Reports & Forecasts: April 2022

Trinity Bay - East Bay - Galveston Bay | James Plaag
Silver King Adventures - silverkingadventures.com - 409.935.7242
James says the fishing has been good for him in the West Bay area lately, and they're catching most of their fish wading. “We have been wading in places with mud and shell on the bottom, catching some of our trout on top, some on Leles and some on the MirrOlip, which is a floating/diving lure. Takes most people a while to master the technique with it, but it works great. The other day, I was catching twice as many as my customers on it. They were throwing tails. If the bite's really tough, reeling a paddletail straight in works best. In April, we'll continue to wade as much as we can, and fish out of the boat some too. In the past, when we had lots of grass in the coves and on the north shoreline, the fishing in those places was more consistent. The cold weather we've had the last two years has killed most of the grass. Until it comes back, the patterns we fished twenty years ago will work better. We'll be wading the big sand flats with scattered shell and fishing out in the middle, drifting mud streaks, around slicks and working birds.”

Jimmy West - Bolivar Guide Service - 409.996.3054
“Fishing has been excellent lately, in a variety of locations. We've been catching plenty of trout in the bayous, on shorelines, and out in the middle. The topwater bite has been hot on a lot of days. We're catching lots of fish on tails too. Basically, we are watching birds, keying on slicks and concentrations of bait. The numbers of keeper trout have been impressive, with pretty fast action. We're not catching any big trout, nothing over about five pounds. The reds, on the other hand, have been big, on average. And we're catching some of them right up tight to the banks, on topwaters, so it's been a hoot. It's not unusual to catch a few over thirty inches. In such shallow water, that is fun, to say the least. In April, we usually do have better luck on some of the bigger trout in the back parts of East Bay, especially when winds allow us to wade the north shoreline areas. Wading will definitely be the only way to catch much at all when it's windy out of the southeast. The boat drifts off the bank too fast, and it becomes tough to stay in the fish if you don't wade.”

West Galveston - Bastrop - Christmas - Chocolate Bays
Randall Groves - Groves Guide Service | 979.849.7019 - 979.864.9323
Every spring, Randall eagerly awaits the arrival of several species which serve as food sources for the trout, reds, and other fish he targets. “We've already had a huge hatch of shad this year, which will set the table nicely for all the fish that feed on them. Soon, we'll have glass minnows laying their eggs on stalks of grass in the marshes, rafts of mullet flipping on the flats, and hordes of shrimp moving through the pass, with gulls and other birds hovering and diving around them. Lately, I've been wading mostly, doing best on bone/silver Paul Brown FatBoys. In March, I usually fish mostly in places with a softer, muddy bottom and some scattered shell around, or around the larger reefs. In April, I usually make a transition to fishing around a harder, sandy bottom more of the time. Of course, if people want to fish out of the boat, we do that too. When we're fishing slicks and schools of bait and birds out of the boat, red shad Norton Bull Minnows have been working great. All these patterns are reliable in one of my favorites time frames for fishing the San Luis Pass area.”

Matagorda | Bay Guide Service
Tommy Countz- 979.863.7553 cell 281.450.4037
The higher tides which normally rise soon after the spring equinox make the fishing in the Matagorda area different in several ways than it is during the winter months. “Once the bull tides come in, we start seeing a lot more bait, of different kinds,” Tommy says. “We usually have a good many glass minnows, which we find by watching for diving gulls and pelicans, also brown shrimp, which means working gulls. The number of mullet usually increases too. And with the higher water levels, we're able to get into the back corners of the shoreline coves easier. All this contributes to make the fishing in West Bay good. We catch lots of reds on grass beds in the coves this time of year. The drains can be good too, especially on falling tides. I like to throw topwaters most of the time in April, especially early in the mornings. Sand Eels on light jigheads work better if it's sunny. Fishing in East Bay can be good too, and we do catch some big trout this time of year, usually out in the middle, over a muddy bottom with some scattered shell, in areas with lots of jumping mullet.”

Palacios | Capt. Aaron Wollam
www.palaciosguideservice.com - 979.240.8204
In the Palacios area, the glass minnow run which kicks off in West Matagorda, Keller and Turtle bays usually becomes the highlight of our excellent fishing. When the giant clouds of minnows show up in the grassy areas in the shallows of these bays and all the others in the area, the trout and reds go on a feeding frenzy, and fishermen catch plenty on a daily basis. Brown pelicans and laughing gulls lead people to the most active areas, so using binoculars to find the birds makes good sense. Clear paddletails with flakes of glitter and chartreuse tails mimic the look of the glass minnows well. Bone and clear topwaters in junior versions also work well, at times. Tripletails start showing up late in the month, if water temps rise above 75 degrees for a while. Any structure out in West Matagorda Bay can hold a fish or two. Sight-casting them with live shrimp rigged about four feet under popping corks works best. Fishing for black drum also picks up this month around reefs and shorelines with decent concentrations of shell lying close to the bank. They'll bite both dead and live shrimp dangled a couple feet or less under popping corks.

Port O’Connor | Lynn Smith
Back Bay Guide Service - 361.983.4434
In April, Lynn typically makes a transition to fishing some of the shallow areas along shorelines and in backwater areas. This year, with Cedar Bayou open, he'll be making many of those efforts south of Port O'Connor. “April is a great time to fish the areas close to Pass Cavallo, and I will do that some, but with Cedar Bayou enhancing the potential in bays like Mesquite, Carlos and Ayers, I like to head that way most of the time. In spring, the trout and redfish spend lots of time tight to the shorelines of the main bays and in shallow corners of the lakes. So, we do a lot of wading, throwing at grass beds and sandy spots close to the bank. The long stretch of the south shoreline in San Antonio Bay between here and Ayers Dugout has great potential this time of year, as do the shallow flats on both side of the mouth of Cedar Bayou, in Mesquite Bay. Any of the lakes and coves can hold good numbers of reds and some of the bigger trout. The key this time of year is bait. Normally, there's plenty of mullet, minnows and shrimp in places where we're catching.”

Rockport | Blake Muirhead
Gator Trout Guide Service - 361.790.5203 or 361.441.3894
April is a fun month to fish in the Coastal Bend bays, Blake says. “This time of year, with strong onshore winds blowing most days and high tide levels most of the time, the fishing on the south shorelines of our local bays becomes more consistent. In some stretches, from Corpus Christi Bay to San Antonio Bay, the water in the lee of the islands holds up clear, no matter how hard the southeast wind blows. Fishing for trout and reds in the shallows tight to the banks can be great in that situation. We usually throw small topwaters and soft plastics up there, focusing on sandy spots and isolated grass beds close to the shoreline. If the bite is tougher, we'll throw the Gulp! split-tails, but they aren't usually required. We also fish around the drains coming out of the marshes and the entrances of backwater lakes some, especially if the tide is moving out. With Cedar Bayou open and running, the flats and reefs in Mesquite Bay have lots of potential. On incoming tides, the grassy flats on the shorelines on both sides of the entrance to the bayou produce well. On outgoing tides, ripples in the reefs work better.”

Upper Laguna Madre - Baffin Bay - Land Cut
Robert Zapata - [email protected] - 361.563.1160
The arrival of April brings some welcome changes to both the weather and the fishing patterns. For one thing, we start to have fewer of the cloudy, windy days. Since the days last longer, and we have more sunny days, air and water temperatures begin to climb, and winds calm. The fish move into the warmer, shallower water, but on most days, the water stays cool enough to require us to wear waders and of course, our ForEverLast RayGuards. The trout spawn intensely this month and often carry lots of eggs, so studies show this is the month when the average weight of the large female trout runs highest, making it a prime window to try for the trout of a lifetime. Look for the big trout in water two feet deep or shallower, along grassy shorelines with some sandy potholes and some bottom hugger rocks. The topwater bite is often great this month, so it's good to always have a MirrOlure SheDog at the ready. If too much floating grass makes using the topwaters troublesome, try Bass Assassin Die Dappers in colors like opening morning, salt & pepper/chartreuse, trickster or plum/chartreuse rigged on sixteenth-ounce Assassin Spring-lock jigheads.

Corpus Christi | Joe Mendez - www.sightcast1.com - 361.877.1230
April is a great month to fish several famous places in the Corpus Christi area, Joe says. “We have great fishing in the middle of the spring from Corpus Bay to the Land Cut. Up north, Shamrock Cove and East Flats produce lots of redfish and a few big trout every spring. Fishing in those places is usually best when a southeast wind is cranking, mucking the water up in other places. People who like to sight-cast love the clear water on those flats. Other good places to get out of the wind down south include Yarbrough Flats and Summer House. In both those areas, it's possible to make controlled drifts and throw at visible trout and redfish. The west side of the Land Cut is also productive in April. Most of the best catching is done by people who keep the boat in the middle of the ditch and cast at the shelf on the west side. If it's not so windy, the fishing in Baffin and on the King Ranch Shoreline closer to Corpus can also be great. This time of year, staying really shallow is a big key to catching both redfish and the bigger trout.”

P. I.N.S. Fishing Forecast | Eric Ozolins
361-877-3583 | Oceanepics.com
Fishing in the surf became pretty tough at the end of winter, with really unpredictable weather and rapidly changing temperatures. March brought a much-needed warming trend and a return to easier fishing. April is normally a month with many different kinds of fish available in the surf zone. We're optimistic about a run of jack crevalle this year. If the water's clear, they show up in good numbers chasing bait. They can be seen cruising the waves over the bars and readily attack large spoons, swim baits and topwaters. Red drum of all sizes will be caught along the beaches this month too, feeding on mullet mostly. Sharks will be plentiful, especially pregnant female blacktips. Bulls, scalloped hammerheads and other species will also be present. Little tunny may run the beach for a while too, if the water runs cool and clear. These fish average three to six pounds and feed on extremely small prey. The best lures to use when targeting them are tiny spoons and flies. These need to be tossed right into the middle of a visible feeding frenzy, if possible. This kind of fishing is purely for sport, since these fish aren't edible, but it's really fun.

Port Mansfield | Ruben Garza
Snookdudecharters.com – 832.385.1431
Getaway Adventures Lodge – 956.944.4000
In spring, the area behind the cabin in the Saucer is a great place to start the day. Early in the morning, it's best to target the shallows east of the cabin, where the bottom is sandy. Throwing topwaters like One Knockers or Boyos first is the best bet, in natural colors. As the day progresses, slowly moving toward the cabins to fish the potholes in slightly deeper water works better. In the area around the Pipeline, the drill is much the same. Heading up north from town, the area east of the weather station where the grass and sand create a visible edge works well. Lots of mullet in an area usually indicate the presence of reds. The mullet are usually up shallow early, then make their way toward deeper water, and the reds follow them. Topwaters, soft plastics and weedless spoons all work well to trick the reds. The new improved paddletails made by KWiggler rigged on eighth-ounce heads in colors like Mansfield Margarita, salt and pepper and red/white work really well when the reds aren't blowing up on top regularly. When winds allow, the west shoreline and the spoil humps close to the entrance to the Land Cut have great potential.

Lower Laguna Madre - South Padre - Port Isabel
Aaron Cisneros | tightlinescharters.com – 956-639-1941
With water temperatures climbing and tide levels rising, we are finding the trout moving into shallow areas along shorelines and on grassy flats covered by shallow water along the ICW and on the east side. Many of the fish are in water less than a foot deep, so stealth is a key to catching them. Wading slowly without making a wake is the best way to get within casting range. They're feeding on small shrimp and fish, and the topwater bite has been great. Small ones like Spook Juniors in bone have worked best. As the winds pick up, KWiggler Ball-tails rigged on eighth-ounce screw-lock jigheads have worked better, tossed into potholes with a foot of two of water covering them. We're focusing on actively jumping bait to target the fish. The redfish have been cruising the flats in the shallows, creating visible wakes on calm mornings. Like the trout, they're blasting off on topwaters early in the mornings along area shorelines, and we're catching more on KWiggler Willow-tails rigged on light jigheads farther away from the bank later in the day. Soon, the back bays will fill up with bait and the trout and reds will follow.