FishxScale: 2017

Speckled trout are down there by the millions and if you are able to find a parking spot close enough you can catch them on live shrimp.

Shorline Speckled Trout Lake P

Bank fishing September Grand Isle

Big Game Fishing Lake Pontchartrain

First Attempt at Lake Borgne Triple Tail

Speckled trout Searching for Big Fish

Bushwhacking to get to the Redfish

We launched at a real "combat Kayak launch" this trip from the side of the road into thick Roseau canes and marsh grass. It was tough dragging the kayak through on the way out and there were a couple of unforeseen holes that dropped waist deep like quick sand. It was all worth it though to get back into those untouched ponds. The redfish behaved a lot like the mullet just schooling up and milling around in the ponds. We had to have see over 100 red fish in this one little area. It took a little while to find a clean pond but once we did it was on. The first two ponds had dolphins and mullet muddying them up so we quickly moved through. I was able to pick up a 25 incher on a soft plastic frog. Moving into the hot spot I immediately noticed widgeon grass and the water was a couple shades cleaner. Then i saw it the mother lode eight tails sticking up I paddled over and quickly pulled one redfish out of the pack . After landing I look to my left and two more schools were working down the bank. Meanwhile my buddy was was on the other side of the pond and he was on a school of upper slot fish. We watched these fish for the next hour I was able to pick off four more but passed on at least 20 fish.It was an amazing day and it would have never happened if we didn't get creative with our launch. Dragging through the marsh wasn't easy, but it payed off in the end.

Lake Pontchartrain Jack Crevalle 2017

Irish bayou bass fishing

Garfish in the Canal

Catfishing at the Point

I decided to go back and try to improve on our results. We went back to the same spot but the river has receded greatly in the past week. This is the best time to catch catfish on the river if you dont know what you are doing. the catfish come up on the batture to feed out of the current of the main channel. I really wanted to catch some big blue cats but all we got were a couple channel cats and an eel. I think i may need to do an overnight session if I really want to catch a big one.

Channel Catfish Out the Mississippi River

Big Drum At Hopedale Marina

Speckled trout at Hopedale Marina

Met up with some Friends and subs Charlie Mutter and Greg and launched out of Hopedale marina. We left out t first light and went to our first area and only caught 1 fish a piece in the early morning. We gave up around 10 and headed back to the launch. But on the way back we fished and found the speckled trout schooled up directly across from the launch. Greg stayed there while I went and searched the marsh for a redfish that I couldn't get to bite. I tried sight fishing a few reds but all the reds I saw spooked when I put the lure right in front of them. Meanwhile Greg used a 3/8th ounce with a tiger bait matrix shad on the corner of Bayou la Loutre and the back levee canal to pick off a limit of speckled trout. The tide was falling hard around the point and we were throwing into the bayou and letting it push the lure back into the canal. As the lure was sinking the trout were sitting there waiting to hit it right before it hit the bottom.

Trout Fishing Hopedale and Bull Red

Breton Sound Trout Hunt

We went out June 2nd launching out of Hopedale Marina to fish the outer fringe bays and islands for speckled trout. The weather was not the best but we made it happen even though scattered showers were passing through. This trip started of very slow with only two trout caught at our first 5 stops . We powered through and continued searching and finally around 10:30 we were rewarded with a steady speckled trout action. Drifting the oysters we were able to find solid 18 inch trout. They wouldn't hit any thing but a popping cork with a plastic. I tried my beloved Mirrodine but couldnt catch a thing. I also was able to land a monster 42 inch bull redfish.

My PB Bull Red

Bank fishing Behind Elmers Island

Fishing for Freshwater Drum with M.Hood

Caernarvon diversion fishing

I linked up with Mark from M.Hood fishing for a trip to a off limits bank fishing spot. The Caernarvon diversion in St. Bernard parish is a freshwater discharge that allows Mississippi river water to flow into brackish marshes of Reggio , Delacroix and Point a la Hache. We launched the boat at Sergines Marina and headed out across lake Lery to make it back to the diversion weir. We threw the cast net to catch bait and anchored up not knowing what would emerge from the murky depths. We cast out a variety of baits including cut bait on the bottom. The most effective method turned out to be a jig head with a fresh 2-3 inch menhaden worked slowly on the bottom proved deadly for the Gaspergou. My brother was able to figure out this technique and catch a a half dozen before I could get my first but once we switched both mark and I were able to land multiple Goo of varying sizes. On top of the Goo Mark was able to add a couple of 5 pound channel catfish including one that was a bright yellow color. It was a really cool trip and I want to thank Mark for suggesting the spot because I would have never gone with out him.

Fishing the Eastern Section of Lake Pontchartrain

Croaker Fishing from the Boat

Paddlepalooza Week

More online tools to catch more fish

Check out the first set of tools here Click to read it here

Navionics web app gives you depth contour maps of most bodies of water, this works for most navigable areas. This gives you an idea of the underwater features like channel edges and reefs. https://webapp.navionics.com/#boating@6&key=sxouDnpadP

Accurate real time Lake Pontchartrain wind speeds - http://www.thecauseway.us/

Daily true color satellite images as long as its not cloudy. This is great for finding where the clean water is in the marsh as you zoom in you can tell whats muddy and whats clean water.
http://ge.ssec.wisc.edu/modis-today/

https://worldview.earthdata.nasa.gov/

Reef locations in Louisiana
http://www.wlf.louisiana.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/page_fishing/32430-
Artificial%20Reef%20Program/ldwf_inshore_reefs.pdf

Sonris
http://sonris-www.dnr.state.la.us/gis/agsweb/IE/JSViewer/index.html?TemplateID=181

Tides
https://tidesonline.nos.noaa.gov/geographic.html

Spring at the Trestles

Did a quick morning weekday trip out to the trestles. The buzz was that the fish were jumping in the boat and people were getting easy limits. We go out early to the bridge and the guys trolling were were catching fish but most of the boats that were jigging were struggling to put fish in the boat. We had a light tide and the specks were spread out across a wide area around the bridge. We ended up with a few fish but nothing like what the reports said. The full moon in April is supposed to yield a good trout bite but this year it has been a little off. I am hoping that within the next couple weeks the bite will get a little better and the big fish will show up somewhere around the bridges or lake Pontchartrain.

Catfishing at the Bonnet Carre

Boat fishing Bayou B

I had heard some reports of trout being caught in the Bayou Bienvenue area so we wet to see for ourselves. We started out at the Great wall but all we could get was a bass We didn't stay in this area very long but it seemed dead. So we headed out towards lake Borgne fishing along the rocks that line the banks and picked up a couple trout out there. I thought we had found the fish as my first two casts yeilded keeper Speckled trout but those were the only two. The water was dirty in lake Borgne so we headed towards lake Catherine in search of cleaner water. On the way there hitting points in the Icw we ran into a huge school of Pogies. After looking around we found a good spot that had water moving that looked a little better and the Pogies were getting chased by specks. We sat in this spot the rest of the day with prety steady action but we missed lots of fish. After losing about 10 fish we ended the day with 10 in the box and a nice 30 inch redfish.

Bayou Bienvenue Spring : On da Boat

Collab Video with Jon Miller

Fishing Delacroix on a Windy Day

DelaCroix Redfish Limits

I met up with Chris https://www.youtube.com/user/chrisbbay22 this was our first time fishing together this year. He has been having some amazing trips catching redfish in his secret spot so I asked him to take me out there and he agreed. We met on the road and I followed Chris passed me on the highway on the way to the launch. We launched in perfect conditions light winds and as the day progressed the sun came up. We launched and skirted past a couple alligators to get to the prime waters Chris likes to fish. He pointed out the general layout and we split to divide and conquer. A isolated clump of roseau cane caught my eye and began I probing with a chatter bait. A couple casts later I caught my first red of the day. The rest of the day went pretty similarly I worked points and threw the chatterbait and the redfish bit. I ended the day with a nice limit of reds all but one were released.

Perfect Weather for Kayak Redfishing

Monster 3x / Buggs Fishing Lures Challenge

Mixed Species Fishing South Lousiana

Sight Fishing a lil Bass

Checking the Crawfish Traps

Crawfishing in Louisiana Early March

One Nice Bass: Fishing New Orleans Canals

A Bunch of Baby Bass

Late February Marsh Bass Fishing

Bream fishing in Lake Maurepas

Crappie Days

We had a warm winter which has made saltwater fishing very attractive. But on those nasty overcast days around the fronts the Sac a Lait have been a good alternative. I have tried now multiple times this month to go Sac a Lait fishing on the pretty days and those have yielded very few fish.Go on those dreary days and the stringer gets heavy real quick. A silver and white tube jig about 18 inches under the cork has been the number one presentation. I also have got into some nice panfish this month on ultralight tackle dont discount the fun you can have with these little guys.

Perch Jerking in The Black Lake

February is Sac a Lait Season

Paddle through Gator infested Bayou Sauvage

Early February Sac a Lait

Sac a Lait in January Video

Bayou Bienvenue Mixed Bag

I decided to take the boat out a mild cold front had passed through the night before and the NW winds were draining the marsh. This was a perfect day to go to the hot water canal if that still existed but there are multiple deep areas that hold fish in the winter. We launched a little after sunrise and headed out to find some redfish the plan was to find some reds early then go back for the trout. We started off in the Mrgo at one of the larger drains with nothing so we decided to move up on the spot where the rocks line the bank. We drifted the rocks and Cody was able to hit a barely undersized red we fished around the area a little longer but nothing. We relocated to another spot where we had a deep drain going into a dead end that was blocked off we tried jigging but the wind and current made it difficult to feel the bite so after 8 minutes we were off to the next spot. This was another deeper area that I have had a lot of success in the past. We anchored up and began jigging slowly on the bottom I quickly had a hit but lost the fish on the way up. We stayed and jigged and I received another hit I set the hook and began cranking. The fight was no runs just head shakes I thought it was a large lethargic trout but when I got it to the surface I could see the dark silhouette of a flounder. We continued in this spot with a bunch of short strikes and Cody was able to land a barely 12 inch keeper trout. Soon after we got impatient and left to look for more reds. We probably could have stayed and put together a decent box but that is not my style I like to look for greener grass when I am fishing. Sometime that works and other days its a regrettable decision. But I am not fishing for food so if I am not catching what I am aiming for I will got out and try to locate those fish and expand my knowledge. We went on the hunt back into some deeper bayous hoping the low water would pull the reds out of the ponds. The rocks lining lake Borgne were completely visible and one of the spots I wanted to try was inaccessible so we ducked into a plan b. There was water movement and bait fish and shrimp were being chased. I sent in a gulp shrimp to a point where the bait was being scattered and my line went tight. Originally I thought it was a smaller red but it turned out to be a decent bass. That was the only fish we could pull out even though the bait kept getting scattered. It was getting late so we decided to try the wall on the way in but nothing was biting so we called it a day. All we did was prove that fish can be caught on bad weather days and if we would have hunkered down in a spot we could have put a decent box together.

Searching for Sac a Lait in Bayou St.John

Kayak Fishing Leeville in January Video

Bayou Bienvenue Rat Reds

Lets Go Fishing Boat Repair Videos are Over

Fishing Goals for 2017

My Brothers First fish of the year came in 30 degree temps

2016 was an amazing fishing year I fished 7 states and caught multiple new species and personal bests. Looking forward to 2017 I want less variety in my fishing and dedicate significant time to try to scratch two goals off my list.

2017 Goals
My main fishing goal of the new year is to catch a 7+ pound Speckled trout. My ultimate speckled trout dream is to break 30 inches and 10 pounds but I figure I should start smaller with a 7 pounder. A fish in this weight class in Louisiana is pretty rare but I know they are swimming in my favorite fishing spot Lake Pontchartrain right now.

During the summer when the speckled trout bite slows down I plan to hunt down another elusive fish in lake Pontchartrain the tarpon. The tarpon like the Jack Crevalle and sharks come in to the Lake Pontchartrain basin in the warmest months of the year chasing the Mullet and schools of Pogies. My plan is to avoid the jacks and hook up with their more prestigious running mate.

If you have read this blog you know that if i am not in Lake Pontchartrain I am probably fishing a kayak tournament. Most tournaments I have done very little prefishing but this year my goal is to make the top 10 of every tournament I fish. My online research is already as robust as can be I spend hours reading articles, forums,reports and scouting maps but I haven't put much time into getting out there and really testing my findings. Some tournaments I would have done much better if I could have eliminated areas before wasting valuable time in an unproductive area. I know that prefishing is going to play a huge part in making the jump up to the top ten.

Finally one of my 2017 goals was to get a boat. Well I got a head start and got a boat the second to last week of 2016. I have been working on it getting it in shape to fish hard this year. I am planning on participating in a couple 5 trout stringer tournaments during the summer. Some of these events draw the best trout fisherman of the area to compete and Im eager to put my skills to the test. I have a little lower expectations for these tournaments than the kayak events but this year just being a participant will be enough.

Finally My last Goal is to host a Lake Pontchartrain Jack Crevalle Tournament. The popularity of the fish has grown in the last few years in the lake and with so many guys chasing them there should be some stiff competition during the event.

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