Notes on Texas’ Trophy Trout

TF&G Staff Report

 

LISTEN: (5 minutes, 36 seconds)

 

BIG SPECKLED TROUT are mysterious fish.

Just when an angler thinks he or she has cracked the code on their locations and habits, they get lockjaw. There are 367 miles of Texas Coastline with tens of thousands of square miles of bay and estuaries that comprise our speckled trout habitat.

Trout do not necessarily behave the same way in Port Isabel as they do in Port Arthur. With that in mind we thought it would be fun to look at some of our notes on trophy speckled trout from the surf to the short rigs and from the Louisiana to Mexico borders.

Laguna Spooky Specks: Fish in pressured areas in clear water are often spooky and speckled trout are no different.

A trout is probably more likely to try and remain camouflaged before it bolts as compared to a bonefish for example, but trout in the clear waters of both Lower and Upper Laguna Madre can be spooky fish. Anglers often talk about being quiet on the boat so as to not spook reds.

Trout can be just as spooky and think about this.

How many times have you sight-casted to reds? Probably quite a bit.

How many times have you sight-casted to big trout? Probably far fewer times.Eliminating noise, approaching areas slowly and making delicate casts can make a big difference in Laguna trout fishing.

Matagorda Island: It doesn’t get mentioned as much as it used to, but Matagorda Island can provide some incredible speckled trout fishing on the surf side as well as the bay side.

While your chances of catching a 30-incher aren’t huge, getting in on those 20-25 inch trout here is highly possible. And it’s an adventure.

The island is secluded enough to feel like you’re in some distant land and the fishing pressure is much lower than other areas due to not being located near a large population center. The surf trout there are known for fighting super hard. And that’s probably from evading sharks.

That surf has plenty of those as well.

Ribbonfish: Ribbonfish are a top prey item of speckled trout in some areas. When you see ribbonfish in the 6-12 inch range being chased by a predator, it’s one of two things – specks or Spanish mackerel. And if it’s in the bay as opposed to the surf, it’s probably specks.

Silver spoons or eel imitations are a great way to score when they’re on the ribbonfish pattern.

Specks That Hate Croaker: Live bait is a controversial way to pursue big trout, but it is perfectly legal and popular in the Sabine area. Live croaker is the ticket for big trout on the Lower Coast but is not very effective in Sabine Lake. Mullet is a much better big trout attracting bait in the lake itself.

Short Rigs: The nearshore oil and gas platforms off the Texas Upper Coast and the bordering Louisiana coastline have lots of trout around them in the summer. And they grow to huge sizes.

The water around these rigs ranges from only 20-40 feet deep and the fish will hit a variety of lures and baits. A good tip is that some of the biggest fish will be on a particular spot on the rig. They always seem to congregate on a certain ladder stand or pipe and not be spread around much. If you catch one big one, there’s a good chance there will be another one right there.

To save you from wasting time, don’t venture out if the water is murky. If the water is sandy-green to clear the trout will bite. If not, forget about it.

Wolf Packs: There are small packs of monster trout that will cruise the shorelines along our bay systems. These big fish will be in groups of a few to perhaps a dozen or more. They tend to be most prevalent in early summer in these locales, but we have a feeling they roam together like this more often than we know. We’re not talking about six 30-inchers hanging out together although it is possible, but we have personally seen numerous schools of trout 20 inches plus.

Jetties at Dawn: Many anglers would be shocked to find out how many big trout can be caught on topwaters at the jetties a half-hour before sunrise to about half an hour after.

Topwaters and the jetties might seem like a strange combo, but the big girls will feed close to the surface early in the morning in places like the Galveston North Jetty and over at Sabine.

Interior Channels: There is a system of channels dug in the bayous along the Upper Coast bay systems. Go in quietly with a good pair of polarized shades, look for concentrations of mullet and even the big trout themselves. Bring slow-sinking plastics or big topwaters to score.

River Trout: During summer, look for the Upper Coast Rivers to hold big trout.  The key is getting out early or fishing late because much like the jetties these fish like to feed on the surface early and late. The amount of bait in this area can be overwhelming so look for small slicks forming when they feed and areas where you have shallow shell dropping off to the deep channel.

Big trout are unique, mysterious creatures that drive thousands of anglers to spend thousands of dollars on specialized gear. Keep these observations in mind and you will greatly increase your odds of catching one this summer.

—story by AUTHOR

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