South Padre: September 2022

What an abnormal year we are having. I would never have guessed the winds would be howling through July and into August. Let's hope we get a break this month. Rain has been scarce, let’s hope that also changes in September. Even with generally higher salinities, fishing in the Lower Laguna has been good to outstanding lately. On overcast days water temps have been in the low-to mid-80s and hitting the low-90s on bright sunny days. Water temps should begin to dip slightly as days grow shorter and, hopefully, more cloud cover and some rain.

The redfish bite has been as good as it gets. We are running into schools in more than a few places. Along with slot reds we are catching lots of little ones, which is a good sign for the future. Reds have been favoring sand pockets in early hours and retreating to deeper water as the water warms. Switching to heavier jigs has led to some great catching in deeper water during the major and minor feeds. Lure color doesn’t matter when they are in feeding mode.

What's always unique about redfish, especially when they are schooling, is that they tend to return to the same areas every year, give or take a couple of weeks. Having said that, I have seen the schools become smaller and less willing to take a lure as fishing pressure has increased steadily over the years.

The outlook for September redfishing is very good for two reasons; fishing and boating pressure will decline as hunters begin heading to the fields and we should begin to see significant cooling of the water temperatures. I predict topwater action will improve considerably as well.

We are catching solid trout in good numbers which, to me, is an indication that the fishery is on a good road to recovery. Throughout our bays, many areas are producing stout to undersize trout. Slicks can be seen, and you can smell their fragrance if you happen to be downwind from one. Most of our trout catches have been in the waist-to-belly deep water. Sandy, scattered-shell bottoms have been the most productive, especially in the warmer part of the day. Don't overlook the edges of the ICW. The drop-off in general, and grass beds that lie adjacent are producing and will continue to produce both numbers and quality fish.

There are still a few rather large, skinny trout out there, but the consistent numbers of bigger fish is still a few months away. Here's a tip regarding the trout bite. If I'm throwing a topwater and seeing a pattern of short striking, it’s a sign to switch immediately to soft plastic.

Along with decent numbers of solid trout, we are also catching lots of little ones. The same as the reds mentioned above, I see this as a very good sign for the future. Please use extra care when handling these little fish as they may well be tomorrow’s trophies.

We are also having great success with flounder, especially when we target them in the most likely places. Spoils along the edges of the ICW and oilfield cuts have been holding better numbers than we’ve seen in quite a while. I don't consider myself a patient flounder fisherman, but I have been having a field day with them. It’s so good right now that I can practically guarantee everybody at least one in the type of places mentioned. Not many really big ones, mostly we’re catching them in the 15- to 18-inch range.

Fishing for snook on the flats seems to be running late this year as we are just now beginning to encounter numbers that can be targeted reliably. We are not seeing many in the over-thirty-inch class, but a reasonable number in the twenty-two to twenty-four-inch range. There are still two good months to catch the linesiders on the shallow flats and, should we receive the traditional tropical depressions and the rain that comes with them, the snook fishing will get even better.  

Keep your fingers crossed and throw a set of raingear in a dry compartment…we need rain. Hopefully the bays will be less-crowded as dove and teal hunters trade their rods and reels for shotguns. The way I see it, all we need right now is cooler water temps and some rain to reduce the salinity in our bays. If those two things happen we should see stellar fishing in September.

Oh, one more thing, you can’t get tugs sitting in your recliner watching fishing shows. Get out there and experience it!