Strange Strategies For Winter Specks

Some of the biggest speckled trout come during winter months.

The famous Jim Wallace record fish of 1996 came during February in Baffin Bay and hardcore trout enthusiasts spend much time targeting big fish when the waters are cool.

Here at Texas Fish & Game, we have heard some winter speck strategies that are a little unusual-some coming from our writers, but most from readers who have shared experiences with us over the years. None of them are totally oddball but they are all a little “different”.

Topwater As A Bobber: Years ago, Capt. Jim Onderdonk told us about tying a short fluorocarbon leader with a soft plastic behind a topwater for inexperienced anglers. Trout that might normally hit the topwater would often hit the plastic and as most anglers know, setting the hook on a topwater bite can be tricky.

Depending on your depth, try 12-18 inches and it works best on a chugger. Think of the chugger as a bobber. This works great in winter because you can make one pop, let it sit 10 seconds and then move it along, whereas if you’re just walking the dog with a walking style plug, you might move too fast for winter specks.

Cut Bait: For real. Cut bait can catch speckled trout during the winter. If it’s available, cut ballyhoo fished on a Carolina rig can be good for big trout down on the Lower Coast. You can throw and let it sit or crawl very slowly along the bottom. Over the years several anglers have reported on the Upper Coast catching trout on small chunks of cut mullet fished at the jetties.

No one talks about jetties for specks during winter, but there are some out there. The good thing about the use of cut bait in winter is you won’t be dealing with sharks and catfish.

Targeting Gar: On the Upper Coast, big alligator gar can be found in some of the canals linking marsh to bay systems. We hae heard numerous reports of big speckled trout in the vicinity of these gar. Gar are very lethargic during winter and don’t do much. In fact, few gar are caught during winter so they’re probably not a threat to the the trout.

If you see big gar in shallow water work the area immediately around them with slow-sinking soft plastics or even a slow swimbait. There just might be big trout there.