Now that Edouard is out of the picture, Cocodrie is coming back to life--clean water, diving birds, calm seas, and lots and lots of braggin-sized specked trout all along the beach at Last Island.

“We want to tell everybody that all of the fish coming from that area right now are definitely braggin-sized, and putting a full legal limit of ‘em in your boat this weekend is not out of the question!” Capt. Ryan Folse boasted a little as he off-loaded today’s catch in front of the isolated groups of dockside fishermen waiting to leave Coco Marina for the fishing grounds.  

“Just make sure that whenever you fish down here for the next couple of weeks, you got a Carolina rig tied on and you're using live baby croakers for bait.  Then all you do is find out where they're schooled up by finding the flocks of feeding gulls.  It’s almost routine biology!”

Most of the trout we caught Thursday all ranged between 18 and 24 inches.  In fact, in a full 6 hours of fishing, there wasn’t a single fish in the pack that we had to throw back. 

“But there’s definitely a big difference between whether you catch a mess of trout to take home or end up with a water haul at the end of the trip,” Capt. Ryan technically explained.  “Most of the time when you’re fishing the beach, for either speckled trout or redfish, you generally anchor off the breakers about 25 to 30 yards and cast towards the beach into the surf.  But that’s not how it’s working right now!

“Yes, you still anchor about 25 to 30 yards off the breakers. . .but instead of casting toward the beach, cast instead outward towards the open gulf.  I don’t know why, but that’s where the trout seem to be staging.  In fact, that’s where we caught every dad-gummed fish we put in the boat today.  Don’t try to analyze it, just do it!”

Live bait is definitely a must.  They’ll accept a big, juicy Cocohoe minnow. But they unmistakably prefer a live—and a lively!—baby croaker.  Simply make your cast and just let it sit!  No jerking, no popping, no twitching, no nothing!  Just let it set!  These hungry trout will definitely find the bait in short order, and when they do. . .!

“Yeah, but you need to fish ‘em the right way,” Capt. Ryan chimed back in.  “As you would with all live bait, restrain yourself and wait for the trout to pick up the croaker and tighten the line, kinda like it was gonna swim away with it.  Trout need to mouth the bait, turn it around in their mouths so that they swallow it head first, and then begin swallowing it.

“If you get too excited and over anxious and attempt to set the hook at the initial bite, you’re only gonna pull the bait and your hook out of the fish’s mouth.  However, if you do, then pause the retrieve and wait for the trout to come back and attempt to eat the croaker one more time.  This scenario happens all the time.  The only time it doesn’t happen is when the fish has actually felt the sting of the barb and has become instinctively reluctant to try eating the bait again.”

While these trout will bite virtually all day long, the absolute best time to fish is early morning at sunrise, especially if sunrise accompanies a good tide. 

Just a safety note here: The month of August can be especially brutal out on open water in the Gulf of Mexico.  Almost every day the heat index is in the triple digits.  According, on every trip until mid-October, bring along lots of water, wear a wide-brimmed hat, spray on several coats of SPF-40 sunscreen, and forget the “macho” image.  If you get hot, stop and take appropriate action to cool down again.  Heat stroke and heat exhaustion are nothing to play with!

Generally this late in the summer season, most of Coco Marina’s top guides are totally booked through the remainder of the year; but Capt. Ryan did confide that he does have a few unscheduled days left on his calendar.

“They’re first come, first serve though, Frank,” he said.  “So if you want me to take you out, find these guys, and put you on them, then get to me right after you finish reading this paragraph.  Remember how the old expression goes: If you snooze you lose!”

The best way to contact Capt. Ryan is to call Coco Marina direct at 985-594-6626.

Next week it’s back to the Rigolets and Lake Saint Catherine with Capt. Kenny Kreeger in search of sanctuary trout, reds, flounder, drum, and sheepshead.  I’ll fill you in firsthand on what’s going on the very moment I set foot back on dry land at Rigolets Marina.

In the meantime, be cautious and careful out there.  And tight lines and good times to ‘ya!

Frank Davis