10 tips for reeling in speckled trout
Catching Speckle Trout at Grand Isle can be very easy, if you follow these directions.
•Fish the tide change from high to low,
•Fish when the tide range will be greater than 1 foot or better,
•Find clear water,
•Fish with live bait, small croakers or shrimp,
•Look for the birds diving on schools of shrimp & bait,
•Use a cork to change presentation.
•If you use plastic, try chartreuse, white smoky, purple and white, black and chartreuse, avocado and red sparkle beetles In tandem or single, straight line or under a cork.
•Try top water lures to catch large trout early in the morning, late in the afternoon or cloudy days, try the Top Dog Jr., She Dog, Spit -N- Image, Zarra Spook, all Mirror Lures Floaters. Best colors have been chartreuse and black and silver and green, red belly.
•Fish calm days!
Watching the weather channel last Friday, we noticed the upper low was moving northeast into the Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida coast.
It meant Grand Isle would be on the western side of the low. Winds would be out of the northwest and west on the island. To a fisherman this is calm water or at least somewhat protected in front of the Island.
So, we headed to Grand Isle to fish in the Memorial Day Weekend Grand Isle Speckled Trout Rodeo held at Bridge Side Marina.
We fished hard on Saturday afternoon in Caminada Pass. Thomas Sailor, Hunter McDonald, Casey Lucia and myself threw chartreuse, purple and white, avocado, and tuxedo beetles with only a few trout to brag about.
I caught a 24 inch Spanish mackerel and was excited to enter the fish in the rodeo.
After checking in at the weigh station, I found out the rodeo did not have a category for Spanish mackerel.
But all was not lost because we had a chance to eat two great meals, a dance on Saturday night, and numerous door prizes.
Bob Sevin the director of the Rodeo, pulled the grand prize of $3,000 dollars on Sunday afternoon.
Bob and his organization, have been keeping the beaches clean of litter and debris.
Memorial Day weekend was a great start to the summer season of fishing, sun, and fun on the beaches.
The township of Grand Isle has passed ordinances with stiff fines for beach goers littering and have glass container on the beach.
Bob urged fisherman of the rodeo “to help keep the beaches clean & safe this Summer.” An impressive 7.54 speckle trout was caught by Charles Cartinia on the last day.
The 3-day rodeo concluded with a pair of Luling residents finishing in the top 8 on separate days.
Bubba and Gina Madre finished in the prizes each winning a 60-quart ice chest.
Bubba Madere placed seventh on Saturday with a 3.4-pound speckle trout and his wife Gina placed fifth Sunday with a 3.8-pound speckle trout.
On Saturday, the water around the island had a muddy tint but the tide range was 1.9 feet.
The tide changed at 9 a.m. in the morning allowing, fishermen to fish all day.
Bubba and Gina Madre found clear water on the Eastern side of Barataria Pass on the front side of Grand Terre Island.
Using small croakers on a Carolina rig, they caught limits of trout on the last day of the Rodeo.
A cold front pushed through last weekend dropping temperatures in the 60s with northwest winds.
We have been hit this spring with winds from the South and southeast 15 to 25 mph for two months.
One fisherman, Pete Cassange put it this way, “The winds have been howling and waiting for it to subside, now the wind is at gale force.”
The passage of the cold front stalled in the Gulf of Mexico. The tail end of the front formed an upper low which almost turned into a tropical storm.
Causing winds to blow out of the west 15 to 25 mph. With the tides getting right for fishing and the salt water pushed onto Grand Isle, tides ran 1 to 2 feet above normal.
Which is why we waited until Friday to make a trip to Grand Isle or head to the Gulf Coast for Memorial Day Weekend.
On Tuesday, a co-worker, Mr. Cabali, made a fishing trip to Lake Cataouatche. A cold front this late in the year came through. The winds switched from the south to the north.
Pushing high waters and lilies out of the canals. We launched at
Pier 90 and the lilies were stacked-up a quarter of mile in some sections of the Sellers Canal. Once we reached the West Canal cuts, the Louisiana Cypress Canal, the Tank Ponds, the Netherlands, and fished around the bulkheads, We caught plenty of bass, bream, and catfish. Cabali, a member of the Louisiana Flyfishermen Organization, caught fish using flies he hand tied from his fly rod.
Cabali was amazed of the clarity of the gin clear water coming out of the marsh from the Davis Pond Diversion. He was very excited to catch bass and bream schooling in the canals.
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