Keith Lusher Jr Conventional wisdom would have you believe that the salinity in Lake Pontchartrain has taken a hit due to the west winds that have plagued the area this past summer. But according to the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation, the salinity is surged upwards of 10 PPT (Parts Per Thousand) in the month of August. This is in stark contrast compared to the salinity levels measured at this same time last year. An archived Hydrocoast Map that monitors the salinity levels in the Lake shows salinty levels at the Twin Spans in Slidell at 5 PPT in August of 2014. Salinity levels for the month of August this year show a measurement of 10 PPT at the same location. This is fantastic news for the saltwater community who fishes the Lake for speckled trout, flounder, and redfish. John Guilliot has been concentrating his efforts on Sac-au-lait this month but couldn’t help but notice how far the salt water has pushed up into the Pearl River.
Greg Guillot On a sac-au-lait trip near the Wastehouse on the East Pearl River, John and his brother came across a redfish patrolling the shoreline. “We both saw the fish - I reacted quicker and pulled my shiner out of the way just in time to see the gills pop and Greg's shiner disappear. After the hook-up the fish moved into 20+ feet of water. I had to stand by the trolling motor to chase the fish enough so Greg could get some line back,” John says. Several times Greg’s spool almost ran out of line during the fight. “Those mini-spin type spinning reels have zero line capacity and the redfish put him extremely close to the last wrap a couple of times. After the landing, we looked at the line on the jig pole and it was ruined -twisted up to a point of no return,” John says. While the water at the Wastehouse is still fresh, John says he thinks the saltwater coming upriver has improved the bait in that area, “The observations I'm seeing this summer leads me to believe that there is much more saltwater bait fish than I am used to seeing. Crabs too! I can only assume the reds followed the food," John says.
Hydracoast Map courtesy of the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation
Salt Bayou Still Top Option
The Salt Bayou area including the W14 canal that runs along Hwy 433 has been one of the most consistent areas for producing limits of bass this month. Chris Hood came all the way from Baton Rouge to fish the hot-spot in Slidell. “My brother and I had a chance to fish the W14 canal area and we had a blast! We started fishing at daylight and finished until around lunch time,” The team ended the day with 15 keeper bass and says during the heat it’s important to get an early start. “The early morning bite was great! We caught most of our fish early. By 10:00 a.m. the bite had pretty much stopped,” Hood says.
Freshwater Vegetation
Patrick Engerran If you haven’t noticed, the freshwater vegetation in the rivers and bayous on the Northshore has been thicker than normal. Tournament angler Patrick Engerran says that the growth he’s seeing is good news for bass fishing. “In the last year or two, everywhere we fish, the grass is coming back really good. If we can go another year or two without a storm there’s going to be some wonderful spots,” Engerran says. On his last trip to Bayou Bonfouca Patrick says he’s noticed more vegetation extending from land when fishing his usual spots. “Last year the grass in a spot I fished was 10-15 ft. back from where it is now. So, from where that grass comes out there’s still water underneath it which makes for some really excellent cover for bass,” Patrick says.
