You can catch a limit of trout pretty much anywhere along the coast, but where should you go if trophy trout are your target? Here are four areas that could give up a new state record speck.
In the latter days of May 2012, Capt. Kirk Stansel of Hackberry Rod and Gun was on a run of big speckled trout in Calcasieu Lake.
He was doing some dogwalking over some shell humps on an area east of Long Point where he could do no wrong with an orange Rapala Skitter Walk.
“In a three-day period there, I had taken four trout over 6 pounds,” the guide said. “My clients were taking specks in the 2- to 4-pound range at that time.”
Casting on that third day at about noon, Stansel again danced the Skitter Walk above the shell-covered bottom.
A fish smashed the lure, and Stansel brought to the boat a trout that was later weighed at 6.75 pounds — his fifth fish over six in three days.
He said salinities were high in stained waters, and that resulted in the quality of trout.
Stansel is no stranger to taking Calcasieu Lake trophy speckled trout. With over 30 years of fishing/guiding experience and hundreds of trout taken over 7 pounds, he certainly knows to expect quality from his home lake.
His son, Brett, was also on some large trout last year. In the early spring of 2012, Brett had taken several 8s and a 9- pounder.
The Stansels’ trout did not make the top 10 in the Louisiana record books in 2012, but neither did any others statewide.
In fact, this month will be the 63rd anniversary of the taking of Louisiana’s No. 1 trout — a 12.38-pounder taken in 1950 by Leon Mattes.
Mattes’ trophy also is the oldest state-record trout in the Gulf. Florida’s 17-pound, 7-ounce world-record speck was landed in 1995 world record. Alabama’s biggest trout was a 12-pound, 4-ounce beast caught in 1980, while the Mississippi record was caught in 2008 and logged in at 10 pounds, 7 ounces. Texas’ state record is a 15.6-pounder caught in 2002.
The most-recent Louisiana trout making the top 10 was taken by Barry Terrell in May 2004, and that 10.7-pounder was landed at Calcasieu Lake while Terrell fished a Norton Sand Eel Jr.
That was, until March 23 when a 10.65-pound trout was taken at Sabine Lake. If certified that fish will rank as the eighth largest speck ever landed in the state.
Here are overviews of the areas with the most potential for producing Top-10 trout and some suggestions on how to fish them.
Calcasieu Lake (Big Lake)
“I think it’s possible to catch a trophy trout anywhere in Louisiana where they can get an age on them,” said Capt. Kirk Stansel. “They don’t live that long, and a trout at 7 years of age is an old trout.
“And there’s so much more pressure on these fish everywhere. With today’s technologies, they’re getting easier to figure out, and that just increases the pressure much more.”
According to the veteran guide, chances at a trophy are better when fishing in areas that have access to deep water or the Gulf.
“And if I were to pick the time of the year to catch big trout, it would have to be March through mid-June,” he said. “Last year was not a great year because of the winds, and I would rate 2012 a 5 out of 10 for catching big trout.
“In my years of experience as a guide on this lake, the presence of these fish cycles in and out over the years. We had more monster trout taken in the early ’80s, late ’90s and the early 2000s. We haven’t had good numbers of monster trout here since the hurricanes.”
As for where to fish in Big Lake, Stansel recommends anglers concentrate around the nearest reefs, points and slicks in 5- to 6-feet depths with good water quality in the following locations: Turner’s Bay, Long Point, West Cove, Commissary Point and the south bank of Big Lake around Grand Lambert Bayou.
“I’m not going to look at birds unless they’re on the shorelines of these areas and there are also slicks,” he said. “There’ll usually be schools of redfish with these big trout.”
As for the best baits, Stansel is known to throw pink and orange Rapala Skitter Walks, bone Super Spooks, Corky Fat Boys and Hackberry Hustler plastics.
For big trout, Stansel will spend most of his time fishing topwaters continuously throughout the day.
“My biggest trout ever was taken at high noon, and you just have to focus and keep that line in the water no matter the circumstances and the heat,” he said.
Call Stansel at 337-762-3391 for more information.
Sabine Lake
Jason Ellender landed the 10.65-pound stud that is awaiting approval as the No. 8 trout on March 23 on this border lake that has proven it’s potential.
“We’ve seen lots of huge trout taken here in the last five years,” said 35-year-old Capt. Robby Trahan of Sulphur, who has a lifetime of fishing experience on this lake. “Heck, just during (March 11-15), there were five trout over 9- pounds taken.
“We’ve now had a five-year stretch with 8s, 9s and a couple of 10s taken.”
Although up to this point there are no trophy trout from Sabine Lake listed in the Louisiana top 10, the Texas record shows what could happen: That lake’s current top trout was an 11.5-pounder taken by Dr. Kelly Rising of Beaumont in late March 1999.
And a 10.8-pounder was snatched from the waters by Jay Wester of Port Neches in 1997.
“But in the last five years, we have had higher salinities here in Sabine Lake since Hurricanes Ike and Rita and because of the droughts in this area,” said Trahan. “I’m expecting that the new Louisiana No. 1 is possible here.”
Locations to find Sabine Lake’s trophy specks include Coffee Ground Cove on the northeastern end of the lake, as well as the north embankment wall on the Texas side.
Lighthouse Cove is another possibility, as is the Ship Channel and the jetties.
“The real key to finding Sabine Lake’s big trout is to find the mullet,” said Trahan. “And, of course, use big baits.”
A word of warning to the Louisiana novice here, however: Check both Texas and Louisiana regulations at Sabine Lake before venturing out to ensure you abide by the prevailing rules.
As for lures from May and into the summer, Trahan uses the 6-inch Gambler Flapping Shad in the following colors: red shad; glow/chartreuse and limetreuse. For topwaters, Trahan has a fondness for the Spook Jr. in the spectrum color.
For more information regarding trout fishing in Sabine Lake, contact Capt. Trahan at 337-309-7881 or visit his Web site at www.fishingsabinelake.com.
Venice
Venice-area big trout angler Ed Sexton has enjoyed catching quality speckled trout ever since Hurricane Georges swept through the area 15 years ago.
Truth be known, before that event he was a bass angler.
Sexton, at 63 years of age, is tied with his friend Dudley Vandenborre for the ninth-ranked Louisiana record trout.
“There was one point in time that I would have said that a No. 1 Louisiana speckled trout could come from Venice, but the area just isn’t what it used to be,” said the angler. “It was at its best in the early 2000s, but we have seen a decline in the huge trout in the last five to seven years.
“You just hardly hear of anyone catching trout in these sizes anymore.”
And Sexton can’t put a finger on a specific reason for the area’s decline, but he said he has a suspicion.
“There has been change, unbelievable marsh loss,” said Sexton. “I remember looking around after Katrina at what was gone. Prior to that event, there wasn’t as much change after hurricanes here.”
In May, Sexton usually fishes areas around South Pass, including Blind Bay.
“Last year, people out of Venice did really well to find good trout in the Breton Sound area,” he said. “But Main Pass just hasn’t been that good, and generally the Venice area is on the decline.
When anglers do venture out to these areas in 2013, Sexton does recommend artificials until the latter part of May. As for topwaters, the angler does throw Top Dogs in the hot pink colors. He also has been successful with blue moon/chartreuse tail Deadly Dudley Rat Tails.
Lake Pontchartrain
In 2012, Lake Pontchartrain delivered not one but two 30-pound, five-fish stringers of speckled trout.
On June 11, Capts. Kris Robert and Jonathan Allen, along with Chas Champagne of Dockside Bait & Tackle in Slidell, managed to catch five lunker specks weighing 30 pounds east of the marina.
A couple of weeks earlier, Dr. Bob Weiss, Ricky Trahant and Chink Sumas delivered five trout weighing in at 31-pounds to win a rodeo.
And, of course, Lake Pontchartrain gave up two speckled trout that broke into the top-10 records: the current No. 2, a 11.99 brute taken by Capt. Kenny Kreeger on Super Bowl Sunday in 1999; and the No. 9 fish, a 10.5-pounder taken by Capt. Dudley Vandenborre Jr. in April 2002.
“The potential for a No. 1 trout exists now,” Slidell’s Kreeger said. “We see 8- and 9- pounders most every year since the dredging (of the lake) has stopped.
“In 1999 — the year of my (big) trout — Jason Trouillier also caught one over 11 near the Rigolets, and for a while there we had four trout taken over 10 pounds. When I caught my trout, out of the 25, I had six over 6 pounds and eight over 5. I never had a fish under 4 on that day.”
Troullier’s fish now fills the No. 3 spot.
Kreeger said he believed the days were numbered for Matthes’ trout to hold the No. 1 spot.
“It just hasn’t happened yet,” he said. “But it can happen in Lake Pontchartrain at any time starting in April.”
Of course, Kreeger recommends anglers target the Trestles located between Irish Bayou and Slidell for their best shot at a true trophy.
“You will have to use your trolling motor here,” said Kreeger. “I’d also recommend they use 3/8- to ½-ounce jigheads in pushing tides that range 1/2 to 1 feet; and ½-ounce jigheads from 1 ½ to 1.9 feet of tide.
As for baits, Kreeger said his Category 5 Outdoors Shrimp Minnow with the chartreuse tail and red legs, as well as the Category 5 Manic Minnow in green with the chartreuse belly, are great options.
Capt. Kreeger can be reached via www.lakepontchartraincharters.com or at 985-643-2944.
