The View: February 2018

Low tides, cold, cloudy water and northwest winds are nothing new for a February winter day.

Those back bay areas that so often provide refuge from the wind are probably dry right now. Doesn't matter - just eliminates water, making it easier to find a hungry school.

Cuts and channels are normally my February focus. Though waters have been chocolate in the bay, falling tides from the back lakes have ushered clear water through the cuts. A day after winds blow in excess of 30 knots and tides drop a couple feet, redfish can be found in holes and guts, stacked tight around reefs near channels.

I like wading the edges of channels with heavy jigs on the incoming tide, bouncing soft plastics on the bottom. Sensitive graphite rods and braided lines are a must, especially when the tide is really rolling. Sometimes all you feel is the slightest twinge of the fish closing its mouth on the bait.

Soft plastics like Bass Assassins, Down South Lures, Gamblers and MirrOlures have been the best bet; and, I love a pink MirrOlure Soft-Dine. Remember that fish still feed in muddy water, and often times what seems off-colored on the surface is clearer a few feet down in a deep channel.

Often overlooked are oil and gas wells in the bay. Most are stationed in at least 10-feet of water with shell pads around the legs of the platform, perfect terrain for fish to stage and stay warm in winter. Again, though the water may seem off-colored on the surface, often it is much clearer on the bottom. Work the entire water column with your baits. Sometimes the fish can be caught under a popping cork, sometimes they can be coaxed down lower with heavy jigs.

Remember those shorelines with low-tide reefs and sand flats exposed? Somewhere adjacent to those pieces of shell and sand is a gut, and chances are a redfish or two can be found in those holes. Think about those days you waded to your chest in June – those same locales are probably waist-deep now. With an incoming morning tide these spots and the fish that linger nearby are just waiting for fresh currents to usher shrimp, shad and mullet to these hangouts, not to mention your darting soft plastic.

Use the tides to your advantage. Knowing and learning where fish go during periods of low water will help you the next time water levels plummet.

For the past year, except when it was running at flood stage, the Colorado River has been as consistent for trout and redfish as I have ever seen it in my 20 years in Matagorda. In the past I was never really fond of fishing the river, using it only as a last resort when winds were too blustery to fish the bays.

However, over the past two fall and winter seasons the river has been solid. A lot like bass fishing, we toss Bass Assassins, Down South Lures and MirrOlure Lil' Johns against the bank and work the bait along the drops from 2-14 feet of water. It's a great place to camp out when cold north winds are blowing; and, even when they (winds) are not.

Catch us at the Houston Fishing Show in the George R. Brown, February 28 – March 4. Come by and say hello and get on our weekly fishing report list. You can also follow our catches on Instagram and Facebook.