I was chomping at the bit to do a Devil's River trip with Shane Davies--especially after the recent reports here and the fact that I was forced to turn down two previous chances to fish with him (because of work). So I was already pumped up when we put in, but I was still immediately struck by the crisp clear water surrounding the local landscape, barren by North Texas standards, but apparently teaming with fish (if any of the previous posts were true). When I got here and actually saw the water I immediately understood why everyone was so excited about this place.



We loaded the kayaks and started the first leg of our trip. This place was a bass fisherman's dream, and because of the water�s clarity I could see buck bass everywhere as we hit coves paddling up to the river. We caught quite a few of them along the way and found them to be aggressive. We were treated to a few tail-walking shows reeling them in.










We ended the first day at a campsite right on the water. I was hungry and wore out from the day�s paddle and Shane did not disappoint with a meal of pasta, veggies and rib eye steak. Food doesn�t get much better than when its cooked on an open fire!



I slept like a rock and was awoken by Shane handing me a steaming cup of coffee. Talk about customer service. It sure hit the spot (till I spilled some on my bedroll�LOL) and we had a delicious breakfast of cheesy hash and fire warmed tortillas. With some food in my belly and a full night of sleep I was ready to go! Destination: Smallmouth Territory.



We did some fishing along the way and stopped for a snack of herring and crackers. My dad kept telling me how good it was and it did not disappoint.



We paddled by some impressive cliff faces and beautiful scenery, which is typical of Shane�s trips. I've been on a couple of trips with him and while the fishing is nothing short of top notch, it�s the fishing coupled with the locations he takes you to that make the entire experience memorable. This trip was looking to live up to those experiences.



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Shane �Yaknyota� Davies searching for bass with his keen eyes.









After a few miles of paddling and a couple herring and crackers stops, we finally made it. Smallmouth territory. This river was constantly "one-upping" itself. Every time I though it couldn�t get better, it did. The water was so clear! I could see fish everywhere, and we had the entire thing to ourselves.



We reach our spot, offload the kayaks and proceed to fish at a cyclic rate with our newly lightened kayaks. We spend the next two days covering water full of fish. In this picture, my kayak is sitting in three feet of water.











The smalles I caught on this trip were bigger than my personal best up to this point. They were beautifully marked and pound for pound some of the hardest fighting fish I�ve ever encountered.



Continued�

Our last day came entirely too soon and I believe I told Shane a number of times that I could stay there all month! But we had to get back to civilization and so we proceeded to reload the kayaks.



We paddled and fished our way back to the put in and had no less fun than we did on the way up. Buck bass everywhere and scenery straight out of a magazine!









Shane, ever vigilant, spotted this little guy on our way back, and as we got closer to investigate, this porcupine took his defensive posture against us. As comical as it was, we knew he meant business with those quills and only got close enough to get a decent picture before we continued on our way.



While fishing a cove on the way back, we both heard what we thought was a small waterfall. Shane pulled deep into the cove to investigate, and came back saying he�d found a natural spring.



It was a very neat find on an already amazing trip. We proceeded to fill up our water bottles from the spring and I�ll tell you what, that spring water was good! It doesn�t get any more natural than that. The water was cool and refreshing.





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We finally reached the put in at sunset and as tired as we were, we couldn't help but look at each other and laugh. What a trip! The preceding four days felt like a blur. Out of curiosity I brought along my GPS and tracked the water covered over the course of the trip and this is what I had come up with. I started the trip odometer about 2.5 miles into the paddle and couldn�t believe how much water we had covered.



By the time we packed the truck up I felt tired, exited, and rejuvenated. All in a good day�s work with Shane Davies and the River Run Guide Service. It was a heck of a trip Shane! One I'll never forget. I know that I'll be back there as soon as possible, ready for another adventure on the Devil's River.......



The End

Amazing report!

Super Job. Thanks for sharing.

Great photos, great write-up.

Sounds like an awesome trip

Wow, the trip looked awesome, great photos with great fish.

i bet that spring water taste great.

Man that is awesome! I am truly jealous... one day I will hopefully get to do that.

absolutely incredible....thanks

Freakin Awesome! Looks like you all had a ton of fun.

worth the wait. thanks for sharing my man!

Phenomenal report! Excellent storyline, great pics, but the smallies are out of this world...

Congratulations!

Awesome pics