# Goose Island State Park Fishing Pier 12/14/13



## pauljadam (Nov 20, 2013)

Hi Folks, first post here. I've recently been hooked on fishing after purchasing my first kayak last spring and taking it out on the salt by SLP in Galveston in Sept. Have fished a bunch in the San Marcos river but never caught any big fish. So I prefer saltwater fishing but living in Austin I'm pretty far from the cost. I've been trying to do some day/night trips down to areas other than Galveston as it's a bit further. So far I've been to Goose Island twice, Mustang Island once, and Indianola Fishing Marina once. 

I went back to Rockport for Goose Island last saturday with my dad because I knew there had to be some fish there. First time I went they were everywhere under the lights at night and I caught some small speckled trout. The drive is 3 hours through the county so not too bad, slow down going through the towns like lulling and/or get a radar detector. Went to Fulton Harbor Baits & Seafood because that was the only place that said they were open and had live shrimp when we called. The bait shack at the state park did have dead shrimp and mullet for cut bait, though the state park told us they were closed when we called ahead. 

Weather was horrible, 40 something degrees 20mph winds. Got there about 4pm. So all my research on GISP said to fish the hump, it has a channel. Current was going to the right of the hump at first then to the left after dark. Water was really shallow/clear. Posted up close to the hump on arrival and was not catching anything on a popping cork. Watched the pros on top the hump pulling out sheepshead left and right just dropping a live shrimp on the bottom and just kinda pulling it up and down then pulling out a sheepshead very often.

So I switched to a slip weight, snap swivel, and kahle hook. The fish were all in the dark water where it was too deep to see them. Drop the shrimp down there close to the pier and after it hits bottom they bite pretty fast, pull it up slowly and they bite on the way up and follow the bait all the way to visible water and then dive back down when the bait gets too high. It was really cool watching them chase the bait up.

I caught at least over 10 and lost a bunch because I was just pulling them up onto the pier without a net. Other folks had a drop net and helped me pull up my first fat keeper sheepshead. I only got 3 keepers and took them home to practice my weak fillet skills. My dad didn't catch any keepers, only one sheepshead and only on the live shrimp. He was trying all kinds of random stuff, throwing the cast net on the oyster reef. Got his feet wet and it was freezing so we left at 10pm.

We shouldn't have even bought the dead shrimp as the pint of live I got lasted all night and still had leftovers. But he barely used any live shrimp so I guess the fish didn't like the dead shrimp. 

I have no idea if the sheepshead or other fish would have bit live finger mullet or the other minnows they were selling. If I weighted live finger mullet down to the bottom would that catch sheepshead or something else hiding in the deep? Maybe next time I'll just get a pint of live shrimp and some other live minnow or finger mullet bait? Or would the frozen mullet for cut bait be better?

We did see 2 dolphins come in really close to the pier and that was awesome! It was a big one and little one and they chased something in the water really fast likely scoring dinner. I thought they were sharks at first 

When I first got to the pier during day time there was at least 6 speckled trout seen on stringers but I saw no one catch anything other than sheepshead and 1 drum fish after I arrived. 

I really like that pier and the night lights because you can watch all the fish, jellyfish, stingrays, manta rays (I think), and whatever else swims by under the lights. There were schools of finger mullet, if I could land a cast net on target would be an awesome catch!

So they said the gates close at 10pm and they'll leave the gate exit code on your car so you pay a few dollars extra per person in the night drop box I think. Gate was still open when we left. Sea gun bait was closed when we drove by earlier. 

So where should I go next?


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