Mid-Coast Bays: December 2023

November is typically one of the better months for fishing along the Texas middle coast and it has proven to be true again this year. I come to this assumption because of the many different ways and locations you can fish successfully this time of year. Now, having said that, and luckily for us, nearly all of them can also be productive during the month of December. Granted you will have to judge the weather and pick your fishing locales logically, meaning that you shouldn’t head to the south shoreline during a howling norther.

Typically during December the cold fronts will become stronger and last longer with each passage. But there will be several days with calm winds in between, and this leaves the whole bay system open for great fishing.

During these calm days between fronts is when you will see the bow of my Shallow Sport X3 pointed toward San Antonio Bay. Nothing gets me more excited than knowing I am going to be reef hopping across the bay where I honed my skills for the trade I chose to make a living. These reef hopping scenarios have already played out during November for me and my clients with great success. We have enjoyed many days wading the shell reefs, and when wading wasn’t an option, we drifted the reefs with equally good outcomes.

On the drifting trips we generally choose the larger reefs that run north to south so we can drift along the deeper edge using my MinnKota trolling motor to adjust the drift as necessary. The MinnKota has also saved many a day when there was no wind to move us along. On those days I would just slowly troll along while we tossed lures at the drop-offs and underwater points, and also towards the shallower sections of the shell.

When choosing a reef to wade there are many factors to help decide which reef and how to begin your wade. First should be the presence of bait, whether mullet or shad. Just remember that during the cooler part of the month the bait will likely be subsurface and less active. Look closely for swirls or underwater flashes, sure clues when they’re not active on the surface. Another factor can be the presence of birds, whether pelicans or gulls. They can be sitting on the shell or hovering above it. Having multiple birds present tells me there is definitely bait in the area.

When you have found the reef you are going to wade, you now need to have target areas in which to concentrate your efforts. This is especially true on the very large reefs in the San Antonio Bay System, like Panther and Dagger. They are too large to just start wandering around making unproductive casts to unproductive water.

One of the targets you will want to look for and concentrate your efforts on are what I call breaks. This could be a place where the reef takes a dip just below the water’s surface and has water flowing across it, or it could be a four foot deep cut running through the reef. Concentrate your casts on both sides of the reef around these breaks.

Another target would be the points of the reef. I’m not just talking about the ends of the reef; I’m talking about any point you might encounter anywhere along the main body of the reef. There are many reefs with fingers jutting off laterally, and each will have points that you will want to focus upon.

When wading what I call open water reefs, I generally start with my trusted 4” Bass Assassin Sea Shad paddletails. I rig these on the 1/16 ounce Bass Assassin Jighead, #05001. As far as lure color is concerned, I generally use darker colors during early winter, such as the Magic Grass or Purple Chicken. I will use these until the dead of winter or when the water gets very clear, and then I will switch to more natural hues, such as Opening Nite or Houdini.

Wrapping this up, I would again like to thank Coastline Marine in Seabrook and Shallow Sport Boats for my Shallow Sport X3. This is my third X3 and I can honestly say I do not believe there is a better all-around boat for the way I fish here on the middle coast. I can cross rough bays safely without discomfort for my customers and cruise anywhere I want in the back-lakes of Matagorda Island… with confidence of getting back out!

Fish hard, fish smart!