Who I Am

My name is Bob Maindelle. I was born into a fishing family in 1969 while my dad was serving in Vietnam. My earliest childhood memories revolve around angling. Pop Pop Hamilton was a commercial fisherman on the Mississippi, mom and dad went fishing on Clarks Hill Reservoir near Augusta, Georgia, on cheap dates as newlyweds, and Uncle Glenn ran a saltwater charter boat out of Shark River, NJ. I'm now happily married, live in Salado, Texas, right at the eastern edge of the Texas Hill Country, and am carrying on the family tradition. I have fished all over our nation in fresh waters and salt, and with all manner of gear and tackle. In 1991, I graduated from West Point (U.S. Military Academy) with a Bachelor of Science degree in environmental engineering, and spent 8 years with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, followed by 9 years in industry as an environmental engineer. I retired in 2016 from full-time ministry as the Small Groups Pastor at a large church in central Texas. My business experience from my "previous life" and my flexible schedule allow me to operate "Holding The Line Guide Service" out of my home on the lakes of this region. I am physically fit, extremely well-organized, very methodical, self-disciplined and detail-oriented. I enjoy introducing beginners to the sport. I enjoy coaching those with a little experience. I enjoy fishing with great fishermen and picking up on tips and techniques from all over the country. I am not so prideful to think that I cannot still learn much from other further down the path than I.

Why I Fish

The pursuit of fish is, to me, an incomparable, lifelong challenge that tests the mind, the body, and even the will. The timeless variables of weather, wind, forage location, light, temperature and pressure prevent any one day's pursuit from being like the chase of any other day. Every sunrise holds new promise, every storm front brings change, every season nudges fish movements, and though the cycle has repeated since the beginning of time, I believe the code will never be fully deciphered. But there are some who understand parts of the code. I am one. And that understanding breeds a desire to preserve and to protect that same Creation that is pursued.