This past January proved to be one of the best Months of the season. Although we only had one hard front during this month we had very good pre front and post front fishing. February was warmer then usually which forced me into the interior marsh to target spring time fish that payed off with many fish in the 6-12 lb range and a couple bass as well. We also boated the largest black drum ever on my boat mid February.
As usual with this time of year the weather overall hasn’t been great. We had to reschedule a couple trips and made some not great weather days into some good fishing days. Thanks to a good number of big fish grouped up inside the marsh we actual have had some good success blind casting in likely places. Actually caught 6 over 20 lbs one day blind casting flies.
We are excited to announce that we will be teaming up with Yellow Dog to bring you the first annual Louisiana redfish school!!!
Click the link below for more info…
http://www.yellowdogflyfishing.com/blog/announcing-louisiana-redfish-school
After a warm October it was nice to have some solid cold fronts come through and push some big fish into their normal fall/winter spots. Cooler temps also brings some warm lunches for some of my foodie anglers…
As many of you know I’m not big on miss leading people into booking with me. I’m all about being as truthful as possible in order to manage expectations. With that being said… This October was by far the worst October I have ever experienced. It wasn’t a shock considering the water temp pretty much stayed in the mid to high 70s all month. The big fish do not want to get shallow in those temps so most big fish were happy to just stay offshore. That mixed with almost constant 15-20 mph winds made targeting the offshore fish impossible. Now we did have a handful of calm wind days which made for good fishing but overall October was a let down. The only silver lining was with the higher water temps the Jacks stuck around later then usual.
I can’t complain about this summer’s Jack season. Although I had to deal with constant west winds and the floods in Baton Rouge pumping dirty water into my main Jack fishing area we had a very successful Jack season.
Although we have had constant west winds, which is our least favorite wind direction in Louisiana, the Jack fishing has been very solid. We have had some good pushing fish on the flats and lots of schooling action in open water. We boated a total of 35 jacks on fly in 12 days of fishing. Biggest was 32 lbs and only 4 were under 20 lbs. If you’re looking for a strong fish that loves to eat topwater flies you should definitely come down and check out our Jack fishery. 
During the summer months we try to get an early start to beat the heat, fortunately summer is one of the best times to hunt pushing fish. Both Redfish and giant Jack Crevalle become very active at this time. Their mornings are spent cruising flats in search of bait. Although we start earlier with low light seeing a fish pushing water is actually easier with lower light. Not to mention the fish feel more comfortable and tend to swim more shallow in low light. Watching a 20+ lb redfish or Jack pushing a wake from a football field is a sight every fly angler should see. Here are summer pushing fish we have caught in the past week or so… Also through in a nice sheepshead and triple tail we ran into as well…
This has definitely been one of the best spring seasons I’ve seen in a while and it’s looking like the good fishing should continue into summer. The fish in the interior marsh have grouped up and a 20 + fish school has been a common occurrence. The temperature is the only problem with this time of year. I recommend starting early in the morning and fishing a half day to beat the heat. The fishing also tends to slow down in the mid-day heat. Here are some pictures and videos from the past month.
With the right conditions it’s hard to beat spring sight fishing for redfish… That being said the weather is not always conducive to what you want to do. Lucky for us when the skies cloud up and the wind picks up, this makes for a perfect topwater situation. Although you can’t see the fish before you cast you will certainly see the fish eat your lure which will still get your heart pumping. It’s common to catch a multitude of trout in the 3-5 lb range and also redfish in the 6-12 lb range. Topwater fishing can turn a bad weather day into a successful day on the water, you just have to be willing to try.
It’s that time of year again when the water warms and the grasses start growing, filtering the water. The interior marsh goes from a milky mess to a sight fisherman’s paradise within only a couple weeks. The season starts around March with a few pockets here and there clearing up. As the grasses continues to grow more and more areas get filtered out opening up new areas to fish. These new areas are where you find the most willing fish to eat. Because they have been living in dirtier water they have experienced little to no pressure. By April we have seemingly endless area to fish. Because of the mild spring temperatures this fishery stays consistent through Mid to late June with fish being active throughout the day. This is a great time of year to get a multitude of opportunities at redfish from the 6-12 lb range. Spring is also the best time to see fish either tailing and backing on shorelines or just floating just inches under the surface. Also with the warmer temps expect to get a couple opportunities at large Aligator gar cruising the flats….
Late February into early March has been pretty good this year. Although the water clarity has been some of the worse I’ve seen at this time of year, luckily the tailing action has continued to be good. The average size of the big fish has been impressive too 28-31 lb range(42-46 in). Probably switching gears to fully spring fishing soon. Looking forward to short runs and backing fish.
It probably only happens a couple days a year but it happens… Light winds and blue bird skies… This makes for some incredible Louisiana fly fishing. The good weather makes areas fish able that otherwise would not be. Good weather mixed with anglers with the ability to get the job done is a recipe for an incredible day…
With the Mississippi River much higher then usual we have had dirty river water invading are normally clear winter big redfish zones. This makes for a tough day to just go target big redfish. Although I will try for a while, at a certain point I just want to catch some fish… Fortunately the little fish in the interior marsh have been very plentiful. Most fish are from 6-10 lbs with a good bit of 11-12lbers and the occasional teener. With all this little fish action already it’s looking like we are going to have a very good spring.
I would consider seeing a 25+lb fish tailing in less than a foot of water one of the greatest sights you could see in the marsh. Now this isn’t something that happens everyday but if you have the right conditions this time of year and you’re in the right spot, your odds go way up. Here are some tailers we have boated in the last month and I can promise you there were many more we did not get a hook in…
Starting in mid November and going through mid March is what I consider Sheepshead season. Not to say there are not sheepies here through the year it’s just easiest to fish for them during these times. This is due to the fact the water in the oyster ponds tend to get very clear during this time. With the water being so clear, this usually affords you the opportunity to get good distance shots on the sheepies. Distance is important for two reasons. First they are spooky and will feel the boat even if it just slightly moves during your cast. Further away you are, less chance of them feeling the boat. Secondly the distance gives you time to entice the fish to eat. Most of the time a sheepshead will not just swim up to the fly and eat, you really have to sell them the fly. 
Although we have had a mild winter, we are still seeing a healthy amount of wintering redfish in the marsh.
There are six classifications of redfish size on my boat and they are …
Little fish – 8 lbs or less
Big little fish – 9-12 lbs
Teener/little big fish – 13-19 lbs
Big fish – 20-25 lbs
Big big fish – 26-29 lbs
JUMBO – 30+ lbs
Jumbos are not easy to come by, but a couple times a year the stars align and and we get a few jumbos in the boat. Here are some from recent trips…
Although most of our customers come down in the fall to target redfish there are many other opportunities on fly… Foster has caught many big redfish on fly so he wanted to do something different. I was all about it… We started in redfish areas passing on “most” redfish to target alligator gar and drum. It didn’t take long to get the drum and after a few missed hooks we got the gar. The next day was shark day. After passing on a school of about 200-300 reds we found where the Sharks were holding. It didn’t take long to get one on the hook.
September is when we start getting very busy. Although the big fish have not moved into the shallows we are still able to target them in open water with the weather permitting(reasonable winds and sunlight)… This will continue usually through mid October when a good cold front pushes the bigger fish shallow. Although we have had some smaller cold fronts this October the majority of the bigger fish have not moved in yet. This mixed with some serious winds have made fishing this month no easy task… Don’t get me wrong, we have had a couple days with great weather that we have had great fishing but over all it’s been tough. We have had to grind it out, luckily we have a very healthy fishery and we can usually fall back inside and chase some smaller fish in protected waters.
Starting in June schools of mullet start moving into Lake Ponchartrain. Following these schools is one of my favorite and most overlooked gamefish, Jack Crevalle aka Marsh tuna aka Jackie boy… With the right conditions the lake clears showing its vast sand flats littered with small grass patches. The jacks cruise up and down the shore crushing bait, pushing wakes, sometimes they just slow swim finning very much like a permit. The season usually starts mid to late June, peaks july – mid sept then tapers off just in time for big redfish season. My go to fly is the white popper pictured below but sometimes we do throw large baitfish patterns. I’d recommend at least a 10 wt rod. If I’m fishing I’m throwing a 12 wt. All jacks can fight our jacks are big and they fight. Average size is 20-30 lbs. Rarely do we see fish under 20.
As usual during February the weather has been somewhat an issue. But as usual when the weather was good the fishing was good. February is still considered prime time for big Redfish in the marsh. The water is still clear and the big fish are still holding in their normal winter spots. What also happens in February is the Sheepshead come in, big ones! These are what we like to call marsh permit. Even if everything is in your favor and you even make the right cast these guys may still refuse your offering. But if you keep at it you will be rewarded…
In November the Louisiana Marsh is known for having big red fish. But Mile Haines couldn’t pass up the opportunity and made a great cast on this trophy sheepshead while it was tailing for crabs.
– Captain Jim Dietz
Starting from the top… Cindy came down and for the 3rd year in a row, nailed some great fishing. This time was especially good timing because we were fishing the redbone, which is a non profit tournament held to raise money for cystic fibrosis. Well we got the big one! 34 lb 46 in red which is actually the biggest redfish ever to be caught in this tournament to date. We were both very excited about it. Next is Christian’s 37 lber which took the title as the heaviest fish caught on fly on my boat during 2014. Good work Christian! The next pictures are of some very happy redfish just being hungry in the marshes of Louisiana.
Boothville-Venice
Last Updated on Dec 2 2019, 10:51 am CST
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