If the fishing on either side of the MRGO has ever been better than it is right now, Capt. Barry Brechtel with Big Fish Charters (504-610-6914) doesn’t remember it. His charters have caught their limits of speckled trout 13 out of the last 15 days. Considering how tough the wind has been and how murky the water has been, that’s what Brechtel dubbed “goofy good.”
“It’s been crazy,” Brechtel said. “We’ve had wind up to 20 miles per hour, but it hasn’t shut the fish off one bit. I don’t know of too many people who think ‘limits’ when it’s blowing that hard, but that’s exactly what we’ve been getting.”
Brechtel said areas in the Louisiana Marsh and Biloxi Marsh WMA on the east side of the MRGO have been fantastic. He specifically pointed out Stump Lagoon, Mussel Bay, Pete’s Lagoon, Christmas Camp Lake and Drum Lake as being hotspots in that area.
On the other side of the MRGO, Brechtel said some of the hottest areas have been Hopedale Lagoon, Lake Ameda and Lake Robin.
No matter which side of the MRGO anglers decide to fish, Brechtel said the trout have been hanging out on top of oyster reefs in 3 to 7 feet of water. The key to the trout location has been the presence of white shrimp.
“The shrimp are thick right now even though it’s not cool,” Brechtel said. “They moved in about a month ago, and they’re all over the marsh.”
Brechtel has been scoring on 14- to 19-inch trout mostly by fishing a live shrimp or a glow Berkley Gulp Shrimp with a little split shot under a cork. He has been pulling in an occasional 21- or 22-inch fish, and he’s had to cull through a few throwbacks. But in the end, the limits have been in the box.
“If you know where there are some oyster reefs in those hotspots,” Brechtel said, “just get over them and dangle a bait over them. You can also drift a lot of the lagoons where there may not be oysters or shells.
“The simple fact is that if you can get out there and make a little noise over something that smells right, you’re going to do real well right now.”
These same trout hotspots are also giving up a lot of redfish. In fact, the redfish action is just as good as the trout. Brechtel suggested sticking with a 1/2-ounce gold Johnson spoon.
