Walk-up Saltwater (Location Maps, Species, Lure/Baits, and Times Included!)

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Chester Moore

Not all anglers have boats.

That is something Texas Fish & Game has known for a long time, which is why we include bank-fishing locations on all of our coastal Hot Spots Focus columns every month.

And while there are a fair number of quality bank fishing destinations on the coast, many anglers are not aware of them. We get questions all the time from anglers asking the location of certain spots they might have heard of or where to fish when on vacation.

This is a collection of some of the very best of these destinations ranging from the obvious to the obscure. We realize for walkabout anglers, access is key; and this is our way of continuing and upgrading this coverage.

Before we get into these many locations, there are some important things to remember when fishing from the shore in saltwater venues.

Many anglers complain of rarely catching legal-sized game fish from the bank, and I believe a big reason for this is their choice of bait. Dead shrimp is by far the easiest bait to get, and it will catch everything, but that is the problem. It catches hardheads, small croakers, sand trout and lots of undesirables. My advice is to bring one rod rigged with dead shrimp (let kids use it if they are fishing) and use just the croaker, sand trout and piggy perch you might catch as live or cut bait.

Also, learn to throw a cast net and catch mullet, mud minnows and baby croakers. All of these fished on a Carolina rig will catch reds, specks and flounders. The beauty of using a cast net is you do not have to pay for your bait. Of course it is a lot of work, but it will save you money.

Something else to consider is using a popping cork. There are lots of snags along shorelines, and when fishing on bottom you are bound to get snagged. Using corks you can fish just above the bottom and avoid most snags. At the same time you draw attention to your bait with the popping action of the cork. Little details like these can go a long way when you’re fishing these saltwater walk-up venues.

SABINE LAKE AREA

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1) Causeway Bridge/Umphrey Pier
Location: At Pleasure Island on SH 82 at the causeway bridge.
Species: Flounder
Lure/Baits: Live mud minnows, finger mullet and jigs tipped with shrimp
Best Season/Time: Fall and Spring on outgoing and incoming times respectively.

2) McFaddin Beach
Location: Off of Highway 87 past Sabine Pass
Species: Redfish
Lure/Baits: Live croaker, mullet or whole crab
Best Season/Time: On high tides during the summer and fall.

3) Lower Neches Wildlife Management Area (West Side)
Location: Highway 87 between Bridge City and Port Arthur
Species: Redfish
Lure/Baits: Cut and live mullet, dead shrimp
Best Season/Times: Summer and fall on outgoing tides

GALVESTON AREA

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4) Rollover Pass
Location: Highway 87 between High Island and Port Bolivar
Species: Flounder
Lure/Baits: Live mud minnows
Best times/Season: Fall and Spring (while it lasts)

5) Bolivar Pocket
Location: Off of Highway 87 near the jetties
Species: Speckled trout
Lures/Baits: Topwaters and silver spoons
Best Season/Times: Summer during early morning hours on high tides is good as is late, calm evenings

MATAGORDA AREA

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6) Lighthouse Beach & Bird Sanctuary
Location: 700 Lighthouse Beach Drive, PortLavaca
Species: Redfish
Lure/Baits: Crab
Best Season/Times: On the last half of rising tides.

7) Foley Reserve Park
Location: East Bayshore/Palacios
Species: Flounder
Lure/Baits: Live mud minnows
Best Times: First hour of falling and last hour of rising tides in spring and fall

8) Jetty Park
Location: End of FM 2031, Matagorda
Species: Speckled trout, redfish
Lure/Baits: Live shrimp
Best Season Times: When light winds are blowing and waters are running clear in summer for trout. Fall for redfish.

COASTAL BEND AREA

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9) Copano Bay Bridge
Location: FM 136, Bayside
Species: Speckled trout, flounder, sheepshead
Lure/Baits: Soft plastic shrimp and shad imitations and live mud minnows
Best Season/Times: The fishing tends to be best on outgoing tides. Summer and fall

10) Mustang Island State Park
Location: SH 361 Port Aransas
Species: Redfish
Lure/Baits: Live mullet, croaker, Gulp! Crabs and cracked crabs
Best Season/Times: High tides during summer and fall

11) JFK Causeway
Location: At Humble Channel in Corpus Christi
Species: Black drum
Lure/Baits: Dead shrimp, sea lice
Best Season/Times: Spring, Winter

12) Highway 188
Location: At Port Bay in Rockport
Species: Redfish
Lure/Baits: Cracked crab, cut mullet
Best Times: Look for high tides in summer and fall to provide the best fishing.

13) Fulton Fishing Pier
Location: 250 Deforest Loop, Rockport
Species: Speckled trout
Lure/Baits: Live shrimp
Best Times: At night and early in the morning in spring, summer and fall

LOWER COAST

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14) Baffin Bay, CR 1145 South
Location: Kingsville
Species: Redfish
Lure/Baits: Crabs, dead shrimp, mullet
Best Season/Times: Early in the morning in spring, summer and fall

15) South Padre Island
Location: North end of Park Road 100
Species: Speckled Trout, Redfish
Lure/Baits: Live croaker and mullet
Best Season/Times: Early in the morning and late in the evening in summer and fall

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16) Pirate’s Fishing Pier
Location: 204 North Garcia
Species: Speckled Trout
Lure/Baits: Live shrimp
Best Season/Times: First hour of outgoing, last of incoming tides during spring and summer

17) Park Road 100 Bay Access 1
Location: Across from Edwin King Atwood Park, South Padre Island
Species: Redfish, trout
Lure/Baits: Soft plastics fished under a popping cork, topwaters
Best Season/Times: Evenings on strong, moving tides in spring, summer and fall

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