On This Water

Texas · Lower Laguna Madre

Redfish should be the day — sight-cast reds in inches on South Bay and the spoils.

The clear-water classroom. South Bay, spoil banks, Brazos Santiago. Sight-casting reds in inches. Often the warmest Texas winter water.

  • This brief is for 2026-06-26, not this morning. Wind is a forecast. Observed water versus the table is a today-only instrument.
8.4OF 10

Forecast

low confidence

Forecast brief for Friday, June 26. Back to this morning

Morning line

LLM 8.4 on Friday, June 26. 12 mph S. Clear. Scores are 1–10, not a bite.

Mail it
-0.7-0.4-0.00.40.7LHLHLHLHFri 7 AMSat 7 AMSun 7 AMMon 7 AM
incoming · -0.30 ftModeled M2 · not a gauge

Wind

OPEN-METEO

NESW12MPH

From S · gust 18

Sky

OPEN-METEO

Clear

Clear

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

Moon

87% lit

Waxing gibbous

mid range · 87%

Water

No gauge

Water

48°92°

Today’s range 1.0 ft

incoming

-0.30 ft modeled

Wind vs table

No live gauge

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

Clock

NOAA 8779770

  • LowFri 6:00 AM · -0.55
  • HighFri 12:00 PM · 0.53
  • LowFri 6:00 PM · -0.50
  • HighSat 1:00 AM · 0.48
  • LowSat 7:00 AM · -0.47

Bahamas tides are modeled from lunar M2. Use them for windows, not a bar crossing.

Next two weeks

Pulling the 14-day strip…

Where

  • South Bay

    grass flat · field manual · skinny

    9.0

    USGS GNIS 1376184 (Cameron). Clear-water classroom. Inches of grass. Sight-casting reds. Deep-south snook on warm years.

    USGS GNIS 1376184

    • grass flat on a incoming tide is a classic match.
    • In-play: Redfish, Speckled trout, Snook.
    skiffwadekayakflyspin
  • TX - Fred Stone County Park (Port Mansfield)

    grass flat · saved map · mid

    9.0

    Camping + kayak launch at the LLM mecca. · flats · GULF ATLAS! - FISH

    • grass flat on a incoming tide is a classic match.
    • In-play: Redfish, Speckled trout, Snook, Mangrove / gray snapper.
    skiffkayakwadeflyspin
  • TX - Adolph Thomae Jr. Park (Arroyo City)

    grass flat · saved map · mid

    9.0

    Camp + ramp to LLM west side. Snook begin. · flats · GULF ATLAS! - FISH

    • grass flat on a incoming tide is a classic match.
    • In-play: Redfish, Speckled trout, Snook, Mangrove / gray snapper.
    skiffkayakwadeflyspin
  • TX - Isla Blanca Park (South Padre)

    grass flat · saved map · mid

    9.0

    Camp at island tip; launch to South Bay + Mexiquita. · flats · GULF ATLAS! - FISH

    • grass flat on a incoming tide is a classic match.
    • In-play: Redfish, Speckled trout, Snook, Mangrove / gray snapper.
    skiffkayakwadeflyspin
  • LLM mecca. Fred Stone County Park = camping + kayak launch o

    grass flat · saved map · mid

    9.0

    LLM mecca. Fred Stone County Park = camping + kayak launch on the edge of the most famous flats water in Texas. · 4 - FLATS ZONES - NO WADE REQUIRED (green) · Texas coast — corridors, jetties, flats

    • grass flat on a incoming tide is a classic match.
    • In-play: Redfish, Speckled trout, Snook, Mangrove / gray snapper.
    structurespinwade
  • LLM west side - Green Island / Rattlesnake

    grass flat · saved map · mid

    9.0

    Arroyo Colorado feeds this. Adolph Thomae Jr. Park = camp + ramp. Snook start appearing this far south. · 4 - FLATS ZONES - NO WADE REQUIRED (green) · Texas coast — corridors, jetties, flats

    • grass flat on a incoming tide is a classic match.
    • In-play: Redfish, Speckled trout, Snook, Mangrove / gray snapper.
    skiffkayakwadeflyspin

When

  • Incoming water

    9.5

    Fri 8:00 AMFri 2:00 PM

    Moving water in the right part of the day.

  • Outgoing water

    9.2

    Fri 1:00 PMFri 8:00 PM

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

  • Incoming water

    8.1

    Fri 8:00 PMSat 2:00 AM

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

  • Outgoing water

    9.5

    Sat 2:00 AMSat 9:00 AM

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

  • Incoming water

    9.5

    Sat 8:00 AMSat 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.

  • Isla Blanca Park

    Cameron County / GLO beach access

    South end of SPI. Ramps, jetties, Brazos Santiago. County beach plan governs 2WD/4WD.

    Official source
  • Andy Bowie Park

    Cameron County / GLO beach access

    North SPI. County beach plan. 2WD/4WD posted at the entrance.

    Official source
  • Adolph Thomae Jr. County Park

    Cameron County / TPWD-listed launch

    Arroyo Colorado into the Lower Laguna. Ramp and park. The LLM classroom starts here.

    Official source
  • Port Mansfield public ramps

    Willacy County / TPWD-listed launch

    Basin and cut. NOAA 8778490. Laguna skinny a mile inside.

    Official source
  • Boca Chica / Beach Access 6

    Cameron County beach-access plan / Texas GLO

    South of SPI. County plan is the 2WD/4WD law here. Closures shift with SpaceX and storms — confirm before you drop a tire.

    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 (modeled — the NOAA gauge did not answer).
  • Clear. Sky is workable.
  • Wind 12 mph S. Work the leeward shore. Fly gets harder.
  • Waxing gibbous moon — mid tide range. Sight water often prefers a moderate range and clean water over a huge spring.

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.

Redfish

Sciaenops ocellatus

6.6

Thermal window

48°92°

Present, not peak. 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.

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.

Snook

Centropomus undecimalis

6.6

Thermal window

56°92°

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

Texas: 1/day, 24–28 in. Rare this far west — verify before you keep one.

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.