As a large number of bass fishermen with elaborate boats in tow headed west to fish the bass-rich environment of Amistad Lake, only an hour’s ride west of my home town of Uvalde, my wife, Jan, and I were making the two-hour drive north to the quaint little town of new Braunfels, where we would meet up with my fishing partner, Paul, and his wife, my daughter, Nan. Unlike the sportsmen heading west, we traveled light—waders, fishing vest, and five-weight fly rods were the only gear we carried. Our goal was to fish the cypress and sycamore-lined banks of the Guadalupe River. Not for bass, but for rainbow trout which occupy a ten-mile stretch of the river below Canyon Dam, which relinquishes a consistent supply of cold oxygenated water throughout the year, providing trout all the necessary conditions required to survive.
 Paul with another fine Guadalupe rainbow that fell prey to his streamer.
Recognized as the most southerly trout fishery in the U.S., the Guadalupe River remains on my short list of popular places to fish following the conclusion of the deer hunting season.
As turkeys descended their roost along the shoreline and wood ducks whistled overhead, Paul and I entered the chilly water in mid-February, roll casting our personally tied nymph imitations to the opposing shoreline, allowing them to drift off into the natural occurring crevices of the solid rock bottom. At first light, the excitement is intense as hungry trout abound in the river, and they are more than willing to engulf a well-tied imitation of a minnow or any of the larva “nymphs” riding the current, fighting to reach the surface and complete their life cycle as a fly.
 Like big deer, trophy rainbows are
rare, but some outstanding ‘bows inhabit the
Guadalupe, like this one I caught in early February.
Fifty yards wide in some places, the river represents a diverse habitat with fallen trees to large, flat boulders temporarily slowing the water, forming long, deep pools representing ideal habitat for hungry trout.
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Catching fish is not a problem, as Paul and I have become quite familiar with the river, particularly those areas where trout seem to concentrate. Like the pursuit of a particular buck, we hunt for trout based on structure—often referred to as cover. Our morning started out along an old, dead tree with a petrified-like base below the surface existing of a number of roots, providing excellent habitat for the many tiny aquatic species that inhabit the river. Prey to a carnivorous fish like a rainbow means food, thus they never stray far from the dead snag. No sooner did the bend in my floating line begin to straighten, a trout voraciously engulfed the olive green woolly bugger on the other end of my leader, almost jerking the rod out of my hands. It’s a stimulating event, one that is as therapeutic as it is rewarding.
 Catching fish on the nymphs and
streamers Paul and I tie ourselves makes
fishing the Guadalupe River that much more rewarding.
As the 17-inch rainbow exited the water in its attempt to shake the hook, terminating into a loud splash, Paul looked upstream to watch the action. Moments later, I heard the familiar sound of a hefty trout re-enter the water following its aerial acrobatics as Paul played a substantial fish in a shallow rock-lined run below me.
The action lasted for around an hour before we ventured downstream, working the water as if we were searching for quail, and picking up an occasional trout as we waded the solid bottom.
A few hundred yards downstream, we arrived at a long, deep green pool which emptied into a deep rock-laden set of riffles representing a prime staging area for a substantial number of feeding trout. For little over 40 minutes we landed 12 nice ‘bows, the best one going little over 20 inches. The only thing more gratifying than landing the fish was watching them swim off upon release.
 The only thing more gratifying than landing
a rainbow is watching it swim off upon release.
By noon we were ready to part, only to plan our next trip to the fabled Guadalupe and catch what I consider the Lone Star’s most unique inhabitant—the rainbow trout!!
All photos by Bob Zaiglin.
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