Reports & Forecasts: August 2026

Trinity Bay - East Bay - Galveston Bay | James Plaag
Silver King Adventures - silverkingadventures.com - 409.935.7242
James reports the trout fishing in the Galveston region continues to be very steady and the normal summer patterns have definitely begun to dominate. “We had 30 on Monday, 22 on Tuesday, and 20 today. Fishing out of the boat all three days, mostly on tails. We waded last Wednesday and caught 50. All solid slot fish that probably averaged about 18 inches.” James went on to say that fishing out on the beachfront has also been good when the wind will allow. “There’s been a bunch of big white shrimp moving through the surf and the trout are just tearing ‘em up. Can’t hardly get a bite on tails but they’ve sure been eatin’ topwaters.” James has been leaving the dock in the dark and boxing limits before sunrise, if the clients want to keep them. “We have several spots where the trout have been pretty thick, we play with them for an hour or two and then go looking around. We spend some time along the ship channel, some well pads, and oyster leases. I think it’d be safe to say you can catch trout right now anywhere you want to fish.”

Jimmy West | Bolivar Guide Service - 409.996.3054
Jimmy reports excellent trout fishing continuing across the majority of the Galveston Bay System with the exception of somewhat isolated freshwater inundation at the head of Trinity Bay and in the back and upper end of East Bay. The normal summertime patterns have lots of trout holding out in the middle of all the bays, congregated on deep structure, reefs, and along the ship channels. “Just fish,” he says, “nothing really big, but lots of fat, slot-size trout. All you care to catch most days. Jimmy also reports the Bolivar surf has also been very good when the wind will allow it to calm down. “Standing less than knee-deep in the first gut, throwing a topwater, catching a dozen or more three to three-and-a-half pounders is pretty solid,” Jimmy reported. “Lots of sharks out there, though. I don’t think they’re after us but they sure like the trout we’re reeling in.” Jimmy says that barring any major disruption, such as exceptionally heavy rain from tropical storms that could create widespread freshwater inundation, the present patterns should continue right through August and into fall.

West Galveston - Bastrop - Christmas - Chocolate Bays
Randall Groves | Groves Guide Service
979.849.7019 - 979.864.9323
In August, Randall hopes to be in the surf most mornings, throwing topwaters at the trout. “This time of year, the surf is the best thing going, at least when winds are light and the water’s green to the beach. We like to throw Skitter Walks in the pearl color, also ones with chrome on them. The action is often really close to the beach when the sun first comes up. On mornings when the surf is too rough and off-color to fish, we like the flats behind San Luis Pass better. Incoming tides definitely enhance the bite, as long as the water isn’t moving too much. A super strong tide will roil up the sand and muck up the water. In those situations, we wind up fishing along main-bay shorelines farther from the pass, also in the back-bays at times. Topwaters are still the ticket during the morning hours in those places too. As the sun climbs, Norton Sand Eels produce more bites, and the fish generally move into a little deeper water. Lately, we’ve been dealing with some freshwater flowing into the bays from the swollen rivers. That should all be a distant memory by the time August arrives.”

Matagorda Bays | Capt. Glenn Ging - Glenn’s Guide Service
979.479.1460 - www.glennsguideservice.com
The full-on dog days of summer are here and the heat can sure make our fishing tough. This time of year, it pays off to fish very early, very late, and at night. I am concentrating on areas that have deeper water and good current flow, around jetties and passes. Trout like moving water and the slightly cooler water of the Gulf. I am still catching quite a few trout drifting deep shell in East Matagorda, but the windows when they feed are pretty short this time of year. In West Matagorda I’ve been catching trout on deep structures, mainly on soft plastics rigged on 3/8-ounce heads, banging my lures right on the bottom for best results. I’m throwing a lot of five-inch Bass Assassins in Chicken On A Chain, Roach and Plum/Chartreuse tails lately. The grass beds on the shorelines in West Bay have been productive for waders, especially for trout. Most folks are catching best throwing live bait, but I am hearing some good reports on paddletails and bone or chrome topwaters. The surf and jetties have been good when we get windows to fish them. We keep our eyes on the surf and pounce when the opportunities present themselves.

Palacios | Capt. Aaron Wollam
www.palaciosguideservice.com - 979.240.8204
Summertime fishing is in full swing. Our trout fishery has made a remarkable recovery from the freeze of 2021 and we are catching fish all over the area, in a variety of ways. We’ve been drifting the deep shell pads out in West Matagorda with live shrimp, wading shorelines covered in scattered shell with croaker, and throwing topwaters over the grass flats at daybreak, catching plenty on each of these patterns. The size of our trout seems to be better as well; we’ve been catching lots of fish in the upper end of the slot, with quite a few closing in on the 25-inch mark. The redfish have scattered on the big tides, making their way back into the deep recesses of the marshes, as far back as boats can go. The 3.5” Vudu shrimp rigged under Harvey popping corks have worked best in the marshes. Out on the flats, cut baits have accounted for some good fish. Flounder gigging remains productive on bigger tides. Local giggers have been sticking solid keepers on a weekly basis. We are waiting on light southeast or north winds to allow us to get into the surf. We haven’t had any opportunities, but some should be coming soon.

Port O’Connor | Lynn Smith
Back Bay Guide Service - 361.935.6833
Like many others who gave reports this month, Lynn laments the windy weather which plagued the Texas coast for much of the start of the summer. “We are overdue to get into the surf. Normally, we’ve had several good chances to get out there and work topwaters in some green water by now. Maybe we’ll get a break from all this wind and August will be a prime month for targeting trout on the beachfront. If we do get some chances, we may feel like cattle who’ve been held out of a pasture for a while. There could be lots of fish. When we’re fishing the bays this time of year, we like to stay close to the passes and work flats with grass and sand on the bottom lying close to drop-offs with deeper, moving water. We find the best action for trout early in the mornings most days, and we have a good topwater bite most every day, at least for a while. We do better on soft plastics thrown into slightly deeper water as the lunch hour draws closer, and we target the reds in some of the back-lakes and around the reefs to finish up the days, most of the time.”

Rockport | Blake Muirhead
Gator Trout Guide Service - 361.790.5203 or 361.441.3894
Blake reports steady trout action in the Coastal Bend throughout the month of June, though the fishing for redfish has been less consistent. “We’ve been catching plenty of trout lately. On some days, the topwater bite is great, and we catch all we want without using bait. On other days, the live croakers produce much better than lures. That’s my basic summer plan. I like to fish flats close to deep water, throwing lures early and using them as long as the fish are willing to strike at them consistently, but always knowing we have the croakers in the live well if we want and need them. August is a great month to target trout on some of the main reefs in open water in our bays. In order for this pattern to work well, we need some relatively calm winds for a few days, so the water out in the middle can clear up enough. Prolonged calm stretches also offer us the opportunity to head out into the surf. In a normal year, August is one of the best months to fish the beachfront, with plenty of calm weather and clear to green water making its way within reach of anglers in the breakers.”

Upper Laguna Madre - Baffin Bay
Captain James Sanchez Guide Service - 210.260.7454
In August, we can expect hot temperatures, light winds, and very low tides. At sunrise, water temperatures will range from the low to mid-80s. In the mornings, redfish have been found on shallow flats. However, as temperatures rise, they move into deeper water. A key strategy when hunting them is to locate large schools of mullet; redfish often hang on the outskirts of these schools. If floating seagrass isn’t too problematic, we can throw topwaters with single hooks or Wig-A-Lo Juniors in Bart’s Sand Ninja or Bone Diamond, rigged weedless. In the heat, we target concentrations of trout on drop-offs near deep water, where scattered grass beds grow on a sandy bottom. These areas typically offer slightly cooler water temperatures, particularly later in the day. I recommend wading the shallower edges of flats, spoil islands, and shoreline points this time of year. The bite is often kind of slow when it’s calm in the morning, but it can improve as the winds pick up later in the day. Our lure selection is straightforward―we start with a Mansfield Knocker, then switch to KWigglers Ball-tail Shads rigged on eighth-ounce jigheads. Productive colors include Texas Melon, Bone Diamond, Plum Perfect, and Flomingo.

Corpus Christi & Baffin Bay | Capt. Chris Elliott’s Guide Service
[email protected] - 361.834.7262
After a windy start to the summer, we are looking forward to some calmer winds in August. Our spring high tides have retreated and we’re back to having a normal amount of water in our bays, which makes the Laguna Madre feel like a wade fishing paradise. We will be spending a lot of time fishing along drop-offs with soft plastics over the next few months when we’re looking for trout. The redfish will still be holding in good numbers in the shallows on the flats early in the mornings, but they’re pretty quick to pull off into deeper water as the sun climbs a bit in the sky, and the water begins to heat up. Lately, we’ve been finding some large schools of black drum on the tops of sand bars in shallow water early in the mornings. To target them, we’re throwing small Gulp! lures, or rigging pieces of dead shrimp on jigheads and flinging them into the herds. This sight-casting opportunity is fun and a great way to catch some eating fish while it’s cool. This time of year, it’s important to stay hydrated, apply plenty of sunscreen and set the clock early.

P.I.N.S. Fishing Forecast | Eric Ozolins
361.877.3583 - Oceanepics.com
What a roller coaster we have had in the surf as far as marine conditions go. We have had everything from thick seaweed to chocolate milk. The winds blew hard practically all of June. On days of clear water, the seatrout bite has been very good this summer on topwaters and soft plastics. With the water both clearing and warming back up hopefully for the remainder of the summer, we expect all sorts of crazy action for August. The dusky anchovies should start moving closer to the beach. Watching the birds will lead anglers to the chaos, where we could find anything from trout to tarpon to sharks. If the water is clear enough, we may even see small schools of slot reds swimming in the guts. At times, they can be caught of gold spoons. Spanish mackerel and skipjacks should be abundant, biting spoons as well. Jacks will be further offshore in general, but they may make their way in closer to feed on the baitballs. Shark fishing will remain fairly slow, with the exception of the occasional big shark biting overnight, primarily large tiger sharks. Now is also a great time to target tarpon with the fly rod, if the winds remain calm.

Port Mansfield | Mike & Michelle Frazier
Mohawk Mafia Charters - 956.607.4681
August brings some of the hottest weather of the year, but the fishing can be outstanding for anglers who hit the water early. Water temperatures will generally range from about 84 to 88F, and southeast winds of moderate strength will be common during the heat of the days, with calmer conditions around sunrise offering the best fishing. Speckled trout should be feeding aggressively over grass beds and sandy potholes during the first few hours of daylight. Mansfield Knockers will draw explosive strikes early, but soft plastics in natural colors work better as the sun climbs. Redfish will be cruising shallow flats, along shorelines and through sand pockets, looking for mullet and shrimp. Both Mansfield Knockers and KWigglers worked slowly through the grass will produce fish, while live shrimp under a popping cork remains a dependable choice. Flounder should be holding along drains and channel edges, where live finger mullet or mud minnows are abundant. Anglers may also catch a few snook around the East Cut and on shorelines with mangroves growing in the shallows, especially during low-light periods, using topwaters. Getting started early and moving with the fish as the heat changes things during the days are big keys to success this month.

Lower Laguna Madre - South Padre - Port Isabel
Aaron Cisneros | tightlinescharters.com - 956.639.1941
Summer fishing has been hot in the Lower Laguna Madre. In the intracoastal, we’ve experienced a consistent trout bite, catching fish of various sizes. A key tactic in the ditch has been rigging our Z-Man plastics on 3/16-ounce jigheads and working them with the current. This keeps our lures at depths of about five to eight feet, where the fish are lurking. When winds pick up in the afternoon, trout can be found by locating trout slicks on grass flats in three to five feet of water. Here, they’re often mixed with redfish, which have also been biting aggressively while tides fall and breezes howl in the heat of the day. During the morning hours, in the cool and calm, the reds can be found in shallow water, over a sandy bottom, and they bite topwaters well. As the day heats up and they retreat to deeper holes, spoons and soft plastics work better. Holes adjacent to spoil islands and the deepest grass beds at the edges of flats are great places to target them then. Overall, the action in deep water begins to pick up significantly as we hit the true dog days from now until the end of August.