Sign inSign up free Sign inSign up free Sign inSign up freeShared by DepthScout anglers. Exact spots stay private, always.
52,649-acre bay near Rockport. The water tops out around 26 ft. The depth chart is built from real agency bathymetric surveys, so measured depths remain distinct from source interpolation. The channels, holes and drop-offs come from the source data, not a distance-from-shore model. What follows comes from the same scoring engine that paints the spots above.
Drawn out, this is 51,583 acres of water rimmed by 70.8 miles of bank, broken up by an island. That shoreline is heavily fingered (development index 2.2) — bays, points and pockets everywhere, which multiplies the fishable edge. Tip to tip the water measures near 20.4 mi with a 7.3-mi widest point. Closest neighbour on DepthScout: Redfish Bay, 10 mi southwest of here.
Start shallow in spring: red drum (redfish) sit in 1 to 8 ft that time of year. Warm water sends them out to 2 to 12 ft; cold water stacks them in 3 to 15 ft. Top water on the chart: Creek inflow, an inflow / creek mouth in the 7 ft range, prime in fall. Fish it in early morning and the evening and you'll meet the bite. Throw a weedless gold spoon or a paddletail swimbait until the fish tell you otherwise.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 1 to 8 ft | dawn & dusk | Shallow bay flat (5 ft) | Gold weedless spoon, Paddletail on 1/4 oz jighead |
| Summer | 2 to 12 ft | dawn & dusk | Shallow bay flat (5 ft) | Weedless gold spoon, Paddletail swimbait |
| Fall | 3 to 20 ft | dawn & midday | Creek inflow (7 ft) | 1/2 oz spoon (schools), Big paddletail |
| Winter | 3 to 15 ft | midday & dawn | Deep basin (14 ft) | Scented soft plastic on 1/8 oz head, Slow-rolled paddletail |
Early season spotted seatrout use the shallows, holding in 2 to 10 ft. Summer is a 4 to 15 ft game here, winter a 5 to 20 ft one. The chart's best answer is Shallow bay flat — weed flat, 5 ft, prime for spring. Best bite is early morning. Tie on a popping cork + shrimp or a 1/4 oz jighead + paddletail (deep grass edge) and you're in the game.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 10 ft | dawn & dusk | Shallow bay flat (5 ft) | Topwater walker, Suspending twitchbait |
| Summer | 4 to 15 ft | dawn | Shallow bay flat (5 ft) | Popping cork + shrimp, 1/4 oz jighead + paddletail (deep grass edge) |
| Fall | 3 to 12 ft | dawn | Shallow bay flat (5 ft) | Popping cork rig, Soft plastic jerkbait |
| Winter | 5 to 20 ft | midday & dusk | Deep basin (14 ft) | Suspending twitchbait (long pauses), Scented plastic crawled on bottom |
Spring puts southern flounder in skinny water — 2 to 15 ft is the zone. Warm water sends them out to 3 to 18 ft; cold water stacks them in 8 to 26 ft. Old creek channel is the standout, a creek channel at roughly 7 ft, rated prime for spring southern flounder. Plan around early morning in the warm months. A jighead + gulp swimming mullet or a bucktail tipped with shrimp covers the summer program.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 15 ft | dawn | Old creek channel (7 ft) | 1/4 oz jighead + paddletail (white/chartreuse), Bucktail + Gulp shrimp |
| Summer | 3 to 18 ft | dawn | Old creek channel (7 ft) | Jighead + Gulp swimming mullet, Bucktail tipped with shrimp |
| Fall | 5 to 25 ft | midday | Creek inflow (7 ft) | 3/8 oz bucktail + Gulp (passes), Big paddletail on the jetty edge |
| Winter | 8 to 26 ft | midday | Deep basin (14 ft) | Slow jig + scented grub in the holes |
The spring pattern is a shallow one: sheepshead in 5 to 25 ft. The depth story barely changes: 3 to 15 ft through summer, 8 to 26 ft in winter. The spot to know is Marina / dock area, a dock line in about 4 ft of water that rates prime for sheepshead in summer. Plan around early morning in the warm months. Summer baits: a small jig + crab piece gets it done.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 5 to 25 ft | midday & dawn | Marina / dock area (4 ft) | 1/4 oz jighead + fiddler, Sheepshead jig + shrimp piece |
| Summer | 3 to 15 ft | dawn | Marina / dock area (4 ft) | Small jig + crab piece |
| Fall | 5 to 20 ft | midday | Marina / dock area (4 ft) | Jighead + shrimp, Small crab jig |
| Winter | 8 to 26 ft | midday | Deep basin (14 ft) | Heavier jig + crab (deep pilings) |
Aransas Bay carries 30 mapped structure features, topping out (or rather bottoming out) at Deep basin, about 14 ft down.
Access data: Texas Parks & Wildlife — Public Boat Ramps. Confirm conditions and fees locally before you launch.
Season dates, license requirements, and size and bag limits for Texas waters are set by the Texas Parks & Wildlife (saltwater) — and special regulations can apply to Aransas Bay specifically, so confirm the current rules before you fish.
Check the official Texas fishing regulations →
Aransas Bay is about 26 ft (8 m) deep at its deepest point. The depth chart is built from real agency bathymetric surveys, so measured depths remain distinct from source interpolation. The contours reflect measured and quality-assessed source depths.
Anglers target red drum (redfish), spotted seatrout, southern flounder, sheepshead on Aransas Bay.
Creek inflow is the top-rated area: an inflow / creek mouth in about 7 ft of water that rates prime for red drum (redfish) in fall. The map above holds the full rated-spot list for every species and season.
For red drum (redfish), the summer bite is best in early morning and the evening. Each species page section below lists the seasonal windows, and the map shows a live NOW badge when you're inside one.
Fishing on Aransas Bay is regulated by the Texas Parks & Wildlife (saltwater). Check the official Texas regulations for current license requirements, season dates, and size and bag limits — special regulations can apply to this specific water.
Redfish Bay 10 mi · Copano Bay 12 mi · Espiritu Santo Bay 39 mi · Lavaca Bay 51 mi · Coleto Creek Reservoir 54 mi · Lake Corpus Christi 58 mi · Matagorda Bay 58 mi · Lake Findley 67 mi · Lake Texana 73 mi · East Matagorda Bay 87 mi · Choke Canyon Reservoir 91 mi · San Bernard River 111 mi
See how Aransas Bay stacks up: best red drum (redfish) lakes in Texas · best spotted seatrout lakes in Texas · best southern flounder lakes in Texas
Browse all Texas fishing maps or see every water on DepthScout. Bathymetry credit: NOAA Office of Coast Survey (ENC soundings, MLLW datum). How we build these maps. Fish here with a sonar unit that logs? Send us your depth data and we'll improve this chart, credited to you. For fishing guidance only, never navigation.