The View: July 2025

It has been a great summer thus far. Optimism for our fishery continues to run high, validated by our catches during the most recent winter and spring seasons. The big trout fishery Matagorda was once famous for is now being restored, thanks to wide-spread conservative attitudes and more people practicing catch and release. My personal take on the whole situation is that it should only get better from here.

It gets hot in July, but we beat the heat by leaving the dock well before sunrise and returning to the shade of the cleaning table before the sun begins to melt. It’s a great month for topwaters. We look forward to calm days; we love wading mid-bay reefs in East Matagorda with topwaters, Bass Assassins, Down South Lures and MirrOlure Lil' Johns.

We like to get waist- to chest-deep and fire plugs off the drop-offs of the reefs. It is a patience game, but then a slick pops here and a slick pops there. Before long we get a steady bite of 5- to 7-pound trout going with the occasional 8 and 9-pounder showing on those glorious days.

Halfmoon Reef in West Matagorda Bay has been on fire when the wind allows. The 54-acre project built by the Nature Conservancy is an absolute trout magnet. It's like fishing a 6-7 foot underwater jetty. It’s a great piece of habitat and we appreciate the conservation effort it took to revive the reef.

For redfish in July, fish the incoming high tides in spots like Cut Off Flats, Zipperian Bayou, Oyster Lake and Crab Lake. Work the mouths of these lakes and bayous as the tide begins to fall.

Tides seem to always fall below normal levels this month after any amount of westerly wind. East Matagorda Bay can sometimes lose two feet of water. When this happens, most all of the redfish pull off the shorelines and congregate in the middle of the bay. The reds give themselves away by producing big slicks and we drift right through them.

These reds are not small ones either – mostly upper-slot fish with serious attitudes. When the reds start slicking you can literally make one drift and have all the fish you need. When tides get low due to nagging southwest winds, the middle of East Matagorda Bay is a major player. Look for slicks and make long drifts.

We have good early morning incoming tides that usher fish over the expanses of sand and grass flats in West Matagorda Bay during July. We run well off the shorelines so not to burn potential wading areas and look for slicks, then slide in behind the slicks and wade through the fish.

For those who choose to stay in the boat those same deep reefs will hold fish in July. The bait of choice is Berkley GULP!, Vudu Shrimp, Bass Assassins, and live shrimp under a Mid-Coast popping cork.

As always, the surf can be a player in July. Lots of hearty 3- to 5-pound trout are caught on topwaters, and 51MR and 52MR MirrOlures. Early surf efforts in June were fair to good, but July’s high atmospheric pressure days really flatten the Gulf. We typically get anywhere from six to ten great days on the beach this month.

Never discount the granite! Our jetty holds quality trout this month. July’s green tides are also known to produce the occasional snook, which are a true summertime bonus.

Never discount our pools at the lodge and rental properties. A cannonball after a morning of fishing is a July mandate. Fish early, stay hydrated, always be conservation-minded and please be good stewards of our bays and oceans.