Lower and Upper Coast TPWD Flat Out Fishing Events Are Just Around the Corner
Year one, we had around 30 people. Last year, that number swelled to well over 200. This year, on Saturday, February 24, we anticipate a crowd of 300 attendees for what has rapidly become one of the Texas Coast’s most celebrated sport fishing events … the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department’s “Flat Out Fishing” seminar at the Lake Jackson Civic Center in Lake Jackson.
Flat Out fishing is a two-tiered event. The program on the Lower Coast is spearheaded by TPWD Coastal Fisheries Outreach Specialist Art Morris and will be held next weekend, January 27, at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi.
Details for both events are covered in the following press release from TPWD. If you subscribe to Texas Parks & Wildlife Magazine, I also penned a “Scout” story in the January ’07 issue that carries more details.
I am currently working closely with TPWD Coastal Fisheries Outreach Specialist Bobby Miller to coordinate the Feb. 24 Upper Coast event in Lake Jackson. I’ll be emceeing the event, introducing a lineup of speakers with enough collective knowledge to make it a virtual sure bet that your next run out of the jetties will be more productive than ever.
Reservations are filling up fast, so don’t delay.
I look forward to see you there.
Larry
Larry Bozka
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department will host the first of two special Flat Out Fishing events in Corpus Christi to help anglers start the new year with an edge. The fourth annual Flat Out Fishing event kicks off at 8 a.m., Sat., Jan. 27, at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. The event will be held at the university’s Science and Technology Building in Room 104. The second event will be in Lake Jackson on February 24, 2007.
These day-long events includes seminars and presentations from noted guides and experts covering a variety of bay, surf, kayak, fly and offshore fishing techniques.
“Flat Out Fishing is full day of professional fishing seminars for beginning to experienced fishermen to learn how to become better anglers in a relaxed and friendly setting free of distractions and plenty of opportunities for interaction with the presenters. And the speakers are some of the most knowledgeable authorities in their field in Texas,” said TPWD Coastal Fisheries Outreach Specialist Art Morris.
Morris added that the event benefits the Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation’s abandoned crab trap removal program fund. That program has removed almost 20,000 abandoned crab traps from coastal waters since 2002.
Flat Out Fishing — Corpus Christi begins with a fishing-over-seagrass presentation at 8 a.m. and continues through 5 p.m. with the conclusion of Capt. Robert Zapata’s trophy trout fishing seminar.
Other scheduled speakers include Pat Hunt on using natural baits, Jim Dailey on saltwater fly fishing tactics, Nick Meyer on surf fishing Padre Island and Jeff Hermann on kayak fishing. TPWD’s Bill Balboa will offer a presentation on sargassum and tripletail, and TAMU-CC’s John Adams will help attendees understand tides and currents.
Participants will be eligible for door prizes and “goody bags.”
The cost is $20 per person or $30 per couple, payable by cash, check or money order at the door. Registration fees are tax-deductible. Children under 17 may attend free.
Seating (for the Lower Coast event) is limited to the first 100 participants. To register for the Corpus Christi event, contact Art Morris at 361-825-3356 or by e-mail at art.morris@tpwd.state.tx.us.
To register for the Lake Jackson event contact Bobby Miller at (281) 534-0110 or by email at bobby.miller@tpwd.state.tx.us.
Flat Out Fishing is underwritten by Anheuser-Busch and sponsored by CCA Texas, the Corpus Christi Convention & Visitors Bureau, Daiichi, Texas A&M University Corpus Christi, Texas Department of Agriculture, www.Coastalanglers.com, the Coastal Bend Wildlife Photo Contest and the Coastal Bend Bays and Estuaries Program.
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