But head to the beaches for hammer specks, Pellegrin says
There are some anglers who would sit in a dentist chair before they would reel in dishrag-like small trout. Those fishermen want violent, head-shaking specks that strip drag on the way in.
Other anglers simply don’t have the patience to wait out a sporadic yellomouth bite. Those guys want them every cast.
Fortunately, both parties can be satisfied this month by launching in Cocodrie, Custom Charter’s Capt. Tommy Pellegrin said.
“There are packs of birds everywhere offshore, and it’s a fun deal in July to play the numbers game and throw double rigs in the birds,” Pellegrin said. “You can also put blinders on, ignore all the birds and go to the beach(es) for big fish.”
For anglers who take the beach route, Pellegrin recommended fishing the troughs and washouts.
“Along the sandbar, there’s going to be somewhere where the water can escape,” he said. “On a calm day, it’s pretty easy to see: During a falling tide, the waves wash water into the trough, and the water comes out through those little slots.”
On the beaches, Pellegrin throws live shrimp, but he also fishes Berkley Rattle Shrimp to find the fish.
“It’s one of those baits that avoids the smaller fish, and it sometimes will out-fish a live shrimp because you can work it faster,” Pellegrin said.
On a majority of his trips, the veteran guide chases birds, but he said many anglers approach the gulls incorrectly.
“A lot of people run straight into them, catch one set of doubles, and the birds leave and the trout scatter,” he said.
Pellegrin employs a safer approach when fishing the seagulls.
“I get upwind about 300 yards away from the flock, and I idle within 75 yards of them,” he said. “You want to make the longest cast you’re capable of and stay as far away as possible.”
Once he reaches the birds, Pellegrin said the fish will hit virtually any piece of plastic you throw their way.
He typically casts double rigs teamed with any soft-plastic he can quickly thread on the hook.
If you’re a big-trout afficianado, Pellegrin said you’d better leave the dock early.
“The little fish don’t know any better — they’re going to be there pounding those shrimp all day long,” he said. “The big fish will feed early in the morning, and then shut down and sulk in the heat.”
