very excited and enthusiastic about the R44 helicopter. It was fun watching them get in the helicopter, try on headsets and pretend to fly — definitely have some young aviators in the making,” said Chief Flight Instructor-Rotocraft, Toni McCarthy.

In addition, the students received a take home bag which contained various pilot magazines, pens, pencils, rulers, bookmarks, posters, interactive cds and more. Thank you to all of the sponsors: Texas Department of Transportation Aviation Division, Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA), Whirly Girls, Women Of Aviation Worldwide (WOAW), Inteplast, FlightSafety, Jeppessen and Hawker-Beechcraft.

This marks the fourth year which Calhoun Air Center has coordinated the field trip introducing over 1,250 students to the careers in aviation available to them. To view more photos go to www.calhounaircenter.com.

The girls from Travis Middle School, excited to sit in the Robinson R44 and wear the headsets.

To schedule an interview or for more information about this event please contact, Jasmine Gordon at 361-746-8846 or via email at jasmine@calhounaircenter.com.

Calhoun Air Center is dedicated to make your flight experience an enjoyable one. The staff is devoted to assist pilots with accommodations, transportation or repair services. Calhoun Air Center soars above and beyond hospitality with the recent completion of T-hangars; private hangars are available as well community space for an overnight or extended stay. There are two flight school locations which you may train in state-of-the-art Cessna aircraft, Calhoun County Airport (KPKV) or Victoria Regional Airport (KVCT). Calhoun Air Center strives to be a mecca in the aviation community. The airport promotes aviation education to youth with various events throughout the year and works diligently to make a difference in the community. Their efforts show as the airport has been voted Most Improved Airport of the Year by Texas Department of Transportation Aviation Division in 2009, Business of the Year; Level 1 by the Port Lavaca Chamber of Commerce in 2010, earned a Women of Aviation Worldwide Certified Women Friendly Flight Training Facility seal to by Women of Aviation Worldwide in 2011 and Most Female-Pilot-Friendly Airport in the World – 2nd Runner Up by Women of Aviation Worldwide in 2011.

Dillon Krapes brought a sailplane from Refugio. It was a great addition!

Allen A. Braun, 79, of Seadrift passed away Saturday, May 5, 2012. He was born January 1, 1933, in Yorktown, TX to the late Floyd and Rosa Zorn Braun.

He is survived by his wife of 59 years Joan (Mueller) Braun.

Funeral services were held May 9 at Heritage Funeral Home of Memory Gardens in Victoria, Pastor Jim Gickhorn officiating. Interment followed at Memory Gardens.

Serving as pallbearers were Ricky Carter, Monte Moncrief, Glen Weischwill, Troy Mack, Robert Henning, Daryl Matula, Tom Kawana and Jim Furr.

Serving as honorary pallbearers were Trevor Finster, Kolten Braun, Jonathan Scherer, Butch Hodges, Wallace Williams and Jake Scherer.

Memorials may be given to the First Tivoli Lutheran Church Youth Fund.

To leave a comforting message or share a fond memory, please go to: www.heritagefhvictoria.com

I guess I’ll never learn.

Every time there is a fishing tournament held at the community center, the next day I find the golf balls scattered about, signs torn down and rocks thrown all over the place.

Those who have no respect for other peoples’ property will have no respect for their own. No matter how hard they work, they will end up with nothing of value and may even end up in prison.

Yesterday there was a fishing tournament at the center and I found the grounds as I mentioned above. The bucket for golf balls was broken and rocks were everywhere. As a result I am taking the remaining balls home. If anyone needs some to hit call, me and I will furnish you some.

G.B. Robertson
361-983-4498

Adopt-A-Beach

I want to send an extra thank you out to the 176 volunteers that worked the Spring Adopt-a-Beach at Magnolia Beach and to INEOS Nitriles for sponsoring the lunch.

I would also like to make everyone aware that the Texas Sea Grant College Program is developing our 2012 Strategic Plan, which will guide our research, outreach and education activities over the next four years. We have created a short survey to help us prioritize our efforts, and would be interested in your input.

If you would like to fill out the survey, please go to:

http://is-nri.com/take/?i=171833&h=5KQkuY9MEhRjMeg3X-ETTg

Rhonda D. Cummins
Texas Sea Grant
Coastal & Marine Resources
http://kyakradio.tamu.edu

Mother’s Day

As Mother’s Day approaches, I reflect back on things I learned from my mother and father. I have to include him, for they were a team.
Mother said that we should love our children no matter what they have done. By setting a good example to go by, they more than likely turn out to be good citizens. Both parents stressed to show respect to everyone no matter how rich or poor or the color of their skin. A “yes sir” or “no ma’m” will go a long way when conversing with someone.

I remember when I was a young buck working at the Port of Houston and an old longshoreman asked me a question and I replied, “ Pardon me, sir” and he said, “You don’t say sir to me.” I said, “Oh yes I do. My parents taught me that way and I will respect you as long as you respect me.” I found that helped me gain respect with them in doing my job.

Mother passed away at the age of 62 and Dad went the next year at 65. Here am I at 78 and still try to comply with the things they taught. Happy Mother’s Day, Mom.

G.B. Robertson

The Dolphin welcomes letters from our readers on any subject that is of general interest to our audience. Letters should be 300 words or less (with exceptions at the Dolphin’s discretion). Letters reflect the opinion of the writer, and not that of Dolphin Talk staff, and we retain the right to determine suitability for publication. It is the policy of this newspaper to promote area interests: therefore, complaints against local businesses should be directed elsewhere. Letters must be signed and include day and evening phone numbers, which will not be published. Your name will be withheld upon request, but anonymous material will not be considered for publication.

Letters to the Dolphin:
Dolphin Talk, P.O. Box 777
Port O’Connor, TX 77982
dolphin1@tisd.net