Live shrimp fished under a cork is the ticket as brown shrimp fill up the marshes
Owen “Big O” Langridge, a guide who fishes out of Venice Marina, said the trout and redfish action was excellent through April and May, and he’s expecting more of the same in June.
“For sure, our action is better than last year, when we actually had two strong months in April and May but the bottom fell out in June,” he said. “This June should continue to be excellent, as the river is expected … to fall down to the 11- to 12-foot range by then. When that happens, the redfish show up in big numbers in the outer bays by the passes. I fully expect that to happen this month, everywhere from Racoon Point northward on the east side of the river, at the bottom end of Quarantine Bay, fishing all the points which should be stacked up with reds this month; and also in Garden Island Bay, at any good pockets, cuts, drains and points.”
Redfish
Langridge (225-978-1136) said his favorite bait for reds is live shrimp fished under a noisy cork; his second favorite is fresh, market shrimp under a cork — with the emphasis on fresh, not frozen.
“I know some folks insist that live shrimp is unnecessary for catching reds, but I’ve seen many, many times when the reds would eat up live shrimp but nothing else,” he said. “If you do use dead bait, be sure to use fresh market shrimp, not old nasty stuff. Reds hunt by smell, and they know the difference. I know you can say you catch them on old, stinky shrimp, but I promise I’ll catch more fish and catch them more consistently on live or fresh shrimp. People don’t think it but reds can be finicky, too.”
Live shrimp
To catch trout in June, Langridge said live shrimp or live croakers are an absolute necessity.
“I know we get away with catching loads of trout on soft plastics in April and May, and I love to catch them that way,” he said. “It’s a whole lot cheaper than buying live bait, and you don’t have to reload your hook with every catch or nibble. But in June, the waters are loaded up with brown shrimp, and the trout will be zoned in on them. I find the best action is in Breton Sound from Delacroix to Grand Gosier Island and even over to Curlew Island. I’ll fish the islands and the rigs with live shrimp or live croakers, under corks, free-lined and on bottom rigs, depending on the depth of the water. Also, the beaches will hold trout from Empire to the mouth of the river, and by mid-to-late June, we’ll see nice trout on the west side of Southwest Pass at the wells and rigs in about 15 feet of water. All in all, this should be a fantastic month for anglers out of Venice.”
