SOUTH PADRE ISLAND/PORT ISABEL
by JIM FOSTER, Contributing editor, Gulf
Coast Fisherman Magazine
FOSTER RANCH KENNELS & OUTFITTERS (956) 233-5553 www.hammer-time.com/foster.htm 4/13/00 After a week of fly-fishing for trout on the Bitterroot in northeastern Montana it was a pleasant feeling when the first redfish hit my gold spoon the other morning. The area was the northern side of Gas Well Flats. The water was crystal clear and 12 inches deep and filled with small schools of redfish. Fishing has been great and the last cool front only made things better. The larger trout turned on with the north wind on gas Well Flats near the weed line off marker #67. After the water went from clear to sandy live shrimp with popping corks did the job for the brave souls that stayed out in the wind. There has not been much action on the Intracoastal. The free-shrimping action won't be starting until the weather warms up. Then finding a spot to drop an anchor get to be a problem for those who enjoy that type of fishing. Snapper and head boats are running full and bring in good catches from both Texas and Mexican waters. Good Fishing! Capt. Jim 3/19/00 Windy is a pretty good description of the weather for the last week. Strong SE winds were followed by winds from the north just as strong or at times stronger. The "Spring Break" cool front was right on time but far less a problem to anglers than the 1999 model. In spite of the wind there were some good catches of trout in several areas of the bay. Just south of Unnecessary Island there were several days of great fishing. Drifting anglers were forced to use one and sometimes two drift bags (sea anchors) to slow down the drift. The water was quite dirty and popping corks and live shrimp were the best choices. Other popping cork spots were Gas Well Flats and the water east of 3 Islands. Artificial lure fishermen were pretty much restricted to several protected areas where semi-clear water could be found. North Cullen Bay and the cove just past Stover Point were two areas where artificials were working. Offshore the fishing was good to excellent when the boats left the dock. In spite of the weather the charter boats haven't lost many days of fishing spring. Good Fishing! Capt. Jim Foster 3/05/00 The question is Where are the trophy trout? Some believe that the spawn and movement of the larger female speckled trout has already happened. There have been reports of some big trout being seen by sight-casting fly fishermen but so far nothing close to the 14 pounds needed to top the existing record has been caught. (If it has they are being very quite about it.) Trout fishing in general has been good with plenty of keepers and even more in the "not-quite" class. These are fat healthy fish. Top baits have been soft plastics and live shrimp. A bait I should mention is the Rat-L-Trap floating lure in silver, gold, or red and white. In the clear water this hard-bait catches trout. This lure is hard to use in very shallow water but works very well in four to eight feet of water. Redfishing has been good in the Three Islands area and on the sand east of the Duncan House. Topwater and soft plastics have been the top baits. Several over-sized reds have been reported caught and released in the Saucer Area near Port Mansfield. Offshore the snapper boats are still bringing in limits from Mexican and Texas waters. The boats are running full and reservations are need on most days. Good Fishing! Capt. Jim
2-8-2000 The quail hunting has been great and again I must apologize for neglecting the water and my tackle because of a 28 gauge double and a few good dogs. BUT.. "them days" are growing short and my urge to go hunting for a big speckled trout is strong. I do hope all our warm weather has not pushed up the spawn. The water temperature is getting close to the 70-degree mark. It's time. There have been some good catches of redfish and trout east of the Duncan House and on the sand against the island. White double-hook worms and green touts have been the top producers. The area just south of Port Mansfield has been good for reds and trout. Wading the east side of the Saucer has been good. Snapper anglers have been have some great trips on the commercial boats and private vessels. Both Texas and Mexican waters have been very productive. It's a shame the boats on the northern parts of the coast don't have this option. Good Fishing! Capt. Jim Foster 1/6/00 Here we are. Unless you over did the liquid libation the first day of the year 2000 dawned warm and partly cloudy and a good day for fishing. If you did celebrate, well relax and recover. It is my wish that all of you have a very Happy 2000. In spite of the erratic weather the last week of 1999 the fishing has been good and should only get better as the winter ends and spring takes over. Redfish and speckled trout have been plentiful on the flats. There have been some VERY LOW tides so caution is advised. One rather hot spot has been the channels leading into South Bay. Some boats have been dropping the hook and catching limits. The artificial lure anglers found reds and big trout east of the Duncan House and South of the Cullen Channel in very shallow water. Soft plastics have been the best choice. In the super shallows a Mauler has been working well. The changing weather has kept the speckled trout moving between the flats and the deeper water. Soft plastics have been a good choice in both areas with white with a yellow tail being the color that has been quite popular. Offshore the snapper boats are reporting plenty of fish in both Texas and Mexican waters. Good Fishing! Capt. Jim Foster
SOUTH PADRE ISLAND / PORT ISABEL / 12-19-99 Ok! I confess. I am guilty of spending more time following my bird dogs than chasing redfish this time of year. Just returning from the upland game fields of Kansas, Oklahoma, and North Texas I ran into some very unhappy snapper fishermen. It's funny but observing the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) lets me know what Charleston Heston must have felt like when he awoke on that beach and found the monkeys were riding horses. We are lucky on the Lower Texas Gulf because most of our boats have Mexican permits and the fishing in Texas waters has been great. Don't let the managers of doom at the NMFS keep you home. The snapper fishing is good. Trout fishing has been good and the weather has been super for spending a day on the water. Most trout are in the 16 to 18 inch class but some bigger specks are also being caught. I will be out between Christmas and New Years giving it a try. Anyone know of a dog that will point trout and reds. Oh well. Let me wish all of you a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS and a HAPPY AND SAFE NEW YEAR. Good Fishing! Capt. Jim Foster 11/20/99 In my last report I mentioned that the weather was more like summer than winter. Well here it is almost Thanksgiving and the weather is still in the 80's. The fishing has been good with speckled trout being caught in the deeper water (3-5 feet) and reds are still schooling on the grass flats and the sand. Both trout and reds are hitting topwater baits but the bait of the month is still the gold spoon. Offshore the boats are reporting blue marlin in and around the Canyon area. Some of these fish are topping 500 pounds. Thank goodness the biggest majority are being tagged and released. Nobody has an explanation for the activity this time of year. Who knows maybe they are there all the time and no one knew it? Go figure. Snapper fishing in Texas waters remains to be good as well as drifting for tuna and other species. The pay to fish boats are coming in with happy customers and the winter is still young. It will be interesting to see what the Feds do with their snapper regulations now that Texas has kept it's fishery open. From the latest reports the National marine fisheries Service is not going to reopen snapper fishing in federal waters until spring of 2000. More political management at it's best. Let me wish everyone a very HAPPY THANKSGIVING. Good Fishing! 11/12/99
If I didn't know better I would say it's late spring instead of almost the end of fall. The offshore folks are having a ball in the blue water these days. For some unknown reason blue marlin have postponed their migration and are hitting lures offshore from South Padre Island. Now my source wouldn't give me the GPS coordinates but several boats are finding and hooking up two and three a trip. It's almost like San Juan, Puerto Rico and their end summer migration just off their shores.
In the bays fishing has been quite good with anglers find good numbers of both redfish and speckled trout. Several anglers have been making snook runs to their "secrete spots" and doing well. I don't think I would be talking out of school if I said South Bay and parts of the Brownsville Ship Channel are good starting places.
Good fishing has also been good north of the Arroyo Colorado with two friends doing very well in the shallow water around Green Island.
Good Fishing!
Capt. Jim Foster / 956-233-5553 /http://www.hammer-time.com/foster.htm
10/23/99
Fishing right before our "cool front" was spotty but several anglers found fish in places close to the boat ramps and marinas. South Bay was a good place to be for both redfish and speckled trout. The TableTop area seemed to have the most fish but the shallows around and near the mangroves held some very large reds. Even a few fair sized speckled trout were caught.
Several days before at the Guides Cup tournament held on South Padre Island it was only a so-so type day. Only about half of the guides reported fair fishing while even those who brought fish to the dock said it was a tough day.
The good news is the red tide is gone and only an isolated small area looked like it might contain a diluted red algae or maybe some of the brown variety. Let's hope it's all gone with the southeast winds.
Good Fishing!
Capt. Jim Foster
9-28-99
Well it looks like fall has entered the picture, even as far South as South Padre Island. The high north wind ended a week of great fishing all along the lower coast of Texas and especially from South Padre to the Land Cut. Top areas were GREEN ISLAND, THE SAUCER, HOLLY BEACH, and LAGUNA VISTA COVE.
In the THREE ISLANDS area there were small herds of redfish prowling the grass flats and potholes. These fish were a mixture of sizes and one hook-up would be a keeper, the next over-sized, followed by a rat-red seemingly out of place with all the big fish. These fish were hitting on everything from topwater lures, to soft plastic, however the killer bait of the week was the old standby, the gold spoon. These were working in a variety of sizes and manufacturers. If it was metal, gold and in the water it worked.
There have also been a good number of redfish and trout several hundred yards out from the Boardwalk Condos on the island. These fish have been hanging around on the bar just off the Boardwalk Channel and have been hitting soft plastic and spoons.
The good fishing continued through the CCA's Valley Chapter, FAMILY FISHING FIESTA and the youngsters reeled in some good catches of trout, flounder, and redfish. One young lady even caught a 7-pound shark. The kids and adults all had a great time at the BBQ and fun games that followed. Congrats to Willie Gossett and his CCA guys and gals for a great day.
Good Fishing!
Capt. Jim Foster