Mansfield Report: February 2019

Howdy from Port Mansfield! With hunting seasons winding down and February upon us, you can bet lots of anglers will be hitting the chilly flats looking for “the one” that we all know exists, at least in our dreams. I’m referring to double-digit speckled trout, of course.

You imagine yourself wading in slightly stained water with scattered potholes and lots of six-inch mullet flickering. The water temperature is 60° with a slowly falling barometer. The sky is overcast with intermittent mist and a light north breeze. You came prepared though – Simms and AFTCO gear from head to toe keep you warm and dry.

Your cast lands perfectly, just beyond a pothole, you work the lure up to the edge and pause for a second. You feel a light tap and set the hook. It’s the moment you’ve been waiting for. She comes out of the water, but only half of her – she’s that big. Her gills are flared and her gaping yellow mouth is the size of a bucket. Your buddy is capturing the action on his cell phone as you handle her like a pro.

No luck involved – preparation just met opportunity. I envision this nearly every day.    

REALITY CHECK: Nope, doesn’t quite happen this way, especially with trophy trout (over 30 inches) accounting for only a tiny fraction of the trout population. 

As of this writing, I and a guide buddy, along with a videographer, are documenting all that is required in planning, strategy, weather, perseverance, dedication, timing, etc. to connect with “the one.” Stay tuned.    

Our fishing here in Port continues to be good. We are having to work around some strong fronts that blow the water out and can dirty the flats in a hurry. On a recent trip we were in an area where we were catching some nice trout and reds when a northwesterly front arrived. Standing thigh deep, I watched as the water began turning dirty brown. Shortly we were standing in calf to knee deep water. The bite we were on shut down instantly. 

It was amazing to watch the water fall off that large flat in the matter of an hour. We hopped on my 24-foot Shallow Sport Classic and were lucky enough to slip out of there and re-adjust our game plan.  We stopped along a flat with a sloping edge toward deeper water and battled the windy, cold, drizzly conditions for another hour or so, hoping the gamefish would stage along the drop. With just a few bites we decided to call it a day. Heck, it was nearly 4:00pm anyway. 

Generally, we have been targeting large flats with an abundance of thick grass and potholes – the potholes that are holding the best fish are the ones that are about six to eight inches deeper than that grass that surrounds them. They also have more of a muddy, almost boggy bottom. I believe fish prefer these potholes over others for whatever reason. 

I know this because when I’ve seen those larger fish while cruising the flats and circle back around to make a wade, I’ve noticed this kind of bottom. When we’ve worked areas like this thoroughly, we have been successful with some large trout (up to seven pounds) and even heavier redfish. It’s important to have just a little bait present, it does not take a lot. If I see bait while running the flats but not necessarily seeing it jumping, that’s OK. I know it’s there and that’s good enough. 

Best baits have been KWigglers Willow Tail Shad and Long Tall Sally. Quite often when the bottom grass is really thick we find it necessary to rig on the Willow Maker weedless jighead in either 1/16 or 1/8 ounce (the 1/8 will be available soon). If there are larger potholes with less grass, a regular 2/0 jighead of 1/16 or 1/8 ounce works fine. Not a lot of topwater action recently but when opportunity presents itself we’ve been pulling a few good fish. The steadiest action though has been with plastics by far.

Another consideration would be to periodically check deeper ledges or flats that taper off quickly, bigger fish seem to prefer those drop-offs. Toss a plastic and work the deeper area slowly and thoroughly. Best colors have been Mansfield Margarita, Plum Chartreuse, Flo Mingo and Turtle Grass.

As we move into February and beyond, expect fish to be more aggressive on warming days. This is when you might find yourself fighting the fish of a lifetime. 

If you plan to attend the Houston Fishing Show – March 6 to 10, 2019 – swing by the Fishing Tackle Unlimited booth and say hello. We would love to visit with everybody.