Marsh redfish, drum and bass are great weekend options, guide says
Westerly winds remain in the weekend forecast all along the southeast Louisiana coast, and while specks might be hard to come by, great inshore options remain.
“This weekend is probably going to be a redfish-in-the-marsh kind of weekend, no doubt,” said Capt. Chris Venable, with Topline Fishing Charters out of Cocodrie. “It looks like it might let up a little, maybe just a tad. But we’re still going to have pretty strong west winds.”
Venable said he ran charters on Friday out of Dularge, and had great success with redfish, bass and drum in the ponds around Lost Lake and Lake De Cade.
He suggested spinnerbaits and gold spoons early in the morning for redfish, and also recommended fishing deeper water with a Carolina rig.
“Fishing the deep holes in 14-to-16 feet of water with some Carolina-rigged crabs on the bottom is always a good option this time of year when it’s so hot,” he said. “Those reds and drum will get in that deep water. If you can find it, you can Carolina rig the crabs and do pretty well.”
Although the persistent west wind has shut down most speckled trout fishing in the area, Venable predicted it wouldn’t take long to get back on track once the wind subsides next week.
And watching the birds will be key, he said.
“The birds should be your best friends now that shrimp season is closed,” he said. “They have to fend for themselves and find the shrimp instead of following the boats.
“Fish the bays, fish the coasts, fish the barrier islands, but look for the birds,” he said. “They’ll be your number one indicator.”
He also caught several nice bass while fishing for reds on the northern end of Lost Lake this week, he said.
“We’re fishing ponds with lots of grass beds, and the salinity levels are kind of down on that end of the lake,” Venable said. “The bass are hitting the same thing the reds are hitting: spinnerbaits and gold spoons.”
