“Catching Specks and Reds in Texas on Mepps and Mister Twister with Phillip Cambra”

Part 5: Heat-Up with Mud Bottoms

Editor’s Note: Phillip Cambra of Clear Lake, Texas, a tournament red fisherman and speckled-trout fisherman, has fished tournaments for 20 years. This week, he’ll share his secrets for catching speckled trout and redfish.

Question: Phillip, I know you fish solid-shell reefs. How do you fish them?

Cambra: I’ll wade-fish shell reefs in 1-1/2- to 2 feet of water that drops off to 6 feet of water. The Dickinson Bay Oyster Reef is one of my favorite shell reefs. When wading oyster and clam reefs, you must wear hard-soled wading shoes in the summer months and wader boots or chest-high waders during the winter.

At Dickinson Bay Oyster Reef, I’ll wade to the reef’s edge and cast out to water about 6-feet deep. I’ll fish with either a Mister Twister Exude D.A.R.T. or Exude RT Slug and allow the bait to reach the bottom. Then I’ll work it back to the edge of the reef. During the fall and the winter months, I’ll fish brighter colors or fish the RT Slug in the clear color with a silver flake. The silktreuse-and-white RT Slug is one of my favorites. Mardi Gras and rainbow shad (clear with sparkle) also are productive lure choices as well as chartreuse pearl and pepper. Our fish here in Texas are sight feeders, so they like to see the baits before they eat them, making these highly-visible baits more preferred.

During summer, the only way to catch really-big trout is to fish really deep, but during the fall and the winter, those big trout move to shallow water where they’re easier to catch. When I’m fishing the edges of shell reefs, I’m targeting trout. But those pesky redfish will bite as well. We’ll often catch as many as 30 trout on a wade-fishing trip, but we’re targeting the five to 10 biggest fish we can catch.

Question: How do you decide whether to wade-fish or fish from a boat?

Cambra: We can fish from a boat anytime, but we really like to wade-fish. In Texas, we’ll wade-fish successfully every month of the year. My favorite place to fish in winter is a mud bottom in shallow water because when the sun rises, that dark mud will absorb heat. Then the shallow water will heat-up quickly. This warmer water will attract the fish. During warmer months, we’ll fish on sand or shell bottoms. Sand will cause the water temperature to change quicker than mud, but the sand bottoms don’t hold heat like mud bottoms do. Mud bottoms retain heat, keeping fish in shallow water longer. When the weather’s hot, the sand or the shell bottom reflects heat and doesn’t hold heat for long.