Texas · Lower Laguna Madre
The clear-water classroom. South Bay, spoil banks, Brazos Santiago. Sight-casting reds in inches. Often the warmest Texas winter water.
Tide + moon
low confidence
Morning line
LLM 8.9 on Thursday, April 13 — tide, moon, and season only. No wind forecast that far out. Scores are 1–10, not a bite.
Wind
NWS
No wind reading
Buoy
NDBC PTIT2
Quiet
Port Isabel did not report. Witness only — not the tide clock.
Sky
NWS
No sky reading
No sky reading
A 20% shower chance is not a cancel. A soaker is.
Glass
No barometer
—
No live or modeled glass on this desk.
Three-hour change on this station. The glass is not a bite.
Moon
84% lit
Waning gibbous
mid range · 84%
Water
No gauge
Water
—
Today’s range 1.9 ft
incoming
1.47 ft MLLW
Coast
No live coast layer
Red-tide check failed. That is not all-clear — open the agency page before you wade.
Sargassum check failed. Not a GPS pin. Not all-clear.
Salinity / color
No USGS 00480 well on this desk. Do not borrow another bay’s river.
River
No gauge
No gauge
No USGS discharge gauge on this desk. Wind and the table still tell the color story.
Wind vs table
Observed − predicted
—
No live gauge this hour — the printed tide is the forecast.
Clock
NOAA 8779770
Next two weeks
Pulling the 14-day strip…
This pip is that mark on this tide — not the day on the ring.
grass flat · field manual · skinny
USGS GNIS 1376184 (Cameron). Clear-water classroom. Inches of grass. Sight-casting reds. Deep-south snook on warm years.
USGS GNIS 1376184
TX - Fred Stone County Park (Port Mansfield)
grass flat · saved map · mid
Camping + kayak launch at the LLM mecca. · flats · GULF ATLAS! - FISH
TX - Adolph Thomae Jr. Park (Arroyo City)
grass flat · saved map · mid
Camp + ramp to LLM west side. Snook begin. · flats · GULF ATLAS! - FISH
TX - Isla Blanca Park (South Padre)
grass flat · saved map · mid
Camp at island tip; launch to South Bay + Mexiquita. · flats · GULF ATLAS! - FISH
LLM mecca. Fred Stone County Park = camping + kayak launch o
grass flat · saved map · mid
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
LLM west side - Green Island / Rattlesnake
grass flat · saved map · mid
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
When is moving water in a good hour — not the day. First light and last light are named when the clock is the story. Today’s ring mixes the best mark, the lead fish, and the best window, then taxes the sky. A strong incoming can sit under a weak day if the wind or the fish is off. Calendar cells are a third recipe: range, moon, and the day’s forecast.
Incoming water
9.4Thu 8:00 AM → Thu 12:00 PM
Moving water in the right part of the day.
Last light · outgoing
9.1Thu 1:00 PM → Fri 3:00 AM
Last light on outgoing water.
First light · incoming
9.4Fri 3:00 AM → Fri 1:00 PM
First light on incoming water.
Last light · outgoing
9.1Fri 2:00 PM → Sat 4:00 AM
Last light on outgoing water.
First light · incoming
9.4Sat 4:00 AM → Sat 2:00 PM
First light on incoming water.
Same fish
Nets
Dock
Same fish · Lower Laguna Madre · Speckled trout
17.3/ set
In the nets. 91% of sets had one.
3.7/ trip
Across the dock · 17.3 in. 61% of speckled trout-seeking parties had one.
Different units. The nets count what is in the water. The dock counts the fish they named, on the clipboard — not expanded landings.
Late file: 17.6/set · 2.1/trip. Flip the years to put that file in the tables.
Long record · Lower Laguna Madre · gill nets
Spring nets (April–June) 1982–2019. Random shoreline grids in this bay system — not a mark on your map. South Bay and Brazos Santiago. Not Baffin.
| In the nets | Per set | Counted | Sets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Speckled trout | 17.3 | 29,358 | 91% |
| Black drum | 14.1 | 23,916 | 78% |
| Redfish | 13.2 | 22,395 | 93% |
| Sheepshead | 2.2 | 3,696 | 55% |
| Southern flounder | 0.6 | 942 | 31% |
TPWD still sets spring (Apr–Jun) and fall (Sep–Nov). This public file ends in 2019. It does not update with the tide.
Long record · Lower Laguna Madre · dock counts
Low-use dock (Nov 21–May 14) 1991–2023. Public ramps and wet slips in this bay system — the bay they launched from, not a honey hole. South Bay and Brazos Santiago. Not Baffin.
| Across the dock | Per trip | Counted | With fish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Speckled trout | 3.7 | 3,753 | 61% |
| Redfish | 1.4 | 3,151 | 45% |
| Red snappergulf | 13.3 | 1,937 | 90% |
TPWD still interviews year-round, 10:00–18:00, about 1,000 survey-days and 14,000 interviews a year. This public extract is targeting trips, 1991–2023. It does not update with the tide.
PLOS One 1991–2023How the creel worksAsk TPWD for expanded landings
Sabine LakeGalveston BayMatagorda BayAransas BayCorpus Christi BayUpper Laguna MadreLower Laguna Madre
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 sourceAndy Bowie Park
Cameron County / GLO beach access
North SPI. County beach plan. 2WD/4WD posted at the entrance.
Official sourceAdolph Thomae Jr. County Park
Cameron County / TPWD-listed launch
Arroyo Colorado into the Lower Laguna. Ramp and park. The LLM classroom starts here.
Official sourcePort Mansfield public ramps
Willacy County / TPWD-listed launch
Basin and cut. NOAA 8778490. Laguna skinny a mile inside.
Official sourceBoca 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 sourceNo-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.
Sciaenops ocellatus
Thermal window
—
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.
Cynoscion nebulosus
Thermal window
—
In peak season for this water. 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.
Centropomus undecimalis
Thermal window
—
In peak season for this water. This tide stage (incoming) matches how they hunt.
Texas: 1/day, 24–28 in. Rare this far west — verify before you keep one.
Lutjanus griseus
Thermal window
—
Present, not peak. This tide stage (incoming) matches how they hunt.
Texas: typically 12 in, 4/day under snapper rules — verify TPWD.
Caranx hippos
Thermal window
—
Bycatch and beach noise — not the reason you came. Present, not peak. 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 5 days. Texas bag and season roll every September 1. The stamp is the book we cited, not a license.
Next two weeks
Sat
29
Δ0.6ft