mmontelongo
Creator
Really enjoyed the Fishing Palacios Texas Piers and Bridges video! Eduardo mentioned maybe checking tides next time to help pick spots—but also said y’all just enjoy being out there. Totally get that. Sometimes just wetting a line is what it’s all about.
That said… I know I’m fully being a Monday morning quarterback here—but fish are picky, and the old rule still holds: 90% of the fish are caught in 10% of the water. A little strategy can go a long way.
Let’s talk about that first stop—Bayshore Drive Bridge. I had commented that’s where me and Jake usually grab bait, and Daniel said, “If there’s bait, there’s fish.” And he’s not wrong—but that’s only true some of the time. That section y’all were fishing is about 3 feet deep, and during the heat of the day, shallow water doesn’t hold much oxygen.
As the water warms, it holds less dissolved oxygen—something redfish need to stay active. In those hot shallows, redfish often slide off to deeper, cooler water where they can breathe easier. Baitfish like mullet and croaker might stay in that skinny water—uncomfortable but safer. Meanwhile, the predators are usually staged nearby in better water, just waiting.
And here’s where it gets interesting—just a little south of there, you’ve got slips with a dredged channel that holds deeper, cooler, more oxygenated water. I dropped a GIS image to show it. Odds are, there were some big reds hanging out there waiting for the tide to deliver dinner. Everything highlighted in yellow on this map is public property so free game to walk up to the tip of Blue and cast into those sweet sweet cool waters.
Also, when the OG caught that croaker, all I could think was: man, throw a #2 hook through its tail, rig up a Texas Rattler, and toss it into those cool slips. That thing wouldn’t have lasted five minutes. That croaker had “redfish candy” written all over it.
Again—easy for me to say from behind a screen. But hopefully this kind of breakdown helps y’all next time you head out. Love seeing Palacios getting some attention!
And look—every great guide out there started the same way: they fished a lot. They got skunked, they tested spots, they logged hundreds of hours until the puzzle started to make sense. That trial and error is where all the experience is born.
But I’ll tell you—the best tool I’ve got in my tackle box isn’t gear or bait, it’s the elders. I make it a point to sit and talk with the old-timers at the dock or on the bank. They’ll tell you where the fish used to stack up, when to be there, what baits worked back then—and most of them share it willfully. That kind of knowledge is priceless, and it’ll shortcut your learning curve faster than anything.
That said… I know I’m fully being a Monday morning quarterback here—but fish are picky, and the old rule still holds: 90% of the fish are caught in 10% of the water. A little strategy can go a long way.
Let’s talk about that first stop—Bayshore Drive Bridge. I had commented that’s where me and Jake usually grab bait, and Daniel said, “If there’s bait, there’s fish.” And he’s not wrong—but that’s only true some of the time. That section y’all were fishing is about 3 feet deep, and during the heat of the day, shallow water doesn’t hold much oxygen.
As the water warms, it holds less dissolved oxygen—something redfish need to stay active. In those hot shallows, redfish often slide off to deeper, cooler water where they can breathe easier. Baitfish like mullet and croaker might stay in that skinny water—uncomfortable but safer. Meanwhile, the predators are usually staged nearby in better water, just waiting.
And here’s where it gets interesting—just a little south of there, you’ve got slips with a dredged channel that holds deeper, cooler, more oxygenated water. I dropped a GIS image to show it. Odds are, there were some big reds hanging out there waiting for the tide to deliver dinner. Everything highlighted in yellow on this map is public property so free game to walk up to the tip of Blue and cast into those sweet sweet cool waters.
Also, when the OG caught that croaker, all I could think was: man, throw a #2 hook through its tail, rig up a Texas Rattler, and toss it into those cool slips. That thing wouldn’t have lasted five minutes. That croaker had “redfish candy” written all over it.
Again—easy for me to say from behind a screen. But hopefully this kind of breakdown helps y’all next time you head out. Love seeing Palacios getting some attention!
And look—every great guide out there started the same way: they fished a lot. They got skunked, they tested spots, they logged hundreds of hours until the puzzle started to make sense. That trial and error is where all the experience is born.
But I’ll tell you—the best tool I’ve got in my tackle box isn’t gear or bait, it’s the elders. I make it a point to sit and talk with the old-timers at the dock or on the bank. They’ll tell you where the fish used to stack up, when to be there, what baits worked back then—and most of them share it willfully. That kind of knowledge is priceless, and it’ll shortcut your learning curve faster than anything.
there and appreciate your unselfish desire to share the science of fishing. We know 90 percent of the fish caught are in 10% of the area at different times in different areas!