During December, watch the weather for great and varied saltwater action in the Grand Isle-Barataria Estuary area.
“In the winter, people need to pick the days they want to fish,” cautioned Daryl Carpenter with Reel Screamers Guide Service (225-937-6288, www.reelscreamers.com). “We must watch the fronts coming through because the bay can get rough. Also, it can get very foggy so people can’t see where they are going.”
Carpenter explained that trout traditionally move north after one or two cold fronts. They head to the marshes around upper Barataria Bay. In the right spot, people can find a school in December and load an ice chest.
“We started to see trout schools around the reefs and points in places like the Mud Lake or the Bayou Dupont areas,” the guide said. “In those same places, we catch plenty of redfish and sheepshead in the winter.”
What to use
During the fall, shrimp migrate from the marshes to the Gulf. That leaves trout, redfish and other predators looking for finfish. On ¼-ounce jigheads, throw soft plastics that mimic minnows. Work baits slower and deeper in colder water. Live minnows also work. Few predators can resist a succulent cocahoe minnow. Fish cocahoes under a popping cork. In deeper holes, use a Carolina rig or vertically fish with a drop-shot rig.
“Cocahoes are very versatile baits and real hardy,” Carpenter said. “Often, we can catch three fish on the same minnow. We hook them through the lips and out the head or through the eyes.”
During a good tidal flow, even a dead cocahoe can still produce lifelike action. When fished on a Carolina rig, the current makes the baitfish flop back and forth like wounded prey. Redfish love them. Also for redfish, use a light jighead. Hook a live cocahoe through the eyes. Drag it slowly along the bottom, pausing frequently. The squirming minnow produces enough natural action.
“As long as the hook stays on the front of its body, a cocahoe will look alive in the current if the body is still in good shape,” Carpenter said. “We reuse minnows and catch multiple fish off one bait.”
People can also use white trout chunks for bait. This will attract redfish, bigger white trout and other fish. Fish cut bait on the bottom or under a cork.
“White trout are carnivores and eat their own,” Carpenter said. “If we’re catching white trout and running low on bait, we cut up a few smaller ones into small pieces and use the pieces for bait. Nothing works better for white trout than cut white trout.”
Nasty weather
During the “Snowpocalypse” of January 2025, South Louisiana suffered a major freeze accompanied by rare snow. Sheepshead and redfish can usually stand the cold better than trout, but when things become too frosty, fish die. After a fish kill, nature goes into overdrive to replenish the decimated population. That process usually takes two to four years, depending upon subsequent conditions.
“After the major freeze, we saw more dead redfish and sheepshead than we did speckled trout,” Carpenter said. “We’re hoping for a couple good spawning years with light winters so the fish stock can rebound. A new crop of redfish has been growing into slot size. We have been catching many undersized redfish, but harvestable reds are coming back.”
When weather turns nasty, people can still find places close to Grand Isle where they can catch sheepshead, black drum and perhaps redfish. Big black drum, reds and white trout drop into deep holes. People can always find sheepshead and an occasional redfish around the many rock formations near the island.
