Keith Lusher 08.14.24
The August warmth has sunk its claws into Southeast Louisiana. With highs within the higher 90s forecasted all week, inshore anglers are choosing preseason NFL soccer video games over attempting to chase speckled trout.
So when Danny Hunter of New Orleans Greatest Charters known as to ask me on a visit to Lake Borgne, I’ve to confess I hesitated to reply him immediately.
Hunter has been discovering limits of speckled trout by fishing oyster beds on the southern finish of Lake Borgne. I met Hunter early within the morning in order that we might take advantage of the cooler hours earlier than the solar absolutely rose.
We launched at Rigolet’s Marina and hunkered down for an hour-long drive by means of Rigolet’s Go and throughout the lake. The winds have been blowing out of the north at 10 mph, making the lake a little bit of a problem, however Hunter’s 24-foot Sportsman Grasp 247 bay boat dealt with it properly.
After reaching Fishing Smack Bay, Hunter identified white PVC pipes that rose from the water. “These markers present the place all of the oyster leases are,” he mentioned. “When fishing flat-bottom lakes like Lake Borgne, any sort of construction you will discover goes to draw baitfish and predator fish.”
Hunter makes use of Marker 54 Jerk Shrimp 4-inch shrimp within the the Pure Brown shade. He rigs the shrimp 4 toes below an Undertaker Cork.
Hunter threw his trolling motor down and positioned his boat on the skin of an oyster mattress. We each casted our rigs into the water. The motion was sluggish at first as we have been popping our corks to no avail. Nonetheless, persistence paid off, and Hunter’s cork abruptly shot below. He leaned again, set the hook, and reeled in a 14-inch speckled trout. He defined what he’d noticed at these oyster reefs. “Generally these fish swim round these reefs in search of baitfish, so you need to be affected person out right here. For those who transfer after fishing a spot for simply half an hour, you may miss the fish after they come by means of,” he mentioned.
Hunter was proper! My cork shot below, and I reeled in a 15-inch trout that I tossed into the ice chest. We stayed put in our place and caught a couple of extra speckled trout with some white trout blended in. Hunter mentioned the white trout chew had been wonderful all summer season and had helped “save” a couple of journeys when he takes purchasers out. “Lots of people frown upon conserving white trout. They are saying the meat is just too mushy. However I discover if you happen to get it on ice shortly and preserve the meat chilly from the time it enters the boat to the freezer, white trout fillets rank proper up there with speckled trout,” Hunter mentioned.
Because the morning wore on, the solar rose larger, and the warmth reminded us of why August could be such a problem for fishing. Hunter shared his “glass half full” analogy. “Go searching. What number of boats do you see?” he requested. “We’ve bought the entire bay to ourselves out right here. For those who put together accurately—sunblock, lengthy sleeves and pants, and a hat—the warmth is manageable,” he mentioned.
I’ve to confess that the regular motion of hauling in speckled trout and white trout made the warmth barely noticeable at occasions.
As 10:00 a.m. approached, we have been closing in on a restrict of specks. That’s when Hunter’s cork went below, and he set the hook on one thing that pulled drag from his reel. He lowered his head and mentioned, “Stinking gafftop!” Gafftop catfish are a nuisance fish right here in Louisiana and are hardly ever saved, regardless of making for good desk fare. The fish moved in on our social gathering, and we started catching gafftop catfish that averaged 20 inches. After losing time reeling in a couple of of those fish, Hunter made a transfer to a different oyster reef the place we picked up the place we left off. Hunter’s cork shot below, and he yelled, “Fish on!” He reeled in an 18-inch speckled trout, which was an eye-opener. “Now we’re speaking,” Hunter mentioned. “Generally these greater trout will come by means of and switch your whole journey round,” he mentioned.
As we have been ending off our restrict, my cork shot below, and I set the hook however was disillusioned once I noticed the fish working deep. Usually, speckled trout come to the floor when being reeled in, and catfish dive deep. I used to be certain I had a gafftop and reeled the fish in reasonably nonchalantly. Because the fish neared the boat, Hunter noticed that silvery flash and yelled, “It’s a speck!” I boat-flipped the fish into the boat, and it measured 19 inches. It was the proper solution to finish our journey.
From now till the primary cool fronts arrive, the oyster beds in Fishing Smack Bay might be producing trout. Hunter recommends that anglers with {the summertime} blues make a visit to the reefs. “I’ve been catching fish right here all month, and there’s no signal of it letting up,” he mentioned.
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