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Texas · Corpus Christi Bay

Redfish should be the day — Packery and the Mustang backside, then the Port A jetties if the bulls are in.

Packery, Shamrock, Nueces, Mustang backside. Pass water at Port Aransas. Bull reds on the jetties in fall.

  • ⚠ This brief is for 2026-09-23, not this morning. Wind is a forecast. Observed water versus the table is a today-only instrument.
8.4OF 10

Forecast

medium confidence

Forecast brief for Wednesday, September 23. Back to this morning

Morning line

Corpus 8.4 on Wednesday, September 23. 14 mph SSE. Partly cloudy. YOLO day is Wednesday, August 26. Scores are 1–10, not a bite.

Mail it
0.30.50.70.81.0HLHLHLHLTue 7 PMWed 7 PMThu 7 PMFri 7 PMSat 7 PM
incoming · 0.79 ftNOAA hourly · ft MLLW

Wind

OPEN-METEO

NESW14MPH

From SSE · gust 18

Sky

OPEN-METEO

Clouds

Partly cloudy

A 20% shower chance is not a cancel. A soaker is.

Moon

90% lit

Waxing gibbous

mid range · 90%

Water

No gauge

Water

—

48°92°

Today’s range 0.3 ft

incoming

0.79 ft MLLW

River

USGS 08211000

69 cfs

Nueces Rv nr Mathis, TX

Discharge into this bay. High water stains the flat.

Wind vs table

Observed − predicted

—

No live gauge this hour — the printed tide is the forecast.

Clock

NOAA 8775792

  • HighWed 11:03 AM · 0.84
  • LowThu 12:50 AM · 0.56
  • HighThu 10:30 AM · 0.79
  • LowFri 12:58 AM · 0.63
  • HighFri 8:54 AM · 0.76

Monthly YOLO day

Wednesday, August 26 · 8.5

Best remaining dry day this month with a real wind forecast. waxing gibbous · spring · tide range ~0.4 ft · wind to 19 mph · 4% chance of rain

Stay or drive · Corpus vs BaffinOpen the calendarMorning dispatch

Next two weeks

Pulling the 14-day strip…

Where

  • TX - Mustang Island SP

    pass jetty · saved map · mid

    8.4

    Reservable beach sites; Fish Pass jetty 1 mi up-beach; bayside kayak trail. · camp-surf · GULF ATLAS! - FISH

    • — pass jetty on a incoming tide is a classic match.
    • — In-play: Redfish, Tarpon, Speckled trout, Mangrove / gray snapper.
    structurespinwade

  • TX - PINS South Beach miles 0-5

    pass jetty · saved map · mid

    8.4

    Free primitive w/ park pass. 2WD-friendly first 5 miles. · camp-surf · GULF ATLAS! - FISH

    • — pass jetty on a incoming tide is a classic match.
    • — In-play: Redfish, Tarpon, Speckled trout, Mangrove / gray snapper.
    structurespinwade

  • TX - Port Aransas IB Magee Beach Park

    pass jetty · saved map · mid

    8.4

    County campground at the south jetty. Family venue. · camp-surf · GULF ATLAS! - FISH

    • — pass jetty on a incoming tide is a classic match.
    • — In-play: Redfish, Tarpon, Speckled trout, Mangrove / gray snapper.
    structurespinwade

  • TX - Yarborough Pass (PINS mile 15.5)

    pass jetty · saved map · mid

    8.4

    4WD primitive camp + cross-island Laguna access. Graduate trip. · flats · GULF ATLAS! - FISH

    • — pass jetty on a incoming tide is a classic match.
    • — In-play: Redfish, Tarpon, Speckled trout, Mangrove / gray snapper.
    skiffkayakwadeflyspin

  • Mustang Island beach - SP to Packery

    pass jetty · saved map · mid

    8.4

    Reservable SP beach sites; Fish Pass jetty remnants ~1 mi up-beach; bayside kayak trail behind. The training beach. · 1 - BEACH CORRIDORS (yellow=2WD, orange=4WD, red=Big Shell) · Texas coast — corridors, jetties, flats

    • — pass jetty on a incoming tide is a classic match.
    • — In-play: Redfish, Tarpon, Speckled trout, Mangrove / gray snapper.
    structurespinwade

  • PINS South Beach - miles 0-5 (2WD hard pack)

    pass jetty · saved map · mid

    8.4

    Free primitive with park pass. First 5 miles are 2WD-friendly. The starter overnight. NO DRONES (NPS ban). · 1 - BEACH CORRIDORS (yellow=2WD, orange=4WD, red=Big Shell) · Texas coast — corridors, jetties, flats

    • — pass jetty on a incoming tide is a classic match.
    • — In-play: Redfish, Tarpon, Speckled trout, Mangrove / gray snapper.
    structurespinwade

When

  • Incoming water

    9.4

    Wed 8:00 AM → Wed 10:00 AM

    Moving water in the right part of the day.

  • Outgoing water

    8.0

    Wed 8:00 PM → Thu 12:00 AM

    Water is moving, but the clock is against you — heat or dark.

  • Incoming water

    9.4

    Thu 4:00 AM → Thu 9:00 AM

    Water is moving, but the clock is against you — heat or dark.

  • Outgoing water

    9.4

    Sun 10:00 AM → Sun 3:00 PM

    Moving water in the right part of the day.

Launch and beach access

Cited to TPWD, Texas GLO beach-access plans, and NPS. 2WD/4WD is the county plan, not a guess.

  • Goose Island State Park

    TPWD state park

    Ramp, pier, wade shore. Copano / St. Charles.

    Official source

  • Packery Channel County Park

    Nueces County / TPWD-listed launch

    Ramp both sides of the cut. Wade the bars on a moving tide.

    Official source

  • Malaquite Visitor Center — PINS

    NPS Padre Island National Seashore

    South Beach driving is 4WD, NPS permit, tires aired down. Closed sections shift after storms. Confirm nps.gov/pais before you drop a tire.

    Official source

  • PINS North Beach

    NPS Padre Island National Seashore

    North Beach is the easier drive. Still NPS rules, not a county 2WD corridor.

    Official source

  • Fulton Harbor

    Aransas County / TPWD-listed launch

    Copano and Aransas. Goose Island is the other public door.

    Official source

  • Rockport Beach

    City of Rockport / GLO beach access

    Bay beach, pier, and park. Not a Gulf drive-on corridor.

    Official source

Legal water

No-take and closed water cited to the agency that owns it. Only the Keys box is FKNMS.

No FKNMS polygon in this box. Mainland Florida, Louisiana, Texas, Mexico, and the Bahamas are not Keys sanctuary closures.

Why — and who

  • — Tide is incoming from NOAA.
  • — Partly cloudy. Sky is workable.
  • — Wind 14 mph SSE. Work the leeward shore. Fly gets harder.
  • — Waxing gibbous moon — mid tide range. Marsh and passes usually want the extra current of a spring.

Redfish

Sciaenops ocellatus

8.4

Thermal window

—

48°92°

In peak season for this water. This tide stage (incoming) matches how they hunt.

Texas (Sep 1 2025–Aug 31 2026): 3/day, 20–28 in slot. One over 28 in per license year with a Red Drum Tag.

Mangrove / gray snapper

Lutjanus griseus

8.4

Thermal window

—

64°92°

In peak season for this water. This tide stage (incoming) matches how they hunt.

Texas: typically 12 in, 4/day under snapper rules — verify TPWD.

Speckled trout

Cynoscion nebulosus

6.6

Thermal window

—

44°90°

Present, not peak. This tide stage (incoming) matches how they hunt.

Texas: 3/day, 15–20 in slot. One over 28 in per license year with a Spotted Seatrout Tag (plus bonus). Soft mouth + slot = measure every fish.

Tarpon

Megalops atlanticus

6.6

Thermal window

—

68°94°

Present, not peak. This tide stage (incoming) matches how they hunt.

Texas: treat as catch-and-release.

Black drum

Pogonias cromis

4.8

Thermal window

—

46°88°

Off-season here. This tide stage (incoming) matches how they hunt.

Texas: 5/day, 14–30 in. One over 52 in allowed as part of the bag.

Jack crevalle

Caranx hippos

5.8

Thermal window

—

64°94°

Bycatch and beach noise — not the reason you came. In peak season for this water. This tide stage (incoming) matches how they hunt.

Generally unregulated. Still, do not leave a pile.

Regs citedTPWD Outdoor Annual · Sep 1, 2025–Aug 31, 2026 · rolls in 8 days. Texas bag and season roll every September 1. The stamp is the book we cited, not a license.