Fished one of my favorite places last week. The Great Southwest of Texas. Fished the West Nueces River and the Los Moras Creek and the fishing was "OUTSTANDING" as well as the scenery and the peace and quite. Fished all day from 7am till 6:30pm. Caught over 50 very nice Longear all in the 6 and 7 inch range. Had one that was well over 8 inches get off at the end of a nice fight(would have been my new PB Longear if I could have landed it.) I also caught a lot of nice bass in the 2 to 4 pound range.Fish were caught on worms and Berkley Trout Worms-natural color. All fish were released. After a GREAT DAY of fishing I had a SUPER dinner at Julies Cafe in Bracketteville. Love fishing the Kinney County area. Catching some big Southwest Texas Longear and eating some super food. It just don't get any better!


Side Note: Both the West Nueces River and the Los Moras Creek are in excellent shape. The water was crystal clear. I also fished a pond that was completely full and saw several springs bubbling from the ground. The area also had gotten a thunder shower the night I stayed.

Very nice Chuck! Love the Longears, they are ferocious little fish with a mean attitude and beautiful colors. And over 8" is a giant for them

The ones I catch in Dallas seem to have more turquoise/orange in them compared to the ones in creeks in ETX which seem to have a darker rust/red color. Do you notice different hill country variations in the different creeks? Im sure in has to do with different diets and minerals in the water, I dig it whatever the reason.

Nice report

Thanks Andrew for the reply! The Longear in the Southwest area are definitely bigger and have a different color design than the ones I catch in the Hill Country. Even though both water bodies have crystal clear water and lots of grass beds it has to be the diet and mineral content in the water that causes the color change. Just my two cents.



Do the Longear in your aquarium change color after being in the aquarium for a while?

Chuck, thats why I like fishing for sunfish so much. All the different varieties plus you inevitably pick up a bass, cat, crappie, drum, carp ect that cruise the waters. And most of the time you are fishing water that gets less pressure so the fish are dumb.

There is nothing better than a hungry dumb fish.

As far as my tank, yes they keep their color. It's easy to tell the ETX Neches Longear from the White Rock Longear for example. They (all off the different kinds of sunfish I keep) "light up" during feeds, territorial disputes, or when they dig in the sand like they are making a nest.

Yes Sir Andrew there is very little fishing pressure in that area for sure and fish are super aggressive especially when they see that nice night crawler hanging over a hook! I also saw some BIG RIOS but could not get any of em to bite!




Side Note: Thanks for the tank information. One of these days I may just break down and get me a nice one. The problem is that I would be to lazy to maintain it. It would be a true relaxing pleasure to watch those sunnies throughout the day.

Do it Chuck! It is very relaxing and interesting to watch their behavior especially how they interact with one another. One of the most rewarding hobbies I have ever gotten into.

There are a couple of business in the San Antonio area that specialize in Aquarium set ups. I may just have to pay them a visit and ask a ton of questions!

Always love reading your Bracketteville,Kinney Co. reports. Great reading about the good conditions of the water sources in that area. As always nice fish and some super pictures. Thanks for sharing.



Side Note: When was the last time you fished Amistad? I know the lake is still low but has also come up a lot over the past months.

Yessuh Banker...Looks like its a few monsters in there under those lily pads(I like that orange belly coming outta the water)! Awesome job as always

Whens the next bluegill fish fry?? I gotcha covered on beverages

Thanks "Gitter" and "AJ" for the replies! "Gitter": It has been over a year since I fished Amistad. Got to give Kurt a call and set a trip up with him for sure. That is one beautiful lake! Kinney and Val Verde counties got a lot of rain this year. Amistad has come up some but it's still low. "AJ": Yes Sir we might just have to plan some sort of a fish fry,get together for some of the "Brim Busters" who may want to attend. I know I can count on you for the "MODELO'S"!

Friends of mine fished Amistad last week and did not do all that good. Boated 12 fishing all day. The summer time is usually the slow time for that lake.




Side Note: Seems that Amistad will be holding some nice Rios? Any thoughts?

Solid fish chuck! Great post as always. We'll have to get together sometime and fish my piece of heaven!

Thanks "Gitter" and "Gar 1970" for the replies. Gitter: I have never caught a Rio off of Amistad and I have been told by several anglers that Amistad does hold some solid Rios. The problem I have that lake is so big they could be anywhere. "Gar 1970": Yes Sir would love to meet you!

I have fished Amistad a lot over the years. You are right that lake is huge. They would have a lot of places to hide.

Yes Sir!