Fishing in East Matagorda Bay, Texas, seatrout will chomp a jig and soft plastic combo. Soft baits of all kinds are very popular locally.
While big-trout enthusiasts often head south for the winter, East Matagorda Bay sits tranquil, serene and crawling with some of the heaviest gator trout Texas has to offer. I know, Baffin Bay is one of a trio of trophy trout haunts in the U.S. And though not as sexy as the Laguna Madre, East Matagorda remains a milieu for heavy, hungry, wintertime speckled trout. Here are five terrain types that produce them.
Fishing Deep Reefs for Seatrout
Big speckled trout remain in the bay and neighboring waters during winter.
Alex Suescun
It’s not just a wading thing. You can catch heavy specks over miles of shell lumps, humps, towheads and undulations found throughout the middle of the bay without ever getting wet.
“You have to find some streaky water,” says veteran guide Charlie Paradoski. “The trout aren’t in the clear stuff because the bait isn’t there.” Paradoski regularly catches two-foot-or-better specks by working four to five feet of water with soft baits and MirrOlures.
“Mullet are key in the winter,” he says. “When you see mullet jumping or flipping, there will be big trout in the area. This bay is famous for it.” In his long career, Paradoski says he has seen many changes, especially in fishing tactics.
Making long drifts over rafts of mullet with rattling corks armed with Bass Assassins and Gulp! has been a boon for boaters. “I never owned a popping cork until about three years ago,” says Paradoski. “Now I don’t leave the dock without one.”
Wade Fishing Shorelines for Specks
Veteran trout fishermen prefer wading because they usually catch more fish than those who stay in the boat.
Guide Lee Warmke wades the south shoreline for large trout in the afternoon. With numerous 30-inchers (the big leagues for big-trout chasers) under his belt, Warmke releases dozens of sevens, eights and way too many five-pounders to count. “Most days I will throw plugs for big fish,” says Warmke. “But there have been other days when I am not getting many bites, so I switch to a soft plastic and start catching big ones.” Boiler Bayou, Kain Cove, Oyster Farm and Hog Island hold solid trout since these muddy bottoms retain the sun’s warmth a bit longer throughout the day.
Intracoastal Waterway Reefs for Spotted Seatrout
Locales receiving the most tidal flow often hold the majority of big schools. That means reefs and mud adjacent to the Intracoastal Waterway on the north shoreline of East Bay. Chinquapin Reefs, Bird Island Reef, Boggy Reef and Half Moon Reef are all proven winter spots holding healthy specks. By mid- to late December, most of the white shrimp have left the bays and speckled trout adapt their diet to finfish. That’s when slow-sinking mullet imitating plugs go to work.
East Matagorda Bay receives most of its tidal flow from the ICW, since there are no direct inlets from the Gulf of Mexico, aside from Mitchell’s Cut on the far east end of the bay. The beauty of fishing in proximity to the ICW is that big trout hang out there for a few obvious reasons. The deep water is warmer in the winter, and when traditional winter low tides persist, specks slide to the greater depths until new water covers the shell.
“Even when the wind blows, those reefs on the north shoreline can hold clear water,” says Paradoski. “The entire bay could be blown out with muddy water, but the water clears in the ICW on the incoming tide, making those reefs fishable when nothing else is.”
Fishing Inshore Reefs in Texas
For trout fishermen, a fish 30 inches or larger is a trophy, and Texas is where to find them.
The beauty of East Matty is the hidden reefs smack dab in the middle of the bay. They are not really hidden anymore. Maps and GPS coordinates make them available to everyone. Long Reef, Three Beacon Reef and Drull’s Lump are big trout magnets but fished effectively only by wading. “The tides get low, and all those big trout go to the middle of the bay,” says pro Tommy Alexander. “The mullet go to the middle and the trout follow.”
East Matagorda Bay oysters have long been cherished for their sweet, salty savor. Watch for oyster boats dredging shell; harvested reefs are especially good the next day when waters settle after being overturned by the raking.
“Most of the time, the best trout will be off the edge of the reef,” says Alexander. “Wade as far as you can without filling up your waders, cast to the deep water, and work the lure slowly along the mud and shell.” Alexander says braided line is the difference between feeling a subtle winter bite and thinking the bait is hung on shell. “It’s winter, it’s cold, you are bundled up, and the fish don’t always thump it like they do during summer.”
Mud Flats Attract Seatrout
Even though wading sometimes works best, a boat can be the ticket when the fish move to deeper water.
East Bay’s greatest depths are a little more than five feet at the highest of high tides. Since winter normally sees the lowest tides of the year, most of the bay runs three to four feet deep in December and January.
The biggest of big-trout catchers are waders. There is no substitute for stalking a muddy bayou with a mullet imitation and a sensitive graphite rod. Mud bottoms on the east end of the bay are my favorite winter hangouts for trophy specks. Boggy spots like Brown Cedar Flats, Catch-All Basin and the Duck Blind test your cardiovascular stamina but reward you with breathtaking, arm-length trout.
North winds, gray skies and low tides typify a Texas winter. For those willing to brave the chill and deal with red earlobes and chapped lips, plenty of big speckled trout roam the fertile waters of East Matagorda Bay.
Where Trout Go in Bad Weather
Top seatrout fishing spots near East Matagorda Bay.
It doesn’t happen every year, but in past winters, the birds have worked in East Matagorda Bay through the middle of December. Look for laughing gulls spinning over trout pushing shrimp to the surface. Never discount a gull sitting on water either. Many times the birds can see the fish and are waiting for them to push the shrimp to the surface.
When the wind really blows, the nearby Colorado River saves the day. Low tides drain the delta at the mouth of the Diversion Channel and funnel all fish into the deep channel. Anglers drift across the channel with plum, black or glow soft plastics or troll with DOA TerrorEyz. Nighttime is even better under lighted piers as fish seek the warmth of the deeper river.
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