The View: June 2026

Summer is finally here; ardent incoming tides bring ocean recruits through the passes, and every piece of water in East Bay, West Bay, and the surf is a potential player.

Is there a better fishing month than June?

We have had some solid days for trout, though most of the spring has not afforded us much opportunity to work open-bay reefs. This spring has been a great one, and we like how our speckled trout fishery is responding to stricter limits and more catch and release.

We have been releasing many oversized trout. Those days have been refreshing, feel-good mornings indicating that our fishery sustained the freeze, and recovery is on the way.

West Bay fishing has been as solid as I have seen it in years. Every reef has held fish this spring, and there’s no reason this should change this summer. Best catches have come on Gulps and live shrimp under a popping cork while drifting; waders have been finding solid pulls on Bass Assassins, Gulps, Hogies, and Down South Lures.

Back bays with shell are churning out solid catches on live shrimp and small topwaters. Many days, the wind has made it the only game in town, and we are grateful we have so many “hiding” spots to save a good day of fishing.

Yes, it has been windier than normal; however, the past 7–8 years have given us drought with calmer winds, so I’ll take some wind and a low barometer if it will bring more frequent showers.

I look forward to many days of wading this month and tossing a topwater along a mullet-laden flat. I look forward to hopefully many days in the surf this summer, tossing a topwater along a mullet-laden gut. I look forward to a morning on Half Moon and Three Beacon reefs, tossing a topwater on the edge of the shell. I look forward to wading the grass beds in West Bay with a Super Spook Jr. on the incoming tide. I look forward to making the 32-mile run to Port O’Connor and wading the grass beds near Pass Cavallo.

I just look forward to June.

Matagorda’s bays, beaches, and businesses are ready and waiting. Coastal Q Barbecue has opened back up for the summer. If you have never eaten their fine smoked meats, trust me when I tell you, it may be the best barbecue you have ever eaten.

Snappers have moved into a new location by the bridge. It is a great place to watch a game, enjoy live music, and have really good food. They shuck Buddy’s oysters for you in the winter, too.

Things are changing in Matagorda for the better. The meat-haul mentality is disappearing, and that’s a good thing. Few bays in Texas afford a more legitimate shot at a trophy trout any day of the week like Matagorda.