Galveston West Bay Fishing

My family and I will be in Galveston staying in Jamaica Beach mid-August on the bay side. I'll have the bay boat with me and looking to do several types of fishing. We will be in a 19' Baystealth, so not looking to venture more than 10 miles off shore (that's if it is dead calm). Was hoping some folks could shed some light on a few questions for me:

- What are some of the major areas to avoid in West Bay because they are either hazardous or not worth fishing? I know the majority of the bay is pretty shallow on that side.

- Where are the best places to venture off shore in a bayboat that if calm, can produce some decent fish. We will have all the necessary equipment (GPS, Ship to shore, Compass, etc) needed to venture off shore.

- For someone down for 5 days in mid-august, where should we focus more of our time if we want to have fun catching everything from reds to shark (catch and release intended on shark).

- Best baits for most productive fishing? We usually end up with live shrimp on popping corks or cut bait for shark.

Appreciate everyone's insight.

....first off glad you are going to be able to make the trip down here!

""- What are some of the major areas to avoid in West Bay because they are either hazardous or not worth fishing? I know the majority of the bay is pretty shallow on that side.""

.....18' Bay Stealth? You can go anywhere just about! There was some dredging going on in the Intracoastal a while back up north near Greens and Carancua but they are gone I believe. Other than that everything is the norm.

""- Where are the best places to venture off shore in a bayboat that if calm, can produce some decent fish. We will have all the necessary equipment (GPS, Ship to shore, Compass, etc) needed to venture off shore.""


.....since Snapper season is gonna be closed on a good day I'd have to suggest you read the reports in the Galveston Daily News...and take that with a grain of salt!!

""- For someone down for 5 days in mid-august, where should we focus more of our time if we want to have fun catching everything from reds to shark (catch and release intended on shark).""

.....out at the North Jetty. Launch at the Galveston Yacht Basin and head to the east past the Coast Guard station. North Jetty will be on your port side. If the waters permit fish the rocks in the ship channel. IF it's rough you can go through the Boat Cut and get on the protected side.

""- Best baits for most productive fishing? We usually end up with live shrimp on popping corks or cut bait for shark. ""

....Live shrimp or croakers will catch Reds and especially some nice Trout. For sharks catch some mullet and cut the tails and heads off and use what's left! On the bottom out at he jetties you can catch some big Rays that will drag your boat all over the place!!

Have fun and shoot me a PM when Ya'll head this way as I'll probably be out there as well!!

Thanks Galveston! Will certainly shoot a PM when I'm headed down.

My brother and I were down for the first time with the boat in February (bought the boat a week prior). We fished the North Jetty and couldn't buy a bite! It appeared that most others were having the same issue. We ended up with a nice black drum and a nice red 15 minutes before we had to load up and head back to Fort Worth. I suppose the slow bite in February was due to the time of year most likely? Fishing in the wrong spot at the wrong time?

Fish the pass and colds pass in mid august... there are some sleeper BIG TROUT caught there every august...

hook up with Aqua Pimp Captain Greg Francis or Capt Steve Soule and take your family with them one day, they'll show you around and get you on the fish so you'll be able to capitalize on your time down there.
T

West Bay can be a tricky bay for a person new to West Bay. The upper end has a lot of shell reefs that are real shallow. Confederate, North Deer, South Deer, Meacoms, and all the spoil reefs that lay on the edges of the ICW are all shallow and this area can be difficult to run and frusterating. On the other end you have sand bars (San Luis Pass area). Go slow in both these areas. You can go from 4' to 2" in the blink of an eye. If the water is green just take your time, go slow, and read the water. The open bay is pretty easy to run. Not a lot of mid bay reefs to run into. Caranchua Reef and Shell Island reef are two to watch for. Both are good areas to fish.
I would say your best option would be to drift the pass area, Shell Island, or Caranchua Reef with live Shrimp under popping cork or free line shrimp or croakers. All these spots are on a Hook & Line map that can you buy at Academy.
Also, you might consider the jetties if the conditions are calm. The Galveston jetties are about a 30 to 45 minute run from where you are staying.

hope this helps and good luck.

AQUA PIMP

......X2 on the above! Capt. Greg or Capt. Steve can put you on some quality fish that's for sure!!

Appreciate it Trout Support and Aqua Pimp! After paying for the house rental and fuel to drag the boat down there from Galveston, my budget is very limited this year, so we probably wont be able to take advantage of a guided trip. Hopefully before too long my brother and I will be able to come down specifically to take a guided trip and learn the best ways to fish the bays. I think it would help our future trips be much more productive.

We've been in West Bay in our Kayaks, but only found very shallow water. My father-in-law and I launched out of Fat's bait camp in a small jon boat last year and could only find shallow water as well (we didn't stray too far from the launch). We do have an old hook & line map that we are using to plan the trip with, but it is out dated (from 2004). We'll be buying a new one when we get there to give us insight on new rigs and ship wrecks. I'll also be using my Navionics iPhone app.

Couple of more questions for the experts:
- Are there any famous offshore fishing spots off shore/south of S.L.P.? I ask because we are staying in Jamaica beach and the boat will be tied at the dock all week. In looking at the map, San Lois Pass is the closest cut out of the bay from Jamaica Beach.

- When making the boat ride from Jamaica Beach to the N. Jetties, is it quicker to cruise down to S.L.P.; cut out into the ocean and cruise parallel to the beach or hit the ICW and hook around the yacht club?

From Jamaica Beach to the North Jetties I would hit run the small channel between North Deer and South Deer and hit the ICW. From there you can go under the causeway and either go through the basin or stay in the ICW to you hit the ship channel. once you hit the ship channel take a right and you will hit the jetties in a few minutes. From JB to the jetties it will take you 35 to 45 minutes. Just watch your speed and depth around North and South Deer. A lot of reefs in the area.

AQUA PIMP

....have to agree with "AQUA PIMP" on the route he described. Ought to be a better ride as you won't have to try and navigate out of the Pass.

I talked to my Dad a while ago and he informed me that were staying over in Sea Isle, which puts me about 5 miles closer to the pass than originally anticipated. So ready to get on the water I can taste it!

Keep an open mind. The water in west bay comes in through SLP and the surf on each side of the pass. The water for east bay comes in from 5 miles offshore through the Galveston jetties. You might have to resort to the Galveston jetties if the water is sandy in west bay.

Thanks Bill, I certainly will keep an open mind. I've always heard, the greener the water in SLP, the better the fishing. If it's real brown and dirty, I will try somewhere else. My real intention is to simply travel via SLP to get to open water and fish a close rig or two and some shipwreck sites (if the seas are calm).

Surf is rough and dirty. Tried fishing the surf, said "Hi" to a couple of unfriendly stingrays, and caught butkis!

I do have a question on surf rigs. I keep losing my tackle. I'm using 20# braid, a 3oz sinker, 17# 12" leader, and #2 hook. I also have a red glass bead. I think my knots are pretty solid and suspect the glass bead. Anybody have a different take?

Is your rig coming untied, line breaking off, or is the rig itself failing? Typically, not a whole lot to get broken off on in the surf.

If the glass bead is on the braid and it is sharp, that could be cutting you off, but like Michael said, we need more info to make a better suggestion.

Gut says its the knots I'm tying. Any suggestions?

Also, I'm planning on trying the 91 st street pier tomorrow. AM or PM best?

http://www.netknots.com/fishing_knots/... They recommend the Palomar Knot for braided line.

As for Am vs PM, I'll let the other guys speak to that as I'm here to learn more about how to be more productive when fishing in Galveston as well.

Morning and evening both can be good