How to Fish South Padre Island Texas

“OK, we’re gonna cross some actually skinny stuff now,” Capt. Luis Flandes shouted over the noise of his jacked-up outboard. Glancing past the boat’s low gunwales, blades of sea grass and each fleeing minnow had been magnified within the translucent shallows.

“Are you kidding me? This whole lagoon is anorexic,” I laughed in response. Flandes and I had been wrapping up a profitable day on the decrease Laguna Madre and had been en route again throughout to South Padre Island, Texas. After the arctic blast skilled earlier that morning, the second-most mind-numbing facet of the day was the variety of redfish caught on the heels of the chilly entrance. It was one of many many eye-opening surprises of the journey.

As it’s with numerous different light-tackle lovers, Laguna Madre had lengthy been on my bucket listing of fishing locations. So when the invitation got here up, I rapidly accepted, regardless of the late season. It didn’t take lengthy to appreciate that the inshore alternatives simply north of the Mexican border are quite a few, whatever the calendar.

Texas Snook Fishing

My initiation began by fishing with captains Brian Barrera and Ed Zyak. Barrera grew up fishing the lagoon and has been guiding professionally for the previous six years. After launching his 18-foot Shallow Sport at a close-by ramp, we made the run by the Intracoastal Waterway and into the Brownsville Ship Channel. This industrial zone will not be probably the most scenic, and anchoring isn’t allowed, however the potential of snook, tarpon and different gamefish makes it intriguing.

“As soon as the water temperatures dip into the mid-60s, the snook actually stack up again in these facet canals,” Barrera explains. “Snook are right here year-round, however the winter months are the most effective. You’ll find colleges of greater than 100 fish, plus redfish, massive trout, tarpon from 5 to 100 kilos, and all of the mangrove snapper you need to catch.”

Barrera, whose personal-best snook measured 40 inches, makes use of the anchor-mode perform on his trolling motor to work goal areas. He predominately fishes swim baits rigged on a black jig head or 5/0 swimbait hook, a ½-ounce shrimp on a jig head, or 5½-inch jerkbait rigged weedless with a worm hook or a 2/0 circle hook by the nostril.

“I exploit facet imaging, and you’ll see all types of construction on the underside,” he says. “The tides aren’t too massive in right here, as much as 18 inches. Water on this space is extra wind-driven than affected by present. I like to choose a spot aside, since I do know the place fish like to cover. Then it’s a matter of casting across the construction to see if they’ll eat or not. It’s a problem, however nicely definitely worth the effort.”

We boated a number of small snook and watched some studs ghosting round dock pilings refuse our lures. Redfish saved issues fascinating, nevertheless, with a 33-incher as a pleasant comfort prize.

“The perfect motion occurs between chilly fronts,” Barrera says. “The temperatures will probably be within the excessive 60s to low 70s, good fishing climate with a lightweight jacket and blue denims. That is the one snook inhabitants in Texas fishable year-round. There are extra fish right here than individuals notice. We’ll catch them in potholes on the flats through the summer season. However the channel is the constant cash spot.”

Shallow Water Fishing in Texas

The subsequent day had us shifting into Laguna Madre, and as we zipped east towards Port Isabel and the mainland, Barrera defined the format of the hyper-saline estuary. Stretching 130 miles, the coastal lagoon system, beneath varied names, spans the size of the barrier islands. A lot of the bordering shoreline is both a nationwide wildlife refuge or non-public ranch land.

“The water to the west is murkier due to the clay backside. On the island facet, it’s crystal-clear, Caribbean-style, with turtle-grass flats, exhausting sand and plenty of potholes. You’ll be able to drive northeast so far as you possibly can see. The lagoon averages 2 to three ft deep, and it’s one of many windiest and saltiest locations within the nation,” explains Barrera, who focuses on massive trout, and releases sows measuring 28 to 30 inches each third or fourth journey.

He usually finds trophies in water so shallow that the fish’s backs are uncovered. Big colleges of redfish, with as much as a number of hundred fish, are frequent within the cooler months too. “It’s nice fishing through the winter. You’ll be able to come out and actually whack ’em on artificials,” Barrera says. To show his level, we picked up a couple of high quality reds and black drum earlier than Barrera’s rod bowed like a rainbow. After scrambling across the bow, he quickly shouted for the web. It was a great thing about seatrout, not unusual in cooler months.

Fishing After a Texas Chilly Entrance

The next day was chilly and breezy as I joined Flandes for my final Laguna Madre tutorial. The fish didn’t recognize the chilly morning, however the temperature climbed into the mid-50s by lunchtime, and the chew turned on as we made sluggish, methodical drifts within the regular breeze, pitching lures to potholes and cruising redfish. A 4-inch jerkbait in Texas croaker, Fiji rooster, sweet corn or Key lime sample rigged with mild, unpainted jig heads proved to be an irresistible combo.

“I choose lures. You cowl much more water, and also you additionally get a extra various chew than by soaking bait. I inform my shoppers to forged into the potholes and let the lure settle to the underside,” Flandes explains. “Then work it up and down like a popping cork. The fish are on the underside, and also you don’t get fouled as a lot, so it’s very efficient.”

Whereas doing a number of drifts ranging as much as 300 yards, we noticed a number of pink and black drum pushing 40 inches easing away from the boat as we approached. The bull reds remained cautious, however their slot-size copper neighbors had been greater than keen to slam the pretend minnows. In a few hours, we launched greater than a dozen reds between 20 and 28 inches, and capped the day with a strong 3-pound trout.

“Usually, we’re selecting up extra trout combined in with the reds,” Flandes says. “Most are midslot, 17 to 18 inches, together with some 20-inchers, and some within the mid-20s thrown in. This chilly entrance might have pushed them into deeper water for the day. However they are going to certainly be again.”

Fast Ideas for Fishing South Texas

The place: Laguna Madre, Texas, inshore

When: 12 months-round

Sort out for Texas Inshore Fishing

Rods: Medium-action spinning for the lagoon; medium-heavy spinning for the ship channel

Reels: 2500- to 3000-class spinning for the lagoon; 4000-class for the ship channel

Traces: 10-pound braid with 25- to 30-pound fluorocarbon leaders on the sunshine spinners; 20- to 30-pound braid with 30- to 50-pound leaders on the heavier outfits

Bait: Dwell finger mullet or ballyhoo chunks; dwell shrimp for mangrove snapper

Lures: Gentle plastics are robust to beat.