Summer Saltwater Fishing Options From Fourth of July through Labor Day, the full effect of the Texas summer bears down on the Texas coast. Fish and fishermen alike must find a way to deal with the sweltering summer sun on a daily basis. However, although late summer may seem unbearable at times, it can actually be quite productive. In fact, these two months offer Texas inshore anglers more options than any other time of year. BEACHFRONT - "Green to the beach" is a phrase that sends light tackle anglers scrambling to the nearest stretch of sand. Most often pluggers hitting the surf are in search of speckled trout. Indeed, when "ice cream" conditions occur along the beachfront, easy limits of specks are common. Spoons, MirrOlures, topwater plugs and soft-plastic tails all produced good numbers of specks in the clear/green surf waters of late summer. This is a productive style of fishing for one of the state's most popular inshore game fish. At the very least, it's a great chance to "do something different." However, specks won't be the only fish swimming in the surf during July and August. Seasonal visitors such as Spanish mackerel will also be prevalent. Fast moving spoons and jigs will account for plenty of Spanish macks, especially when a clear, clean tide moves against the sand. Along the southern stretch of Texas coastline, snook and tarpon will also be within reach of surf casters. Like trout, snook will move in and out of the first gut early in the morning and are easily targeted with topwater plugs and MirrOlures. Tarpon will cruise surprisingly close to dry sand as well. Light tackle fishermen and fly rodders perched on the first sand bar are able to take shots at passing schools of tarpon in both the first and second guts. Up and down the Texas coast, a lengthy list of "miscellaneous" species will be found in the surf during July and August. These include pompano, jack crevalle, ladyfish, bluefish, whiting, and a whole host of shark species. Beginning in late July, schools of bull redfish will also begin to appear along the beachfront. JETTIES - It's no secret that jetties are inshore fish magnets. Not only do they provide structure along an otherwise barren beachfront, they are, be design, located adjacent to Gulf passes, great fish attractors in their own right. Although jetties can produce fish year around, summer is when they really shine. Anglers working these beachfront rock groins can tangle with all the regular summertime surf species. However, because they extend some distance into the Gulf tarpon, provide structure and are located alongside passes, jetties attract a host of other species. And, they offer non-boating anglers an excellent platform to cast to species that are often just out of reach of surfcasters. One such species is the king mackerel, or kingfish. Although they occasionally wander close enough to the beach to be snagged by surf fishermen, such a catch is generally a fluke happenstance. Jetties fishermen, on the other hand, are routinely able to tangle with kings during the summer. This is particularly true on the lower coast, where fishermen casting 1 oz spoons or RattleTraps are realistically able to target kingfish throughout July and August. Utilizing the extra length provided by the jetty structure, anglers are also able to more consistently target bull reds. Bulls do cruise the beachfront more often than kingfish, but anglers perched on jetty rocks stand a much better chance at intercepting a cruising pod of bull reds than an angler working along the tide line. Rather than rely on heavy bottom rigs for bulls, jetty anglers are able to throw jigs and plugs when schools of reds come within sight of the jetties. Jetties also provide a great platform for tarpon fishermen during the summer. This is particularly true of the Port Mansfield and South Padre Island jetty sets. Throughout the summer, tarpon reliably roll within easy casting distance of the jetty rocks. And, since they provide a steady, stable casting platform, many serious South Texas tarpon fishermen prefer a good set of jetties to a boat when chasing Silver Kings on high wind or rough water days. In addition to these species, anglers working rock structures during July and August will often encounter speckled trout, tripletail, Spanish mackerel, mangrove snapper, sharks, and sheepshead. Along the lower coast, snook are also common and bonito will make an appearance on a favorable tide. BAY - With everything going on along the beachfront and jetties, it is almost easy to overlook fishing in the bay during July and August. However, there is still plenty of good action for trout and reds, as well as tripletail and black drum during summer's final stages. For the most part, the speckled trout will be holding over deep flats, along channel edges and near deep water structure such as gas wells and shell reefs. Although deep water trout fishing isn't as sexy as sight casting, it can be extremely productive. Summer specks are often concentrated. Slicks can give their location away over deep flats. Fish holding tight to structure are also easily found. And, once they're found, they're usually willing to eat. Small plastic tails like TTF Killer Flats Minnows or DOA Shrimp will usually account for full boxes of specks during summer. Also hanging around deep structure during the summer will be tripletail. Often found lounging on the surface, tripletail prefer vertical structure in fairly deep water in areas with good current flow. Redfish, on the other hand, "ain't skeered" of skinny water - even in the heat of August. Most fishermen know schools of reds are easily found on the flats during the early morning hours. However, a surprising number of reds will still be skinny during the afternoon. In fact, on high boat traffic days, the afternoons often provide some of the best shallow water action, as reds climb up on the flats once the boat traffic dies down. Also on the flats during summer will be the redfish's closest cousin, the black drum. Anglers looking for consistently skinny water action would do well to target big schools of black drum during August. In short, the next two months can provide some of the finest fishing of the year for anglers entering the summer season with the right mindset. So, as summer hits its stride, try to rethink your summer fishing approach. Instead of thinking of late summer as the hottest time of the year, consider it to be the time of year that offers the most opportunity for anglers looking for variety.