How to use Texas BiteCast

The five-minute pre-trip routine

1. 1

   Open your port's Conditions page

   The three cards at the top answer the big question: is bay fishing Good, Fishable, Tough or Blown out (from the wind now and over the next six hours); can you make an offshore run (Gulf seas); and when is the next best fishing window. Scroll one screen for wind, tide and rain hour by hour.

   Conditions today →
2. 2

   Check the tide at the station nearest where you'll fish

   Rising or falling, when it turns, and how far the water is running above or below the prediction. On the Texas coast a hard north wind can blow a foot of water out of the bays; a strong southeast wind piles it onto the flats. The week table shows which days have the biggest swings (the coefficient).

   Tide stations →
3. 3

   See what's biting and where

   Reports from guides and anglers, newest first, by port. Then open the Inshore or Offshore map: the Best spots layer ranks real places for the species most likely to bite there right now, with the reasons.

   Fishing reports →
4. 4

   Look at the water before you drive

   Live cams show the surf, water color and crowds. The surf pages add waves, rip-current risk, seaweed and the prime hours for each beach.

   Live cams →
5. 5

   Bait and the ramp

   Bait camps with hours and what they carry; public ramps with the nearest tide. Other anglers leave notes about silted ramps and who has live croaker, and you can too.

   Bait camps & ramps →

Start from your port: Sabine · Bolivar · Galveston · Freeport · Sargent · Matagorda · Port O'Connor · Rockport · Port Aransas · Corpus Christi · Port Mansfield · South Padre

Reading the ratings

What each page is for

Tips for the maps

• Full screen. The button at the top right of the Inshore and Offshore maps fills the screen (on a phone the side panel folds away; tap Layers to bring it back).
• Best spots now. Pick a species or Best of all, then move the When slider to tomorrow's dawn to see how the picks change with the forecast wind and daylight. Tap a spot for the reasons, how to fish it, and the rules.
• Pinpoint. On the inshore map, zoom in (or tap Pinpoint in a spot's popup) to see the exact positions: which end of the jetty, which reef edge, potholes and drop-offs.
• Bottom and depth. The Hi-res bottom layer shades depth and relief from NOAA's best survey data; turn on Depth contours for chart-style numbers in feet. Piers, docks and jetties are cut out so they show through from the aerial.
• Locate me and marks. Locate me puts you on the map and follows you. Tap anywhere to add a mark; on the offshore map, add stops to the trip planner for headings, distances and fuel.
• Currents, salinity, wind. The NOAA bay model shows surface currents and salinity for the hour you pick. Wind arrows are the forecast for that hour; point at the map for the exact numbers.
• Ships. The AIS layer shows barges, tugs and ships in the channels and offshore, recorded around the clock. Tap one for its name, heading and speed.
• Not for navigation. Bottom data and reef maps come from surveys of different ages; bars and channels shift. Use a chartplotter and your eyes on the water.

Common questions

How often does the data update?

Weather observations and tides refresh every few minutes; the NWS marine forecast as it is issued (about four times a day); satellite water temperature, color and altimetry once a day as new passes come in; the NOAA bay model (currents and salinity) every six hours; ship positions every two minutes; fishing reports nightly. Each card says where its number came from and when.

Why does the site say the bay is Good when the Gulf is Rough?

They are different water. The bay call comes from the wind, because wind is what makes a Texas bay choppy and muddy. Gulf seas come from the nearest offshore buoy or the NWS nearshore forecast and decide whether a run through the jetties is sensible. A 10-knot northeast wind can leave the bays fishable while the Gulf is still 4 feet from yesterday's blow.

What are major and minor solunar periods?

Times when the moon is overhead or underfoot (majors, about two hours) and rising or setting (minors, about one hour). Fish feed more actively then on average. Treat them as a nudge, not a rule: moving water and the right wind matter more, so the fishing-window finder looks for places where a solunar period, dawn or dusk and a moving tide overlap.

What is the tide coefficient?

A 0–120 scale of how big the day's tidal swing is compared with this station's own weak and strong tides over the surrounding month (about 45 is weak, 95 strong). Bigger swings move more water and bait through the passes and guts.

Are the tide predictions reliable?

They are NOAA's astronomical predictions, which the wind can beat. That is why the station and conditions pages show the observed water level against the prediction: a reading of +1.1 ft means the water is really a foot higher than the chart says.

How are the Best spots scored?

Every spot gets a score for each species from the things an experienced angler weighs: season, water temperature, the structure (reef, shoreline, drain, rig, bank), whether the water is moving, wind direction relative to the spot, fronts and barometric trend, recent reports nearby, salinity after floods, and offshore the satellite water (temperature breaks, color changes, eddies, weed lines) and depth. The hour you pick adds daylight and the forecast wind and seas. The popup lists the reasons behind each score.

Can I use the maps on the water?

Yes. Tap the full-screen button, then Locate me to put yourself on the map. Add marks by tapping, and on the offshore map build a trip with headings and distances. Depth shading and reef maps come from surveys of different ages, so they are for planning, not navigation.

How do I send a report, a cam or a bait camp?

Every Reports page has a form at the bottom; bait camp and boat ramp pages have a comment form and a suggestion form. Reports are read before they are published, usually within a day.

Sources: NOAA CO-OPS tides and water levels; National Weather Service observations and marine forecasts; NOAA NDBC buoys; NOAA NGOFS2 bay model; NASA/NOAA satellite water temperature, chlorophyll, altimetry and floating-algae index; TPWD reef, seagrass and regulation data; Texas Water Development Board salinity sensors; OpenStreetMap structures; guides' and anglers' reports. Predictions and ratings are a guide, not a guarantee. Not for navigation.