Fishing Top to Bottom on a Sweltering Sabine

A s we settle into what is typically our hottest month here on Texas’s northernmost stretch of coastline, we are reminded constantly that although the calendar says autumn is within our sights, we’ve still got our fair share of sweltering heat to contend with.

That is not a bad thing, and you will hear no complaints from me. It means we can continue to reap the benefits of the hot summer patterns we’ve been so spoiled by for a while, with one of the biggest of those being able to catch fish throughout the entire Sabine ecosystem.

From the upper end of the lake, including pretty far up the Neches River to the lower end and beyond, we still have a pretty good window. We can fish the entire system from top to bottom with a good bit of confidence. Starting at the top, the trout and redfish bite should remain very consistent in the Neches River. Catching the big three in the river and its tributaries is very common, and the Entergy Outfall Canal and Bessie Heights marsh can give up some serious numbers year-round.

Just a little farther up river, the National Defense Reserve Fleet should stay red hot for trout, reds and flounders until we begin to get the first wave of cool fronts. Live finger mullet and shad are killer for big numbers and solid trout. top-waters and soft plastics fished under popping corks will also produce good results.

Fishing drop offs in 4 to 12 feet of water should keep you in the zone. The main lake with the super hot temperatures and pretty water on good days can result in some very nice stringers.

This month, you can expect mid-day slick-offs. This makes it easy to locate and stay on large schools of fish that have shrimp and shad pushed to the surface in full survival mode. Trout, reds, gaff-top and ladyfish will be binging and purging and will readily accept just about anything you are willing to offer them.

If you want to weed out some of the smaller, less desirable fish, try fishing a little deeper and slower on the perimeter of the school or throw big top-waters. On the bottom, the red hot action south of the causeway, should remain steady until those first cool fronts get to just within casting range.

With the air and water temperatures still up in the red zone, the bite in the channel, at the jetties and the short rigs should be very good. As long as the conditions are favorable and the green water is pushed in it should be business as usual just like it has been for the past couple of months.

Tie those top-waters on early and switch to plastics, spoons Rat-L-Traps and jerk baits once the sun begins to penetrate the water. Autumn will be here soon enough. Until then, let’s keep taking advantage of what the Sabine ecosystem is offering us while it is still hot, and that would be fishing top to bottom.

 

 

Email Eddie Hernandez at ContactUs@fishgame.com

[button title=”Return to CONTENTS Page” link=”https://fishgame.com/1708-August-issue/” target=”” align=”” icon=”” icon_position=”” color=”” font_color=”” size=”2″ full_width=”” class=”” download=”” rel=”” onclick=”