Devin
Forum Replies Created
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“I apologized and went to park the truck”
That’s all you can really do. In this day and age of ubiquitous cameras, online presence, etc. it’s best to take the high road.
Yeah, when it’s dark it’s nice if the headlights are turned off because the truck tilts up, but I think the real problem is this attitude Louisianans have of “everyone else is a retard and I’m not”. Man, there’d be way more people contributing in this forum if that weren’t the case. People are unnecessarily dicks to each other on the water, i.e. “you’re fishing in my spot” or “why are all these boats in the community hole that’s been turning on for 100 years”, etc. then they expect you to tow them when they break down. Like c’mon guy, choose one.
The guy could’ve been cooler about it, or just not mentioned it and got on with his day. Take a breath, guy. Anyway.
“The problem was a lack of redfish. I worked 600 yards of GORGEOUS water. I saw more sheepshead than I have ever seen in one area, I saw at least 75 sheepies and about 10 stingrays but no redfish.”
That’s been my experience sight fishing from the top of Biloxi Marsh down through Hopedale, through Delacroix all the way across Pointe a la Hache. Something is horribly wrong.
Either way, seeing 26 is way better than the whopping nine on my last trip. I think you’re on to them and making moves in the right area. Keep your OPSEC tight.
If you do post a video anywhere on social media, remember that ships in the river and the direction of sunlight are enough to geolocate a spot or area. The tournament guys are 1,000% watching just for that. lol
Great report, thanks for posting!
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An interesting juxtaposition between a place like Louisiana and Florida, is that in Florida things get paved over, developed, renovated, bought/sold, lived in/used, etc. but in Louisiana there’s a sense of decay. A sense of trying and failing. Nature is constantly hitting back and saying “not today”. lol
Everywhere else the old forts are museums, here they’re left to subside into the Gulf.
Honestly, I kinda like it. It’s not for the faint of heart, and it keeps the jet skis away. lol
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That final sentence before the Scope & Content Note slaps.
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What’s the word, did you run that route?
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I’ve gotta second this. That and the MRGO south of the Rock Dam is still doable for some trout during summer.
Ever since dead-shrimp guiding and bow charters became popular in that area, the redfish have really thinned out. Used to, on pretty much any given day I could go see ~60 redfish sight fishing, and a really good day was 100-200+. Now I’m lucky to see 20. Same applies for Hopedale, to be fair.
Now, with that said, Delacroix will turn on with trout before Hopedale, MRGO or Biloxi Marsh does. All you gotta do is read fishing reports. Where were we catching trout all fall, winter and early spring? That’s right, Delacroix. Pointe Fienne, Four Horse, Lake Amedee, Petain, etc.
So I think whether you go with Delacroix or Hopedale you will have pros and cons.
I don’t know how you refuel your boat, but using Sweetwater Marina or Campo’s is a way better alternative to Hopedale Marina, as both those locations service fuel and HM does not.
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Yeah, there’s generally trout in there during winter and early spring. Sometimes late fall.
It used to be a great place for redfish year round, but since dead-shrimp guiding and bow charters became popular, they’re pretty sparse. Used to, I could go back there and see 60-100 redfish in a day. Now I don’t bother anymore.
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“Mercury will get you there first, Yamaha will get you home.”
LMAO
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Check your local library. I don’t recall if you’re in St. Tammany or not, but you can look up book availability here.
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Great book. You’ll love it. It gives a broader sense and makes one realize that it’s all been done before, we’re all just newcomers.
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It’s also a safe assumption that map doesn’t detail every bayou, lagoon, pond, etc. and could possibly mislead to think there was more solid marsh/land than what there actually was.
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I really dig this kinda stuff because it goes hard. It shows very plainly that the only constant in Louisiana is change. It also how much humans have fkd it up, and continue to fk it up.
The MRGO should have never been dug. Same for the Houma Intracoastal Canal or whatever it’s called. Same for the other one at Lafitte.
Seasonal spillways should have been put into action from the start so a “new normal” never happened for people.
Oil and gas companies are good, but should have been held accountable for strip mining the marsh.
But to judge what happened in history through the lens of now is intellectually shortsighted, dishonest even.
Back then people saw the marsh as mostly a wasteland, and it was marked as such on maps. If they had a decent bay boat to get out there and see it, they’d probably change their mind.
Ty Hibbs really nails this whole thing with his “shifting baseline theory”. People just accept the new norm, or come into the new norm without have known the old one to have a frame of reference.
I’m all about RO20, but then I remember that sometimes (especially in Breton Sound before the Freshening) that was all we caught. Today 20″ specks are more rare than they’ve ever been, even prized by some anglers.
People catch a 24″ and sh*t their pants. lol
So, to study the history you have here (and more), then go to Baton Rouge to a WLF Commission Meeting and have some room-temperature IQ troglodyte tell me that “nothing is wrong, the fishing is as good as it’s ever been” makes me want to play in traffic.
Fifteen years ago, if all I caught was 15 trout, I would shoot myself. One time I caught 17 trout across the canal from BSM, in a friggin tropical storm. Not kidding. The fishing was literally that good. But back then I could not imagine going out in otherwise good conditions and only landing 17 trout.
Today people are stoked to get there.
We need to practice more conservation before the fishing ends up like that last line: Burrwood no longer exists.
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That was a great book.
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“3500 mile road trip”
You mad man, you DROVE that?!!
You better drive to Venice this fall. lol
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Yeah, I don’t really care about name brands, because name brands don’t care about me. lol I think they all make a good enough motor.
I can’t really make a good comparison between the Yamaha F70 on Gnartooth and the Mercury 150 4S on the Tracker because bigger motors tend to be more of a headache.
The Yamaha definitely has a better fit and finish, kind of like a Daniel Defense rifle versus a cheap AR-15. The Mercury 150 definitely seems like it had more boot-in-your-ass torque over the (believe it or not) the Yamaha 150 VMAX I had before. Granted, that was on a Pathfinder. Def seemed like it had more torque than the Suzuki 140 we ran at the swamp tour which was mounted on a 24ft wide flat boat.
The Mercury has certainly required more maintenance than any other motor I’ve ran.
I guess what it would boil down to is practical stuff like rigging, monitoring and maintenance. The Mercury is easy to do oil changes on. The Suzuki DF140 required removing a fkn panel. lol
Fortunately, this future boat will be trailered. That makes life a lot easier.
I have a lot of research to do in order to figure out what I don’t know what I don’t know in order to make the best decision possible. It’ll probably go hand in hand with whatever electronics package works best.
I’m not in a hurry at all. I already know everything I need to know and have 30+ terabytes of video/photo of just about everywhere on Louisiana’s coast doing just about everything related to inshore fishing. So I really don’t need a boat. And when I get into a good routine of making content, well that’s good. And that’s easier to do when I’m not out there running amok trying to scratch out a limit of fish.
Like, there’s a lot of content that needs to be cranked out. I’d rather be on top of that and have it scheduled out than know fish are at Martello Castle (or insert whatever spot).
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Yeah, not the same boat. But still interesting.
What is that location? Are you telling me there’s a sunk pogey boat there? Or a pogey boat was sighted there?
