For the use of better words, speckled trout and redfish are the king and queen of Texas inshore fishing all along the gulf coast. Although they are available year round, there are times when they are hard to find. It is during these slack times that the fisherman can look to other fish to take up the slack.
Two species come to mind of this writer that can take you out of the fishing doldrums. They are the “kissin’ cousins”, sand and gulf trout.
These fish are found the year round in Galveston Bay waters, but from early autumn through most of the winter months, they are bunched up like sardines in a can. It is not uncommon to catch and ice chest full of both species.
Actually, the sand trout and the gulf trout are very similar in looks and can fool even this writer. Depending on whom you ask, there are ways of telling each of them apart.
The gulf trout is larger in size and metallic in color. The sand trout has the look of fresh cut straw.
Both are excellent to eat fried or baked. Remember to eat these fish fresh, the day they are caught or the next day. If you should freeze these fish, the next time you defrost them, you may find them a bit mushy.
A huge plus for fishing these two dynamic duos is that you do not need to be a rocket scientist to catch them. In the case of either, the speckled trout or the redfish, one must use live bait or artificial to consistently reward oneself. You can catch all the sand and gulf trout you want on fresh dead shrimp, and if you run out of that, then just cut a sand or gulf trout up and use that for bait. Sand and gulf trout are caught on artificial at times, with the gulf trout attacking an artificial lure more so than the sand trout.
The nicknames “sand” and “gulf” are tips as to where you may find these fish. Sand trout are basically bay fish, where as the gulf trout is taken almost exclusively from the Gulf of Mexico or deep water areas immediately adjacent to the gulf.
Ideal areas to find sand trout are in the ship channel, boat basin and along the fringes of relatively deep-water areas of the bay. Sand trout often mingle with the gulf trout in the beachfront waters, during the mid-fall to early winter period; they usually constitute a major part of the catches made from beachfront piers.
Particular good sand trout pay off spots in the Galveston Bay include Seawolf Park, Pelican Island Bridge, the railroad crossing at I-45 and the causeway, the Texas City lighted pier, the 18th street pier in San Leon, the spillway at San Leon, Baycliff, Rollover Pass and Sylvan Beach Park in LaPorte, Texas. During the winter months, especially after a blue norther, fish the deep holes in Offats Bayou, Lake Madeline, the Texas City turning basin, Hitchcock diversionary canal Moses Lake.
The best areas to find gulf trout are along the channel side of the north and south jetties. Offshore, fish around oil platforms and any artificial reefs you may know about. Fish close enough to the legs of the platform and near the rocks of the jetties, paying close attention to get just beyond the snags of those pesky rocks.
Whether you are going to fish foe sand trout or gulf trout, do so on the bottom. Use a 30lb. Leader while rigging two hooks, wide gap are great, usually a #2 or #3. This will aid you from snagging the bottom, as treble hooks have a tendency to act like grappling hooks. A leader with two (2) hooks is best, because it will cut down on having to reel in and bait the hooks again, and when the fish are running, it is not uncommon to catch two (2) at a time.
Neither of these fish are timid about taking the bait, and they strike hard enough to hook themselves. Of the two species, this writer believes the gulf trout puts up the best fight. Both fish will test your rod and reel time and again. However, when fishing the gulf trout, you may elect to use a heavier rod due to the other species that are in the same area of the Gulf of Mexico, around those oil platforms.
Neither the gulf trout or the sand trout have a bag limit, nor do they have a size limit. How many you catch depends on your equipment holding up and the time you wish to spend cleaning this ice chest full of sand and gulf trout.
This writer recalls seeing anglers with a hundred or more sand and gulf trout. Be sure to leave time to clean these good fish before dark overtakes you. The average weight for gulf trout is about a pound with others to about two(2) and three (3) pounds not uncommon. The sand trout is smaller and usually can be around three-quarters (3/4) pound.
As always, have fun while fishing and be mindful of others.
See y’all on Galveston Bay
Capt. Paul Marcaccio
