Just back from a month in Africa working. We tore em up chasing the birds mid Nov. in Trinity bay. Anyone know if you can still chase the birds with this weather and time of month or time to move to something else? Thanks

Yes, most definitely you can work the birds in winter. Shrimp make a migration out of the bays and so the birds follow as the trout feed on them and drive them to the surface.

Use a good trolling motor and circle around the school a good distance to drift into them as you probably already know.

The only bad thing about working the birds is when you get on the fish and there are other boats in the area and they see bent rods sometimes some people are not that courteous and will run their boat too fast and too close and spook the fish. Not all the time but a lot of times there is always that one guy that has to run the boat too close while you are fishing and spook the school of fish and mess it up for you or everybody. But the best way to handle it is usually when it slows down they get tired and leave and you just wait it out and keep a look out with a good set of binoculars and the birds will regroup again and you will be on the school again.

And as you probably already know you want a lure that sinks fast cause usually the bigger trout are feeding below the smaller trout up top. That's why a lot of times when you fish a big group of birds and you cast your lure and as soon as it hits the water you get schoolie trout in the 12-13 inch range. And if you use a heavier lure that sinks faster when you are fishing the birds you can usually get to the bigger 15-19 inch trout or bigger that are feeding below the smaller trout near the surface.

I love fishing the birds. I have a log book of locations and times the birds feed during certain times of the year in many different places in Galveston Bay that I have gathered my own information from over the years.

During certain times in certain general areas birds feed at exact times. Like say for instance in Lower Galveston Bay during March within a certain exact area the birds will start working at exactly 2:30 PM. Not 2:25 PM or 2:35 PM but exacly 2:30 PM. That is just an example. And during other times it will be 4:30 PM in certain areas. It's a pretty exact thing.

Same thing with Trinity Bay. Right now there are certain pinpoint locations where birds work in Trinity Bay at very specific exact times. All over Galveston Bay though not just Trinity. And you can set your watch to it and get your binoculars out and wait and it happens. The trick is to have a good set of binoculars and keep an eye out. And of course know the coordinates of the area to be in at a certain time of the day.

I remember taking some friends out on my boat and they didn't believe me at first about the exact time and place thing. So I told them, "I will guarantee you that I will put all of you on a limit of trout within an hour starting at a certain time." They were a bit sceptical at first but I was on the boat and told them the action would start in about 15 minutes so get everything ready cause the action is going to be fast. I knew the action would start at 2:30 PM or whatever time I had in my log book for that area plus I had been catching trout about every day at the same time in the same area the birds were working. And I had my binoculars out and sure enough at 2:30 the birds started working and drifted into a school of trout and put them on fish pretty quick. They couldn't believe it. How exact the timing and place was. Thought it was a bit freaky but I just told them it is just a pattern the fish and birds have nothing magical or mysterious about it.

That's why when you catch fish it is good to keep a log book. Especially when working the birds. Write down coordinates of the place, time of day, date, water tempertaure, air temperature, atmospheric pressure, tide info, wind info, lures used, as much detail as possible. And with all that info you can use later on cause fish follow patterns every year.

thanks for the heads up.will be down there sat. and sun. will be looking for the birds.

Good luck. Bring a good set of binoculars if you have any, it helps a lot when you are out there.

Can you give me some times and locations for trinity if you have any? It'd be really appreciated.

Those fish must have a good watch, so they know what time to drive the shrimp to the surface so the birds can eat.

Yes, you can pretty much set your watch to it. The birds work at very exact times is specific locations all over Galveston Bay. You can be in a certain spot and the birds start working at say 2.30 PM exactly. That's just as an example. Come back the next day and they will be working again at 2:30 PM exactly, not 2:20 PM or 2:40 PM but 2:30 exact. Different times at different locations and this changes during different times of the year. But the time and place is very exact and consistent day after day. It's pretty much a sure way to get on the trout if numbers are what you are after.

Also the exact pinpoint location may change but they work in the same area day after day. One day might be a certain spot and the next day they are 500 yards away and the next day it may be 500 yards in the other direction but same area. That's where having a decent set of binoculars comes into play and having a good eye and paying attention to what is going on around you at all times.

I'll PM you the times and spots LTBASSKING. It's just a personal log of times and places I have gathered over many years. It's just for Galveston Bay though since that is the bay I fish. Trinity, Lower and Upper Galveston Bay, East Bay and West Bay.

But right now the birds work a lot of areas in Trinity Bay. And since the bay is a fairly large bay you have to know exact locations to be at certain times or else you will spend a lot of time trying to track down feeding birds. Sometimes the action lasts 15 minutes sometimes it lasts 30 minutes or more and it slows down and they regroup later. But the action is fast. No time to deal with backlashes or trying to rig lures or messing around looking through tackle boxes. You need to have all the rods ready and lures ready for quick changes or fixes. Cause when you are working the birds and in a big school there is no time to waste and the action is real fast so make sure everything is in order and ready to go. Reels adjusted and lures ready an everything in top working order.

Thats great man thankyou. I really appreciate it. Hey if you ever wanna go fishin on Lake Travis hit me up cuz i go all the time.

ltbassking cant catch any fish

Well, it looks like AJ is in your neck of the woods at Lake Travis - I bet he can share some good fishing info about it also.

Yes, I live on Lake Travis. Out here in Lakeway, TX off of FM 620.

I fish Lake Travis sometimes but I am not a great bass fishmerman by any means. Saltwater fishing is more of my area of expertise. I am very knowledgable in just the Galveston Bay complex. When it comes to bass fishing or fishing Lake Travis I know very little. But I have caught nice bass here but I am not really an expert in bass fishing. I do like topwater fishing in the warmer months here on Travis and do well at that since I am good with topwater lures while wade fishing the bays. That's really where I do well is with topwater fishing. And I catch lots of bass that way using the same techniques I use in saltwater.

But when it comes to bass techniques like flipping and pitching and stroking a jig and using drop shots and working crankbaits and a lot of these very specialized bass techniques I still have a lot to learn about these bass techniques and a novice. But I learn fast.

I had a boat I used on Lake Travis but it was a center console bay boat so most of the time I just spent cruising around Lake Travis in it and not really fishing much. Most of the fishing I did in it here on Travis was just trolling in between boat docks using topwaters right outside my boat dock and the other marina docks.

But I sold my boat and looking to get a bigger boat more of what I want. A 23 foot Gulfcoast is kinda what I want but I am still looking for the right boat at the right price. Something big like 23-25 feet so I can take several peopel on board, can handle rough bay water, and run shallow in 1-2 feet of water.

But yeah Trinity Bay is an excellent bay to fish right now. And West Bay which is my favorite as well as East Bay.

I'll give you places to fish and lures to use.

Do you like wade fishing?

When I get my boat any of you all are welcome to come fish with me if you like. If I can get what I would like I could probably take about 5 other people at a time. And I like fishing with other people.

Ok that'd be great. I started out bayfishing as i moved here from the houston area but i never really go tinto like i did bass fishing. I haven't been fishing in the bay in about 5 months so any adivce you can give would be awesome.

I've actually been doin alot of crappie fishing at night and have been tearig em up. We caught 75 two nights ago. I'm probably gonna go agian tomorrow night if you'd like to go ur more than welcome. If you ever want any advice on baits and locations let me know.I have an 18ft alumacraft all weld center console thats great for fishin out here.

I like wade fishing but i don't really know if i want to freeze my balls off in the water. do you know the water temp?