August Mythical Trout

   While growing up, we have been told many things that we later find to not be true. Don't make faces or it will get stuck that way. Parents have eyes in the back of their heads. Don't swallow watermelon seeds or they will grow in your stomach. Drinking coffee stunts your growth. Well, the same goes for when we get older. Like many things, fishing also has its myths and things anglers believe. After all, there are not more superstitious groups of people on this earth than outdoorsman and sports fans. One of those myths is that you can't catch speckled trout in the heat of August. Well folks, you can!!! Let's take a dive into how and when so you can hop on the boat and catch those beautiful Louisiana specks. ( P.S- leave the bananas at home) 

    Many anglers treat the act of finding trout in August and getting them to bite like they are hunting bigfoot or the Lochness monster- people say they have seen them. Some people have pictures of them, and some people only want to sit back and wait to see if it's true. Well my fellow anglers, August trout do exist and they are very catchable. Is fishing in August tougher? Yes. Do some trout not bite when the water temperature gets over 85F? Yes. Can you find fish biting in August and catch them? Absolutely!!!

    A buddy of mine, Dennis Pilotte, and I put what I'm about to share with you to the test on a hot August day. We put our two man limit in the boat, then caught and release 30-40 more nice trout while searching where we thought they would be based on conditions and phases we knew effected trout behavior. These four factors are what I look at when finding trout in August: Window of opportunity, food source, spawn phase, water temperature. 

     First, Let's talk about window of opportunity. August is hot!!!!! Blue bird skys that allow the sun to heat up the water all day will get those water temps high. On those days, you will need to be out early when the water is at it's lowest temperature or fish deeper water, but we will cover water depth in a minute. Dennis and I left the dock at 4:45am to make sure the water temps were at their lowest when we got to our first spot. There are some things that can effect your window of opportunity and put them in your favor though, Dennis and I also saw two things on that day that allowed us to fish longer with success. First was the fact that one of the areas we wanted to fish was getting hammered by a rain storm. A rain storm that we had to wait out. Well that rain that most of us curse when it keeps us from our spot, is actually helping cool the water in that area. Wait out the rain, then make your move. The other factor that can help is cloud cover. If the clouds block the sun, it can't heat up the water as fast and will extend the time the fish will be active. An extra bonus with cloud cover is that it allows the specks to see more effectively in the water. Which in turn gives opportunities for jerk baits and topwater. Dennis and I took full advantage of this by watching big trout after big trout blow up the She Dogs we had tied on. 

   Next is food. Trout this time of the year will set up camp where food is easy to get too. Trout in August don't want to use alot of energy to find food. They are spawning or recovering from spawning. Look for places the tide moves through. You can use tools like Google Earth to find these in an area. Also know what they are eating this time of the year. Yes  shrimp is a go to for many fish, but also know that fin fish will also make up a large part of a big trout's diet this time of year. Fin fish have more oils and fats than shrimp. So, those bigger trout will often concentrate on those to help recover from spawning or to buid up energy to spawn. 

   As covered in a previous blog, there are three spawn phases: preparing to spawn, activily spawning, and recovering from spawning. Well August presents speckled trout with the last chance to drop eggs before they head back in. With that said, we will be focusing on activily spawning and recovering from spawning.  Activily spawning fish need salty water with a hard bottom. So beaches, islands, and outer bays will be very productive. Bonus if these areas have depth changes. Your recovering fish will head to outer bays, islands, and oyster reefs just outside the marsh waiting for the water temps to get in the 70s and the white shrimp to migrate before moving into the marsh for their fall pattern. I like to use Google Earth to look at these areas and see how the water moves through them. I also like to see what are the best routes for the trout to come back in during September's transition. This will give me a good idea of an area to work and what direction to follow them as they move closer in this stage. 

   Last is water temperature. This is pretty simple. The water on the surface heats up fast from the sun in August. However, it takes a long time to transfer that heat to the water under the surface water. The deeper the water, the cooler the temperature is. This is especially true with salty water. On those blue bird days when the sun is unforgiving, fish the deep water. Another factor with water temperature is water movement. Moving water will not heat as fast as water that is not moving or moving slow. Current and tide movement can be your friend when finding that cooler water. Keep in mind that just a few degrees of difference can mean the world to a trout. Lastly, weather conditions can also help keep those temps down or create a window for fish to feed. A rain storm cooling the water surface, cloud cover blocking the sun, and wind pushing water with the tide will all help keep those water temps down. 

    Well folks, hope this helps you find those mythical August trout. Remember to bring a kid fishing and make some memories. If you would like to book a Louisiana fishing trip and make fishing memories, call me at 985-277-9277. 

Capt. Shawn Mitchell

SaltyFrog Fishing Charters.