Bait & tackle
7 bait and tackle stops on the island, with what each keeps live, the shop's own published hours, and who sells licences. The croaker tanks across the ferry, Rockport-Fulton and the Corpus Christi coast each have their own page.
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7 shops · every listing checked against the shop's own listing, site or Facebook page, August 2026
On the island, live bait means Port A Outfitters, whose bait stand opens at 6 a.m. with shrimp year round and croaker, mullet and mud minnows in season, and Deep Sea Headquarters, which stocks live bait but asks you to call for the day's list. The other island names sell frozen or dead bait only: Island Tackle by design, Fisherman's Wharf and Island Moorings for offshore crews. For dependable croaker, cross the ferry to Aransas Pass.
| Shop | Live bait | Opens | Licence | Ice |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 361 Blue at Horace Caldwell Pier Port Aransas | None | 7:00 a.m. | ? | ? |
| Deep Sea Headquarters Port Aransas | Ask | 6:00 a.m. | Yes | Yes |
| Fisherman's Wharf ship store Port Aransas | None | 5:30 a.m. | ? | Yes |
| Island Moorings ship store Port Aransas | None | 8:00 a.m. | ? | Yes |
| Island Tackle Port Aransas | None | 8:00 a.m. | Yes | ? |
| Port A Outfitters Port Aransas | shrimp, croaker (seasonal), mullet (seasonal), mud minnows (seasonal) | 6:00 a.m. | ? | ? |
| The Texan (Mustang Island) Port Aransas | None | 24 h | Yes | Yes |
? = not published by the shop. Licence = sells Texas fishing licences.
FROZEN ONLY · OPENS 7:00 A.M.
Pier · Port Aransas
The pier-house counter on Horace Caldwell Pier: frozen bait, tackle and rod rental on the deck; no live bait and no licences.
Verified · Correct this
LIVE BAIT (ASK) · OPENS 6:00 A.M.
Fuel dock · Port Aransas
Charter headquarters with a bait counter, an ethanol-free fuel dock and a licence counter; call to check which live bait is in.
Verified · Correct this
FROZEN ONLY · OPENS 5:30 A.M.
Marina · Port Aransas
Dead bait for inshore and offshore (squid, finger mullet, menhaden, cigar minnows, ribbonfish), the island's largest fuel dock and on-site fish cleaning; no live bait.
Verified · Correct this
FROZEN ONLY · OPENS 8:00 A.M.
Marina · Port Aransas
Slip marina on the ship-channel side of the island with diesel and non-ethanol gas at the dock; frozen bait only.
Verified · Correct this
FROZEN ONLY · OPENS 8:00 A.M.
Tackle store · Port Aransas
No live bait by design: rigs, rod rental, frozen bait and licences. Buy live croaker elsewhere.
Verified · Correct this
LIVE BAIT · OPENS 6:00 A.M.
Bait shop · Port Aransas
The island's in-town live-bait anchor, and the only Port Aransas shop publishing its own dated fishing reports.
Verified · Correct this
FROZEN ONLY · OPEN 24 HOURS
Convenience store · Port Aransas
Gas station and store on the way to the beach: frozen bait, ice and licences around the clock.
Verified · Correct this
Online from TPWD is fastest, and Deep Sea Headquarters, Island Tackle and The Texan (Mustang Island) sell licences over the counter; Lowe's Market and the Ace Hardware on TX-361 are licence vendors too. Every angler 17 or older needs a Texas fishing licence with the saltwater endorsement; a charter captain's permit does not cover you. TPWD licences
| Stop | Sells | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Lowe's Market 418 S Alister St, Port Aransas, TX 78373 · (361) 749-6233 The in-town TPWD licence vendor. | licences, ice | Daily 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. |
| Ace Hardware Port Aransas 1115 State Highway 361, Ste A, Port Aransas, TX 78373 · (361) 749-2004 | licences, tackle, ice | Mon to Sat 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Sun 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. |
The Port A Outfitters bait stand opens at 6 a.m., two hours before the store; Fisherman's Wharf's fuel dock and store open at 5:30 a.m.; The Texan on TX-361 runs around the clock. The hours on each card are the shop's own published hours with the source named, and where a shop publishes none we say so rather than guess. Croaker sells out early on summer weekends, so call before a dawn run.
Straight answers
On the island itself, Port A Outfitters keeps croaker seasonally at its bait stand and Deep Sea Headquarters asks you to call for the day's live bait; Island Tackle stocks no live bait at all, and Fisherman's Wharf and Island Moorings sell dead and frozen bait only. The dependable croaker tanks are across the ferry in Aransas Pass.
Not at the piers. Deep Sea Headquarters, Island Tackle and The Texan (Mustang Island) sell Texas fishing licences over the counter, and the fastest route is buying online from TPWD before you arrive, since the licence lives on your phone. Every angler 17 or older needs one with the saltwater endorsement.
It closed in December 2021 and the building on West Cotter was demolished in July 2022 for a condominium development. Its website still ranks and still describes a bait counter and licences, but nothing is there; Port A Outfitters, on the same block, is the live-bait stop now.
Every bait and tackle shop on this coast is listed here free. No paid placement: Shops are ordered alphabetically within each town, nothing else. The facts on each card come from your own listing, site or Facebook page, and each card carries the date we checked them.
Port Aransas Fishing Guide sells nothing to shops and takes no commission; the directory exists so anglers find bait.
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