SPECIAL SECTION: Cast & Blast Slams

THE BIODIVERSITY OF TEXAS is stunning. Whether it’s speckled trout and snook in the bays, whitetails, and turkeys in the woods or a host of introduced species, Texas has incredible opportunities for hunters and anglers.

Every year, we present cast and blast opportunities. This year we thought we would talk about various hunting and angling quests often called “slams” that are both already in place, and some we came up with ourselves.

We hope you enjoy this look at some hunting and angling challenges, some of which can only happen here in Texas.

Texas Slam: We might as well start with the namesake slam. This is the Records of Exotics-based slam of exotic sheep.

These are not true North American wild sheep, but exotic sheep that are common and popular to hunt on ranches throughout the state. Modeled after the Grand Slam (desert bighorn, Rocky Mountain bighorn, Stone sheep, and Dall sheep) it includes a mouflon, Corsican, Texas Dall, and Hawaiian black.

This has become extremely popular and most of these animals are available for a fee on exotic ranches. Of the four, the mouflon (a wild sheep from Europe) is the most difficult to find.

Texas Grand Slam: (aka Bay Slam) This is a fishing version that consists of a redfish, speckled trout, and flounder. Most coastal anglers have caught all three of these, but the real challenge is catching all three in one day. This is a fun and attainable slam even for kids just now getting into fishing.

Texas Flats Slam: Here’s one where we took some liberties. The true Flats Slam is the bonefish, permit, and tarpon. The only one of those with catchable numbers in Texas is the tarpon.

So, a Texas flats slam could include the following, a tarpon, sheepshead, and black drum, or a tarpon, sheepshead, and redfish.

Fly-fishermen are increasingly interested in catching sheepshead and black drum on a fly, so that adds a bit of prestige. We’ve even heard the sheepshead referred to by fishermen as the “poor man’s permit.”

Texas Intracoastal Slam: Here’s another one we came up with to encompass the most prized fish from Port Arthur to Port Isabel along the Intracoastal Waterway. This includes redfish, speckled trout, flounder, black drum, sheepshead, and snook.

Brown Water Royal Slam: IGFA recognizes six fishing slams where anglers have to catch several recognized species in a given category. The most prestigious is the billfish slam. A few years ago we had a bit of fun with that and came up with the brownwater slam.

Bowfin: Also known as choupique, grinnel, mudfish, and mud marlin this fish fights hard and jumps when caught. That makes it a great marlin replacement.

Bullhead: Also known as a mud cat, these fish bite when nothing else does, and where nothing else dares to swim. Well, except maybe for the bowfin.

The rule in this slam is the bullhead has to be caught in a bar ditch. A creek won’t do. This is the brown water slam and murkiness is our vibe.

Gaspergou: Talk about prestigious—any fish frequently called “goo” is something anglers around the world dream about. Uglier than a bullhead or a grinnel, these fish are found in major rivers and reservoirs in the state, but tend to congregate where the water is a little more brown than clear.

Buffalo: Yes, they are nearly impossible to catch on a rod and reel. Sure, they have more bones than a carp and taste half as good, but the buffalo gets huge.

Super Slam of Exotics: This is another slam recognized by Records of Exotics. It includes axis deer, fallow deer, sika deer, blackbuck antelope, mouflon sheep, aoudad, Corsican sheep, ibex, red deer, and Catalina goat.

This one gets a little pricey, but offers many different hunting options and some radical hunting challenges, especially for aoudad and ibex.

Free Ranging Exotic Slam: Texas has three primary free-ranging exotic species. These are the axis, nilgai, and aoudad. There are many more, such as blackbuck for example, but the above three are by far the most numerous.

They are also the three most challenging exotics to take whether on open range or high fence. In our opinion, nilgai and axis are the best wild meats period. Aoudad isn’t bad either, especially if you take a younger ewe.

We recommend shooting every ewe you can. The aoudad is causing problems for native bighorn sheep and other wildlife. Taking ewes is key to conservation.

Texas Deer Slam: This one’s a long shot but it can be achieved. It includes the whitetail, mule deer, elk, and axis. There are free-ranging elk in the Trans Pecos. The axis is not native to Texas, but we have more here than in their native countries of India and Pakistan. Getting all four of these would be truly special.

Hill Country Stream Slam: Here’s another one of our creations. This time it’s all about the Texas Hill Country. This would include a Guadalupe bass, Rio Grande cichlid, and a rainbow trout. Caught on spinning or fly gear, seeking these beautiful fish is tons of fun. Also, it’s something kids can pull off, which in our opinion, is always a bonus.

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We hope you’ve enjoyed the slam edition of our annual Cast and Blast.

Do you have personal slams you have created? If so, email your suggestions to us at cmoore@fishgame.com. We would love to learn about them and maby include them in a future installment.

 

—story by TF&G STAFF

 

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