Good news about island fishing pier

As pier fishermen anxiously await the opening of the 61st Street Fishing Pier, numerous inquiries are being made about the status of the Galveston Fishing Pier just west of the soon-to-open facility. Owner Jimmy McClure replied to my note asking him for an update, and the news is good.

McClure anticipates a June 1, 2011, opening. He estimates everything will be in place in about three weeks for the project to begin. At that time, fencing, a storage container and specially milled materials will be ordered. The specialty materials will take the longest to arrive, likely six weeks. At that point, work will begin on the structure itself.

McClure hopes to have his new fishing pier totally supplied by solar and wind energy. I will give periodic updates after work begins.

On the fishing scene, the weather is hot, and the surf is calm. Trout, sharks, jack crevalle and ladyfish are providing most of the action for early morning wade fishermen.

Robbie Rosalez and his wife, Jackie, fished the surf along the seawall and fought a tarpon estimated to be between 2 and 3 feet long. The action lasted three to four minutes before the line broke.

Hopefully Rosalez’s fish was a tarpon; however, fish in that size range often turn out to be ladyfish, as they do resemble tarpon at a distance and provide the antics commonly associated with silver kings.

Jason Reuter, Aunt Margie’s Bait Camp, reported Anthony Lemley’s catch of a limit of trout from the East End surf using live croaker for bait. Reuter’s customers have been reporting losing lots of trout to sharks along the beach front.

Shirley Pike, Fatboy’s Bait and Tackle, observed nice crabs, rat reds and croaker coming from the pier next to her camp. Her customers have been catching flounder and specks under the causeway using live shrimp and mullet for bait. Specks and reds have been coming from Campbell’s Bayou, and Jones Lake, behind Fatboy’s, has been producing reds on cut mullet.

Spencer Hough landed a 4-pound, 9-ounce flounder while fishing under the causeway bridge. A neon green and red speck rig was the bait.

Offshore is red hot and most varieties of fish are being taken. The party boat Capt. John had a productive 10-hour trip 30 miles offshore, where the 82 anglers aboard landed 637 spadefish, three bluefish, a king and two stingrays.

Capt. Bill Curry, Workman/Finsanity Charters, hosted an all-ladies trip for the Whittenburg party Saturday. Fishing 80 miles offshore, Curry’s guests caught grouper in the 20- to 40-pound range using blue runners for bait. That, however, was not the highlight of the trip.

What was thought to be a wahoo hit one of the baits, and when it leaped out of the water, it turned out to be a huge blue marlin. Curry estimated the fish to weigh between 600 and 700 pounds; however, as with most huge fish, it ended up breaking off and still is roaming around out there.

Curry said he plans to head back to the spot today and give it another try.

To get your catch in the Reel Report, phone Capt. Joe Kent at 409-683-5273, or send an e-mail to reel.report(at)galvnews.com. There’s no charge for this service.