Josh Sears of Valley Mills and Golinda’s Bryan Dodd recently crashed their way into the record book by catching the biggest grass carp ever on Lake Waco while bowfishing.

The two were on the north end of the lake after having scouted the area several weeks earlier and marking it in their minds as a potential hot spot.

“We knew there were some extreme habitat features for big fish,” said Sears, a wildlife biologist. “The recipe was perfect . . . deep water nearby, plentiful vegetation, relatively clear water and lots of decomposing structure.”

They had collected a half-dozen common carp and smallmouth buffalo, and as the afternoon wore on, they decided to head to a place where Dodd had recently lost a giant grass carp during an explosive topwater fight in the timber.

Sears stealthily worked the boat parallel to a grass line, and Dodd soon spotted a fish tailing up in the shallows. Scanning the water with polarized shades allowed the fishermen to spy two large grass carp facing each other in 3 feet of water.

“The glare was bad because of the sun’s angle, but judging by the fins, these fish were trophies,” Sears said. “As we got within about 30 feet, the fish spotted the boat and prepared to bolt.”

Dodd, using a Browning compound, quickly pulled back and shot the more visible of the two. The arrow found its mark near the fish’s midsection and the fight was on. The monster-sized fish ripped through the timber and wrapped the line around a 30-inch cottonwood, then raced back toward the boat, nearly colliding with it.

The carp continued charging into thick debris in an effort to free itself while Sears maneuvered the boat to unwrap the tangles. On the fish’s next pass by the boat, Sears shot a second arrow into it, causing both of their lines to strip.

After 20 minutes of fighting and dragging the boat around, the whopping carp was still going strong. Sears decided that in order to get the fish aboard, he’d have to get another shot in. So he cut his line and prepared another arrow.

“A slash here, a knot there, a quick cut here, there was no time to waste,” Sears said. He rigged up with his arrow and floatation device and waited for his opportunity.

The fish, now swimming clear of timber in the deep channel, continued pulling the boat against the current for a short while. Then it doubled back and made another charge.

As the fish neared the boat, Sears drew back and squeezed off a devastating shot. At that very moment, Dodd’s arrow pulled free, with only a shiny, silver dollar-sized scale attached for a souvenir.

Sears tossed the float into the water, but instead of zipping off across the surface, the float just rested there.

“We sat there in disbelief,” Sears said. “Was he gone? Was he off?”

As the duo stared at the red and white float, their bodies in adrenaline-shutoff mode and minds filled with puzzled disappointment, they slowly trolled toward the float. Dodd reached out and grabbed the line, and to his amazement, found that the final shot had indeed hit its mark and taken down the big fish.

As the adrenaline dumped back into their systems and they surged into celebration, the bowfishermen hauled the whopping grass carp aboard. They were sure they’d caught a lake record and wanted to beat the clock before Academy closed so their catch could be officially weighed and measured.

The fish weighed just less than 43 pounds, breaking Brady Beal’s record set six years ago.

Sears and Dodd combine to hold seven bowfishing records on Lake Waco. For a look at their latest achievement, visit the Centex Outdoors Web site.

Population boom

Lake Waco is experiencing a population explosion of sorts. TPWD biologist John Tibbs says his crew has stocked 45,000 hybrids into the lake, adding that they’re also busy planting native vegetation like water willow and bulrush.

Tibbs estimates that the recently stocked fish will be keepers in about three years.

12-year-olds win contest

Out of the more than 1,000 people who visited the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center in Athens on National Fishing Day, 65 boys and girls entered the kids fishing contest.

In the 12- to 17-year-old division, 12-year-old Tyler Pustejovsky of Waco took first place with a 2.68-pounder.

Kaylee Nicholson, 12, of Athens, caught the new junior angler rod and reel state record bluegill, a 1.14-pound monster that also qualifies her for three other awards.

Did you know?

Know how to tell the difference between a male and female blue crab? If the marking on the underside resembles the Washington Monument, it’s a male; if it looks like the U.S. Capitol, it’s a female.

www.centexoutdoors.com

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