The last 3 nights have had some of the most nasty windy conditions in a long time for the middle Texas coast. Sustained winds in the 25-30mph range had the bays a muddy mess, and finding remote clear water areas was the key to gigging flounder. Lately, it seems like the weather is windy and nasty on the weekends, and nice during the week. It's time to book a mid-week trip during nice weather, because the flounder gigging has been amazing, even on bad weather nights.

4/12/2018
I had the Ron M. group of 4 onboard tonight. Conditions were bad, with SSE winds at 20-30mph and high tide levels. We got off to a slow start, only finding 8 flounder by 11pm. After making a couple moves, we got on some better action and better water clarity. We ended with a 20 flounder limit plus 2 sheepshead and 1 black drum by 12:30am. (4 hours 15 minutes of gigging).

4/13/2018
I had the Garreth B. group of 5 onboard. Conditions were horrible, with SSE winds sustained at 30mph with higher gusts and very high tide levels. The boat ride coming and going was rough and wet, but well worth it for the results. The high winds did some strange things to the water levels tonight, stacking up the water on the North shore of the bay, but dead low tide on the protected South shorelines. Luckily, we got on the flounder hot and heavy from the start and never quit. We ended with a 25 flounder limit by 10:30pm (2 hours 15 minutes of gigging). The fish tonight were good size, with a 17" average.

4/14/2018
I had the Justin J. group of 6 onboard tonight. Conditions were nice, with North winds at 5-10mph and normal tide levels. The strong north winds at 30-40mph all day and fast dropping tide had the water a muddy mess just about everywhere. Even though conditions were nice, the weather earlier in the day was still showing its affects on water clarity. We got off to a very slow start, only gigging 1 flounder in the first hour, and rarely seeing the bottom in murky waters. After making a move, we found better water clarity and steady action over hard sand and grass bottom. We ended with a 30 flounder limit plus 3 sheepshead by midnight (3 hours 45 minutes of gigging). The largest flounder tonight was 20".

Upcoming open dates:
April: 17-19, 23-26, 30
May: 1, 6-9, 13-17, 20-24, 28
June: 5, 11-15, 17-19, 21, 24-28
July: 1, 3-19, 22-24, 26-31

I also do "late trips" if I finish quickly with my first group. Late trips usually leave the dock 10pm-1am. Please call for availability. This is the best way to get a trip on short notice when I am already booked.

Price: $550 for 3 people, $100 each additional person, up to 6 people

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

Solid post and fish. Good job.