ive fished galveston bay all of my life and am ready to move on to catching bigger fish. ive gone offshore fishing(trolling) in my boat twice and havent caught anything (i think it is due to the distance i went out). how far do i need to go offshore in galveston to catch red snapper, kings, and dolphin? also what are some good baits for them? any tips and help appreciated.

fisherman,

If you feel comfortable enough with your boat and know your fuel comsumption the first rigs arent that far out..I take my 20 footer out to these rigs every once in a while when the seas permit (2 ft. or less)..You can catch snapper and kings for sure...Dolphin are a little harder to come by but there have been some caught in the area....on a really clear day you can still see the galveston skyline from the 1st rig....once you clear the jetties look at about 1 oclock and you will see a structure on the horizon..i usta think it was a rig...but its actually a lot smaller and alot closer..some kind of weather bouy...it will take you about 30 min. to get to it...once you get to the bouy you will see the first rigs..its about anoth 10 to 15 minutes to them...you do get some cell phone reception out there with Verison..but It would be better to have a marine radio with a good sized antennae just in case you break down or something....just remember when you're out that far in a smaller vessle...keep your eye on the sky and dont take too many chances..weather coming out of Houston can cut you off from the shore if you arent watching.

I've fished East Bay a few times this year. Thing about going out to the end of the jetties. How this fishing out there? I've got 19ft Blue Wave.

We went out about 40-50 miles Saturday. My first time. We left out of San Louis Pass. We were just a bit south of due east from the Pass. It took us about 1 1/2 hours to get in at about 30-32 mph. 4 of us limited on red snapper. We caught several dolphin fish but no keepers. We saw a big king fish but couldn't get the bite. We were using dead shad. We were by a big working rig but I don't remember the number.

I went out of Galveston this past Saturday on a 21' Sea Pro Bay Boat, the report is below, I have Sprint, and does work at the Rig that I stopped at:

Got to Yatch Basin at around 5:30, they place was almost full, tournament going on. We did got in an lanched here. Got 2 dozen of ribbon fishing, 2 boxes of Cigar Minnow, 2 Bags of ice.

Stop at 1st oil rig with hellicopter flatform about 12 miles out on heading of 175 degrees. Got 4 person limit of King Mackerel here, left at 9:30 for Buccaneer.
Arrive at Buccaneer, bottom fishes until 11:30. Caught all under sized Red Snapper, and all the Angel fish to be had. Family had a good time watching the dolphins waiting for and getting the undersized Red Snapper that we throw back. Got back to the oil rig we were at, got 4 Bonita and more Kings that we threw back. Headed in around 2pm. We decides not to fish Sunday and headed back to Dallas.

The Sea Pro handled the 2' sea okay if we cruise under 30MPH, would get a beating above 30MPH, Did not get spray at all.

Is it still legal to hook up to the rigs?

We went on Sat. 7/15/06
Conditions were hot, no wind, and the seas were about a .4 feet. It was great, we went out 80 plus miles. We caught 4 limits of red snapper, 4 mahi mahi, dogtooth snapper, 5 amber jack, 3 sharks, 2 king fish, 1 Jack Cravail, and many more undersized fish. It was an awsome trip with a good group of guys.
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I saw people hooking up to the rigs

do you guys think my 20' skeeter bass boat would make it to the rigs???? lol.. imagine the look on peoples faces.... ever seen a bass boat with trolling motor down running around the rigs??? HEHE!! That would be a site to see! Least I could get there fast!

Ronnie - with the seas as flat as they were last weekend I was thinking the same thing! Actually thought about towing the Skeeter out to the floaters with the big boat and chase yft! Don't think I could get the Captn to buy off on that one though.

How do you know when its safe to go out far? I would love to take my boat out that far!! I have a 24' fishmaster and fished galvestons east bay last weekend. Cant the seas just kick up at any time? If its smooth when you leave out, how do you know its gonna be smooth on the way back? Doesnt the ocean have its own behaivor like the weather does and if so, how do I learn about it so I dont get burned trying to go out.

Well to answer the "When is it safe" and can I take my skeeter to the rigs question...In a vessel smaller than 26 ft. I would only range out that far if the seas were 2 ft. or less...During the hot summer this happens fairly frequently as long as there are no storms brewing up that chop up the seas with the wind. I would watch the weather forecast and also look up the ocean conditions forecast. Heres a site that will help you with ocean conditions www.ndbc.noaa.gov This site gives you access to actual weather bouys that are in the gulf close to the first rigs. It's a fantastic tool for planning your trip. As far as taking a skeeter out to the rigs...Sea conditions #1.) and the boats Fuel capacity #2)..the boat will make the ride if the seas are flat..I mean..it's just water...but from the end of the Galveston jetties it is 13.2 Miles to the first rig....Another great site for looking up the location & distance of these rigs is on www.txfishing.net. This site gives you precise GPS coordinates and a visual map of the rigs spread in the gulf. My boat uses about 15-20 gallons of fuel getting to the rigs and back when I put in at Sievers cut at the Bolivar yatch basin but My boat is probaly much heavier than a skeeter...You just have to know your set up and fuel consumption...It wouldnt hurt to buy a 10 gallon fuel tank from wally world just to have extra just in case. So basically all in all...it's probaly do able...but pushing the limits.

just the info. I was looking for. my fishmaster is made by kenner and weighs 2600 lbs. dry hull. the fuel capacity is 87 gallons. what do ya think?

87 GALLONS!? Oh yeah...you could make it to this rigs and then some. Good luck to you. Tight lines.

When we were kids my Dad took his 20' runabout offshore every year out of Freeport. I was in it one day we figured that we had gone about 45 miles out. They have been in up to 6' seas with it ( I wasn't along that day). Not very smart, but it has been done. I remember seing three guys tied up to an oil rig in a 14-16' john boat in about 4' seas one day. I won't say how far out they were as I don't know where the closest rig is. But seem to remember from recent trips that they are at least 5 miles out. And once you've gotten that far, your over the worst of it. Unless it gets worse while your out. In which case if conditions worsen at all, and you have any douts, Head In. I look forward to getting a few things situated and buying my new boat next year. I will not get anything over 21' CC and will definately have it offshore at some point. When conditions are right.


Jay