Keith Lusher 10.23.24
Right here in Southeast Louisiana, we are inclined to fish days with a powerful tidal vary. A powerful tide tends to maneuver baitfish round, which results in energetic, feeding fish. However what about days when the tidal forecast is scheduled to be underneath 0.5 toes?
I made a visit with Danny Hunter of New Orleans Finest Charters to Lake Borgne the place we discovered ourselves in that very state of affairs.
Our day began earlier than daybreak. I met Hunter at Rigolet’s Marina in Slidell, and after a 20-minute boat trip to the Japanese Shoreline of Lake Borgne, we had been casting simply because the solar peeked over the horizon.
It appeared like the right day. The forecast was for a excessive of 75 levels with no probability of rain. Forecasted winds had been 8-10 MPH. However as we fished, it turned painfully apparent that the dearth of tide was going to be an issue for us on at the present time. We tried all of Hunter’s spots and simply couldn’t discover any signal of life within the water. “It’s all lifeless! I don’t see any baitfish motion. No floor motion. It’s simply lifeless out right here,” Hunter stated. Along with the meager tidal vary, the winds had been calm, which wasn’t serving to with water motion. “Typically, when there’s no water motion, yow will discover canals the place the wind can be shifting the water,” Hunter stated.
With no wind or tide, Hunter put collectively a plan. “On days like this, I like to recollect spots which have super present throughout a traditional tidal vary,” he stated. “These are the spots which will simply be the ‘solely present on the town’ on days like this.”
We ran out of Lake Borgne and into Bayou Bienvenue. After a 10-minute boat trip north, Hunter pointed to the large wall often known as the Wall of Chalmette. The wall was constructed after Hurricane Katrina and spans 2 miles alongside the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet (MRGO) and the Intracoastal Waterway (ICW).
The 25-foot tall concrete wall accommodates two locks that permit ships to go by means of. “There’s all the time water shifting by means of these man-made openings within the wall, so on days with a light-weight tide, I do know there’ll nonetheless be water flowing by means of these openings,” Hunter stated. Positive sufficient, as we pulled as much as the opening, the water was falling by means of the lock.
As we scanned the realm, we noticed baitfish being chased throughout the water floor, after which a shrimp skipped close to the boat. Hunter forged out and began bouncing a 3.5-inch Finger Lure (Plastic shad) rigged on a drop-shot rig. Earlier than I might make my first forged, he reared again and set the hook. “There he’s! They’re right here,” he stated.
Hunter reeled in a 15-inch speckled trout and the route was on! We sat in that one spot close to the opening within the wall and caught 30 speckled trout earlier than midday and it was all as a result of Hunter’s transfer to an space the place he knew there can be water shifting. “Typically you possibly can take a nasty state of affairs and use it to get rid of water,” he stated. “If the water is lifeless as a result of there isn’t any wind or tide, it could be as straightforward as discovering one spot with shifting water that results in success.”
