After taking 10 nights off for my annual Alaska fishing vacation, I was back on the water gigging the last 2 nights. In the week I was away, Rockport received 20" of rain, causing major flooding and turning the bays into a murky freshwater mess. There are still plenty of areas holding clear/salty water, but my options on spots to gig have become more limited. The gigging continues to be on the slow side, with the best fishing after 11pm, as the outgoing tide goes slack. Going forward, I expect some tough nights, as the bays will take a while to flush-out the massive freshwater inflow. More rain is forecast over the weekend and next week, hopefully it will be smaller amounts...

9/18/2018
I had longtime customer Dennis R. group of 2 onboard tonight. Conditions were nice, with SSE winds at 5mph and normal tide levels. We got a very slow start, gigging our first fish at 10pm. We had to move around many times, and freshwater runoff and turbid water were a big problem. Out of 10 stops, we only had good water clarity on 3. We ended with 8 flounder by midnight, and the customers decided to call the trip short.

9/19/2018
I had new customer Tim C. group of 2 onboard tonight. Conditions were fair, with SE wind at 10mph, normal tide levels, and scattered thunderstorms in the area. We had a slow start, gigging our first flounder at 10pm. We made a bunch of stops, and the water clarity was much better tonight. The action improved later, especially as the ebb tide went slack around midnight. We ended with a 10 flounder limit plus 3 sheepshead by 1am. The largest flounder tonight was 21".

Upcoming open dates:
September: completely booked
October: completely booked
November = Closed Season
December: 13, 19, 20, 27-30
January: 1-31

Price: $450 for 2 people, $100 each additional person, up to 6 people

Capt. Rick Hammond
Night Stalker Guide Service - Rockport, TX
nightstalkerguideservice.com
361-229-6053

Nice slabs.

Nice fish. Good job.