Galveston Fishing

August is ending with some outstanding fishing in the surf and offshore.

It is almost a given that when light winds set in for a few days this time of year the surf is going to be red hot with action.

Although there have been no tarpon reports lately I can almost guarantee you that the silver kings are out there.

While the bays are in great shape, fishing has been on the slow side during the day mainly due to weak tidal movement. Night fishing has been a different story however as stronger tidal flow has been taking place late.

Bulldog’s Bait Shop had a couple of reports to offer. Kayakers have been returning to his shop from the surf where they report the reds are thick at the end of the Pleasure Pier. Speaking of the Pleasure Pier, the caption for Thursday’s Reel Report mistakenly said large shark caught off the Pleasure Pier. It should have said The Galveston Fishing Pier.

Russell Lovell, a customer of Bulldog’s, fished the beach front close to San Luis Pass Thursday and landed 35 trout, retaining his limit of 10 and releasing the remainder. Live croaker was the bait.

Albert Salinas, who many of you know from Bayou Bait and Tackle, fished the surf Thursday afternoon and encountered a massive school of jackfish that was chasing mullet. Salinas hooked one on his trout tackle. After a tiring and lengthy battle, a 22-pound, 40-inch jack was landed. In addition to the jack, two nice-sized specks were caught.

The 61st Street Fishing Pier reported catches of croaker, whiting, gafftop, blacktip sharks and slot reds.

Labor Day fishing looking good Galveston.

If my crystal ball is viewing things correctly, we should be in for some excellent fishing during the next several days. Light winds and high pressure should create ideal conditions, especially for offshore anglers wanting to fish the deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico.

The only hiccup facing inshore fishermen is weak tidal movement. The surf should continue to produce some nice catches early for wade fishermen using live bait.

Bulldog’s Bait Shop reported customers returning from the beach front with stringers of flounder. The flatfish are working the washouts of the rock groins with Chicken Boys and Gulps being the baits of choice.

Corey Bercellino of Clear Lake fished the beach front and caught four trout to 20 inches and a 20-pound jack crevalle.

Sarah Melcer was back at the South Jetty Thursday and caught 18 gafftop, two bull reds, two large sand trout and a bull shark. Squid was the bait.

Our offshore report today comes from yours truly, who fished with friends Rick Clapp and Brandon Rowan from “Mariner Magazine.” We took advantage of the slight seas and headed more than 50 miles south of the jetties where we fished anchored shrimp boats, weed lines and the Rig 40-a.

The highlight of our catch was a 65-pound ling that took a drifted sardine along a weed line. Other fish landed included 12 Dorado from two to seven pounds, two mangrove snapper and our catch and release amounted to two large sharks and probably a dozen quality snapper.

I talked the guys into stopping with 12 Dorado, as our 170 quart ice chest was just about full; however, if we had continued catching the great eating fish, it is likely we could have caught two to three times that amount. They were aggressively feeding around a weed patch about 48 miles out.

Galveston Fishing

The last few days have been slow overall for fishing as an area of disturbed weather passed through the Galveston Bay Complex and adjoining coastal waters. Tuesday, conditions began improving, although a nagging easterly wind prevailed most of the day.

The early forecasts of light winds for Tuesday did not materialize and all morning, velocities were running up to 20 knots. I had a friend scheduled to go bay fishing with me and after observing the 6 a.m. North Jetty Buoy report, he called and asked for a rain check.

Late morning, the wind started subsiding a bit and I headed off with my No. 1 fishing partner, Polly, around 9:30 a.m.

We fished the cedars of Pelican Island, Bolivar gas wells and North Jetty’s channel side. Not a lot of action to report; however, we did manage a few trout and a 27-inch red along with sharks, sheepshead and yellowtails that were released.

The surf on the Gulf side of the North Jetty was chopped up by the east wind; however, all other areas we fished held nice water.

Only the gas wells failed to produce a fish. There was no tide movement, and that likely was the reason.

If the upcoming weather forecast holds, look for some excellent fishing to start.

Aunt Margie’s Bait Camp reported a nice catch of trout by Jelly Abel, who fished along the shore of Offatts Bayou near the 61st Street Boat Ramp. Abel had a portable generator with flood lights and fished late Monday into the wee hours of Tuesday using free-lined live shrimp for bait. His catch consisted of seven specks to 20 inches along with a large number of bait-snatching ladyfish and needle noses.

Steady rain all day Monday limited fishing activity; however, the good that it did far offset a day sacrificed to the weather. After this spell of unsettled weather passes, look for some outstanding fishing to follow.

If the Gulf remains quiet, we should start seeing some really good catches of fish of all varieties coming from the bays, jetties and beach front.

Flounder are beginning to appear in greater numbers and reports from all around the Galveston area indicate that the flat fish are getting restless. While this is much too early to think about a flounder run, in the months preceding the annual event, flounder start moving, just not out of the bays as they do during the fall flounder migration.

Dylan Loughney, who is vacationing in Galveston from Wilmington, Del., caught three flounder to just under four pounds. The action took place around the Galveston Yacht Basin.

Barbara Garibaldi, Louis’ Bait Camp in Hitchcock, reported flounder coming from Highlands Bayou in what she described as a run in the bayou. She also reported seeing good numbers of trout coming from the North Deer Island area.

I have always said that one is never too old to fish. A good example came from the 61st Street Fishing Pier Saturday where Corinna DeMyers reported Vincent Sciascia of Plano catching his first fish at age 65, a nice-sized whiting.

Other fish reported by the fishing pier were sand trout, Spanish mackerel, bull reds, blacktip sharks and bull sharks.

Speaking of sharks, several readers have inquired about the report in Sunday’s Galveston County Daily News about an estimated 9-foot blacktip shark dragging a kayak all around West Bay. The only information I have is what was published in the paper; however, I must say that if the shark was close to 9-feet long, it likely would have been a new state record. The current record for a blacktip is 97 inches, which is just more than 8 feet.

Galveston Fishing Report

For several days now we have been touting the outstanding action coming from the surf. While many anglers enjoyed taking nice stringers of trout, others either came up empty or with sparse catches.
Each time there is hot action along the beach front, we receive calls and notes from anglers who did not fare so well, asking why. Well, with fishing virtually shut down by Sunday’s thunderstorms, let’s discuss this.

No question that the surf has been full of speckled trout and other fish lately. Anytime we have calm conditions and green water up to the beach, there is a high probability of excellent fishing this time of year.

Surf fishermen learn when conditions are ripe for action and plan their trips accordingly. The successful anglers use the correct equipment and bait and they fish at the right times and places.
Popping corks with a leader of 18 to 24 inches usually work best. A treble hook of sizes six to ten baited with live shrimp or small j-hooks baited with live croaker are the hooks and baits of choice.
Most of the time, the bite is on from first light of day until around 9 a. m. After that, the fish tend to move to deeper waters, away from easy access by wade fishermen. For newcomers trying to find a good spot, one of the best ways is to observe where concentrations of other wade fishermen are located.

Last week, one mistake made by many fishermen was not beginning to fish until they were in waist-deep and deeper waters. Early, lots of trout were caught in calf to knee-deep water where they were concentrated feeding on mullet and other baits.

Start fishing once you enter the water and test the shallow parts first. This was one of the keys to success last week. After a few casts with no strikes, move on out a little farther. Often a foot or so in depth can mean a big difference in finding fish in the surf.

fishing report galveston

Saturday the beach front continued to be the place for catching speckled trout. Greg Hagerud has been fishing the surf a lot lately and said it has been perfect for fishing the last couple of days.

Redfish and trout, along with aggressive bait stealers bluefish and lady fish, were being caught. Live shrimp was the bait of choice.

Jos Wristers noticed all of the beach front surf fishermen bringing in stringers of trout while he jogged East Beach late last week and returned the next day to give fishing a try. Using live shrimp for bait, he landed four specks and a flounder.

Bulldog’s Bait Shop reported beach-front speck action remaining hot. Flounder along with speckled trout were being caught by wade fishermen using live shrimp and croaker.

Wayne Barry of Texas City used dead shrimp to land a 15-inch drum while fishing west of the seawall Saturday.

Jason Reuter, Aunt Margie’s Bait Camp, reported that nice trout are starting to run just before the tide change in Offatts Bayou. The action is starting between 4:30 a.m. and 5 a.m.



Offshore fishing continues to be excellent and Saturday morning Don Stubblefield and Sol Greenburg headed out to the area known as the broken bottom to do some trolling. Late morning the wind picked up and drove the fishermen back to port; however, before pulling in the lines, they had landed eight nice-sized kings, two Dorado to 14 pounds and several bonito.

Fishing Report Galveston

The surf continues to be the place to catch trout. Friday, there was threatening weather offshore; however, the surf remained in good shape. Wade fishermen using live bait — both shrimp and croaker — were taking easy limits and near limits of trout.

Bulldog’s Bait Shop reported some nice trout catches coming from the San Luis Pass area. Eric Burney had his limit within an hour using live croaker for bait, and Garrett Goodson limited out in an hour with croaker.

Morris Maxwell almost had a limit of trout fishing the surf off Eight Mile Road. Using live shrimp for bait, the angler from Dickinson caught eight trout, three bull whiting and a 22-inch red.
Horace Highsmith found ladyfish to be too much of a nuisance when he fished the surf near Murdocks. Highsmith had a pint of live shrimp and was able to land only one trout before the aggressive ladyfish depleted his supply.

The 61st Street Fishing Pier reported catches of croaker, sand trout, whiting, specks, sharks and reds early Friday.

The wind continued from an easterly direction Friday, which has been the case for more than a week. Conditions in the bays look great; however, fishing has been slow overall.

Deep Reef in East Bay produced a nice catch for Michael Mickey and his two guests early Friday. The three anglers anchored off the reef and caught 11 specks, two large slot black drum, five undersized reds and a keeper sheepshead. Live shrimp fished under a popping cork did the trick.

August is prime time for offshore fishing, and Galveston’s party boat operations are taking advantage of it. Thursday, the party boat Capt. John made a 30-mile trip east of the jetties where Capt. Johnny Williams found action for his guests in 55 feet of water.

Galveston Fishing Report

The beach front has been where most of the action is taking place lately. Lots of wade fishermen are taking limits of trout, and an occasional tarpon is being raised. But seaweed is playing havoc with beach front fishing in some areas and around the jetties.

Night fishing continues to be a good bet for anglers fishing inshore and wanting to avoid the brutal daytime heat.

Wednesday, Capts. Michael LaRue and Billy Howell fished for tarpon not far off the beach front and ended up going one-for-one, with a silver king estimated to weigh in the 140-pound range.

Carl Hescock fished the jetties Thursday morning and found the seaweed to be a big nuisance near the boat cut at the North Jetty. Hescock said he hardly lost any bait and was curious as to whether the seaweed might have run off the fish. He did notice a number of small dead fish among patches clumped up along the rocks.

Robbie Sanders called in asking about all of the publicity of hot action in the surf. Thursday, he and Freddy Marshall found the water off color in the Bolivar surf about a mile or so from the beach. The anglers drifted the area for less than an hour, tossing live shrimp and croaker fished under popping corks without a single bite.

The lights of Tiki Island were attracting trout Wednesday night. Tony Cruz and Hector Monzingo used free-lined live shrimp to catch a number of trout. Nine keepers were retained out of 25 to 30 trout. Many were just less than the 15-inch minimum.

Brian Pitts landed a 29-inch trout fishing under lights at the Texas City Dike on Wednesday night.
The party boat New Buccaneer had to cut short its 65-mile trip Wednesday because of a medical emergency. Before pulling anchor after 90 minutes of fishing, the anglers were able to land 50 vermilions, six amberjack, two grouper, four blue runner, a ling and other fish, including a 150-pound bull shark.

Galveston Fishing Reports

The beach front from Crystal Beach to San Luis Pass has awakened with some outstanding trout action early.

Jetty Joe, who normally gives reports for Galveston Bait and Tackle, called in to say that he went fishing Wednesday morning and caught a limit of trout and a flounder. The action took place behind Woody’s along the beach front.

Bulldog’s Bait Shop reported the surf to be alive with specks. Customer Garrett Goodson left with three dozen croakers and within an hour after arriving at San Luis Pass, had his limit of trout.

Paul Shelton, who lives along the beach front in Crystal Beach, hosted his two brothers to a morning of fishing the surf. By 9 a.m., they all had limited out on trout and had two reds and six Spanish mackerel as well. Live shrimp was the bait.

East Bay also was into the action and anglers fishing mid-bay shell reefs were taking nice stringers of trout and a few other fish. The action came later in the morning using both live bait and soft plastics.
With all of the action in the surf, one would expect reports of tarpon being raised. Two unconfirmed reports of tarpon being hooked came from off Bolivar and San Luis Pass.

Capt. Michael LaRue’s charter landed a large silver king estimated to weigh in excess of 170 pounds.
Offshore conditions continue to be favorable for fishing and Tuesday, the party boat New Buccaneer made a nice haul from 65 miles out. Its catch included 233 vermilions, six kings, eight amberjack to 85 pounds, a blackfin tuna, ling, two grouper and a variety of other fish.

Now, the full moon is the excuse for slow action early in the day. While morning tidal strength is improving, fish are focusing on feeding under the light of the silvery moon.
Soon after sunrise, action has been slowing until close to noon.

Tuesday, wind velocities were not as strong as previous days; however, scattered showers were causing gusts from varying directions. Billy Bunch Jr. of Bayou Vista, his son Billy III of Flower Mound and grandson Joey O’Connell of Worchester, Mass., fished with me Tuesday. For the first part of the day, action was slow. Maritime showers were all around us early, and then stronger thunderstorms started cropping up.

Our best and just about only action came from the Bolivar Gas wells beginning close to noon. Wind shifts played havoc with our ability to fish the wells; however, around noon, a window of calm conditions set in, and the bite turned on. Before running out of live shrimp we caught eight trout — releasing three undersized fish — along with a puppy drum, bull whiting and mangrove snapper.
A well-defined waterspout hovered overhead for a while before dissipating.

Eddie Cruse fished Greens Lake on Tuesday and ended up with some nice fish caught over shell. A large speckled trout, three black drum and a gafftop were caught on live shrimp.

Bulldog’s Bait Shop reported customers catching good numbers of trout along the beach front using live croaker.

Whiting, croaker, gaff top, sand trout and jack crevalle were reported caught at the 61st Street Fishing Pier by Richard Belleau.

Galveston Fishing Report

The evening tide has been where most of the action has occurred this week. Night fishermen along the beach front, especially at the 61st Street Fishing Pier and the Galveston Fishing Pier, have been making good catches of specks, reds, flounder and sharks.

Flounder gigging has been productive late at night, especially around the Jones Lake area and along the shoreline of Virginia Point. John Sabo and his grandson Mark Watkins covered the area along the bend leading to the mouth of Swan Lake and picked up eight quality flounder among dozens of stingrays.

Earlier this week, Bobby Martin of Bayou Vista took friends John Majewski, Bob Anastas and Ray Gartman to the jetties where they landed reds on the Gulf side of the South Jetty and specks and sand trout on the Gulf side of the North Jetty. Their best stop was on the way back when they fished Campbell’s Bayou and caught a number of sand trout and a big 24-inch speck.

Richard Belleau reported catches of gafftop, sand trout, croaker and specks from the 61st Street Fishing Pier on Thursday night.

If the light northerly winds hold, the beach front should be alive with action early morning. Wade fishermen along with pier fishermen and boaters should see some excellent trout fishing in the surf with a variety of other fish taking baits.

Offshore, action has been steady all week; however, we could have a hiccup Sunday if the low pressure system entering the Gulf starts kicking up the seas. Late Friday, forecasts varied, and its best to check the marine weather outlook before leaving dock to head offshore.

Thursday, Capt. Matt Smith took 76 anglers aboard the party boat New Buccaneer 65 miles offshore where they caught a wide variety of fish. Some of the highlights of that trip included 384 vermilions, three kings, 20 amberjack, a ling, a 45-pound Warsaw and a number of other fish.

The party boat Cavalier returned with sharks and gafftop from its Thursday trips to the jetties.

Galveston Fishing Report

Thursday, a deluge hit the Galveston area, and very few boats were on the water. One of those boats was mine, as I was hosting longtime friends from Houston, Mickey and Jordan Miller, to a day of looking for fish. Early on, the skies did not look that bad; however by 9 a.m., hard rain hit while we were anchored at the cedars of Pelican Island.

Tuesday, there were some decent fish in that area — Thursday was a different story. No fish, just a bunch of leftover shrimp for the freezer.

Jetty Joe, Galveston Bait and Tackle, had a couple of anglers return with fish. Ralph Adams and his friend Bobby, both of Houston, landed five drum, three flounder, nine croaker and 10 sand trout at the base of the causeway using dead shrimp and cut mullet for bait.

Bulldog’s Bait Shop called in to say this weekend should be excellent for surf fishing with the light northerly winds in the forecast.

James Yates sent a note asking about the cedars — where it is located and how to fish that spot. The cedars are mentioned often in the Reel Report. It is a spot along the shores of Pelican Island across from the wharfs and just west of Sea Wolf Park.

The area gets its name from the prominent cedar bushes near the water’s edge. In the fall, it is one of the top spots for flounder and this time of year, the Big Three — flounder, reds and trout — can be found feeding between the shore and the steep drop-off to the Galveston Ship Channel. It is a favorite spot for wade fishermen although a bit difficult to reach by land.

Tide movement and bait fish are key to fishing the area. Most boats anchor and fish the various depths.

During the summer, fish can be found in all depths, with the shallower waters producing better early in the morning. Live shrimp is my bait of choice this time of year, fished bottom-bumped style. Popping corks also work well and are the choice of many of the cedars’ anglers.

Galveston Fishing Charter Co.

Wednesday, a nagging southwest wind changed the plans of many anglers organizing fishing trips around the Galveston area as most looked at the upcoming forecast and decided to postpone to later in the week. Favorable changes in conditions are forecast to begin today.

With no fishing reports Wednesday, this gives us an opportunity to share some questions from readers.

A frequent question about the Bolivar Gas Wells came from David Sullivan, who asked about the history of the group of wells across the channel from the Texas City Dike and why they are so popular with fishermen.

The group of wells we commonly refer to as the Bolivar Gas Wells were drilled by Houston Oil and Minerals back in the early 1970s. At the time, it was one of the largest gas fields in the Galveston Bay complex. Today, production continues from isolated wells; however, the ownership has changed hands several times.

Before Hurricane Ike stirred up the shell pads, the old wells had the reputation of being one of the top spots for trout and other fish during the heat of the summer. The 8- to 15-foot depths and shell bottoms were a perfect match for summertime trout.

Following Ike, the fishing dropped off; however, there are two or three wells that still produce good numbers of fish. Those few wells tend to be kept close to the vest of regular fishermen and guides in the area.

This summer, I have not had any great trips fishing that area; however, each day is different. I have my favorite well I hit each time the conditions are right and on one of the trips, the trout will be there.
Our only fishing report comes from a Tuesday trip made by the party boat New Buccaneer. Capt. Matt Smith took 38 anglers 65 miles offshore where they landed a boat limit of king mackerel (76) along with 16 amberjack, 31 vermilions, a Warsaw grouper and a bunch of other fish.

Fishing report galveston

The southwest wind raised its ugly head Tuesday and changed what had been some excellent conditions for fishing.

Early Tuesday, the winds were tolerable for hitting the water, and my fraternity brother from Henderson, Jack Powers, his wife Peggi, son Scott and four grandchildren joined me for a morning of fishing. Our first stop was the cedars along Pelican Island where we picked up several specks, a mangrove snapper and three yellow jacks.

The wind picked up as we headed to the jetties, and the westerly wind was too much to try to anchor along the channel side of the North Jetty. We settled at the rock pile on the Gulf side and finished our trip with a good catch of quality sand trout, whiting and six good-sized ribbon fish I retained for future offshore bait.

Monday, Dean Chiles of Bayou Vista had a good day of fishing with Brian Pratt and Bob Griffin of Lewisville. They fished near the Galveston Ship Channel and landed eight specks to 5 pounds, sand trout and sharks and hooked a large bull red that eventually won the battle. The action came in 7 to 10 feet of water using Saltwater Assassins and live croaker.

Richard Belleau reported catches of whiting, gafftop and croaker from the 61st Street Fishing Pier in what he described as slow fishing early Tuesday.

Galveston’s party boat operations are making the most of the hot action offshore and running frequent trips between now and Labor Day. Monday, both groups were offshore and here is what they brought back.

The New Buccaneer’s catch from its 65-mile trip included 226 vermilions, nine kings, an amberjack, ling, five sharks — including a 225-pound bull shark — tomtate, triggerfish and others.
The Capt. John’s 25-mile trip resulted in 524 spadefish, 36 sharks, Gulf trout, lane snapper and a stingray.

Fishing Galveston

Friday, conditions returned to near perfect for fishing. In some areas, the fish cooperated and in others, they must have not received word of the change.

Early Friday, Polly and I headed out to our favorite spots for this time of year with live shrimp and croaker. Our first stop was the Bolivar Gas Wells, where the water was clear and the tide moving. Only a shark to show for a half-hour stop. The Gulf side of the South Jetty was in fair shape but not as good as the channel side of the North Jetty near the boat cut.

While our catch was not up to par quantity-wise, quality-wise, it was. The highlight of the trip was landing my second-best trout ever fishing the North Jetty, a 28-inch sow that hit a live croaker.
Conditions were just perfect near the boat cut; however, not much in the way of action for any of the boats nearby. Two specks, a bull whiting, shark and a nice sheepshead were all that we could muster before the midday sun and heat drove us in.

Bulldog’s Bait Shop reported a nice catch of trout and reds by José Cevallos, who fished the west end beach front. Cevallos said the water was clear in that area.

Jetty Joe, Galveston Bait and Tackle, reported about Capt. Cecil Gray’s productive charter on Thursday. Gray hosted three guests from Houston to East Bay, where they landed 19 trout to 23 inches using live croaker for bait.

The party boat New Buccaneer made a 65-mile trip offshore Thursday where Capt. Matt Smith placed his 100 guests into action. The catch included 158 vermilions, 23 kings, seven amberjack, 57 tomtate, 27 sharks, an African pompano, Dorado and a variety of reef fish.

The party boat Cavalier had productive bay trips Thursday, landing 36 bull reds and sand trout, gafftop and sharks.

Galveston Fishing Report

It appears a change in conditions is on the way and not too soon for Galveston-area anglers. Lighter winds are in the forecast beginning today, and a switch to a southeasterly direction is forecast to follow Friday.

It’s music to our ears!

While we have been dealing with adverse conditions, fish are being caught.

Capt. Adam Meider took client Scotty Wallingford shark fishing in the San Luis Pass surf last weekend and while no sharks were landed, strikes by the feared fish stripped the line off Meider’s two Diawa sh-50 reels. They did have an interesting catch that evening when a 44-inch red was landed that had a large, healed shark bite.

On Sunday, Capt. Bobby Martin of Bayou Vista hosted Donald Box, Shannon Brown and his son VJ visiting from South Korea to a jetty fishing trip. Their first stop was the South Jetty, where the water resembled chocolate milk, and after 15 minutes, they moved to the North Jetty. There, conditions were much better, and the fish were biting.

During 4 hours of fishing, they landed 37 Gulf trout, a few Spanish mackerel and a 39-inch red. Live shrimp fished on the bottom was the bait.

The 2013 CCA-Texas Star Fishing Tournament runs through Labor Day and so far, 52 tagged redfish remain to be caught. The first five boat and truck packages have been claimed; however, there are five Haynie 23 Big Foot Boats with Mercury motor and trailers awaiting the next five tagged redfish.
Last weekend, the party boat Capt. John made an overnight trip to the floating platforms and other fishing spots up well more than 100 miles off Galveston where the water depths reach more than 3000 feet deep. The two-day trip with Capts. Johnny Williams and his daughter Jill sharing duties resulted in 692 vermilions, 94 blackfin tuna, eight yellowfins, 29 Dorados, 21 kings, 19 sharks and a variety of other fish including amberjack, grouper and others.

Galveston Fishing Charter Company

                                                            Picture of Our Charters

The current heat wave is sending fishermen in early as the late morning heat is just too intense for most people. Once the wind shifts to a more southeasterly direction, cooler temperatures should follow along with better tidal flow.

The weather forecast calls for this to begin Friday, so look for inshore and surf fishing to pick up.
Several readers have asked why we are having such a prolonged spell of the adverse wind. Most feel that this is unusual and are curious if I have seen this before.

Prolonged spells of southwest winds are common from mid-June to late July. We have discussed the effects of moderate and stronger winds from that direction and the fact it is normally a part of summer.

While the prevailing wind around Galveston is from the southeast, different weather patterns will cause a change in direction. August is normally a month with light winds, either variable or from the southeast, both excellent for fishing.

Hopefully, we will not be discussing this ill-wind next week.

On the fishing scene, there’s little to report from daytime fishing. We did have a report from Jetty Joe at Galveston Bait and Tackle who had three customers from Cleveland return to his cleaning table with a catch of eight trout, three reds, eight sheepshead and three sand trout all caught at the railroad bridge. Live shrimp was the bait.

Along the beach front, off-color water continues to hamper fishing; however, customers at the 61st Street Fishing Pier were catching croaker, whiting and sharks.

GALVESTON FISHING CHARTERS COMPANY

Some picture from one of our Charters

Saturday, the action was red hot in East Bay and mid-Galveston Bay. Limits and near-limits of trout were being taken by a large number of anglers in both areas.

The Houston Ship Channel spoil banks also were producing a lot of trout and reds.
Capt. Windy Marshall, Eagle Point Bait Camp, reported full limits of reds and 22 trout up to 28 inches caught by Capt. John of Reel Burners Charters. His Saturday charter fished Trinity Bay shell pads using live croaker for bait.

Marshall said he had more than 20 boats return Saturday with catches of 20 to 40 trout as limits or near-limits for each vessel. Live croaker was the bait of choice.

 David Noyes fished out of April Fool Point and found outstanding action on trout along the ship channel spoil banks. They landed 16 trout using both live shrimp and croaker for bait.

Deep shell in East Bay was where the fish were biting in that area. Bass Assassins and live bait were the keys to taking limits and near limits of specks.

Dudley Morgan of Crystal Beach drifted some of the smaller shell reefs near Hannah’s Reef and landed six trout and four reds, retaining his limit of three reds. Bass Assassins Chicken on a Chain with brown with chartreuse tails accounted for all of the fish. The bite was on early and slowed around 9 a.m.

Spanish mackerel were thick around the North Jetty on Saturday, as many anglers fishing the rocks were having their leaders severed by the small sharp-toothed fish.

Fishing Report Galveston

The beach front and bays are clearing nicely and, as expected, the fish are following the green water. Tarpon, in particular, like good visibility in water, and the action has resumed on the prized silver kings.

Friday, Tarpon Alley just off Rollover Pass when one of the big fish hit. Gracie Fullick of Friendswood was the lucky angler and for well more than an hour, she had a fight on her hands, ultimately winning the battle and boating an about 170-pound tarpon. A large ribbon fish was the bait.

Other fish landed included sharks and kings to 30 pounds.

Thursday, Mike and Matthew Mullins of Houston to a trip fishing the Galveston Ship Channel where they landed bull reds, large Gulf trout and specks to more than 24 inches. Live shrimp was the bait.

Sarah Melcer was back at the jetties Thursday fishing Abby’s Hole at the end of the South Jetty. Between 2 p.m. and 4:30 p.m., she landed 13 gafftop.

Offshore action is red hot in both the distant waters of the Gulf and closer inshore.

The party boat Capt. John made a 36-hour overnight trip to the floating platforms well more than 100 miles out where co-captains Johnny Williams and his daughter Jillian found the fish for the 36 anglers aboard. The catch included 94 blackfin tuna, seven yellowfins to 60 pounds, 692 vermilions, king mackerel to 24 pounds, 19 sharks, two amberjack and a variety of reef fish.

Closer in, Capt. Matt Smith placed his 52 guests into action 65 miles out on the party boat New Buccaneer. The catch included 462 vermilions, 13 blackfin tuna, four amberjack, three ling and a large variety of reef fish.

Galveston fishing report

An interesting thing happened recently in the Houston Big Game Tournament. Sheri Potter caught a 50-pound dorado and the fish won the tournament and $66,000 in winnings, but it wasn’t the size of the fish that was a shocker.

After the big fish was weighed in, it was taken to the cleaning table where the big surprise took place. In the dorado’s stomach were more than 20 small Kemp’s ridley turtles.

A Dorado that large isn’t going to come close to shore to feed, therefore, somewhere in the open waters of the Gulf of Mexico, the fish intercepted the young turtles. What this should tell us is that shrimpers are not the only problem for this endangered species.

In other fishing news, August is getting off to a good start, especially compared to the last half of July. Winds are calming, and the fish are beginning to come out of hiding.

Wednesday night flounder gigging was outstanding along the shorelines of Jones Lake and Virginia Point. Terry Hamilton and Ronnie Cain used bright lanterns to work the shores of both areas and ended up with eight flatfish to 18 inches in length.

Cain cautioned night waders to be especially careful because numerous small stingrays are buried in the mud and sand.

Early Thursday, John Hogan of Sea Isle used live croaker to take six trout to more than 4 pounds while fishing the tide change at Christmas Pass. Two large reds were hooked but broke off before he could get them in his landing net.

Night fishing around the canal near Crystal Beach has been producing a variety of fish. Raymond “Baldy” McMann has been fishing the wee-hours of the morning and catching specks — mostly undersized but a few keepers — along with sand trout, lady fish and a few reds. Live shrimp was the bait of choice.