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.