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Saltwater Saturday: Speckled Trout, Redfish Bite Hot in New Orleans Marshes and Pontchartrain
Published 1 year ago
Description
This is Artificial Lure with your on-the-spot Gulf of Mexico fishing report for the waters around New Orleans on this fine Saturday, April 19, 2025.
Sun’s breaking the horizon this morning at 6:28 AM, with another long day of fishing ahead until sunset at 7:30 PM. The tides are running slack for most of the day, with a low tide peaking right around midday at 12:05 PM, a drop to about half a foot. That means your best action is likely to happen in the few hours around first light and again late this afternoon when water movement picks back up. If you’re wading out or bouncing the shorelines, plan to hit it early before that low rolls in, or stick around for the evening bite as things start shifting again[1][3][5].
Weather’s setting up classic springtime New Orleans—starting off a little sticky, with some lingering humidity, light southern winds, and a gentle warm-up as the day goes on. This kind of weather’s got speckled trout and redfish moving out of deeper winter holes and back onto grass flats, oyster reefs, and marsh cuts. Reports from the past week say the bites have been steady. Anglers working the Lake Pontchartrain bridges and marsh drains east of Chef Pass have been hauling in solid numbers of keeper specks and slot reds, with a few flounder and sheepshead showing up in the mix.
If you want to home in on some hot action, check Bayou Bienvenue and the MRGO rocks, plus the Lake Borgne shorelines—both have been holding schools of redfish cruising the edges and plenty of specks pushing white shrimp. On calmer days, the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway pilings are still giving up some hefty trout, especially near moving water and structure.
For lures, you can’t go wrong with chartreuse and glow plastics or paddle tails under popping corks—try Vudu Shrimp or Matrix Shad for trout, and Gulp! Swimming Mullet or gold spoons for reds. Live shrimp or market bait on a Carolina rig is still a favorite if you want to soak a line and wait for a big bite. Early risers pitching topwater plugs—like a MirrOlure She Dog or Skitter Walk—should see some heart-racing blowups right at daybreak.
Fish smart, work moving water, and don’t forget to keep an eye out for birds diving and bait jumping—nature’s signpost to hungry fish. Tight lines, y’all!
This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
This episode includes AI-generated content.
Sun’s breaking the horizon this morning at 6:28 AM, with another long day of fishing ahead until sunset at 7:30 PM. The tides are running slack for most of the day, with a low tide peaking right around midday at 12:05 PM, a drop to about half a foot. That means your best action is likely to happen in the few hours around first light and again late this afternoon when water movement picks back up. If you’re wading out or bouncing the shorelines, plan to hit it early before that low rolls in, or stick around for the evening bite as things start shifting again[1][3][5].
Weather’s setting up classic springtime New Orleans—starting off a little sticky, with some lingering humidity, light southern winds, and a gentle warm-up as the day goes on. This kind of weather’s got speckled trout and redfish moving out of deeper winter holes and back onto grass flats, oyster reefs, and marsh cuts. Reports from the past week say the bites have been steady. Anglers working the Lake Pontchartrain bridges and marsh drains east of Chef Pass have been hauling in solid numbers of keeper specks and slot reds, with a few flounder and sheepshead showing up in the mix.
If you want to home in on some hot action, check Bayou Bienvenue and the MRGO rocks, plus the Lake Borgne shorelines—both have been holding schools of redfish cruising the edges and plenty of specks pushing white shrimp. On calmer days, the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway pilings are still giving up some hefty trout, especially near moving water and structure.
For lures, you can’t go wrong with chartreuse and glow plastics or paddle tails under popping corks—try Vudu Shrimp or Matrix Shad for trout, and Gulp! Swimming Mullet or gold spoons for reds. Live shrimp or market bait on a Carolina rig is still a favorite if you want to soak a line and wait for a big bite. Early risers pitching topwater plugs—like a MirrOlure She Dog or Skitter Walk—should see some heart-racing blowups right at daybreak.
Fish smart, work moving water, and don’t forget to keep an eye out for birds diving and bait jumping—nature’s signpost to hungry fish. Tight lines, y’all!
This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
This episode includes AI-generated content.