Speckled trout gang up over oyster reefs, fishing guide says
Easy limits have been the name of the game in the Cocodrie area this year, with tons of school trout feeding on seemingly unlimited supplies of shrimp, Capt. Tommy Pellegrin said.
“This is an exceptional year with the number of trout,” the owner of Custom Charters said in mid-October.
The key to filling your box this month is knowing where specks will be ganged up. But best locations could change as the month ages.
November should start with open-water action.
“They’re going to be in the main lakes, staging over shell reefs and at the mouths of the lakes,” Pellegrin said.
That puts places like Lost Lake, Sister Lake and Lake Mechant squarely in the target. Other likely hotspots include Madison Bay and Bay La Fleur.
“They’ll be in all of those interior lakes,” Pellegrin explained.
Current remains a vital ingredient, although the amount of moving water necessary for success lessens compared to October.
“They need moving water because they need it to move the bait — but they don’t want a lot of current,” Pellegrin said.
And the fish should be a lot easier to pattern than during the October until they’re forced to seek shelter from cold water.
“In November, they’re in their early winter pattern, so they’ll sit on those reefs and feed — and they’re not going to move as much.”
He said locating likely trout school hideouts is a matter of paying attention to the signs.
“One bird or two birds circling over one spot — that means there’s something there and they’re waiting,” Pellegrin said. “Also, if you see birds sitting on the water, there’s a reason for them to be there.”
And if you have see a flock of birds feeding but they leave before you can catch up, you should definitely probe the area.
“Just because the birds leave doesn’t mean the fish aren’t there,” Pellegrin said. “They’re over that reef.”
As cold fronts push water temperatures lower, speckled trout should begin moving into winter haunts.
“When it gets cold, they’re going to go right into the deep holes and dead ends,” Pellegrin said. “They’ll come out on warm days to feed, but they won’t go far.”
The veteran fishing guide’s favorite bait for this month’s work remains the Berkley Rattle Shrimp.
“You never stop using it,” Pellegrin said with a chuckle. “They eat it forever.”
Fish the bait about 18 inches beneath a popping cork
