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Cameron and I decided to head down to Galveston and try a spot where I had started sight casting last year. Our plan was to go for trout early and reds the remainder of the day. Water was green and there were plenty of small shad in the water. While the winds were on the high side, it looked prime for a topwater bite- which never materialized. Had a few missed fish after switching to different baits but the trout simply never showed. We spent the rest of the day going for reds. Our first spot I saw shad being pushed into a shallow drain that was probably 8 inches deep. The red followed the shad into the drain with a pronounced WHOOSH as he pushed water and shad and went deeper into the marsh. Cameron and I proceeded into the marsh and there he was sitting right in the grass. We didn't have a shot at him since there was so much grass and the water barely went over our ankles. We pushed further in hoping to reposition ourselves for a better shot and spooked the fish. The red hit my boots on the way out. On the way out we smelled trout very strongly and tried in vain to locate the slick. By now the wind had picked up and locating the slick was near impossible.
We moved to a differnt spot and walked into another drain/ marsh system. We immediately saw a few reds cruising around. Apparently they were eating the small crabs in the area as we found a bunch of little ones scurrying around. We had a few shots at these and Cameron managed to get one to hit by not hooked. The wind was really playing havoc with our sight casting as it got increasingly harder to make the pinpoint casts and determine which way the fish was facing. Once the winds got higher it became virtually impossible to see the reds. By the time we saw the fish, they had seen us and were bolting for cover.
We decided to head in and eat and we discussed our next move. I had one more spot to try that could yield some trout and reds but the storm clouds loomed in the distance. We both have fished together enough to know that we don't mind the weather- as long as there was no lightning. We got to the spot ad the water was in great shape despite the winds. I could see some bait being pushed up in the distance and the tide was draining out, perfect for the redfish scenario I wanted. Then the lightning came and ended our day. I would like to say that we had 7-8 shots at reds (some of em were pretty big too), but unfortunately, sight casting requires some pretty strict conditions...and practice. Lots of practice. I'm not going to say i'm great at it; heck, I'm not so great at it, but you need to be able to your casts land on a dime in some cases dealing with a 15 mph crosswind. I'm glad that the areas Cameron and I fish have a lot of obstructions, brush and overhangs that we pitch to. With fishing like that, I gain a lot of experience and practice when I do our next sight casting outing.
We moved to a differnt spot and walked into another drain/ marsh system. We immediately saw a few reds cruising around. Apparently they were eating the small crabs in the area as we found a bunch of little ones scurrying around. We had a few shots at these and Cameron managed to get one to hit by not hooked. The wind was really playing havoc with our sight casting as it got increasingly harder to make the pinpoint casts and determine which way the fish was facing. Once the winds got higher it became virtually impossible to see the reds. By the time we saw the fish, they had seen us and were bolting for cover.
We decided to head in and eat and we discussed our next move. I had one more spot to try that could yield some trout and reds but the storm clouds loomed in the distance. We both have fished together enough to know that we don't mind the weather- as long as there was no lightning. We got to the spot ad the water was in great shape despite the winds. I could see some bait being pushed up in the distance and the tide was draining out, perfect for the redfish scenario I wanted. Then the lightning came and ended our day. I would like to say that we had 7-8 shots at reds (some of em were pretty big too), but unfortunately, sight casting requires some pretty strict conditions...and practice. Lots of practice. I'm not going to say i'm great at it; heck, I'm not so great at it, but you need to be able to your casts land on a dime in some cases dealing with a 15 mph crosswind. I'm glad that the areas Cameron and I fish have a lot of obstructions, brush and overhangs that we pitch to. With fishing like that, I gain a lot of experience and practice when I do our next sight casting outing.
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