Galveston fishing report

Galveston fishing charter company

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Badly needed rainfall hit the Galveston area early Tuesday; however, the near-gale-force winds accompanying the cold front were not welcomed. Fishing was wiped out for the most part, and anglers are sitting on the sidelines waiting for conditions to improve.

Capt. Lloyd Pepper, also known as the Mayor of West Bay, called in to say the west end of the island, especially close to San Luis Pass, received heavy rain, about 4 to 5 inches. This is exactly what the marshes and back bays in that area needed.

While no one was fishing the jetties Tuesday, I want to point out that during my long number of years fishing the rocks, I have found the week of Mother’s Day to be the time when action on trout gets consistent.

For a number of years, a fishing buddy and I would take off Monday of that week and make one of our first — if not the first trip of the year — to fish both jetties. My fishing logs show some impressive numbers of trout, especially before bag and size limits were placed on the popular game fish.

In recent years, the weather patterns have played havoc in continuing that tradition; however, that has not changed the fact that this is the time to start fishing the granite.

Actually, April is a good month to find trout beginning to appear in good numbers and sizes. The action tends to be less consistent than May.

If you are new to jetty fishing, the techniques are a little different during May and early June than during the hot time of summer. Popping corks and free-lined (with no or very light weight) with live shrimp or croaker are usually the best methods.

The reason is that the water is not as warm as later in the season when trout tend to feed closer to the bottom. Free-lining is my favorite this time of year and, not to contradict what was said earlier, the option is to keep the bait suspended, and the size of the weight needed will depend on the strength of the tidal movement.

Expect to catch other species of fish as well, especially reds, sheepshead, black drum, Spanish mackerel and just about any other kind of fish that visits the jetties.

While the bait does not need to be fished as deep this time of year, all other basics of jetty fishing continue to apply, largely the need for tidal movement and good water clarity.