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Welcome to this week’s Louisiana Delta Fishing Report, the weekly local fishing report for New Orleans, Venice, Grand Isle, Shell Beach, and everywhere in between. On this episode, Andre’ Savoie talks with Capt. Matt Fuertes of Grand Isle Outfitters and Capt. Ryan Vincent of Reel Cajun Fishing about a strong early-April pattern across South Louisiana. The episode highlights fast sheepshead action, hungry marsh redfish, an improving trout outlook, and a memorable nearshore cobia catch that shows just how quickly spring opportunities are opening up.
Conditions Recap
South Louisiana is moving deeper into the spring transition, but the pattern still changes fast with every front, windy stretch, and water-level swing. In Grand Isle, trout are showing on the right days, but strong winds are still resetting the bite and keeping things inconsistent. At the same time, sheepshead and redfish have been much steadier, giving anglers reliable action while they wait for the beach trout pattern to fully develop.
In Lafitte, the biggest recent shift has been water level. Ryan Vincent said the return of higher water opened up more of the marsh and immediately improved the fishing, especially for redfish. The best bite has not been everywhere, but where the fish are grouped up, they are feeding aggressively. Trout are starting to show signs of life there too, though still not with the consistency anglers would normally expect this time of year after last year’s freeze impact. Overall, the picture is improving, and more classic spring opportunities are falling into place.
Grand Isle Report: Capt. Matt Fuertes, Grand Isle Outfitters
Capt. Matt Fuertes of Grand Isle Outfitters said the most dependable action in Grand Isle right now has been sheepshead and redfish. Groups have been coming down specifically to target sheepshead, and he described it more as catching than fishing. Around the nearshore rigs and structure in the passes, the bite has been fast and productive, and the recent push of bull reds added even more action over the last several trips. Matt said the trout bite has started to show itself on certain days, but strong winds and unstable spring weather are still interrupting the consistency anglers want to see.
He also shared one of the coolest stories from the episode, a last-minute trip that turned into a giant cobia opportunity. After boxing enough sheepshead for a California group, Matt and another captain started checking satellite rigs and immediately found fish on top. One of those fish turned into a giant cobia that weighed 75.8 pounds, the biggest cobia Matt has ever caught. It was a reminder that this time of year can produce more than just the expected spring inshore species when conditions line up and the water calms down enough to look around.
Matt said one of Grand Isle’s best upcoming patterns will be the beach trout bite. As more fish move toward the beaches over the next month or so, anglers can expect the kind of hot sunrise action that makes Grand Isle famous. He explained that the key is reading the changing beach structure, looking for troughs, breaks, and current movement, then spending enough time on the water to understand how shifting sandbars and storms have changed things. For gear, he noted that their sheepshead trips are often fished on lighter trout rods, which makes those fish especially fun for kids and anyone who enjoys steady action on lighter tackle.
Grand Isle Outfitters also offers more than just the fishing trip itself. Matt said many guests make it a full weekend by coming in the night before, staying on the island, fishing one or two days, and heading home after that. Their all-inclusive option includes lodging and access to a four-bedroom, four-bath condo with amenities that make it especially appealing for families, corporate groups, and anglers who want to turn a fishing trip into a more complete island stay. Book a trip with Grand Isle Outfitters.
Lafitte Report: Capt. Ryan Vincent, Reel Cajun Fishing
Capt. Ryan Vincent of Reel Cajun Fishing said the biggest recent improvement in Lafitte has been the return of high water, which opened up more marsh access and made a noticeable difference in the redfish bite. He said the fish are not spread everywhere right now, but once anglers narrow down the right general areas, they are finding concentrations of fish that are feeding hard. The best redfish pattern has been in ponds and marsh zones still fairly close to the bigger bays rather than deep in the interior. With another front pushing water back out, those fish have also been dropping into slightly deeper nearby water when levels fall.
Ryan said the main forage has been small pogies and finger mullet, with only a few shrimp mixed in. On the bait side, he said market shrimp under a popping cork has remained a reliable option when the water is clean enough to fish that way. On artificials, he highlighted the Z-Man Redfish Toad and the 4-inch Cocahoe Minnow, along with the longtime standby of a black and chartreuse Cocahoe Minnow. He added that gold spoons have not been as strong yet, but he expects that pattern to improve as April progresses and fish key more heavily on that presentation.
Sheepshead have also been a major part of the spring action. Ryan said that on fishable days offshore, anglers can pull up to the first sets of rigs out of Grand Isle, fish a shrimp on a jighead, and catch as many as they want, with many of those fish running in the seven- to eight-pound class. Trout have been less consistent in Lafitte, but he said the situation is slightly better than it was after last year’s freeze, with occasional better days already showing up ahead of the more dependable late-April and May pattern.
One other pattern Ryan broke down was the arrival of big black drum and bull reds in deeper canals and holes. He said anglers using a depth finder to locate 25- to 30-foot holes in deeper waterways can soak cracked crab on a Carolina rig and find oversized fish stacked up in places many people would overlook. That bite should only get more consistent as April moves closer to May. Book a trip with Reel Cajun Fishing.
