Reports & Forecasts: March 2023

Trinity Bay - East Bay - Galveston Bay | James Plaag
Silver King Adventures - silverkingadventures.com - 409.935.7242
James likes the options which create good catching opportunities in the Galveston area during March. "March is a great month to wade. The trout and reds tend to move into shallow areas like the coves and lakes and stay there. Fishing along the main-bay shorelines is also good. We catch 'em regularly on hard baits like Catch 2000s, also the smaller Soft-Dines this time of year. Sometimes, the fish bite 'em best when they're just reeled straight in, without any twitching of the rod tip. Action is also good on topwaters at times, especially the small ones like She Pups. The reds really attack those on some of the better March days.  It's a good time of year to catch some pretty big trout, of course, and the bite gets a bit steadier as the weather and water temperatures warm up some. Most of the time, we're catching best over a sandy bottom, with some scattered shell this time of year, but areas with some soft, muddy bottom close by are often really good too. It's possible to catch good numbers of regular-sized trout out of the boat when winds aren't too strong. Soft plastics like Assassin Sea Shads work best when drifting."

Jimmy West | Bolivar Guide Service - 409.996.305
Jim says the fishing had been best in shallow areas on days leading up to him giving this report. "We're catching our fish shallow most of the time, sometimes out in water up to our waists, but more often right up close to the bank. This pattern should continue into March, so wading is the primary way to target the fish this time of year. Since we usually have a good many windy days in March, it's a good thing the fish want to be near the shorelines, since the water out in the middle gets mucked up anyway. All the rains we have had lately in the watersheds north of here have the Trinity River running pretty high, and we're starting to see lots of freshwater in the back part of East Bay and up in the bayous. If we get much more runoff, the fish will be pressured out of there.  They'll turn up in the area where the water is slightly salty, instead of fully fresh. We've had good luck with Paul Brown Lures lately, and that should continue into March.  Topwater bite should pick up in March too. Of course, when we're in the bayous, we'll be throwing tails."

West Galveston - Bastrop - Christmas - Chocolate Bays
Randall Groves | Groves Guide Service
979.849.7019 - 979.864.9323
Randall looks forward to the arrival of spring with great anticipation, partly centered around the arrival of one of the favorite food sources of the trout and redfish. "March is the month when the glass minnows usually start showing up. When they do, the fish want to gorge on them, so it's important to fish close to where there are concentrations of them. This means fishing in areas with some grass growing from the bottom in the shallows, meaning mostly the coves and back-lakes. We look for the dark clouds of minnows and to see them jumping when picking places to fish. We also watch where the smaller terns are repeatedly diving. When targeting trout and reds around the clouds of glass minnows, several lures work well. Chrome/blue Spook Juniors produce lots of blow ups on the calmer days. When the winds crank up, which they regularly do, red magic Norton Sand Eels work better than the topwaters. Smaller slow-sinking twitch baits work well for some people too." Randall also mentions he has recently added some boat slips to his place, and that one is available to rent, also that he has some sites open in his RV Park.

Matagorda | Bay Guide Service
Charlie Paradoski - 713.725.2401
Charlie explains the details related to a variety of options for catching in the Matagorda area in March. "We catch good numbers of big trout this time of year wading the shorelines in East Bay. With the increase in southeast winds, the action is usually better on the protected side, but the catching can be good in the off-colored water on the north shoreline at times too. We throw slow-sinkers and topwaters most of the time when we're targeting the big trout by wading. Fishing out of the boat usually produces better numbers of trout, with an occasional big fish thrown in. We catch best out of the boat on soft plastics. Fairly heavy jigheads usually help keep the lures in contact with the bottom.  Too much wind ruins these plans. When winds are really strong, we head into the Colorado River to hide from it, and the catching can be great in there, for both trout and reds, at times. Wading the pockets and coves on the south shoreline of West Bay is great for reds. The fish tend to stay close to the little patch reefs way up in the shallows.  They're normally aggressive toward topwaters."

Palacios | Capt. Aaron Wollam
www.palaciosguideservice.com - 979.240.8204
I have great news to report after the freeze which hit the coast prior to this month.  Fishing continues to be good in our local bays! Redfish have been plentiful lately. We have been targeting them in several locations. Our low winter tides have the reds stacked out in front of drains and bayous on falling tides. Crystal clear wintertime water has made for some phenomenal sight-fishing. For this, the best lure has been the old reliable Norton Bull Minnow in pumpkinseed/chartreuse. The reds will absolutely smash this tail when they see it come close by. On normal or big tides these fish have been way back up in the ditches and sloughs, feeding on crabs and grass shrimp. In those places, gold spoons have worked better to earn strikes. The trout bite has been good, but we're not landing many slot fish. Instead, we're catching lots of 15 and 16" fish, which bodes well for the upcoming year. Local shorelines with shell reefs lying in three to four feet of water have been holding plenty of trout. As we finish our late-winter fishing, we'll continue to fish around active bait, like jumping mullet and shad in the main bays, grass shrimp when we're in the marsh.

Port O’Connor | Lynn Smith
Back Bay Guide Service - 361.935.6833
Lynn likes fishing for some of the biggest trout in the area during March. "We spend most of our time wading this month, targeting the bigger trout in shallow areas, usually where the bottom is a mix of mud, sand and shell. As the water warms up in the early part of spring, the fish tend to move out of the deeper guts and channels and stay on the flats more of the time. With so much bait moving into the bays, it's important to stay around concentrations of mullet and other small fish as much as possible. We normally see an influx of shad, glass minnows, perch and shrimp this time of year. Some of the best catching takes place when we find big concentrations of a variety of the small prey species. Catching is great most of the time on topwaters in March. We throw Spook Juniors, also some of the bigger plugs. We also do really well on slow-sinking twitch baits like Paul Brown Lures, Catch 5s and others. I'll probably be spending more of my time down south during the spring this year, as the fishing is better over that way, with a few more big trout."

Rockport | Blake Muirhead
Gator Trout Guide Service - 361.790.5203 or 361.441.3894
Blake expects the excellent run of fishing he was experiencing when we talked to him to extend through most of March. "I'm still fishing shallow areas along shorelines mostly, where the bottom is a mix of sand and grass. All the local bays have areas which fit this description. Some of the most reliable ones lie close to drains and bayous which connect the main bays to the backwater areas. Since I was hunting ducks in the backwater areas all winter, I have a good grasp of where the schools of reds have been concentrated in those places. So, we're able to target them there. The trout bite is better on the main bay shorelines most of the time, and the number of trout up in the shallows tends to improve as we get into March. Normally, the fishing remains easy for me until about the time we get the bull tide of spring, which happens late in March, sometimes in April. Then, the fish scatter, and it gets tougher for a while. Catching is best these days on small topwaters like Spook Juniors when the bite is easy, soft plastics like Sand Eels and Gulp! lures when it's tougher."

Upper Laguna Madre - Baffin Bay - Land Cut
Robert Zapata | [email protected] - 361.563.1160
I really enjoy fishing during the month of March, while the fish are recovering from the cold water temperatures of winter and beginning to feed more regularly and aggressively. The warming water temperatures bring the trout and redfish into shallow water, with many of them found in depths less than three feet most of the time, especially after several sunny days in a row. Usually, the water is still too cool for wet wading, so I wear my waders and ForEverLast Ray Guards on a daily basis this month.  Most of the water in the Upper Laguna Madre is in good shape recently, and finding structures holding fish should be fairly easy. I'm focusing on places with gradual drop-offs with potholes in the grass, also edges of the grass beds and rock formations.  The trout will always be following their food sources, so we spend time looking for popping slicks and jumping mullet. I also pay attention to gulls hovering over shallow water. In the clear water, I prefer natural colored Bass Assassins Die Dappers, and if the water's murky, I switch over to brighter or darker ones, almost always rigging them on eighth-ounce Spring-Lock jigheads.

Corpus Christi | Joe Mendez - www.sightcast1.com - 361.877.1230
Fishing options in the Corpus Christi area in March depend greatly on what type of late-winter/early-spring weather patterns develop during the Spring Break month, Joe says. "If we continue to get some late-season cold fronts, the fishing for big trout on the King Ranch Shoreline and in Baffin Bay can be great this month. Normally, the fishing down south is better while the winds are still blowing out of the north, and it gets better on the King Ranch once the winds shift back around to the southeast and start blowing at the bank. If we have a steady, warm onshore wind most of the month, the fishing will generally be better in places like the Land Cut, Rocky Slough, Summer House, the Meadows, Yarbrough Flats and the Middle Grounds down south. Strong onshore flow can also elevate the potential for catching on the flats around the JFK Causeway and in protected pockets on the south shoreline of Corpus Christi Bay, like Shamrock Cove, Little Flats, and East Flats. When lighter winds prevail, sight-casting opportunities become numerous on flats in the ULM, since the trout, redfish and black drum all stay in shallow water much of the time this month."

P.I.N.S. Fishing Forecast | Eric Ozolins - 361.877.3583 - Oceanepics.com
Winter is essentially out the door, which means the return of many gamefish to the surf.  Our roller coaster winter weather had the fish confused. As the water warms, action should explode! There will be a great variety of species readily available in the surf and a few bonus surprises too. Red and black drum will still remain in the surf, and as the water warms, expect the chance at hooking up to a powerhouse jack crevalle to increase. Pound for pound, jacks are arguably the strongest fighting fish caught in the surf. When using mullet, the chances at either a red or a jack will be quite high. The pompano bite should be fair this spring, despite a slow winter, if the water is relatively clear and hasn't warmed up too much. Shrimp and Fishbites combos are usually a winner for these tasty fish. Sharks will start to invade the shallows this month. Expect residual sandbar sharks in early-March, phasing out to large blacktip and scalloped hammerheads by the end of the month. All these sharks should be around, feeding on an array of smaller fish, like whiting. Any large tigers and makos present will be hunting schools of jack crevalle or little tunny.

Port Mansfield | Ruben Garza
Snookdudecharters.com - 832.385.1431
Getaway Adventures Lodge - 956.944.4000
Cold fronts will soon be diminishing, usually right around the time Spring Break is upon us. Warming trends in March often produce weirdly unpredictable weather patterns. It can be cold, warm ,rainy or windy. This month, I like to stick around The Saucer area, either fishing directly behind the cabins or right by the ditch. I always find at least a few solid trout around the ditch. Topwaters like Mansfield Knocker in Ruby Tuesday and soft plastics like Lagunaflauge Ball-tail Shads on eighth-ounce jigheads are favorites.  Either lure should be tested first right along the drop-off, then cast into deeper water if necessary. The blow ups on the topwaters are often violent, the strikes on the soft plastics usually a soft tap, or the line just gets tight. If the winds are light, the spoil dumps just north of Bennies Island can be productive. Topwater action is usually good there first thing in the morning. If not, KWigglers in Mansfield Margarita or plum/chartreuse Ball-tail Shads should do the trick. The action for all three main species can be good there. Up north, the mouth of Little Bay is a good spot to try, both drifting and wading. Mostly, we find fish there in potholes in about three feet of water.

Lower Laguna Madre - South Padre - Port Isabel
Aaron Cisneros | tightlinescharters.com - 956.639.1941
Our fish have left the deeper water, and lately, we are finding most of our fish in areas with depths ranging from a foot to maybe three feet. Trout fishing has been good when tides are moving in with some strength. Keeper-sized trout have been found schooling on shallow flats lying adjacent to ICW, within no more than a couple hundred yards or so. We're catching most of our trout in water about two feet deep, using Z-Man StrikerZ  soft plastics in pearl color rigged on eighth-ounce Trout Eye jigheads. The redfish bite has been great in the really shallow water. When temperatures are running on the warm side, we're finding large numbers of reds in one to two feet of water, mostly over a sandy bottom, which makes seeing them easier, and facilitates sight-casting. Z-Man scented PaddlerZ in redbone color rigged on eighth-ounce Redfish Eye jigheads have been earning plenty of strikes from the reds. Best bet for finding concentrations of fish is to look for big schools of water in the proper depths. The fishing has been most productive on the windy days. The calmer days cause the currents to fall slack, and the bite can be somewhat sluggish.