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Buchanan 5/16 thru 5/18

2K views 15 replies 12 participants last post by  inveSTigatorTX 
#1 ·
DATE/TIME: Friday 5/16 thru Sunday 5/18, 2008 7:30am to 11:30am
WEATHER: Friday cool front, winds light from N early then 15-20 from N. Temps 60 to 78. Saturday winds calm to light from S, temp 68 to low 80s. Sunday cool front, winds light from N, temp 60 to low 90s.
WATER TEMP: from 75 up river to 71-72 in main lake.
VISIBILITY: Muddy from Tow up, 2ft in upper lake near Morgan Creek, 2-4ft in mid-lake.

SUMMARY: Spent 3 days on Buchanan in our friends waterfront cottage at Tow on a family outing. Managed to sneak in a few hours of fishing in the mornings from about 7:30am to 11:30am. Had a fair top water bite early and caught quite a few white bass and small LMB on top waters and CB. Had trouble getting any kind of bite on soft plastics until I started throwing weightless TR and wacky rigged baby rattlesnakes and tiki sticks. Also caught a 5 lb catfish on a jig. Biggest bass was a little over 3 lbs. Best day was Friday when the wind was blowing. Sat and Sun were relatively slow. I’ve never had much luck on Buchanan when the wind isn’t blowing. Fished mostly in the upper lake area in and around the creeks.

Had the crap scared out of me by a large rat snake that was living on the boat dock we were using. I had just pulled the boat in and was reaching for the boat lift switch when I noticed this guy wrapped around the pole and lift switch box. Before I could decide what to do about it he crawled back into the horizontal pipe above the pole and disappeared. I told the dock owners about it and let them decide what to do. I figure he was feeding on the barn swallows that are nesting under the dock roof.



 
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#3 ·
It's hard to tell in the pic, but does the snake have any red markings on it?

Saw a kinda similar one while bank fishing and was not sure what he was. Mine was smaller (4ft) and was pretty dark black with yellow and red scattered markings. Not rings. Seemed to have a friendly head/eye shape combo.
 
#5 ·
inveSTigatorTX said:
It's hard to tell in the pic, but does the snake have any red markings on it?
No, this one didn't have red markings. I'm pretty sure it is a rat snake as I've seen a bunch of them before on some rural property I own. I normally leave them alone because they eat huge numbers of rodents. If it were my dock I would have removed it one way or the other, just to keep someone from having a heart attack.

http://www.houstonherp.com/TxRat.html
 
#6 ·
Yep, Rat Snake. They love eggs. I have 5 hens, and if I ever go for 2 days without eggs in the henhouse, I can usually feel around in the hay on the floor, and come up with one of these beauties.
My wife hates snakes though, and make me kill them with the Sheridan. I've found them to be not very aggressive.
 
#11 ·
#12 ·
:eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek:

I have seen snakes in boats that are parked under private boat docks. I could not imagine if that snake would come out under the boat seat, as you are fishing in a peaceful, quiet cove. I would jump in the lake! ;D


Texas Rat Snake Behavior:
These Rat Snakes very aggressive for nonvenomous snakes and will bite if threatened. They are adept climbers and the spiny belly scales "grab" the tree trunk as they climb. They are sometimes seen swimming. They feed on small mammals, birds, frogs, and lizards by swallowing; bigger prey is first killed by constriction.
 
#15 ·
Rat snakes or chicken snakes as the country folk call them are beneficial so I am glad it wasn't killed. I used to catch them as a kid and actually took one to school when I was in High School and scared the hell out of everyone carrying it around. They are excellent climbers and can scale anything from a pole to a brick wall.
 
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