Looks like the G-town bait camps have little to no live shrimp for bait again....sources say. Most trout fisherman use live shrimp this time of year, around debris, structure, rock groins etc. Small live Croaker can be used too. You have a few people all up and down the coast badmouth croaker soaking. The way I see it...it's a NATURAL food source for trout.I like using live croaker, especially the Healthy ones. Most beat up ones at bait camps will go belly up quick. So, if you buy these little expensive baits, eyeball what you get. I've been known to bring an ultra-lite rod and reel, some dead bait, and catch my own. Stay safe...

piggies with the dorsal cut down work pretty good and they're easy to trap.

I've heard that long ago but I have never tried. Cutting the dorsal fin allows for a lot of erratic movement.

i haven't bought croaker in years, first off they're too expensive, second, they're hard to keep alive. piggies probably don't work as well as croaker, but they are hardy and easy to get. really seem to have better luck with the 2-3" size.

+1 on croaker being too expensive. Go find a boat slip where there's a cleaning table and throw a cast net and catch a few dozen piggy perch. Free line them in the surf (tie fluorocarbon leader directly to mono/braid) and use a kahle or circle hook. To be honest, I think croakers are over-rated. In Galveston (West End, Sea Isle marina) they're nearly a buck each, and I don't systematically catch more fish on them.

Also, if there's bigger fish around, your shrimp may not live long enough to find them. The fish I catch on fish are generally bigger. You may also catch a few horse piggies, you may be surprised how large a bait a fish will eat, but only rarely do I catch large fish on small baits (a 45" bull red on a live shrimp last time I was in West Bay is a notable exception).