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by James Fox

• 4 black drum fillets
• 4 tbsp butter
• Black pepper
• Salt or any other preferred seasoning
• 1 sliced onion
• 1 package frozen spinach thawed
• Grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350. Melt a stick of butter in a baking dish, coat both sides of fillets, season with black pepper, garlic salt or whatever seasonings you prefer. Lay the onions on top of the fillets, then coat the fillets with ½” spinach. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Bake uncovered for approx 30 min or until you can push a fork thru the thickest part of the fillet easily. (more…)

Go Figure!

• 26- the number of clean, comfortable beds waiting for Redfish Lodge guests to arrive.
• 237 – the number of fish caught by guests in 2010 that qualified for the Redfish Lodge wall of fame
• 22 – number of lights that attract fish on lodge property every night
• 9,651 – average number of fish attracted to these lights per night
• 34,000,000 – number of fishermen who regret not making it to redfish lodge in 2010
• 61 – number of spots on the spottiest redfish caught at Redfish Lodge in 2010
• 214,569 – number of casts made by lodge guests last year
• 9,550 – number of undersized trout released in 2010
• 36,000- number of water bottles used in 2009 by lodge guest
• 5,100- number of water bottles used by guests in 2010
• 1,691- number of hours put on Redfish Lodge boat fleet in 2010

Published in 2011 Redfish Lodge Newsletter

I manned the Redfish Lodge exhibit booth at the Dallas Safari Club show in January, and noticed that all would-be lodge guests bombarded me with the same set of questions. In an effort to shed some light on the answers, I figured there would be no better forum than the Redfish Lodge Newsletter. After all, where better to get questions answered than in a newsletter!

Visitors who stopped by the show booth having been a guest at Redfish Lodge in the past all asked one question: “How was the fishing this year?” To that I responded truthfully: “It was the best fishing season in recent memory, both for reds and certainly black drum. (more…)

by Dave Lear

One of the best aspects of my job is that it lets me regularly fish new places. There’s something special about virgin waters. I pore over SWS back issues and web reports for background research. I triple pack rods, lures and gear to cover any contingency. When the time finally comes to get on the water, it’s pure sensory overload. The opportunity to learn different techniques and pick a guide’s brain has proven invaluable time and again.

With this in mind, I gladly accepted the invitation to attend Coastal Conservation Association’s recent media summit in Rockport, Texas. (more…)

Grilled Shrimp With Raspberry Bourbon Sauce

1 lb. jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 Tbls. olive oil
¾ Tsp. kosher salt
1 Tsp. chile powder
½ Tsp. cayenne powder
2 Stalks green onion, minced
4 Cloves fresh garlic, minced juice from half a lemon

Combine all ingredients above and toss well. Set in fridge for 1 hour. Grill shrimp on medium heat for 1 minute on each side. (more…)

Of all the interesting catches brought to dock during the 2009 season, one definitely stands out … or up. Yes, and on four feet at that. In June, guests from South Coast Terminals group out of Houston were fishing on Johan’s boat when they caught a dogfish … minus the fish!

While running down the Corpus Christi ship channel from one fishing spot to another, they noticed something fl oating, or swimming, in the water. Johan maneuvered the boat up next to it, and hauled aboard a wet, tired dog! (more…)

IN AN EFFORT TO MAKE REDFISH LODGE MORE ECO-FRIENDLY FOR THE 2009 SEASON, WE LAUNCHED A MASSIVE RECYCLING CAMPAIGN. The goal was to see that all of the recyclable materials that the lodge used during the season would end up where they would do the most good. Unfortunately, we met with some shocking resistance from the local waste disposal companies. Much to our surprise, in the year 2009 there are still places, and evidently Corpus Christi, Texas is one of them, where you CANNOT recycle! After recovering from the shock of this news, we went to work to formulate a new plan. (more…)

The Texas coast plays host to an extraordinary diversity of fish habitat. The Laguna Madre from Port Isabel to Mansfield is a clear, shallow turtle grass flat dotted with sand bars and potholes. The intracoastal waterway cuts through the Laguna and provides deep cover for fish to hide from extreme heat and cold, as well as moving tidal waters in and out of the Laguna. Further north, the unique geography of Baffin bay and its legendary “rocks” seems to be the ultimate stomping ground for Texas’ biggest speckled trout, as well as giant schools of reds and black drum. Corpus Christi Bay represents the first of the large, deepwater bays that is spotted with grass flats and oyster reefs alike. It is open to the Gulf of Mexico at both the Port Aransas and Packery jetties, introducing a diversity of offshore species into the bay system such as snapper, mackerel, and tarpon. The Nueces river, which also enters Corpus Christi Bay through Nueces Bay, provides lower salinity levels and nourishes the oyster reefs that become plentiful in the northern range of the Texas gulf coast. It is the first in a series of rivers including the Mission, Aransas, Guadalupe, Colorado, Trinity and Sabine which help to maintain the brackish nature of the bays and change the look of the Texas coast. (more…)

Ingredients

• 6-8 servings
• 1 cup fresh orange juice
• 1 cup dry wine
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1 1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger
• 1/2 stick butter
• 12 garlic cloves, crushed
• 30 uncooked peeled medium shrimp
• 1 cup slivered almonds

Combine orange juice, wine, honey and ginger in a small bowl and set aside.

Heat butter with garlic in a large skillet until butter is bubbly. Add shrimp and saute briefly. Stir in almonds and continue cooking until almonds are golden and shrimp are cooked through. Remove shrimp and almonds to heated platter. Return skillet to the burner and heat briefly. Add orange juice mixture and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 2 minutes. Return shrimp and almonds to skillet with the orange juice mixture and heat through.

Serve immediately!

Let’s face it, times are a little tough right now. The entertainment budget is stretched a little thin. Airlines are a hassle, security is a pain, and bad service has become the norm in most industries. Providing transportation, accommodations, and entertainment to clients and guests can be a fairly expensive endeavor. Lucky for so many of us who live in Texas, there are a huge number of things to do right here in our own backyards to help stretch those entertainment dollars. (more…)