Anyone going to be in Port A for spring break? We'll be staying at the La Mirage condos 3/14-3/18. My 10 yr old wants to get some fishing in and I'm trying to decide what approach to take. Last year we tried the S jetty and the Packery channel without much success. The previous year we tried the surf. This year I'm thinking of getting him out on a boat but not sure whether to spend the money on a guide or go the party boat route. Any suggestions would be helpful.

Thanks,
Trey

I will be in Corpus for 4 or 5 days during that time. I would say Packery is out of the question, at least for me. JP Luby gets too busy for me fishing-wise. There are many great places you can wade though. Getting a guide is almost always a great idea, and usually worth the cost. If you are going to take this route, I would advise you book NOW! I have never been on a head boat, so hopefully someone else can speak on that for you. The offshore day trips are pretty fun, but the seas will be pretty big during mid-march. If you can handle it, book now! If you want to fish the surf, I would go to PINS. Also, you can always rent a kayak if you like that kind of thing, That is where I will be for 5 days. Hope this helps.

http://www.caller2.com/2001/april/29/today/localspo/24782.html

http://corpusfishing.com/wadingspots.htm

http://corpusfishing.com/

Last year you should have just stayed in Port Aransas and fished the Port A jetties. They are much better than the packery jetties, mostly because they are much much much longer.

Last spring break, me and PiePuncher (keith), took the boat out of Port A and never went more than a couple of hundred yds from the jetties and had a blast.

We started by fishing the bulkheads and docks along the ship channel area for sheepshead. This is not something I normally do, but Puncher always gets me into something new. We did very good on the sheeps, considering we couldnt find the right sized bait, and landed a couple big reds as a bonus.

After cleaning up on the sheep, we took the boat out through the Jetty channel to see how rough the seas were, as we were thinking of going offshore the next day. Things were pretty rough but as we rounded the southern jetty, we saw that the water was teaming with thousands of smacks. It took us about five minutes to dial in on what they would hit, but once we did the action was fast and furious.

The lures of choice were chrome rattle traps, and tiny gold spoons. We quickly filled the box with smacks in the 20 inch range. It was very fun. Spanish mackeral do not have a big following down here, but they are a highly aggressive fish that fights hard and nails artificial lures. I dont see how people cant like them. On trout tackle, a big one gives you about all you can handle and even the little ones almost jerk the rod out your hand when they strike. Just be sure and use a heavy mono leader because of their sharp teeth, and check it often for frays.

Altogether, we had a mess of fished. Two limits of smacks (30), two limits of sheephead (10), and two nice reds just under 27 inches. It took quite a while to clean all the fish!

I suggest giving these jetties a try weather you have a boat or not. It is a good spot to find some fish if you do not know the area, and I have very rarely got skunked at the area. If you want some trout, try going around the northern jetty and fishing the shoreline of San Jose Island. Trout seem to be around there during spring break most years.

For a kid, you might try one of the 5 hour trips for snapper, shark, etc... at Deep Sea headquarters....if he hasnt been offshore much. I think it's about $40 a head. Deep Sea headquarters is located on your left, as soon as you get off the ferry at Port A. They have good captains and sound boats.

The trips like frog is talking about can be good, but they are real hit and miss. You got to realize that many people will be aboard with you and you will not get to do what you want to do. However, as with any fishing trip, Im sure they have there good days. Just dont be disapointed if you do not get the chance to catch much.

Thanks for all this info. I think we will probably try the jetties again. I talked to my son about what all he wants to do during spring break and surfing lessons came up. Since I used to live in San Diego I thought it would be pretty cool for him to try so that is going to eat up some of our spending cash. We will probably try to make a "guys trip" back down in May for some Reds and get a guide then.

Loopty - Last year when we were down there I went scouting while on a coffee run one morning and saw them killing the Smacks in the Packery Channel. That's when I decided I would go back and fish there the next day. Unfortunately overnight the weather changed and the wind switched around. Nobody was catching anything that day.

Speaking of the tiny spoons; I started wondering if anyone has ever tried a hellpet setup in the salt. For those who don't know, the hellpet is a Pet Spoon trailed behind a Hellbender for Sand Bass and Hybrids. Its normally used trolling to get the spoon down deep but I was thinking fishing it as a casting lure might be good for Smacks and Specks down there. You'd have one lure making a racket on top and one trailing a few feet below the surface looking like a wounded bait fish. Just wondering if anyone had tried such a thing.

If you aren't sure how well your kid will do on a larger party boat, you should consider a trip on the Island Queen. It is without a doubt the best bang for the buck when it comes to taking small kids fishing in Port A.

http://www.woodysonline.com/bay.htm

It's a converted ferry boat that runs out of Woody's Sport Ctr. Super stable, Lots of room, inexpensive and the deckhands work well with the kids.

I will be there that same weekend. We will be stayin at the TravelLodge there and will be fishing off one of the piers. Anyone know if there will be a decent shark bite?

3pepp, Im not to sure of that littl setup you got but if it is flash it will probably catch some smacks. However, do like I suggested and make sure to have some small gold spoons and a few chrome rattle traps in 1/4 oz and the next size up as well. When fishing for the smacks, vary your retrieves untill they start hitting. I have caught them while burning a 7:1 reel as fast as I could, and then came back the next day and had to let the spoon sink and then slowly crawl it back to get a bite. Those fish are funny, and though they are very aggressive, you often have to get the presentation just right.

By the way, your best bet for trout this time of year are suspending jerkbaits suck as the catch2000 or corky. However, topwaters will work too, and depending if it is warm enough yet, bass asassins may be the ticket. I would try to catch them on the spoons too much. They will hit them but all of the above mentioned lures are better trout baits.

Also on the trout fishing. If the wwater temp is under 70 degrees. you really have to slow down your retrieve...

Though sometimes a slow retrieve works, I have got mad reaction strikes while fishing a fast moving surface walker. I dont think it is that the trout are sluggish, though they are conserving enery, its just that the slow retrieve resembles a big slow moving injured mullet, plus it helps you cover the water more thuroughly.

i will be goin on the 17th-22nd off the jettys and piers

I'll be down there the 15th and 16th. I can't wait to get down there. I'll probably try fishing the jetties at some point.

Can y'all imagine how full those party boats are going to be during spring break? I'd go for a private guide and target some reds and trout.

i will be down on the 8th-maybe the 10th i dont really know,

im thinking about renting a kayak from crabmans, and fishing either lhl or B&R or just fish the jetty

Better to rent from Slow Ride in AP... Yaks are in better shape and he can give you a better idea where and how to fish.

but i don't have a way to transport it after that. i have a little car with alot of glass on top.

any idea on how much it is to rent....

is slow ride open on sunday

My bro and I are going out on a 36 hr. trip with Dolphin Docks and will then probably fish the surf and try to catch a shark or two and scare all of the bikini clad girls! If anyone wants to join us, we get back from the trip Sunday afternoon and will hit the beach monday and tuesday...maybe wednesday as well..

He will shuttle or meet you at your launch point.

Rentals are 40.00 for a 1/2 day 55.00 for a full day.

Don't know about Sunday hours.

You might want to consider reserving a yak since it will be super crowded that weekend. Maybe he can put you on an area without so much pressure as LHL or B&R. Dean's a nice guy, give him a call.
http://www.slowrideguide.com/pricing.htm

i just got off the phone with them, i have a yak resevered for me. thanks for all your help and input...

Not at all. Have a fun and safe trip. Don't forget to post a report when you get back!

I was wondering what you guys thought was the best way to get down there from D/FW. We normally go 35 to Waco and then take 77 down through Victoria to 59, 35, ferry, etc. However, I was talking to a guy from Corpus at the Cowboys playoff game who said it was quicker to stay on 35 to Austin and then take something like 290 over to 77. What's your opinion?

I'm from just south of Austin. So I drive I35 to San Antonio then take 410 over to 37 all the way down to Corpus then take the causeway bridge across. Seems to be pretty quick for me.

Im headed to Port Aransas in about an hour and a half. Going with two friends. We will be on the beach for two days, and the rest of the time will be in a condo at the marina for the rest of our time. Ive got a White Jeep Cherokee, theres a good chance it's us. if anyone from here sees us, come and get a beer.

We'll be in a black EB Expedition with a cargo hauler on the back. We should hit the ferry about noon on Friday. We'll also being making an appearance at Sharky's every afternoon for a beer on our way down to Ocean's for fresh shrimp. Give a wave or say hello.