Story and photography by Danno Wise

Big, speckled trout may grab mild day headlines but hardier, redfish will cope with convenient deep water, so when tides fall out an astute angler will know where to go.

Some anglers along Texas’ coast wait anxiously for winter weather to arrive. Others wish it would remain warm enough to wet wade throughout the year. Regardless of where you fall on that spectrum of thought, by January colder temperatures will have arrived.

As winter weather rolls in, many inshore anglers become tunnel focused on big speckled trout. Undoubtedly, the next few months are an excellent time to target sow specks. But this is also a window of opportunity when light-tackle anglers and fly fishermen can experience some of the best redfish action of the year.

Those who have yet to experience how extraordinary winter inshore fishing can be may reasonably by asking how that is so. After all, weather this time of year is often cold, cloudy, rainy, windy or a mixture of all of those conditions. Even on sunny, relatively warm days, the tidal level is regularly way, way low during the first couple months of the year. Each of these elements can play a significant role in making the winter redfish bite turn on.

The first condition to address as it relates to winter redfishing is the extreme winter tides. It is not uncommon this time of year for the water level to fall so drastically that entire flats are bone dry. This can happen regardless of the temperatures but is particularly prone to occurring following a strong front that pushes the water out of the bay. While such conditions can lead to some accessibility issues, it can also result in some amazing angling action.

Although such extreme low tides may leave your favorite redfish flat void of water, the good news is they will be much easier to find. In some instances, literally all you need to do is find water that is deep enough for them to swim in. Most often, they will be stacked up – and possibly even trapped in – deeper holes and channels that either intersect or run alongside these flats.

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