Some of the best fishing I have experanced is in the South Padre Island area. There are some really hot spots in the bay if your looking for Reds or Speckled Trout. I use a 12 ft. V-bottom boat with a 6 horsepower engine, it’s all I need in the bay area.
One good spot is under the Queen Isabella bridge which you have to cross to get onto the island. There are a couple of public boat ramps close by and you get fishing in just a few minuets. Live bait always works best, depending on the season and tide, squid seems to work best for almost any kind of fish there. Also Sand Trout when running are good on artificial jigs. Any color will do and if you use a double rig, a good part of the time one can catch 2 at a time, now that’s fun!
The jettes are not far from there and if you like to bank fish with some sturdy rods and reels, you can catch some really nice sized fish there. It’s best to go around sunset, there are huge rocks to sit on and sometimes possible to use folding chairs. make sure you take plenty of bait and gear because the rocks at the botton can easily rip your hooks and weights off. But once you catch that 30 lb. black Drum or Red, it’ll all be worth while.
Surf fishing is also good just north of the populated coastline. A 9 ft. rod and heavy tackle works best, like using steel leaders and 1 oz. plus weights to keep the tide from moving your bait around too much, along with some live squid or crabs. Once you have your rod baited and ready for action, wade out as far as you can and cast your line, walk back and place your rod up against something. What works best is a 4 ft. section of 3 inch PVC pipe placed at the edge of the waterline, hammer in about 18 inches, do not forget to set the drag on your reel, because if you get a big bite and your not paying attention, you may lose your rig!
Here’s another tip to help save you time. Make sure you use large chunks of bait, or just big squid, mullet, etc, etc. It’ll save you the headache of dealing with all the smaller fish that will try to take your bait, like hard head catfish. I wasted too much time taking those off my hooks when I was younger until someone told me not to rig for small freshwater type fish. If you want big fish, use big bait!