Springtime in Texas!

April is always an exciting month along the Texas coast. For many it marks the first fishing trip of the year. Springtime tides are usually generous, which means everything from backwaters to gulf passes will be in play and holding fish. So there’s generally no need to crowd your fellow anglers.

A variety of bait species become plentiful this month, especially shrimp and glass minnows. A sure way to tell spring has arrived in earnest is finding swarms of seagulls and terns diving amid a feeding frenzy as hungry fish hustling bait concentrations push hapless victims to the surface, where the birds are quick to snatch their share. Depending which bay you’re fishing it might be gafftop catfish and it might be speckled trout. I was once very lucky to find a school of slot redfish under birds in East Matagorda. No matter the species creating the chaos, it's sure to be a memory maker if you have youngsters aboard.

Shoreline wade fishing really comes into its own this month. Emerging bottom grasses become havens for bait fish, tiny shrimp and juvenile crabs; and you can bet trout and redfish will not be bashful to join the party. Slicks become increasingly prevalent as the month progresses and there’s no surer sign for locating rod-bending action. Swelling tides will often have this action occurring right at the edge of spartina grass and inter-tidal oyster reefs. Catching a whiff of fresh watermelon should never be ignored.

April weather might not be all peaches and cream, though. Old Man Winter can be stubborn, and late season northers can pop out of nowhere if you get laxed in checking the weather forecast. One of the worst storms I ever got caught in happened the last week of April during a balmy stretch. I won’t say it was life-threatening but it was certainly scary. This is why I always stress checking the weather before every fishing trip and having a qualified technician perform a thorough outboard service is a must before hitting the water in springtime.

I have written a number of times here that new speckled trout regulations were in the works and would likely be enacted this spring. In a news release dated March 8, 2024 from TPWD, the following will become effective March 26, 2024. The daily bag limit will be reduced to 3 spotted seatrout; minimum length 15-inches and maximum length 20-inches. One fish longer than 30-inches may be retained per day as part of the daily bag. It was also announced that a trophy tag for trout longer than 30-inches would be implemented in the new license year, effective September 1, 2024.

Make April Memorable…Take A Kid Fishing!