In life, there’s no magical medicine. In cooking, there’s no magical ingredient. In construction, there’s no magical tool. And in fishing, there’s no magical water clarity.
That’s particularly true if you’re fishing speckled trout out of Dularge this month, according to Capt. Travis Miller.
“In July, the cleaner the water, the more trash fish you have to deal with,” he said.
However, this doesn’t mean Miller goes hunting for dirty water. The presence of undesired species actually seems to concentrate the speckled trout.
“If you’re catching a bunch of trash fish on one side the rig, the other side of the rig is where the specks are,” Miller said.
And oilfield structures are exactly where Miller fishes this time of year.
“You’re basically fishing from Ship Shoal 28 through Coon Point,” he said.
Miller said, though, not to overlook the smaller structures on the outside.
“They pulled out some wellheads over by the Mardi Gras rig,” he said. “I’ll fish the wellheads, too, over the whole summer.”
One of the shining stars before it was removed was the Pickets. However, the area is still good because of the rubble placed on the bottom, Miller said.
“They’ve got the artificial reef now,” he said.
Fishing the ever-so-popular reef does come with its challenges, though.
“If you’re working Coon Point, for example, each person gets their own set of rocks,” Miller said. “If you’re at the Pickets, you have people trolling around you.
“It’ll turn into a very early bite. A lot of times by 8 a.m., that bite will shut off at the Pickets.”
Because of this, Miller advises anglers go as early as they can, and be back before the raging heat sets in.
“In July, usually if you’re not done by 10 a.m., you might as well be,” he said. “Very rarely do you all of a sudden start slamming them after that.”
When fishing at the structures, Miller throws double rigs teamed with soft-plastics.
“In July, I’m a big avocado Matrix Shad fan,” he said. “It mimics a croaker.
“They absolutely love that avocado, which is weird because any other time of year, you don’t use it.”
Speaking of croakers, Miller occasionally throws them when they’re available. He uses a 3/0 hook and a ¾-ounce weight.
