5-man chartered fishing trip takes anglers to “hole” two days in a row
Water pouring out of Salvador is concentrating schools of feeding redfish in the junction between Bayou Perot and Lake Salvador. Here Tony Taylor and Bruce McDonald show off two of the bigger fish out of a limit caught on Saturday. The fish bit on Carolina rigs using a 3/4-ounce egg weight, swivel, and 1/4-ounce leadhead jig baited with dead shrimp. The bite should continue though the fall.
I’ve gotten reports of redfish near the Old Oak Tree at the mouth of Bayou Couba, Lucky 13 off of the Timken Island, the Old Tank Battery and satellite rigs, the Christmas tree line, Bayou Villares, the Cypress tree line on the south shoreline, Point Chicot, Gross Point, and the Temple.
One report had schools of redfish at the Cabanage Point. Fishing friends recommend the silver and gold spoon, Black and chartreuse, chartreuse, avocado and red sparkle beetle, tuxedo and black top salt water assassin, salt-n-pepper Terror tail, and the glow and chartreuse baby bull minnow baits recommended. Work the baits with cast and retrieve or under a cork.
But last weekend, none of those places worked for me except one – Bayou Perot.
On Friday morning, Pete Cassagne from Waggman and I launched at Pier 90 and made our way across Lake Cataouatche through Bayou Couba and stopped at the Old Oak Tree. We did not get a bite, so we headed to the Old Tank Battery in front of Bay Badeaux.
We fished the pilings around the rigs and the satellite rig without any redfish. We caught one blue channel catfish using shrimp on the bottom and began to feel pressure to catch a redfish.
We were fishing Lake Salvador ahead of a cold front. That’s right, a cold front in late August.
Lake Salvador was as smooth as glass as we left the Tank Battery and headed for the South Shoreline of Point Chicot. About 400 yards off of the Point, lay an area of stumps on the bottom. The water was so clear we could the stumps and white shells on the bottom in four feet of water yet we did not catch a fish.
It was now 10 a.m. and it was troubling Pete and I because we couldn’t find the redfish.
Being close to Bayou Perot I convinced Pete to take the short run along the rocks. Maybe our luck would change.
When we made the turn into Bayou Perrot there was a five-guided charter fishing trip anchored in what is called the Hole. There, the water rises from 50 feet to 20 feet and fish like to gang-up on the upwelling when the tide is moving out.
We had arrived at the right time. Pete recognized the charter captains who were waving to us, “Pete come drop your anchor over here!” They told us they put a 1/4-ounce jig head and rigged it Carolina style.
That is a ¾-ounce weight above a barrel swivel with about 18 inches of leader tied to a ¼-ounce jig head.
“Put a piece of shrimp and let settle to the bottom. We were in 22 feet of water with a strong out going tide. On our first cast we landed a 22- inch redfish.
Pete threw out and caught his first, an 18-inch fish. We limited out, 10 redfish within 45 minutes. We also caught plenty of small, 14-inch redfish, which we threw back. In the distance we could see bad weather approaching from the north.
So we called it a morning at 11:30 a.m. That Friday afternoon it rained three inches in Luling. A cold front had made its way through South Louisiana.
Ditto for Saturday. I called Tony and Ann Taylor to make a return trip.
We had our limit by 12:30 p.m.=. We cleaned the fish and threw a few slabs with scales down on the grill when we arrived home. Tony said it best “We had the perfect day to go fishing!” Then we hit the pool.
Ditto for Sunday – again. I met Pete, Karen, and Siana Cassange at Pier 90 at 9:15 am. Again, we crossed Lake Cataouatche and Salvador, which took us to the “Hole” in Bayou Perrot at 10 a.m.
We located a good spot behind the charter boats and began to reel in bigger redfish from the days before.
We caught 20 to 27 inch redfish. The Carolina rig with a ¼-ounce jig head and market shrimp is all it took to limit out this morning.
With the skies bright blue and cool temperatures it was a pleasure to be on the water.
Getting to Bayou Perrot
Crossing Lake Salvador, look to the south and find the Twin Towers used by the power line company.
Head straight for it. Stay in the middle of the waterway and it will take you into the mouth of Bayou Perrot. About a ½ mile below the towers watch you depth finder.
You will find a deep hole around 50 feet deep. If using a GPS, longitude 29 and 40.93 latitude 90 11.52 will get you to the mouth of Bayou Perrot.
Launching in Lafitte at C&M’s Mariana, run a mile up the seaway to Marker No. 1, head West through “Grand MA,” Bayou Rigolets into Bayou Perot and head north.
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