Charlie Newton, owner of Redfish Charters, is a legend in the community of Rockport. He has been a fishing guide for over 35 years. He began guiding out of a little 16-foot jon boat and put his clients in big numbers of redfish. His favorite lure was a gold spoon. In later years, he became a real pro using cut mullet for bait. Another guide friend of mine once told me, “A redfish can resist a lure, a live bait but he can’t turn down a cut mullet once that oil and smell reaches him.” Thousands of redfish met their maker because of Redfish Charters and cut mullet.
Now Charlie is older in years and not in good health. But his heritage has been passed on to his grandson, Aerich Oliver. Aerich began working with Charlie as his deckhand when he was 12 years old. I first met Aerich when he was about 14 years old at the Rockport-Fulton outdoor media event, Spring Fling. He would attend all the dinners with his grandparents. Aerich is now 21 years old, engaged to be married, and the one who guides Redfish Charters. Aerich is also an avid duck hunter, and for several years, Aerich and I have tried to get together for a duck hunt or a fishing trip. But our time schedules never matched.
This week I finally got in the boat with Aerich. We pulled out of Cove Harbor near Rockport, ran the Intra Coastal Waterway (ICW) for a couple of miles, and cut into Estes Flats. These famous grass flats line the east side of the ICW almost from Rockport to Aransas Pass. Although, like most of the Coastal Bend that gets tremendous fishing pressure, these flats are home to big numbers of redfish and speckled trout. We didn’t run very far before Aerich cut the engine and we set up a drift.
