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Gray triggerfishRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
Best score today · 7 PM · Gray triggerfish
- Now
- 511 PM CDT
- Best window
- 6 PM-12 AMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Flooding1.0 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Carancahua Reef scores 75+
Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.
14-day forecast
Best days to fish
24-hour conditions · rolling from now
Conditions · 1 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
38Tide: FloodingCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 8 kt ENEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
54Water temp: 89°F, hotLight: Bright sunSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.9 ftSeason & habitat · Gray triggerfish
Species seasonality
68Season: ShoulderHabitat: Prime structureDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Texas state waters (shore to 9 nautical miles, bays included)
Gray triggerfish
Retention open- Daily limit
- 20 per day
- Possession
- 40 in possession
- Size
- Minimum 16 in, total length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Have a descending device or venting tool ready for reef fish showing signs of barotrauma. Federal-waters rules may differ. The possession limit is double the daily bag and does not count fish stored at your residence. While fishing, you may not hold more than the daily bag.
From TPWD 2026-27 Outdoor Annual, Triggerfish Bag & Length Limits, read Sep 13
Other species here
- Black drum Retention open (5 per day)
- Cobia Retention open (1 per day)
- Gag grouper Retention open (2 per day)
- Greater amberjack Retention open (1 per day)
- King mackerel Retention open (3 per day)
- Red drum Retention open (3 per day)
- Red snapper Retention open (4 per day)
- Sailfish Retention open
- Sheepshead Retention open (5 per day)
- Snook Retention open (1 per day)
- Southern flounder Retention open (5 per day)
- Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
- Spotted seatrout Retention open (3 per day)
- Striped bass Retention open (5 per day)
- Tarpon Retention open (1 per day)
Source: TPWD · synced today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Gray triggerfish is best here
Shoulder season for Gray triggerfish · 9 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Carancahua Reef
- Depth
- 1-4 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Reef · Inner · Semi-exposedReef · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonGray triggerfish
NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 13 on a 3.4 m grid. Depths are feet below NAVD 88, not chart datum (MLLW), so they can differ from a chart by a few feet. Not for navigation.
About this spot
Fishing Carancahua Reef
Carancahua Reef is a bar in Galveston Bay, Texas. Depth is 1-4 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads reef, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 15 species here; the best right now are red drum, Atlantic croaker and Atlantic tarpon. It is peak season now for red drum, Atlantic croaker, Atlantic tarpon and crevalle jack, and shoulder season for black drum, gray triggerfish, red snapper and gray snapper. Red drum peak from August through November. Atlantic croaker peak from June through September. Atlantic tarpon peak from July through September.
Tackle & technique
- Gray triggerfish
- Gray triggerfish hover a few feet over reefs, wrecks and ledges, usually in 60 to 200 feet, and often show up while snapper fishing. Use small, strong circle hooks with small pieces of squid or cut bait on a short bottom rig, because they nibble and strip big baits. Keep the bait just off the bottom and reel steadily at the first solid pull.
- Red drum
- Redfish feed on shallow grass flats, oyster bars and marsh edges, often in 1 to 4 feet of water, and drop into channels, deep holes and tidal creeks when the water turns very hot or cold. Work a live shrimp under a popping cork or a soft plastic along the grass line on a rising tide, then fish creek mouths and drains as the tide falls. Bull reds over 30 inches school in the surf, passes and jetties in late summer and fall, where cut mullet or a live crab on the bottom is the standard approach.
- Atlantic croaker
- Croaker feed on mud and sand bottom along channel edges, oyster bars, piers and deeper holes in bays and sounds, mostly in 5 to 30 feet of water. A two-hook bottom rig with small hooks and shrimp, bloodworm or squid catches them from piers, the surf and small boats. Fish the hours around high tide and into the evening.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Jumbile Cove62
Gut · 1.4 mi
Top: Atlantic tarponPeak season- Atlantic tarpon 62
- Atlantic croaker 59
- Red drum 59
8 kt ENEH 3:40 PM · 1.1 ftL 12:20 AM · 0.5 ft
- Carancahua Cove58
Bay · 1.2 mi
Top: Atlantic tarponPeak season- Atlantic tarpon 58
- Red drum 57
- Atlantic croaker 52
8 kt ENEH 3:40 PM · 1.1 ftL 12:20 AM · 0.5 ft
- Shell Island Point55
Cape · 2.0 mi
Top: Atlantic tarponPeak season- Atlantic tarpon 55
- Atlantic croaker 50
- Red drum 50
8 kt ENEH 3:40 PM · 1.1 ftL 12:20 AM · 0.5 ft
- Carancahua Point54
Cape · 2.0 mi
Top: Atlantic tarponPeak season- Atlantic tarpon 54
- Atlantic croaker 50
- Red drum 50
8 kt ENEH 3:40 PM · 1.1 ftL 12:20 AM · 0.5 ft
Scores and forecasts are for planning only and can be wrong. Conditions on the water change fast; check the marine forecast before you go. Regulations change during the season, so confirm limits and closures with TPWD before you keep a fish.