Lower Laguna Madre Fishing Tips: Watch Out For Potholes

As Captain Danny Neu says, a gold spoon is the perfect predator when retrieved cleanly over the top of a pothole.

When it comes to fishing tips, Captain Neu is someone we could all take a few cues from. Both as a professional guide and in his free time, Neu has been fishing in the Lower Laguna Madre's endless grass flats for some time now. The Port Mansfield area is a place which offers rewards for fans of many different fishing techniques - and Neu is a master of all of them.

Scattered throughout the lower coast are circular sandy breaks surrounded by underwater vegetation. They are easily visible, especially with a pair of polarized sunglasses. Potholes, as they are commonly called, look like miniature crop circles submerged in waist deep water and are one of the best structures for holding baitfish and attracting predators. Lower coast locales like Port Mansfield boast never-ending flats of entwined grass potholes aplenty.

"A great deal of my fishing takes place while wading or drifting potholes during late spring to early fall," recalls Neu. The springtime abundance of bait establishes the Port Mansfield areas as a buffet for predators. Fortunately for sightcasters, the thick grass and sand keeps water clarity at its best.

Neu tells us that one of his favorite times of year is when baitfish start moving through the area's bay systems. "Every angler should keep an eye out for piggy perch and pinfish - they're the most reliable indicator that you're in a good spot."

Danny Neu himself likes to do his wading and drifting in the spots where the water is clear enough to get a visual of the fish lying in wait for their prey at the edges of potholes. "When the water's really clear, which is pretty often around here you could hardly ask for anything easier. All I do is watch for slicks and baitfish fleeing predators and I set up right there."

Drifting and wading are both perfectly good methods in this region, with the choice really coming down to a matter of preference. Fishing reports may vary in the opinions they give, but the experts say it is up to what works best for each angler.

"Typically I wade when I work the potholes, since this lets me get into each and every sandy patch one by one and fish each spot thoroughly," says Neu.

Neu sticks with a wading approach to maintain the position on a group of feeding fish rather than drifting through the fish.

Biologist Casey Hardin has been studying the lower Texas coast sea grasses and tells us that it seems to him that they form as the result of the substrates being unsuitable for plant growth. He also mentions that where anglers are concerned, this is probably of less interest than the fact that potholes make for great fishing when speckled trout and redfish are in your sights.

An angler himself, Hardin spends much of his free time fishing the same grassy areas he studies. "The Upper Laguna has some great shoreline, but not a lot of potholes. Personally, I love fishing these areas and I now mark potholes on my GPS before I start wading to make sure that I hit all of the best ones," says Hardin.

When conditions are windy, drifting tends to be problematic, but when working pothole laden flats, one of the best fishing tips is actually to drift to find out which potholes are the most productive spots in a shorter time.

"I usually go for a weedless spoon as my first choice, but when I'm not getting results with that or a topwater, I reach for a red and white soft plastic lure. It never fails me in a pinch," Hardin says. Agreeing with fishing reports for the region, Hardin also recommends lightweight jigs and suspending baits when fishing among the potholes of the Lower Laguna Madre.