Dudleys Diary

on the Guadalupe River in the Hill Country of Texas. I have not spoken to him but I am sure he and his buddies had a good time. They floated the river in inner tubes yesterday and today and last night they went to a concert on the river with Cross Canadian Ragweed providing the entertainment. He will be tired when he gets home and it will be back to mowing 20 or more yards tomorrow in the Texas heat. He will no doubt wish tomorrow he was back in the inner tube floating in that cool green water. The Guadalupe River below Canyon Lake Dam is an amazing place. The lake is well over 100 feet deep at the dam and the water released into the river is very cold. So cold, it was discovered in the 1960's to have killed off all of the native fish. From what I understand Lone Star Beer stocked rainbow trout below the dam during that time and created the southern most trout fishery in the United States. Later brown trout were added to the mix. As long as water flows were adequate year round, the fishery was sustainable. Problem was during the hot Texas summers, enough cold water was not being let out of the dam to keep the fish alive. A bunch of concerned sportsman formed a chapter of Trout Unlimited and obtained legal counsel and filed suit and were successful in forcing adequate discharges year round to keep the fishery going. Some giant rainbow and brown trout are caught each year by lucky and or skilled fisherman.