Spring Redfish Kickoff

  There is a difference in the air. Cool mornings are turning into warmer days. The marshes of St. Bernard, Louisiana start to come alive again after their winter break, and the redfish start to prowl the marsh lines and ponds looking for prey. If you are a nut about fishing redfish, this is your time of year. Lets face it, catching trout and flounder are great, but feeling the hard pull of a hard fighting marsh red that sends your reel screaming is more fun than watching a one armed clown making balloon animals at a kid's birthday party. 

  St. Bernard, Louisiana is a very special place when it comes to redfish. Places like Delacroix and the Biloxi Marsh offer some of the best habitat in the country for the copper colored warriors. Shallow ponds, marsh grass lines, points with current, washed out coves, oyster beds can all be found here and create a redfish paradise. The reds are abundant here and give a fishing opportunity for the red fishing nut in you unlike anywhere else in the country. That's why I have clients come from all over the country and world to battle these powerful Louisiana reds.  

  On one such trip that started on an early morning last March, I had two clients I was taking out. They had one request- to catch some south Louisiana redfish that they had heard so much about, The water was up that day, so I pointed the boat south towards Delacroix. The water being up would allow me to get into some pounds around the Lake John area. Most of the ponds in Delacroix have aquatic vegetation that filters the water and cleans it up. They are also surrounded by marsh grass that filters and protects them from getting dirty. As soon as we entered the pond, you could see the redfish leaving wakes as they patrolled the pond and cruised the grass lines. One customer got so excited he rushed to a pole. I had to stop him, because there is one factor when fishing with a popping cork that most people aren't aware of or just don't realize how important it is. 

  Leader length is one of the things that can hurt and help you catch reds. On that day the leader was too long, and I needed to shorten them to accommodate the two foot water depth we were in. You don't want your leader too long. Your bait can get stuck in the mud or grass. You need to adjust to keep that bait in the strike zone. After the slight adjustment to the leader, I put Campo's Marina live shrimp on a 1\8 oz jighead, and the redfish started flying in the net and making the reels scream one after the other. 

  One of the other things that had helped us catch these fish, is the fact that the high water had pushed bait in the pond that reds feast on. Crabs, shrimp, mullet, and small fin fish had all been served up by the high water like a grand buffet for the reds. Remember, reds love to eat more than Scooby and Shaggy during a ghost hunt. They will gorge themselves to the point of regurgitating. When they are in a frenzy, think of them like Pac-Man. They are just cruising up and down snacking on anything they want. 

  The aquatic grass and marsh grass was another big advantage to us. Not only does it filter the water, but it also attracts bait. It gives the bait a place to run when being chased. The reds that day were patrolling the very edge of the aquatic grass looking for bait that messed up and left itself vulnerable. The water in these pounds can get so clean sometimes from the filtration of these plants that you can actually throw an ice chest on the front deck to stand on and sight fish for the reds. 

  With all that said, here are some tips to putting some of those copper warriors in the fish box. Find clean water with bait. If there is some water movement, even better. I like to get on Google Earth and look for ponds, drains, points, coves, and broken marsh that are close to each other to make an attack plan. The other great thing about google earth is its timeline feature that allows you to look at satellite history. This will allow you to see if an area traditionally has clean water. It's like a cheat code to a video game. Next, you want the right bait. Live shrimp works best, but dead shrimp work also. As for throwing artificials, I like gold spoons, spinner baits, chatter baits, and a crawfish plastic either weightless or on a 1/16 oz weight. Leader length under a popping cork is very important. I see a lot of fishermen make this mistake. Don't let the bait get in the mud or grass, and don't be scared of a really short leader. I've caught fish on a five inch leader before. Hell, I've even watched reds attack the cork. Next is to learn to stick and move. Casting for a long period of time in one place with no catching sucks, even if you do see redfish activity. Don't be afraid to move.

  Good luck to ya'll this spring. Hope the reds put up some good fights for you and fill up those fish boxes. If you would like to book a trip with me, call 985-277-9277 or visit my website at www.saltyfrogcharter.com

Tight Lines

Captain Shawn Mitchell