THERE’S PLENTY OF OPPORTUNITY to ring in the new year with a good catch. The water is cool, and the conditions are good throughout the area for anglers to bring in a solid haul. The action looks very good in Texas City while the rest of the area falls into the category of good.
Trinity Bay: VERY GOOD. 61 degrees. Speckled trout is excellent on live shrimp and soft plastics in deeper water. Redfish are found in the marsh and shoreline and are biting on live mullet, and soft plastics. Sheepshead are very good on live shrimp.
East Galveston Bay: GOOD. 55 degrees. Flounder bite is good along the ICW spoils and drains. Redfish and black drum are good in 3 feet of water over mud and shell. Speckled trout are excellent near the island in deeper water. Catfish are slow.
West Galveston Bay: GOOD. 55 degrees. Redfish and black drum are good in 3 feet of water over mud and shell. Flounder are good around Seawolf Park on live shrimp. Speckled trout are excellent on shrimp, soft plastics and topwaters. Catfish are still slow due to migratory patterns.
Texas City: VERY GOOD. 55 degrees. Redfish are biting on soft plastics and can be found off the rocks. Flounder are fair on live shrimp or minnow. Speckled trout are excellent on shrimp along the levee. Black drums are hungry for blue crab or shrimp.
Freeport: GOOD. 60 degrees. Black drum is great due to migratory patterns right now. Redfish can be caught using live bait in the deeper channels. Speckled trout bite is excellent around the surfside jetty. Flounder is excellent along the marsh using live mullet. Bull reds are fair at mouth of Brazos river on live bait.
East Matagorda Bay: GOOD. 61 degrees. Speckled trout are good on live shrimp under popping corks and soft plastics. Redfish are excellent in the marsh on live mullet, soft plastics and topwater. Flounder bite is fair south with plastics in red or white color. Black drum is good on soft plastics or blue crab.
West Matagorda Bay: GOOD. 61 degrees. Black drum is fair on blue crab or soft plastics. Speckled trout are good on live shrimp under popping corks and soft plastics near ICW. They will be wherever you see mullet. Redfish are good in the marsh on live mullet, soft plastics and topwater. Flounder bite are fair on plastics in red or white color near Mad Island Cut.
Port O’Connor: GOOD. 58 degrees. Black drum is good on blue crab, shrimp or soft plastics. Trout are good on a combination of live or fresh baits such as shrimp or crab in the shallow sand bars. Redfish are excellent on live shrimp. Bull reds are slow. Flounder are excellent around any kind of baitfish- look around Pass Cavallo. Sheepshead are good near the jetty on live shrimp.
