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September
Issue Highlights
I made mention in this column last month of the proposed and seemingly already pending desalination projects that have appeared rather suddenly on the environmental radar down in South Texas. Sportsmen and conservation groups are all over it. If you’ve been following these stories you may have gotten the impression there might be some sleight of hand or other chicanery in the works. Why else would anybody be in such a hurry to get deals made ahead of the obvious prerequisite evaluations –environmental impact statements, and the like?
What I’m driving at here is the disposal of concentrated brine water, the obvious byproduct of removing salt and other compounds from brackish (low – to moderate salinity) groundwater or water pumped directly from a bay or estuary. There are several processes by which this can be accomplished, the goal of the lot is to provide potable water for human consumption and/or industrial or agricultural needs. The simplest disposal method is draining this concentrated brine byproduct into the nearest creek, river or estuary…but at what risk to the critical balance of nature that exists in this semi-arid region? Indeed, some of these water bodies might already be hyper-saline, meaning
saltier than the ocean. So what’s a little more going to hurt?
Well, that’s the $64,000 question! The problem is we don’t know. Actually, nobody knows. But why the rush when the price of a mistake could be so disastrously high?
CCA Texas has a very good piece by Shane Bonnot – Advocacy Director CCA Texas on page 36 of this issue that explains this whole situation more technically and eloquently than I could ever hope. I invite that you give it a careful read and consider becoming involved for the sake of conserving the natural wonders of our precious coast.
Moving along, we are entering September, the last month of summer. Hallelujah!
We say this every year, making guesses whether this was the longest and hottest summer on record, but the truth is they’re all hot and long. The best part of September is that it’s the beginning of the end…of summer.
The heat isn’t going to suddenly go away, that won’t happen until some time in October. I can say this with certainty though, those sultry afternoons that lie ahead are always easier on a body when flavored with the aroma of burnt gunpowder and a sprinkling of dove feathers drifting on the breeze.
Whatever your outdoor pursuits in the coming weeks, get out there and enjoy the bounty the Good Lord provides. Be safe, stay hydrated in the heat, and strive to introduce a youngster to the great Texas outdoors.
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Grady-White Canyon 456
Dan Hamill enjoyed a morning of catching very nice trout on Saltwater Assassin Sea Shads. Chicken On A Chain and Slammin’ Chicken never seem to disappoint!
A Reliable Game Plan for the Slow Days
STORY BY STEVE HILLMAN
Each day I would frequent many of the same areas and have good success. Everything was stable. The salinity; the water temperature; an abundance of bait and slicks. But then we started getting recurrent rain showers. In addition, the days continued to get shorter. Surface water temperatures dropped by 4 or 5 degrees. Some of the areas I was paying a daily visit to were not producing like they had been. An early cool front pushed through our area dropping the water temperatures even more. Spots that were producing 20 and 30 trout per morning were now only coughing up 5 or 6 and we had to work for those! Things were changing. Our trout were on the move. It was challenging but it was certainly nothing unusual for this time of year. Welcome to September!
Throughout the summer months there are common signs (namely trout slicks and bait concentrations) that point us in the right direction. But now, such signs weren’t as prevalent. The rafts of mullet that lived over reefs and structure all summer were now just a few mullet breaching the surface here and there. Those well-defined hard-edged slicks were replaced by faint bled-out “maybe a slick” slicks that we casted to with a level of uncertainty. Please don’t get me wrong. We still have some stellar days in September but the aforementioned changes cause some inconsistency at times. So how do we react to these late summer/early fall variables?
Stay Mobile
The first thing we have to realize is that the trout are now on the move and that means we have to be willing to be on the move as well. Some of our fish will still be in their summertime haunts (openwater reefs and structure) and some will begin to show up along shorelines near bayou drains with good depth changes and live habitat. The rest of them will be in transit caught up somewhere in-between. I typically don’t spend as much time at each spot this time of year. In addition, I like to make sure my clients are fanning their casts to cover as much water as possible within our targeted fishing area. This applies to drifting and wading. Usually 30 to 45 minutes is long enough to get a good read on whether to stay or leave.
Call Them In
We often chunk more topwaters when trying to trick finicky, nonschooling trout. Using topwaters as “trout calls” can draw agitation strikes when sometimes nothing else will. Sound (vibration) travels a long way very quickly through water. As a matter of fact it travels at approximately 3,350 mph which is about 4.3 times faster than the speed of sound through air. Water temperature also affects the speed of sound as it travels faster in warm water versus cold water. Salinity has a slight effect too as sound travels faster in water with higher salinity (oceanexplorer.noaa.gov). There are other variables that affect
the speed and distance of sound traveling through water such as pressure and frequency but I think you get the idea.
My two favorite trout calls are the MirrOlure She Dog and Rapala Skitter Walk, especially when we’re fishing deep or choppy water. I feel like the crisp, high-pitch rattle from these particular topwater plugs send sound waves straight to the trout’s lateral lines and just drives them crazy! Even if the trout won’t fully commit to the topwaters, they at least make their presence known. This enables us to find other ways to trick them using small Saltwater Assassin Sea Shads or MirrOlure Lil Johns.
Jeff Woods had himself quite a day while fishing over deep live oyster beds!
It didn’t take Stephen Spielman long to figure out the late summer bite on this particular day….soft plastics worked low and slow.
Geoff Wagner and his mother, JoAnne, were able to trick some good-looking specks while casting to isolated submerged structure.
Trevor Callarman was able to catch one of several reds after a great morning of trout fishing was cut short by high winds. Protected shorelines with structure offer a solid fallback plan when it’s windy.
Heightened Awareness for Small Signs
As I’ve mentioned, many of the usual signs we use to locate trout may not be available during the transitional period. On days when it seems like there isn’t anything at all to lead us to the fish there actually may be. Just because it isn’t the big neon sign we were hoping for doesn’t mean it’s not a sign. Just the other day we were drifting over some deep oyster beds. Our bite had really slowed. There wasn’t a breath of wind. I noticed one large tern hovering over something when suddenly a shrimp got forced into the air by a trout. I told the guys to reel in as I trolled into position to cast where that shrimp got blasted. We proceeded to catch eight or nine solid trout there until the bite faded. You see, we don’t necessarily have to have a big group of birds or an area littered with slicks to catch fish. Sometimes one bird or one shrimp is all it takes.
Nooks and Crannies
I’ve talked about nook and cranny fishing a lot through the years. This style of fishing produces year-round but can be especially productive on tough bite days. This strategy involves narrowing our focus to smaller areas that are likely to hold fish. Such areas include small bayou mouths, grassy points, small shallow reefs with cuts through them, and isolated structure such as a pile of rocks or pier pilings. These areas are sometimes only good for a few fish but other times they’re loaded. Either way they can save our bacon on even the toughest of days!
Target Other Species
I’ve experienced days when the trout bite was so challenging that I would just switch gears altogether and target redfish. Finding openwater schools of redfish can turn a slow and boring day into an actionpacked adventure. Of course, it helps to have the right conditions
when searching for the mid-bay schools. Ideally, we want light winds so we can cover lots of water, especially deeper areas along the Houston Ship Channel while looking for birds (terns and gulls), slicks and/or mud boils. A good trolling motor for a stealthy approach and fully charged batteries is a must for this style of fishing. I use a 36 volt lithium ion battery with an on-deck Stealth One charging system that charges my trolling battery when I run the big motor. This system has been a game changer for me. Soft plastics rigged on 1/4 or 3/8-ounce lead heads will enable us to make the long casts sometimes required to reach the schools. It can be some of the most fast and furious fishing you’ve ever experienced!
If it’s too choppy to do the open-water stuff, we fish the bayous, back lakes and bayou drains for slot redfish and flounder. We typically pop a few trout while fishing these areas as well. Later in the month white shrimp will begin their migration from these areas, which will further concentrate fish. Four-inch Assassin Sea Shads, especially in Chicken On A Chain and Slammin’ Chicken colors rigged on 1/8-ounce jig heads are perfect choices for this type of fishing. I like keying in on mud boils, small slicks and wakes over shell and mud.
I must say the catching has remained pretty consistent throughout the changing of the seasons in recent years. With this being said, we will inevitably have a few of those tough bite days but hopefully by having a solid game plan we can still make the most out of the slower days, even if it means changing our approach and covering more water. And even though most of us are trout snobs we may need to seek out other species when the going gets tough. After all, it’s more about the tug than the groceries anyway.
STEVE HILLMAN
Steve Hillman is a full-time fishing guide on his home waters of Galveston Bay. Steve fishes the entire Galveston Bay Complex, wading and drifting for trout, redfish, and flounder using artificial lures.
Phone 4 09-256-7937
Email captsteve@hillmanguideservice.com
w ww.hillmanguideservice.com
A lone egret perched upon a small rock pile is usually an indicator of the presence of bait and certainly warrants some casts.
Sometimes it only takes a single tern to lead us to the fish.
Lessons Gleaned (Part 4)
STORY BY KEVIN COCHRAN
Achieving consistent productivity starts with choosing the right locations to fish. Fishing in places holding plenty of the right fish hedges the bet favorably. Despite these truths, fishing in places loaded with quality fish can’t completely eliminate the importance of other aspects of angling efforts, namely strategy, lure choice and presentation style. Versatile anglers do the right things more often than those stubbornly committed to a limited number of things.
I and most of my partners prefer wading over fishing out of the boat, especially when we’re targeting trophy trout. For me, this preference has a recognizable genesis. I caught my first trout measuring at least twenty-seven inches while wading in the back corner of a shallow cove in West Galveston Bay and caught many other big trout while wading before I ever caught one while casting from the deck of a boat in water too deep for wading. Sometimes, though, fishing from the boat in deep water makes far more sense than wading, even for anglers targeting monster specks.
I learned this lesson the hard way, while competing against other top trout anglers in the state as the 20th century ended and the new millennium began. Competition reveals one’s strengths and weaknesses better than fishing alone because it forces a comparison of one’s results with those of others. My poor performance in several events held early in my career forced me to acknowledge how my devotion to wading could doom me to failure in specific kinds of conditions.
Perhaps the most important factor which tips the scales in favor of fishing out of the boat is the temperature of the water. Extreme values, either cold or hot, can send most of the fish away from shorelines and shallow structural elements, out of the reach of wading anglers. I remember several winter and summer events which proved this point to me in poignant ways. In one tournament, held in Galveston in late-winter under bright blue skies with cool north winds blowing in the wake of a strong front, I and my partners struggled to find some kind of pattern which would allow us to catch our fish by wading.
Extremely low tides and dirty water made this nearly impossible. We found a skunk on day one, fishing in West Bay, then succeeded in locating a sweet looking ripple created by water gushing out of a drain in East Bay on day two. I did manage to catch one solid trout by casting a Super Spook upcurrent at the mouth of the drain and working it toward where I stood. But when organizers of the event wrote the names of the leaders on the boards that Sunday afternoon, my catch left me invisible.
On Saturday, we noticed what I’d describe as an armada of boats drifting in the middle of West Bay, most of them in the area approximately south of Green’s Cut. The next day, we saw another big group of boats working deeper parts of East Bay, mostly east of Hannah’s Reef. Though I don’t remember specifically, we likely mentioned this to each other as we raced around closer to the shorelines, looking for some spot where we thought we might wade and catch the right fish. With little confidence in our ability to catch big trout off the deck of the boat, and perhaps more importantly, no desire to fish out of the boat, we chose to wade when doing so made little or no sense.
In situations where results matter, stubbornly committing to flawed strategies renders one’s skills obsolete. In those days, I had already developed a sharp acumen related to catching fish on floating plugs. I rightly believed I could make trout blow up when many others couldn’t. But my confidence in topwaters and the related preference for wading, which makes presenting them much easier, doomed me to failure in events in which most of the fish had retreated to water too deep for wading.
This same thing occurred at least two other times in events held during the peak of summer heat waves. In one memorable tournament, held in the Sabine National Wildlife Refuge, on Sabine Lake and Lake Calcasieu, the guys who did best reported catching most or all their big trout on topwaters while fishing areas too deep for waders to access. I spent all my time trying to scratch out a few bites, wading in places where I did normally catch quality trout in cooler weather and coming up empty.
These and other events emphasized the potential pitfalls associated with becoming too tied to the
Catching big trout on lures can be difficult in September, but catching upper-slot and oversized reds is often easy.
On hot, windy afternoons near the end of summer/beginning of fall, soft plastics fished on light jigheads often produce bites from big trout best.
strategy of wading. I generally stand by my preference for getting into the water with the fish to try and catch them, especially when the goal is to catch one giant fish. Because wading facilitates stealth and allows for methodically, repeatedly and precisely probing tiny sweet spots with confidence, the tactic often works best for anglers who don’t care how many bites they get, because they’ve put a priority on catching the biggest trout they can.
But some situations, usually those generated by weather either cold enough to turn wading people into popsicles or so hot the deck of the boat burns the bottoms off boots, catching fish while wading can become nearly impossible. If the only way to catch a fish is by fishing out of the boat, the only way to catch a big fish is by fishing out of the boat. Playing the percentages correctly always means deploying the basic strategy best suited to produce the desired outcome. The same truth applies to the lure-choice part of the puzzle.
Only by relying on sound operating principles related to lurechoice can one achieve consistent results. Becoming too committed to one type of lure and trying to force-feed the fish reduces productivity. This truth rings especially loudly if the preferred type of lure floats on the water’s surface. Though trout and other fish can and will strike topwaters aggressively at times, they will ignore them entirely in other situations.
I now use a set of tested principles when choosing which lures to deploy, many of which I began to learn while competing against others in Troutmaster tournaments decades ago. Two of these basic lessons stand out among all the others when it comes to how I select the right lure for the moment. After several events in which I struggled while others brought bulging sacks to the scales, I realized my commitment to throwing topwaters sometimes sabotaged my chances for success.
In most of those events, I heard others describe how easily they’d caught their fish on soft plastics, while I worked ridiculously hard for a scant few blowups. I now realize I’d have likely done much better in specific events, if I’d been more committed to one plan I now think of as a basic and simple strategy. When water temperatures rise above 80° or so, I start most mornings off throwing a topwater, expecting a relatively easy bite, but when the blowups become harder to urge, and after I’ve tried adjusting my presentation style somewhat, I tie on a soft plastic on a light jighead to try and keep the bites coming.
Thinking about exactly what I did in the August event in which I led on day one after catching the big trout on Sand Point in West Matagorda Bay, only to find the water wrecked by fresh new winds the next morning leads me to conclude my stubborn insistence on using topwaters cost me money. I honestly don’t remember trying a soft plastic at all after I realized I’d likely smell a skunk if I stayed at the little reef and moved around into the protected, clear waters of Keller Bay. I do know I caught the one trout I weighed on a Super Spook.
If I found myself in the same situation today, I’d abandon the idea
of trying to catch a fish on top, especially a full-sized plug. I’d tie on a worm and keep it on, unless I suddenly found the catching easy on it, got my three fish, and could see lots of mullet and other bait fish jumping out of the water. This basic plan of attack has worked for me on many occasions in the years since I stopped fishing against others in tournaments and began measuring my catch mostly against those fishing with and beside me on charters. When a fast morning topwater bite wanes, the best way to keep catching often involves switching down to a soft plastic.
In other situations, namely when water temperatures dip down below 60° and stay there for a while, starting the day off throwing soft plastics makes much more sense than anything else. In cold water, I generally start a day throwing soft plastics on light jigheads and working them low and slow, switching up to other lures if and when the bites come frequently enough to convince me the fish are aggressively feeding. I began developing this basic strategy after I felt the sting of bad results in winter tournaments all those years ago, when I spent far too much time throwing other lures, because I lacked confidence in my ability to catch fish on soft plastics.
I did develop supreme confidence in my ability to catch fish on slow-sinking twitchbaits back in those days, especially in water of moderate temperatures. I learned to love how well Paul Brown’s Fat Boys urge strikes from big trout in shallow water when worked rhythmically, with deft touch. In my best tournament year, 2001, I caught 15 trout weighing at least 4 pounds during the hours of the events I fished; 10 of them bit a Fat Boy. This fact would mean little if I threw a Fat Boy 67% of the time, or more, but I threw it less than half the time.
I did well in several events because I rightly figured out how to catch some relatively big trout on these lures when others couldn’t or didn’t. In order to catch fish on Fat Boys, one must master a presentation style suitable to them. I did, and in the years since, I’ve caught more big trout, including plenty which stretched the tape to more than 30 inches, on these supremely effective shad-imitators.
By becoming more versatile in my choice of strategies and lure choices, I improved the consistency of my performances, over time. The most complete anglers display high acumen with multiple types of lures; they also learn to work each type of lure in multiple presentation styles. In the last part of this series on how competing in tournaments accelerated my learning curve, I’ll dive into the important role presentation style can play in the quest to catch the right fish.
KEVIN COCHRAN
Kevin Cochran is a long-time fishing guide at Corpus Christi (Padre Island), TX. Kevin is a speckled trout fanatic and has created several books and dvds on the subject. Kevin’s home waters stretch from Corpus Christi Bay to the Land Cut.
T ROUT TRACKER GUIDE SERVICE
Phone 361-688-3714
Email kevincochran404@yahoo.com
Web www.captainkevblogs.com
Dr. Paul McCormick with a dandy late-summer Sabine red. Gotta love the color of these guys this time of year.
DON’T LOOK NOW but you may be Pigeonholed!
STORY BY CHUCK UZZLE
In a scene from one of my favorite movies – Quigley Down Under – Matthew Quigley famously says, “I said I never had much use for one; never said I didn’t know how to use it.”
Quigley is speaking in reference to a handgun, with which he has just demonstrated his exceptional prowess, despite his preference for his Sharps Long Range rifle. The villain, Elliot Marston, had “pigeonholed” Quigley as being a capable sharpshooter with a rifle only, and completely discounted his ability with the classic Colt revolver, which cost him dearly.
As anglers, both recreational and professional, we tend to get pigeonholed by others, and sometimes even ourselves. The slang definition for pigeonholed means, “to decide that someone or something belongs to a particular class or category, often without considering all their qualities or characteristics.” So many times, we hear about a certain style or method of fishing and automatically associate it with a person or place without really knowing if that’s the case or not.
Early on in my guiding career if someone mentioned wading for trophy trout the first thing that popped into my head was venues like Baffin Bay, or Port Mansfield, down in the Lower Laguna Madre. Those were the established places to go and chase fish with that technique, it’s just how the world worked until that style of fishing finally crept its way north and became a much more widely accepted method.
The unique plot twist came years later as speckled trout limits were greatly reduced, and both guides and recreational anglers had to begin searching for other fish to target. Suddenly you began to see guides from the Lower Coast who had never done anything but wade for speckled trout concentrating on other species, the way those of us from the Upper Coast had been doing for many years, in effort to make up for trout they could no longer keep. Now don’t get me wrong, not every fisherman falls into this category, there are plenty who still only target speckled trout, but many have begun to branch out to include other fish as daily targets. This “waterfront renaissance” has spiked a learning curve for many in all facets of the sport from areas to fish to techniques and gear.
In many ways the new emphasis on multi-species trips accentuates the need for anglers to be well-rounded, in order to increase their odds for success. I can freely admit I was always a little envious of my fishing buddies on the Lower Coast because they never had to deal with the constant changes that our Upper Coast venues presented. Day in and day out, they took one fishing rod and a small box of lures and got to chase fish in virtually the same conditions all year long, except water temperature, of course.
Now, swing the latitude a little northward. Runoff from major lakes and rivers was always at the top on the list of challenges that had to be overcome by Upper Coast fishermen. It was variables like runoff that forced us to adapt techniques and target alternate species in order to make our days on the water as good as they could be. It was also that ability to adapt that opened our eyes to so many different styles of fishing that we may never have encountered or been able to enjoy otherwise. Instead of seeing the constant changing of styles, techniques, and species as a hardship, many have embraced that opportunity and made themselves into tremendous all-around anglers. What was once considered a curse has now become embraced as variety and that’s exactly what typically transpires in September.
When we flip the calendar to September it’s hard to suppress the smile that’s been hidden throughout the long, hot summer. Everything seems to get better when there is a letter R in the month. As previously mentioned, we get a variety of opportunities to choose from both on the water and in the field. The long-awaited and greatly anticipated opening of hunting season only complicates the options this month as Texas sportsmen struggle to choose between their two passions, with
neither being a bad choice.
For the fishermen, this month will be about as wide open as anyone could imagine – gulf to marsh and all points in between. Generally speaking, we get our first albeit brief cool front of the season this month and that will kick start an amazing bite. The white shrimp begin to exit the marshes, and all the inshore species put the feedbag on in the process to gorge on the endless buffet.
Schooling activity ramps up this month and will be a mainstay until well after Christmas, depending on weather. Closely following the shrimp will be the flounder as they begin to stage for the fall spawning migration. Pay attention to the full moon and typical ambush points along marsh drains and ledges near deep water; these variables will help produce fantastic results for these tasty fish.
As we head south towards the jetties and beachfront, the options will continue to grow as everything from trout and tripletail to tarpon will be in play. Last year we had a phenomenal year on the jetty rocks, and it was accentuated by the presence of quite a few tarpon which was a fantastic sight that had been absent for some time. The beachfront from Sabine to Galveston will provide some lucky anglers legitimate opportunities at catching trophy class tarpon if they are willing to put in some time.
This area of the gulf is some prime real estate for these fish and is grossly overlooked by the average angler. This same water along the beach will kick out some incredible tripletail as well for those who choose to target them. The best way to catch these fish is to key on floating debris or a weed line, as well as just cruising the surf and spotting them as they float near the surface. These fish have grown in popularity with Sabine anglers over the last several years due to
Here’s Yancey Foster with a nice Sabine speck.
I love the way I can cover all my bases with these Laguna travel rods.
Maverick Hobbs knows a solid flatfish when he sees one!
their abundance as well as how good they are as table fare. To say that anglers have options this month is a huge understatement.
With all these options it’s nearly impossible to be ready for all of them, especially when it comes to gear. Having some tackle that’s capable of handling a variety of different techniques and species is a must but doesn’t need to break the bank. Here in Texas, we are blessed to have some great rod companies and goodness knows everyone has an opinion on that subject. For the average fisherman the thought of spending $500 on a specialty rod is a tough ask. Finding one that checks all the boxes such as price, sensitivity, durability, and feel, can seem like a daunting task but there are some models out there that can actually come very close.
I have had tremendous success with Laguna Rods which are American made right here in Katy Texas. I spend about 60-70 percent of my time on the water with their 6’9” or 7’ Medium action Liquid series in my hand. This is their entry level rod, not a custom, and it handles virtually everything I can imagine from 1/16-ounce jigs and soft plastics to big topwater plugs or live bait. In the past I have had several of these rods made for travel and they have covered a wide variety of fishing situations from casting artificials on shallow flats to
deep jigging in 300 feet of water. For covering your bases and being able to catch multiple species of fish, I highly recommend them. I have personally caught over 20 different species of fish on these rods, all the way from largemouth bass to roosterfish and dorado in the Pacific. For an all-around rod that does just about everything, they are hard to beat, and the service is beyond top notch. Even if you don’t pick up a Laguna, go find yourself a rod that will allow you the flexibility to take advantage of all the different types of fishing available. There is nothing worse than missing out on an opportunity.
With the good stuff staring us directly in the face this month, and the prospects for an incredible fall right around the corner, it’s more important than ever to share our sport with the next generation. Do whatever you can to take a kid fishing or share your boat with someone new to the sport. A small gesture could lead to a lifelong friend.
CHUCK UZZLE
CONTACT
Chuck fishes Sabine and Calcasieu Lakes from his home in Orange, TX. His specialties are light tackle and fly fishing for trout, reds, and flounder.
Phone 409-697-6111
Email wakesndrakes@yahoo.com
Website wakesndrakes.com
Tight
Boats passing inside the jetties.
Spots
STORY BY JOE RICHARD
Fishing from boats has been described as a series of misadventures, although every now and then, everything goes right. Or something like that.
The longer I’m on the water, the more I’m bewildered at the ease folks can plunk down money to buy a big boat with no experience or training required. Those born after Sept 1, 1998 are required to take a boating safety course, but what about those 40-somethings who never owned a boat and decide to take a walk on the wild side?
For example: a longtime friend from high school days missed out on owning a boat in our early years. After settling into a steady job, he bought a 20-foot twin-engine (top-heavy) center console and headed out to the jetties. On one of his first trips, they forgot the drain plug and while walking the jetties, he looked over and noticed the boat sinking by the stern. Where it soon rolled over, requiring a tow home and rehab of the engines and wiring. A few trips later they banged their way offshore, running too fast, and somehow their 12-volt battery bounced over the low transom, dragging in the water until the battery tore loose from the cables. After fishing that first oil rig, he turned the key to move to the next spot, but it was no dice; the battery cables were trailing in the water. They had to hand-crank both engines, now fortunately warmed up. They probably kept fishing, too.
In today’s education circles, this might be referred to as “experiential” (a $10-dollar word) learning through direct experience, rather than solely through traditional instruction. For the rest of us, it’s known as learning the hard way.
Anyone with 50 years of boating experience on the Gulf coast has been in a few tight spots and I’ve certainly had my own. I share them here with hopes that others may combine their own experiences with additional lessons others have learned. To avoid getting into a tight spot.
> A paddle can be a boater’s best friend: Our first year with a 12-foot Gibson jonboat in the 10th grade, we pulled ashore in north Sabine Lake and made a campfire on a cold winter’s day. Used the boat’s three-gallon gas tank to start a fire with ample driftwood. When it was time to go, we headed back out when my 5-horse Evinrude suddenly quit, 50 yards from land. Talk about a rookie mistake: we’d left my gas tank on the beach. A north wind was blowing 20 knots off the shore and the wind could easily carry us across Sabine Lake over the horizon into marsh country, where there were no roads or trees. I told my buddy to lay flat in the boat, while I paddled like a mo-fo at the bow, back to the beach. It was hard work but I rowed with enthusiasm, knowing we had no food or water. Or cell phones; they were 40 years in the future.
> Decades later in Port O’Connor with a different paddle, we were returning from the end of the big jetties. Barely inside the bay, the 18-horse Mercury shut down, apparently we had water in the gas. A south wind began to carry us briskly out into the bay and we hadn’t brought an anchor. It was sunset and next stop was Palacios, somewhere over the horizon. Wife Amy grabbed the paddle, sat on the bow, and paddled furiously right up to the beach beside the jetties, and we soon walked up to the nearest house and sat on their front porch, mostly above the mosquitos. It was two days after Labor Day, and the crowd was gone. Our two boys were being watched by a babysitter who was locally home-schooled and somewhat…a rookie in many matters, including common sense, let alone fishing and boating. Our sons had been out on boats since age three, and could sense that something was wrong. It was 10 p.m. on a school night. Our close friend Marilyn was called up, and she set out in her flounder jonboat. Soon we could see her navigation lights crossing the big bay. I’d brought a decent flashlight and began signaling from our two-story perch. Twenty minutes later we were being fast-towed back to POC, none the worse for wear.
> Always Look Twice: I needed to gas up a company boat, a 23 Mako, at what is now St. Christopher Marina in Port O’Connor. For some reason I cranked both engines, even though the gas dock and boat ramp were 70 yards away. Not another boat in sight. Idling along in the ICW, warming up the engines, I looked ahead at a 45 degree angle to starboard, searching for a parking
spot at the gas dock. No problem, it was a very quiet weekday. Getting closer, I was looking 70 degrees to starboard. I had a bad feeling and glanced ahead, where a tiny center console boat maybe 12 feet long and only four inches above water, appeared like magic. Dead ahead, 30 feet. It’s owner was staring straight ahead and couldn’t see a 23 foot boat bearing down on him. I slammed both engines into full reverse, but the Mako kept gliding forward. When my boat finally stopped, it was poking two feet into the other guy’s boat, who leaned away from it, visibly annoyed. Then the Mako began to back up. That tiny scooter boat had zipped out of the marsh and into the ICW without looking left or right. We tied up to the gas dock. The owner of that tiny scooter boat glared from 30 yards away, while cranking his boat onto a tiny trailer. Colliding with another boat would not have looked good with the Coast Guard.
POC still doesn’t have a speed or no-wake zone for boats passing
Big billfish boats trolling for marlin in deep water off Galveston.
Mooring to an oil rig in choppy seas requires good balance and crew timing, earned from experience.
by in the ICW. Mix fast boats with the growing popularity of kayaking, and something is bound to give. No doubt kayakers and small boats around there have their own close call stories. Some of the big, fast boats now play their AC/DC on quad speakers way too loud to hear even another boat’s horn sounding a collision alarm.
> Fish with an experienced crew if possible: Big business owners are generally smart enough, when they buy a sportfisher (billfish boat) to hire an experienced captain, but not all. A big boat out of Freeport didn’t hire a captain and the new owner ran out 40 miles for big amberjack, which soon wore everyone out. On the way back, the boat was set on auto-pilot and everyone took a nap. A big nap; hours passed and the shallow water alarm went off, waking them. Someone stumbled to the bridge and was shocked to see the boat paralleling a strange beach, their boat running along almost in the surf. They were near Johnson Bayou, Louisiana, having missed countless shipping, buoys, the 18-mile lighthouse, and numerous oil rigs off Galveston and Sabine Pass. It seems that someone had set the wrong course back to Freeport. That would be tight spot(s) with an S, because nobody knows how many solid objects they missed.
> Overnight trips carry extra risks: Back in the day of overnight kingfish tournaments, we were anchored on a snapper rock, sleeping under the stars, and were startled awake by a bright spotlight. It was early July and a fleet of Florida shrimpboats were moving into Texas waters for the annual opening of shrimp season. Four big shrimp boats plowed by, all around us. One alert captain had either seen our navigation lights or spotted us on radar. From then on, we never again anchored and slept in open water. We tied up instead to offshore platforms without loud horns. Some had plenty of lights and maybe a crew above. Not the quietest venue, but safe from being run over. Of course that meant staying alert for current changes, which can drift your boat inside the platform where waves can grind it up. Also, if they’re sand-blasting at night, your hair can turn gritty. Or a crewboat can arrive and you have to move your boat from the best spot. Anchoring nearby isn’t advised; we once snagged a cable on the bottom and had a hard time pulling it to the surface to free the anchor. We avoided navigating at night if possible, to avoid hitting floating objects.
> Own a proper anchor: A lack of decent anchors dogged us for years back in the ‘70s. (I fished mostly oil rigs and walked the jetties). Anchoring in calm surf and wading ashore to duck hunt a few miles from the Sabine jetties, for instance. A south wind and surf picked up and my bassboat dragged anchor and washed ashore, full of water, waves breaking over the motor, impossible to move. We hiked out 3-4 miles in gentle rain. That boat disappeared, but after a hot tip I recovered it the following summer, it was hidden in a barn west of Sabine Pass. Another time, our anchor came untied off Key West at sunset, my bassboat’s motor wouldn’t start, and the tide carried us briefly towards New Orleans in a different time zone. The only other boat in sight, a houseboat 100 yards away, with four Cubans, saw our frantic waving and drove their skiff over to check us out. Towed us back to their houseboat and they cooked up my trophy 12-pound
mutton snapper. We slept on their roof.
> Double check those knots: Back in Texas in the 12th grade, we climbed many an oil rig back in the day, it was like fishing on the dock of the bay, reeling up snapper and various other fish. Great fun on a calm, moonlit night. One day we tied up in a hurry, climbed up and started fishing, and minutes later noticed our boat drifting away. The current was fairly brisk and my friend had seconds to decide whether to let his dad’s boat go, or swim after it. He kicked off his shoes and dove. From my view the boat got smaller on the horizon, several hundred yards. My friend later said there was no turning back, it was swim or die. Reaching the boat, he was too tired to climb aboard, so clung to the transom and rested for a few minutes. In those days, boats had low transoms and he finally clambered aboard. Looking back, we should have let the boat go, and kept fishing until a friendly helicopter arrived to monitor that day’s oil and gas readings.
Mine is just old-fashioned advice but if you have kids, start them young with a small boat, preferably aluminum, so they can learn how to handle a boat. We were fortunate to have Sam Rayburn and Toledo Bend reservoirs with summer camping and boating, where we learned to slow down and dodge miles of flooded trees without a second thought. (Local rented jonboats were also available and cheap). As young boaters we learned to dock and tie up without banging up more expensive boats. We learned that propellers are dangerous. It’s important to carry enough fuel and have a proper anchor and chain for those waters. Watch for currents and sandbars. Learn the rules of the road. Use navigation markers on the coast. Watch the weather and stay alert out there. And remember: you never know what other boaters will do.
JOE RICHARD
CONTACT
Joe Richard has fished the Gulf since 1967, starting out of Port Arthur, but his adventures have taken him up and down the entire coast. He was the editor of Tide magazine for eight years, and later Florida Sportsman’s book and assistant magazine editor. He began guiding out of Port O’Connor in 1994. His specialty is big kingfish, and his latest book is The Kingfish Bible, New Revelations. Available at Seafavorites.com
Young boys learning boat handling at an early age.
The Future of
Every week, we pull a 60-foot center bag seine through five identified nursery habitat sites to capture and tag juvenile tarpon. It’s a lot harder than it looks, especially when you’re sinking in muck with every step!
the Silver King
ISABEL TILLER
GRADUATE RESEARCH ASSISTANT | CENTER FOR SPORTFISH SCIENCE AND CONSERVATION HARTE RESEARCH INSTITUTE
When I learned about the opportunity to study tarpon in Texas, I was all in. As a budding fisheries scientist and amateur fly fisher, the history and mystery of Texas tarpon was captivating, like a puzzle waiting to be solved. I envisioned long yet rewarding trips on the bay, sight-casting and fighting migratory monsters in the south Texas heat. I imagined myself scrambling across the slick jetty rocks and fishing my heart out until dark for the mid-sized sub-adults, carrying a box of fish tagging equipment in one hand and my rod and tackle bag in the other. What I didn’t see coming was the reality of my master’s research: wading neck deep in wastewater, thigh high in sulfur-reeking muck, praying that a little six-inch tarpon wasn’t about to leap over the seine that my team and I had so strenuously pulled through a trash-filled, roadside ditch.
Now it’s true that you’ll find tarpon in all of these places and then some, as tarpon have complex life cycles that require different habitats as they develop, grow, and mature. For the first few years of their lives, juvenile tarpon seek inland, protected, backwater nursery habitats with abundant prey resources and protection from predators. Then, after growing large enough to survive in more exposed environments, the now sub-adult tarpon move into riverine, brackish, or estuarine habitats to continue development before moving further into deeper, saltier waters as reproductively mature adults. Tarpon reach maturity at around 8-10 years old and will periodically migrate offshore to broadcast spawn throughout the rest of their 80-year-long lifespan. After spawning in these deep, offshore waters, the eggs may fertilize and hatch into thousands of tiny, long, clear, eel-like larvae, called leptocephali, that somehow swim their way back to the inland nursery habitats hundreds of miles away, where they transform into tiny tarpon and begin developing. Few survive, and those that do are long-lived, late to mature, and need access to all of these habitats to persist – a life history strategy that’s been steady and true for 18 million years. A life history strategy that can be detrimental in today’s world. While the recorded history of tarpon in Texas isn’t as extensive as their evolutionary record, tarpon have historically played key roles economically, socially, and culturally along the Texas coast since the 1800s. Anglers travelled far and wide to places like Port Aransas, Texas for a chance to fight and weigh-in a massive “Silver King.” That is, until the tarpon fishery collapsed in the 1950s. Since then, scientists have sought to understand why this happened and have narrowed it down to two primary reasons: adult overfishing and the loss of juvenile nursery habitat. It’s no secret that the tarpon fishery was worldclass back in the day, and if you’ve seen the many, many weigh-in photos from the “Tarpon Era” or observed the massive scales covering the walls of the legendary Tarpon Inn in Port Aransas, you’ll understand why adult overfishing contributed to the collapse. Though since the 1990s, tarpon fishing in Texas has been primarily catch-and-release (with minimum size set to allow potential state records; currently 85 inches minimum total length), and anglers have happily embraced safe handling practices to minimize post-release mortality (like keeping any larger tarpon in the water, making sure the fish is fully recovered before releasing, and minimizing handling time). With these laws and practices in place during recent history, why aren’t we seeing the legendary schools of tarpon that our grandparents and great-grandparents witnessed more than seventy-five years ago? Hasn’t it been enough time for the Texas tarpon fishery to recover by now? This is where the puzzle becomes a bit more complex, and that brings us to the second point: the loss of juvenile nursery habitat.
Nursery habitats are specific areas within a larger ecosystem that provide juvenile fish with optimal conditions for growth, survival, and recruitment into the adult population. Nursery habitats come in many shapes
In May 2024, we captured three tarpon larvae, called leptocephali, within an identified nursery. For the first thirty days of their life, these small, thin, transparent leptocephali traverse from open, offshore waters into inland, backwater nursery habitats where they transform into tiny tarpon and begin developing.
Believe it or not, we caught twelve juvenile tarpon just a few feet from where this photo was taken. While this may not seem like pristine nursery habitat to us, ditches like this one are sanctuaries in disguise for juvenile tarpon.
and sizes depending on the species, but they all have three things in common: shelter, fewer predators, and abundant prey resources, and they are absolutely essential for sustaining healthy fish populations. For juvenile tarpon, these nursery habitats look like backwater creeks with abundant freshwater inflow and good connectivity to the surrounding bays and estuaries, in addition to those three key factors. Without these nurseries, juvenile tarpon have reduced growth and lower recruitment into the adult population to sustain the fishery. This statement is simple, and perhaps a bit obvious, but important to understand because several studies along the Gulf Coast have determined that minor negative impacts on juvenile tarpon survival will result in major reductions in adult abundance, in part due to their life history strategy. Essentially, an isolated impact on juvenile tarpon survival that occurred two to three decades ago is just now starting to
be seen, and it would take at least a few decades for the tarpon population to rebuild itself after such disturbance. Unfortunately, vital nursery habitat has constantly been degraded, destroyed, or both since coastal development began in Texas. Freshwater has been diverted and rediverted, and these backwater creeks have been routinely altered to accommodate the growing human population and industrial demands. So, while yes, adult overfishing in the early 1900s quickly reduced the size of the tarpon population, the loss of juvenile tarpon nursery habitat has prevented full recovery of the population for nearly a century.
Though hope is not lost. While small negative impacts on juvenile survival have detrimental impacts on adult abundance, the opposite is also true: a study by Kirk Winemiller and Bill Dailey found that a 1% increase in juvenile tarpon survival can lead to an increase in adult abundance by ten times. Therefore, identifying and understanding juvenile tarpon nursery habitat is crucial to the conservation, restoration, and management of the Texas tarpon fishery. If we can understand what types of habitats juvenile tarpon need to survive and their current population status, then we can create and implement well-informed protective measures to rebuild the fishery. Now, it would take a few decades to start seeing those positive results because of their life history strategy, so patience and consistency will be key. Unfortunately, little is known about the early life ecology of tarpon in Texas in general, precluding our ability to properly manage the fishery.
To fill this knowledge gap, the Center for Sportfish Science and Conservation at the Harte Research Institute at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi is conducting a juvenile tarpon habitat study to identify key nursery habitats, describe their physical, biological, and environmental characteristics, and determine seasonal residency, habitat use, abundance, and survival of tarpon within the identified nurseries. Since April 2024, a trusty team of three scientists and I (we call ourselves the “Poon Patrol”) pull a 60-foot center bag seine through five identified nursery sites (with the gracious help of many anglers who contributed to our confidential juvenile tarpon habitat survey) to capture juvenile tarpon every week. The sites range from ditchlike cuts to pond-like systems, varying in water quality, physical attributes, and connectivity to the surrounding bays to provide a better idea of what “prime” nursery habitat specifically looks like for juvenile tarpon in Texas.
Upon capture, each tarpon is measured, tagged with a small, uniquely numbered PIT tag (which is very similar to your pet’s microchip), and a small piece of its pelvic fin is clipped and preserved for future genetic analyses. If a tarpon has already been tagged with a PIT tag, we record its unique tag number as a “recapture” to estimate population abundance and remeasure the tarpon to calculate growth
Graduate Research Assistant Isabel Tiller and Research Specialist Jason Williams showcase one of the older and larger juvenile tarpon caught within a nursery site. Meanwhile, Research Specialist Jeff Kaiser rolls up the bag seine to take to the next ditch.
So far, we have captured and tagged over seventy juvenile tarpon within these nursery habitats, including this little guy!
rates. All other fish and crustaceans captured in the seine are identified and recorded to describe the biological community within the nursery habitat. On a monthly basis at each site, a smaller center bag seine is pulled to capture potential prey resources and further describe community assemblage at the lower levels. Prior to each seine haul, we measure salinity, temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, turbidity, and depth levels to understand the water quality of the nursery habitats and any seasonal fluctuations they undergo. At each site, the physical components of the habitat are described in detail, such as substrate type and the presence or absence of submerged structure and overhanging vegetation. Lastly, a subset of juvenile tarpon are tagged with an acoustic tag to passively track its movement in and out of the nursery habitat to determine habitat use and seasonal residence. This study is currently underway and projected to conclude in 2026.
And that brings us back to the last year of my life: the ditches. I say ditches because… that’s what they are. So far, we have found leptocephali in the late spring, and age one-, two, and three-yearold tarpon year-round in places like stormwater drainage ditches and wastewater outflows that empty into the surrounding bays, small cuts we drive over every single day without giving it a second glance. These ditches are urban and wild all at the same time: shorelines covered in invasive Brazilian peppertrees and razor-sharp mesquites, thick muck that bubbles up and reeks of sulfur when waded through, rusted pipes and concrete culverts funneling runoff and wastewater, cars flying by on the highways that cross over the ditches, and shopping carts and trash littered throughout. While that may not seem like “clean and pristine” nursery habitat for such
a prized sportfish, these ditches are covert sanctuaries, an oasis in disguise. Key prey resources, like small mullet and shrimp, are readily abundant, and the ditches are often only connected to the bays during high water events, keeping aquatic predators out for much of the year. Plus, tarpon are specifically adapted to tolerate regular changes in salinity and can breathe air through their vascularized swim bladder, allowing them to live in areas with fluctuating salinities and low oxygen levels that are too variable or uninhabitable for many other aquatic species. And perhaps most importantly, the thick muck and warm wastewater seems to keep these ditches warmer during the cold winter months, greatly increasing survival during freeze events. At least, that’s what we know so far.
As you read this, I’m probably wading through another ditch, searching for another six-inch tarpon, striving to add another piece to the puzzle that is Texas tarpon. While I never imagined myself wading through trash and muck and wastewater in search of such a prized sportfish, every day I am left in awe, not just because I now intimately know the inner workings of a roadside ditch, but because of the respect the ditch demands. These places are truly covert sanctuaries, and tarpon have capitalized on the places we overlook and disregard, just to fight for another day in a rapidly changing world. Through it all, my respect and admiration for their resilience has only grown, and it’s been an incredible opportunity to contribute to these research efforts and help tell the story of Texas tarpon. While our study is still ongoing, this much is clear: by better understanding and protecting juvenile tarpon nursery habitat, the future of the Silver King is promising. It just may take a few decades before we see it.
Marine Seat Suspension Systems
Shallow water boats have come forward an incredibly long way in the past 25 years, so far in fact that many of the accessory devices that owners specify as parts of the rigging package today hadn’t even been invented 25 years ago. Some of these were created to solve basic performance problems, some to improve reliability, and still others aimed at enhancing safety and comfort during the boating experience. Funny how safety and comfort grow in importance as we age, or maybe we just became wiser over the years. Shopping for a boat back in the day; all I wanted to know was how fast it’d go and how shallow it would run. Some of my early boats were so basic they didn’t even have helm seating – we only drove standing up. Now I’m here to talk about a comfy ride…yeah, lotta things have changed. So, what’s all this hype about a comfy ride anyway? Well, whether I’ve gone soft in my old age or I’m beginning to appreciate the finer things in life, all it took was one ride on a boat with Shockwave seating and I
was ready to whip out my checkbook. There was about a foot-and-a-half chop on the water but those Shockwaves flattened it right out.
How can this be, you ask? Well, if you study the design of the Shockwave bases for just a few seconds, you will see that the linkage absorbs shock by collapsing and rebounding with the help of an air-sprung shock absorber, much the same way your automobile softens the lumps and bumps on the roadway. The attached QR Code/Video explains it much better than I could ever hope.
The backstory on Shockwave is that they are a Canadian manufacturing company that was invited to provide shock mitigation seats to install in US Coast Guard vessels.
The coasties are known to go boating on the absolute worst days, you know. Prior to that, Shockwave’s founder, David Smith, had also gained considerable expertise working with NASCAR to develop safer and more comfortable driver seat suspension, another particularly harsh application.
Long story short, everyday boaters need protection from wave impact and
Shockwave S5-SS – well engineered and easy on the eyes.
Front view highlights the clean lines and adjustable Fox shock.
Got surface chop? Get Shockwave!
the Shockwave recreational products were introduced in 2016. The earlier versions, the S5 and Sentinel models, were assembled of powder-coated aluminum castings and performed wonderfully and maintained a nice finish in freshwater and closed cabin applications – not nearly so well in highsalinity, high-humidity environments like those along the Texas coast.
Powder coating, you see, is beautiful until it isn’t; and it’s no real fault of the product or the process. It’s the harsh environment we use it in. Even microscopic scuffs and scratches allow seawater to attack the base metal and, very slowly at first, it begins to corrode. Tiny, nearly unnoticeably, the damage grows and it doesn’t take long until your beautiful T-Tops, bow rails, and Shockwave suspension bases are not so nice looking.
However, that’s not the end of the story…not by a long shot. Shockwave have just recently introduced the S5-SS Stainless Steel seat bases made from electropolished 316 Stainless Steel tubing. Electropolishing lends an incredible shine and even more corrosion resistance. The result is a seat base designed to last a lifetime. The four link design is capable of smoothing
the roughest of sea conditions with the Fox Rhythm air-sprung shock absorbers provide four inches of vertical cushioning, and one and a half inches of forward travel to offset the front-on impact of every wave.
For northern regions, fresh water and cabin applications Shockwave also offers the S5-AL model, which is cast aluminum, but with an anodized treatment prior to powder coating. They also have the economy S5-LW 3- Link arm that also includes anodizing before powder coating. Both models utilize an air sprung shock to soften wave action.
One thing we have to remember is that no matter how expertly designed any watercraft might be, there will always be waves in our path and the hull will always be subjected to the energy of those waves. Some hulls ride smoother than others, the smoothest we have enjoyed so far have been equipped with Shockwave seating. Don’t take my word…talk to one of their pro staff team and experience it yourself.
Note how the electropolished stainless steel matches the anodized aluminum seat riser and expanded aluminum accessory basket.
Backview -clean and elegant.
This Shockwave base unit and seat combination provide adjustability to accommodate a range of passengers/helmsmen.
The Texas coast is a harsh environment –high salinity, high temperatures, and high humidity. Pow-der coating is beautiful until it isn’t. Shockwave’s S5-SS is the answer.
HOOVER FISH 2025 Biggest & Best Fishing Tournament You Ever Saw!
You had to see it to believe it…that’s what a grand affair it was!
The 2025 running of the Ron Hoover RV and Marine Fishing Tournament was held July 11 and 12 at the South Padre Island Convention Center. The house was packed. Jam-packed might be more accurate.
As incredible as it sounds, 413 teams competed for an outstanding list of prizes and cash awards. The total number of registered anglers topped 1,600 – more than 200 of whom were women. 100 teams elected to hire professional fishing guides to aid in their quest for winning fish while more than 300 teams trusted to their own fishing knowledge and angling skill.
The format for “Hoover Fish” as it is referred to commonly on social media, follows a very conservation-oriented theme. A full limit at weigh-in consists of only two redfish and one speckled trout. Sounds easy enough, right? But here’s the kicker – the fish must fit into a very narrow “keeper slot” of only one inch. That’s right; only one inch! By result of a drawing held during Friday evening’s captains meeting, reds had to measure between 24 and 25 inches and the trout had to measure between 16 and 17 inches to qualify for the weigh-in. Still sound easy? Well – check this out
– of the approximately 100 teams that were guided by professional charter captains, only 8 managed to bring a full limit to the weighin. In the non-guided category, 6 of the 300-something teams presented full limits. So much for easy…eh?
Quite to the contrary, while only fourteen teams managed full limits under the rules, everybody we spoke to at the awards celebration said they caught fish – lots of fish – just not the right fish!
And this is why Texas Saltwater Fishing Magazine sends mega conservation kudos to the entire Hoover team. You have proven that you don’t have to kill a huge pile of fish to stage an honest, fair, and fun competition!
Five short years – that’s how long it’s been since the inaugural Hoover tournament took place back in 2020. Hardly seems possible that in so few years this event has grown to very possibly become the largest bay fishing tournament currently being held anywhere in the world. It is probably also fair to say that this fishing tournament has actually grown to become a major social event for the family of Hoover customers and fishermen from all across Texas, especially South Texas and the Rio Grande Valley.
More details and accomplishments: For
A very happy winner of the boat drawing took home a new Majek Boat with Suzuki Outboard and trailer.
Lucky winner of the HISUN ATV.
The South Padre Island Convention Center was packed to near standing room only.
starters, the prize list included a new Majek boat with Suzuki outboard motor and trailer. A new RC Cargo Trailer, a HISUN 4-Wheeler, HISUN ATV and trailer. The Door Prize Drawing included more great items than can be listed, worth a grand total more than $40,000.
Greatest and grandest of all, the Hoover Team continued their generous and unwavering support of the Make-A-Wish Foundation of the Rio Grande Valley with an awesome donation of $46,000,
earning high praise and recognition from their local state senator –Adam Hinojosa.
Wrap all this up with two great meals and two wonderful concerts –Rustic Rose on Friday evening and the Josh Abbott Band on Saturday evening – and you have a true gala event.
Get it on your calendar for next year, this is definitely one you won’t want to miss!
The Hoover companies presented a most generous contribution to Make-A-Wish RGV - $46,083!
Team “How You Doing?” winners of the Non-Guided Redfish - Most Spots category.
THE SERVICES ANGLERS SEEK FROM THEIR GUIDES
Here in Rockport we have continued to receive some rain each week, much needed for sure, and we’ll take whatever we can get. Hurricane season is upon us and we have already had several tropical systems trying to develop but not amounting to much – so far. I continue to fish a 5-day week, taking weekends off during the summer months. With afternoon highs pushing near 100° our fishing days will be short, which means that placing the guys in a productive area right out of the gate is of utmost importance.
Having the luxury of a clientele that continues to support me and allows me to be on the water as much as I am pays huge dividends in the catching department. I promise you this; I know where they are and also where they are not, and that makes locating and staying with them much easier. Summer fishing is a grind more days than not due to short windows of opportunity, given the daytime heating and increased water temperatures. MirrOlure, 6 th Sense, and Texas Customs Lures continue to be my mainstays this time of year. This certainly is not meant to imply that other baits do not work. These brands were chosen by me and many wear my seal of approval because they
produce – day in day out.
While we have been experiencing warmer than average weather for better than a month, the truth is we are just getting started with the heat and I am already counting the days until that first little front pushes down from the north, bringing slightly cooler temperatures to the coast. Until then, be prepared to grind much of the day with your favorite soft plastics. Early mornings will provide some topwater or Double D opportunities, but the meat and potatoes of your day will likely be your go-to soft plastic in a few of your favorite color patterns.
In this month’s article we are going to talk about the truth of becoming a better fisherman. Some of my observations might be a bitter pill to swallow for some, but it’s a truth that I have personally observed. In my years as a guide I have experienced thousands of anglers that simply want to become better fishermen. Not all of them want to be great at it, just good enough to catch some fish whenever they are able to get out on the water. Many are looking for navigational help, some only want certain seasonal information, some want trophy fish knowledge, and there are growing numbers
Ryder Green with a very nice topwater specimen.
Parker with his new personal best speck taken midday.
who aspire to become guides.
The first category is the easiest to please. This group just loves to fish and wants to catch some fish when they go. Sure, they want to catch good fish, but most are satisfied with getting bites and working through smaller fish in search of larger ones. Larger meaning slot-sized fish that they can keep for a meal or two. Many that hire me and fish with lures while with me may not always use artificial baits, so areas where fish are often present are important to them. For my entire career I have provided this service to my clients, knowing they will return to the area but knowing that it won’t be very many days of the year and more than likely on weekends when I am not out there. I have therefore always pushed myself to have as many areas as I can that are holding fish in multiple bay systems as backup. Any fisherman that has only a half dozen areas that they feel confident are holding fish are probably going to struggle at times. Most of the areas that I use are not areas that a local fishing map would be showing as prime areas. I had a new client tell the old client that recommended me to him that we had a great day and did not go to one good spot that his map had listed.
Truth is we did fish the areas that the map recommended, just not any specific “X” MARKS the spot types. The Rockport to Corpus Christi area boasts a wide variety of very diverse fishing habitats with multiple launch facilities in just about every bay system. This allows for easy access to fishing grounds in all types of weather conditions. This alone makes the area a popular fishing destination. I have the luxury of fishing spoils, mid-bay reefs, back lakes, drains that feed backwater areas, barrier island shorelines that provide shoreline guts, points, scattered shell points, washes and drain mouths that are set up for just about every wind condition that might present itself. The more structure you have the easier it is to locate areas that are not receiving as much pressure as some more popular areas. For years, my clientele has been one that just wants to be able to get on the water and be productive, and I think I have provided this service very well.
The next group want navigational advice. With the growing cost of boats and all that goes with owning a boat, its money well spent just to have some safe water routes that allow one to travel to and from a fishing area. Pretty difficult to be productive if one is limited to the ICW all the time. Professional guide Nathan Beabout out of the Seadrift/POC area offers navigational trips where the focus is not fishing but navigation. I highly recommend such services. I have on occasion the new Haynie boat owner that wants me to fish out of his boat and supply some navigational/operational and fishing advice. My mood on any given day would dictate my willingness to do this, however, I could see it in my future.
Anglers seeking seasonal fishing pattern knowledge are another group that I see often. Seems the trend has turned more into winter fishing patterns than any other, which is something that was not the case in 1978 when I started. I remember telling my dad, who was totally against me becoming a guide, that if I could develop a wintertime clientele I would be able to double the number of days that I fished. This would have separated me from the rest of the guiding community at that time, but certainly not the case today. Trophy trout has become the quest for many and it is pretty much common knowledge that the cooler months produce by far the greatest number of trout in the 28-plus class. That said, though, one of the largest trout I ever caught was in mid-September in San
Antonio Bay many years ago. She died on us and we took her to the STAR Tournament scale at Seaworthy Marine where she weighed 10 pounds 6 ounces. So, you see, there are exceptions to everything, and this was by far the largest trout I have ever caught in the summer months.
The small group of trophy trout anglers seeking more knowledge is currently at a fever pitch. We can thank the guys at Speckled Truth for bringing this to the attention of the trout fishing community over the past five or so years. But in truth, looking back over many years, it was guys like Mike Blackwell, Doug Bird, Cliff Webb, Bill Sheka and David Rowsey on the ground floor promoting trophy trout fishing decades before it was remotely as popular as it is today.
For the record, these guys made names for themselves with a rugged work ethic and an innate ability to catch them on a consistent basis. Baffin and Port Mansfield are world-renowned trophy trout destinations, and this is evident by the fishing pressure one experiences during the winter months when fishing these areas. I am proud of the trophy trout community, catch and release is now the thing and done willingly by guides, customers, and individuals alike.
Now, for those that I get wanting to pursue a guiding career receive more advice on how to manage the “business of the business” versus fishing information. The guide population has
Author with a solid, summertime Aransas Bay trout.
exploded in recent years, and this is largely due to the population growth along the Texas coast and the popularity that fishing has gained through social media in the past 10 or so years.
Many of the older generation of guides such as myself are responsible for some of the growth of the saltwater fishing community. Years of advertising, promotion through sportswriters and publications such as the Texas Saltwater Fishing Magazine, Saltwater Angler, Lonestar Outdoor News, Mickey Eastman’s show on Houston’s 610 AM Sports and Outdoors Radio, and even small hometown newspaper columns have contributed toward creating the demand we see today. So, yeah, I totally get it when a young person wants to do what I do. It has been a wonderful job and journey and currently, I see myself continuing for as many more years as my legs and back hold up.
Getting down to the nitty-gritty of the guide business is the fact that nothing can take the place of a solid work ethic. The problem, though, many young people have no work ethic at all. That is harsh but true and it is proven to me when I start asking about previous jobs and work experience. I have worked at something my entire life, including childhood, all through my school years and still today. Nothing can replace good old hard work.
My grandfather on my mom’s side was a man driven by hard work and he taught me that. I had years of fishing experience before I ever took my first trip and I fished daily between trips, trying to learn about new areas and improve my fish-finding skills. Still to this day, I will go out on a day off to scout new areas or just to keep that edge on my game.
Social media helps the younger guides and is something I once thought I wished I could have had in the beginning, but I now realize that I would not have learned what I learned had it been available to me. Fishing is hard. Hard on the body and the family. My advice is always the same, work hard, know ones operating costs and don’t trade services for services. Always be polite, take care of your equipment, take care of your body, and don’t socialize with your clientele. Guiding is a business, treat it like one. May Your Fishing Always Be Catching. -Guide, Jay Watkins
CONTACT
Jay Watkins has been a full-time fishing guide at Rockport, TX, for more than 45 years. Jay specializes in wading yearround for trout and redfish with artificial lures. Jay covers the Texas coast from San Antonio Bay to Corpus Christi Bay.
As summer began I was looking forward to all the opportunities that it provides on our part of the coast. I was eagerly looking forward to catching solid numbers of trout along the jetties and then turning around to go look for other fish. Mid-summer provides a perfect chance for an angler to test their gear and stamina on a big ol’ jack crevalle. This is not something I want to do all day but it is definitely worth doing at least once a trip…just to get the blood flowing. I’ve always joked that there’s no need for coffee or the gym as long as jacks are around. On top of all of that, this is the best chance of the year to catch tripletail. Not only are they fun and exciting to catch, they are also the best table fare that exists for inshore fish on the Texas coast.
Well, just as the season was going to kick off in earnest, my boat started to give me some problems and throwing some codes. After looking into it myself I figured that it was out of my realm of knowledge and decided to take it to the professionals. I dropped it off with hopes that they could find the issue and fix it properly. However, the way my luck has been running, parts have been back ordered and the problem was not a quick and easy fix. Now that I have been without of a
boat, I decided to put my truck in the shop to get a nasty dent fixed. They told me it was going to be around 30 days and we are creeping up on that date quickly. So now I am left with only my rental car, a Kia Soul, which severely inhibits my fishing. I can’t exactly strap a kayak on the roof of it and driving to the beach with this thing is out of the question for fear of getting stuck in the sand. Trust me, when I say I have the Broke Down Blues!
Even though I am out of commission with my own equipment, I still have rods and reels and all that goes with them, and a few friends that have boats. Since jumping on another’s boat and watching them play captain I have picked up a few new things that were worth learning. This has given me an opportunity to sit back and analyze what others do and look at fishing from a new angle.
Once summer begins I constantly study the long-range forecast, eagerly awaiting the first northerly breezes to reach the Upper Coast. We were blessed with such an event recently and, of course, I was sick with my boat being in the shop and all. However, a guy I met a little while back has been wanting to go fishing as he recently bought a new Sabine skiff this year. He reached out to me
DAVE ROBERTS
and wanted to know if I wanted to hop on and go look for tripletail. I agreed without hesitation and we took off.
Feeling up for a challenge, we both decided to bring only fly gear on this trip. I have targeted tripletail on the fly before and it is one the toughest fish you can ever hope to catch. The cast has to be accurate and the fish can be really picky when the fly arrives. I have always thrown a shrimp pattern and tended to stay away from anything too flashy. Lucas, my new fishing buddy, agreed on the minimum flash, but he had chosen a streamer fly with a piece of furry rabbit. This gave the fly a lot of movement in the water, even when it wasn’t being stripped. I can say that the fish really preferred that fly over mine. After seeing it in action I realized that there was a need to change out all my tripletail flies for something similar with a lot of movement. It was a great lesson to learn.
Earlier this year, my buddy Chad decided to get himself a little Jon boat. He wanted to be able to bring his wife along, still with a boat small enough to access the backwater areas that we regularly kayak. We finally got some time off together and wanted to go run some marsh. Turns out that Chad took me to some marsh country I had never fished, although I had kayaked and fished extensively a few miles to the south.
We took off and began to fish once we’d made our way into some
of the backwater areas. He showed me where the water comes in from the backwater channels and how it flows through the series of ponds we were fishing. He also showed me where the grass grows and how it changes throughout the year. All of this information was most welcome as I can relate it to other areas I have fished and compare it with other systems that are similar.
We also had a chance to compare the knowledge we’ve gained and put two and two together. He told me that he gets stumped as to where the fish go when the water gets high; it’s as if they disappear. I laughed and I told him I know exactly where they go and that they were likely in the main ditch to the south, by the ponds I love to fish. It is as if the high water spooks them off the flats and they head for areas they perceive to be safer, closer to the main bodies of water.
These are just a handful of things I have learned this summer and they have already proven quite helpful. I have always been a big proponent of trying to learn as much as you can about the areas you fish and species you target most often. Sometimes the best learning experiences come from times you were never expecting. So, the moral of this story is this; Just because your boat and truck are out of commission is no reason for not getting out there.
No matter the circumstances, always strive to learn.
Dave Roberts is an avid kayak-fishing enthusiast fishing primarily the inshore Upper Coast region with occasional adventures to surf and nearshore Gulf of Mexico.
Email: TexasKayakChronicles@yahoo.com
Website: www.TexasKayakChronicles.com
CCA TEXAS POSITION ON DESALINATION
As coastal communities in Texas increasingly turn to desalination of both brackish groundwater and saline surface water to meet growing freshwater demands, CCA Texas supports responsible, science-based practices that protect the health of our state’s coastal ecosystems, fisheries, and water quality.
Desalination Sources
Desalination is becoming more common across the Texas coast, using technologies like reverse osmosis to remove dissolved ions (salt) and produce freshwater from two primary sources:
• Brackish groundwater, drawn from deep aquifers with moderate salinity levels (typically 1,000–10,000 mg/L TDS), and
• Saline surface water, such as seawater from bays, estuaries, or the Gulf (typically 10,000–35,000 mg/L TDS). For reference, Gulf seawater is ~36,000mg/L.
While desalination offers a valuable source of freshwater for municipal and industrial needs, it also generates a concentrated waste stream, commonly referred to as concentrate, brine, or reject water. Regardless of the terminology, the method and location of discharge are critical considerations. When released into bays and estuaries, this waste stream often presents significant ecological risks. As such and at a minimum, comprehensive permitting and rigorous, site-specific evaluation under the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s (TCEQ) Texas Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (TPDES) and the federal Clean Water Act are essential to ensure environmental protection.
Environmental Concerns
Surface discharge of desalination effluent, whether from brackish groundwater or seawater, raises serious concerns for the health of coastal ecosystems. While both types of desalination use similar treatment processes, the effluent they produce varies in concentration, chemistry, and volume:
• Seawater desalination produces high-volume brine nearly twice as salty as the original intake water, often exceeding 60,000 mg/L TDS. When discharged into shallow or poorly flushed bays, this hypersaline waste can smother benthic habitats, reduce oxygen levels, and exceed the salinity tolerance of critical species.
• Brackish groundwater desalination typically produces effluent with lower volume and salinity than seawater desalination; however, it often contains naturally occurring but potentially harmful constituents—such as arsenic, boron, and
radionuclides—depending on the geochemistry of the source aquifer. Even at reduced salinity levels, this concentrate can negatively impact sensitive estuarine species and habitats, particularly when discharged into low-energy environments with limited flushing. Moreover, many proposed discharge sites for brackish desalination projects are located in historically freshwater streams and creeks, where ecosystems may be especially vulnerable to changes in water chemistry.
Regardless of source, desalination waste streams can:
• Exceed salinity tolerances for many fish and invertebrates, causing stress, displacement, or mortality.
• Degrade riparian zones, oyster reefs, seagrass beds, and other vital habitats for aquatic species.
• Alter the natural ecological balance, particularly in semi-enclosed or nutrient-stressed bays.
While some proponents argue that discharge waste streams could dilute hypersaline conditions in isolated systems, these cases are highly specific and temporary. The long-term risks to water quality, marine life, and ecosystem stability far outweigh any short-term benefits.
CCA Texas Recommendations
CCA Texas remains guided by its mission to protect sustainable coastal fisheries and preserve the habitats that support them. In line with recommendations from the Harte Research Institute and other coastal experts, we urge the following for all desalination projects in Texas:
• Prohibit surface discharge of brine into rivers, streams, or estuaries—particularly in shallow, semienclosed, or poorly flushed bay systems. These waters cannot absorb concentrated waste without suffering long-term ecological damage.
• Prioritize deep-well injection into geologically isolated underground formations, ensuring zero risk of contamination to freshwater aquifers or groundwater-dependent ecosystems.
• Support offshore discharge only when deep-well injection is not feasible—and only after rigorous modeling demonstrates no significant impact to marine life or water quality.
• Mandate strong environmental review for all proposed discharges, including:
o Site-specific hydrologic and salinity modeling that accounts for seasonal and climate variability.
o Baseline and post-discharge biological assessments to monitor impacts on habitats and species.
o Public transparency and engagement with affected stakeholders, including fishing, conservation, and coastal communities.
• Require comprehensive, peer-reviewed science before any discharge is approved. This includes establishing baseline ecological conditions and benchmark hydrological studies to inform site suitability and cumulative risk.
• Invest in long-term monitoring and adaptive management, guided by independent academic institutions such as Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi’s Harte Research Institute and University of Texas Marine Science Institute.
Conclusion
Texas must find new water solutions—but not at the cost of our bays and estuaries. These ecosystems support not only fish and wildlife, but entire coastal economies. According to the 2022 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation, Texas’s saltwater fishery generates an estimated $4.2 billion in annual economic impact. That value is rooted in healthy estuarine habitats, clean water, and balanced salinity—all of which are threatened by irresponsible desalination discharge.
CCA Texas believes we can meet our water needs without compromising coastal health, but only if we commit to desalination practices that avoid estuarine discharge and prioritize offshore or deep-well solutions. We will continue advocating for policies that are grounded in science and protective of the people, places, and fisheries that define the Texas coast.
Our bays are not disposal sites. They are nurseries, livelihoods, and legacies. Let’s keep them that way—for this generation and the next.
FIELD NOTES
WE HAVE THE MEATS: SIZING UP TEXAS OYSTER FISHERIES
When Texans think of oysters, thoughts typically drift towards grilled or fried delicacies, or perhaps a fresh, briny bite straight from the shell. Yet behind each succulent oyster lies a fascinating journey from bay to table, beginning with their sustainable management based on scientific research conducted by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD). Recent findings from the TPWD Trip Ticket (commercial fisheries landings) Program’s study on oyster meat weight provide valuable insights into the differences between Texas’ traditional wild-caught oyster fishery and the emerging Cultivated Oyster Mariculture (COM) or Oyster Farming industry.
Texas oysters are harvested primarily from public reefs scattered from Galveston Bay to Aransas Bay, contributing significantly to the local economy and culture. In Galveston Bay, there are also Certificates of Location (or CoLs), which are areas where oysters are privately maintained and exclusively harvested by the CoL holder, much like wild-caught public reef oysters. These wild oysters are typically shucked for their meat but some of the harvest is selected to supply to the
half-shell market for raw consumption. In contrast, the relatively new COM program focuses specifically on cultivating oysters tailored for premium half-shell consumption. The oysters cultivated are the same species as the wild harvested oysters. These COM farms utilize off-bottom cage culture that can maximize growth and shape of oysters (the rotation and swaying of cages promotes a deep-cup shape). This divergence in production strategies leads to noticeable differences in oyster size, meat yield, and overall market positioning.
Aiming to better understand differences in oyster meat weight between farmed oysters and those harvested from public and private reefs, TPWD recently conducted a conversion factor study that examined 2,502 oysters collected from public reefs (n=1,679), private reefs under Certificates of Location (n=179), and cultivated off-bottom farms (n=644) along the Texas coast. These oysters were weighed whole, measured (length, width, depth), shucked, and their meat weight precisely measured. Results showed significant differences between oysters from different sources. Public reef oysters exhibited an average meat yield of about 8.8%, which is 8.8 pounds per 100-pound sack. For CoLs, a small sample size of 179 oysters from a single 97-lb sack resulted in 7.6 pounds of meat (or 7.8% meat yield). COM oysters, however, demonstrated considerably higher meat-to-whole shell ratios, averaging 15.1% per oyster! Half-shell markets prefer smaller oysters and the COM oysters sampled in this project averaged 3”, while the public reef and CoL oyster samples averaged 3.7”. The current legal minimum size limit for COM oysters is 2” and wild-caught oysters must be 3”. So, it is not surprising that an average wild-caught oyster had more total meat with an average of 12.3 g of meat, while the COM oyster only contained 8.7 g of meat, despite the having a higher proportion of meat. However, a 100-pound sack of COM oysters would yield more total meat than a 100-pound sack of wild-caught oysters.
Two important graphs from this study help to visualize these distinctions. The first (Figure 1) clearly illustrates the stark contrast in meat yield distribution, with COM oysters consistently providing higher and more predictable meat content compared
Comparison of an oyster from a Commercial Oyster Mariculture (COM) farm (left top and bottom) versus oysters harvested from a Texas public reef (right). COM oysters are typically much cleaner (fewer attached organisms), often rounder, and have a deeper cup than wild-caught oysters.
to their wild counterparts. The second graph (Figure 2) highlights seasonal fluctuations, pinpointing February as the optimal month for harvesting wild oysters, achieving peak meat ratios of approximately 10.2%. Conversely, COM oyster yields remained remarkably consistent across months sampled, underscoring their reliability and market potential.
COM oysters currently contribute far less to Texas’ overall oyster production. In 2024, the Texas wildcaught oyster fishery harvested approximately 184,893 sacks of oysters from public reefs, equating to roughly 1,627,428 pounds of oyster meat from an estimated 48 million individual oysters (~260 oysters/sack). In contrast, COM farms produced about 1.4 million individual oysters in 2024, which is an estimated 26,716 pounds of meat. An important factor in the lower total harvest volume from COM operations is that the COM program is still relatively new with less area covered than the wild harvest of either public or private reefs, and its output is expected to grow as more farms begin production along the Texas coast. In 2025, the harvest from COM farms is projected to double as only seven farms were producing in 2024 and there are now 15 fully permitted farms. Another factor that will likely come into play in the future for total COM harvest volume is their specialized niche market rather than competing directly with wild caught oysters.
Indeed, the economics of the two fisheries differ notably. Wild-caught oysters (including private CoLs) remain essential for large-scale meat production, serving broader consumer markets. Conversely, the higher operational costs and specialized cultivation practices required for COM oysters make it economically impractical to compete in shucked oyster meat focused markets. Instead, COM operations capitalize on premium, high-value markets, particularly targeting restaurants and consumers seeking quality half-shell oysters and can be harvested year-round.
Figure 1. Distribution of oyster meat percentages (meat weight/whole shell weight) comparing oysters from Texas’ public reef (wild-caught) fisheries and Commercial Oyster Mariculture (COM) farms. The average meat percentage for COM oysters (15.1%) is significantly higher than for public reef oysters (8.8%), indicating a consistently higher yield of meat from COM-grown oysters.
The private oyster reefs (CoLs) add another dynamic component to Texas’ oyster fisheries. These privately managed, on-bottom reefs in areas like Galveston Bay significantly supplement public reef harvests, especially during periods when public reefs face regulatory closures due to declining stocks. They also provide a reliable source of oysters outside the traditional season, as they can be harvested year-round. Over the past five years, CoLs have contributed roughly 20% of the wild-caught oyster harvest, occasionally reaching up to 36%, underscoring their strategic importance in maintaining the state’s oyster supply.
Figure 2. Monthly comparison of oyster meat weight percentages (meat weight/whole shell weight) from Texas’ public reef fishery and Commercial Oyster Mariculture (COM) farms. Public reef oysters exhibit noticeable seasonal fluctuations in meat weight, peaking in February at 10.2%.
In conclusion, TPWD’s detailed research provides critical data for understanding and optimizing Texas’ oyster fisheries. Wildcaught oysters continue to anchor the market, particularly for traditional shucked oyster meat products, while COM oysters offer consistent, high-quality half-shell options. Supported by sound
resource management and the strategic use of private reefs, these complementary fisheries work together to sustain a robust, resilient, and economically viable oyster industry, helping safeguard Texas’ rich maritime heritage for generations to come.
Check the TPWD Outdoor Annual, your local TPWD Law Enforcement office, or tpwd.texas.gov for more info.
ERIC OZOLINS
EXTREME KAYAK FISHING & SHARKS FROM THE SAND
BLACKTIP BONANZA
Overall, this has been an interesting year for anglers fishing the Texas surf. Our weather pattern from latespring through the end of July has been turbulent. We’ve endured nearly constant, strong south/southeast winds. Breezes blowing near the 180° heading run parallel to the beach in South Texas, creating a strong south-to-north current.
When south winds blow for extended periods of time on southern stretches of our coastline, relatively cool water flowing out of the Rio Grande is blown north, along the beachfront. This creates an especially messy situation when heavy rains increase the volume of water entering the Gulf at our southern border. The cool, dirty rainwater rides the current northward, creating problems for anglers trying to catch fish from the beach. This year, when we should have had crystal clear, warm water, we’ve mostly had ugly water measuring at least ten degrees below expected temperatures. Unfortunately, for people like me, big sharks don’t like the cool water.
The baitfish on which big sharks feed generally avoid the dirty, relatively chilly water. And we all know the main key to locating predatory species is to locate
concentrations of the fish on which they prey. In years like this, many of the forage species move north, in search of warmer, clear water. Species like jack crevalle follow them, with the sharks trailing the jacks.
In upwelling events as severe as we’ve seen this year, large tiger sharks and even hammerheads venture up the coast, showing up from Matagorda to Galveston. I know of giant monsters that have been hooked in these areas this year, though they’d typically be feeding off Padre Island. This fact frustrates those of us who hunt for monsters down south, where we normally find much better action than our Upper Coast friends.
The scenario leaves us with one dominant type of shark, one I’d argue would be the “state shark,” if the Lone Star State had such a thing. Around here, most saltwater anglers with more than a few trips under the belt have caught a shark, most likely a blacktip. Blacktips are by far the most common species of shark found in our waters.
These medium-sized predators with the iconic shape max out at less than seven feet in length, but their ravenous appetites seem better suited to creatures twice their size. Blacktips, even medium-sized ones,
E. Salinas and another nice blacktip.
often take bite after bite out of whole large stingrays and jacks, meant to attract the attention of giant hammers and tigers. Unlike some other sharks, blacktips can be caught from the beach, at a jetty, off a pier, in the bay and in both nearshore and offshore waters. They’re often found schooling in great numbers, chasing balls of baitfish for miles and miles. Importantly, blacktips have traits which make them the perfect species to introduce new and young anglers to the world of sharking. Because they take to the air regularly after they’re hooked, they provide big thrills for the anglers on the other end of the line.
In an average year, we have plenty of blacktips to target in our coastal waters, and this year has certainly been no exception. In fact, I’ve encountered more of them this year than ever before, especially throughout the warm months. Even during shrimping season, a huge percentage of them remained inshore, pushing back against the widely touted theory that culling shrimpers pull them out of the surf zone. They seem to like the cool, dirty water, because the number of them prowling in it this year has been staggering. While blacktip sharks can seem like an annoyance to hardcore sharkers, they provide plenty of excitement to others, especially when they’re hooked on relatively light tackle.And while they’re smaller and easier to handle than the giants, they’re still dangerous predators, and people get excited when they see one, particularly if they’ve never seen a shark in person.
These numerous sharks are suckers for fresh whiting, which can be caught on just about any trip throughout the year. Whether cast out from the beach or kayaked, whole whiting will attract these sharks in various depths of water found close to our beaches.Blacktips are an important part of the marine ecosystem, and I’d much rather hook one as “bycatch” than not have a single shark around, so I’ll continue to think of catching them as a blessing.
While the cold water pushes out our usual giants, it also gives us a shot at one of our rarest big sharks. Typically, this species resides in cooler, deeper water, well offshore. In Florida, beach fishermen catch them on the coldest winter days, but
here in Texas we only see dusky sharks on the beach during summer, when cool water fronts the beach. Dusky sharks look much like giant blacktips, some reaching lengths greater than ten feet and weighing more than 500 pounds.
In the midst of a severe upwelling event, it’s possible to hook
Blacktips are the most common sharks on the Texas coast.
Aurora Ozolins with a bonnethead shark.
and land numbers of these rare gems. On my personal best trip, we landed five, and I’ve done it twice. My biggest dusky measured a shade shy of eleven feet, which likely made it a contender for the state record. But since they’re federally protected, I had to release it. Doesn’t matter, all I ever wanted were some quality photos.
They’re only encountered in the cool, dirty water, and their numbers are low, so we don’t catch many dusky sharks. We do catch plenty of blacktips. Most likely, this is because the cooler water attracts lots of food on which they like to feed, one species being the gafftop catfish. These and hardhead catfish inhabit the upwelling waters in prolific numbers, and blacktips find them delicious. In off-colored water, the sharks can easily ambush and catch them. The dirty water also makes it easy for the blacktips to catch plenty of whiting and pompano.
As long as food sources like these, favored by the blacktips, remain abundant in the surf waters, they’ll run the beach in great numbers. If the waters warm up and turn clear again, the big sharks will move back in and replace them. The blacktips likely retreat and move offshore to avoid becoming part of the food chain which sustains the true monsters we spend an average summer trying to entice into fights.
For the past decade Eric ‘Oz’ Ozolins has been promoting shark catch and release and assisting various shark research programs. Eric offers guided shark fishing on Padre Island National Seashore. Also renowned for extreme kayak big game fishing, Eric is the owner of Catch Sharks Tackle Company.
Often, scientific research confirms what scientists already suspected, but other times, science reveals a twist that no one saw coming. That’s the kind of study that recently showed how much energy fish burn while hovering in place instead of resting on the ground.
Scientists have long thought that lingering motionless in the water is just as restful as it looks for fish. After all, most bony fish have a swim bladder—a sac of air that lets fish manage their buoyancy by inflating or deflating the bladder. When the bladder expands with gas, it makes the fish more buoyant. When fish deflate the bladder, they are less buoyant. So just hanging out in the water seems like it should be effortless.
The reality is a different story. Staying in place actually requires a lot of energy! Biologists from the University of California San Diego tested the energy cost of hovering versus resting on the bottom of a tank in 13 species of fish by measuring how much oxygen they used in each position. The researchers also measured each fish’s body size and shape and filmed them to observe their fin speed and movement. They used all these data to calculate each fish’s stability and found that remaining in place in the water column uses about twice as much energy as resting on the bottom.
The scientists also learned that a fish’s shape and the placement of its pectoral fins (on either side of its body) affect how efficiently it can hover. The closer its pectoral fins are to the middle of the body, the less energy it uses to hover. Long, thin fish, like a halfbeak, are less efficient than more compact fish like damselfish and pufferfish. So if hovering uses so much energy, why do it? Staying still can help with guarding nests, feeding and other activities. It just doesn’t help with getting rest!
Fish with a more compact body, such as this damselfish, expend less energy while hovering compared to fish with a long, slender body.
Credit: Philippe Bourjon, CC BY-SA 4.0
Alex Gonzales shows off a nice blacktip just prior to release.
JAKE HADDOCK MOSTLY SIGHT-FISHING
SEPTEMBER SWING
The month of September simply can’t get here soon enough. Summer has seemed to drag out this year with long periods of less-than-desirable tides and high winds. Combine that with the anticipation of waiting on my next Sabine skiff to be finished and time has been crawling. September should be the solution for my troubles. The fall equinox is on the 22nd of this month and always seems to bring us some higher tides. Although the equinox alone may not create a true flood tide it certainly sets us up for one. I’ve grown quite fond of fishing flood tides on the Upper Texas coast and this year, as of this writing, we haven’t had one for a prolonged enough period to properly fish it. When I first started guiding up here, I really despised these higher than usual tides. But as I slowly learned the nuances of how to find and fish some of the areas that produced at these higher water levels it has become something I really look forward to.
So, what makes a flood tide spot, you might ask? Well on the upper Texas coast, some of the better spots seem to be created by areas in the marsh where the spartina grass has died. Periods of prolonged high tides will trap water around lower-lying areas and the spartina basically rots. Why this happens I have no idea as I’m not a scientist. All I know is after an area of spartina dies the mud which was previously protected by the roots of the grass is now very vulnerable to erosion. Eventually the tide will cut a small ditch, which in turn further opens the area up essentially creating a small pond, but only at very high water levels. And, just like that, a new flood tide spot is born. I’ve seen some areas close back up and the grass grow back thick and strong, but more often than not once the area has a spartina grass die-off it only gets bigger and more eroded. This erosion isn’t necessarily a good thing for the marsh, but you might as well make lemonade out of lemons. It is important
Happy clients fishing flood tide conditions.
to not forcefully motor into these small delicate areas as you don’t want to accelerate the erosion by cutting a small wheel ditch with your propeller. If you can pole into and out of these areas; I don’t see any harm in accessing them.
The next thing I like about fishing these spots is that you often have them all to yourself as these spots are only found by putting in lots of time on the water. It is nearly impossible to scout for them via google earth because those images are almost always taken on a clear winter day where the tide levels are typically negative. Furthermore, these spots are constantly changing year to year so even if you find a good flood tide spot this year it may not produce two years down the road.
Another thing that keeps the majority of people out of these spots is it takes a special type of boat to access them. These areas fish the best when redfish
The Sabine Skiffs Sneak 17 in its element during flood tide conditions.
Keith was all smiles after landing this flood tide redfish.
Textbook conditions for exploring backwater flood tide.
can barely swim through them and often are one foot at the very deepest. I’d say the average depth for these spots is around five to eight inches, but you also have to pole around or over small mud humps and clumps of saltwort. Therefore, not only is a flat bottom poling skiff the right tool for the job, but a very shallow drafting micro-skiff, such as a Sabine Sneak 17 is possibly the best tool for it. This skiff is new to the Sabine line up and fills the void left by the Sabine Micro. It is a true micro-skiff pushed by a 30-horsepower tiller motor making it a very simple and light build. I would love to add one of these boats to my arsenal someday as I do miss my Micro on the flood tide days.
I’ve mentioned many times how the wind has a strong influence on our tides here and this is often the driving force that gives us these flood tides. Unlike our Carolina counterparts who can set their watch to a flood tide six months in advance, our tide needs a little bit of unpredictable help. A few days of strong northeast or east winds will typically do it, and it helps if high tide coincides with daylight hours. That being said, fly fishing out of a micro-skiff in a thirty knot northeast wind isn’t exactly ideal. The scenario we’re all hoping for is a calm, sunny day on the backside of that hard northeast wind – that’s when you can really enjoy a flood tide day. Sometimes, unfortunately, weather systems can quickly shift the wind in the opposite direction before it ever has a chance to lie. But that’s just the way it goes, and you just have to take advantage of the opportunity when it’s given.
When the stars do align and the above average high tide does linger around, I like to enter these areas as quietly as possible with a
push pole. Then pause for a few minutes upon entering and observe. Since these zones are super shallow, the redfish will often give themselves away when feeding. Loud crashes and big wakes are a sure sign you’re in the right spot. Once I put a visual on the location of a few fish, I’ll make a game plan of the best route to stalk them. It really is like hunting fish in this scenario and likely why I’ve grown to enjoy it so much.
Although you can catch these fish with conventional tackle in this situation, my clients and I like to seize the opportunity with fly tackle. It’s such a close-quartered visual game in these zones that it’s hard not to. To see a bright orange redfish slide over a dark backdrop in six inches of water, and the white of its mouth flash open inhaling your fly twenty feet from the boat, is a visual that will burn into your memory for years to come.
Until next time, low winds and high tides.
CONTACT
Jake Haddock grew up in the back bays of Port O’ Connor where he developed a great passion for saltwater fishing. In his younger years he was a youth writer for this publication. In present day he enjoys guiding light tackle and fly clients in Galveston and occasionally Port O’ Connor.
LATE SUMMER LINES: HOW SEPTEMBER SHAPES UP ON THE TEXAS COAST
There’s something about the transition from summer to fall down here on the Lower Laguna Madre that’s hard to beat. After months of hot, windy, and often unpredictable weather, September and October bring a shift in the weather patterns. Several things become noticeable – first, the wind lays down – second, even though the heat remains that nagging oppression that is summer starts to lift and the bay feels like it’s finally breathing freely again.
You start noticing little things; the air feels a bit less sticky in the mornings and the sun isn’t quite as relentless. The calm weather invites you to explore spots that have been off-limits during the windier months, opening up new opportunities and fresh challenges. It just all adds up perfectly and makes sense.
One of the best parts about this time of year? The
tarpon start to come alive in a way that makes you sit up and take notice. When the weather calms down, it opens up areas you can’t usually fish the rest of the year. Those glassy, windless mornings might be tricky, but the payoff, if you put in the work, is real. I’ve had mornings where the bay feels like a giant mirror and you can pick apart small groups of tarpon rolling, just beyond the beachfront. It’s a sight we never tire of.
As the calendar moves forward, you’ll also see redfish beginning to stack up in the flats. Those big schools look like shadows moving under the surface, and knowing where to find them can make all the difference on any day you’re chasing tails. The challenge is that they’re wary and smart, especially this time of year when they feel the pressure from anglers and the changing conditions.
When I’m targeting tarpon during this window, I’m throwing a heavy-action rod from Waterloo Rod Company, paired with a 5000 CE Pro reel from Florida Fishing Products. You need gear that can take the abuse tarpon can dish out. For lures, chartreuse seems to be a magic color for me, or anything with a darker side that mimics the baitfish hiding in the shadows. Those colors seem to trigger those explosive strikes that tarpon are famous for.
The redfish routine is pretty similar when it comes to gear and mindset. I like throwing a KWigglers 4-inch paddletail in Bart’s Sand Ninja color when I’m working shallow flats from the tower. One thing I’ve learned over the years is that stealth can be just as important as technique. It doesn’t mean you have to be absolutely silent, but minimizing loud noises, like slamming ice chests or heavy footsteps on the tower can really pay off. Sometimes the fish are fired up, and you can get away with a little more noise. But as a rule, keeping your approach quiet and smooth is what separates a good day from a great one.
The switch from summer to fall isn’t just about cooler temps or calmer winds, it’s a signal that the fish are changing their attitude and behavior. You’ve got to shift gears too, moving from fast, aggressive fishing to a more patient and tactical approach. Whether you’re hunting for tarpon cruising the beachfront or carefully working a redfish school in a backwater pocket, this time of year really puts your skills to the test and rewards you when you get it right.
Reading the tide and timing your trips is huge during this period.
Late summer tides tend to fluctuate in ways that can really influence where the fish might be stacking. I like to watch the outgoing tides around dawn and dusk, especially on the flats where redfish like to hang. Catching those windows can be the difference between hooking into a handful of fish or watching the water go silent.
Fishing through September also means dealing with the heat, and that calls for a balance of pushing hard and knowing when to back off. I’ve learned to respect the sun and humidity, not just for my own comfort, but because fish can feel that pressure too. Early mornings and late evenings are prime times to get on the water, avoiding the worst of the heat while the fish are most active.
For me, late summer isn’t just about landing fish. It’s about tuning into the bay, picking up on those subtle changes, and feeling more connected to the water every time I’m out. It’s about patience, persistence, and respect for the conditions, the fish, and the sport. If you put in the time, remain patient and respect what the conditions throw at you, you’ll find that late-August and September can be some of the best fishing months along the Texas coast.
Email Jammmeskosub@gmail.com
James Kosub James Kosub says, “I fell in love with fishing as a child and my passion deepened when I discover the Texas coast. Shallow water redfish have become an obsession.”
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Matagorda
Bink Grimes is a full-time fishing and hunting guide, freelance writer and photographer, and owner of Sunrise Lodge on Matagorda Bay.
Grab a rod, grab a shotgun – grab both – this is what we do in September.
And, by the way, grab another hunting and fishing license. Yours probably expired August 31.
Cooler nighttime temps do wonders for coastal fishing and for captains who have been fighting the heat for the past three months. I look forward to the light north breeze that September usually brings.
If water temperatures continue to hang in the 80s, Matagorda trout will remain in a summer pattern. That means over deep shell in East Bay, where Bass Assassins, Down South Lures, MirrOlure Soft-Dines, Gulps and live shrimp are best under a cork. Small topwaters like She Pups and Super Spook Jrs get blown out of the water as well.
Wading the mid-bay reefs in East Bay produce throughout the year. With higher tides, the muddy bottoms around Brown Cedar Flats hold both trout and redfish for waders and drifters. The far east end of the bay gets really good this time of year.
Most waders forget about the grass beds in West Bay in September, but they still hold fish, redfish especially. Guts and cuts along the south shoreline often get overlooked. I don’t know why anglers forget about West Bay in September, but it’s a good place to get away from the crowds.
Reefs along the north shoreline of West Bay hold trout, redfish and black drum for anglers slinging live shrimp. Shell Island, Twin
Island and all the points along the north shoreline are littered with shell. Redfish have been known to school in large numbers in late September in these locales. Bruiser redfish will be on the beachfront and along the jetty rocks. Cracked blue crabs and fresh pogies are a nice snack for big spawners.
Expect tides to swell and expect redfish to fill the back lakes and grassy shorelines, readily eating small topwaters and weedless soft plastics. Bloated water levels also encourage large, solitary trout to extend their boundaries to the upper reaches of estuaries.
We find large schools of redfish on the north shoreline. Live shrimp, mullet and topwaters work well. Back bay areas like Oyster Lake, Crab Lake and Lake Austin hold healthy populations. Don’t be surprised to see birds working in the back lakes on calm days as shrimp begin to leave the marsh.
A calm beachfront will come alive with silver kings; and, I have made it a priority this year to chase a few between dove and teal hunts.
Lots of tarpon were found along the beach from Matagorda to Port O’Connor in August and those same migrating schools should still be there this month. Our tarpon fishery is an untapped resource, but it would blow your mind to see all the huge schools of ‘poons rolling and daisy-chaining so close to the beach.
Early teal season runs Sept. 20-28 this year and we will be hunting the mornings and fishing the afternoons. Few things rival a dozen acrobatic teal cutting their wings over a prairie pond and dropping into your decoys. Habitat in the marsh looks promising with summer rains.
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Port O'Connor Seadrift
Captain Shellie Gray was born in Port Lavaca and has been guiding in the Seadrift/ Port O’Connor area full time for the past 22 years. Shellie specializes in wading for trout and redfish year round with artificial lures.
Seasonal changes are approaching, marked by shorter hours of daylight and the possibility of an early autumn cool front. These conditions create exceptional fishing opportunity and it is likely that many outdoors folk will be hitting the water to celebrate the conclusion of the long, hot summer.
The summer of 2025 was not only a hot one; June and July were quite windy, which often meant selecting fishing locations based on protection from the wind more than signals related to fish migration and feeding patterns we normally rely upon. Fortunately, these unusually strong winds have now diminished, providing greater access to various areas and reducing boat and angling congestion experienced in recent months.
Trout fishing has recently shown strong results, while success with redfish has remained moderate. With air and water temperatures soon to be declining, fish-feeding patterns are expected to become more reliable and perhaps lasting longer during the transition to more fall-like weather. If this year turns out anything like what we’ve seen in the past, redfish action will improve significantly as they begin gathering in schools, in preparation for their annual spawning migration to the gulf.
Regarding seasonal transitions, historically speaking, the first significant cold front of the season tends to arrive in mid-September. While these initial fronts generally result in minimal temperature variation, they do temporarily shift prevailing winds to a northerly direction for several days until the pattern reverts and southerly winds resume. Variations in wind direction and speed routinely influence my decisions regarding the optimal location to begin each day.
The trout bite is expected to remain consistent when fishing along drop-offs near shorelines and oyster reefs. However, my primary emphasis during early fall usually shifts toward targeting redfish. To clarify, this does not pertain to the bull redfish migration occurring in
the passes connecting the Gulf and the bays. This migration generally takes place from September through early November, with peak activity often aligning with mullet runs and approaching weather fronts. These large aggregations make them easy targets for anglers. Although I have captured numerous bull redfish throughout my career, each providing a remarkable challenge when using light tackle, I much prefer targeting slot-sized redfish in shallow waters.
Back lakes are consistently excellent locations to find feeding redfish. However, on our part of the coast, many of these have soft bottoms, which tends to make the wading more difficult. Fortunately, during this season, redfish are also abundant along the hard, sandy shorelines of our main bays. Shallow areas with grass beds interspersed among sand pockets provide optimal conditions for stalking feeding redfish. A notable characteristic of redfish is their feeding behavior that frequently includes “tailing” and surface eruptions.
Redfish are generally not highly-selective feeders, particularly when they are actively foraging. Soft plastics, spoons, and small topwater lures all serve as effective options. Given that I frequently target locations with substantial bottom grasses, I prefer to utilize Bass Assassins 1/8-ounce weedless swimbait hooks with my soft plastics. These specialized hooks enable efficient retrieval through grassy areas while minimizing the accumulation of vegetation on the lure.
Johnson’s 1/2 ounce Silver Minnow Weedless Spoon earned a permanent spot in my tackle box years ago. And even though its name implies a silver finish, gold is perhaps the most popular and effective for redfish. While many anglers prefer the 1/4 ounce size, I think this is definitely a case where size matters. The larger hook of the 1/2 ounce model is less likely to bend or break when fighting larger fish and the additional weight enables more accurate cast placement when throwing into the wind becomes necessary.
Wading anglers should be constantly aware that stingrays are almost always present in and around schools of redfish. In fact, we can sometimes see stingrays trailing the reds, pouncing on small crustaceans and bait fish the reds kick up as they forage along the bottom. For safety, it is advisable to always shuffle your feet and wear protective gear such as ForEverlast’s stingray guards. I shuffle my feet from habit – even when wearing protection.
The early fall season offers an ideal opportunity to target shallow water redfish. I encourage all anglers to dedicate time to exploring both back lakes and sandy shorelines in coming weeks, and always make a point to fish areas you have never tried before. Embracing new challenges just might contribute to the development of advanced angling skills.
Chelsy Williams enticed this beautiful redfish with a weedless spoon.
Stephanie Ahmed; first speckled trout caught on soft plastic while wading.
Upper Laguna/ Baffin
David Rowsey has 30 years in Baffin and Upper Laguna Madre; trophy trout with artificial lures is his specialty. David has a great passion for conservation and encourages catch and release of trophy fish.
Between the heat and floating grass, I’ve hit my rev limit with the Laguna Madre and Baffin for a short while. In anticipation of cooler weather another month away, I’m flying over the Rockies and will touch down in Cody, Wyoming in about an hour. The remote camp I’ll be calling home for the next week is averaging 46-72 degrees this week at an elevation of 8,000 feet. How wonderful does that sound at the end of August and early September in Texas? Of course, I’ll still be fishing, but for a different kind of trout. Up here a really good one is 20 inches and a solid one is about 12 inches. Fine by me – with a 4-weight fly rod and a pocket full of cute little bugs that just float downstream –instead of that noisy MirrOlure She Dog I’m always raising hell with in Baffin. My heart is filled with anticipation of small fish and no cell phones. We are truly into the dog days of summer now. Charters are slower for everyone at this point. Being out in the South Texas heat is really nothing to joke about and although wading keeps us a bit cooler, our lips and ears, and what’s left inbetween, are starting to question the sanity of our choices. A much needed cooling off is at hand and my guilt meter is frozen at zero. If you just have to go fishing, I would recommend shorter days, regardless of what bay system in Texas, especially south of the JFK causeway. My typical runs are in the dark of morning and getting in our first wade spot just as the eastern horizon is becoming visible. Ideally a thigh-deep flat with a big drop-off and lots of schooling mullet is my favorite scenario this time of year. Visible baitfish is the key to success right now. If you do not have it piled up where you park your Haynie that morning, just go into it with a mindset that you can and will still catch if at least some bait is active. However, you will face a slower bite. As hot as it is, the morning bite is going to shut down by 9:30. For that reason, I put a lot of emphasis on big schools of mullet that will usually double our strike ratio. Areas that are heavily laden with food will provide action from all
species, not just trout, and that is certainly a plus when fighting the summer heat and wanting to get off the water a little earlier.
Just about all mornings for me begin with topwaters. One out of three days will provide some crazy action, while the others are more of just one here and one there kind of a deal. We all love that epic bite on top, but I’m using them more as a scouting tool and to really just check the mood of the trout every morning. Lots of blowups and hooksets is obviously an aggressive bite and tells me I can fish just about any lure in my box and have success. On those mornings that they are just slapping at it and not hooking, I’m going subsurface with something like a Softdine or Double D. In the case of very few slaps or takes, I know within 10 minutes to put on my trusty Bass Assassin and keep it close to the bottom where they are being lazy from pulling an all-nighter of feeding.
Hopefully y’all can see the simplicity of my approach. After so many years of doing this since the late 80s, utilizing every bass lure and hot saltwater lure on the market, I came to realize many years ago that it’s not the sizzle… but the steak they are after. Utilizing lures that are reflective of their mood is way more important than any color, brand, etc. Here’s a useful analogy for you: If you see a really good-looking woman sitting alone, crying, and cussing at her phone –how do you approach her? I’m going Bass Assassin subtle on this one. But, if she’s waving sparklers and dancing on the tables –I’m going with a He Dog. Fish are no different than us at any given time of the year. Deciphering their mood quickly and doing it their way is much more effective than busting down the door and expecting them to bite because we just showed up with all of the hot new stuff from the tackle shop. Fish smart!! Remember the Buffalo! -Capt David Rowsey
Dr Richard Kimbrough showing all the youngsters around him that experience is priceless. He went on to win Grand Champion in in this year’s PARR, maybe the longest running tourney on the coast.
Port Mansfield
Captain Wayne Davis has been fishing the Lower Laguna-Port Mansfield for over 20 years. He specializes in wade fishing with lures.
Telephone
210-287-3877
Email captwayne@kwigglers.com
WAYNE’S Mansfield Report
Greetings from Port Mansfield! Our daily winds finally began to calm during late-July and early-August. This was expected in late June but for whatever reason never occurred until recently. As this started to unfold you could just tell fishing was going to get better. Simply put, the change in the wind provided opportunity to target areas that were just unfishable since early spring, with only isolated exceptions. Now that we have more opportunities, it is time to execute.
With light and variable winds, I will be working on what used to be windblown spoils and shorelines, targeting small groups of redfish and isolated big trout that frequently cruise those zones. Recently, we were working a point that transitioned onto an ultra-shallow grass flat, and as the water was fading from the flat big trout between 26-30 inches were holding in sand pockets right on the ridge. Every now and again you would see a huge wake push shallow in just inches of water where they were chasing the small bait fish that were also coming off the flat. I stood in one spot and made several attempts to get a strike but only one trout followed my Wig-A-Lo for about two seconds and then turned away. I think what it boiled down to was that they simply were not eating at that moment. It was like they wanted to eat but would not.
When encountering schools of redfish, it’s easy to get excited and toss your topwater or soft plastic right into the middle of them. Sure, you will likely hook one, but you have probably also “blown out” the rest of them, leaving yourself just that one shot. I would like to point out instead; consider tossing your lure on the outer perimeter of every group of redfish you find. Two things – you may very well catch a monster trout that often cruises the outer edge of these small schools –you may also be able to hook a red and pull it away from the group, giving you opportunity to catch one or two more before they break up completely. I know I have mentioned this in the past but friendly reminders never hurt.
in the spot but no such luck…this time…
Floating grass has become more manageable since the winds have backed down and we are still taking care of business on Mansfield Knockers. Even in the middle of the day we are finding success. Topwaters also tell you a few things; it will be pretty clear if they are eating, and secondly, if they are not eating and just swirling or slapping the lure you can quickly shift gears and get busy with plastics. Between “tops” and “tails” you should be able to make something happen.
Water levels are relatively low, which is normal this time of year, and the water quality is excellent. As of late we have fantastically clear water flowing in from the gulf which is adding to our salinity and overall water quality. I have also noticed more grass growing in areas that used to just have patches here and there. That is a good thing for sure.
Small and large schools of redfish will be showing themselves along the flats as we move deeper into August. The greatest concentrations will be closer to the East Cut. Flounder activity will also increase along drains and ditches, and as of late I have kicked up some big flounder along sandy spoil islands.
Topwater action will undoubtedly start to fire up, especially after the first hint of fall. That said, I will be excited to witness many blowups as we move through September. Another thing worth noting is the fish will start to roam shallower which is good news for those of us who wade. In closing, this fall season is shaping up nicely so prepare yourselves accordingly.
Snook have also started to show themselves along with a few tarpon. Recently, I just happened to be watching a pod of mullet near the East Cut when out of nowhere a three-foot tarpon exploded and went airborne right through the middle of the mullet school. We were lucky enough to have been looking at the right place at the right time. Just in case you were wondering, I immediately tossed my soft plastic
Until next time, remember fresh is better than frozen.
Jackson Oaks was very happy to land his firstever redfish while wading.
Chase Starchic was pleased with this redfish.
Arroyo Colorado to
Port Isabel
A Brownsville-area native, Capt. Ernest Cisneros fishes the Lower Laguna Madre from Port Mansfield to Port Isabel.
Ernest specializes in wading and poled skiff adventures for snook, trout, and redfish.
Cell
956-266-6454
Website www.tightlinescharters.com
SOUTH PADRE Fishing Scene
Our weather patterns really have me baffled. I can’t imagine near constant twenty-five mph winds during July –but it happened. Birds continued to work despite the wind and we actually had a pretty decent month catching trout and redfish under the gulls. That is not supposed to happen in July, neither are the tides supposed to remain as high as they did this year. Now, here in August, the wind has finally died down and the tides have receded to their usual summertime lows. So much for being able to predict Texas weather based on the calendar. August fishing turned on as soon as the winds died and the tides dropped. So far it has been generally dry and the Gulf (tropical weather) has been quiet. But, looking ahead, September is traditionally our wettest month. So, I expect it to rain often and daily air temperatures to become somewhat cooler.
I mentioned last month that August fishing can be a bit challenging but it’s actually been quite the opposite so far. Redfish action in particular has been better than I expected and we are finding them both shallow and in deeper water. The reds that are up shallow remain there till the sun gets high and the water temps rise. Usually by around 10:30 to 11:00 they leave the flats and move to belly-deep, hard sand and shell bottoms where they can be difficult to find again, especially in areas with lots of boat traffic. The key to finding them has been keying on areas with lots of mullet. Luckily for us, they are hitting topwaters with a vengeance, and this certainly helps solve the puzzle of where they go when they leave the flats.
The trout fishing continues to improve, not only in numbers but also in quality. I doubt you’ll find many trophy fish in September but you shouldn’t be disappointed with the numbers. For much of the summer period the trout bite has been concentrated along the edges or even right down the middle of the ICW. I expect that will begin to change soon with water temperatures beginning to decline and trout beginning to transition back to shallower water. Cloudy weather and rain mixing with surface water will both be contributors.
mouth. Those blowups are not all misses!
Snook fishing finally turned on in August and I expect September to be even better as the snook continue their spawning activity this month. The new and full moon periods will be the premium times to target snook. Keep in mind that three to four days before and following the new and full moon are the days you will have your best chance at targeting and finding them to be feeding actively, and possibly even showing schooling tendencies as these will also be prime spawning days.
Flounder fishing improved significantly during the past several weeks and I expect this will continue into September. Quite often, catching one flounder is a good sign that others may also be staged nearby. Flounder seem to be rather like the snook in this regard. If you are serious about targeting flatfish, I heartily recommend using heavier jigheads in order to keep the bait near bottom where the flounder are most likely to be holding. ZMan’s Eye Strike jigheads in quarter and three-eighths ounce size are good choices. Remember that flounder have no swim bladder – when they’re not swimming they’re lying on bottom.
September is also a great month to catch a tarpon. They can often be seen rolling and greyhounding just off the beachfront and also along the jetty rocks of Brazos Santiago Pass at South Padre Island. Port Mansfield’s East Cut and the area just outside the jetties there are also prime areas. Early morning hours on calm days are some of the best times for spotting tarpon activity.
Fishing is excellent in September, but be sure to bring your raincoat. As I mentioned earlier, this is the wettest month of the year for us. And, be sure to keep track of the weather forecast in the event of tropical weather developing.
Topwater action has been steady and I expect this will continue right through September. However, and I’ve mentioned this before, try not to be too stubborn when those surface plugs draw lots of attention but few hookups. Know when to say when. In other words, know when to make the switch to soft plastics and start catching fish. Keep in mind that if a fish wants to eat your bait it’ll have it in its
Easy Does It When Stalking Shallow Redfish
An outstanding day for Jason Brumley!
Craig Neale was definitely in the right place at the right time…and he made it happen!
FISHING REPOR TS AND FORECASTS from Big Lake to Boca Chica
Trinity Bay - East Bay - Galveston Bay | James Plaag Silver King Adventures - silverkingadventures.com - 409.935.7242
James was driving home from Matagorda after a day of chasing tarpon when he gave this report. “We are already seeing plenty of schools. They’re showing up here and there, so we’re covering lots of water to find them. Getting some bites too. It’s been pretty good already, and should only get better as we move through September. As long as we don’t get some storms stirring up the Gulf. The trout fishing lately has been good in deep water, along the channel. But, we’ve caught ‘em wading at times too. The best bite in the deep water overall has been on soft plastics with some white in them, whether Lil’ Johns or Bass Assassins in chartreuse/glitter. The dark colors haven’t worked as well. The better news is the fish are crashing topwaters much of the time, even in the depths along the channel. The key to calling them up out there is to throw topwaters with loud, pinging rattles, like She Pups and some of the other loud MirrOlure numbers. I don’t throw them much, but I’m sure She Dogs would work great. I like the pink/silver She Pup best, but color really doesn’t matter much. It’s all about the rattle.”
Jimmy West | Bolivar Guide Service - 409.996.3054
Jim was preparing fields for the upcoming dove season when we talked. “I’m burning some of my fields. Usually, the birds will show up in good numbers after the burn. I’m also looking forward to teal season, but it will likely be somewhat unusual. I probably won’t be flooding fields in parts of the area I hunt, due to some seismic activity being undertaken there. I do have fields to hunt, so people should still call to discuss it. As for the fishing, it’s been great lately, especially when the surf is right. We’ve had some fun days throwing topwaters, catching plenty of trout, with a high percentage of keepers, on topwaters. The fish bite best in the morning in the shallowest part of the surf zone. I have to tell my guys not to wade out, basically. It’s counterproductive. The fish are so close to the beach it’s better to stay in water no more than shin deep and cast toward the first bar. On lots of mornings, most of the fish bite in the little breakers right at the edge of the bar. The action typically lasts until about mid-morning, when the fish move into the deeper water.”
West Galveston - Bastrop - Christmas - Chocolate Bays
Randall Groves | Groves Guide Service
979.849.7019 - 979.864.9323
Randall says things are shaping up for an excellent run of fishing in the area around San Luis Pass this September. “We usually get plenty of calm weather and a few light fronts at the end of summer and beginning of fall. This allows the Gulf to calm down and the green water moves right up to the beach. When that happens, we expect fast and furious action in the surf on topwaters and other lures which look like little fish. Finding the schools can mean making long runs down the beach. The trout in the Gulf move around a lot, and people who want to catch them have to be mobile too. Regardless of where I’m fishing, I like to throw a Norton Sand Eel Junior in Tequila gold, rigged on a three-eighths ounce screw-lock jighead. I like to work it with a fast, vigorous retrieve, wiggling the tip of my Laguna Texas Wader plenty to get maximum action with the lure. Of course, as most people know, fishing in the surf with topwaters is usually effective, especially early in the mornings. Lately, we’ve been doing well on some old standby colors, including black/chrome, blue/chrome and bone.”
Matagorda Bays | Capt. Glenn Ging - Glenn’s Guide Service 979.479.1460 - www.glennsguideservice.com
The fishing in Matagorda has stayed pretty steady through the summer. Drifting East Matagorda Bay has been productive lately. We’re catching best on paddletails fished down deep, close to the shell on the bottom. Hogie’s Swimmin’ Jacks in pumpkinseed/chartreuse have been producing well for me. I’ve been catching quite a few trout on Bass Assassin Sea Shads, too. I’m mainly fishing them in four to five feet of water over scattered shell, rigging the plastics on quarter-ounce heads. We do have some birds working at times. I’ve found some big schools of mixed reds and trout under small flocks of laughing gulls in the middle of the bay. Deeper reefs and structures in West Matagorda Bay continue to produce some nice trout on live shrimp dangled a couple feet under Coastal Corks. The surf and jetties have also been pretty solid on the days the weather has let us get out and fish them. We’ve had some really good days catching trout in the surf on Skitter Walks and Spook Juniors lately, too. Reports are rolling in of impressive catches of tarpon off the beachfront, most of them biting big soft plastic shads and curl-tails rigged on Coon-pop heads.
Fishing has improved dramatically after all the rain we had last month. We’ve been finding trout while working typical summer patterns, with most fish coming from deep reefs and wells out in the bay. Live shrimp rigged about four feet under popping corks have been producing plenty of bites. Saltwater Assassins in Magic Grass and Chicken on a Chin have been the best lures out around the deep structures. Fishing for wading anglers has picked up closer to town. Most of the fish are holding over sand with some grass beds, taking small topwaters like Spook Juniors and She Pups in bone and other natural colors. The topwater bite is best early, and when the sun gets higher, Down South Lures in Magic Grass have been working better. Redfish and drum have been biting well again, mostly in two or three feet of water over shell. Live or fresh dead shrimp have worked well, as well as cut skipjacks, which these fish sometimes prefer over shrimp. Flounder fishing is improving, and we’ve been catching quite a few at the mouths of creeks and sloughs, also around the mouths of local rivers. Curly-tail Gulp! lures in chartreuse have been fooling most of the flatfish.
Port O’Connor | Lynn Smith
Back Bay Guide Service - 361.935.6833
In September, Lynn expects to see a slight shift in the patterns which best produce trout and reds in the Port O’Connor area. “We’ve been catching plenty of trout lately early in the mornings on topwaters, and later in the day mainly on soft plastics. We’re targeting them on shallow flats loaded with bait lying close to dropoffs into deeper water, including on some of the spoils on the main ship channel, some of the flats near the pass, and in the surf, when winds allow us to get out there. September is a hot month in many years, and if it’s hot this year some of those places will continue to produce plenty of fish. But, especially later in the month, we often see a surge in the tide levels and some cooler weather. If we get cooler weather and a push of water into the bays from the Gulf, fishing along the main-bay shorelines, in the coves and in the back-lakes can improve
dramatically, especially for reds. In those places, we usually do best in the first part of fall by fishing around grass beds growing in a hard, sandy bottom, or around small reefs close to shore.”
Rockport | Blake Muirhead
Gator Trout Guide Service - 361.790.5203 or 361.441.3894
Blake looks forward to the start of cast-n-blast season this time of year. “I really enjoy the variety of activities we participate in when we do the cast-n-blast trips. It’s a hoot. When we’re hunting teal, we might start off in the marsh, shoot until we get our limits, then fish our way out, targeting redfish in the back-lakes, then working some main-bay shorelines with sand and grass on the bottom, trying to catch some trout. That makes for a full day. If doves are on the agenda, we typically fish first, then hunt in the afternoons. That drill allows us to fish for trout in the shallows early in the mornings, either in the surf, or in the bays. The fishing can be great in both locations this time of year. The fish usually bite topwaters well in the mornings, which is a real treat. There’s basically no better way to catch a trout than throwing a topwater from the sand of the beach. The main point of the whole thing is the way the variety of options keeps the action coming. Combining hunting and fishing into one outing makes it easy to stay invested all day.”
Upper Laguna Madre - Baffin Bay
Captain James Sanchez Guide Service - 210.260.7454
September can be an interesting month on the water because conditions can change quickly. For example, hot temperatures are still a factor, but rising tides and heavy rainfall from tropical systems are possible, as are cooler temperatures brought down by early cool fronts. Until conditions change, summer strategies will continue to work for anglers. When targeting trout, the most reliable action happens early, wading along the deeper edges of grassy flats or near sandy points that quickly taper into deeper water. This is also where we’ve been catching some nice flounder lately. The topwater bite on Mansfield Knockers has improved significantly over recent weeks, especially during the first hour or two of each day. Later in the days, as things heat up, we spend most of our time throwing KWigglers Ball Tail Shads rigged on eighth-ounce jigheads in Bone Diamond, Plum Perfect and Naked Margarita. On spoil islands or near the edge of the ICW, schools of redfish have been cruising the edges of sand bars or holding in thigh-deep or shallower potholes lying close to deeper water. Good lure options for the reds include a Wig-A-Lo Juniors, Willow-Tail Shads and four-inch Paddletails in natural colors like Bone Diamond, Bart’s Sand Ninja, and Lagunaflauge.
Corpus Christi & Baffin Bay | Capt. Chris Elliott’s Guide Service captchriselliott@yahoo.com - 361.834.7262
This time of year, waking up and getting out on the water early to beat the heat plays a big role in success. Our water temperatures here in south Texas are hitting the low-90s by lunchtime, making the fishing uncomfortable and less productive than it is during the hours around daybreak. Lately, we’ve been spending a lot of time chasing redfish on the flats, keying on big schools of mullet to locate them. We’re finding a lot of redfish swimming in the middle of those big rafts of mullet. To catch them, we’re throwing small paddletails rigged on quarter-ounce heads, which help us make longer casts and reach the fish. If we can’t see any specific reds to target, we’ll cast around and in the middle of the schools, then drag the lure right through concentrations of the bait. At other times, we’re able to see the reds and make casts out beyond them and reel the lures steadily in front of their noses to get them to chase and take. If we are seeing fish and make a bad cast, we reel right back in as fast as possible and start the drill over again.
P.I.N.S. Fishing Forecast | Eric Ozolins
361.877.3583 - Oceanepics.com
Our coastal waters usually come alive with the approaching change of seasons. The migrations of baitfish along the beachfront begin to take shape this month. Dusky anchovies will kick it off and get driven in acre-size bait-balls right up onto the beach, chased there by mackerel, skipjacks, jackfish, tarpon, and sharks among other species. Throwing a topwater or a large spoon helps us avoid catching skipjacks. Locating the bait-balls usually means finding hundreds if not thousands of birds diving to pick up victims. When these bait-balls do get pushed almost up on the sand, sharks will practically beach themselves gorging on the anchovies. Be alert when wading, not only because of the sharks, but also because of the big stingrays, still present this time of year. The majority of action in September will center around bait presence. Fishing early in the mornings and late in the afternoons around structures should produce good numbers of trout for those throwing topwaters and soft plastics. Shark fishing should begin to pick back up as well, with blacktip and bull sharks returning from offshore to feast on the anchovies and other forage species abundant in the surf zone.
Port Mansfield, Texas | Ruben Garza Snookdudecharters.com - 832.385.1431
GetAway Lodge - 956.944.4000
September brings cast-n-blast season, and we can also expect plenty of redfish schooling on the flats. This is the time of year when the maturing reds will gather in large schools to make their way to the Gulf, where they will live out their lives as adults. Because of this, flats that lie both north and south of the East Cut should be holding plenty of reds. Traditionally, we like to start shallow, looking for rafts of mullet. Normally, we wind up moving toward deeper water as the sun rises and the day heats up. The topwater action is usually good early, but a gold weedless spoon will catch them all morning. From the middle of the day into the afternoon, KWiggler Paddletails in Bart’s Sand Ninja or Salt ‘n Pepper work best. The flats and deeper water adjacent to them in the area around the Weather Station will also hold plenty at times. Trout action is often better in that area too. The west shoreline is the place to be whenever the winds are light. Keying on active bait and slicks is the best way to figure out the stretches holding plenty of predators.
Lower Laguna Madre - South Padre - Port Isabel Aaron Cisneros | tightlinescharters.com - 956.639.1941
Calm, hot weather has been the norm over the last few weeks. Fishing for speckled trout has been best along the edges of the ICW during early morning hours, before the winds crank up. The action has also been good around some of the sand bars not far from the channel. Eye-Strike Trout-Eye jigheads in the quarter-ounce size rigged with scented, five-inch Jerk ShadZ in Motor Oil color have worked best to get the attention of the trout. We’re catching fish of all sizes schooled together. They’re favoring depths of between five and eight feet most of the time, and we’re using slow retrieves to keep the lures running close to the bottom, coming in contact with the bottom some of the time, for best results. Working the lures faster, higher in the water column has generally resulted in a reduction in the size of the fish we’re catching. The redfish bite stays good throughout the hot hours of the day. We’re finding them on shallow, grassy flats in a foot or two of water early in the mornings. Later, when winds and temperatures pick up, they move into the potholes in water about three or four feet deep.
Christine Faecke Dewberry Island - 35.5” red CPR
Meagan Young East Matagorda Bay - 7.5 lb & 6 lb reds
Ross Halter & Joe Salazar Port Arthur - 32” & 36” bull reds
Rich Gonzales Keith Lake - 20.25” trout CPR
Keith Mercado Grand Isle, LA - 3 lb gafftop
Antonio Chapa East Matagorda - 27” trout
Braden Pichon East Matagorda Bay - 27” personal best trout! CPR
Joe Slann Sabine Lake - redfish
First come – first published! Photos are judged on artistic merit and sporting ethic displayed. No stringer, cleaning table, or hanging board images allowed. Digital images only. Adjust camera to high or best quality. All images become property of TSFMag. Email to: Photos@TSFMag.com Include short description of your catch with name, date, bay system, etc.
Photo
Preston Long 33” trout
Nicole Scholl Galveston - 40” redfish
Bethany Matula Shoalwater Bay - 27.75” red
Kim Hall POC - redfish
Bryce Long Baffin Bay - 30.5” trout
Monica Demel Hackberry, LA - 38” bull red
Luke Hanse trout
Alan Faecke Shoalwater Bay - 28” redfish
Got ideas, hints or recipes you’d like to share?
Email them to pam@tsfmag.com or send by fax: 361 792-4530
Gulf Coast
Northwoods Fish Fry
We had the pleasure to visit Oak Lake Lodge in western Ontario last August and believe me the experience was first-class all the way. It’s very remote, fly-in access only, and wonderfully pristine. Oak Lake Lodge is famous for its walleye fishing; catching 100 per day is possible and 50 is about average. Strict adherence to catch and release insures the fishing success – except for the few the guides fillet and prepare for shore lunches.
No doubt, fishing hard from daylight ‘til midday and being served a delightful lunch lakeside in the middle of the Canadian wilderness enhances the flavor of the meal, but the frying method also contributes mightily. Walleye is famous for its wonderful texture and flavor – but our Gulf coast speckled trout and redfish are also legendary in their own right.
Try this frying method and see if you agree – the secret is in the Kellogg’s Corn Flake Crumbs.
INGREDIENTS
2 pounds fresh speckled trout or redfish fillets
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups Kellogg’s Corn Flake Crumbs
Peanut Oil
Salt and Pepper
PREPARATION
Mix flour and corn flake crumbs together.
Dip fillets in water, then dredge in flour-crumb mixture to coat evenly.
Heat oil to 350° and begin frying in small batches until golden brown.
Set aside on paper towels to drain.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
French fries and pasta salad go well with fried fish.
Baked beans and coleslaw are always great compliments.
Cautionary Note: You might want to loosen your belt before you begin eating!
Fishing from shore doesn’t mean the fish are any less powerful or the salt is any less corrosive. The PENN® Spinfisher has a full metal body and sideplate design featuring IPX5 sealing to keep saltwater out and heavy fish under control. With rugged CNC Gear™ Technology and a 5+1sealed stainless steel ball bearing system, once hooked a fish is no longer in charge. PENN. LET THE BATTLE BEGIN™
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