Captain's Log Reports & Pictures

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Hopedale High Winds Slow Fishing Trip,

Today Brandon and I left out of Hopedale early to beat the heat and to get some fishing in since the weather appeared moderate. The tide was falling all morning but the fishing was slow for the most part. All of the anglers we observed were doing little but catching catfish, except one nearby boat that was able to put a few redfish aboard. This gave me the idea to throw the cast net to catch some mullet which were very prevalent in the water and one of the favorite snacks for big redfish. After two casts I netted a few mullet and proceed to cut them into nice fist-size chunks. Thereafter I rigged one of the poles with high line capacity for bottom fishing with a Carolina rig and pitched it southbound. It wasn’t long before the pole bent in two and the line started screaming out with reckless abandonment. I lifted the rod tip and set the hook and handed it over to Brandon to work out on it, seeing this was a large fish and he’d be the better muscle than me to fight with it. The redfish was a brute, running line out intermittently and one time around the anchor rope which we maneuvered around and got it free. It didn’t take long for Brandon to wrestle it to the landing net where I scooped it up with much effort and placed it on the deck where it lay in exhaustion from the brutal battle. Besides one flounder this redfish filled the 95 qt ice chest weighting in at an estimated 45 pounds. We came in soon after as the winds were getting heavier by the minute and the tide was getting dangerously low for a trip back through the marsh. Specs were very scarce today and one angler group we spoke to used live shrimp and only caught 6 of them. When I told him we had a redfish that was a big as the 95 qt. ice chest he later beckoned to see it. When I lifted it to show it off, he was astounded.

Good fishin’,
Jerrylabella.com/forums

Brandon smiles with pleasure showing off this bull redfish he caught

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Wind-Blown, No Water, Few Fish, Jonah Aboard Hopedale Report,

Today Ernie, Brandon (AKA Jonah) and I left out of Breton Sound Marina while still dark to beat the heat and crowd (still plenty boats out, however). When arriving at the end of the short rocks of MRGO, winds were a bit higher than we expected which put a damper on fishing the Bay Eloi side (East side). After fishing with white Berkley Gulps tipped with shrimp snippets and clicking egg corks along with various other lures, both tight-lined and corked, the only thing obliging were “slime dogs” (Gafftops and hardhead catfish)… and the winds were picking up to at least 20-25 mph adding to the misery . One thing I learned after fishing for over 50 years, when catfish are on the rampage, look at the tide: it was slow and very low. We moved all over the place, even fishing some dive-bombing sea gulls which were very few, only to yield more catfish and a very few and small amount of undersized trout. We at first though it may have been “Jonah” who came along for the first time, but after he asked around at the launch to clear his nickname, others said it was a pitiful day of fishing. We came back with 2 sheepshead, 1 black drum, 3 trout and was back at the launch around elevenish.

Good fishin’,
Jerrylabella.om/forums

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Pre-Bonnie Trout Hit Hopedale,

Today I left out of Hopedale early to beat the incoming bad weather from tropical storm Bonnie. I figured if this storm comes in and pushes oil with it, we won’t be fishing for a good while. Weather was calm with an incoming tide. There were more boats than I figured would show up, but then again all fishermen think alike. Fishing the rocks jetties with white Berkley gulps under a clicking egg cork, I managed to get into a good trout bite. I must of caught 35 trout and kept 15. At one point I was catching 2 at the time. There were some boats fishing nearby but they left and when they did, the fishing turned on. I was back at the launch at 10 am and got caught in some rain on the way in.

Good fishin’,
Jerrylabella.com/forums

[administrator]

Backyard Blue Crab Extravaganza,


Today Brandon and I left out of the William's Blvd boat launch to crab the Parish Line Canal at Lake Pontchartrain. We initially had planned to fish Hopedale but the nub-skull weatherman had it 70% chance of rain so we switched plans. No problem! We had nothin' short of an outrageous blast knocking out blue crabs on only turkey necks and string from a 16ft. flatboat-- not to mention a few Bud Lights to cool us down under the outdoor umbrella kept aboard. A very few boats out in the area given the good weather conditions. Crabs are eating up right now and we caught a 48 quart Igloo ice chest full with no ice in it. We were finished and back at the launch for 10 am with a view to “crab-boil city” for that evening. NOTE: Crabin in this is area for us is literally in our backyard.


Brandon is all smiles showing off this box of blue crabs we had to settle for instead of a Hopedale fishing trip-- due to a bad weather forecast. No one complained, however!

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Hopedale Breton Sound MRGO Slam,


Today Henry, Chris, and I left out of Hopedale early to beat the rush at the launch and headed to the MRGO. Weather was perfect with an incoming tide all morning. Plenty boats out as a result. Our first stop was dive-bombing seagulls chasing shrimp escaping the jaws of hungry keeper-size specs. Every case we all had fish on, putting a quick mess of trout in the ice chest within 35 minutes before they diminished. We headed further down the MRGO and fished the rocks not far from the end of the rocks where more seagulls where nailing shrimp with trout underneath. Trout in this area were larger with hardly a throw back. While fishing and landing trout, I hooked into a bull redfish which tied me up longer than I wanted to be as I missed catching the trout and had to halt the others aboard from fishing to prevent tangled lines. The heat was horrendous with no clouds to block the sun and, to top it off, little or no wind. We all fished white Berkley Gulps 3 inch under clicking egg corks and ¼ oz. screw jig heads 36 inches down. We discovered that after the sun heated the water, the trout moved away from the rocks and were hitting 60 ft. from them. Many other boats stopped catching as the morning aged because they persisted in fishing close to the rocks. Early morning bite is very good and you need to get out early to both beat the heat and to get them while they're biting. Many workers with the oil spill clustered the roadways heading into the area. We left the fish biting around 9:30 am, happy with an ice chest of pretty fish.


Good fishin',
jerrylabella.com/forums


Chris and Henry smile as they show off the catch

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Hopedale MRGO Early Hit,


Today Brandon and I left out of Hopedale to get an early start on fishing the MRGO under perfect weather conditions – baring the heat-- with a good incoming tide. An unbelievable amount of fishing boats and oil-spill workers were on the road delaying the launching-- beside the free fishing week – it was a fiasco to say the least. We started fishing with white 3 inch Berkley Gulps under clicking corks tipped with fresh shrimp snippets. Action started fast but ended as the morning approached 10 am. Boats lined the rocks as far as the eye could see and left as fast as they came when the fishing slowed downed. It looked like a Mardi Gras line up. As unusual, plenty throw-back trout. Brandon had a great trip, catching trout as a pro. When the rock fishing slowed, we fished Bay Eloi and saw many dive-bombing birds eating up shrimp escaping hungry undersized-speckled trout jaws. Action was not as good as last week, but we managed to put together enough fish for a small fish fry. We headed in early before the crowd made it back to the launch and turned it into another fiasco.


Good fishin',
jerrylabella.com/forums

Brandon shows off 2 of the specs we caught in the MRGO

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Hopedale Solo Trip In MRGO,


A cancellation and good weather and tide sent me on my way today solo. No problem, was able to knock out fish without any assistance. Plenty boats on the water, however, and all were catching fish-- at least those near me. No use in bragging then... Using Berkley Gulp white and New Penney on clicking cork with shrimp snipits ( fresh shrimp clipped in small pieces with scissors for keeping the shell in tact on the hook) I managed to limit out before 10 am on specs. Mixed catch included white trout and one giant sheepshead. I threw back 15 undersized specs and have to admit that I got into a good bite under dive-bombing seagulls again with keeper trout. It helped me get a head start on the trout limit before they petered out around 10 AM. Left the area around 10:30 am and got checked by the LWDF, but all was in compliance. Make sure you have registration with you not to mention all else.


Good fishin',
jerrylabella.com/forums

[administrator]

Memorial Day MRGO Mixed Catch,


Nolan and I left out of Hopedale to fish the MRGO rocks under very calm conditions with an all-day incoming tide. The forecast called for 40% chance of rain, but that was fine with us since it would provide a relief from the heat. We used Berkley Gulps in 3 inch white tipped with fresh shrimp under corks and the fishing started slow. We caught trout, reds, flounder and croaker. It wasn't until we noticed dive-bombing seagulls in a certain location along the rocks that we got into a good bite of keeper-size specks. It was a real challenge, however, as there was an approaching storm producing strong winds from the opposite direction making it difficult to maneuver the boat within good casting range without running into the rocks. We boated a good mess of specs before we headed inside to wait out the storm in a safer area. We ended the day with a nice box of mixed fish. There were a good number of boats in the area but most left when the first storm came in.


Good fishin',
jerrylabella.com/forums

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Hopedale MRGO Knockout Trip,


Today Dave and I left out Hopedale to fish the MRGO rocks. Weather was very nice and overcast with decent tidal movement. First stop was dive-bombing seagulls eating up jumping shrimp escaping hungry trout jaws. We caught a nice mess of keeper-size specs and moved toward our destination-- the MRGO rocks. After checking out a few locations, we found a good bite using Berkley Gulps in white under clicking eggs corks tipped with shrimp. We caught a mixture of trout, croaker, reds and drum. Some of the specs were 4 pounds. Plenty boats out today fishing the rocks. We left before noon with a nice ice chest full of fish.


Good fishin',
jerrylabella.com/froums


Dave shows off some of the MRGO specs

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Hopedale Inside MRGO Trip,


Today Arthur and I left out of Hopedale to fish the MRGO after a late notice that the area was reopened. The weather was nice and the tide was high with expected rain fall as a front was predicted to move through. Our first stop yielded sailtop catfish as we stopped to fish dive-bombing seagulls in route to the MRGO. Our second stop we started catching white trout under clicking egg corks and chartreuse sparkle beetles tipped with shrimp. After moving around looking for redfish, we finally got on a spot where flounder and red fish were obliging, but we did get rained on when the front came over us. We ended the day with a mess of trout, 10 flounder and 8 redfish. Very few boats out today and the LDWF was making sure no one fished out side of the opening zones.


Good fishin',
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Arthur smiles with pleasure as he shows off a redfish and flounder caught inside the MRGO