Warm water have fish staying deeper
Capt. Ross Montet fishes out of the Buras area, and one of the biggest factors for fishing this month is the river level.
“If the river comes down, I’ll be on the east side, and I’ll be making runs out to Breton,” he said. “I also fish the rigs close to Quarantine.”
Montet said anglers should focus their efforts in slightly deeper water.
“Typically, that time of year, the water is a lot warmer, so the fish are going to be a little deeper,” he said. “If I’m fishing rigs, I’m fishing anywhere between 7 and 15 feet of water. If I’m fishing Breton Island, I’m fishing in between the trough, so it could be anywhere between 1.5 and 5 feet.”
When targeting these areas, Montet likes to thread a variety of soft plastics on ¼- and 3/8-ounce jigheads.
Montet said algal blooms create even more reason to fish deep water.
“We deal with a lot of algae water that time of year,” he said. “Algae water means low oxygen. Low oxygen means the fish can’t put forth the effort to feed because they can’t breathe.
“Typically, you get away from the algae in deeper water.”
Neap tide days are often looked down upon by anglers, but Montet has no problem fishing on a weak tide.
“I typically like the three days after the (flip-flop) tide,” he said. “That water’s not ripping yet, so you’ve got slow water movement all day long.”
Montet said the average fish are solid keepers – 14 to 18 inches.
Birds often lead anglers to fish in the summertime, and in the area Montet fishes, that’s not an exception.
“I always try to approach them upwind and troll in,” he said. “That way, you’re not putting too much noise in the water.”
One of the biggest myths with bird fishing is the birds have to be there in order for you to catch fish. That’s far from true, Montet said.
“You can catch them once (the birds) leave,” he said. “The fish don’t really move. The birds spook because you approach them, and they don’t feel comfortable around you.”
