Anyone fishing in Port Aransas this week was probably wearing a smile.

Fishing was great. The red snapper season, which closes one minute after midnight on Friday, Aug. 14, is ending on a high note. Limits of big, fat snapper have been reported all season.

The Texas Legends fishing tournament laid claim to 10 blue marlin and one white marlin released over the weekend.

Big red snapper and ling were the fish of the week. They were caught everywhere.

Bryan Richter of Port Aransas fished the rigs aboard the Reel Deal on Sunday, Aug. 9. He brought in some big red snapper and ling, along with some mango snapper.

Tracy Ingalls at Barnacle Bill’s Pier House at Horace Caldwell Pier reported catches of speckled trout, redfish, shark, whiting and black drum. A 13-year-old boy caught a 42-inch black drum and another angler caught an oversized, 40pound redfish

John McNatt at Fisherman’s Wharf reported offshore catches of big red snapper, a few kingfish, shark and plenty of ling. Bay guides brought in black drum and redfish.

Jay Porter at Dolphin Dock said limits of red snapper have been caught on every offshore trip this week, along with shark, kingfish, ling and barracuda in the 40 to 50-pound range.

Dan Hurd at Deep Sea Headquarters said offshore trips brought in red snapper, vermillion snapper, dog snapper, triggerfish, Atlantic sharpnose shark, kingfish, barracuda, amberjack, grouper, blackfin tuna, dorado, wahoo, ling, blacktip and hammerhead shark. Bay anglers brought in black drum, redfish, gafftop and trout.

Tom Creighton at Woody’s Sports Center said offshore anglers caught limits of red snapper, kingfish and shark. Bay anglers caught redfish, black drum and an occasional trout. A party boat fishing at the end of the jetties brought in shark, whiting, kingfish and gafftop.

Beverly Stapleton at Offshore Adventures said offshore trips have been catching limits of big red snapper, Atlantic sharpnose and blacktip shark, kingfish and lane snapper. One offshore group released a blue marlin estimated to weigh 200 pounds. Stapleton said redfish have been caught in abundance in the bays, along with speckled trout and flounder.