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This week’s Louisiana Delta Fishing Report features host Andre’ Savoie with two spring fishing reports from different parts of Southeast Louisiana. The episode starts in Cocodrie with Capt. Aaron Benfield of A B Charters Cocodrie, who breaks down a strong speckled trout and redfish bite around Cocodrie, Dulac, the outer bays, islands, and nearby rigs.
Andre’ then heads down the river to Venice with Capt. Jace Oulliber of Off The Grid Charter Co., who shares an update on one of the better spring trout bites Venice has seen in the last few years, along with early red snapper action, triple tail opportunities, and what he expects from the redfish bite as the tide phase improves.
The big theme this week is that spring fishing is setting up well across Southeast Louisiana, but wind and weather still decide the plan. Cocodrie is giving anglers shorter runs to trout in the outer bays and islands, while Venice continues to offer a wide range of options for speckled trout, snapper, redfish, and triple tail when conditions allow.
Conditions Recap
Across both reports, wind remains the key factor. In Cocodrie, Capt. Aaron Benfield says calm weather opens the door to the outer bays, islands, beaches, and nearby rigs where the trout bite has been outstanding. When the wind makes the open water uncomfortable, he can adjust by fishing behind islands, on the beach with the right wind direction, or back in the marsh when higher south winds push enough water into those areas.
Capt. Aaron says the spring pattern arrived early after a mild winter, and he was able to put together good trout trips as early as March. April brought rougher weather and fewer windows to fish, but when he has been able to get out, the bite has been strong. He says the trout fishing has been much better than last year, and the redfish bite has also improved after a couple of slower years following Hurricane Ida and drought-related changes.
In Venice, Capt. Jace Oulliber says the speckled trout bite has been strong on both the east and west sides of the Mississippi River, with the east side, Breton Island, and Breton Sound being important areas when the wind allows. Red snapper season is also open in Louisiana, and Jace says the early-season snapper bite has been good around rigs in roughly 40 feet of water or more. As fishing pressure builds, he expects those closer fish to get smarter and anglers may need to adjust.
Cocodrie Fishing Report
Capt. Aaron Benfield of A B Charters Cocodrie fishes out of Cocodrie, Louisiana, an area south of Houma that gives anglers access to inshore marsh, outer bays, islands, beaches, nearshore rigs, and the Gulf. He says one of the advantages of Cocodrie is that anglers do not always have to make long runs to find speckled trout. In late summer and fall, he has caught trout as close as five minutes from the marina, and this time of year many of his trout runs are still only around 20 to 30 minutes.
The speckled trout bite has been the standout story. Capt. Aaron says the last month has been outstanding, and when the wind is calm enough, he is heading toward the outer bays and islands to stay on those fish. He believes the trout spawned well last year, and the fishery is showing better numbers this season than it did after last year’s difficult freeze-related pattern.
For trout, Capt. Aaron has been fishing double rigs tight-lined and also using slip corks. The slip cork setup lets him fish water up to around 10 feet deep without putting the bait directly on bottom. That helps keep shrimp off the bottom, cuts down on snags and catfish, and lets the bait work higher in the water column around rigs and other structure.
The redfish bite has also improved. Capt. Aaron says the redfishing was slower for a couple of years after Hurricane Ida and the drought, but it has been much better recently. When south winds push water high enough, he can get into the marsh and target redfish there. He also talked about how redfish color changes depending on water clarity and salinity, with some marsh fish showing deep reddish and golden colors while fish closer to the beach or dirtier, saltier water may look more silver.
Capt. Aaron also touched on bull red opportunities around Cocodrie, especially in the fall, when the action can be extremely strong. In the past, cracked crabs have been a productive bull red bait in the area. He also mentioned spring nearshore fishing around rigs for sheepshead, mangroves, and the occasional cobia. On one recent trip, a cobia showed up in only about 10 feet of water while the crew was sheepshead fishing, and it ate a dead shrimp.
For anglers who want to make a full trip out of Cocodrie, Capt. Aaron fishes out of Coco Marina, which he describes as one of the nicest marinas in the state. He points to the raised property, restaurant, rooms, camps, pool, bar, security, and overall convenience as part of what makes the area a strong fishing destination, not just a place to launch a boat.
To book a trip, visit A B Charters Cocodrie or follow Capt. Aaron Benfield on Facebook.
Venice Fishing Report
Capt. Jace Oulliber of Off The Grid Fishing and Off The Grid Charter Co. checks in from Venice, where he says speckled trout fishing has been off the charts this spring. He calls it one of the better spring trout bites in the last couple of years, with fish showing up on both the east and west sides of the river.
Capt. Jace has been spending a lot of time on the east side of the Mississippi River, including the Breton Island and Breton Sound areas, when the wind allows him to get there. He says the trout bite usually only gets truly difficult in January and February, especially when the river rises and cold fronts are still moving through. Once late winter gives way to spring, he can usually find and catch trout somewhere for much of the rest of the year.
Venice is also producing red snapper now that Louisiana’s season has opened. Capt. Jace is fishing from a Blackjack bay boat, and when conditions are calm enough, he can add snapper to the trip after trout fishing. Early in the season, he says red snapper are widespread, and anglers can often catch them around rigs past about 40 feet of water. As more boats start fishing those areas, he expects the fish in shallower, easier-to-reach spots to get more pressured and harder to fool.
The redfish bite has been a little tougher recently, but Capt. Jace expects that to change as the tide phase improves. He says the recent tide has not been ideal, but Venice has enough water and enough options that the redfish pattern should turn around soon. He also says triple tail are starting to show up, and when the weather allows, he has been able to mix in triple tail and snapper opportunities along with trout.
Flounder are being caught here and there, but Capt. Jace says they are more of an accidental catch right now. He expects flounder to become a more realistic target later in the year, especially around August and September when they show up better in the river.
The Venice takeaway is that the fishery is in a strong spring pattern, but the best trips still come down to flexibility. If the wind allows, Capt. Jace can run to trout water, add snapper, look for triple tail, or shift gears as conditions change. That range of options is one of the reasons he says Venice is such a special place for serious fishermen.
To book a trip, visit Off The Grid Charter Co., follow Off The Grid Fishing on Facebook, or follow Capt. Jace Oulliber.
