I'm a DFW transplant. Now live in the SA area. I have a 24ft Skeeter CC. Fished the big lakes up north for striped bass. I want to get into going to down to the bays and fish.

Question:
For you SA peeps; maybe preferably the ones who pull boats down that way as that is what I will be doing.
Where do you go (generally speaking)? Corpus, Rockport, Lavaca, etc. Don't know squat about the salt water and don't know where a good place to start is. So what's the area you go that is a "reasonable" distance to travel to and decent/good fishing nearby. Or do you just launch the first place you can get to then travel through the channels North or South? Not asking for any secret holes or GPS cords. Just looking for a general finger point to good water/good place to go.

Ya, Ya, get a guide - I know. Not looking for that right now.

Hate to say it. You will save time and money by getting a guide to show you the ins and outs. Lots and lots of really cool stuff can be learned in 1 outing with a guide that would take you 5+ years to learn on your own. Other thing is, sounds like you have a really nice boat. Make the investment in protecting that boat by getting some good gps maps. Nothing like cruising across a choppy bay at 35+mph and your outboard smashing into a reef. All the spots you listed are good spots to launch, depending on weather and tides. Yes tides play a very big factor in fish activity. Look for birds out on the open bay...they know where the fish are. Fishing the shallows is a bit like bass fishing. Finesse and stealth play a big part. Fishing around the rigs out in the middle of bays is also a good place to start. Once you start understanding tide, it's all a matter of being at the right spot at the right time. Any area that holds good moving water on an incoming or outgoing tide is a good area to hang out in. ADHD isn't a bad thing when fishing at the coast. If nothing is moving and you aren't catching fish, don't waste time in the same spot all day just because you caught fish there before. "Honey holes" are few and far between. I don't really believe in them. The fish move based on a very large variety of different things. These are the things that, once you learn, get fish in the boat. Don't be shy about wade fishing. Invest in a good pair of waders and boots with some ray guards. Waders are only needed when things cool down. I wear my guards and boots in the hotter months. If you are not going to go with a guide...take your time and don't get frustrated. Be methodical about learning things. Hang out around boat ramps and listen to conversations. If someone comes in with a box full of fish see what lures are on their poles. Figure out where the guides eat lunch after they come in and try to sit by them (yeah I know...you might be labeled a stalker). Every once in a while they talk about pretty good stuff. Look up "troutsupport" videos...good stuff. Be safe. Have fun.

Thanks for the replies. I'll give Rockport a trip or two and/or strong look at.



And just for the record, my "ya, ya get a guide" comment wasn't any disrespect to guides on the coastal areas. I've been a TFF member for a while. And I know that a lot of times you can ask a question as simple as what hook to use and it's amazing how many "get a guide" responses you will receive. Or in this case, where to go.... I just didn't want this post to get consumed with that. I'll get a guide for help - when I'm ready to.

I live around San Antonio also. My favorite place to go is Corpus. I like to launch at Marker 37, they have any thing u need. Lots of good fishing down that way.

we go down to the Port A \ Aransas Pass \ rockport area a couple times a year from Ft. Worth. We like launching at Aransas Pass, puts you in the middle of the triangle down there. Up and down the ICW and the shrimp boat channel out to the jetties of Port A. It took us awhile to learn to watch the tides and moon rise\set and overhead\underfoot. We run a 22 ft. center console Hurricane and run in fairly shallow water. You shouldn't have a problem with your boat, but as noted before watch the shells. Watch for the PVC pipe marking cuts, hang tight to them.
Powerpole or talon is idle to have down there.
Just remember, deep water down there is 6 - 10 ft.!!!

Plenty of options offered to consider and plan.

Add the JFK causeway/ULM area as a starting point suggestion. Have Laguna Madre for 27 miles to Baffin and beyond to the south, LM flats & channels around the JFK and to the north, CC bay shoreline & wells and all the way to Shamrock and East Flats area.

Fished Baffin a bunch, but for the last few years when fishing the ULM in a boat we've usually fished within 15 miles of the causeway and have dome extremely well.

We're fishing while folks are running for another 30-45 minutes. If you wade fish that's even better.

Some years back we fished a "small" tournament and damn near won the thing, (second by 1/2lb), spite being one trout short. (It was my fault for the one missing fish, cost us $1000+) We were never out of sight of the JFK Causeway fishing that tourney.

Thanks for all of the replies.
I have lots or references and areas mentioned to "google" in order to learn more about fishing the big sea. That one reference to deep water being 6-10 fow made me pucker a little For sure not what I'm used to....