Saltwater Weekly Fishing Report Week of May 1, 2024

Redfish Bay

GOOD. 70 degrees. Redfish continue to be good against the shorelines and islands with cut perch, sea lice and menhaden. Trout have moved in on drop-offs in 2-5 feet of water fishing with free-lined croaker. Drum fishing is slow in the grass along the shoreline and in the back lakes. Captain Aerich Oliver, Rockport Paradise Outfitters.

San Antonio Bay

GOOD. 75 degrees. High winds are in the forecast but fishing should be good. Look for slicks, bait action and porpoise to locate trout. Limits of trout on topwaters grass beds along the shorelines adjacent to deeper water. Redfish are good in bayous and mouths of creeks with a few bites on cut bait, but the best bite was on live shrimp. Sharks are in the bay in the same areas as the trout and redfish. Report Captain Lynn Smith, Back Bay Guide Service.

Sabine Lake

GOOD. 68 degrees. High winds in the forecast, so fish in areas protected from the winds. Sabine channel to the jetties for redfish, drum, sheepshead on the rock piles and shell banks live shrimp with popping corks. Some catches of trout with red shad on ⅛ ounce jig heads on drop-offs in 12-14 feet. Jetties are good for redfish, sheepshead, bull redfish and drum on Carolina rigs with a light weight near the rocks and off the bottom. The Intracoastal Canal is good for redfish, sheepshead and drum off flats in 2-6 feet of water. North levee wall still produces some catches of speckled trout in the morning off the bottom with live shrimp on a popping cork or plastics. Report by Captain Randy Foreman, Captain Randy’s Guide Service Sabine Lake.

Bolivar

GOOD. 72 degrees. Water levels are high from the strong south winds. The best bite conditions this week will be on the tide changes for the jetty and surf. Plenty of redfish of varying sizes everywhere. More stingrays, sheepshead, black drum, small speckled trout, and crabs caught along the jetty with a couple jack crevalle and sharks. The surf is producing black drum, gafftop, stingrays, and bigger sharks mostly off Boyt and Rettilon roads. People are using live shrimp under a popping cork, dead shrimp, and squid. Report by Captain Shane Rilat, North Jetty Bait Camp.

Trinity Bay

FAIR. 75 degrees. Just as conditions were improving the massive influx of freshwater will shut down the bite again. There should be some good speckled trout action, if you can stay ahead of the push. Fish in the areas around Dow's Reef. The upper bays may hold some black drum and redfish, regardless of the off-colored freshwater. Report by Captain David Dillman, Galveston Bay Charter Fishing. Redfish are being caught on live shrimp and an assortment of plastics in the shallows at the mouths of marshes in low tides and in the backwaters on high tides. The WACky shad XL in the showtime color has been producing very well. Trout have been in 2-6 feet of water on scattered oysters on the flats with live shrimp under a popping cork and the WAC Assassin in the purple passion color. Drum and sheepshead are scattered in the flats and right to the rocks being caught in live shrimp under a popping cork. A lot of water is flowing through the lake, so be careful and be prepared. Always wear your kill switch. Report by Captain Zackary Scott, Zack Attack Fishing.

East Galveston Bay

GOOD. 76 degrees. Trout should be found around Hanna’s Reef, Elm Grove Reef, and Pepper Reefs if, and that is a big if, you can stay ahead of the freshwater. South shoreline is fair for the waders with catches of trout, redfish, and black drum. Report by Captain David Dillman, Galveston Bay Charter Fishing. Surface water temperature 76 degrees. Water clarity is normal for East Galveston Bay, with the further East you travel the more stirred up the water is. With the high tides and strong south and southeast winds we battled this week we were limited to fishing close to the shoreline over scattered shells and back in the back lakes to hide from the wind the best we could. As in previous weeks, if you see active bait the fish are close by. Anchor or Power pole down and fan cast the entire area, as this week we were able to catch multiple limits of trout from just a couple of small areas. If you get into an area and do not see bait activity, make a few casts, and move on, as our experience has been, if you find good amounts of bait the fish are close by. This week we have thrown ¼ ounce jig heads with Wac Attack straight tails in Monkey Milk, topwaters, as well as marker 54 Glide Shrimp, under a 1-2 foot leader and a Fish Smack Popping Cork. The popping cork with shrimp setup was the top performer for our fishing clients this week resulting in some of the most aggressive bites of the year. We also managed to catch several over the slot Redfish this week in the same areas, as well as some nice flounder. Spring is finally here, and fishing is continuing to heat up as the water warms and the fronts blowing thru become less disruptive. If you are looking to get out on the water and beat the crowds, now is the perfect time to make it happen. Report by Captain Jeff Brandon, Get the Net Guide Services, LLC.

Galveston Bay

SLOW. 75 degrees. Depending upon the wind direction, the west shoreline will be good for speckled trout, redfish, and black drum. Open bay wells could be affected by the freshwater entering the bay. Report by Captain David Dillman, Galveston Bay Charter Fishing.

West Galveston Bay

GOOD. 78 degrees. This bay will gather momentum, as the freshwater pushes the fish. Wade anglers are doing well with artificials and live croakers for speckled trout. Boat anglers finding good numbers of trout and drum along the Causeway Bridge. San Luis Pass seeing a push of trout coming in from the gulf. Report by Captain David Dillman, Galveston Bay Charter Fishing.

Texas City

FAIR. 76 degrees. Look for the speckled trout run, as the freshwater pouring into the bay from the rivers pushes the fish south. Fish near Swan Lake and the Galveston jetties for the best bite. Still some big black drum being caught off the dike and good numbers of legal drum being caught off the jetties, along with slot redfish and keeper trout. Report by Captain David Dillman, Galveston Bay Charter Fishing. The Texas City Dike and Moses Lake tidal gate remains on fire as of late with people catching sheepshead, black drum, small speckled trout, and redfish with an occasional jack crevalle run. Report by Captain Shane Rilat, North Jetty Bait Camp.

Freeport

SLOW. 72 degrees. Heavy winds and high tides so fishing has been moderate to fair. Target trout, redfish and drum in the cuts and back lakes with shrimp under a popping cork. Report by Captain Jake Brown, Flattie Daddy Fishing Adventures.

East Matagorda Bay

GOOD. 70 degrees. Rain and high winds are in the forecast. A few redfish and drum being caught in the back lakes in protected water. Wade fishing is a good approach while the winds are high. Wade anglers are starting to have success for trout, some redfish and the occasional flounder with croaker. Few catches of trout drifting with the winds allow. Report by Captain Charlie Paradoski, Captain Charlie Paradoski’s Guide Service.

West Matagorda Bay

GOOD. 70 degrees. Rain and high winds are in the forecast. A few redfish and drum being caught in the back lakes in protected water. Wade fishing is a good approach while the winds are high. Wade anglers are starting to have success for trout, some redfish and the occasional flounder with croaker. Few catches of trout drifting with the winds allow. Report by Captain Charlie Paradoski, Captain Charlie Paradoski’s Guide Service.

Port O'Connor

GOOD. 72 degrees. Fishing patterns are holding steady. Drum are good inside of the jetties halfway down with dead shrimp. Redfish washout and the back on Spanish sardines or live shrimp. Oversized trout are biting live shrimp in the washouts. Bull redfish are fair on piggy perch and Spanish sardines between the jetties and Bird Island on incoming tides. Report by Captain Marty Medford, Captain Marty’s Fish of a Lifetime Guide Service.

Rockport

GOOD. 68 degrees. Trout are good on croaker along grass and drop-offs, or with a popping cork and shrimp on flats. Redfish have been great on shrimp and cut menhaden or mullet in flats and along channel edges. Black drum are great on dead shrimp along channel edges drains and in flats. Report by Captain Kenny Kramer, Kramer Fishing Charters.

Port Aransas

GOOD. 68 degrees. Redfish are great on shrimp, blue crab and cut bait. Trout are good with croaker or shrimp free lined along rocks. Report by Captain Kenny Kramer, Kramer Fishing Charters.

Corpus Christi

GOOD. 70 degrees. Tides are high, so redfish and drum continue to be best in the back lakes. Redfish are good with perch, sea lice, and cut menhaden. Black drum are good with dead shrimp. Trout have moved in on drop-offs in 2-5 feet of water fishing with free-lined croaker. Report by Captain Aerich Oliver, Rockport Paradise Outfitters.

Baffin Bay

SLOW. 73 degrees. Big spring tide cleared the water bringing fish into the system. High winds have been blowing, limiting the fishable areas. Redfish and drum are good with live bait on the south side of the bay when the winds allow, or in the Meadows. Trout are good with gold and orange, or bone and silver topwater baits along the south shore rocks and the land cut. Report by Captain Cliff Webb. It has been a very windy spring so far on Baffin Bay. The trout spawn is running later than usual, but the fish have started feeding up and their eggs are becoming slightly more mature. The watercolor along the south shoreline is a beautiful shade of green and there is a lot of grass that remains after the winter. Big trout are being caught along grass edges and areas of deeper water near grass flats, especially with deeper grass areas. SoftDine XLs in darker colors and Little John XLs in darker colors are working great for bigger fish. Toss topwaters, like She Dogs, on days with light wind. See you on the water! Good luck! Report by Captain Sally Black.

Port Mansfield

GOOD. 71 degrees. Water has risen bringing good fish into the bay areas. Mostly catches of redfish in shallow water with the occasional big trout roaming alongside. Small plastics such as KWigglers juniors Ball Tail Shad and Wigalo’s have been the ticket. Good catches of trout up to 5 pounds in water over knee deep on Mansfield Knockers. Water temperatures have risen so we are now wet wading. Be sure to clean and properly store your waders until next season. Report by Captain Wayne Davis, Hook Down Charters. The bite has been challenging at times due to the minor fronts and the typical howling southeast wind that comes along with springtime. Our weather always plays a huge role in how, when and where we fish. Big trout are up shallow, often mixed in with schools of redfish along areas with good cover using 2-5 inch baitfish. Fish in knee to mid thigh deep water where there is scattered grass, sand pockets or drop offs and guts parallel to a shoreline. Best producing lures have been Custom Corky Fatboys/SoftDines and MirrOLure Little John’s. Custom Corky in Boogie Man, Darth Vader, The Truth and the MirrOLure Little John’s in Purple Demon, Golden Bream and WaterMelon Gold Glitter have all been producing fantastic bites. When the water clarity is murky, we are using a chartreuse jig head to the plastics to add a pop of color to the strike zone. As we continue to transition into full on springtime, we are learning to deal with the constant wind and high pressure, in most cases the wind is your friend, it essentially stirs up activity, it dirties the water therefore you are able to really sneak up on these fish and on top of of that, you can throw your lure a mile! Always try to stay positive, even if the conditions are not favorable. Confidence is key, have confidence in your technique, look for bait, birds and slicks, if those positive attributes are present then there lies a great opportunity to get bit and hopefully a personal best! As traffic continues to increase on the water, always prioritize safety and courtesy out there, check the weather before heading out and as always tight lines! Report by Captain Reanna DeLaCruz, Captain Reanna’s Baffin Bay Adventures.

South Padre

GOOD. 73 degrees. High winds continue to be in the forecast for the weekend. Flounder are fair along the edge of Intracoastal Waterway biting gulp or live shrimp with 1/8 ounce bighead or small split shot. Trout are good at ICW and Gas Well Flats using live shrimp under popping cork. Redfish good fishing bottom rig with cut mullet on Gas Well Flats near old gas well channels. Report by Captain Lou Austin, Austin Fishing South Padre.

Port Isabel

GOOD. 73 degrees. High winds continue to be in the forecast for the weekend. Flounder are fair along the edge of Intracoastal Waterway biting gulp or live shrimp with 1/8 ounce bighead or small split shot. Trout are good at ICW and Gas Well Flats using live shrimp under popping cork. Redfish good fishing bottom rig with cut mullet on Gas Well Flats near old gas well channels. Report by Captain Lou Austin, Austin Fishing South Padre

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