Coastal anglers have faced challenges in recent years with a combination of high amounts of rainfall and openings of the Bonnet Carre Spillway causing low salinity and displacing fish, but this year is shaping up to mark a return to the coast’s normal status — great.
“May is key,” said Bill Hancock of Reel Outlaw Charters. “Everything seems to be here in May.
“It is happening right now. This is the time to be on the water. When you can go, you can catch good fish. Tripletail are already in. A few jacks are showing up. We’ve had some really good redfish. A lot of flounder are being caught this year.
“I haven’t caught any myself, but friends tell me we have a good many cobia. So, that’s good. The sharks are in, too. I’ve seen some really big sharks.”
Hancock said fishing has been particularly good for what is arguably the coast’s most popular species — speckled trout.
Outdoor adventures:Get away from it all at these 5 great places to kayak, canoe and camp
Deer hunting:Early velvet season for bucks set. Here’s what you need to know
Big speckled trout bite
“It’s been a really good year,” Hancock said. “All the reefs are holding really good fish.
“It’s not uncommon to catch a 20-inch trout right now. It’s not uncommon to catch a 24-inch to 25-inch trout. They’re really healthy. These are heavy fish. The fish are on, they’re hungry and they’re aggressive.”
For those who want a more up-close and personal experience, that’s happening, too.
“Wade-fishing is good,” Hancock said. “I know a lot of people are catching fish wading off the beach and at the islands.”
Hancock said conditions at the islands have been unusually good so far this year.
“March and April, we were going out to the islands to fly fish,” Hancock said. “One of the things we noticed was the water clarity.
“It’s really clear. I’ve been to all of them. I’ve been to Petit Bois, Horn, Ship and Cat. There’s a lot of grass beds out there. I think it’s because we had a mild winter. They’re all in good shape.”
Turkey hunting:How a 30-year, 49-state quest shaped a Mississippi man’s life
A normal year welcome on Mississippi coast
After four years of excess freshwater and a 2019 toxic algae bloom thrown in the mix, having a normal year is a welcome change for Sonny Schindler of Shore Thing Charters.
“We’re very excited,” Schindler said. “We just want a normal year. We just want a meat-and-potatoes year.”
Schindler said although he was able to get customers on fish in recent challenging years, he and others relied on redfish and black drum. This year has been an about-face.
“The last couple of years we had to rely so heavily on redfish and drum,” Schindler said. “For the last few years we’ve been redfishing 90% of the time and fishing for trout 10%.
“This year we’ve flip-flopped. We’re fishing for trout 90% of the time and redfish 10%.”
And the excellent trout bite is happening everywhere Schindler goes.
Even better fishing expected
“The numbers, the size and the consistency of the trout has been a welcome treat,” Schindler said. “Some days are great, but every day is good.
“I’ve fished Cat Island to the (Louisiana) Marsh to over by Bayou Caddy — everything’s been good. The ones we’ve been getting on the shallow keys and the near-shore reefs, they’re big. I think the biggest our guys caught was 5 pounds. He was like 25 inches. The thing is, it should just keep getting better.”
Like Hancock, Schindler also said he’s already seeing tripletail, which have become recognized as excellent table fare in recent decades. Last year, he didn’t see one until late August.
Schindler said when they migrate near-shore early, it has historically been a sign of a banner year for them.
“In years past, when you see the small ones early, they’re going to be thick as thieves in coming months,” Schindler said. “It’s like the floodgates just open and they come in. We hope that’s the case this year.”
Contact Brian Broom at 601-961-7225 or [email protected]. Follow Clarion Ledger Outdoors on Facebook and @BrianBroom on Twitter.
