Trout are suckers for topwaters this month
Lafitte is certainly not known for large speckled trout, and although this isn’t the prime time for them in the area, Capt. Theophile Bourgeois says finding nice speckled trout in Barataria Bay isn’t out of the question this month.
“If you’re a big-fish person, don’t chase the birds,” he advised. “Throw some topwaters, and work the oyster reefs in 2 feet of water or less.”
Bourgeois also mentioned it isn’t a bad idea to work the current lines when you find one.
The Lafitte guide is a topwater guru, but he admitted it has its limitations.
“I’ll stay with it all day long, but I know I’ll get less bites as the day goes on,” he said. “But, again, I’m shooting for big fish.”
Bourgeois said if it’s completely sunny, he recommends putting down the topwater bait.
“If it’s a bluebird sky, by 8 o’clock it’s done in June,” he said. “It gets so hot, and the fish pull off anyhow — they go in deeper water — so you’re fishing in water where there aren’t any fish.”
There are some days where the fish just won’t fully eat a topwater bait. That scenario happens quite often, and when it does, Bourgeois ties on a different hard plastic.
“If you get a couple swirls and they’re not committing, drop to a suspending bait, which you fish 3, 4 inches under the water, and they’ll kill it,” he said.
If you’re more about going home with a limit of trout as opposed to only a few big ones, Bourgeois suggested areas like Manila Village, Government Reef and Barataria Bay.
He advised anglers to fish the birds if they want fast action from aggressive speckled trout.
For numbers of fish, the guide rigs up a Bomber Paradise Popper popping cork fitted with a 30-pound fluorocarbon leader. His favorite bait colors to thread on the 1/8-ounce jighead he ties his leader to are glow and silver mullet.
Whether you’re throwing topwater baits for big fish or soft-plastic baits for numbers, Bourgeois said tidal movement is extremely important.
“If it’s 4/10 (range) or below, it’s going to be tough,” he said. “I’m going to cover 60 or 80 miles to try to produce fish. If I have the same scenario with, say, a 1.2, I can get away with sometimes catching fish at the first stop.”
