April is one of the best months for both freshwater and marsh fly fishing. Picking the location and the species can be more difficult than catching the fish!
Bream is the key freshwater species this month. Start with popping bugs early, and then switch to submergent (weighted) flies later. Try under a float indicator first. If you have no action, switch to fishing the fly “straight.” Use a long leader so the fly gets deep or near the bottom where the beds are. Late in the afternoon, I go back to using popping bugs.
There’s still some crappie action to be had. Especially if the major rivers are on the fall. Your best bet will be places like Henderson Lake, Belle River, Bayou Sorel, Lake Verret, Old River Morganza and Yucatan. Small clousers, pink charlies, Death to Crappie, Crappie Candy and large fluff butts will work.
Those same flies will work on yellow bass, which run in big schools this month. Yellow bass are the freshwater version of spanish mackeral; you need to keep the fly constantly moving or they drop interest.
On the coast, the ponds are thick with grass, and small shrimp and crabs are moving in. Sightcasting opportunities abound. The only problem is that reds and drum are so keyed on the bait that they will often ignore a presentation that is out of range or doesn’t somewhat match the food item.
April is the first good month for speckled trout in the surf. If the surf goes calm, have your clousers and other baitfish patterns ready! These first surf trout are usually the biggest.