The View: February 2022

It has been about a year now since the devastating Freeze of February 2021; and, we have just come through what I consider to be the warmest fall and early-winter seasons I can remember. What can we expect? No one really knows.

Our fishery took a beating from the freeze, but we are recovering. Attitudes are changing to more of a catch-and-release approach. That’s good news, more anglers than ever beating on the same resource day after day means there has to be a compromise somewhere. Let’s do our part to leave more than we take. Our bay is a world-class fishery and it will become even better when all attitudes on harvest change for the better.

Here’s how we will be fishing this month:

It may take you leaving your fishing comfort zone, but February fishing can be productive. By now you have read countless times how dark, soggy bay floors hold the warmest winter waters. It’s true. One degree of difference is often the only variable in an area holding schools of fish.

Sometimes all I see are a handful of mullet all day, but trout don’t need a whole lot of mullet this time of year – in fact, they may only eat a few times a week.

Redfish, on the other hand, are readily available in guts and bayous. Some of the lowest tides of the year occur this month, so anglers can quickly eliminate miles of shoreline with only inches of water. Concentrate on the areas that fall from waist to chest deep during the summer – those same areas are probably shin to waist deep in February.

If your boat can get you in those sloughs with only a few inches of water, lots of redfish will be waiting in the deeper guts. Sure, it’s a cold boat ride, but these cold reds will pull your arms off.

Find points of sloughs and bayous and anchor within casting distance. These points normally hold the deepest water as outgoing and incoming tidal flow provide depressions. Live shrimp under a popping cork works every time, but plastics and gold spoons work very well also.

Sand trout are another wintertime option that requires minimal skills. Channels and bayous with tidal flow to and from the Gulf of Mexico receive regular influxes of these shrimp-loving bottom-feeders. Carolina-rigged fresh shrimp put plenty of fillets on the deck; and, despite the rumors, the white fillets fry up really nice and store well in the freezer with a little lemon juice.

A species that rarely gets rave reviews is the sheepshead. Head to your nearest jetty. Most sheepies hang just below the surface and dine on crustaceans and other organisms that thrive along the rocks. Live shrimp under a popping cork is without a doubt the most effective bait.

Provided flooding rains don’t appear, the Colorado River and Caney Creek in Sargent should be winter players at night. Pier anglers set up lights and find trout, reds and sandies on shrimp and glow plastics.

The Colorado has held fish for the past five months, even with the mild winter. If we do get some nasty winter weather look for the river to produce even more, barring serious runoff events.

When the wind allows, we will be drifting over deep shell in East Matagorda with plastics. Some of the largest trout of the year are caught over these fish-attracting structures. Please take care of our trophies and be aware of new trout regulations that were not available for publication at press time.