We’ve all heard heard fish stories, and most are hard to believe. But sometimes even the most outlandish tales turn out to be true.

One of my own outlandish but true tales originated at Sam Rayburn while fishing with my uncles and dad during one of our annual week-long fishing trips.

We were fishing a creek in my Uncle Don’s boat, catching a few here and there, when Don hooked a nice bass that ended up wrapping his line around a submerged tree. After snapping his line and tying on another lure, he realized his boat had drifted into a mud flat, burying the trolling motor.

Don tried running the little motor, but it was too deeply planted. So he handed me an oar and I tried pushing us out with it, to no avail. Next, we rocked the boat back and forth to try and loosen the mud’s grip, but we remained stuck tight. Finally, Don cranked the big motor, put it gear and ramped up the power.

All the commotion had turned what had been a clear-running stream into what looked like chocolate milk, and the motor’s churning propeller kept kicking up billows of muddy water. That, teamed with the continued rocking and paddling, proved to be too much for one largemouth bass, which leapt out of the water to escape the chaos.

The fish flew over the paddle, right past my nose and landed by Don’s feet. The highly energized fish flopped around the floor of the boat and knocked over a tackle box and all our drinks, but I finally scooped it up — along with the trip’s bragging rights.

Because of this experience, when I heard the following fish tale from Brazoria County game warden Scott Jennings, it didn’t seem all that far-fetched.

Jennings got notice March 29 that a commercial fishing vessel had arrived at Freeport with an eight-foot shortfin mako shark, which the crew said had jumped into the stern of their boat while they were weighing anchor.

Once on board, the fish flipped over their heads, landing forward beside the center console. The crew told Jennings that at one point they considered abandoning the boat to the shark.

Since they couldn’t safely remove the shark from the boat without harming it, a crew member phoned the National Marine Fisheries Service and arranged to purchase a federal highly migratory species permit so that they could legally land the shark.

Concealed carry debate

The debate over campus concealed carry is once again making headlines in Texas, as the Texas Legislature has another go-round at determining whether or not concealed carry license holders will be able to legally carry weapons on college campuses.

Like most hunters, I take notice whenever gun rights issues make the news, and once again, I’m seeing the same old arguments — many of them misleading or based on false assumptions — being repeated.

From the concealed carry expansion camp, one common flawed argument is that all CHL holders are steady, upstanding citizens. Unfortunately, even in Texas, where the screening process includes criminal and other background checks, most of us know of irresponsible, hot-headed people licensed to carry guns who shouldn’t be allowed to use a steak knife.

From the anti-campus carry camp, many worry loudly that the new law would allow everybody on campus to tuck a .45 into his or her waistband on the way out of the dorm.

The truth is less dramatic. It’s important to keep sight of the fact that if the bill becomes law, it’s unlikely to have a sweeping effect on the number of CHL holders on campus because the minimum age for eligibility is 21. As always, some college students will carry guns regardless of any law, but it would remain a felony for anyone without a CHL to carry a concealed weapon anywhere in public.

A particularly counter-productive bit of misinformation floating downstream from both camps is the idea that that CHL holders think of themselves as unofficial public safety officers obligated to try to take out, for example, a psychotic gunman on a campus rampage.

Some CHL holders probably feel this way, but in my experience, most recognize that they are not police officers and feel that their license simply gives them a last-resort option for self-defense when other options fail.

The waters of this debate are muddied with half-truths, lies, and scare tactics. It would be nice to see the discussion clarified with honest debate and reliable information.

Fishing report

Lake Whitney striper guide Clay Yadon (817-219-3707) continues to battle Mother Nature’s high-velocity breezes, but on the days he wins out, fishing is excellent.

“Fishing has kicked into super-high gear, and we’re catching limits every day when the wind isn’t screaming,” he said, adding that last week’s catches were punctuated by 18- and 19-pounders caught on live bait in 35 feet of water.

Bob Bagley of Arlington holds a new Navarro Mills Lake record after catching a 2.40-pound black crappie at the marina’s fishing dock, marking the lake’s 11th 2-pounder of the year.

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