Nueces Whites 2015

I know this thread is alittle early, But wanted to pass on some intel, My co-worker informed me that one of his buddies went out to airport and limited out on whites how true this is I'm not sure, but if they are catching whites already my guess is that their males moving to the spawning sites. So right now I'm just finishing the last weeks of hunting season and then I'll hit the river since it's down the road and give a report, If anyone is catching post up some info!!

Also their was a couple of boat trailers at the George West launch area 59 bridge, I guess their is something going on.

Well just received confirmation, the whites are moving buddy sent me a pic from airport trying to load it from my phone, limit of whites with a few large males mixed in might even be females lure of choice was a red head roadrunner with a white curly tail.

Well just received confirmation, the whites are moving buddy sent me a pic from airport trying to load it from my phone, limit of whites with a few large males mixed in might even be females lure of choice was a red head roadrunner with a white curly tail.

Well let me know what yall think, really quiet on my thread!!!!

I think that is great !

Did they put in at the 59 bridge and go up river from there to catch them ?

thanks, Chris

Hey bud they went up river and launched from airport rd. He said since the river has dropped from last year their is alot more current areas, also said they would throw the lure up current and wham!!!!! they would hit it. I'm just going to finish up these last two weeks of regular hunting season, and then my buddy and i will hit the river in our yaks I have my honey hole about three miles up river where the boats cannot make it too.

Thanks for report ! I've been fishing that river for the last 30 Years. Seen the good and the bad! I remember a couple of years where we fished in Early to mid January and would limit out on every trip easily. Area around the 59 was the ticket. Back then there was no airport ramp. We would run my 14 ft. flat bottom up river for miles and miles to hit the whites. Back then i would go all day and not even see a boat the whole day. Good times.

You won't see that now because those were the days before the internet!
Come March there will be a lot of folks wondering and asking when the run will start? Truth is it's winding down by that time although you can still hit them coming back down stream but with the low water levels it will be hit and miss like last year.

Think we can catch them off the bank at airport launch?

Yes you should be able too, you just have to find a fishable spot along the banks.I was their earlier this morning fishing until I realized I forgot the most important thing that I need on my person my license, back to Beeville it was next time i'll be in my yak weather permitting

That is truly unfortunate sir, and if I may add, not worth the risk. We will be there tomorrow morning with the artificial stuff. Everywhere I know of seems to be out of minnows. I made sure and updated my license a while ago.

Also thinking the boys and I might just head out to Granger and fish the spillway or the the river flowing in. Last year there were tons of vehicles lined up along side of the road where the San Gabriel feeds into the lake.

Out of minnows usually means 1 thing. Trucks use to run on Thursday

My co-workers buddy launched at 59 yesterday, was hammering the whites using green and white spec rigs all big females and nice sized males their catching two at a time, 59 bridge has been packed with boats everytime we head home from work that's the only place boats can launch, the airport ramp launch is low even better for us cause we fish from kayaks and that is why its so quiet on this thread.

WE went last Tuesday, put in at 59 and went about 2-miles towards lake. I used my trolling motor and was casting lures. There were about 4 other boats that went further and were trolling with their big motors and from what they said, they all did better than me. I could have did what they were doing, but 25-whites while casting lures is more fun to me. We fished from 2 to 5:30. If anyone knows how to turn pics, please let me know. Oh yeah, there were some big ones, 16" 2-lbs.

Lake Level When I went fishing at 59 bridge (Jan.6,2015), this was the current water level. This level is about the minimum for my boat, 22-foot.

River Level at Airport When you look at the river level at nr Three Rivers, that is close to airport.

If anyone has been to the airport, does that seem to be correct water level, 1.45-feet.

Nice catch. Thanks for sharing. I agree with you on the lure casting being more fun.

Big boats will not be able to launch at airport its low unless you have a kayak it small John boat!!

If you click on the highlighted: Lake Level or River Level, in the above posts, you will see the website. I was curious if the water level at airport is only 1.45 feet deep like the website stated or is it deeper. I have no intention of putting my boat in at the airport ramp. I just wanted to know if the website info is correct.

Ramm yes sir it is, but it's still fishable just have to get pass the ramp area, when the river flooded it looks like it pushed a lot of sand and mud towards the ramp. I will be fishing airport bright and early Friday morning.

Great catch RAMM !I love to "feel the bite" too! Those are some fatties!

Hey RAMM, Great catch! Bet it was a lot of fun. I really enjoy fishing that river. If you don't mind me asking. What type lures were you using? I am hoping to get down there late next week or weekend. Weather permitting.

I went last week in a 17' Bass Tracker and went downriver from 59. It will be rough going downriver with another 6"-8" water level drop. Worst part is the straightway right past 59. About 1.5" deep in several spots.

Rapala® Shad Rap Lure

SIZE:SR5 - 2"
COLOR:SHAD

I haven't fished the Nueces in a couple of years now because of the drought conditions, but this thread has gotten me excited again. Glad to hear that there is a run this year. With the good weather expected this weekend and the number of hits this thread has received (over 2k), I expect heavy traffic. My questions: is there enough water above the Airport Ramp to fish or even for the fish to travel up river? If so can I take my 2 man Bass Raider up river with a 2hp outboard? Or will I be better off with a Kayak?
I'd like to stay away from the traffic and larger boats at 59 bridge. If any of you guys who have already invested their time on early expeditions would let me know I would appreciate the information.

Back in the day, in the first pic, I am next to my dad, I am holding my stringer and my friend in the white shirt is holding the other end, 170 whites, not sure what the grand total was.

Love those old pictures, and it was back in the day when there were no limits. You could easily catch 300 a day back then, and you usually stopped not because the bite slowed down, you stopped because you got tired of catching them, and then had the thought of how long it was going to take you to clean them.
What I love about the river is it's still as wild today as it was back then. No real development along the shorelines to speak of.
I fear with all the new oil field money that may end up changing which I hope it never happens.

If you want to launch at the Airport launch, all you need is waders a kayak or both.
There are a few sections that you have to drag that one I know was about 100 yards long last year that was too shallow for a large boat. A small jon or kayak is ideal with the kayak being your best choice because it is easier to handle and paddle than a loaded down jon boat.
It's a fun river to fish from a kayak and even if you don't catch much which is rare, you have all the wildlife and unspoiled scenery to enjoy.
Take along some catfish bait also if the whites are slow you can fish for them, and don't overlook the brushpiles and try for crappie also.
Catching the whites is just icing on the cake.

Well the whites skunked us, hit 59 this morning around 9 in our kayaks, with the water being super muddy should have known just to head home visibility is zero for the water clarity, my opinion save your gas money until the water clears up a little, unless someone else has a different suggestion for muddy water!!!!

It was pretty dirty last week. I see the river is up 1/2 foot from last week, just got through getting the boat ready for tomorrow. We shall see.

I think we are going saturday morning, the spawn should not be on yet. This should be prespawn white bass staging before heading up river. Im wondering if this cold weather will push them back into the main lake?

Went today, like USM posted, the water is like mud. The River Level website I posted is accurate, the river is up 1/2 ft. I fished the area I had luck at last week, nothing. I used the same lures as last week, plus some darker and some brighter, it did not matter. Only fished about 40-min and decided to go farther towards lake and troll some, when I started trolling my motor ran hot, SOB the water pump went out. I could not troll, but when I got moving the motor got enough water, so called it a day, got back while I could, did not want to chance spending the night on the river. I did observe today was cloudy and I did not see any shad movement when I first started. About 2pm when I was running back, I noticed the sun came out and I started to see some shad movement. Last week the sun was out most of the day, it has been my experience that early in the season the sunny days are much much better. So who knows, maybe they would have started to bite or maybe I would have found them closer to the lake. I have got them as far away as 10-miles from 59. Did I mention the water was like mud. Maybe by Monday it will clear up. Good luck. Oh yeah, skunked.

Hit the Nueces this morning. Put in at hwy 59 bridge. Water low & muddy. Headed toward lake. Be careful on the straight away just south of hwy 59. Some shallow water areas. Ran into an area that was only a foot deep. Go slow & stay to the middle left of the river. There were a few submerged tree that I encountered also. No damage, no problems. It was like this for about 3/4 of a mile. There was another submerged tree about a mile down the river. (stay left) After that it was smooth sailing. Trolled with Rapala SR-5's, Roadrunners & Rattle Traps for about 2 hours. No luck. Not a bite. Water was to muddy. Decided to go see if we could find green water. Went down river about 5 miles. Past bridge about a mile past R.V. park on left. Found green water. Boom! Found the fish. Caught around 40 white bass, kept 12 of the bigger females. There were 3 other boats fishing the same area & catching fish also. We were catching males and females. The females were big and fat.(full of eggs).Fish were marking thick on my fish finder. The fish seem to favor the deeper water. we were fishing in water that was 9 to 15 feet. Water temp was 53.3 degrees. Left them biting. Had a blast. May try again on Sunday. Sorry no pics. Don't know how to upload them.

Shoot, looks like I was on the right track heading for the lake. One of the worst stumps, after leaving 59, looking straight down the river, right before the first bend(which is to the right) there is a big stump right in the middle. Before you start heading right, you can still see the 59 bridge. There is a faded red tape tied to a tree limb on the left side of river that is even with the stump. What makes it so bad, is it is big and dead middle of river. I stayed on the west side of middle and had no problem. Thanks for posting Chief, confidence is 90% of it. Tomorrow I will be replacing my water pump myself, will be first time, looks pretty easy LOL. I have been paying to have it done all these years, hope to get it done and then head to the coast and try for some snapper.

I've never launched at the 59 bridge. How big of a boat can launch there? I have a 19' skeeter, and my buddy has a 19' blue wave, would we be able to launch there?

Hey RAMM, Yes sir you were on the right track. I almost called it a day yesterday after trolling for 2 hours and nothing. Thank God I didn't. Hope you get your water pump impeller fixed and get back on the water. I did mine last year 90 h.p. Merc. Not to bad of a job. A lot of good info on You Tube. Elcoyote you and your buddy should not have any trouble. I run my 18 ft. Nitro Bay Boat with out any problems. I have seen bigger boats down there. Just be careful and take it slow. Several shallow spots on the straight away leaving the hwy 59 bridge headed toward the lake. Also submerged timber in that same area. I hit a few yesterday. Didn't do any damage or cause any problems. The thud was just a surprise. Remember look for green water.

Put in at 59 for the first time. First off, if they made a horror movie about about boat ramps that would be it. We happened to put in just after another boat and noticed they were putting down stream so I followed suit. About 200 yards past the bridge is hairy. We fished just south of the rail road bridge. NOTHING. It was our first time chasing whites on nueces. Probably won't make it back this year since I have to drive from Portland, and water is really muddy. I don't believe there was any green water. There was a lot of boat traffic. If you saw a white polling flats boat, that was me and my dad.

The perfect boat for that river has always been a 14' aluminum with a 15 hp. kicker.
Run that kicker with the lockdown off and a box of extra shear pins and your good to go!

I got the new water pump on today. It's pissing and not running hot, but not showing any pressure on gauge. This is all at idle on a 225hp Yamaha.. Will play with it some more tomorrow. I really would like to go to the coast, but not sure I trust the motor. I guess at the very least, back to 59 on Tues. What the hell is a shear pin LOL.

Check your inlet hoses for obstructions. It could be a bad sending unit or valve, not sure on what your motor has though, but it could be something simple like an obstruction in a hose at the inlet.
I don't think your motor has a shear pin, but those old motors used to be a lot less complicated and to fix them on the water was easy. Duct tape and bailing wire was all you needed.

The Shear pin, as Jimbo referred to, is a Pin that slips thru the shaft holding the prop in place. If you hit a log or obstruction while motoring the pin will shear (break) thus not damaging you main gear etc. in the foot of the motor. I keep a few in my tackle box for my old 9.5 johnson engine. And yes! Ive had to change the pin out a few times while running that river!!

I haven't been to the river yet this year so please, you guys that are going, take along an empty clorox bottle and mark those stumps for me would ya?...I'm all out of shear pins and they stopped making them in my size!
A few more days without rain and that muddy water will receed and the green water will be closer to 59. Need to oil up my reels!

Anyone think there would be any problem launching a 24' bay boat at the 59 ramp and heading up towards the lake? Don't know what to expect with the river being low and don't want to make the trip if I cant get the boat in.

You can launch a boat that size at 59, but you'll have about a mile downriver towards the lake with some low water (1'-1.5') and pretty bad stumps.

Okay thanks, guess I'll just take it slow to watch of for the stumps.

I was just kidding about the shear pins, I have changed out a bunch of them. I once had a 7-hp sears that would not stay in gear, so I pulled out this little gear box thing and welded it into gear. No neutral or reverse, when it started it was in forward, so you had to be ready when you pulled that rope. Bad news on the 225hp Yamaha. I checked my water pressure gauge and a new gauge I bought today with a vacuum tester. I applied 5lbs with the tester and they both showed 4lbs, so I know the 0-lb reading while running is correct. Sure enough, it ran hot today after about 10-min. of running. I pulled the lower case again and hooked up an acid wash. It's been running for 4-hrs and does not look good. I have read where they let them run for 2 or 3 days, time will tell.

New thread name NUECES WHITES 2015/ BOAT REPAIRS!!!!! Come on fellas more reports about whites or any other game fish other than parts for a motor or boat!!

Hope this helps guys.Went yesterday with a buddy and got skunked. Chief Mike was dead on about green water past RV park on the left. We did not get to go any further down river because we did not have enough fuel,lesson learned. We saw 1 fish caught all day,dont know if this is true but we did have one boat with a couple of guys tell us they caught 30 whites much further down the river. They said we needed to go much further down till we saw all the boats fishing and green water. Well needless to say we did not make it that far because we did not have enough fuel to keep going. As mentioned by many of you guys already that straight away just past 59 bridge is pretty bad,submerged trees.We hit one on the way back and it broke the handle on my friends outboard. Saw one other larger boat hit one also.We were in a small flat bottom and still hit so be careful,hope this helps.

what road is that RV park off of. Im just looking on google earth to see if I went far enough down stream

Hey Matt E, The answer to your question depends on the draft of your boat. There are a few shallow spots on the straight away leaving the hwy 59 bridge heading toward the lake. I was there Friday. River level was low. Found a few spots that were 1.0 ft. to 1.50 ft. I see that the river level is up slightly from Friday. Watch for submerged trees. The first 3/4 to 1 mile is the worst. After that it gets deeper and is smoother sailing.
Josh Ray, Looking at Google Maps it looks like the road that the bridge goes over the river is F.M 151 & the road the R.V. park is on is F.M.336. Good luck !

The green water was about 2 miles past the camp on the left (about 10 miles downriver from the 59 bridge) and we didn't get into the fish until we hit about 12 miles from 59. Caught about 30 and kept 18. Threw back anything under 11", so probably would have had 25 keepers if we kept all legal fish. Probably could have limited out if we hit it hard, but got our limits last week, so we didn't spend a whole lot of time on the river today.

We were out there on Sat 1/17. The water was very choclatey!! We also got skunked. I ran into Josh Ray. Josh Ray, we were the 3 guys you and your Dad were talking to in the Alumacraft Center console. Sorry, it did not work out for you. I am hoping to make down again this weekend. I hope we will have a better experience. I did go down about 1/4 mile past the camp and found a little better looking water but still now dice. I wish i had gone further. Oh well, that's how it goes sometimes.

I was out on Sunday in my 18 foot bass buggy. Bumped a couple of times near the launch but no damage. Caught 10 keepers trolling near the mouth of the lake. My fish finder refused to start so i really couldn't map or find the schools. Still a good day.

"Hooah" I fixed my motor, the acid flush worked. I was able to go to 59 again Tues. I went south towards lake again. The water level 1st-trip 1.45, 2nd-trip 1.98 and this Tues 1.54. The water clarity had improved the first two miles, but was worse the next 5-miles, like the muddy water was moving south. I did not attempt to fish any until I found green water, which was 11-miles south of 59. I trolled with the big motor between mile 11 and 13 and was catching a few big ones, but mostly small males. At around 13-miles, a couple of friends in another boat, who had already been fishing a few hrs. said they had caught about 30 on rattle traps. I figured if the fish were there, I would be able to catch them on my SR5 and a couple of other favorites. I killed the big motor, dropped the trolling motor and started casting. Well I did not do so well, I swallowed my pride and got out some rattle traps. I still was not doing so well. I was catching some, but not putting a hurt on them. I did notice that most of the ones I caught were right at the boat, high in the water column. So I started to hold my rod at 11 o'clock and just did a slow retrieve. Bingo, I started catching them much better. It still wasn't real fast catching, you had to make a lot of cast for each one. We did not leave them biting, it had slowed down pretty good when we left at 5pm. We ended up with 33 good ones. Oh yeah, the wife caught one really nice crappie.

Nice report Ramm I've never caught any crappie on the river, if anyone has tips on catching crappie on the nueces I would appreciate the tips, We'll Be out on the river next thurs and Fri depending on fishing results and water clarity!

Nothing wrong with that water clarity in those photos, because that looks about normal for the Nueces.
Good report, nice catch!

Hey RAMM, If you get a chance can you pm me about how you do the acid flush. I have a 2008 Pathfinder with a 200 hp Yamaha that reads low water pressure at low speeds. at higher speeds it seems to be ok. So I would like to try this flush to see if it helps out any. Thanks!

Looks like the size of the fish is great this year again! I remember maybe only five or six years ago the fish size average was fairly small. You could catch a lot of numbers but the size was on the small side. We would decide if we wanted to go to the Frio (choke) for big fish, or Nueces for numbers. Then, out of nowhere (maybe 2010 or 2011?) the fish were all really big and have been nice size since then.

The fish were really big last weekend without any throwbacks, but we caught a lot of small ones monday. More than I remember in a long time.

A little rain did not stop me. Chief Mike I sent you a pm.

How is Mustang Hollow ramp? I see it listed on the TPWD web page. It looks like about as far as the Hwy 59 ramp from where we caught fish last weekend. Is the ramp usable these days?

From Mathis, travel 11 miles north on IH 37, exit onto FM 534, go left across interstate and double back on FM 3024 south for 2 miles. Watch for campground sign to the right. Alternatively, take FM 3024 9 miles north from Mathis and watch for sign on left.
Ramp will accept all boat types when lake is full; restricted to smaller boats when lake level is low.
Private facility, fee required (361) 547-5201 The lake is low, but there is the phone no.

Anyone know how much rain they got down in the George West/Three Rivers Area?

Not enough to dirty the river this week coming should be good, water is clearing up the whites should start their way back up river, Our area which is beeville 10mins down the road my rain gauge read less than 1/4th of an inch!!!

Hopefully that's the case, but all it needs to do is rain upstream in the watershed, and it will muddy that river up in a hurry. Especially in the Atascosa river which empties into the Nueces. If they had the rains upstream like we had here in SA, especially in the Atascosa, speaking from my experience, it's going to be muddy regardless of what was locally.
We'll have to keep our finger crossed. Hence the name, "Three Rivers" you have the Frio, Nueces, and Atascosa which all join up above where we fish.

Yeah, seemed like there was more rain in the area this week than what originally muddied up the river last week (which came down the Atascosa).

10-4, I was just stating what I see everyday I pass over these rivers since I live in this area!!

I really don't think the river will be worth fishing. I went by it today and it was still muddy. I believe that the rain we had in this area will affect the river once again.

Hey ghost kayaker, I didn't know the town of three rivers received its name from the rivers in its area pretty cool hahahahah lol. Learn something new everyday hey we should get together and kayak these rivers !!!

I'm just all full of information!
Did ya'll know that Three Rivers is surrounded by a levee because the town itself is below the flood plane! It flooded several years back when the river breeched the levee.
You can see one of them as you are headed south just after the refinery.
Back to the reports. A friend of mine who runs a guide service put 72 into his boat this past week. He goes until he finds fish, so who knows how far towards the lake he went, but they are there.

Anybody gone in through airport ramp.

Went out today for a try at some ultra light action. Found a few after traveling what seemed to be about 14-15 miles (maybe not that long but felt like it) south of 59 boat ramp. I don't know how long of a ride it was but was near Swinney Switch bridge. Here are some pics of today's action.

Good times with good friends and my son!!


My boy!!

Congrats fellas!!!

Thanks usmcgruntd.co!! Sure wish we would have found that green water earlier. Had a great time. Always good to see my boy catch fish.

All stumps have been marked with blue paint from my lower unit

Lol

took my boat out there yesterday, me and my brother worked the river hard, managed 28, i guess thats not too bad as this was only my 3rd time out there looking for whites.

Awesome. Congrats!!

Where about were you fishfearme? Down river? How far?

i went everywhere , i saw no concentrations of them anywhere. just here and there.
i went all the the way to swinney switch and back

Thanks. Planning to go this weekend. And not sure to take my boat to go down stream or take canoe and go upstream.

Anybody been upstream from airport ramp?

Airport slowing down. Think they are heading back. Almost over. Started christmas

its not over, i caught females at swinney switch which is the top of the lake full of eggs in fact all the fish i caught were full of eggs.

Saw a guy in a canoe that went upstream a few hundred yards that limited out. This was Sunday. I too ran all way to Swinney Switch. We ended up with only about 21. I have to say, we did a lot of exploring.

How is the water clarity around the 59 bridge? Think the whites have moved back down towards the lake or are they still upriver??

Whats colors best to be using? Havnt fished that river and will be trying it out tomorrow. Thanks for ya'lls info.

its been muddy at 59. im heading out there tommorow

Green or white road runners

Is it worth the drive form San Antonio? I have the same boat as you FishFearMe, incase I run into you out there.

im in sa also. fishings always worth the drive. no way to tell if we get on them though, i know you wont if you dont try

Thank u.

How'd yall do today??

[img]http://texasfishingforum.com/forums/pics...9_22662253_2325[/img]
Last Friday, whites

2 of us pulled a limit today

Nice still going strong, be back at it this week!!!

people must be reading this, it was packed today, even a thorough inspection by the game warden, haha, cant touch me, i was too legit. hehe
managed 35 in 4 hrs.

Airport is tough fishing. 8 hours managed only 30 whites 8 crappie 2 goo. Worked up river about 1 mile hard. Caught all fish in one hole when they went on a frenzy. One hour long fire. Otherwise dead.
Probably missed ten threw back ten small ones.

Is it just me or is this the best white run on the Nueces in years? Based on this thread and many on Facebook here in SA. I really hope to hit it next year!

Next year's run will really be good if the lake can somehow stay at the level it's at or ideally, go up about 5 feet. It's over 8 foot low right now and can easily lose a foot per month in the summer, so need some major rain in the watershed this spring.

Don't wait for next year, go now! Next year it may be dried up like it was recently.

Can't go now, boat is down, and my back is out. Can't even barely get around the house right now...

We went Monday. They are still there. Caught 27-good ones and about 60 to 80 small ones we threw back. Did not do well on the rattle trap or SR5, caught them on a Strike King KVD 1.0 sexy shad.

put 20 plus size females in the boat today, released over 60 fish.
very few males, we let a lot of nice fish go. we kept nothing under 14 inches
no pics , clients today

I went yesterday with my neighbor and the two of us brought back 35. It was our first trip this year and we kept the better sized for a fish fry.
Everyone I talked to had limits and didn't seem to matter what was used or where in the river folks fished. I fished about 2 miles up and fished a small area where I caught the first fish. I left them biting because I didn't want to have to clean more than we had.
Saw some guys at the launch that also had limits.
I've fished this river for 40 years and I can say without a doubt these fish we caught yesterday were the largest on average than I've ever caught in all those years on the river.
Fantastic day is all I can say!

jimbo were you in a canoe

No, I saw those two guys in that canoe and they were pulling out ahead of me. I was watching one of the guys trying to lift that heavy stringer into the back of pickup into the canoe and he was using all the strength he had.
I was one of the old pharts in that sand colored 14' fiberglass boat with the rail on the front and the bass seats and 9 hp Yamaha.

Ive been waiting for the time to be right but now I cant make it down there until next weekend. For the past several years I launch my yak at the airport and go up river. Is next weekend going to be too late?

i doubt it fish are still full of eggs

Is everyone still going downriver from 59 or are these recent reports from upriver?

I just love it how people think they own the river and get bend out of shape sorry guy if your panties were hurting you, I was just trying to catch a few slabs, I already had my limit of whites anyway!!! SEMPER FI

Hey guys just wondering if fish being caught from airport ramp. Dont want to know your honey holes but just a little info. We all are fellow fisherman/fisherwoman. Heading out tomorrow with my canoe for first time for a little fun on the river

tbud their being caught everywhere, no such thing as a honey hole on a creek errrr i mean river, go fish, cover some areas and youll catch some

Much thanks. Will report back this evening

If you go upriver from the airport ramp be prepared to drag your canoe in a few spots. Water is only 6" in some spots. Look for deeper holes (2' or more) and fish around rapids leading into or out of deeper areas. Caught quite a few on curly tail grubs, mostly white. You don't have to go far, just test areas as you go. Bite will turn on and off quickly.

Exactly! Right now you can find them up river, down river wherever! Just start trolling and when you hook up, fish that area more thouroughly and you'll catch a few more.
I worked an area no more than 100 yards back and forth. I don't lay any claims to "A SPOT" or think that I own the river! I've only been there once this year, so there are a lot of tresspassers already using the river.
By the way don't let the cold weather next week stop you from going! I've caught fish there in past years with ice on the rod eyes and you had to dip the tip into the water so that the line would pass through the eye. I don't fish that way anymore because I'm older and wiser these days.

last time out trolling was more productive than casting, even when i found them stacked up. for some reason as soon as i started trolling bam would hook up, in a spot i threw into 50 times.

Went upriver Approx 1 mile. Worked several deeper holes. And yes i did drag canoe several times. Ended up with 16 whites and 2 nice crappie. Prob 20 to 25 throw backs. Bite happened from 12 to 1. Thanks for all your help guys. Its good to get out and wet a line

Went upriver Approx 1 mile. Worked several deeper holes. And yes i did drag canoe several times. Ended up with 16 whites and 2 nice crappie. Prob 20 to 25 throw backs. Bite happened from 12 to 1. Thanks for all your help guys. Its good to get out and wet a line

Fished from the bank at the airport launch this afternoon from 4:15-6:30. Caught three whites, small males. On white grubs.

Airport. Saturday lots of kayaks on the water. Most people caught a few here and there. Not a very productive day for throwing lures from what everyone told me. Me and my bother ended with 44 whites and a whole bunch of throwbacks. Worked really hard for those. Caught 5 nice blues cats to 4 pounds 3 goo 3 keeper crappie and a whole mess of throwbacks. Started at daylight and bite was steady but not great. At eleven am it cut off. Moved to fast water. Caught another 15 kept 7. 4 females and 40 males. Cant complain. But it aint like the good ole days

Why arent there any big consistent keeper crappie in the nueces? One keeper every 10 fish maybe if you are lucky. i have fished there for 25 years and only one year were we able to limit on crappie. Just curious. Blue cat fishing is improving though

Please don't take this wrong, and I know you wrote "can't complain" at the end, but it sounds almost like you ARE complaining!
Anyway I do appreciate your report and I think you did great!
As for the crappie, I know it was a few years back and the river seemed to be full of big slabs. I've always heard that the crappie go in cycles of up and down years. This must be one of those down years as is the evidence to far.
Just hope we get some rain this summer and fall to bring the river up for next year as this year it's too late.
Leave a few for me!

Good point jimbo. I do complain way too much. Im a negative person trying to change. Spoiled big time. In mens group at church im reading about a lady who at 12 went blind because of doctor error. She did not blame him. Instead she went on to be a teacher. Never ever complaining. Made me think. So many things to be thankful for. So thank you. One step to change i hope.

You and I seem to be a lot alike!

Meant to report earlier the 16 caught were 1 female and 15 males. Maybe females have not moved up river yet.

Nothing scientific here but it seems that reading these reports and talking to a people I know who fish more often than I do.
The females haven't made it up that far past the airport launch yet.
If you read the past reports they were catching the whites around Sweeney Switch just a couple weeks ago. The water was muddy in the river and the clear water was way downstream about 10 miles from hwy 59 launch.
Last week I fished and the big females were caught about 2 miles from 59 and reports out of airport were mostly males as is the report now.
The eggs in the females I caught were not quite fully developed in that they were still a pale yellow and kind of milky.
When they are yellow and firm and full of blood viens they are ready to drop.
Some were starting to get that way but not quite ready.
About another week or two you should start seeing them up past airport in my opinion.

Well fellas it was an awesome white bass season on the nueces this year for me managed to get a couple of great limits. Just hope and pray we get some rains this year to keep the lake up but we all know when the lake mathis gets water in it they let it out so who knows how the river will look this next season AND MAYBE A MIRACLE WILL HAPPEN AND CHOKE WILL FILL UP. So now it's crappie and good ole saltwater fishing time!!!!! SEMPER FI

We will need some help from the tropics for that "miracle" to happen!
It's been a long time since we've seen anything in the form of a tropical storm. We don't need the wind and the flooding God forbid, but some good soaking rains, and folks just being smart we could get through some serious rains and have our lakes fill up.

Any recent reports for nueces river? Have a free weekend before tax season really kicks in.

Sunday was a good day. Yes they are still there. I caught 40 along with my bro. 20 huge females still with eggs and 20 males. Along with a lot of small throwbacks. You have to be willing to wait for the bite to turn on and then load up. It can be dead and you swear no fish in this hole. Then bam fire they turn on. Yes it is crazy. Unexplainable. If thats a word. So go get em before it gets cold again.

Weirdofish, did you put in at hwy 59 or airport? Not sure to take canoe or boat.

Airport. Not deep at ramp. Small john boat ok no motor. You have to lift boat offf. And lift to load. 6 inches at ramp. You will drag it a lot. I also just walk the river, chest deep some spots.

More water at 59!
Here is a youtube video redfishross who is a guide out of Corpus and made this video a couple weeks back fishing out of 59.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Rqk4m3kgqE

I was down a couple weeks ago and slaughtered the whites. Great size males and females. Went way way down river from 59 to find concentrations and found s few honey holes to go back to. I'm headed there with clients this Sunday. See if there still in the areas

With the bad weather coming this ought to get everyone in the mood for when it breaks!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GhYn0FqoR3E

Wednesday 3/4. Hit airport at 830. Walked river to deep hole. Caught 25 whites 15 huge keppers 10 throwbacks 3 cats. Bite was good until 1030. Then dead until 200. Cleaned fish and looks like some females might have dropped eggs already. None were ready to pop like on sunday. Not sure what that means. We almost done? Thoughts? Anyone still hammering em way toward lake like earleir? Trolling? Have not seen any reports? 59 still good? Both times i went maybe 2 other people fishing. Canoe and group of yakkers. Time for rebecca i guess. Also calaveras still slow. Lady said plant down. Cold i guess so a little late this year for striper and cats. She said braunig is on.

I'm headed to 59 on Monday. Il report back after. I'm hearing reports of fish bieng caught up and down river from 59 ramp.

The river close to the airport has been around 1.5 feet for the last 60-days, right now it is 3.75 feet deep.

Is the river muddy again from these recent rains , been hitting choke at mason's point for crappie still slow with this last cold front!!!!

Don't know where they get their information, or if there was a rise on the river since Saturday, but the river at the airport consist of small pools where the water depth ranges from less than a foot in some places to Maybe four feet or deeper and then these pools are at times seperated by riffles that are only five or six inches deep where even a kayak has to be dragged to get from one pool to the next.
I was just there last Saturday and at the boat launch you have to launch your kayak off to the right side of the ramp in order to get it to float and then make a circle hugging the right bank as you turn upstream to go up river.
Be prepared to do a lot of dragging.
The fishing was terrible and nobody I talked to was doing very good but that was right after that big front so the jury is still out until it warms up a few days and see what happens.
If you have a good pair of chest waders you can just walk up river and fish the pools.
If there was a significant rise in the water level it will be really muddy and usually when it's muddy the bite is no good. That's not good news because by the time it clears the run would be pretty much done for this year.

The river has risen about 3ft the past few days according to the USGS station in 3 Rivers. It should come down pretty quick, though.

http://waterdata.usgs.gov/tx/nwis/curren...&format=pre I am not sure about they, but this is where I get my info from. It has risen another foot, it is now 4.74 feet. Even though I put in at 59, where it is deeper, I know that if it is at least 1.45 foot at the " 08210000 Nueces Rv nr Three Rivers, TX 03/11 22:15 CDT 4.74 354 59.0 " location, I can launch my 22-ft boat at 59.

Dont be so negative yall. Caught over 100 whites today. DOA tiny terror eyes in tandem just slow rolled. Wasnt a soul around us this morning.

Who's being negative? Last Saturday the bite was terrible, just gave an honest report where nobody was catching! That's great news!

Hahaha had a few drinks while studying hours on hours for a exam. Everything was negative at that point.

Got a report today of a skunk from a few others that tried their luck. White bass have to be some of the most fickle fish I've ever chased.

Drove back from valley today. Stopped by 59 ramp and airport ramp. Water up approx 1 1/2 feet and was chocolate brown. Prob take a week to clear up. Pleasanton and whittsett recd good amount of rain.

WOW!! 13-feet Station
Number Station name Date/Time Gage
height,
feet Dis-
charge,
ft3/s Long-
term
median
flow
3/22
Group Nueces River Basin
0818999010 Nueces Rv nr Barksdale, TX 03/22 00:00 CDT 13.63 24 26.0
08189998 Nueces Rv at CR 414 at Montell, TX 03/22 01:00 CDT 1.27 11 17.0
08190000 Nueces Rv at Laguna, TX 03/22 00:30 CDT 2.18 46 81.0
08190500 W Nueces Rv nr Brackettville, TX 03/22 00:30 CDT 1.25 0.00 .030
08192000 Nueces Rv bl Uvalde, TX 03/22 00:30 CDT 0.02 0.00 21.0
08193000 Nueces Rv nr Asherton, TX 03/22 00:30 CDT 0.51 0.00 .35
08194000 Nueces Rv at Cotulla, TX 03/22 01:00 CDT 4.29 2.2 .060
08194500 Nueces Rv nr Tilden, TX 03/22 00:30 CDT 2.51 2.9 2.50
08210000 Nueces Rv nr Three Rivers, TX 03/22 00:15 CDT 13.19 1,680 69.0
08211000 Nueces Rv nr Mathis, TX 03/22 01:00 CDT 2.66 301 116
08211200 Nueces Rv at Bluntzer, TX 03/22 00:00 CDT 10.56 495 133
08211500 Nueces Rv at Calallen, TX 03/22 00:30 CDT 4.64 11 9.40
Data status codes:

Good rise up at Barksdale which is up near Camp Wood and not far from the Frio near Leaky.
If the Frio caught that rain also then Choke should get a good rise as well. The rise on the Nueces will not do Choke any good at all.

Damn: Nueces Rv nr Three Rivers, TX 03/22 21:15 CDT 19.21-feet

It was flowing like a mother Saturday evening! Still flowing pretty good at noon today (Sunday), no good for Choke but it is good for Mathis.