South Texas Fireworks texas saltwater fishing, texas fishing, wadefishing, wading, bay fishing, speckled trout, redfish, snook, tarpon, texas redfish, texas speckled trout Beginning Memorial Day weekend, the tiny island community of South Padre in extreme south Texas holds weekly fireworks displays. Every Friday night at 9:15 sharp, the sky above this small sliver of sand erupts in at pyrotechnic performance that strikes awe in every observer. The weekly shows run throughout the summer, eventually culminating in one last hurrah over Labor Day weekend. As dramatic as the Friday night shows are, during this same stretch of summer an even more impressive display of firepower can be found daily swimming the beachfront and nearshore waters bordering South Padre. Although many Gulf Coast anglers are unaware of the area, South Padre Island sits scant miles above the U.S./Mexico border and actually lies on the same latitude as Miami, Florida. This tropical positioning affords South Padre many exotic marine visitors that are never seen elsewhere in Texas or the northern Gulf. Even local anglers, who generally subscribe to the Texas saltwater textbook of speckled trout and redfish, have been slow to warm to the mind-boggling variety that swims along the condo-lined beach. As the warm water swings close to the sand, mackerel are among the first species to make their presence known. Although both king and spanish mackerel are found along the entire length of Texas coast, they are rarely encountered so close and in such numbers. Here, both species can be taken from walking the length of jetty rock at the southern tip of the island. Plenty of spanish can be taken from wading the shallows surf and the inside cusp of the bay. Whereas anyone with a boat over 16 feet long is in excellent position to drift and troll for kings in the Brazos Santiago Pass or along the beach. Most kings are taken by either drifting ribbonfish or trolling Rapala-type plugs. Boat-less anglers quite often limit out by chunking 1 oz. Rattle Traps or silver spoons from the jetties. However, rock-walkers must place a premium on reels with plenty of line capacity, since they are unable to give chase to greyhounding kings. Another silver spectacle follows closely behind the mackerel clan during the summer. Tarpon will begin arriving as early as April or as late as May, depending on the water temperature. Despite when they first show, June and July is most often the prime window of opportunity. South Padre actually hosts a resident population of juvenile tarpon, but the big boys just stop in during their annual migration. Most often the biggest fish will be among the first caught. Triple-digit tarpon will remain in the pass through July and will generally show again on their return route sometime during September or October. Believe it or not, most South Padre tarpon are actually landed by fly-fishermen. Furthermore, most of these fish are landed by fishermen standing on the jetties. This is not to say fish aren't caught by other methods. Indeed, plenty of fish are taken by anglers drifting mullet or casting plugs and bucktail jigs. However, the most consistent catches are taken by fly-rodders wielding bunny-leech patterns. Again, if fishing from the rocks, don't skimp on line capacity. Most of the early and late fish are 12 weight candidates and will test that if your fishing from a stationary point. If that sounds like a bit more work than you care to do, take your eight, nine or 10 weight stick and chase some of the juvenile tarpon that work constantly up and down the channel side of the north jetty. As the summer wears on, the bigger tarpon will leave the pass and begin working north along the beachfront. During this time, usually late July or early August, anglers have a better than average shot at them while wade-fishing the surf. Snook are another major summer attraction. The south Texas snook population is actually booming and is present year around. However, most of the time these fish are holed up in the Brownsville Ship Channel, accessible only to boating anglers, and a bit less attractive to target since they typically hold 10 or more feet down while living under the piers lining the channel. Summer snook fishing is entirely different. A good number of these fish will be found on the shallow, mangrove lined flats of  South Bay and the southern reaches of the Lower Laguna Madre. Many more will be found cruising the jetty rocks on either side of the Brazos Santiago Pass. Here, the snook are vulnerable to both boating anglers and pedestrian fishermen walking the rocks. As the summer wears on, a good number of the snook, like the larger tarpon, will head into the surf. Joining the snook and tarpon in the summer surf off South Padre is a veritable bounty of hard-fighting game fish. Pompano, another overlooked year around resident, are always ready to pounce on a well-placed jig or spoon. Ladyfish, which make wonderful tarpon training tools, are also present en masse. While fishing the summer surf or along the jetties, it is not uncommon to encounter ladyfish in excess of two-feet long. These acrobatic fish will put any light tackle to the test. And, if your looking for something to test your tackle, try on one of the many marauding jack crevalle. These beachfront bulldogs can often be seen busting bait along the first and second guts or cruising the length of the jetties, swiping at whatever it happens upon. Any fast-moving jig, spoon, or fly is generally met with a solid thump, followed by a drag searing run. Upon occasion, even jacks can clam up. If this happens, try going to something in a brownish coloration, like a tan or rootbeer fly or bucktail jig. Other jacks, those of the amber variety, occasionally point into the pass as well. AJs will usually wash in during the early to mid-summer months when plenty of floating sargassum weed is present. Watch for swirls and boils in and around the weed patches, then cast. Jigs, spoons, and baitfish imitating flies all work well. Other occasional visitors to the surf and jetties include African pompano, bonito (Little Tunny), lookdowns, various shark species, and baby barracuda. These exotics are joined throughout the summer by resident fish such as gag grouper, speckled trout, red drum, sheepshead, and mangrove snapper. In addition to the spectacular fishing, South Padre offers breath-taking sunsets, first-class restaurants (many of which will cook your catch), shopping, the aforementioned fireworks, and a host of other activities. Getting their takes a bit of planning, but is not altogether difficult. Southwest Airlines flies into the Harlingen Airport, which is about 45 minutes away. From there you can either rent a vehicle, hail a cab, or take the SurfTran to the Island. For those interested in driving, it is about a five to six hour haul from major Texas cities such as Austin, Houston, and San Antonio. From any of those cities, you need to hook up with Highway 77 and head south. Just south of Harlingen, connect with Highway 100. Head east until the road runs out. Then get out and cast. texas saltwater fishing, texas fishing, wadefishing, wading, bay fishing, speckled trout, redfish, snook, tarpon, texas redfish, texas speckled trout