Texas Gulf Coast Fishing Report — June 11: Trout & Reds

The Texas bays are in full summer swing this week. Speckled trout are the headline, working the grass flats, guts, and along the spoil banks of the Laguna Madre, Baffin, and the mid-coast bays. Topwater at first light and soft plastics under the sun have both produced, with the better trout coming early before the heat sets in.

Redfish are tailing on the flats and working the shorelines and back lakes, eating cut bait, soft plastics, and gold spoons. The slot reds have been reliable, and the bull reds are showing around the jetties and passes as the summer pattern develops.

In the surf, the green water along the beaches has been holding trout, redfish, and Spanish mackerel on the calm days, and pompano and whiting are providing bottom action. Tarpon are beginning to show along the beachfront and around the passes, an early sign of the summer run.

Offshore, the red snapper season has the fleet busy over the reefs and rigs, with kingfish, ling (cobia), and mahi also in the mix for boats making the run. Mangrove snapper are stacking on the nearshore structure.

Beat the heat with early starts and watch the afternoon storms. The bay trout and redfish bite should stay strong through June, and the surf is worth a dawn trip when the water turns green.

Spots & Access This Week

The 61st Street ramp in Galveston and the Texas City Dike put you on the upper coast bay systems and within reach of the jetties. Farther south, the ramps around Fisherman’s Wharf in Port Aransas serve the Aransas Pass jetty system, and Bird Island Basin on the Laguna Madre is the launch of choice for the Upper Laguna flats. Shore anglers have excellent walk-on access at the Galveston north and south jetties and along the Texas City Dike, both of which produce trout, reds, and Spanish through the summer. Right now the fish are concentrated on the jetty rocks, the guts in the surf, and the grass and rock structure in the bays — not on open bay bottom.

Tackle & Tactics Notes

Wade fishing is the most effective way to work the Texas flats in summer, and the guts in the surf are the underrated part of the fishery. Count them before you commit: the second gut generally holds trout in the early morning and the third holds the better fish once the sun is up. Work each one thoroughly from the beach outward instead of pushing straight to the deepest water you can stand in. In the bays, topwater in the first hour is worth the early start, and a soft plastic on a light jighead or a live croaker under a cork takes over after that. In Baffin Bay, slow down dramatically and work the rock structure methodically — the fish there are not chasing. Jetty tarpon and bull reds want heavier gear and a bait presented in the current seam on the outgoing tide.

Conditions Outlook

Light southeast wind in the mornings building through the afternoon is the pattern to plan around, with storm activity more of a factor on the upper coast than the lower. Bay water temperatures will keep climbing, which pushes the trout bite earlier and earlier — expect the productive window to shrink to the first two hours of daylight. Jetty fishing stays viable later in the day as long as the tide is moving, so shift there when the flats shut down.

This Week’s Tip

Watch for a green tide in the surf. When the water goes from brown to clear green all the way to the beach, drop what you are doing and go. Green surf means the trout and reds move into the first and second gut and feed within easy casting range of anyone standing waist deep. That window may only last a morning, and the anglers who plan their week around checking the surf color catch far more than the ones who fish a fixed schedule.

More Texas Gulf Coast Resources

Texas Gulf Coast Fishing Guide · Texas Gulf Coast Seasonal Calendar · All Texas Gulf Coast reports →

Also read: Texas Gulf Coast Fishing Report — Week of July 30, 2026: Kings Nearshore, Wade-Fishing Trout

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