Trad Gang
Main Boards => PowWow => Topic started by: gregg dudley on April 03, 2017, 09:48:00 PM
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My son , Reed, and I just returned from a truly epic fishing adventure in Texas that was hosted by Randy Madden(critter getter). I was the winning bidder on this trip last spring during the St. Jude's auction. I'm telling you what, this trip exceeded all expectations. I'll be getting some pictures up a little later.
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I'm glad the weather held out for y'all Gregg...........and really bummed that it did not work out that I could come down too!
Can't wait to hear about the adventure!
Bisch
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Well all my photos are loading anc it is taking forever...
Missed ya Bisch. Next time...
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If you don't know Randy Madden, you should make it a point to meet him. Randy posts here as critter getter. He is a great guy and a heck of a camp host and fishing companion. He and his father-in-law, Doug, busted their butts to insure that Reed and I had a great time on this trip.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/DSC_0498_zpsx6twljuh.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/DSC_0498_zpsx6twljuh.jpg.html)
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We arrived in camp on Thursday around 1:00 PM. The wind was blowing like crazy and we decided to hold off on fishing until things died down. The part of Lake Tawakoni that we were fishing is broad and shallow and the waves can really kick up when it blows.
About 5:00 PM we headed out to run some jugs that Randy had already put out earlier in the day. It was the first time that Reed or I had ever done that and we had a blast. We caught some fish right away.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/DSC_0533_zpszikes0vl.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/DSC_0533_zpszikes0vl.jpg.html)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/CSC_0552_zpss5dgpbmc.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/CSC_0552_zpss5dgpbmc.jpg.html)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/DSC_0507_zps8yao1q9r.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/DSC_0507_zps8yao1q9r.jpg.html)
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We also learned to rebait and set the jugs, which is a system:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/DSC_0514_zpscjtsj8dq.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/DSC_0514_zpscjtsj8dq.jpg.html)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/DSC_0550_zps4dwifw1l.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/DSC_0550_zps4dwifw1l.jpg.html)
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That evening Randy showed us how to start a fire without a match. He was not a boy scout.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/DSC_0551_zpsugisqfc8.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/DSC_0551_zpsugisqfc8.jpg.html)
But he can cook the heck out of fajitas!
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/DSC_0574_zpsdk76b8oe.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/DSC_0574_zpsdk76b8oe.jpg.html)
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Reed fished from shore while we were messing around camp.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/DSC_0564_zpse1ksjltj.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/DSC_0564_zpse1ksjltj.jpg.html)
And when the sun set on the first day, I knew that we were going to have a blast for the rest of the trip.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/CSC_0585_zps4lc5ebwq.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/CSC_0585_zps4lc5ebwq.jpg.html)
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I have to go to work. I'll finish my part of the story up tonight.
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I was watching that trip on the St. Judes auction last year thinking it looked like it would be a lot of fun. Sounds like it was a blast. I'll be watching for the rest of the story.
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:campfire:
In for the rest!
Bisch
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Great stuff so far!! Looking forward to the rest.
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:thumbsup:
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Dang it Gregg, it took me years to perfect that matchless fire technique !! Now everyone knows my secret!!! :laughing:
It was a pleasure meeting you both!
Gregg and Reed are my kind of people! Laid back, no preconceived notions about how things should go, take everything in stride, and make the most out of every situation! I can't wait to share camp with y'all again!!
I'll add a few pics after Gregg tells the story from his point of view
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Sounds like a win-win-win situation. What a great time, and all for a great cause!
:campfire:
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Oh it ain't over yet!! He hasn't even got to the good parts!!
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Friday morning we were up and at em' about 7:00 AM. We went and ran the lines and found a few fish that wanted to be fried.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/DSC_0702_zpsm6vhizat.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/DSC_0702_zpsm6vhizat.jpg.html)
Then we went out with rod and reels to see what we could catch.
While we were targeting catfish, we did catch a few other species:
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/DSC_0648_zpsxqhskqsu.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/DSC_0648_zpsxqhskqsu.jpg.html)
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Man, it's about time you got off work and got back to story-telling! :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
Bisch
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We saw a ton of birds
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/DSC_0634_zpsvqnfc7ac.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/DSC_0634_zpsvqnfc7ac.jpg.html)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/DSC_0623_zpshd9hubyh.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/DSC_0623_zpshd9hubyh.jpg.html)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/DSC_0743_zps6qdquabt.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/DSC_0743_zps6qdquabt.jpg.html)
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Randy kept us supplied with fresh shad that he caught near the causeway throughout the trip. He's pretty good with a cast net.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/DSC_0717_zps9ezfjqsb.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/DSC_0717_zps9ezfjqsb.jpg.html)
The bottom of the causeway was loaded with swallow nests.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/DSC_0722_zpstdsitgbv.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/DSC_0722_zpstdsitgbv.jpg.html)
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We finished day two of fishing with a 46 fish total! Randy said that he would clean all the fish, but it was a good opportunity for Reed to work on his technique.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/DSC_0749_zps2bn2wf61.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/DSC_0749_zps2bn2wf61.jpg.html)
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Man, Randy uses a torch to get a fire started, and an electric knife to filet fish with!!! :scared:
No telling what we will see next!
Bisch
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Is that traditional?
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Darren Shue (Hackbow) showed up for dinner toting award winning Texas chili of his own creation. I hadn't seen Darren since he had hunted with me on a St Jude's trip to my lease in Georgia eight years ago.
That story is here:
http://tradgang.com/noncgi/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=078862;p=1
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/DSC_0756_zps06kfkwim.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/DSC_0756_zps06kfkwim.jpg.html)
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That night, Darren went with us on a late jug run.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/IMG_2957_zpswvrhcxvp.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/IMG_2957_zpswvrhcxvp.jpg.html)
And the sun set on another great day!
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/DSC_0588_zpsbi6bwilz.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/DSC_0588_zpsbi6bwilz.jpg.html)
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I'm really relying on Randy to fill in some pictures here. I took far less than I normally do.
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Saturday dawned with the promise of a new day, but I had no idea how good the day would actually be!
We ran the jug line and then went rod and reel fishing. To say the morning was spectacular would be an understatement!
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/FullSizeRender-3%20copy_zpsp4mlcror.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/FullSizeRender-3%20copy_zpsp4mlcror.jpg.html)
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WE CAUGHT 52 FISH ON ROD AND REEL IN LESS THAN FOUR HOURS! ADD IN THE JUG LINES AND OUR MORNING TOTAL WAS 70 FISH before 11:00 AM!
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/FullSizeRender-4_zpsipgsrxs9.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/FullSizeRender-4_zpsipgsrxs9.jpg.html)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/CSC_0818_zpsiprjcaed.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/CSC_0818_zpsiprjcaed.jpg.html)
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So we feasted on fish, peppers, mushrooms, and fries!
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/DSC_0824_zpsmaiy7nfa.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/DSC_0824_zpsmaiy7nfa.jpg.html)
Plus a blue ribbon coconut pie made by Randy's wife!
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/IMG_2978_zpshanio3ep.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/IMG_2978_zpshanio3ep.jpg.html)
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And then that night, because we hadn't got all the fishing out of our system, we went out for a bit of bowfishing.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v611/dudleyg/FullSizeRender-2_zpsm705tlrd.jpg) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/dudleyg/media/FullSizeRender-2_zpsm705tlrd.jpg.html)
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And that's the abbreviated version of the story. Some bad weather blew in the next day and we packed up and headed back to Florida. We talked about who caught the most fish and the biggest fish all the way home.
Reed and I would like to thank Randy and Doug for their fine hospitality. They worked hard to show us a good time and it was very much appreciated. They are fine people and their generosity on behalf of St Jude's is truly commendable.
If you even thought about bidding on this last year, you need to start saving your pennies. This may have been the sleeper of the whole auction last year, but I doubt it will be again.
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Gregg pretty much summed it all up. I'm not very good at story telling but I'll add a few pics and say a little bit about the trip.
On Friday, a buddy of my father-in-laws was fishing the same area we were and caught this big boy on rod and reel. It was a little over 50lbs. (http://i324.photobucket.com/albums/k359/crittergetter76/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-03/A83DC9E6-A7AE-4175-8318-D630AD90536A_zpsbdxfheln.jpg) (http://s324.photobucket.com/user/crittergetter76/media/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-03/A83DC9E6-A7AE-4175-8318-D630AD90536A_zpsbdxfheln.jpg.html)
I believe this was taken on Friday night. (http://i324.photobucket.com/albums/k359/crittergetter76/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-03/BBB8C781-66EC-4F07-A538-D1AB920958E1_zpsihcwv9gt.jpg) (http://s324.photobucket.com/user/crittergetter76/media/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-03/BBB8C781-66EC-4F07-A538-D1AB920958E1_zpsihcwv9gt.jpg.html) It's crazy how hard the wind was blowing on thursday and how calm the lake gets ant night.
A couple of pros right here (http://i324.photobucket.com/albums/k359/crittergetter76/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-03/263F7CCF-6938-44CB-97BD-3FB52A65E0CE_zpsxy37uwmb.jpg) (http://s324.photobucket.com/user/crittergetter76/media/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-03/263F7CCF-6938-44CB-97BD-3FB52A65E0CE_zpsxy37uwmb.jpg.html)
I took a few pics on the way out Saturday morning. (http://i324.photobucket.com/albums/k359/crittergetter76/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-03/F5944839-267D-44BA-BED2-94F2957FECB6_zps8gidfqyj.jpg) (http://s324.photobucket.com/user/crittergetter76/media/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-03/F5944839-267D-44BA-BED2-94F2957FECB6_zps8gidfqyj.jpg.html) (http://i324.photobucket.com/albums/k359/crittergetter76/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-03/D80241CC-BE2F-4EA3-A03F-76F487C264D1_zpsiy5vkoe4.jpg) (http://s324.photobucket.com/user/crittergetter76/media/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-03/D80241CC-BE2F-4EA3-A03F-76F487C264D1_zpsiy5vkoe4.jpg.html)
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saturday a pinnacle day! It was one of the best days fishing I've had in a long while. My father-in-law caught the biggest of the day. A 15 lb er! (http://i324.photobucket.com/albums/k359/crittergetter76/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-04/0918390E-8D11-4718-99A4-CE76B07DCEE1_zps9l4u22k4.jpg) (http://s324.photobucket.com/user/crittergetter76/media/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-04/0918390E-8D11-4718-99A4-CE76B07DCEE1_zps9l4u22k4.jpg.html)
I am thankful for all his help with the trip. He helped carry the load and made things a lot easier on me.
Greggs pic of the cooler wasn't all the fish. We ran out of room in the cooler and had to start putting them on a makeshift stringer. (http://i324.photobucket.com/albums/k359/crittergetter76/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-04/1C328172-9512-4532-94B6-0D96B461E8CF_zpscosuwo9u.jpg) (http://s324.photobucket.com/user/crittergetter76/media/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-04/1C328172-9512-4532-94B6-0D96B461E8CF_zpscosuwo9u.jpg.html)
I have a video of one point where I had a fish in the boat, my fil had one on his line, Gregg had one on his line, Reed had one on his line. As soon as I stopped recording we had two more fish on other poles. The action was insane!!
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(http://i324.photobucket.com/albums/k359/crittergetter76/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-04/34B02E20-BC3F-4750-BC31-45BBE00C8835_zpsxhu2wviv.jpg) (http://s324.photobucket.com/user/crittergetter76/media/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-04/34B02E20-BC3F-4750-BC31-45BBE00C8835_zpsxhu2wviv.jpg.html) I think all in all we had 12 gallons of fillets.
Gregg was never far from his camera! (http://i324.photobucket.com/albums/k359/crittergetter76/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-03/D88375FF-6BC3-490E-9927-DCFC227E6229_zps3geii6rm.jpg) (http://s324.photobucket.com/user/crittergetter76/media/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-03/D88375FF-6BC3-490E-9927-DCFC227E6229_zps3geii6rm.jpg.html)
I also want to thank Darren for stepping up and supplying dinner one night. That was a big help and allowed me to just sit back and enjoy the company.
Gregg said something that stuck with me on this trip. He said in all the trips and gatherings he's been on that had something to do with Trad gang , he's never met anyone that he wouldn't want to hang out with again. I echo that statement.
Gregg and Reed are great guys that I am proud to be able to now call friends!! I look forward to the next time we can get together to either kill or catch something!!!
(http://i324.photobucket.com/albums/k359/crittergetter76/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-04/1A3C64C6-B1B4-4462-85C8-08AC534BEB6F_zpsafecjweg.jpg) (http://s324.photobucket.com/user/crittergetter76/media/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-04/1A3C64C6-B1B4-4462-85C8-08AC534BEB6F_zpsafecjweg.jpg.html)
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At the end of the St. Jude auction last year I was extremely excited. Gregg and I had partnered to win a hunt in LA and Gregg had also won Randy's fishing trip. After not seeing him in over 7 years, I was going to get to see my friend twice in a matter of months! Well, life intervened and my presence at a funeral was required. I missed the LA hunt so graciously offered by Jeremy, Jay and Travis. But Gregg and Reed were still heading to TX and I would get my chance to see them then.
Life tried to intervene once again. In the week prior to the fishing trip, a very large and brand new to me business partner had need of my company's services for a couple emergency jobs. Thankfully, one of the emergency jobs got delayed a bit and I was able to sneak over to the lake each evening and manage to throw some chili together. I apologize for not being able clean fish like I was supposed to, but the boys made out alright.
Selfishly, I got to spend time with Gregg and Reed again. It was nice to just sit at the fire and recount our past hunt, but more importantly have a chance to reconnect and fill in some of the gaps that happen when people are separated by too many miles. Ethan and I enjoyed ourselves immensely on our hunt in GA 8 yrs ago (see Gregg's link - killer story). Reed was a boy when I last saw him. He has grown into a man - he is NOT standing on higher ground in the picture above! It was so cool to talk with him and learn what is going on in his life.
I want to thank Randy for allowing me to join in on his auction offering for purely selfish reasons. And Gregg is 100% correct about Randy busting his butt to make sure folks he hosts have a good time. I've seen it multiple times over the last 3 years on various trips. He is a great host and a great friend.
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Some of the best trips of my life have been the result of the St. Jude auction here. Like this one, they are not always strictly bowhunts, but are without exception high quality outdoor adventures with high quality people. This fishing trip and Gregg's kayak trips are perfect examples.
Great pictures and stories, and a mountain of catfish fillets to top it all off!
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The thread title says it all..............
just WOW!
Glad y'all had a good time guys!
Bisch
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Very cool.
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That is awesome!!!! :clapper: :clapper: :clapper:
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WOW that sure looked like alot of fun. Thanks!!!!
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:thumbsup: :thumbsup: :campfire:
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Thanks to those of you who took the time to comment.
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That was very fun to read and see bud....congrats to all involved!!
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That's a mess of fish boys and you can't beat a St Judes adventure. Like Whip I have been on a few and what a fine bunch of folks I have met every time.
That Reed is a BIG BOY, and a very nice one too!!
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Thanks, guys! Reed says hi!
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Awesome stuff! Looked like some fun-filled days.
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I always look forward to your stories and especially the pictures. Thanks for sharing! :thumbsup: :thumbsup: