Soft plastics will always catch trout and reds over the reefs in East Bay, when the fish are feeding. But take it form me: It's usually the topwater plugs that take the big sows. And when you've got 5-pound-plus trout busting topwater lures, you're having some serious fun. A couple of the best topwater lures in this bay are the He Dog and She Dog. Best colors are chartreuse, bone or chrome.

It's usually best to use the smaller She Dog in slick, calm water. If you've got a little breeze and slightly rougher water, opt for the bigger He Dog. A long cast is usually best when wading the shell reefs of East Bay. That's another reason to use a He Dog; it can be cast from here to China.

Speaking of long casts I've switched to spinning rigs, as opposed to baitcasting reels. They are easy to cast, and don't malfunction nearly as much as baitcasting reels do. My go-to rig right now is a 7-foot Castaway Skeleton rod built for fishing 1/4- to 5/8-ounce lures. It's seated with a Shimano Stradic 1000F spinning reel, sporting a 6-to-1 retrieve ratio. Here's the catch: The reel is spooled with 10-pound-test Power Pro microfilament line. The diameter of that line is the equivalent of 2-pound-test monofilament, and just about impossible to break.

This is a lightweight rod and compact reel that I've used to catch some hefty trout and reds. The thin diameter line will cast a country mile with the flick of a wrist. I've gone through all sorts of elbow problems over the past few years. This is a rod and reel that is easy to use and easy on your arms. It's also a go-to rig for redfish tournament pros.

By the way, I use about a 5-foot section of Silver Thread fluorocarbon line as a leader. It's attached to the braided running line with a Uni-to-Uni knot. I tie my lures on with a locking loop knot.

Going after reds and trout with light-action spinning tackle is a hoot. Ditto that for fly-fishing. At places like Port O'Connor, Rockport and the Laguna, you have many miles of clear-water flats. And until you've drifted or poled over some of those flats, you have not experienced the true essence of fishing for trout and reds. Sight-casting to these sport fish is incredible fun. If you get tired of fly-fishing for tailing reds, there's always the opportunity to switch over to spincasting tackle and work the drops and deeper flats for trout.

Last summer I had a charter with two guys and we were smoking tailing reds on one particular flat with flies. When that became boring we moved out to the surf, which was flat and green to the beach. We tied on chrome/blue Super Spook Jr. plugs and proceeded to catch limits of trout. Talk about fun fishing, that was about as good as it gets!

FOR YOUR INFORMATION
For details on light tackle and fly-fishing for reds and trout at Port O'Connor, call (409) 782-6796, or go to www.hightailangler.com.