TPWD Launches Prize Giveaway for Tagged Guadalupe Bass in Lower Colorado River
To bring awareness to the ecological and recreational importance of the Lower Colorado River, All Water Guides, Cleanup the Colorado, Texas River School and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department are partnering on a prize giveaway program featuring our state fish, the Guadalupe Bass. The Lower Colorado River contains one of the finest river fisheries in Texas, yet this fishery remains an underutilized recreational resource.
TPWD and its partners believe providing safe legal access to a clean river environment is critical to foster a sense of public stewardship for the river. To get people on the river, TPWD’s River Access and Conservation Ares Program offers access from leased private properties at the Texas River School in East Austin, and at Hidden Shores and WJF River Access near Smithville. There are also Texas Paddling Trails in the Austin and Bastrop areas that offer access to over 20 river miles for paddling and fishing. Check out where these river access areas are on TPWD’s Colorado River Access Map.
Simply providing the access is just the start. Our partners at the Texas River School provide the youth and the underserved community paddling skills and education on river ethics. Take the River Sense Quiz to test your knowledge of the river environment. We’d also like to thank our partners at All Water Guides for spearheading the LoCo Trash Bash events and making paddling and fishing on the river a cleaner more enjoyable experience.
Prize Give-Away Information:
* Beginning February 4th and continuing until August 31, 2022, any angler who catches one of 30 tagged Guadalupe Bass from the Lower Colorado River near Austin and Smithville will be awarded a prize package and be entered into grand prize drawings at the end of the seven-month period.
* Eligible Guadalupe Bass are tagged with visual Floy anchor tags that read “Reward – Clip tag and call TPWD 512-754-6844.” Each tag has a unique ID number.
* Guadalupe Bass have been tagged by TPWD in the Colorado River at locations near Little Webberville Park (just east of Austin) and near the leased river access sites near Smithville.
Anglers who catch an eligible Guadalupe Bass should:
1. Take photos with the fish with the tag, preferably with the segment of river and habitat where the fish was caught in the background of the photo.
2. Clip the tag from the fish and take a photo of the tag legible enough for the tag number to be read. NOTE: DO NOT pull out the tag from the fish.
3. Call the number on the tag to report the tagged fish catch, claim a prize, and to be entered into the grand prize drawings. Anglers should be prepared to provide the tag number, submit photos of the catch, and describe where the fish was caught. Submitted photos will become property of TPWD and may be used in social media or in Agency reports.
* Gift packages containing a Yeti 18 oz bottle and a Buff will be awarded for each eligible tagged Guadalupe Bass caught, and grand prizes include a half-day guided trip with All Water Guides, a Yeti Tundra Haul cooler, and complimentary canoe/camp site rental at the Texas River School.
To learn more about efforts to conserve Guadalupe bass or where to go fishing for this species, please visit TPWD’s Guadalupe Bass Restoration Initiative webpage, www.tpwd.texas.gov/conserveguadalupebass.