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What is a Flounder?...

What is a Speckled Trout?

Spotted sea trout or speckled trout for short, are usually found in the salty coastal waters of the Gulf of Mexico and Eastern Atlantic. Despite their name, they’re actually more closely related to the drum family rather than the trout family.

What is a Redfish?

Redfish or red drum can be found in the inshore waters of the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico where they have become one of the most popular game fish. These beautiful fish generally have a gold to red streamlined body with a distinct black spot on their tail but multi...

What is an Amberjack?

The greater amberjack, also known as AJ, amberjack, and reef donkey is generally described as being brown to olive on their back with a large head and mouth. Amberjack have a distinct dark stripe that runs from their snout to their tail that will light up when they are fe...

What is a Yellowfin Tuna?

The yellowfin tuna is a large torpedo-shaped fish that inhabits tropical and subtropical waters across the world. They are known to travel great distances and are classified as a highly migratory species (HMS) although recent evidence suggests that they may not move a...

Red Snapper Seasons By Region

It's red snapper season! The Gulf states have revealed their dates for the 2023 season, so if you're looking to target these voracious feeders, now's the time to book 'em up before someone else does.

Here's an overview of what's been announced. For more in depth...

Starting in 2022, Texas now has two license options available for fishermen and hunters. You can purchase the traditional printed/paper license, or you can purchase the new digital-only Super Combo license. At the moment, the resident Super Combo license packages appear to be the only license packag...

After moving to Austin, Texas in the summer of 2021, over 1,200 miles away from my hunting grounds in my home state of Wisconsin, I knew my window of opportunity to bag a buck would be limited. So instead of doing the usual and heading home for Thanksgiving in November, I went a weekend early for Op...

Many professional bass fishing circuits visit Texas yearly, and for good reason. The familiar Texan saying, “everything is bigger in Texas,” is undeniable concerning bass fishing. However, not every lake in Texas is worth spending time fishing. We’ve rounded up several of the best bass fishing loca...

Each fall, many of the bays along the Gulf Coast offer the opportunity for anglers to get in on some fast angling action by fishing under the birds. When the weather starts to turn a bit cooler, thousands of shrimp start to migrate out of the shallow marshes and towards the deeper waters of the Gulf...

Billfish Regulations, Limits, & Seasons

The regulations and limits for billfish can vary quite a bit from one location to another. Its important to know the regulations where you plan to fish to make sure you’re always following the rules. These limits have been set to make sure that these pr...

20 gauge or 12 gauge? This has been a long-standing debate amongst bird hunters across the country and each camp has strong opinions. There are pros and cons to each but it’s more complex than it may seem on the surface. If you’re looking to get into dove hunting then you have some decisions to make...

You might’ve heard your buddies talk about that opening weekend of dove season back in ‘15 and how they had an absolute blast even though they only bagged 3 birds. Or maybe your uncle was telling the story about the one time he limited out in under an hour saying “You just had to be there”. To me th...

Dove hunting in Texas constantly evolves as new technology and methodology change the game for hunters all over the state. The one thing that stays the same is the etiquette with which hunters treat each other and the sport itself.

It could be that you haven’t been hunting for long and you feel...

Warm Weather Bonito Fishing Destinations

Perhaps most famous of all the claims surrounding America’s celebrated false albacore fisheries stands a remark made by Dale Spartas during the early aughts off Palm Beach, Florida, when he hooked one of those tunas for the first time. As backing disap...

Austin’s Blowing Up

It’s no secret Austin’s blowing up in just about every way imaginable.

New skyscrapers seem to pop up every day, new sprawling condos replace restaurants and bars, and companies from Tesla to Google, Facebook, and Oracle have all set up shop....

Why Conservation is Important

Anyone who enjoys spending time outdoors is likely a conservationist in some way, but many of the dedicated efforts to restore animal populations or habitats are done by organizations with funding and teams. Conservation is critical to outdoor recreation because...

Whether you’re headed out on your own or fishing with a guide, it’s important to stay in compliance with the rules and regulations of the area you plan to fish. While the responsibility of getting your license falls on you, a guide service will generally tell you what you need to have. If they don’t...

Three Fish That Eat People

There are more than 33,000 known fish species that range from less than an inch to well over 1,000 pounds, the variety is stunning. Fish generally keep their distance when they encounter people but a fraction of these fish are aggressive or dangerous to humans and w...

Our fishing reports have moved! Please click here to head to our new and improved fishing report pages.

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Big Ol Mess Table of Contents:

Texas Fishing Reports

1. [Aransas Pass](https://captainexperiences.com/fishing-rep...

Texas Sharelunker Program

For 37 straight years, the Texas largemouth bass record was 13.5 pounds, but after the Florida largemouth bass was introduced in 1972, the record jumped all the way up to 18.18 pounds. Texas Parks and Wildlife has since established the Sharelunker Program, which cond...

What’s a Triggerfish?

Triggerfish are oval-shaped fish with large heads, small mouths, small eyes, buck teeth, and three dorsal spines that give this fish its name. The first two spines work together to create a unique locking mechanism that is used to hide from potential threats. When these...

Captain Trey of Santa Rosa Beach has had a pretty busy year already, driving cross country to pick up a new boat and helping his wife get her own captain's license. Luckily, we were able to find some time to talk so we could find out more about him and Santa Rosa Beach fishing.

*** UPDATE 03/14/2022: TPWD passed the proposed speckled trout regulations which will go into effect March 16th, 2022. You can find the most recent speckled sea trout regulations and limits here.

2022 Texa...

Deep Sea Fishing Port Aransas: A Fishery With Secrets

The best all-around fishing spot in Texas and a top contender nationwide, Port Aransas has quality fishing everywhere you look. The [deep sea fishing in Port A](https://captainexperiences.com/locations/texas...