[maturin]

Nice planning. The resources and community are fascinating. As a FNG I’m hesitant to chime in, but in the spirit of trying to be helpful, I’ll add a tidbit about 8 days old. Some of my river pilot friends got into the trout in Pass a Loutre on two consecutive days ” farther up the pass than we’ve ever seen-people were running past us to get to Blind Bay and we were having trouble catching specks small enough to keep”. I am not current on the disposition of the bars and channels there, but they were fishing a falling tide on the flats where they drop off to what passes for a channel in PaL these days. I saw and ate some of the fish they kept and they were not BS-ing on size. They were using plastics and and freelined live pogies (“didn’t matter”). From the description, it sounds like they were at or above Southeast Pass walking baits off the flat into the channel.

The River hasn’t moved much from 3 ft or so at Carrollton, so just another thing to consider while you’re in the neighborhood. Sounds like you have a solid plan, and if I wasn’t otherwise occupied I’d be right there with you.

If I may, I’ll also add there are two types of inshore fisherman in Buras/Venice: those who have run aground (or had a lower unit “modified”), and those who will. Anyone who claims it’s never happened to them is either extremely lucky, has few hours on the water down there, or is a freaking liar. I can name several prominent guides, who despite thousands of hours running through the delta have had rude surprises with new sandbars or newly exposed oilfield junk that ruined their day. So don’t underestimate the ability of that construction adhesive consistency silt to grab your hull or some pipeline crap from the ’60s to do it’s evil. A good day is when you can push yourself off. So take it easy when in sketchy depths. Don’t ask me how I know this…

[maturin]

Thanks for the reply-what’s considered a “cool” surface temp for these purposes?

There are more commercial shrimpers working the lake visible from the causeway than I’ve seen in a long time.