Devin
Forum Replies Created
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I see you’ve got a battleship of a bay boat. Good. But where are you trailering/launching from? What’s your situation? That info could help us better help you.
Remember, we can’t read your mind.
The more info we have, the better.
I say this because I see that even Tiger Shoals is covered in river water. I’m not sure how viable that would be for speckled trout. Maybe redfish.
But I do see that the beach/shore south/southeast of the mouth of the Atchafalaya looks doable. That and there could be good ponds for redfish in the Atchafalaya delta. I always considered that, but never got the chance to look.
If you do run that delta by launching from Jessie Fontenot Memorial Boat Landing then you will want to do some serious navigational homework. A delta like that is a great way to get stranded.
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Yes, it can, which is why I recommend trailering somewhere else. That’s what I do when the area around me is pressured or the conditions are not great to fish. I put my money where my mouth is, and you should, too.
It pays. Look at this epic Venice trip that @Boyce and @ShooterMcGrabbin went on. I’ll tell you that they did that by applying the process taught in 101. Which is good news for you because that process operates independently of recent reports or having someone show you where to go.
With that said, recent intel to work with is this report here, another here and this post here.
You and @kcolden70510 should hook up and compare notes, work together, make it happen.
Make a planning post. An actual planning post showing that you’ve put some thought and consideration into fishing V-Bay when the river is as high as it is. Make some routes, fishing spots, etc. and post them here and we can look it over and give you better feedback.
Take it from the guy who has caught limits of speckled, trout, redfish, bass and flounder across Louisiana’s coast and makes a living from teaching others how to do it: this process that I am harping on is how you achieve long term success. Or sum it up as being “too hard” and “not worth your time” and you’ll continue to re-invent the wheel.
I see that you’ve made it a good ways through 101 (yes, I can see what people enroll and complete) so that tells me you’re taking this seriously. Good.
You may or may not have come across it yet, but I talk a good deal about V-Bay in the Planning section of 101 at 17:00 and how I would tackle it. That’s your cheat code. Use it.
I look forward to your planning post.
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Welcome to the forum and thank you for the kind words. Glad you’re here.
Yeah, I’d be terrified to let speckled trout flop all over that wood. It just looks too good. That is a really nice looking boat! I’m sure it rides well being heavier like that.
Thanks for posting an intro!
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The Long Rocks is gonna be a boat show. I’d spend that time finding trout elsewhere so you’re not reinventing the wheel for next time.
If I had to fish that area, I’d hit EBM with everything I’ve got or tuck into MRGO south of the Rock Dam and fish the points for trout and redfish.
Do you have a shallow water anchor?
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Saturday, IMO, is gonna be bumpy for the Sound. I’d just focus on finding trout closer. You’re gonna have a lotta throwbacks fishing as close as you selected.
I would definitely try Lake Borgne rigs Friday and Saturday, then roll to Plan Redfish somewhere you’re comfortable corking them.
The MRGO south of the Rock Dam would be a good choice to get out of the wind and put together some trout anyway. Be ready for throwbacks.
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Finally, some exotic redfish stuff. Here we friggin go. I love that area. Ten years ago, I ran an airboat and slow boat at a swamp tour in Westwego, and if I had a light load and calm wind, would scoot down into Cataouatche or Salvador. Good times.
Hurricane Ida really trashed the area, specifically a shoreline I enjoyed on the south side of Salvador, which was to the west of your #3 spot. Now the marsh separating that shoreline from the ICW has been broken and tug traffic keeps it dirty. If grass grows there then it is worth checking.
The rigs you marked can be good, but don’t forget the rest of the rigs (see attached).
If the south side of Temple Bay isn’t clear then I am a monkey’s uncle. Grass is nice, but it is a hard shell bottom. There should be grass on the south side of Couba. I would try the north side, too. Might as well, you’re gonna run right past it.
As far as bass go, flip the canal on your way down from Pier 90, flip the canals going into the Davis Pond Diversion, and throw that spinnerbait, a frog or whatever in the Tank Ponds. I’m assuming you know where that is. You’re gonna run past it.
I dunno how much time you have, but it could be worth running through LaRose, under the LA-24 bridge and into Pointe aux Chenes to fish the ponds back there. It’s a fun road trip, but do your GED homework if you do, lots of pipelines and rocks back there.
After that, I’d run sonar to look for redfish at the rigs, just like I do in this video.
Good luck, hope you whack ’em.
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When you jig those rigs for big trout, you should try to get a jig in the middle of the rig between the legs. It’s a lot harder but can be a lot more productive. That’s how I caught a 27″ trout years ago. The wind has got to cooperate to make that as easy as possible, and it was on one of those days it was slick calm.
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“I’m thinking I’ll try and start the morning at Curlew island to try and work topwater at daylight.”
I think this part of Breton Sound bordering Chandeleur Sound is where you should get started, given that the river is at 12ft and blowing crap all over rigs like Five Wells, 32 Block, Hashtag Rig, Dope Boat, etc.
And if you’re going to Curlew then you wouldn’t take the Spoil. It’s been a minute since I’ve been down Spoil Canal, so I have no idea how silted in that last section at Mulatto Bayou is.
I’d hit Curlew, Free Mason, North Islands, Gosier, Central Rig, Little Central, maybe Compressor and the end of the Long Rocks. I’d even consider Comfort Island.
Water looks good at Central right now on Geosphere. There even looks like a clean rip at Breton Island.
Hopedale Marina is a good choice to launch from, but launching from Pass Christian could be good, too. Yeah, that’s a longer run, but you’d be running past Cabbage Reef and other spots in EBM, too.
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That’s where it’s at. The legendary hammer and easy limits are there and will be there first before anywhere else. Screw Lake Pontchartrain and the horse it rode in on.
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It’s time to bring back a battleship. I will definitely miss the dexterity of a bass boat!
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Yeah, it’s a tough call.
I would split the difference by judging which direction has more options. Off the top of my head, I feel that running west has more of that:
- Elmer’s surf
- Fourchon Barges
- Belle Pass (inside and out)
- Casse Tete Island
- Timbalier Sunk Rocks
- Rigs at Timbalier
Unless there’s something I am missing.
After that, use Geosphere, you’re gonna get more up-to-date imagery.
Finally, the wind looks kinda rough, so I would consider heading east if doing so would keep me protected.
If you do, you can hit Independence Reef, that’s sorta protected. Then you could head north, fish Hotel Sid. I hate to say Queen Bess because it’s a fruitless community hole, or at least has been in my experience.
If the wind were gonna lay down I’d feel better about fishing out west.
If you do go west, have a backup route that keeps you protected, like through Leeville or something.
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I’m assuming you mean a Danforth anchor. Yes, that will work fine. I used that for years and caught fish. You’ll just have to be more methodical about it. I wouldn’t recommend a mushroom anchor for the marsh.
After that, yeah sure, start at Treasure Bay and work north. But, honestly, that’s not much of a plan. Sounds like a great way to catch gaff tops and throwbacks.
So, what I strongly recommend is using the process that I teach. Because if I weren’t familiar with the area, then I would be taking a hard look at GED to figure out my routes and spots. That way I can learn more and make better decisions.
You’ve gotten started on that by judging the conditions, the chief of them being wind. But where are you going? How are you gonna get there? I don’t even know what boat you’re in because it’s not listed in your profile and you haven’t mentioned it.
The more you put in to a planning post, the more you’re gonna get back. Otherwise, I have no idea what you’re working with and I don’t have time to do it for you here and now because I already did an 11+ hour course.
Are you going to fish tidelines, points, oyster reefs, what’s up? What coves/shorelines/whatever have you identified for Plan Redfish? Where are you launching from? I can help you if you take some agency for your fishing trip and give me something to work with.
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Yeah, that’s great. You’re doing good things. Keep going.
I guess to re-phrase what I said: I don’t want lurkers using DMs when someone posts a good report. They can make a planning post and actually plan their trips instead of asking for handouts where the rest of us can’t see it. I absolutely hate that parasitic attitude.
But they can’t do that if they’re not part of your angler network, and if they become a burden, you’ll boot them out.
Come in the dojo, you will do karate.
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Kenner is a great place to launch. So is Bonnabel. You could launch from Frenier Landing by LaPlace, but the mouth of the launch is shallow. You can make it out and back in, it will just be close and you will want to trim/jack your motor up, go slow and pay attention.
