The View: December 2025

I hope we need a winter coat in December. The chill gets big trout going and prompts new ducks to arrive daily. December once sent anglers off to deer camps and duck blinds for fear of cold boat rides and chilly fishing. You remember? Back when it was cold in December?

Lately, our weather patterns have resembled early October more than December. Water temperatures might dip into the 50s early in the month, but with afternoon highs in the low 80s, temps often rise back into the 60s and even the 70s on the shallow flats.

It was a warm November, with many morning duck hunts feeling more like teal season than late fall. Still, December is a great month in Matagorda. Birds didn’t really begin to work regularly in East Matagorda Bay until early November, and with the lack of cold fronts, that action could continue right up to Christmas.

The shell in Matagorda has been, and still is, full of fish. We’re working solid 2–4-pound trout on Bass Assassins, Hogie’s, and Down South Lures while drifting—and there are usually redfish everywhere.

Our trout really start to eat lures better in December. MirrOlures, topwaters, and Bass Assassins are our go-to baits. Prepare for winter solstice tides to pull fish from the shorelines and dump them into deeper water. Large schools of trout hang near drop-offs scattered with mud and shell.

When the tides are extra low, redfish congregate in the holes and guts. We run shallow-draft boats and work the back lakes as they drain. The edges of the Intracoastal can be just as productive with a piece of mullet or crab.

The Diversion Channel has great spots to “bass fish” the banks with topwaters and soft plastics. I can remember Decembers past when all we threw in the Diversion was topwaters—and just had a ball. There are lots of shrimp in the channel now, and with the green water we’ve seen, there’s no reason this December shouldn’t produce the same results.

We also like working the edges of the Intracoastal with a trolling motor and tossing along the drop. It’s paid off all year, especially on windy days when the bay is blown out.

Many of our December days consist of duck hunts in the morning and fishing trips in the afternoon. Our marshes grew loads of wigeon grass during October, and that bodes well for late-season hunting. Gadwalls love our aquatics, and a dozen grey ducks careening across a coastal marsh is a Christmas card waiting to be delivered.

Every year about this time, I get emails asking for gift ideas for outdoorsmen and women. I always say the same thing—call your favorite guide and buy a gift certificate for a hunt or charter in the coming year. It’s a great gift, and the anticipation and conversations that come with planning are often just as good as the trip itself.

Get out with the family and do something together. Put your phone down, look people in the eyes, and talk—but more importantly, listen. Be good neighbors at home and on the water. Love one another. America is the greatest place in the world to live, no matter what anyone says.

Thank the Lord for blessing us to live in Texas and America, and thank Him for our bays and marshes that give us pleasure and provide so many memories.